Stacy Horn

Because I was sick as a dog for the holidays I’ve decided to make the next four days a holiday do-over. Today is Christmas Eve, tomorrow Christmas, then Sunday is New Years Eve and Monday is New Years Day.

I’m not going to make a big production out of it or anything. For instance, for Christmas Eve, right now I’m listening to Amahl and the Night Visitors. It always brings back some of my fondest memories of childhood. I can remember sitting in my bedroom, listening to this, and waiting so anxiously for Christmas to be here already. My grandparents always came in from Queens and spent the night, and they always gave us clothes, which of course was a disappointment. I didn’t hold it against them. I thought it was a rule or something. Grandparents gives clothes. It’s not their fault.

Who knew it would become my favorite gift when I grew up?? (Tied with food.) I love this graffiti dress! Not for me, but it’s very cute. It’s Cynthia Rowley, whose clothes turn out to be relatively affordable. This dress is $410.

I’m going to call the Hoxie descendent this morning. I’m scared. I’m always scared making these phone calls. You never know how people will react, and I feel like a ghoul. I’m hoping this will be okay, because I’m calling about an Aunt who died 26 years before he was born.

Ream had only one sibling, a younger brother named Ralph and I lucked out and found him. He died in 1973, but he had two children, one who died last year (sadly) but it looks like his son is still alive and living in Connecticut. I’m going to try to call him tomorrow.

I went uptown to take a picture of the building where Ream died. On the subway uptown I planned all the things I’d say to try to gain entrance to the building so I could do a before and after, using the crime scene photograph below. But where the building once stood is now a park. Maybe that’s better.

UPDATE: Ream Constance Hoxie update here.

There was a murder that I mentioned very briefly in The Restless Sleep that I never forgot. I chose not to research it for various reasons, but I’ve decided to make it an ongoing project now. I’m pretty sure I’ve posted about here before. I’m going to find out what I can about the victim, and I’m also going to see if I can track down her family (or rather, the descendants of her family). Maybe I should call this project Resurrecting Ream Constance Hoxie/Hoxsie. Her name was often misspelled as Hoxsie so I’m always going to include both (for search reasons). Here’s what little I know.

Ream was murdered in her home on West 89th Street on a Monday, February 2, 1920, somewhere between 3 and 3:30 in the afternoon. She was only 17 years old. She was hit in the head with a hammer seven times, shattering her skull. It must have been pretty bad. The detectives in their notes repeatedly refer to the savagery of it and 1920 was a brutal year. 215 people were murdered that year in New York and another 38 were killed in a bombing on Wall Street. (People have been trying to blow up New York and New Yorkers for a long time.)

The killer then dragged Ream across the floor, flung her on the bed, and raised her dress and lowered her under garments. The police reports do not say what happened next, except that there may be evidence that she was “mistreated.” (Like bashing her skull in wasn’t proof that she’d been mistreated already.)

The only suspect was a thin, dark haired, 35 year old man who had answered an ad for a room. Ream’s father and step-mother rented rooms in the building. In fact, Ream was found by one of the roomers, a teacher named Sarah Reeves. Ream’s step-mother, a performer, was in New Orleans at the time, and her father, an auto mechanic, was at work in Queens. Miss Reeves found Ream in a darkened room, kneeling before the bed, her upper body resting on the mattress. I guess resting in not the right word. This man had knocked on the door 3pm. Ream didn’t answer, but a janitress who worked in the building let him in.

This is a picture of the hallway leading up to the room where Ream was found. (More below.)

I debated about whether or not to post about this here or on my Restless Sleep blog. I decided the Restless Sleep people might not be interested in the ongoing search aspect of it. So I’ll post the results there when I have them, and post about the hunt here.

UPDATE: Ream Constance Hoxie update here.

I’m putting together a to-do list now. I will post that when I have it because maybe some fellow research buffs might like to join me in the search.

If I can get motivated, but so far I’ve been unable to work up the energy. Some sort of post traumatic cat-illness disorder? Maybe I’ll go tomorrow. Yeah, that might make more sense. I can put more hours in tomorrow.

I’m so sad about Simon leaving American Idol. I was sad about Paula, and now this? There is absolutely no point to watching without Simon.

For the first time in two months, Buddy has actually gained weight! He weighs 14 and a half pounds. At his last two monthly visits he weighed 13 pounds. “He does look really boney,” the vet said, I think to make me feel better about being so wrong about his weight.

Bottomline, the vet was not alarmed about the diarrhea that’s been lasting so long. He gave me a new medication called metronidazole that tasted so bad Buddy was running around the apartment foaming at the mouth. There’s a pharmacist nearby who flavors cat medications to taste like tuna, so I’m going to take it to them. The vet also encouraged me to continue the transition to raw food. So I feel better. I’ve got things to do to address the problem.

Buddy is drinking water almost non-stop now, as pictured. Oh, he just went to the bathroom. Still very loose.