I haven't had much time lately to really let my mind wander about the events leading up to the murder of Marian Louise Baker, but today, during a very long drive from far on the Eastern Shore back up to Dewey Beach I did a bit of thinking again....
I still am stuck on WHY Marian would get in a car with a man she verbally claimed "made her sick".
I keep going back to the testimony of Mrs. Nancy Stonesifer, her coworker in the Cashier's Office at F & M. She testified that Marian had returned from lunch, never even removed her coat as she sat down briefly at her desk, and commented that she wished she didn't have to go to the bank since she was suddenly swamped with work. She said she was worried that she wouldn't make her hair appointment, which was scheduled for late afternoon, around the supper hour.
Now WHY would Marian suddenly be so relaxed and have so much free time that she would agree to go for a ride with Ed Gibbs so far out of the way of the college?
Ed Gibbs testified that when he finally stopped the car near the Harnish cottage, the last thing Marian said to him, immediately before he reached over and started to strangle her, was the
"scenery looked pretty". None of this makes one lick of sense. Not one bit.
I can't explain it, but there is FAR more to the story than we have been told. And I aim to find out what it is.
I guess I'm back on the case! :)
Friday, August 28, 2009
It's 4:30 a.m. And I'm Awake?
This is what happens when you go to bed at 9 pm! ;)
I've been up since 3.....
I haven't done much research this past week, due to work demands. It's not a bad thing as far as the business is concerned, there have been some incredible changes and "upgrades" the past two weeks that have made it almost impossible to eek out some time for the computer.
The business has gone in a few new directions and I'm loving it! I'm exhausted, but I'm loving it! lol
That break that I was hoping to take once mid-September hit won't be happening this year.
My classes start the second week of September and I have a few new clients that will need our services on weekends, despite the end of the Summer Rush.
Sundays will be my days to travel, at least in the earliest part of Fall. I will also be trying to rearrange some weekdays to hit the road to PA and other environs.
I won't bore you all with the details, but we've been restructuring our property management/cleaning service/concierge services business and it's pretty exciting! Sometimes things just fall into your lap. I would like to think that in reality, it's a result of the hard work, planning and contacts that we've made along the way. But it could just be providence :)
It's also very important to remove the "fences" in your mind. If you exist with an underlying sense of having or doing or living with no hole in your fence to grow, expand, or allow incredible successful gains, you'll pretty much stay in the same place, having what you have and nothing more.
I guess there's a hole in my fence! :)
I'm not materialistic. I enjoy the personal satisfaction of seeing the business grow as much as any financial growth.
I've also noted the start of my Fall "nesting" behaviors. I've rearranged furniture, deep cleaned, got all of my tart warmers ready for my Fall smells... I love Fall!
I'll be starting the Halloween decorating here by the end of September. I don't do the "cutesy" Halloween stuff. The creepier, the better.
I have a collection of witches that I cherish. That is usually on display all year. I have black spider web drapes that are up as I type.
My daughter has gifted me many times with the neatest Halloween pieces. I haven't found the time yet, over the years to create my Halloween Town. Maybe this year I'll get it started.
I have some notes about a Halloween Town, made of ceramic lit houses, spooky churches, graveyards, barren trees, etc. I haven't really decided where in the house it would be displayed.
I have plenty of room but I need to be able to access it to add to it, modify it, etc.
I may take pictures of the process and post them. We can all share the growth of Halloween Town :)
Well, it's time for more coffee. I may be back to post a bit more before I leave for work.
We're headed down into the furtherest reaches of the Eastern Shore of Maryland today. And then back to Dewey Beach! It's gonna be a great day!
I've been up since 3.....
I haven't done much research this past week, due to work demands. It's not a bad thing as far as the business is concerned, there have been some incredible changes and "upgrades" the past two weeks that have made it almost impossible to eek out some time for the computer.
The business has gone in a few new directions and I'm loving it! I'm exhausted, but I'm loving it! lol
That break that I was hoping to take once mid-September hit won't be happening this year.
My classes start the second week of September and I have a few new clients that will need our services on weekends, despite the end of the Summer Rush.
Sundays will be my days to travel, at least in the earliest part of Fall. I will also be trying to rearrange some weekdays to hit the road to PA and other environs.
I won't bore you all with the details, but we've been restructuring our property management/cleaning service/concierge services business and it's pretty exciting! Sometimes things just fall into your lap. I would like to think that in reality, it's a result of the hard work, planning and contacts that we've made along the way. But it could just be providence :)
It's also very important to remove the "fences" in your mind. If you exist with an underlying sense of having or doing or living with no hole in your fence to grow, expand, or allow incredible successful gains, you'll pretty much stay in the same place, having what you have and nothing more.
I guess there's a hole in my fence! :)
I'm not materialistic. I enjoy the personal satisfaction of seeing the business grow as much as any financial growth.
I've also noted the start of my Fall "nesting" behaviors. I've rearranged furniture, deep cleaned, got all of my tart warmers ready for my Fall smells... I love Fall!
I'll be starting the Halloween decorating here by the end of September. I don't do the "cutesy" Halloween stuff. The creepier, the better.
I have a collection of witches that I cherish. That is usually on display all year. I have black spider web drapes that are up as I type.
My daughter has gifted me many times with the neatest Halloween pieces. I haven't found the time yet, over the years to create my Halloween Town. Maybe this year I'll get it started.
I have some notes about a Halloween Town, made of ceramic lit houses, spooky churches, graveyards, barren trees, etc. I haven't really decided where in the house it would be displayed.
I have plenty of room but I need to be able to access it to add to it, modify it, etc.
I may take pictures of the process and post them. We can all share the growth of Halloween Town :)
Well, it's time for more coffee. I may be back to post a bit more before I leave for work.
We're headed down into the furtherest reaches of the Eastern Shore of Maryland today. And then back to Dewey Beach! It's gonna be a great day!
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Back At The Keyboard!
Hi all! It's been a great week and I've finally got enough done around here to feel as if I can take some time to come back to the blogs!
I made a list tonight of all the daytrips or longer roadtrips I want to make related to the Marian Baker murder.
My son asked me a few days ago why I feel the need to go to the areas or sites related to the case and I had to be honest with him.
I think first of all I truly believe I will come away from it all with a sense of what happened. I have no idea if what I'll come away with will be in keeping with the accepted facts and story, or if I will come away with an even greater sense of covert reasons behind the attack and murder south of Lancaster in 1950.
I hope to create a real timeline, as complete as I can make it for Marian Baker and Ed Gibbs both.
It would be even better to be able to document it all photographically. That may be quite difficult with the chance that previous homes no longer exist, new homes being built on the murder site itself, etc.
Another reason that I feel compelled to do this is to simply make sure that as time goes on, there are some folks who remember Marian Baker. And to some extent, Ed Gibbs too.
They were two young people whose paths crossed and ended up in tragedy for both of them.
Two lives unlived.
When the jury returned with the verdict and sentence of death, even the Judge was stunned.
He did his best to hide it, but he was caught off guard.
When he discharged the jury, he never even thanked them for their service. I think that was in part to his being stunned but also to his shock that the death penalty was handed down.
He presided over the trial in its entirety. He didn't see the death penalty coming.
The horrific tragedy was compounded by the death sentence. The sadness was permeating even further and was so much more widespread.
There is and was some compassion for Ed Gibbs and that has to be acknowledged and accepted as well. Normal people don't bludgeon young girls to death.
And Ed wasn't a monster. He was a tormented and overstressed young man. There were many, many blocks in the road that led him to the wooded area south of Lancaster that cold January day.
And that's IF he did it.
I'm not totally convinced just yet.
I sincerely hope to come away from my own form of revisiting it all with a sense of his guilt or his innocence. That may be too much to hope for.
So, I'm making my plans and trying to do it in a cohesive manner. And once I make the trips, one at a time, I'll document it all here and post all the pics I take.
I just wish I would have been pushier about it all when most of the people "in the know" were still alive. This is going to be extremely hard with them gone. But I love a challenge.
I guess my fascination with what really happened to Marian Baker is very similar to my and others questions as to what really happened in the Roseboro back yard in July of 2008.
We know what happened to Jan. But we don't know how it happened or truly why.
Did Mike snap? Or did he really plan it? Where did the blood go? What caused the puncture wound to Jan's head?
Unless Mike confesses or someone steps forward, we may never know.
Or fifty or sixty years from now, someone may be sitting at a computer, blogging about how the case grabbed a hold of them and how they need to make a road trip to get a sense of what really happened that warm, rainy July night in 2008.....
I made a list tonight of all the daytrips or longer roadtrips I want to make related to the Marian Baker murder.
My son asked me a few days ago why I feel the need to go to the areas or sites related to the case and I had to be honest with him.
I think first of all I truly believe I will come away from it all with a sense of what happened. I have no idea if what I'll come away with will be in keeping with the accepted facts and story, or if I will come away with an even greater sense of covert reasons behind the attack and murder south of Lancaster in 1950.
I hope to create a real timeline, as complete as I can make it for Marian Baker and Ed Gibbs both.
It would be even better to be able to document it all photographically. That may be quite difficult with the chance that previous homes no longer exist, new homes being built on the murder site itself, etc.
Another reason that I feel compelled to do this is to simply make sure that as time goes on, there are some folks who remember Marian Baker. And to some extent, Ed Gibbs too.
They were two young people whose paths crossed and ended up in tragedy for both of them.
Two lives unlived.
When the jury returned with the verdict and sentence of death, even the Judge was stunned.
He did his best to hide it, but he was caught off guard.
When he discharged the jury, he never even thanked them for their service. I think that was in part to his being stunned but also to his shock that the death penalty was handed down.
He presided over the trial in its entirety. He didn't see the death penalty coming.
The horrific tragedy was compounded by the death sentence. The sadness was permeating even further and was so much more widespread.
There is and was some compassion for Ed Gibbs and that has to be acknowledged and accepted as well. Normal people don't bludgeon young girls to death.
And Ed wasn't a monster. He was a tormented and overstressed young man. There were many, many blocks in the road that led him to the wooded area south of Lancaster that cold January day.
And that's IF he did it.
I'm not totally convinced just yet.
I sincerely hope to come away from my own form of revisiting it all with a sense of his guilt or his innocence. That may be too much to hope for.
So, I'm making my plans and trying to do it in a cohesive manner. And once I make the trips, one at a time, I'll document it all here and post all the pics I take.
I just wish I would have been pushier about it all when most of the people "in the know" were still alive. This is going to be extremely hard with them gone. But I love a challenge.
I guess my fascination with what really happened to Marian Baker is very similar to my and others questions as to what really happened in the Roseboro back yard in July of 2008.
We know what happened to Jan. But we don't know how it happened or truly why.
Did Mike snap? Or did he really plan it? Where did the blood go? What caused the puncture wound to Jan's head?
Unless Mike confesses or someone steps forward, we may never know.
Or fifty or sixty years from now, someone may be sitting at a computer, blogging about how the case grabbed a hold of them and how they need to make a road trip to get a sense of what really happened that warm, rainy July night in 2008.....
Monday, August 17, 2009
I Feel As If I've Been Playing Hooky!
Hey all, I feel as if I've been playing hooky lol Of course my blogging isn't my job, nor is it my career, yet! but I am acutely aware that I haven't been hitting the keyboard as much as usual the last few days.
Here's the latest from this end!
I had a few reschedules for this week and it gave me a much welcome chance to spend a good amount of time at home to tackle some much overdue projects!
I'm of the school, " a cluttered house = a cluttered mind". I will never ever be accused of having too little "stuff" or living a barren and simplistic style....
I am very attached to most of my belongings in sentimental ways, but it's time to declutter and get ready for the change in the seasons. I think it's my own form of nesting.
I rearrange furniture. I purge "junk drawers". I like to clean out and declutter right before the change of each season. I just didn't expect it to hit this weekend LOL
So, starting Sunday, I've been working harder at home than I sometimes do on the job. And I love it! It's such a great feeling to look around and see so much accomplished!
There are times when I intentionally schedule "down time" for myself. Those days could include a movie, a day at the beach, a really good book, cooking something I've never made before, online canasta.....But I guess it's my Lancaster County heritage and work ethic that make me "allow" myself an entire day off.
I've been setting things aside for Freecycle, an anticipated yard sale in the Fall, and for Ebay and Craigslist. My to do list is still pages long, but I'm a pretty happy camper tonite :)
And I will get started at the crack of dawn (maybe!) again tomorrow. I am off tomorrow and have tons more to do.
One thing I love about working this hard is how well you sleep afterwards.
I haven't had a Five Hour Energy Shot in days....but I also haven't had one gram of sugar either.
I've learned to read my body and too much sugar really makes me tired and sluggish. So last Tuesday I decided to eliminate it, again.
I've done it lots of times before and sooner or later I cave to an offer of cake or some special recipe someone has made. I know that I would offend them if I decline....you know the rest of the story.
I really don't want to get into the no or low carbohydrate debate with anyone; it gets tedious. And I can only speak for myself and how my system reacts.
But I lived almost zero carbs for three years. My doctor wasn't familiar with Stillman or Atkins and when he saw my lab work he was exuberant.
He told me "whatever it is that you're doing, keep it up!"
Well, an Easter basket from a dear old woman who stood there waiting for me to sample the candy she had so lovingly arranged in that basket, ended the no carb run for three years lol
I had a walking routine also. Six miles a day. Three in the am and three at night. My pace? About 4-4.5 miles an hour. I walk as fast as I can without having to bust out in a sprint.
I'd walk half of it away from home, the other half back....one old farmer, who had watched me for almost a year, finally stopped one day and leaned out the window and smiled at me..."Hey hon, if you'd just keep going in ONE direction, you'd get somewhere!" He laughed and I laughed LOLOL
The humidity finally made me take a break from the walking, but I'm anxious to resume it.
In the meantime, the dreaded treadmill will have to do.
I love walking outdoors, ear buds in place, high energy music blaring in my ears. I do some of my best thinking that way. And not always on purpose.
I remember my daughter going for several jaunts with me a few years back. We watched the progression of the comet in the night sky. That was alot of fun.
So anyway...I'm sugar free, have tons of energy and thankfully the time now to get much done here at home. The weekend and next week will be a different story.
And I start Saturday classes on September 12th.
I think this Fall will be the time of big changes for me.
I'm relearning to think out of the box, and I like it.
I have always looked at life as an adventure, even unintentionally. And I'm looking at it that way again.
So I am back to blogging.
I need to get my notes and thoughts together about several things. The Marian Baker murder in particular.
The trip to Pitman is on hold only because I wanted to get my stuff and my mind in order lol And I think cooler temperatures will make the trip that much more enjoyable. I have heard that New Jersey can be so beautiful in the Fall.
I did find a condensed death notice for Edward Lester Gibb's mother, Florence L. Gibbs.
I'll copy it here and on the Murder in Lancaster County blog. She lived to be 89 years old. She passed away in July of 1993.
I wondered how she lived out her days after her son was electrocuted. Her husband passed years ahead of her. What a tragic thing for any mother to endure. No matter what he did, he was still their son and they loved him completely. As in the Roseboro murder, there were no winners in the Marian Baker murder or Ed Gibb's trial and conviction. His death by electrocution ripped his parents' hearts out. And that is so so sad.
FLORENCE L. GIBBS, 89, of Pitman, died Tuesday at Kennedy Memorial Hospitals/Washington Township Divison.
Mrs. Gibbs attended the First Baptist Church of Woodbury and was a member of the Followers Prayer Group of Gloucester County and the Christian Women's Club of Gloucester County.
Survivors: two nephews.
Services: viewing, 10 a.m. Saturday, Harold E. Haines Funeral Home, 30 W. Holly Ave., Pitman; funeral, 11 a.m. Saturday at the funeral home; burial, Hillcrest Memorial Park, Hurffville.
Note: Harold E. Haines purchased the S. E. Burkett Funeral Home on Holly Avenue. Burkett was the funeral director that handled the preparation and services for Ed Gibbs, her son, after his electrocution in Pennsylvania.
Here's the latest from this end!
I had a few reschedules for this week and it gave me a much welcome chance to spend a good amount of time at home to tackle some much overdue projects!
I'm of the school, " a cluttered house = a cluttered mind". I will never ever be accused of having too little "stuff" or living a barren and simplistic style....
I am very attached to most of my belongings in sentimental ways, but it's time to declutter and get ready for the change in the seasons. I think it's my own form of nesting.
I rearrange furniture. I purge "junk drawers". I like to clean out and declutter right before the change of each season. I just didn't expect it to hit this weekend LOL
So, starting Sunday, I've been working harder at home than I sometimes do on the job. And I love it! It's such a great feeling to look around and see so much accomplished!
There are times when I intentionally schedule "down time" for myself. Those days could include a movie, a day at the beach, a really good book, cooking something I've never made before, online canasta.....But I guess it's my Lancaster County heritage and work ethic that make me "allow" myself an entire day off.
I've been setting things aside for Freecycle, an anticipated yard sale in the Fall, and for Ebay and Craigslist. My to do list is still pages long, but I'm a pretty happy camper tonite :)
And I will get started at the crack of dawn (maybe!) again tomorrow. I am off tomorrow and have tons more to do.
One thing I love about working this hard is how well you sleep afterwards.
I haven't had a Five Hour Energy Shot in days....but I also haven't had one gram of sugar either.
I've learned to read my body and too much sugar really makes me tired and sluggish. So last Tuesday I decided to eliminate it, again.
I've done it lots of times before and sooner or later I cave to an offer of cake or some special recipe someone has made. I know that I would offend them if I decline....you know the rest of the story.
I really don't want to get into the no or low carbohydrate debate with anyone; it gets tedious. And I can only speak for myself and how my system reacts.
But I lived almost zero carbs for three years. My doctor wasn't familiar with Stillman or Atkins and when he saw my lab work he was exuberant.
He told me "whatever it is that you're doing, keep it up!"
Well, an Easter basket from a dear old woman who stood there waiting for me to sample the candy she had so lovingly arranged in that basket, ended the no carb run for three years lol
I had a walking routine also. Six miles a day. Three in the am and three at night. My pace? About 4-4.5 miles an hour. I walk as fast as I can without having to bust out in a sprint.
I'd walk half of it away from home, the other half back....one old farmer, who had watched me for almost a year, finally stopped one day and leaned out the window and smiled at me..."Hey hon, if you'd just keep going in ONE direction, you'd get somewhere!" He laughed and I laughed LOLOL
The humidity finally made me take a break from the walking, but I'm anxious to resume it.
In the meantime, the dreaded treadmill will have to do.
I love walking outdoors, ear buds in place, high energy music blaring in my ears. I do some of my best thinking that way. And not always on purpose.
I remember my daughter going for several jaunts with me a few years back. We watched the progression of the comet in the night sky. That was alot of fun.
So anyway...I'm sugar free, have tons of energy and thankfully the time now to get much done here at home. The weekend and next week will be a different story.
And I start Saturday classes on September 12th.
I think this Fall will be the time of big changes for me.
I'm relearning to think out of the box, and I like it.
I have always looked at life as an adventure, even unintentionally. And I'm looking at it that way again.
So I am back to blogging.
I need to get my notes and thoughts together about several things. The Marian Baker murder in particular.
The trip to Pitman is on hold only because I wanted to get my stuff and my mind in order lol And I think cooler temperatures will make the trip that much more enjoyable. I have heard that New Jersey can be so beautiful in the Fall.
I did find a condensed death notice for Edward Lester Gibb's mother, Florence L. Gibbs.
I'll copy it here and on the Murder in Lancaster County blog. She lived to be 89 years old. She passed away in July of 1993.
I wondered how she lived out her days after her son was electrocuted. Her husband passed years ahead of her. What a tragic thing for any mother to endure. No matter what he did, he was still their son and they loved him completely. As in the Roseboro murder, there were no winners in the Marian Baker murder or Ed Gibb's trial and conviction. His death by electrocution ripped his parents' hearts out. And that is so so sad.
FLORENCE L. GIBBS, 89, of Pitman, died Tuesday at Kennedy Memorial Hospitals/Washington Township Divison.
Mrs. Gibbs attended the First Baptist Church of Woodbury and was a member of the Followers Prayer Group of Gloucester County and the Christian Women's Club of Gloucester County.
Survivors: two nephews.
Services: viewing, 10 a.m. Saturday, Harold E. Haines Funeral Home, 30 W. Holly Ave., Pitman; funeral, 11 a.m. Saturday at the funeral home; burial, Hillcrest Memorial Park, Hurffville.
Note: Harold E. Haines purchased the S. E. Burkett Funeral Home on Holly Avenue. Burkett was the funeral director that handled the preparation and services for Ed Gibbs, her son, after his electrocution in Pennsylvania.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Touching base.......
Hey all :) The Saturday rush is over and I can now enjoy some free time to get organized, tackle some work around here and get my thoughts and questions in order about the Marian Louise Baker murder.....
I'm undecided about the trip to Pitman, New Jersey tomorrow. It all depends on how much I get done around here tonight, the weather and a few other variables.
I have a few days off this week, so if I don't go tomorrow, I have some other options.
I'll be back blogging tonight, after I take care of some business here.
Thank you to all who emailed me to request an invitation to the blog. I have you all listed and if I do go private, you will definitely be receiving your invitation :)
Be back later......
I'm undecided about the trip to Pitman, New Jersey tomorrow. It all depends on how much I get done around here tonight, the weather and a few other variables.
I have a few days off this week, so if I don't go tomorrow, I have some other options.
I'll be back blogging tonight, after I take care of some business here.
Thank you to all who emailed me to request an invitation to the blog. I have you all listed and if I do go private, you will definitely be receiving your invitation :)
Be back later......
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