And the Band Played On - RIP Dennis Edwards #MusicMoveMe

Another sad week for the music world, with the death of Dennis Edwards, one of the several lead singers of The Temptations.

I found this tribute to Dennis Edwards on You Tube.  Here are some of my favorite songs from his time as lead singer.

Temptations - Ball of Confusion.  Now, some 50 years later, this song is still so relevant.  "And the band played on....so round and around we go, where the world is headed, nobody knows...."

Temptations, from 1969, the "psychedelic era" -Psychedelic Shack (heard here, an extended version).

Got 11 minutes?  Even if you don't, please take a listen to this version of "Papa Was a Rolling Stone"  This is also an extended version, one I had never heard before researching Dennis Edward's music today. What an arrangement! Lots more music, and some of the most powerful lyrics to ever appear in modern music.

I could fill this post up with hours of The Temptations, but I'd better call it a day now.  RIP Dennis Edwards.

And now, a little about Music Moves Me (aka "4M").

The Head 4M'er is XmasDolly.  Her co-4Mers are:  Callie of JAmerican Spice, and ♥Stacy of Stacy Uncorked♥   And last but certainly not least, Cathy from Curious as a Cathy.

See you next week, same time, same place!

Football or Rescue?

Tonight, much of the United States will be watching a football game called the Super Bowl whether or not they are football fans.

If you aren't a football fan, you watch for one of two reasons:

1.  To eat

2.  To watch the commercials.

And, if you don't want to watch football, there is a worthwhile alternative, which I'll discuss shortly.

If you watch the Super Bowl to eat, you probably have your menu set by now.  If not, and if you want something light, this may help.

And although we won't know this year's commercials before game time (wait, no, see below), here are some from past years.

"1984" Apple introduces the MacIntosh computer.  The ad promises that 1984 won't be like the book "1984".  Some might argue the latter had to wait until 2018.

"Avocado Secret Society" from 2017. Guac, anyone? (you may want to refer to recipe in link at the beginning of my post.)

A personal favorite - the Volkswagon "Force" commercial from 2011.

And now, for 2018, some commercials have already been leaked.  If you have a thing about "Alexa", you will love this. (I did!) "Alexa Loses Her Voice".  (Amazon promises any devices that contain Alexa won't wake up, due to this technology)

If you don't like football, there is a wonderful alternative if you get the Animal Planet channel - the Puppy Bowl (here's a taste of a previous bowl).

Here's a practice from last year.

Briefly, the rules are:  the puppies must take a chew toy and move it into an end zone.  Either end zone.  There are penalties for "excessive growling", "terrorizing the ref", "excessive hydration" (plus lots of belly rubs) and the referee has his hands full calling plays, and, er....cleaning up after the players, who may not be toilet trained.

The Puppy Bowl is in its 14th year, and all of the puppies who participate come from shelters from all over the country - they are all available for adoption, and (at least in the past few years) the adoption rate after the Bowl is 100%.

Some of the puppies this year are hurricane rescues.

Do you have any plans for the Super Bowl?  Or Puppy Bowl?  Will you watch either one?

Sustainable Saturday- Buffalo Balls and More

Today, I am bringing you a January farmer's market in Orlando, Florida, at Lake Eola Park in downtown Orlando.

Orlando is so much more than Disney and Universal Studios.  If you visit Orlando, you owe it to yourself to investigate the non-theme park aspects.

Later this year, I hope to bring you some more from Orlando.  Today, I feature the Sunday farmers market.

In my limited experience, Florida farmers markets (well, I've only been to two so it is VERY limited experience) tend to be more sales of crafts, some flea market items, ready made food, and some produce, so I concentrated on the food aspect.

You will never find this in a farmers market where I live in upstate New York, because we don't grow avocados - but they do grow them in Florida.

And here they are, along with raw cacao.

Local (from Homestead, Florida) passion fruit was also for sale.

Oh, about the Buffalo Balls - they are chicken meatballs with "Buffalo sauce" (I assume wing sauce, which is a type of hot sauce originating in Buffalo, New York, eaten with fried chicken wings.  No buffalos are harmed in the production of wing sauce).

I enjoyed myself at the market, for so many reasons, but it was also a bit overwhelming with all the new sights and sounds.

Do you like to visit farmers markets when you travel?

Mad Sunset - #SkywatchFriday

I took these pictures last month- a sunset in Madeira Beach (called "Mad Beach" by the locals) on the West Coast of Florida, near St. Petersburg.  This particular beach is in an area called Johns Pass. which was created by a hurricane on September 27, 1848.

I love sunsets over water.

Right after sunset.

Even better are sunsets with people on the beach.

And a different angle yields a fisherman.

Join Yogi and other bloggers watching the sky for #SkywatchFriday

Almost Time for the Groundhog

February!  One more month of winter gone (although, true confession, I spent a few days of it in Florida).

The statue I call my "snow angel" sat, confused, in melting snow on Saturday.  Now, the cold weather (and snow) are back again.

Yesterday, I never did see the eclipsed supermoon/blue moon.  Meanwhile, in upstate New York, many people are so sick of winter they would do almost anything to make it go away.  Yesterday, when I left for work, it was 10 degrees F (-12.2 C).  Later in the day, we had a little snow.  The weather, however, will be nastier in a few days.

February 2 is Skywatch Friday, so let me talk about February 2 today.

Tomorrow will be Groundhog Day in the United States, where we pull a groundhog out of the ground to predict the weather.   It's purely scientific, of course, and this is how it works:

If the groundhog sees its shadow, we have six more weeks of winter.  If the groundhog doesn't see its shadow, we get an early spring (ha).

The groundhog usually sees his shadow, but, according to our Weather Channel, the main groundhog (in Pennsylvania) has only been accurate about 39% of the time.

In 2015, one of our harshest Northeast winters in many years, the ground hog saw its shadow, despite the fact that it was overcast, and a rain/snow mix was moving in.  Somehow, that ground hog almost always sees its shadow.

In 2013, it didn't see its shadow and we still got six more weeks of winter.

The groundhog almost got the death penalty for that one. Yes, that's how we roll here.  Poor groundhog. (On the other hand, considering how many of my plants groundhogs have destroyed over the years, good thing I wasn't on that jury.)

In 2016, it was unseasonably warm for us.  2017?  It got up to 42F (5.5 Celsius) at our house yesterday. This post from 2014 shows a more typical February day.

There are multiple predicting groundhogs in the United States, and they even compete with each other.  Yes, we take our silly customs seriously here in the good ol' U S of A.

For those of my readers who don't live in the United States, here's a history of Groundhog Day, in case you are wondering why people in the United States still depend on a groundhog seeing his shadow (or not) to predict if winter will be over soon.

Then, here's what happened when a Wisconsin town's groundhog decided that weather predicting wasn't the right career choice for him. 

Remember the movie Groundhog Day?   Could any other country have produced this movie?  Well, guess what?  The movie turns 25 this year, and it is going to be re-released in the movie theatres on - February 2.

Do you celebrate Groundhog Day?  Or do you have a different type of holiday that makes you shake your head where you live?

Winter Wonders - Lunar Eclipse

By the time you read this post, the best time for viewing a rare combination eclipse - a supermoon, a lunar eclipse and a "blue moon" (which will really turn blood red) will probably have passed where I live in upstate New York.

Alas.  This morning at peak viewing time (6:48 am) it will be around 11 degrees above zero F (-11.7 C).  I'd better bundle up well when I start my commute to work.  At least, I can see stars from my porch.

If I do get any pictures of the partial eclipse (doubtful, with my iPhone) I will post them on Thursday.

When I went back in the archives, I found this post from February 2017, for another rare combination.  Enjoy!

(If you get to see this eclipse,  I'd love you to mention it in the comments.)

From February 2017

Today features a rare combination - a lunar eclipse, a snow moon, and a comet.

Here's more on this rare combination.

On what I could call "Snow Moon Eve" (last night) I took this picture of the moon rising over my snow covered small upstate New York community. 

Here is another view of yesterday's snow. 

Should You Friend Co Workers on Facebook?

Why am I feeling so out-of-the-loop lately?

It's a strange thing.  I have always been introverted, although I do enjoy the company of a select few people.  I've been happy with that.  And, I enjoy interacting with people on social media.  A lot of my introvert nature melts away online.  But just try to call me (one reader did, many years ago) and you will see a woman in her 60's in panic mode. (No, she wasn't stalking me - rather, I had posed a health question, and she was just trying to be helpful.   But I wasn't ready for it.  Fortunately, I wasn't home, my answering machine picked it up, and I never did call her back).

I don't feel lonely that much.  In fact, I crave, and need, time to myself.  Fortunately, I have an understanding spouse.  But about that out of the loop feeling:

A photo is what started it off.

People at work were talking about a photo a co worker had taken.  It was quite a photo (dare I say "epic"?), and he had posted it on Facebook.  That's where my co workers saw it.  Lots of co workers saw it.  Turns out that there is a whole world of my co workers interacting on Facebook with each other in their personal time.  I'll mention here that we are not permitted access to Facebook (or any social media other than LinkedIn) on our work computers, so this is all on our own time.

I've maintained a policy of not friending co workers on Facebook.  OK, I have one co worker friend on Facebook, but we've been friends outside of work for years.  I've heard of bad stuff happening when you friend co-workers on social media.  It happened at my spouse's job (not him personally, because he isn't even active on Facebook) where some co workers/Facebook friends ended up in a fight about something work related that got back to management, and someone ended up getting fired. 

But back to that photo.  For the first time in a long time, I felt out of the loop, like I was missing out on something. I actually felt lonely, especially after someone took pity on me, whipped out their phone, opened Facebook and showed me the photo.

So that's how I found out just how many people at work were interacting with each other.  And I was totally out of that loop.

I'm not native to this area, and it could be these people went to high school with each other, or had each other as neighbors, or are even related to each other (and we do have siblings and in laws working there).  But maybe there is no outside work connection outside of Facebook.  I have no idea.

For the first time, I'm questioning my policy.  Mind you, no co worker has invited me to be their friend, which is just as well, because then I would have to face this question head on.  Also I interact with some of them on LinkedIn, but that is something totally different.

So I am going to ask my readers this question today.  Have you friended co workers on Facebook?  If so, has it been a good experience or not so good?

I'm just curious. 

My gut still says "don't do it" but if I do get an invite, I don't know what I would do.  And perhaps that is my real, unspoken, question.

Birthday Songs and My 3000th Blog Post - #MusicMovesMe

Today, before we get to the music: today, I am posting the 3000th post of my blog.

3000 posts!

It isn't a blog birthday (that will come in April - its ninth birthday) but today, on Music Moves Me, we celebrate "birthdays or songs about kids growing up and being beautiful".  Why?  Because the daughter of one of the participants of this blog hop is turning 25.  And, hey, if you also can't celebrate a 3000th blog post, what can you celebrate!

Before we get to the music, a little about Music Moves Me (aka "4M").

The Head 4M'er is XmasDolly.  Her co-4Mers are:  Callie of JAmerican Spice, and ♥Stacy of Stacy Uncorked♥   And last but certainly not least, Cathy from Curious as a Cathy.

 

Only a couple of songs today because today is going to be a busy day for me, but I wanted to feature a song that, when I was turning 16, was played at just about every Sweet 16 party.

Birthday, by the Beatles.

And, for the modern young ladies, a video I love by a talented singer - Katy Perry, Birthday.  I hope you will get the humor, too (and it's worth, I think, the entire eight minutes of watching. It starts a little weird, but stay with it.)

No birthdays today, but a wonderful person I know turned 86 yesterday and, earlier last week, my husband's aunt turned 106.  Young ladies, you have so much to look forward to.

Wishing you many wonderful years ahead.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU, ERICA!

Revisiting the Ordinary Nature of Evil

Yesterday was Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Survivors of the World War II Holocaust gathered to commemorate. Each year their numbers grow smaller.

It is no secret that supporters of neo Nazi groups increase in number each year.  In December of 2016, I wrote the following post (reblogging below with minor changes).  Since then, we have had many incidents of hate in our nation, including (but not limited to) the events of last year in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Friday before last, I had dinner with a man who I went to high school with.  His parents were partisan fighters during World War II, and there is a picture from that era that includes his father in the Florida Holocaust museum in St. Petersburg, Florida.

After our dinner, I asked myself, could I have done that?  Could I have battled evil if I had been called?

That's the thing about evil.  It can show up

The Ordinary Nature of Evil

Today is not a day like all other days.

I do my best to keep my blog lighthearted, to gladden the hearts of my readers with pictures of flowers, trees, and the sky.

I could wish that our world held only beauty.

But our world has two faces - the face of beauty and the face of evil.  If you wish, you can stop reading now, and come back tomorrow.  I rarely get political.  The next few Sundays will be an exception.

But I hope you'll stay with this post, because the future of our country depends on YOU. 

There is another group of people whose population is shrinking daily.  In the next few years,  the remaining survivors of what we call the Holocaust (or the Shoah) will also be gone.

It doesn't take long for history to be forgotten or even denied.  It doesn't take long, when times seem favorable, for the purveyors of hate to come out and spread their vile messages.  It doesn't take long for attacks to take place, for people who dress differently than most of us to be targeted and beaten, or for people who have names identified with certain religions to be targeted on social media.

It has already happened in upstate New York.  It may have happened where you live, even if you don't live in the United States.

It is true that there have been other genocides both before and after the Holocaust.  But the Holocaust is personal to me because members of my family that did not immigrate to the United States may have died in the liquidation (what a word!) of a couple of cities in Europe.  It is personal to me because my childhood best friend's mother was a concentration camp survivor.

And now, before our eyes, here in our beautiful United States, it has happened again.

We the people have the power to make it stop.  We must use that power.  NOW.  This hate can not be permitted to grow any more.  Why?  Because history teaches us what happens when it does grow, when good people do not speak out, when good people turn a blind eye because "it's not about us".

The objects of evil can be quite ordinary.  Let me show you one.

Picture taken Hanukah House, Binghamton, New York, December 2012

Take this star, for example.  Pretty harmless looking, isn't it?

Have you ever heard of the Nuremberg Race Laws?  If you haven't, this link will teach you about them.

In the Germany of the late 1930's, Jews were forced to register with the government.  They were required to carry identity cards marked with a large "J".  They were banned from certain occupations.  Their businesses were taken from them.  They were targeted at school, at work, at home. 

This doesn't happen to sound similar to various recommendations floating around our country about what should happen to Muslim residents, does it?  The calls for hate start small.  Let's have a registry (see the George Takei link below).  Let's make them carry identification cards.

So, what happened in Europe in the late 30's and early to mid 40's?

Among other things, Jews were forced to wear badges. As the Nazis conquered country after country, the Jewish residents of this country had to wear badges, too.

Not wearing one of these badges could be punished by death.

Such a simple thing.  Again, the hate started small.  And then it got really, really big.  It eventually led to the deaths and torture of millions and millions of people, all over the world, not just in Europe, both military and civilian.  The numbers are staggering. 

Don't make the mistake of thinking it couldn't happen here, or think that I am exaggerating and should just "chill out".  Many good people of the 1930's thought that way, too.  Few could imagine what did end up happening.

The people of today have one big advantage over the people then.  We have the lesson of what happened in the 1930's and 1940's.  We even have the lesson of what happened in our country.

Our country, you ask?  George Takei, an actor from the original Star Trek TV series and an activist, was a childhood survivor of internment camps, right in the heartland of our country.

We ignore that lesson at our peril.  Not just if you are Jewish.  Not just if you are Muslim.  Most of my readers are neither Jewish nor Muslim.  It doesn't matter.  It is time to say no.  It is time to think of other solutions.  Are we a people of little imagination?

There's one more thing the purveyors of hate are prepared for - the next terrorist attack in our country, because it will come. It may well be another "lone wolf" attack - a person turned by propaganda and hate into a killer.  When it does, it may well become the excuse for "measures" to "protect our citizenry" to be put into place.  History has taught us all about those measures, time and again.

Freedom?  Or Security?  This is our hour of decision.

We must stand together and speak out against all occurrences of evil in our country.  Otherwise, to paraphrase a famous poem, there may be no one left to defend us when "they" finally come for us.


History will be our judge.

Sustainable Saturday - Good Old Days That Never Were

A rerun - a post from November 8, 2009, slightly edited.

If you are the typical 50-something, you pass various joke emails back and forth....about aging, weight gain, and "how good it was in the 1950's". (Or, maybe in 2018, you use Facebook.)

There are the pictures taken from old black and white TV programming.

There are the quizzes you pass only if you know about Black Jack gum, wringer washing machines, and The Lone Ranger.

There are the "we got raised fine despite (name hygienic measure of your choice that didn't exist in our childhood)" stories.

Ah, those good old days.

Like memory, nostalgia is selective.

And the 1950's weren't just Howdy Doody, skate keys and green Coke bottles.  There's the stuff we forget.  And the stuff we don't really want to think about.

I sure remember the always present sores on my nose from those heavy glass framed glasses.  How thankful I am for modern technology. And for the blood pressure pills that save me from the fate of my grandmother.

My spouse remembers the boy next door, the one close to his age, the one who had a heart defect and never made it to adulthood.  As an adult I found out how his mother carried him to school because he was too big for a stroller, she didn't have a car and the school refused to provide transportation for him.  You see, there was no law protecting his rights to a free and appropriate public education.  That's just the way things were.

I remember when I was young, my parents (and me, indirectly) being discriminated against in housing because of our religion.  And how, as an adult, I got to read the papers of a house I was purchasing in Wichita, Kansas, and seeing how there was a pre-civil rights act "restrictive covenant" that would have prohibited a person of color, certain ethnic origins, or a Jewish person from purchasing it.

I remember how my female friends interested in playing school sports were just plain out of luck.

I remember employment ads in the paper separated into "Help Wanted Male" and "Help Wanted Female".

I remember my father telling me about being stationed in Biloxi, Mississippi during World War II and seeing the colored drinking fountain signs and worse.

I grew up knowing that my father, who suffered from epilepsy due to a head injury suffered in service to his country, found himself time and time again discriminated against when trying to look for work.  (Of course, this continues today, but at least there are laws that intend to protect against this.)  You see, in the early 60's his job was moved 700 miles away and he didn't want to uproot his family.  Yes, that stuff happened even then.

I know now that, in certain states, he could have been sterilized (although perhaps not by the 1950's), and you would not be reading this blog today if this had happened to him.

I remember that a former co-worker lost her mother in childbirth due to a health condition I was successfully treated for in my pregnancy, and my son and I are both alive today.  But her mother isn't.

I remember the man I met in 2009, alive because of a heart transplant.

I won't even get into some of the "adventures" of my brother in law growing up, because people then just didn't understand (or care) about autism.  Nope, that wouldn't have made it to Leave it to Beaver.

Yup, those good old days of black and white.

Do I sound bitter?  If I do, I don't mean it.  I will be the first to admit there are things about the 50's that we would do well to still practice.  Like common courtesy to our fellow man.  Like patience, like not expecting things "instantly."  Like respect.  Like children being able to explore on their own, being able to spend time just daydreaming, not having every minute of their day planned and regimented by adults. 

But, we should not live in a past that never existed.

Florida Sunrise - #SkywatchFriday

The Auto Train (a train that goes nonstop from Northern Virginia to Central Florida) provide the opportunity to see scenery you just don't see from the Interstate.

As the sun rises over Florida, we are past Jacksonville and riding through rural land.

We are passing through nursery farms growing ferns.  What you are seeing is the top of shade houses shielding the ferns from the Florida sun.

Below, what you are seeing is frost on the ground on that January morning.  Yes, even in Florida, you can get frost.

Sunrise over Seville, Florida.

Join Yogi and other bloggers for #SkywatchFriday, where bloggers watch the sky and photograph it from all over the world.

Palms at Night - #ThursdayTreeLove

I love palm trees.

Back in my 20's, I lived in Florida for two years.  I fell in love with palms, and I still love them, over 40 years later.

Palms withstand the hurricane winds Florida sometimes experiences, bending and yielding so they will live another day.  But, in doing so, they do not give up their essence.  They remain who they are.

I have much to learn from them.

I saw these lit up palm trees in Madeira Beach, Florida.  It's not your normal view, and I had to take a picture.

Join Parul and other bloggers who love trees for twice a month #ThursdayTreeLove.

Winter Wonders - Manatees

 The manatee is a slow moving mammal found, in the United States, in Florida.  It is also known as the "sea cow" although it is more closely related to the elephant.

Living in water, they can hold their breaths for up to 20 minutes.

They are plant eaters, and can eat up to 10% of their body weight in plant matter each day.

The West Indian manatee, along with two other manatee species, are endangered.  Here are some fun facts about manatees.  Sadly, their only real enemy in the wild is man.

They can be run over by boats - manatees are no match for boaters.

Humans in Florida have finally woken up to the importance of saving the manatee.

In winter, manatees gather in several spots in Florida, where the water is warm, to winter.  In turn, people come from all over the world to see them.

Today, I would like to give you, my dear readers, a couple of glimpses into the world of the manatee.  It is fortunate that the water at this spring is so clear that you can see the manatees without much trouble.

These pictures were taken earlier this month at Blue Springs State Park in Florida.  Because the weather was cooler than usual, over 250 manatees were sighted the day we were there.

Here's Blue Springs itself.  At one time, before the state took the land, this was a swimming hole.  Now, no swimming is permitted during manatee season (from November into early March).  In spring, the manatees disperse and that's it for mass viewings until late fall.

And a sign educating the public about manatees and how to help protect these treasures of Florida.

Have you ever seen a manatee?

Coming Attractions

Once upon a time, our entire lives were ahead of us.

Now, increasingly, they are in our rear view mirrors.

Many of us of a "certain age" are caregivers for elderly parents, or former caregivers (because they have passed on).

My situation isn't typical.

My parents passed away when I was relatively young (I was 12 for my Mom, and 33 for my Dad). I never knew my Mom as an adult, but, on the other hand, I never had to see her age.

But, I am one of several caregivers for my mother in law, who is a nonagenarian, and for my autistic brother in law, who is close to the beginning of his senior years.  So I am getting to see our system from two different angles - the angles of the treatment of old age, and the treatment of those with developmental disabilities who are aging.

And I am getting to see my mother in law age. I’ve known her for 47 years.

I see the coming attractions and I want to yell out "no thank you, I don't want to be part of this movie!  Get me out of the theater!"  But then I consider the alternative.

I am also seeing a part of the health care system that I haven't before.

So, as a blogger, what do I do?

Perhaps I just roll along, trying to find the beauty in life, and make the best of it.

Just like many of us are.

Colorful Songs - Music Moves Me

Today, on the blog hop Music Moves me, I'm caching up with last week's theme of Songs with Colors in the Title, suggested by our "spotlight dancer" Mary Burris of the blog Jingle Jangle Jungle.  I've read Mary's blog for years (I "met" her years ago in a blogging challenge) and I guarantee that the 4Mers may well outdo themselves today.

A brief intro to Music Moves Me:

The Head 4M'er is XmasDolly.  Her co-4Mers are:  Callie of JAmerican Spice, and ♥Stacy of Stacy Uncorked♥   The Rockin' elf Cathy from Curious as a Cathy .

And now for some colorful music!

A Whiter Shade of Pale, which has been covered by many artists since its May 1967 release by the British band Procul Harum.  I love the intricacy of the music and the lyrics just as much now as I did back when I first heard it in 1967.

Behind Blue Eyes by the Who.

Paint It Black (also known as Paint It, Black), by the Rolling Stones, released in 1966.  It has become associated with various Vietnam themed movies and TV shows.  This is another song that has been covered over and over again.

 Yellow Ledbetter, by Pearl Jam.   This song has a fascinating backstory and the band will change the lyrics from time to time when performing it live.   But, in general, it is said to be a story about a young man who died in the Gulf War.  His brother receives the news of the death and takes a walk - and what happens during that walk.

And finally, Greensleeves, performed here by the King's Singers.  Yes, this isn't rock.  But the human voice, after all, is the ultimate musical instrument, and this song, hundred of years old, is a song I have loved since I was a child. 

Back Still Again to Remembering the USSR

I thought, on the first anniversary of a huge political protest in the United States, I would repeat this post.

One of my favorite pastimes is finding magazines from the World War II and Cold War era (especially World War II). This was a nice find at the Ithaca, NY library book sale in 2009, my first year of blogging.

The Ithaca, New York book sale, held twice a year, is one of the largest in the country.  They usually have some boxes of old Life, Look and other older magazines.  Sometimes they are musty, but they are always a treat for people like me to read.  The next sale is in May, and I hope I can make it up there.

The original post can be found here.  Here is the post, slightly reworked:

Twice a year, I make my pilgrimage to the Ithaca Friends of the Library Book Sale.

If you aren't of a "certain age" you will not remember Life magazine (except maybe in the name "Time-Life" ). If you are of a certain age thinking of this magazine will bring back memories.

In a corner of the sale, I followed the musty smell and found a stack of old Life magazines. Many were heavily damaged but several were still in pretty decent condition. The subscribers (the mailing labels were still on the magazine, and they didn't belong to the same person) seemed to have a common interest in the space program - and in the Soviet Union.

Remember the Soviet Union?  The monolith that was the scariest part of my childhood - and crumbled in time for my son to be born?

The magazines were $1.00 each.  Pretty cheap history.

After some digging I found my little treasure - the March 29, 1943 "Special Issue USSR" with a picture of Joseph Stalin on the cover. Now keep in mind that I grew up during the Cold War, and did my share of Duck and Cover.  To this day, hearing the sirens calling out the volunteer fire department make me cold and scared for a quick second before I reassure myself that they aren't air raid sirens announcing the atomic end of the world as we know it.

Well, my inner historian reminded me that at this point in time the U.S.S.R was our ally (against Hitler). And sure enough I paged through the magazine and saw this article "Red Leaders. They are Tough, Loyal, Capable Administrators". Not exactly the, er, party line I would hear in my growing up. Other articles praised the accomplishments of the Soviet Union, and even the accomplishments of the Russia of the past 1,000. years.

Remember the U.S.S.R? Remember the Reds? Remember Communism? My son wasn't even two years old when the Soviet Union fell on Christmas Day, 1991. As for my generation, the Red Menace dominated our childhoods. What a difference a few years makes.

To my Cold War amazement, there was even an article "The Soviets and the Post-War" subtitled "A Former Ambassador to Moscow Answers Some Perplexing Problems". The author is one Joseph E. Davies, who famously supported the Soviet government even back in the 1930's, before we became allies.

One question asked of Mr. Davies was "Is Russian determined to pursue the cause of world revolution?" His answer began "In my opinion, no."

Seven years later, in the Joseph McCarthy era, this article may have been unprintable. The story of Joseph Davies is quite interesting, if this article is accurate.

For anyone interested in history, this was a great find.

Do you remember the Soviet Union?  Duck and Cover?  The Cold War?  Do you like old magazines for their glimpses of a world now gone?

Could any of have imagined the links that are being discovered now between Russia and...

Sustainable Saturday - Is Sustainable Living Too Grim?

 Heard a good environmental joke lately?

Me, neither.

We all need a good laugh.  Especially after the past year.  The government shutdown that started at midnight tonight.

And so much has happened in the past year, both in the lives of people I know, and in the world in general. 

I have to remind myself that laughing is one of the things that makes life worthwhile, even in the midst of stressful times.

But, there really is such a thing as "sustainable humor".  I don't mean recycling old/tired jokes, I don't mean the "you're so hot, you started global warming" type of non-humor. No, rather, what we might call green humor.  I guess those of us who like to try to live on the Earth as lightly as possible (at least, in theory) are sometimes just a bit too grim.

Need a good laugh today?  Here are some links to "green humor", or at least, humor involving nature, and a little laughing at ourselves.

First, the famous Amazon.com "Mountain Three Wolves" T Shirt reviews.

Tuscan Whole Milk poem (based on Poe's "The Raven") well, if it had been ORGANIC whole milk maybe it would not have spilled.

Recycle your broken dreams (an Onion classic).

Got any good green jokes?


I'm almost afraid to ask but - heard a good joke lately?

Florida Sunset - Skywatch Friday

From the archives.

Sanibel Island, Florida, sunset March 4 2013.

So beautiful....so many memories.

Join bloggers from all over the world for #SkywatchFriday.

Just Another Word?

I come from a generation where uttering a certain four letter word beginning with "f" and ending with "k" would earn you instant punishment from your parents, if you were a youngster.

This scene from one of my favorite Christmas movies, A Christmas Story, had a lot of truth in it.

If you were older, you knew better than to say that word in front of your parents, although you might use it a lot among your friends.

Now, it's everywhere  Is it just me, or do you feel sad to see the word formerly known as the "F" word demoted to just ordinary usage?

Recently, I was in a gift shop, and saw a display of socks.  I like unusual socks, but these were too unusual for me.  Each had a quote using the "F" word. 

Not only that, but that word is the newest word in the cookbook vocabulary.

Take, for example, the best seller "Thug Kitchen".  "Eat like you give a "f----!" the cover boasts.

Or, better yet, "What the F---Should I Make for Dinner?"  (I kid you not).

We need words for occasions like that, I believe - forbidden words that help us deal with pain or frustration.

It makes me wonder what word future generations will use when they hit their finger with a hammer.  Or get a flat tire (see video above)?  The "F" word is less and less taboo each day.  One day, it will totally lose its power.

Perhaps, as part of a sustainable lifestyle, we should be thinking more about gratitude, especially on a day like today.  Protests are occuring all over the country, and our minds turn to the future.

So maybe we need a light topic on today, which is turning out for many to be anything but light.

Any idea what word will take the place of the "F" word on the day it becomes just another word?

Winter Wonders - Escaping Winter

Two weeks ago I had blogged about our first vacation with our now grown son since 2006.  Today, I'd like to share part of that trip with you.

In 2006, it had been 30 years since I last set foot in Florida.

Now it was time to go back.

How much had things changed since I lived in Tampa, Florida between 1974 and 1976?

I remember a lot about what is now called "old Florida" from living there, and from visits in 1966, 1969 and 1972 as a teenager. I remember Busch Gardens in Tampa when it was a free brewery tour followed by a free trained parrot show. I remember Disney World when it first opened (my first visit was 10 months, I believe, after its opening) before you needed a bank loan to visit.

So how did I prepare for this nostalgic visit? By researching it to death. I discovered various Tampa landmarks of my years there were gone-Mirabella's, Maas Brothers - and others had been bought up or had name changes. The Tampa skyline definitely was not what it was (or, more like it, what it was not) back in 1976. But absolutely nothing prepared me for what was to come.

And now...how to get to Florida?  I am scared of flying (a long story).

I remembered seeing ads for the Auto Train in the early 1970's when I still lived in New York City.  It still existed.  So we booked it, myself, my spouse and my 16 year old son, and our 1999 Altima.

Lorton Auto Train terminal, March 2013

Once the train pulled out of the station in Lorton, Virginia, there was the amazing sense of getting ready to complete a journey that had started in 1966. Forty years earlier, an Atlantic Coast Line train had brought me home from Tampa, Florida during an airplane strike. Now, in a way, I was taking the return train.

In Fredericksburg, Virginia, we passed near Civil War battlefields we had visited years ago. At Quantico, we went right through the marine base and watched helicopters in flight. We passed over a beautiful lake and had close up views of the countryside. In Richmond, Virginia, we passed so close to a highway we could see the faces of drivers heading in the opposite direction. It was so tempting to wave!

A train (not the Auto Train) traveling through Ashland, VA, April 2017

We passed people going home for their supper hour. In one town (Ashland, Virginia) we passed right down the middle of their main street, with driveways backing right into the path of the train.

Even after darkness fell,  I peered out the window every time lights and the start of whistle blowing announced a town. We passed through southern North Carolina as I fell into a fitful sleep. The train seemed to speed up. When a train passed in another direction it felt as if the train would rock right off its tracks.

Finally, we pulled into a well lit station - our one stop, to change crews and do maintenance only: Florence, South Carolina. We stayed there a while, and then traveled on.

At some point I woke up in time to see a huge, well lit billboard for a Crab Shack on Tybee Island and didn't know if it was part of a dream or not. (See blog post from yesterday-it was not a dream).

The next thing I knew, it was 6am and time for breakfast. We were traveling through southern Georgia.

As darkness made way to light, my son and I gazed upon a southern green scape. What a feeling it was to share this with my son, pointing out the southern vegetation and  landmarks as we came across them. How awesome is it to share a piece of your life with your teenage son?

The sun was already high in the sky as we crossed over the St. Mary's River into Florida. It glared down with the promise of a broiling August Florida day. After breakfast, we slowly wound through Jacksonville, Florida.  Jacksonville is the largest city (in area) in the United States and the Auto Train gives a very good view, taking a good 20 minutes to pass through.

Frost on grass near Jacksonville, Florida, March 2013

To my delight I saw names I had not seen in 30 years...Kash and Karry, Winn-Dixie. They had survived the 31 years since I had been last in Jacksonville.

South of Jacksonville, we saw many shade houses, and the conductor announced these were fern growing areas. Certainly nothing you would have seen from the Interstate.

Finally we got to Sanford, and the circle started in 1966 was complete.

Fast forward to August 2017, when we traveled together (perhaps for the last time), and I asked my son if he remembered the trip to Florida.  He did, and said he wouldn't mind traveling on the Auto Train again. 

I hope he does!