Summer Ramblings - August Ends

It's time for a look back at August.

In four months, I will look at this post and remember that there used to be a time when hot breezes blew and the sun smiled upon us.  Plants grew.  Berries ripened.

Soon, these will all be just memories.

But we have flowers to remember it by.  And sunrises.

Blueberries.  They are gone now.

Ash berries, west side of Binghamton, New York.

Black eyed susans, August 2.

Basil, my yard.

One last surprise daylily on August 18.

Roses on the West Side of Binghamton.

Turtleheads, my yard, August 27.

And an overview of my front yard at sunrise.

Farewell, August.

Are you happy, or sad, to see August leave?

Throwback Tuesday - Thanks for the Memories (Or Not)

I wrote the below post in August of 2015.

The Facebook Memory feature still exists.  The other day, it brought me back to a day in 2012 when I was interviewed on an internet Radio Show.

But, there was this:

The interviewer, Sandi Tuttle, died earlier this year.

I have several deceased Facebook friends, and from time to time, the memory function brings something up.

Everything lives forever on the Internet, it seems. Some memories are good - such as the memories of an August 2013 trip I took to Arkansas - but some bring up memories that may now be bittersweet, or worse.  This memory of the interview was bittersweet.

What about you?  Do you use this Facebook feature? 

Here's the original post:

Thanks for the Memories (Or Not)

Did something like this happen to you yesterday?

Yesterday I worked, walked with my spouse, and shared what we had done towards our goal of moving his mother up here closer to us, and caring for her needs, discussed our next trip to go down to her, and tried to problem solve.


I came home, opened up Facebook, and was greeted with a helpful "memory".  It was on top of my wall, and it said "[My name], we care about you and the memories you share here. We thought you'd like to look back at this post from two years ago."  It gave me two options:  share, and see more.


The photo it showed me was harmless in and of itself.  It was a picture I took of country singer Leann Rimes performing at the 2013 Spiedie Fest and Balloon Rally in Binghamton. But there was no Spiedie Fest for me this year.

That's not what bothered me about this, though.  (Well, let's be honest.  It did bother me a little.  It was a gorgeous weekend.  People at work yesterday were raving about how gorgeous it was.  But, as the saying goes, whatever.  I hope to experience more gorgeous weekends in the future, life willing.  Not everyone I know will have that opportunity, and I am fortunate.)

But:  who is to say which memories should be brought up and reshared?  Me? Or Facebook?

So, out of curiosity, I clicked on "see more".

What Facebook is wanting me to give them permission for them to send me notification of memories.  It gave me a sample of my postings onto my wall from "on this day" in 2014, and 2010.

No thank you.

Facebook only does things to make money.  This is a capitalist country, so nothing wrong with that, but they are not going to make money off helping me remember.

You know, Facebook, my mind does a good job of this, thank you very much.  I spent some 45 years without the Internet and I haven't forgotten how to remember.  If I want to remember, I can go out to my friend's timelines.  Or mine.  Or take out some old photos. 

There may be good uses for this feature- perhaps it will help families whose members struggle with dementia, for example.  Right now, thankfully, we are not one of them.

But...there is something about this I am not comfortable with.

I am not putting Facebook in charge of my memories so they can somehow make money off of it.

What do you think? Do you use the memory feature?  Does it bring up good memories, or bad?

Music Monday - The Secret of Success

I wrote this post in August of 2014, after a visit to the New York State Fair.  Today, this performer appears again, and I hope to be able to see him.

Did you hear the crowd of screaming seniors in Syracuse yesterday?  Did you hear us in Rochester and in Buffalo, or even in Binghamton?

Peter Noone promised you would if we yelled and sang loud enough, and I have the sore throat to prove it.  So, please tell me that you did.

I don't often go to rock concerts to find the secrets of success.  But yesterday, I found it, in the person of a showman with talent.  His talent?  Loving his fans.  Making them feel loved.  Appreciating them.  Joking with them, and even mocking the fad of "selfies".  And, oh yes, there was his music.

August of 2014

And was the love ever returned.  I was there, way in the back, under the shade of a tree as Herman's Hermits played yesterday at the New York State Fair.  It was standing room only, and we stood for 75 minutes in the 84 degree heat, not caring.  Fans carried in album covers and he autographed one of them.  He, to our surprise, offered to sign autographs after the show.

He had us yelling the words of "I'm Henery the Eighth, I Am", which is a cover of a 1910 British music hall song. 

There was a king of hush all over the world, but not at the New York State Fair.

Mrs. Brown will forever have a lovely daughter.  But we've aged, and so has Peter Noone, who is now a very energetic 66 years old [which means, as you read this, he is 68].  He danced on the stage to some of his songs, even doing a brief imitation of Mick Jagger.

A couple of songs had me in tears.  When I was a preteen, how was I to know about heartbreak?  But he sang about it, and tears were in our eyes as we understood that life goes on despite our personal tragedies.

To me, the real secret of Peter Noone's success is that he does what he has been doing since 1963.  He loves doing it, and it is so obvious.  I don't think it was an act.  I think he really wanted to be there in Syracuse, yesterday, interacting with his fans, and sharing the love.

We should all be that lucky.

They Are The Champions

A little story about sportsmanship.

A local Little League team played yesterday for the United States championship at the Little League World Series, and my entire region of upstate New York watched.  Busloads of people came to the game, and more watched on national television.

Decorated Door, Dick's Sporting Goods (which started in Binghamton)

A number of my readers are foreign, and I realize that baseball isn't necessarily the most popular sport outside of my native United States.  But please don't leave - this is not a story about baseball, but, rather, something greater than baseball.

 Little League Baseball, Inc. is a non-profit organization whose mission statement includes this:

"Through proper guidance and exemplary leadership, the Little League program assists children in developing the qualities of citizenship, discipline, teamwork and physical well-being. By espousing the virtues of character, courage and loyalty, the Little League Baseball and Softball program is designed to develop superior citizens rather than superior athletes."

Which is why, when our local Maine-Endwell team won the United States championship against a team from Tennessee, we saw this on live TV:

While the opposing teams high-fived each other, the two opposing coaches embraced (the Maine-Endwell coach is in blue, the Tennessee coach in yellow). 

It was such a refreshing sight.  (I also knew that, 155 years ago, New York and Tennessee were on opposite sides of a civil war that took hundreds of thousands of lives.  The history lover part of me took note of that, too.)

When you saw the two teams play, it was hard to believe these were young people of 12 and 13 years old.  I would have been happy to pay to see that game on a minor league baseball level. Our own son had pursuits other than athletics, so we were not exposed to Little League as parents.  But I was a baseball fan growing up - as a spectator, that is.  My spouse still is a fan.

When I was growing up, girls were not permitted to participate in Little League baseball.  But that changed in 1974. 

My spouse was impressed by this young man, the Maine-Endwell pitcher. He sees much promise in this young Maine-Endwell pitcher.  Only time will tell, of course.

Here is the happy team posing after the game.

I applaud any organization that stands for ideals of good sportsmanship.  To see those ideals in action and to know your local team was one of the participants is even better.

Today, Maine-Endwell plays for the world championship.  You'd better believe many in this area will be watching that game at 3pm Eastern Daylight Time.

Did you play sports as a child?

Local Saturday - Chris Thater

The last weekend of August is one of racing from event to event here in the Binghamton, New York area.

For years we have celebrated the life of the late Chris Thater.  In 2010, I blogged:

"In 1983 a student by the name of Chris Thater, while cycling, was killed by a drunk driver near Harpursville, NY.

His friends would not let that senseless death rest.  Rather, they have turned it into one heck of a memorial.  The Chris Thater Memorial.  A two day bicycle race held in a residential neighborhood in Binghamton bordering Binghamton's Recreation Park, made somewhat famous by several episodes of the Twilight Zone.  (Rod Serling grew up nearby and spent a lot of time in that park), it celebrates "Stop DWI" and brings bicyclists from all over the world to our small city."

Alas, it is no longer held near Recreation Park, but rather, in downtown Binghamton.

It can still be an inspirational sight.  This video, created by a local video firm, uses a song I love as background music.   If you've ever wondered what the downtown where I work five days a week looks like, you need look no further than this video.

But I so miss where it used to be, in a residential neighborhood where the late, great Rod Serling grew up.  Life changes.  Events change.  But a small part of me holds out hope that, one day, the event will return to the West Side of Binghamton.

In 2012, my spouse (in a way) won the last race of the event.  Today, in honor of the event, I repeat part of my post of April, 2016:

Normally, on my blog, Saturday is devoted to "Local Saturday".  Today, I want to take you to a bicycle race that takes place in the small upstate New York city of Binghamton, New York every August.

My spouse won it one year - sort of.  But, before I tell that story, a little about the race.

It is called the Chris Thater Memorial Race.  This year it will be held August 27 and 28, once again in honor of Chris Thater, a 23 year old cyclist who was struck and killed by a drunk driver in 1983.  It's a series of races - bicycle races, a 5K run, a fun race for kids.

The event has been held for over 30 years now. It's a wonderful way to honor the memory of a young man taken from us too soon.

For the first 25 years, it was held in a beautiful West Side neighborhood near Binghamton's Recreation Park, near where Rod Serling of Twilight Zone fame grew up.

The racing course was so beautiful and green (and hot).

The races were held during the day, and there was plenty of room to park, walk around and enjoy the races. For several years, there were live rock performances by local bands.  You could even get close up to the racers, as they prepared to race.  Some were amateur (I know one of them at her day job), some from this area, some were professionals from all over the world.

Here, one of the racers describes her experience in 2012, when these pictures were also taken.

We would walk along the race course, and finally take our places near the finish line for the last race, the money race with the professional racers.

And then someone would cross the finish line.

And with that, it's time for the story of how my spouse (sort of) won the 2012 Chris Thater.

Several minutes before the final race ended, one of the announcers would poll the crowd, asking who they thought would win the race.  In 2012, my husband named someone.

And he won!

What did he win?  A chance to meet the winner, here (spouse is on the right) as I stood by, thrilled.  One of his 15 minutes (well, more like five minutes) of fame.

In our house hangs his other prize - a poster, signed by the winner.

Alas, in 2014, the race was changed - moved to downtown Binghamton, the races reconfigured, a Cross Fit challenge added, the music and greenery deleted.    A new generation of race goers will treasure their own memories.

But I will always remember the year my husband, by a lucky guess, won a bicycle race.

The Annual Tomato Sandwich

There is something about the third week of August that begs for a tomato sandwich.

Tomato sandwiches are a guilty pleasure.  I've been on the Weight Watchers diet (sort of) - the old "Points Plus" plan, I mean - since November of 2012.

But, some things can't be denied.

For example, brownies.  Although, nowadays I make them with coconut oil instead of butter, and I recently found that adding 3/4 cup of fresh blueberries to a brownie mix makes a heavenly brownie.

So, then there is the annual meal I make that I wait a full year for.  Tomato sandwiches.  They are so easy, and so delicious.  Here is how I make them.

The mayo should be Duke's mayonnaise, from the Carolinas.  And not that nasty fat free stuff, either.  The Real Thing.  No, I won't get kicked off dieting for this annual indulgence, but don't tell them I NEVER eat the nasty fat free kind. 

The tomatoes should be garden fresh, and August is the height of the tomato season in upstate New York.  In fact, it IS the tomato season (September tomatoes just aren't the same).  Right now, we are getting mostly grape tomatoes in our garden, for some reason but they are just as delicious as the bigger ones. 

Tomatoes are one of these fruits that I will not eat if they aren't in season.  I don't care if they are heirloom, canned or hothouse in the winter.  I will make sauce but that is about it.  The only good fresh sliced eating tomato is an August tomato.

So, anyway, back to the sandwich.  Sorry for rambling.

The bread - fresh and local is the best. 

Apply mayonnaise.  Add sliced tomatoes, warm from the sun.  Eat.

So simple.  So good.

What food do you like that is best when in season?

Thursday Gratitude

As we start to approach the fifth anniversary of a major flood event that hit where I live in September of 2011, I am grateful for all the things I have today.

I have a roof over my head, which is more than many people left homeless by flood, earthquakes, violence, and fires in the past few days can say.

When communities come together to help each other, it's an amazing (and inspiring) thing to see.   That was true where I live, and it is true elsewhere.

Today, I want to take the opportunity to give shout outs to some of the many bloggers out there who own small businesses or sell on craft sites/indie book sites.  It is hard to be self employed.  My grandfather was a small business owner. He owned a candy store in Brooklyn for years.  My father owned, with another man, a newsstand for a little while after World War II.

The entrepreneurial spirit skipped me, meanwhile, but I do have a cousin who has run his own business for many years.

From time to time, many bloggers do giveaways, and I've never taken the opportunity to truly thank these business people.  Today, I'd like to start correcting that.

Here are some business/blogs I would love to mention and thank them for enriching my life in some way (and if I left you out, I'll be happy to include you in  a future post):


Michael at Michael's Woodcraft, who made a birdhouse for my soul,

Liz at Laws of Gravity for a knitted gift card holder,

The late Average Superwoman, Sandi Tuttle, who interviewed me once, and gifted me a T-Shirt she made.  Sandi, I know I can't link to you wherever you are now, but you get a shout-out anyway.  You never able to finish what you set out to do, but you are far from forgotten.

Sasha at True Vine Gifts.

Various authors for both e books and paperback books, including Suzanna Lynn  and those I met through the blogs (including reading books they wrote) of Jo Michaels and Tia Bach, Amy at Vomiting Chicken (seeds and an usual kit), Carol Cassara.

Thank you all.

And now, I have something to ask of you, my dear readers.  Please, in the next week or two, take the opportunity to give shout outs.  Tag people who have done favors for you.  Link to other bloggers in your blog posts.  Thank someone who helps you in your everyday life.  Call a friend you haven't connected with for a while.

Maybe we can start a little mini-trend, a little ripple in the fabric of reality.  Let's see what happens to this ripple, and how far it goes.

Wouldn't that be, as they used to say, awesome?

Summer Ramblings - An August Garden Part II

I was 17 before I ever saw my first vegetable garden.

When you grow up in a New York City housing project, you don't have many opportunities to garden.  But a friend of mine had a grandfather who lived out in the country.  One summer, her family invited me to spend a week with them.  It was an amazing experience.

When I ate homegrown cucumbers for the first time, I couldn't believe that cucumbers had taste.

I loved fresh English peas so much, I got sick from eating too many,right off the vine. 

But, from my earliest years, I longed to grow things.  In my case, it was flowers.  One day, I should blog about my attempts to flower garden on a Bronx windowsill.

So I married a man who loves to veggie garden.

Perfect match!

Today, I want to take you on a little tour of our community garden plots.

We rent two plots in a community garden in Otsiningo Park, just to the North of Binghamton, New York.  If you ever travel north on Interstate 81, wave as you go past.  What you are about to see is about 99% his work and 1% mine.

This is what you may have seen on July 17 (the neat-looking plot behind the tall stuff is NOT our plot).

On the other hand, here's that neat plot, gardened by an Asian gentleman who has been our gardening neighbor for years.

On the right, the Interstate.

Oh, there are flowers in this garden.  Before you get beans, for example, you get flowers. 

We also grow purple beans, and this is what their flowers look like.

 This is what those purple flowers grow into.

Squash on the plant.


I've blogged from time to time about our community garden and I surprise myself that I don't write more.

But you don't have to be neat and weed free to be productive.  Here are some items taken out of our August garden.

Squash.

Tomatoes.

Onions.

And edible plants can be a part of your front yard, too.  Perhaps soon, I will feature a post on how we squeeze in some edibles into our front yard.

No recipes today, but here is a link to one from the past.

Alas, our growing season will be over too soon.  Even if frost is lake, our association packs up our garden the last week of October.

Then, it's good bye for another year.

What are your favorite veggies to eat?

An August Garden Part 1

You would think, with a Twitter handle of RamblinGarden, that I would write about my spouse's community garden plot all the time.

You would be wrong.  He's a veggie person. I'm a flower person.

But, you can look at a vegetable garden from the point of view of a flower lover, right?

Right.  Especially when the sunflowers are blooming.

In our community garden plot just to the north of Binghamton, New York, our sunflowers have reseeded themselves for years.  The hot weather has produced a bumper crop.  We let the birds get the seeds, and we enjoy them as cut flowers.  The bees enjoy them as on-site flowers.

But our garden doesn't have just sunflowers.  It has zucchini, and the flowers are beautiful, too.  My spouse grew up, Italian style, eating zucchini flowers, covered in batter and fried.  He rarely makes them, though.

Zinnias.  This is my favorite - believe it or not, this is the real color of one of the flowers.  I wonder how this happened.

Here is a zinnia flower opening.

And one, past its prime, but still attracting a bee.

But there are the veggies, and I promise to write about them soon.  My spouse (not to brag) is an excellent cook, which is a good thing.  If he depended on me...well, that's why he cooks.  And he works so hard in that garden, to bring us fresh produce.

If you garden, which do you like to grow better - flowers, or veggies?

Music Monday - Music to Watch Sports By

The 2016 Olympics are over.

There is music that many of us recognize from going to various sports events.  Some of these songs have almost become music cliches, having been overplayed at sports events.  Others, I enjoy no matter how many times I hear them.

Many were hits before they entered the sports arena. 

For several years, this song (Cotton-Eyed Joe, by Rednex) was played at our minor league baseball games here in Binghamton, New York.  The song actually has a fascinating history, if you have the time to look it up online.

I think the B-Mets played it because you can't help but dance, and it's great for a between-innings get-up-and-stretch.

We are the Champions, by Queen. (And we will keep on fighting till the end...no time for losers, 'cause we are the champions of the world...perfect lyrics for a sports team.)

We Will Rock You, also by Queen.  (Let's get those feet going!)

Sweet Caroline (so beloved by Boston Red Sox fans).  I love Neil Diamond.  I've loved this song ever since it came out.

And two songs I must end with, in this Olympic Year.  These aren't so much sports stadium songs as sports movie songs.

Eye of the Tiger, by Survivor,  the theme song of the third Rocky movie.

Finally,  Chariots of Fire, performed by Vangelis.

Bonus track - as Chariots of Fire has become so associated with the movie of the same name, an old English hymn, Jerusalem, is played at the very end.  Even if you don't seek out religious music, you will love that organ.

Are there any songs you associate with sports?

The Fellowship of the Flood Assembles Again

The people of Louisiana are undergoing epic flooding.  It's not the first flood event in our country this year, or the second or the third.   My heart goes out to those in all the places who have flooded this year - Louisiana, Ellicott City, Maryland, Houston, and more overseas, because I know, on a much smaller scale, something of what they are going through.

In a blog post from 2011, I called that fellowship 'The Fellowship of the Flood'.  It's a club that you don't ever want to join.  Membership is automatic when you have experienced a flood.

The fellowship is millions strong, and growing.

But, for those who are members of the Fellowship, you know that the experience of being in a flood never leaves you completely.

Ever.

There are two groups of people you can talk to about your flood experiences.

Those who know.

And those who can't imagine.

I belong to several blogging support groups.  One of the members of that support group lives in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Another blogger posted this video on Facebook.  Her area was impacted by another "epic" flood earlier this year.

I can't imagine what her area is going through, because I know just enough (from personal experience) to know that I can't imagine.  My flood was not their flood. But someone out on the street playing a piano does not surprise me at all, based on my own experiences.


That's the first thing to admit.  You DON'T know what those in Louisiana are going through, unless you are there.

In September of 2011, after widespread flooding impacted many areas of our state, New York,  I find (going through those posts) of my feeling of gratitude.  That may or may not surprise you.

This September I plan to republish some of the posts, from September of 2011, to remind myself of how lucky I was.

It is hard to tell people how to support others who are going through a disaster of this magnitude, but just being there to listen is important.

There are some of the things you should know to do if you go through a flood.

And then there are the things people should and shouldn't do if you are moved to help.

Right now it's the everyday things people n the flood zones need.  Clean drinking water.  A place to wash your clothes.  Oh, how I missed having a place to wash my clothes. 

A place to feel human again.

What they don't need are flood tourists.  If you aren't a trained helper, or belong to an organization that knows what they are doing, you will do those people a favor by staying home.

Meanwhile, those flooded look around and see life going on, and wonder when their lives will get better.  You must know it will be a long process.

You may find you need professional help to move on.  You should not hesitate to seek it.  Even a year later.  Even more than that later.  It's not weakness.


For those not affected physically but want to help, this is my advice - be very careful, if you are moved to give for flood relief.  Be careful who you give to.  So many scammers out there. 

With our changing climate, we must learn how to live with floods.

I fear this is only the beginning.

Local Saturday - West Indian Gherkins

Today, I am going to be as local as I can be.  Welcome to my back yard, where I will show you gherkins grown (with a major amount of assistance from enslaved African-Americans) by United States Founding Father Thomas Jefferson.

April 2016 - Monticello, near Charlottesville, Virginia

Well, not exactly by Thomas Jefferson, but I did buy the seeds at his former home, Monticello.

I have a Nebraska blogger to blame for this.  Last year, she blogged about growing something called Mexican Sour Gherkins, and even included a recipe for refrigerator Mexican Sour Gherkin Pickles. 

So when I saw the gherkin seeds for sale at Monticello when spouse and I visited, I grabbed them.  The problem is, though, that what I bought aren't Mexican sour gherkins.

This is what I bought.  Or, three plants to be exact, planted in a tub as the sunniest part of our back yard (which is fairly shaded) is our patio. 

Here's another view.  These are West Indian gherkins. (Actually, they are from Africa).  Next time, you might say, read the package.  But no loss - these are gherkins, and they are incredibly prolific.  After a slow start, they took off in our hot weather.

I would highly recommend trellising them.

So far (knock on lots of wood) they've had no pests or diseases.

This shows you the scale.  The gherkin pictured is ready for harvest - you have to get them small.

A baby.

Ready for harvest.


West Indian gherkins come covered in little spikes.  The plants are also a bit prickly, and you have to be careful.  I don't recommend picking these without gloves on, but my spouse's hands are hardened.  I would use gloves.

Our first harvest

You rub the spikes off with a towel, cut open and use like cucumbers.  You have to pick them a little more than thumb sized.  Once bigger, they would not be good eating.

We have a jar with some now, as we are making refrigerator pickles.  Spouse tasted raw, and said they taste just like cucumbers. Since our cucumbers are more or less done for at our community garden, this is a welcome harvest.

You could call them baby cucumbers.  And they are doing quite well in the big tub.

I hope we can call them delicious.  We will know in a few days.

World Photography Day

Today is World Photography Day, a day when you can upload your photo and share your perspective of the world.

Of course, I didn't know about World Photography Day until about 10 minutes ago.  I had planned, instead, to blog about summer.

When you live in a northern city like I do (near Binghamton, in upstate New York), summer is like a special gift.  For a few short months, the grass is green, the trees have leaves, and the flowers bloom.

Now, the Labor Day (September 6) sales are already starting, and I just want to yell "Hey!  Summer isn't over yet!  There's a little more than a month left.  Don't rush it!"

Why do businesses always want to rush the season?  Why, I expect to see Christmas decorations in stores any minute now.

I must take action. What if I posted a top 10 list of what I love about summer?  Strange how I had already planned a post with lots of photos in it.

What about you?  Feel free to post your list in the comments.

In no particular order, here's my list:

My son tried to photograph a rainbow in this picture after a storm

10.  Summer skies and clouds.

9.  Being able to ride one of the six carousels in our Triple Cities - all, forever, free, due to a beloved businessman;

Otsiningo Park, June 2016

8.  Going to the park, and maybe even being able to watch a balloon launch.

On the High Line, July 5, 2013, New York City

7.  Ice cream trucks. And, for that matter, ice cream.

July Fest, downtown Binghamton, New York

6.  Festivals.

5.  Growing things in the warm weather, unless the weather is too hot.  Which, come to think of it, it's been this year.   But along with that, hot peppers, such as these Carolina Reaper peppers (not my son's plant, but he has several from this nursery) can really spice life up.

4.  Road trips.  Not that easy in the snowy, icy, wintertime.

Hydrangea, Binghamton, New York

3.  Taking exercise walks and being able to admire other people's flowers.

Sage 8-17-16

2.  Herbs:   Fresh herbs, and the joy of my spouse cooking with them.  Basil, parsley, sage, rosemary, mint, and more can be found in our front yard.

Our first tomato - July 9!

And the number 1 reason I love summer:

1.  FRESH TOMATOES.  For a little over a month, the fresh tomatoes are ripening, and I dream of the day of the first tomato the rest of the year.  My spouse makes a salad by combining grape tomatoes with some fresh mozzarella, adds some basil, a drizzle of olive oil, and instant heaven.

You can't do this with supermarket tomatoes, so don't even try.

Do you like summer?  If not, what is your favorite season? What is your favorite part of summer?

And do you plan to celebrate World Photography Day?