Why are we so fascinated by the First Moon Walk on this particular anniversary?
Is it knowing that this may be the last 10-year anniversary where all three astronauts of Apollo 11 may be alive? (after all, Neil Armstrong is 78). Is it a sense of what may have been (why did we abandon manned space missions out to the moon and beyond?) Or is it because we have so many Internet "toys"that allow us to follow the mission, minute by minute, complete with astronaut updates on Twitter?
(If you are interested in one such site, here's a very good one, run by the JFK Presidential Library).
Or, you can go to "Google Moon".
But the one I really liked was the NY Times "readers' moon memories" . Must be the anthropology major in me. If only I knew where my photos were, I would scan and post them on this blog. Yes, I took black and white (of course!) photos of the TV screen at home. My Dad and I stayed up late to watch Neil Armstrong take his first steps.
However I never thought of taking pictures of us watching TV. That would have been interesting!
And what if we had had the Internet then? Well we could say that about any time of history. Better in some ways that our memories are frozen in those faded photos and home movies. No matter how dated they seem to our children.
Eight months later I would go on a trip with other high school seniors to study a total solar eclipse on the grounds of East Carolina university. (Greenville, NC) If the moon landing was a thrill of a lifetime, this trip to North Carolina taught me some interesting things about life on earth. But that will (perhaps) be a story for another time.
Monday, July 20, 2009
Sunday, July 19, 2009
The 40th Anniversary of the Moon Landing
40 years ago tomorrow. Where were you?
Where was I? I was in midtown Manhattan, with my Dad, at a space exhibit. I had followed the space program from as soon as I was old enough to. I don't think I truly remember Sputnik, but I do remember our country shooting dogs and monkeys into space. I remember Telstar, I remember being amazed at a trans oceanic broadcast of - The Today Show? Then came the manned flights. In that day of non CNN, no 24 hour news channels, the early flights, only several hours long, were covered in their entirety by the networks. It was a very big news item. I took lots of pictures at the exhibit. I stayed up to watch Neil Armstrong walk on the moon, along with millions of other Americans.
I remember following all the manned flights leading up to Apollo 11 on television. I was a great science fiction fan from around the age of 10, too, and it all tied in.
Tomorrow I hope I can catch some coverage of the anniversary.
Where was I? I was in midtown Manhattan, with my Dad, at a space exhibit. I had followed the space program from as soon as I was old enough to. I don't think I truly remember Sputnik, but I do remember our country shooting dogs and monkeys into space. I remember Telstar, I remember being amazed at a trans oceanic broadcast of - The Today Show? Then came the manned flights. In that day of non CNN, no 24 hour news channels, the early flights, only several hours long, were covered in their entirety by the networks. It was a very big news item. I took lots of pictures at the exhibit. I stayed up to watch Neil Armstrong walk on the moon, along with millions of other Americans.
I remember following all the manned flights leading up to Apollo 11 on television. I was a great science fiction fan from around the age of 10, too, and it all tied in.
Tomorrow I hope I can catch some coverage of the anniversary.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
A bad year for Boomer Icons-Now Cronkite on the Eve of the Moon Landing Anniversary
About 6 weeks ago, I had blogged about the rumors of the impending demise of Walter Cronkite.
Now, alas, it has come to pass that Walter Cronkite has passed on to His Next Big Assignment. Three days before the 40th anniversary of the first man stepping forth on the moon. This ending couldn't have been planned better if it was a work of fiction.
When my 19 year old son comes home from work this afternoon I don't know I will even mention it to him because I'm afraid he will ask "who?" Will there be an iconic news person of his generation in the same way?
So, what does the passing of Walter Cronkite mean to me? To me it means a Great Person is gone:
The person who told us JFK had been shot and stayed with us through three days of mourning. The man who, when he told America we were "mired" in the War in Vietnam, convinced presidents that we really should rethink what we were doing.
The man who reported the Apollo 11 moon landing. (and watched as we abandoned our space program.)
He reported during the worst days of Watergate.
They forced him to retire way too young. But even when retired, he was there to speak to us after 9/11.
He was there with his gentle, guiding voice during our best days and our worst.
His voice made you feel safe.
OK, I am going to say it. I can't help it.
"And THAT’s the way it is".
Goodbye, Walter. We will miss you.
Now, alas, it has come to pass that Walter Cronkite has passed on to His Next Big Assignment. Three days before the 40th anniversary of the first man stepping forth on the moon. This ending couldn't have been planned better if it was a work of fiction.
When my 19 year old son comes home from work this afternoon I don't know I will even mention it to him because I'm afraid he will ask "who?" Will there be an iconic news person of his generation in the same way?
So, what does the passing of Walter Cronkite mean to me? To me it means a Great Person is gone:
The person who told us JFK had been shot and stayed with us through three days of mourning. The man who, when he told America we were "mired" in the War in Vietnam, convinced presidents that we really should rethink what we were doing.
The man who reported the Apollo 11 moon landing. (and watched as we abandoned our space program.)
He reported during the worst days of Watergate.
They forced him to retire way too young. But even when retired, he was there to speak to us after 9/11.
He was there with his gentle, guiding voice during our best days and our worst.
His voice made you feel safe.
OK, I am going to say it. I can't help it.
"And THAT’s the way it is".
Goodbye, Walter. We will miss you.
Friday, July 17, 2009
So a Starbucks is not a Starbucks when....what?
So Starbucks is testing new names in Seattle because....why? Because they've already lost their way, and lost thousands of customers along the way?
I am one of your lost customers, Starbucks. And offering me a free breakfast pastry on July 21 isn't going to do it.
I am not a coffee addict. I can get up in the morning without a jolt of $3.75 coffee. In fact, I find the Starbucks non-flavored coffee experience to be way too bitter.
My Starbucks purchase habits were certainly not the norm. Spouse and I used to go for exercise walks when my son was younger and time by ourselves was much more limited. If we had a sitter or son was at an activity we did not need to be at, we would do our walk on the walking trail, and then go to Starbucks for a "date". It was nice to buy a fancy coffee drink, sit at a table, and just talk. The atmosphere was somewhat quiet - the Starbucks here aren't super-crowded the way the ones in Midtown Manhattan (for example) are.
Then....I can't quite put my finger on it, but it wasn't just the price increases. There was nothing special about Starbucks anymore. Everything there just seemed overpriced. And the new products like Green Tea Frappuchino and some kind of hot chocolate that was more like chocolate mud (and I'm a chocoholic!) didn't inspire me to try anything new.
After a while, we just stopped going. I have not been in a Starbucks in years.
OK Starbucks, I realize I was not your typical customer. I will give you an "A" for effort but seriously, look at some of your failures. (not the most recent list, but nicely illustrated).
Then there was the little side story of Starbucks and the Clover coffee machine (only $11,000. per.) Apparently (I am taking this from second hand sources) Starbucks bought this machine up so no one else could use it (going forward) but so far they are only offering this allegedly special coffee in four general locations. The closest to us would be Boston/Rhode Island.
Sorry, Starbucks, you are going to have to do better than that. In the meantime, we will be buying our "to go" coffee in the local convenience store, in our local supermarket's coffee bar, or...horrors...McDonalds. (It's good. No atmosphere, but the price is right.)
I am one of your lost customers, Starbucks. And offering me a free breakfast pastry on July 21 isn't going to do it.
I am not a coffee addict. I can get up in the morning without a jolt of $3.75 coffee. In fact, I find the Starbucks non-flavored coffee experience to be way too bitter.
My Starbucks purchase habits were certainly not the norm. Spouse and I used to go for exercise walks when my son was younger and time by ourselves was much more limited. If we had a sitter or son was at an activity we did not need to be at, we would do our walk on the walking trail, and then go to Starbucks for a "date". It was nice to buy a fancy coffee drink, sit at a table, and just talk. The atmosphere was somewhat quiet - the Starbucks here aren't super-crowded the way the ones in Midtown Manhattan (for example) are.
Then....I can't quite put my finger on it, but it wasn't just the price increases. There was nothing special about Starbucks anymore. Everything there just seemed overpriced. And the new products like Green Tea Frappuchino and some kind of hot chocolate that was more like chocolate mud (and I'm a chocoholic!) didn't inspire me to try anything new.
After a while, we just stopped going. I have not been in a Starbucks in years.
OK Starbucks, I realize I was not your typical customer. I will give you an "A" for effort but seriously, look at some of your failures. (not the most recent list, but nicely illustrated).
Then there was the little side story of Starbucks and the Clover coffee machine (only $11,000. per.) Apparently (I am taking this from second hand sources) Starbucks bought this machine up so no one else could use it (going forward) but so far they are only offering this allegedly special coffee in four general locations. The closest to us would be Boston/Rhode Island.
Sorry, Starbucks, you are going to have to do better than that. In the meantime, we will be buying our "to go" coffee in the local convenience store, in our local supermarket's coffee bar, or...horrors...McDonalds. (It's good. No atmosphere, but the price is right.)
Thursday, July 16, 2009
New York's Electronic Voting-Back to the Future
Today I experienced the future of voting in NY.
New York, to the best of my knowledge, is the last state in the union to adopt some version of electronic voting. Up to last year, we were using those old dinosaur lever machines with the curtain - you stood there and had 3 minutes to pull levers for your candidates.
Before that (as my 80 year old plus neighbor tells me) NY had paper ballots.
Guess what. We will have paper ballots again. Sort of.
I went to a demonstration of the new voting system at the Broome County Library today and this is how it works:
First, you have to fill out a paper ballot. You do this at a "corral" accommodating four voters. It is on an approximately 8 1/2 x 14 sheet. There is a square box next to each candidate's name. You have a pen, like a fine magic marker, that you fill in the boxes with. Then, you will need to put this in an envelop (so it remains secret) and wait on line to feed your sheet of paper into a machine.
The machine reads your ballot and if all is OK you hear it drop into a box. It is also scanned and there is also a paper receipt (which wasn't demonstrated). The demonstrator emphasized safeguards so the results wouldn't be hacked.
If you "overvoted" (filled in too many boxes) the ballot is spit back out and I assume you have to get back into the line for the corral.
If you "undervoted" the machine will tell you and you can override and tell it to accept your ballot, or have it spit out to correct.
What happens if you start to fill out a box and change your mind? What happens if you put a stray mark near a box? I had a lot of questions but of course I thought of them after I went back to work (this was on my lunch).
I'm not sure if I'm sold on this. I did find an interesting blog devoted to keeping the lever machines.
I'll love to see how this works in the November elections, which are an off year election. I can almost see the long lines other states have complained about.....
New York, to the best of my knowledge, is the last state in the union to adopt some version of electronic voting. Up to last year, we were using those old dinosaur lever machines with the curtain - you stood there and had 3 minutes to pull levers for your candidates.
Before that (as my 80 year old plus neighbor tells me) NY had paper ballots.
Guess what. We will have paper ballots again. Sort of.
I went to a demonstration of the new voting system at the Broome County Library today and this is how it works:
First, you have to fill out a paper ballot. You do this at a "corral" accommodating four voters. It is on an approximately 8 1/2 x 14 sheet. There is a square box next to each candidate's name. You have a pen, like a fine magic marker, that you fill in the boxes with. Then, you will need to put this in an envelop (so it remains secret) and wait on line to feed your sheet of paper into a machine.
The machine reads your ballot and if all is OK you hear it drop into a box. It is also scanned and there is also a paper receipt (which wasn't demonstrated). The demonstrator emphasized safeguards so the results wouldn't be hacked.
If you "overvoted" (filled in too many boxes) the ballot is spit back out and I assume you have to get back into the line for the corral.
If you "undervoted" the machine will tell you and you can override and tell it to accept your ballot, or have it spit out to correct.
What happens if you start to fill out a box and change your mind? What happens if you put a stray mark near a box? I had a lot of questions but of course I thought of them after I went back to work (this was on my lunch).
I'm not sure if I'm sold on this. I did find an interesting blog devoted to keeping the lever machines.
I'll love to see how this works in the November elections, which are an off year election. I can almost see the long lines other states have complained about.....
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
RIP CompuServe Classic - Another Baby Boomer Favorite Gone
This isn't a funeral for a person but an online service that predated the Internet, and in some ways was one of the first social networks-using a 1200 baud modem.
CompuServe Classic was discontinued June 30, 2009.
I still have CompuServe 3.0.4 on my computer.
I came late to the computer world. I bought my first computer, a Toshiba Pentium with a 1.6 GB hard drive and 16 MB of RAM, and a 14,400 bps modem, in December of 1996. It was sort of a self-birthday gift. With a service plan it set me back nearly $2,000 and I took a loan off my 401K to purchase it.
I had heard about CompuServe from savvy friends, and they told me about certain Forums I would enjoy. So in January of 1997 I joined the online world, using a Mosaic browser and immediately joined CompuServe. It was love at first sight. I stayed with CompuServe for over 6 years but by then AOL and the Internet had gutted it so much it wasn't worth it. I went broadband.
I realize that in CompuServe time no veteran would be impressed by this. I missed the 1980's when the online services like GEnie, Prodigy, and the various local BBS systems, allowed the technologically proficient to get online and communicate with each other. Still, in the 1997 world (this is before AOL bought CompuServe, by the way) this was exciting stuff. In fact, I still have my first email, which was a request for help on how to make a potato battery (my son wanted to know.)
And flat rate monthly service hadn't been adopted yet, so we paid by the hour.
I had one of those all number email addresses - 105643.2042@compuserve.com - and kept it for my entire history with CompuServe. I participated in several forums and "lurked" in many more. A couple of sysops helped me through some personal hard times and I met one for lunch when she visited Binghamton.
It wasn't as glitzy as Facebook but I do miss it.
And now it's gone.
CompuServe Classic was discontinued June 30, 2009.
I still have CompuServe 3.0.4 on my computer.
I came late to the computer world. I bought my first computer, a Toshiba Pentium with a 1.6 GB hard drive and 16 MB of RAM, and a 14,400 bps modem, in December of 1996. It was sort of a self-birthday gift. With a service plan it set me back nearly $2,000 and I took a loan off my 401K to purchase it.
I had heard about CompuServe from savvy friends, and they told me about certain Forums I would enjoy. So in January of 1997 I joined the online world, using a Mosaic browser and immediately joined CompuServe. It was love at first sight. I stayed with CompuServe for over 6 years but by then AOL and the Internet had gutted it so much it wasn't worth it. I went broadband.
I realize that in CompuServe time no veteran would be impressed by this. I missed the 1980's when the online services like GEnie, Prodigy, and the various local BBS systems, allowed the technologically proficient to get online and communicate with each other. Still, in the 1997 world (this is before AOL bought CompuServe, by the way) this was exciting stuff. In fact, I still have my first email, which was a request for help on how to make a potato battery (my son wanted to know.)
And flat rate monthly service hadn't been adopted yet, so we paid by the hour.
I had one of those all number email addresses - 105643.2042@compuserve.com - and kept it for my entire history with CompuServe. I participated in several forums and "lurked" in many more. A couple of sysops helped me through some personal hard times and I met one for lunch when she visited Binghamton.
It wasn't as glitzy as Facebook but I do miss it.
And now it's gone.
Monday, July 13, 2009
Happy Bastille Day - Let Them Eat Tastykake
My dad was born on July 14, 1914. The July 14 birth date made it easy to remember Bastille Day in history class. Dad is no longer alive, but I've always wanted to go to a Bastille Day celebration.
The only I really want to go to is this: I visited the Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia around 2000 and it was quite fascinating. It is a very historic prison located in a residental area of Philadelphia - now closed and crumbling, but has a lot of history associated with it. It is well worth a visit.
They even have an Alumni reunion every year.
For those not living in the Northeast, Tastykakes are snack cakes, something like Little Debbies. They are made in Philadelphia but you can buy them in NYC, and upstate like here.
The "Marie Antoinette" impersonator throws Tastykakes into the crowd before she is guillotined (not for real, of course).
The only I really want to go to is this: I visited the Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia around 2000 and it was quite fascinating. It is a very historic prison located in a residental area of Philadelphia - now closed and crumbling, but has a lot of history associated with it. It is well worth a visit.
They even have an Alumni reunion every year.
For those not living in the Northeast, Tastykakes are snack cakes, something like Little Debbies. They are made in Philadelphia but you can buy them in NYC, and upstate like here.
The "Marie Antoinette" impersonator throws Tastykakes into the crowd before she is guillotined (not for real, of course).
Saturday, July 11, 2009
The Not-so-Mighty Queen of Williamsbridge
Amy Dickinson is the successor to famed advice columnist Ann Landers, I've been enjoying her column for years because she has such a way with words that you could laugh, but also realize she was being totally serious about her advice. It is good advice too. Personally, I prefer her to the two women who took over Dear Abby's column.
Now I've read her memoir "The Mighty Queens of Freeville" and....
1. I wish I had read it months ago, before she did it a book signing in downtown Binghamton
2. I feel I've known her all my life, although our lives are as totally different as you can be different.
Let's compare and contrast
Where did we grow up?
Amy: Grew up in Freeville, NY pop. 455 (give or take a couple). Part of her childhood was spent on a dairy farm.
AM: Grew up in the Bronx (the neighborhood of Williamsbridge), population approximately 1,400,000, in a low income housing project. The approximate population of my housing project was 1,500.
Family
Amy: Siblings, mother (father deserted family), is related to much of Freeville, including the "mighty queens"
AM: Only child, father (mother died during my childhood), my most favorite relatives were 1 1/2 hours away on the subway
Activities while growing up
Amy: lots of rural and small town activities centering around the local church and family
AM: potsy, curbball, swings, monkey bars, word rhyming games while bouncing a Spaulding, jumprope (although I was never able to do double dutch), riding my bike (especially as a teenager)
High School
Amy: Dryden High School, enrollment about 500.
AM: Thank heavens I DID NOT go to my local high school, Evander Childs. Where I did go, the enrollment was about 2800. And with all its distinguished alumni, I brought it...to paraphrase Weird Al Yankovic in his song "I Lost on Jeopardy" - shame and disgrace to my high school name for generations to come, because I haven't won a Nobel prize yet.
Marriage:
Amy: Once, husband walked out on her, one daughter
AM: married 35 years, one son
Adult Life:
Amy: spent between Freeville, London, Washington DC and Chicago
AM: spent between Florida, Iowa, Texas, Kansas, Arkansas and the Triple Cities of Upstate NY
Perfect Pitch
Amy: Yes
AM: son begged me to stop singing to him when he was about 2
Dorkiness
Amy: Yes, and proud of it
AM: Probably not the way Amy means it (activities like joining madrigal choirs-see "perfect pitch" above). In fact I was thrown out of a chorus at my summer camp in 1966.
Success
Amy: Lots, well deserved
AM: Jury's still out on that one
Published Author
Amy: Yes, write more books, please please please!
AM: I do have this blog....
Conclusion: I love Amy! Amy, if you are up here again, will you visit me and have dinner with me? The Mighty Queen of Freeville and the not-so-Mighty Queen of Williamsbridge? There's this nice little restaurant in Johnson City called Caccitore's....
Now I've read her memoir "The Mighty Queens of Freeville" and....
1. I wish I had read it months ago, before she did it a book signing in downtown Binghamton
2. I feel I've known her all my life, although our lives are as totally different as you can be different.
Let's compare and contrast
Where did we grow up?
Amy: Grew up in Freeville, NY pop. 455 (give or take a couple). Part of her childhood was spent on a dairy farm.
AM: Grew up in the Bronx (the neighborhood of Williamsbridge), population approximately 1,400,000, in a low income housing project. The approximate population of my housing project was 1,500.
Family
Amy: Siblings, mother (father deserted family), is related to much of Freeville, including the "mighty queens"
AM: Only child, father (mother died during my childhood), my most favorite relatives were 1 1/2 hours away on the subway
Activities while growing up
Amy: lots of rural and small town activities centering around the local church and family
AM: potsy, curbball, swings, monkey bars, word rhyming games while bouncing a Spaulding, jumprope (although I was never able to do double dutch), riding my bike (especially as a teenager)
High School
Amy: Dryden High School, enrollment about 500.
AM: Thank heavens I DID NOT go to my local high school, Evander Childs. Where I did go, the enrollment was about 2800. And with all its distinguished alumni, I brought it...to paraphrase Weird Al Yankovic in his song "I Lost on Jeopardy" - shame and disgrace to my high school name for generations to come, because I haven't won a Nobel prize yet.
Marriage:
Amy: Once, husband walked out on her, one daughter
AM: married 35 years, one son
Adult Life:
Amy: spent between Freeville, London, Washington DC and Chicago
AM: spent between Florida, Iowa, Texas, Kansas, Arkansas and the Triple Cities of Upstate NY
Perfect Pitch
Amy: Yes
AM: son begged me to stop singing to him when he was about 2
Dorkiness
Amy: Yes, and proud of it
AM: Probably not the way Amy means it (activities like joining madrigal choirs-see "perfect pitch" above). In fact I was thrown out of a chorus at my summer camp in 1966.
Success
Amy: Lots, well deserved
AM: Jury's still out on that one
Published Author
Amy: Yes, write more books, please please please!
AM: I do have this blog....
Conclusion: I love Amy! Amy, if you are up here again, will you visit me and have dinner with me? The Mighty Queen of Freeville and the not-so-Mighty Queen of Williamsbridge? There's this nice little restaurant in Johnson City called Caccitore's....
Do Our Tomatoes Have Irish Potato Blight?
Thank you, another blog, for alerting us to this.
We thought it was all the rain and coolness, but our tomato plants at our community garden are dying. It is some kind of blight. Being mostly natural gardeners (but all organic when it comes to pest control-we plead guilty to minor use of artificial fertilizers) spouse applied copper spray-when there was a short pause in the rain.
According to this article, it is widespread...may be impacting prices of tomatoes and potatoes at the store..and it isn't just us...it is all other the northeast.
Now it appears that the same blight that caused the problem with potatoes in the 1840's may be the cause of our problems. Except that what we have looks more like run of the mill late blight. But, it is too early for late blight. Both our plants and the few tomatoes that formed have the blight. If we do have the Irish Potato blight, our plants are goners along with our tomato season.
Gee, a historic blight for someone interested in slow food and heritage livestock. How....somehow fitting.
-Sob-
Tomatoes are a highlight of the gardening season. A very healthy highlight of the gardening season. I can't eat too many but each bite is heavenly. And tomato and mayonnaise sandwiches are a guilty pleasure.
By the way, there's another plant suffering out there. Zucchini. Yes, that's right. We may have to buy our zucchini this year. Say, if anyone has zucchini to dump on our doorstep, feel free. Our address is.....
We thought it was all the rain and coolness, but our tomato plants at our community garden are dying. It is some kind of blight. Being mostly natural gardeners (but all organic when it comes to pest control-we plead guilty to minor use of artificial fertilizers) spouse applied copper spray-when there was a short pause in the rain.
According to this article, it is widespread...may be impacting prices of tomatoes and potatoes at the store..and it isn't just us...it is all other the northeast.
Now it appears that the same blight that caused the problem with potatoes in the 1840's may be the cause of our problems. Except that what we have looks more like run of the mill late blight. But, it is too early for late blight. Both our plants and the few tomatoes that formed have the blight. If we do have the Irish Potato blight, our plants are goners along with our tomato season.
Gee, a historic blight for someone interested in slow food and heritage livestock. How....somehow fitting.
-Sob-
Tomatoes are a highlight of the gardening season. A very healthy highlight of the gardening season. I can't eat too many but each bite is heavenly. And tomato and mayonnaise sandwiches are a guilty pleasure.
By the way, there's another plant suffering out there. Zucchini. Yes, that's right. We may have to buy our zucchini this year. Say, if anyone has zucchini to dump on our doorstep, feel free. Our address is.....
Friday, July 10, 2009
Let's "Facebook" the Facts
So where have I been recently?
Short answer: on Facebook. I had an account from - last year? but never used it. A friend from high school friended me and I joined. I was spooked when someone with my last name I knew nothing about tried to friend me. She was a young person with about two bazillion friends. Nope. I wanted no part of this.
Over the last several months a very good "real life" friend tried to friend me. Then a cousin. Then another cousin. So I finally reactivated my account. Today I was on there looking at stuff and suddenly a chat window opened and here was one of my cousins, who I had last seen in 2001 (I think it was). So we chatted, for a half hour or more. It was fun. It was nice! It was even nicer (until I had to wake up this morning to go to work) being up late doing this "where I have traveled" map. So I'm sure a marketer knows plenty about me now. Yes, I've been to San Diego! and Toronto! Big whoop. Both of those were back in the 1990's.
I guess this particular honeymoon will last until I get a Facebook virus. In the meantime I am posting some personal info, but nothing about my job. My job doesn't get discussed here and it won't get discussed there. And my profile is set to be seen by friends only. I will probably try to friend more people I know - but don't expect me to participate in food fights, pokes (OK, I did poke someone-now, how do you find the pokes others have given you???) gifts or any of that kind of stuff. Not yet, anyway. And, no pictures of me yet either. Although you may be interested in what I posted instead of my picture.
I'll revisit this topic in maybe a month and let you know how it's going. Maybe, no promises. Maybe then I'll also do one of those "deep web" searches I've written about and see just how private my profile is.
Short answer: on Facebook. I had an account from - last year? but never used it. A friend from high school friended me and I joined. I was spooked when someone with my last name I knew nothing about tried to friend me. She was a young person with about two bazillion friends. Nope. I wanted no part of this.
Over the last several months a very good "real life" friend tried to friend me. Then a cousin. Then another cousin. So I finally reactivated my account. Today I was on there looking at stuff and suddenly a chat window opened and here was one of my cousins, who I had last seen in 2001 (I think it was). So we chatted, for a half hour or more. It was fun. It was nice! It was even nicer (until I had to wake up this morning to go to work) being up late doing this "where I have traveled" map. So I'm sure a marketer knows plenty about me now. Yes, I've been to San Diego! and Toronto! Big whoop. Both of those were back in the 1990's.
I guess this particular honeymoon will last until I get a Facebook virus. In the meantime I am posting some personal info, but nothing about my job. My job doesn't get discussed here and it won't get discussed there. And my profile is set to be seen by friends only. I will probably try to friend more people I know - but don't expect me to participate in food fights, pokes (OK, I did poke someone-now, how do you find the pokes others have given you???) gifts or any of that kind of stuff. Not yet, anyway. And, no pictures of me yet either. Although you may be interested in what I posted instead of my picture.
I'll revisit this topic in maybe a month and let you know how it's going. Maybe, no promises. Maybe then I'll also do one of those "deep web" searches I've written about and see just how private my profile is.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
New York Heatwave on the Way-Maybe
Right now our stormy weather continues. I've almost forgotten what it is like to water my hanging baskets. Our zucchinis are on strike and our tomato plants have been struck by a killing fungus-I think we are going to be lucky to have any tomatoes this year. But on the flip side, we have very happy lettuce and beets.
But hot weather may finally be on the way. How do I know? Because yesterday I went to Eternal Sunset and looked at Fairbanks, Alaska - at 2am their time, it was 70 degrees. So this morning I looked at yesterday's statistics and they had a record high yesterday of 91.
Usually that means that in about 5 days we will have similar weather.
On the other hand.....today's high was 69. Yikes.
But hot weather may finally be on the way. How do I know? Because yesterday I went to Eternal Sunset and looked at Fairbanks, Alaska - at 2am their time, it was 70 degrees. So this morning I looked at yesterday's statistics and they had a record high yesterday of 91.
Usually that means that in about 5 days we will have similar weather.
On the other hand.....today's high was 69. Yikes.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
2009 Binghamton Airshow Pictures
A lovely day at last - we spent it at the Binghamton air show watching the Blue Angels and other acts.
Here are some pictures we took. I apologize for the quality of these-my preview screen's pictures are hard to see in bright sunlight, and the speed of these planes were such that you just "pointed and prayed".
The first picture above is of the Army parachute team, the Golden Knights.
The next picture is hard to see but this was a biplane that featured someone standing on top of the plane.
These next two pictures are the flight line of the Blue Angels with the six planes lined up, and them taxing for takeoff.
Here are the Blue Angels in a couple of their formations. I've seen the Angels once before and it was just as thrilling this time.
In a way I missed having a young
person with me. The last time we saw the Blue Angels my son was young enough to want to go, and get their autographs. Yes, the Angels stay after their performance to do their PR work-and they do a very good job indeed.
So ends our Fourth of July weekend. Tomorrow, back to the grind.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Baseball, Golden Knights and 4th of July Raspberry Smoothies
An interesting, mostly peaceful 3rd and 4th of July.
The weather has finally decided to cooperate - sun finally coming out, cool for July, breezy, almost perfect.
Last night we went to the B-Mets (Binghamton Mets, AA Mets affiliate) game. The B-Mets are not playing well right now but the draws were the Golden Knights (U.S. Army) parachute team (who are also performing at the Binghamton airshow this week), a flyover and fireworks after the game. The stadium must have been half empty but those who were there had a treat as first one, and then five more, parachuters, aimed themselves at the stadium. At one point, two parachuters joined up, with one standing on the other's shoulders. What a wonderful view we had and I could kick myself for not bringing my camera.
The game itself was anticlimactic, with the B-Mets held scoreless through 8 innings. In the 9th inning they rallied and scored 3 runs-way too late. The fireworks were nice though, and will be serving as our fourth of July fireworks. A bit different than last year where we had our Fourth of July fireworks (not really, but they were on July 4th) in Saint John, New Brunswick...but that's a different story for a different posting.
This morning we decided to pick raspberries at a U-Pick farm. The route to the farm intersected with the traffic going to the air show. Luckily we had decided to go early because an hour later, it would have been impossible to get there. The berries were in good condition, considering all the rain we've gotten recently. We got our picking done before the air show started, and left as the Golden Knights did their opening parachute drop.
So we have a lot of raspberries now, which we need to process soon - they spoil very quickly. We'll make raspberry vinegar and probably raspberry liquor...and raspberry smoothies.
Here's a nice Raspberry Smoothie Recipe, courtesy of ingredients I had on hand.
3/4 c fresh raspberries
3/4 c SO Delicious Vanilla Coconut Milk
1/4 c non fat milk
(bananas would have gone good in this, except I can't eat them.)
Combine all ingredients in blender. Blend. Drink.
That's it!
May you all have a wonderful 4th.
The weather has finally decided to cooperate - sun finally coming out, cool for July, breezy, almost perfect.
Last night we went to the B-Mets (Binghamton Mets, AA Mets affiliate) game. The B-Mets are not playing well right now but the draws were the Golden Knights (U.S. Army) parachute team (who are also performing at the Binghamton airshow this week), a flyover and fireworks after the game. The stadium must have been half empty but those who were there had a treat as first one, and then five more, parachuters, aimed themselves at the stadium. At one point, two parachuters joined up, with one standing on the other's shoulders. What a wonderful view we had and I could kick myself for not bringing my camera.
The game itself was anticlimactic, with the B-Mets held scoreless through 8 innings. In the 9th inning they rallied and scored 3 runs-way too late. The fireworks were nice though, and will be serving as our fourth of July fireworks. A bit different than last year where we had our Fourth of July fireworks (not really, but they were on July 4th) in Saint John, New Brunswick...but that's a different story for a different posting.
This morning we decided to pick raspberries at a U-Pick farm. The route to the farm intersected with the traffic going to the air show. Luckily we had decided to go early because an hour later, it would have been impossible to get there. The berries were in good condition, considering all the rain we've gotten recently. We got our picking done before the air show started, and left as the Golden Knights did their opening parachute drop.
So we have a lot of raspberries now, which we need to process soon - they spoil very quickly. We'll make raspberry vinegar and probably raspberry liquor...and raspberry smoothies.
Here's a nice Raspberry Smoothie Recipe, courtesy of ingredients I had on hand.
3/4 c fresh raspberries
3/4 c SO Delicious Vanilla Coconut Milk
1/4 c non fat milk
(bananas would have gone good in this, except I can't eat them.)
Combine all ingredients in blender. Blend. Drink.
That's it!
May you all have a wonderful 4th.
Friday, July 3, 2009
Blue Angels on the Cheap
The Blue Angels are in town for this weekend's air show in Binghamton.
Yesterday, while at the community garden, spouse was treated to the Blue Angels practicing. He got quite a view.
I, of course, was at work and missed it. But I understand they practiced for most of the day. The lucky people at Broome Community College got almost an entire airshow's worth.
I did get to see one flyover after I got out of work.
Today, we went back to the garden and no luck. But on the way home we heard them thundering over and saw two of the planes. We also saw a couple of the other planes overhead.
3pm tomorrow - the real deal. Happy Fourth!
Yesterday, while at the community garden, spouse was treated to the Blue Angels practicing. He got quite a view.
I, of course, was at work and missed it. But I understand they practiced for most of the day. The lucky people at Broome Community College got almost an entire airshow's worth.
I did get to see one flyover after I got out of work.
Today, we went back to the garden and no luck. But on the way home we heard them thundering over and saw two of the planes. We also saw a couple of the other planes overhead.
3pm tomorrow - the real deal. Happy Fourth!
Autism and School discipline
Today, since I didn't have to work, I watched a "Dr Phil" episode on school discipline.
Although I like to "ramble on" about various topics, there are some special interests I have due to my life experiences. One of these is the developmental disability called "autism", which has entered my life through my brother in law, through one of my son's friends, and through other children and parent advocates I have met over the years.
I want to write about this and I am not sure if I want to start a different blog for my serious thoughts, but for now I will consider it one of my "rambles". So, "serious subject" alert.
First, a very brief definition of autism so that you can understand what went on here. According to the Autism Society of America, autism is defined as follows:"Autism is a complex developmental disability that typically appears during the first three years of life and is the result of a neurological disorder that affects the normal functioning of the brain, impacting development in the areas of social interaction and communication skills. Both children and adults with autism typically show difficulties in verbal and non-verbal communication, social interactions, and leisure or play activities."
From this description, you can tell that those with autism require extensive and skilled special education services from the moment of diagnosis. There is a very wide "spectrum" of how autism affects an individual, so many experts name autism as a "spectrum" disorder. My son's friend, for example, is on the "high functioning" end - he has been a guest at our house many times, and has been a very good friend and companion to my son. He has been in special educational programs that have concentrated on teaching him the social skills needed to succeed independently, while "mainstreaming" him in a local high school as much as possible. (I visited the program several years ago, in another context (on both the middle and high school level), before my son met this young man.)
Special education teachers, on the whole, care about their students, strive to get the proper training, and sometimes deal with behavioral situations many of us not in the education field can only begin to imagine.
However, a child with autism (and also other disabilities) can have "meltdowns" in the classroom for many reasons - and educators have to know how to properly handle this when it happens. In the first case discussed on this show, this did not happen.
The first situation discussed was that of an Iowa couple's 8 year old daughter with autism. The school had met with the parents over discipline problems they were having with the daughter. The parents had signed a permission document allowing their daughter to be put into "time out" for 5 minute periods.Their attempts to deal with this autistic child's discipline problems climaxed with a 3 hour session in the time out room, during which time she wet herself. A tape was shown on the program showing parts of the time out, including a segment where the girl was screaming for help (and no one responded.)
The girl is verbal (not all those with autism are) but was unable to communicate what was happening to her. Well, she did, in the only way she knew...by escalating her behavior at home too.
The use of "time out" rooms is extremely controversial among parent advocates and others attempting to get their special needs children educated. The parents never dreamed they were giving permission for something like what the school did.
The point of this entire thing is that a child in a time out room (or in any other kind of isolation situation) for more than a few minutes of time to allow the child to "chill" and then be reintroduced into the educational placement deprives such child of her right to an appropriate education in what is called the "least restrictive environment". To a child with autism, this can be the difference between eventually being able to live independently (with assistance) or....not.
The lesson from all this?
Parents: TRUST YOUR GUT. Always have a good relationship with your school, but YOU are the expert on your child, not them.
Although I like to "ramble on" about various topics, there are some special interests I have due to my life experiences. One of these is the developmental disability called "autism", which has entered my life through my brother in law, through one of my son's friends, and through other children and parent advocates I have met over the years.
I want to write about this and I am not sure if I want to start a different blog for my serious thoughts, but for now I will consider it one of my "rambles". So, "serious subject" alert.
First, a very brief definition of autism so that you can understand what went on here. According to the Autism Society of America, autism is defined as follows:"Autism is a complex developmental disability that typically appears during the first three years of life and is the result of a neurological disorder that affects the normal functioning of the brain, impacting development in the areas of social interaction and communication skills. Both children and adults with autism typically show difficulties in verbal and non-verbal communication, social interactions, and leisure or play activities."
From this description, you can tell that those with autism require extensive and skilled special education services from the moment of diagnosis. There is a very wide "spectrum" of how autism affects an individual, so many experts name autism as a "spectrum" disorder. My son's friend, for example, is on the "high functioning" end - he has been a guest at our house many times, and has been a very good friend and companion to my son. He has been in special educational programs that have concentrated on teaching him the social skills needed to succeed independently, while "mainstreaming" him in a local high school as much as possible. (I visited the program several years ago, in another context (on both the middle and high school level), before my son met this young man.)
Special education teachers, on the whole, care about their students, strive to get the proper training, and sometimes deal with behavioral situations many of us not in the education field can only begin to imagine.
However, a child with autism (and also other disabilities) can have "meltdowns" in the classroom for many reasons - and educators have to know how to properly handle this when it happens. In the first case discussed on this show, this did not happen.
The first situation discussed was that of an Iowa couple's 8 year old daughter with autism. The school had met with the parents over discipline problems they were having with the daughter. The parents had signed a permission document allowing their daughter to be put into "time out" for 5 minute periods.Their attempts to deal with this autistic child's discipline problems climaxed with a 3 hour session in the time out room, during which time she wet herself. A tape was shown on the program showing parts of the time out, including a segment where the girl was screaming for help (and no one responded.)
The girl is verbal (not all those with autism are) but was unable to communicate what was happening to her. Well, she did, in the only way she knew...by escalating her behavior at home too.
The use of "time out" rooms is extremely controversial among parent advocates and others attempting to get their special needs children educated. The parents never dreamed they were giving permission for something like what the school did.
The point of this entire thing is that a child in a time out room (or in any other kind of isolation situation) for more than a few minutes of time to allow the child to "chill" and then be reintroduced into the educational placement deprives such child of her right to an appropriate education in what is called the "least restrictive environment". To a child with autism, this can be the difference between eventually being able to live independently (with assistance) or....not.
The lesson from all this?
Parents: TRUST YOUR GUT. Always have a good relationship with your school, but YOU are the expert on your child, not them.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
The Decline and Fall of The Local News Stations
For years, after scanning the local newspaper, I used to tune into Newschannel 34 for my 6:30 fix of local news and weather. When son was in school, I would turn to them first for the scrolling school closings during winter storms.
One Monday about a month ago, I tuned in, only to find everyone I knew was gone. And, the weather (the first thing broadcast as the news show went on the air) was not even the weather in Binghamton. It was the weather in Elmira, an hour west of here. Then, the news proceeded and the first "article" was about something going in in Corning. Corning is even further west.
I then remembered reading an article in the newspaper (yes, I still read the newspaper) over the weekend about the mass firing "to reduce costs". So let me get this straight. Our metropolitan area of around 100,000. now gets its morning news from Elmira, which is an hour away, has very little to do with us, and...let's see, Elmira's population is about 30,000. Corning's population is around 10,000.
Guess what, Newschannel 34. I now listen to our CBS affiliate, seemingly the only 6:30 am news that is related to our area.
One further memo to the news stations: if I hear one more story about Michael Jackson, I may swear off TV all together.
One Monday about a month ago, I tuned in, only to find everyone I knew was gone. And, the weather (the first thing broadcast as the news show went on the air) was not even the weather in Binghamton. It was the weather in Elmira, an hour west of here. Then, the news proceeded and the first "article" was about something going in in Corning. Corning is even further west.
I then remembered reading an article in the newspaper (yes, I still read the newspaper) over the weekend about the mass firing "to reduce costs". So let me get this straight. Our metropolitan area of around 100,000. now gets its morning news from Elmira, which is an hour away, has very little to do with us, and...let's see, Elmira's population is about 30,000. Corning's population is around 10,000.
Guess what, Newschannel 34. I now listen to our CBS affiliate, seemingly the only 6:30 am news that is related to our area.
One further memo to the news stations: if I hear one more story about Michael Jackson, I may swear off TV all together.
The Decline and Fall of The Local Newspaper
Much has been written about the decline of print media. In our area, it isn't just the print media. Our local TV stations are attempting to go down the same path as the newspaper. Let's take a look first at our local newspaper.
Our newspaper has found new, creative ways to alienate their remaining, loyal audience. What do I mean by loyal? Well, I've subscribed to home deliver of the paper for over 21 years. If that isn't loyal, what is? So let's count the ways our local paper is using to ensure that continued loyalty.
Old Service Method: Classifieds daily, and you could find what you wanted
New Service Method: No classifieds on Monday and Tuesday. I know someone in the newspaper business so I know why they are doing this. There is a logic to this. But what about the other days? Last Saturday I looked fruitlessly (no pun intended) for the listing of local farms who were offering U-Pick fruit. I guess they eliminated that too. News Bulletin: people do read the classifieds for reasons other than purchasing cars.
Old Service Method: The comics were visible without a microscope
New Service Method: why has (and I am going to name names here) "Cathy" shrunk to a size that middle aged eyes barely can make out while "Baby Blues"has panels twice the size? Is there any logic to the big comic/small comic thing?
Old Service Method: Deliver the paper daily, usually by 5am
New Service Method: For some reason, the last few Thursdays and Fridays, the paper doesn't get delivered until after I leave for work, which....well it's way after 5am. I used to sit down with the morning paper while I ate my cereal. Now, sometimes, it doesn't get read at all. Maybe one day they won't deliver it at all. Let's see if I notice.
(and yes, we tip the carrier. My spouse delivered papers as a teen and he remembers it well.)
We won't mention the Incredible Shrinking Newspaper Width (one reduction in December, one reduction this week), the Let's Play with the Fonts so People Can't Read our Paper, and the other games the paper is playing.
I have read newspapers all of my life. My 19 year old son, on the other hand, has barely opened a paper in my sight, ever, in his lifetime. He isn't alone. And if you keep up the not so great service, Dear Newspaper, the 50 year olds won't be reading your paper either.
Anyway.....now, instead of reading the sometimes-not-there-paper-when-I-am-getting-ready-for-work, I decided to depend on the local TV stations. Which leads me to my next post.
Our newspaper has found new, creative ways to alienate their remaining, loyal audience. What do I mean by loyal? Well, I've subscribed to home deliver of the paper for over 21 years. If that isn't loyal, what is? So let's count the ways our local paper is using to ensure that continued loyalty.
Old Service Method: Classifieds daily, and you could find what you wanted
New Service Method: No classifieds on Monday and Tuesday. I know someone in the newspaper business so I know why they are doing this. There is a logic to this. But what about the other days? Last Saturday I looked fruitlessly (no pun intended) for the listing of local farms who were offering U-Pick fruit. I guess they eliminated that too. News Bulletin: people do read the classifieds for reasons other than purchasing cars.
Old Service Method: The comics were visible without a microscope
New Service Method: why has (and I am going to name names here) "Cathy" shrunk to a size that middle aged eyes barely can make out while "Baby Blues"has panels twice the size? Is there any logic to the big comic/small comic thing?
Old Service Method: Deliver the paper daily, usually by 5am
New Service Method: For some reason, the last few Thursdays and Fridays, the paper doesn't get delivered until after I leave for work, which....well it's way after 5am. I used to sit down with the morning paper while I ate my cereal. Now, sometimes, it doesn't get read at all. Maybe one day they won't deliver it at all. Let's see if I notice.
(and yes, we tip the carrier. My spouse delivered papers as a teen and he remembers it well.)
We won't mention the Incredible Shrinking Newspaper Width (one reduction in December, one reduction this week), the Let's Play with the Fonts so People Can't Read our Paper, and the other games the paper is playing.
I have read newspapers all of my life. My 19 year old son, on the other hand, has barely opened a paper in my sight, ever, in his lifetime. He isn't alone. And if you keep up the not so great service, Dear Newspaper, the 50 year olds won't be reading your paper either.
Anyway.....now, instead of reading the sometimes-not-there-paper-when-I-am-getting-ready-for-work, I decided to depend on the local TV stations. Which leads me to my next post.
The disappearing Car Door
This video has been online since 2007; I just found out about it. The disappearing car door is fascinating and apparently is still being worked on. I wonder how much this feature will cost. Or when we can ever expect to see it in production.
Since it makes sense and is useful, maybe never! (Seriously, though, with the severe troubles the U.S. automakers are in, I really wonder.)
Since it makes sense and is useful, maybe never! (Seriously, though, with the severe troubles the U.S. automakers are in, I really wonder.)
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Even More Baby Boomer Icons Move Onward
Two more...
Gale Storm (My Little Margie, among others)
Karl Malden (Patton, How the West was Won,The Streets of San Francisco....)
So, Who Will be Next?
Gale Storm (My Little Margie, among others)
Karl Malden (Patton, How the West was Won,The Streets of San Francisco....)
So, Who Will be Next?
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Peregrine Falcons of Downtown Binghamton
The peregrine falcon is not a stranger to big city skyscrapers. However, in Binghamton, NY this is not a big city and we don't have any skyscrapers. Still, for a number of years we've had a nesting pair of falcons on top of the Security Mutual Life Insurance Company building in downtown Binghamton. At 10 stories, it is the third tallest building in Binghamton.
We can hear them screeching sometimes. Several times I have been privileged to see the young birds.
It isn't all fun-sometimes, walking downtown, you have to dodge pigeon parts on the ground. They love to eat the local pigeons-gourmets of the air, the falcons take the tastiest parts and leave the rest. For example, this morning I had to dodge a (mostly) intact dead pigeon and, a few feet (no pun intended) later, a different pigeon's head. Yuk.
I know a couple of people who have taken pictures of the falcons. This is a photo of a young falcon on the Security Mutual building taken a month or so ago.
A little slice of big-city life in small-city Binghamton.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Binghamton Rising
Yesterday was the 2nd Friday of the Binghamton Farmers Market. As I was browsing for snap peas, the heavens opened. I spent the next 35 minutes listening to a jazz band, sheltered in the tent of the farmer I had bought the peas from. I waited out the rain, joined by two co-workers. Finally it stopped not long before the end of my lunch hour.
Not too many years ago downtown Binghamton was...on the skids, let's face it-full of abandoned buildings. Since then, for many reasons, things have turned around-although it has a long way to go. The Farmers Market is one success story (such as it is-it's on a narrow street, and small, but it is very appreciated.)
Here is one of the success stories: The Press Building, not too long ago musty and mostly vacant-today, renovated.
The first picture is at an angle but it shows a portion of the renovated lobby.
Here is a picture of the building itself, and details of the renovation.
The other pictures are of planters in front of the building-each done in mosaic by a local nationally famous mosaic artist - each with a local theme.
This planter shows a carousel horse. Binghamton is named the "Carousel Capital" of the country for good reason - my son grew up taking the six free antique carousels for granted. I sometimes wish he was young again so I could ride with him.
The second picture, I'm actually not absolutely sure what it is. It could be one of the buildings that hold the carousels. Or it could be an impression of the band shell at Rec Park, another restored Binghamton landmark. (if you are a Twilight Zone fan, Rec Park is a must-see).
This final mosaic is a flower display.
I believe there are seven in all. Hopefully the elements and the street people are kind to them. The law firm responsible for much of this has done a good service for downtown Binghamton.
I would be remiss if I didn't mention the hanging baskets decorating downtown and donated by a life insurance company headquartered in downtown Binghamton.
Thank you,all, and may the rise of downtown Binghamton continue.
Not too many years ago downtown Binghamton was...on the skids, let's face it-full of abandoned buildings. Since then, for many reasons, things have turned around-although it has a long way to go. The Farmers Market is one success story (such as it is-it's on a narrow street, and small, but it is very appreciated.)
Here is one of the success stories: The Press Building, not too long ago musty and mostly vacant-today, renovated.
The first picture is at an angle but it shows a portion of the renovated lobby.Here is a picture of the building itself, and details of the renovation.
The other pictures are of planters in front of the building-each done in mosaic by a local nationally famous mosaic artist - each with a local theme.
This planter shows a carousel horse. Binghamton is named the "Carousel Capital" of the country for good reason - my son grew up taking the six free antique carousels for granted. I sometimes wish he was young again so I could ride with him.
The second picture, I'm actually not absolutely sure what it is. It could be one of the buildings that hold the carousels. Or it could be an impression of the band shell at Rec Park, another restored Binghamton landmark. (if you are a Twilight Zone fan, Rec Park is a must-see).
This final mosaic is a flower display.I believe there are seven in all. Hopefully the elements and the street people are kind to them. The law firm responsible for much of this has done a good service for downtown Binghamton.
I would be remiss if I didn't mention the hanging baskets decorating downtown and donated by a life insurance company headquartered in downtown Binghamton.
Thank you,all, and may the rise of downtown Binghamton continue.
Friday, June 26, 2009
My Dad and Baseball (Not What You Think) and More Old Timer Photos
Later in this post I will include more pictures of the Cooperstown Baseball Old Timers Game.
It's funny....I go to a Fathers Day game for Fathers Day and....neither of my parents were baseball fans. As a result, I grew up in the Bronx, and never once visited Yankee Stadium. I don't know exactly how I became interested in baseball, but (this was before it was OK for girls to enjoy spectator sports) I used to get a lot of "you sure know a lot about baseball for a girl" comments.
Actually my technical knowledge wasn't and still isn't all that good. I can't tell you, given a certain scenario, if the batter should bunt, try for the sacrifice fly, if the man on first should try to steal, or what. I just always loved to watch good baseball. I was always the last one picked for softball, so I never even dreamed about playing, back in those pre-Title IX days.
But...my Dad used to take me on Sunday afternoon walks during the summer. It got both of us out of our hot apartment, as we walked and walked. He used to love to go to houses under construction to watch them go up. It fascinated him. I would tag along, with my transistor radio, and listen to the Yankees ballgame. These walks are a very fond memory for me.
That was many years ago, and my Dad passed away in 1986.
Too bad no old Yankees from that 1960's lineup were there in Cooperstown (although I did get to see Whitey Ford once in Binghamton) but here are some pictures of players at the game. And, THANK YOU, BALLPLAYERS, FOR COMING. It was so refreshing to see ballplayers who wanted to be there. And, I know you had a good time too. So much so that Bob Feller has already announced that he plans to return next year.
By the way, I still don't know who the people were who rode in the "Yankees" car, including the gentleman with the Mickey Mantle uniform who looked so much like him. I have a picture, but there are spectator faces in there so I don't want to post the photo.
And, now for the photos:
Here is Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson
and pitcher Jim Hannan: (both from my era)
This picture was taken seconds before a mob of children and adults followed Brooks Robinson. blocking my view, to get his autograph.
Here, from the back, is George Foster: I sure would not have been rooting for him when he was playing for the 1970's Big Red Machine.
This picture was taken after the game: the players in "camouflage" uniforms were Military all stars who played alongside the old timers.
I wish I had a good seat to capture all the clowning around. And, Doubleday Field folks, just a hint-the PA system where we were (all the way in the hinterlands) rivaled the 1970's PA systems in the New York subway for incoherence. Could you at least publish the uniform numbers of the players on the scorecard next year? It was very hard to follow the action with the garbled, echoey narration out there in Section 210.
I also know that there are plans for better crowd control at the autograph tent too, where I understand some adults were pushing youngsters out of the way. I know you will take care of that, and thank you all for giving free autographs out to the youngsters.
Little beefs aside, again a heartfelt thank you for the opportunity. I never got to see the Hall of Fame game but I suspect this was so much better.
It's funny....I go to a Fathers Day game for Fathers Day and....neither of my parents were baseball fans. As a result, I grew up in the Bronx, and never once visited Yankee Stadium. I don't know exactly how I became interested in baseball, but (this was before it was OK for girls to enjoy spectator sports) I used to get a lot of "you sure know a lot about baseball for a girl" comments.
Actually my technical knowledge wasn't and still isn't all that good. I can't tell you, given a certain scenario, if the batter should bunt, try for the sacrifice fly, if the man on first should try to steal, or what. I just always loved to watch good baseball. I was always the last one picked for softball, so I never even dreamed about playing, back in those pre-Title IX days.
But...my Dad used to take me on Sunday afternoon walks during the summer. It got both of us out of our hot apartment, as we walked and walked. He used to love to go to houses under construction to watch them go up. It fascinated him. I would tag along, with my transistor radio, and listen to the Yankees ballgame. These walks are a very fond memory for me.
That was many years ago, and my Dad passed away in 1986.
Too bad no old Yankees from that 1960's lineup were there in Cooperstown (although I did get to see Whitey Ford once in Binghamton) but here are some pictures of players at the game. And, THANK YOU, BALLPLAYERS, FOR COMING. It was so refreshing to see ballplayers who wanted to be there. And, I know you had a good time too. So much so that Bob Feller has already announced that he plans to return next year.
By the way, I still don't know who the people were who rode in the "Yankees" car, including the gentleman with the Mickey Mantle uniform who looked so much like him. I have a picture, but there are spectator faces in there so I don't want to post the photo.
And, now for the photos:
Here is Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson
and pitcher Jim Hannan: (both from my era)
This picture was taken seconds before a mob of children and adults followed Brooks Robinson. blocking my view, to get his autograph.
Here, from the back, is George Foster: I sure would not have been rooting for him when he was playing for the 1970's Big Red Machine.
This picture was taken after the game: the players in "camouflage" uniforms were Military all stars who played alongside the old timers.
I wish I had a good seat to capture all the clowning around. And, Doubleday Field folks, just a hint-the PA system where we were (all the way in the hinterlands) rivaled the 1970's PA systems in the New York subway for incoherence. Could you at least publish the uniform numbers of the players on the scorecard next year? It was very hard to follow the action with the garbled, echoey narration out there in Section 210.
I also know that there are plans for better crowd control at the autograph tent too, where I understand some adults were pushing youngsters out of the way. I know you will take care of that, and thank you all for giving free autographs out to the youngsters.
Little beefs aside, again a heartfelt thank you for the opportunity. I never got to see the Hall of Fame game but I suspect this was so much better.
Fathers Day with Bob Feller
There are going to be two types of reactions from people reading this title:
a. "Who?"
b. "Wow! He's still alive?"
Bob Feller is a pitcher: he's the second oldest Baseball Hall of Famer and trust me, at age 90, not only was he able to trot out onto the field (and I do mean trot), pitch (AND reach the plate-sort of) but he got a standing ovation and by far the loudest cheers of the game.
I have some pictures of him, but from so far away (we were sitting about as far out as you could get) that it may not be worth trying to put them on the blog.
I was honored to see this game in Cooperstown, NY, at Doubleday Field, on Sunday, along with about 7,000 other people (not quite a sell out, but this is a small, historic, ballpark)
The link above does have a good photo of Bob Feller at the game.
I'd like to talk a little bit more about the game and the parade.
The pre-game parade was small town America at its best - the local merchants, the trolley cars full of local scholars, the Mayor of Cooperstown, some politician running for election, a young man standing on top of two horses (one per leg). There was an older man, maybe in his early 50's, who looked so much like Mickey Mantle, who wore the Yankee #7 (I saw him signing autographs later...who was he?? I can't seem to find out from Internet research.)
Last in the parade came two trolleys, with the old-timers in them. In the first picture, the left most person is Bob Feller, but you can only see that if you enlarge the photo way beyond what I can post here. Guess it would help me to have some photo editing software.
I do have some other photos, including a good one of Brooks Robinson, which I may upload in another post.
I haven't followed baseball in many years. I got fed up back in the 1970's with the greed, and then later the performance-enhancing drug use. I enjoy minor league baseball but I haven't seen a major league game since 1973. This game was a step back to another time (although many of the players didn't retire or didn't play until after I lost interest). The most notable thing was-they wanted to be there. It was so obvious. They clowned with each other. Steve Lyons took a boy out of the stands and let him field alongside of him. That boy had a good arm too, he fielded a ball and started a double play! Some of the players signed autographs as mobs of children followed them along the fences. FOR FREE. (I didn't try to get autographs-I let the children get theirs.)
Would I go again next year? Maybe. But I would sure buy my tickets a lot more in advance. (and maybe even join the Hall of Fame, so I could get the best ones.)
a. "Who?"
b. "Wow! He's still alive?"
Bob Feller is a pitcher: he's the second oldest Baseball Hall of Famer and trust me, at age 90, not only was he able to trot out onto the field (and I do mean trot), pitch (AND reach the plate-sort of) but he got a standing ovation and by far the loudest cheers of the game.
I have some pictures of him, but from so far away (we were sitting about as far out as you could get) that it may not be worth trying to put them on the blog.
I was honored to see this game in Cooperstown, NY, at Doubleday Field, on Sunday, along with about 7,000 other people (not quite a sell out, but this is a small, historic, ballpark)
The link above does have a good photo of Bob Feller at the game.
I'd like to talk a little bit more about the game and the parade.
The pre-game parade was small town America at its best - the local merchants, the trolley cars full of local scholars, the Mayor of Cooperstown, some politician running for election, a young man standing on top of two horses (one per leg). There was an older man, maybe in his early 50's, who looked so much like Mickey Mantle, who wore the Yankee #7 (I saw him signing autographs later...who was he?? I can't seem to find out from Internet research.)
Last in the parade came two trolleys, with the old-timers in them. In the first picture, the left most person is Bob Feller, but you can only see that if you enlarge the photo way beyond what I can post here. Guess it would help me to have some photo editing software.
I do have some other photos, including a good one of Brooks Robinson, which I may upload in another post.
I haven't followed baseball in many years. I got fed up back in the 1970's with the greed, and then later the performance-enhancing drug use. I enjoy minor league baseball but I haven't seen a major league game since 1973. This game was a step back to another time (although many of the players didn't retire or didn't play until after I lost interest). The most notable thing was-they wanted to be there. It was so obvious. They clowned with each other. Steve Lyons took a boy out of the stands and let him field alongside of him. That boy had a good arm too, he fielded a ball and started a double play! Some of the players signed autographs as mobs of children followed them along the fences. FOR FREE. (I didn't try to get autographs-I let the children get theirs.)
Would I go again next year? Maybe. But I would sure buy my tickets a lot more in advance. (and maybe even join the Hall of Fame, so I could get the best ones.)
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Proof-Death Come in Threes
Shortly after I published the Farrah Fawcett blog entry, I saw the news bulletin about Michael Jackson being taken to the hospital. His death was announced soon after. So now we have our third one in-what, 50 hours?
Just last night, on America's Got Talent, I saw someone perform to the young Michael Jackson (Jackson 5) song "ABC". We all loved the adorable boy then.
But then he grew up.
I won't comment further. As I've said before this is a ramblin' blog not a rantin' blog. Plus, I don't believe in "speaking ill of the dead".
I have long believed in the "deaths come in threes" superstition. This has got to be the most dramatic "proof" of that in a long time.
Just last night, on America's Got Talent, I saw someone perform to the young Michael Jackson (Jackson 5) song "ABC". We all loved the adorable boy then.
But then he grew up.
I won't comment further. As I've said before this is a ramblin' blog not a rantin' blog. Plus, I don't believe in "speaking ill of the dead".
I have long believed in the "deaths come in threes" superstition. This has got to be the most dramatic "proof" of that in a long time.
And now, Farrah Fawcett
I came home from work this evening to find that Farrah Fawcett lost her battle with cancer today.
Suddenly this blog is becoming a chronicle of the death of various Baby Boomer icons. So let's be honest. I never watched Charlie's Angels. But this battle with cancer was so courageous, I rooted for her from the moment I learned of her cancer. At the end we knew it was just a matter of time. In a way it makes me so glad I was never among the rich and famous. Well, maybe anonymous and rich wouldn't have been bad. But not famous.
At the American Cancer Society Relay for Life, we light luminaries each year in memory of those who lost the battle. Another soul lost to this dread disease. May we who live remember this, and remember to cherish every moment of our days on earth.
Suddenly this blog is becoming a chronicle of the death of various Baby Boomer icons. So let's be honest. I never watched Charlie's Angels. But this battle with cancer was so courageous, I rooted for her from the moment I learned of her cancer. At the end we knew it was just a matter of time. In a way it makes me so glad I was never among the rich and famous. Well, maybe anonymous and rich wouldn't have been bad. But not famous.
At the American Cancer Society Relay for Life, we light luminaries each year in memory of those who lost the battle. Another soul lost to this dread disease. May we who live remember this, and remember to cherish every moment of our days on earth.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Your Own Authentic Japanese Golden Poo
I was alerted to this by a blog site associated with Consumer Reports.
Apparently, the Japanese word for "luck" is very similar to their word for...well, poo. So the Japanese, playing on the word, have tiny "golden poo" charms that they attach to their cell phones, etc. to bring them luck. You can buy them here. Except right now, they are out of stock, maybe because of this blog talking about them. These aren't just for luck, at least in the U.S. Hate your cell phone carrier? What about your cable company? Wouldn't a "golden poo" charm be just the thing?
I would have loved to attach one to our glitchy cable box, the one that Time Warner insisted didn't have anything wrong with it....but this is Ramblin' with AM, not Rantin' with AM. Maybe another time.
Apparently, the Japanese word for "luck" is very similar to their word for...well, poo. So the Japanese, playing on the word, have tiny "golden poo" charms that they attach to their cell phones, etc. to bring them luck. You can buy them here. Except right now, they are out of stock, maybe because of this blog talking about them. These aren't just for luck, at least in the U.S. Hate your cell phone carrier? What about your cable company? Wouldn't a "golden poo" charm be just the thing?
I would have loved to attach one to our glitchy cable box, the one that Time Warner insisted didn't have anything wrong with it....but this is Ramblin' with AM, not Rantin' with AM. Maybe another time.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Goodbye Ed McMahon
Another Baby Boomer icon deceased.
Ed McMahon was part of my life for so many years, Being in my teens and early 20's-30's (especially in the years where I lived in Central Time and could watch the Tonight Show at 10:30 pm) the TV show that entertained us at the end of the day started with "H-e-e-e-e-e-ere’s Johnny!" No matter how outrageous the skits or jokes, Ed McMahon was always there as Johnny's "second banana". (does my son even know who Ed was?)
Ed McMahon was always the perfect gentleman. Even after the Tonight Show ended, I sometimes saw him on "Star Search" and watched him greet lucky winners for Publishers Clearing House. I had lost track of him and didn't even know about his pending foreclosure or his health problems. What a sorrow aging can be.
It is so ironic in a way, I hadn't seen a Publishers Clearing House ad in years, and suddenly, in the last couple of weeks, I am suddenly seeing them several times a day. Maybe they knew something we didn't.
Goodbye, Ed.
Meanwhile...Walter Cronkite is still alive. At least for now.
Ed McMahon was part of my life for so many years, Being in my teens and early 20's-30's (especially in the years where I lived in Central Time and could watch the Tonight Show at 10:30 pm) the TV show that entertained us at the end of the day started with "H-e-e-e-e-e-ere’s Johnny!" No matter how outrageous the skits or jokes, Ed McMahon was always there as Johnny's "second banana". (does my son even know who Ed was?)
Ed McMahon was always the perfect gentleman. Even after the Tonight Show ended, I sometimes saw him on "Star Search" and watched him greet lucky winners for Publishers Clearing House. I had lost track of him and didn't even know about his pending foreclosure or his health problems. What a sorrow aging can be.
It is so ironic in a way, I hadn't seen a Publishers Clearing House ad in years, and suddenly, in the last couple of weeks, I am suddenly seeing them several times a day. Maybe they knew something we didn't.
Goodbye, Ed.
Meanwhile...Walter Cronkite is still alive. At least for now.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
MacKenzie-Childs: Not for the Timid
Last weekend we went up to Aurora, NY (in the Finger Lakes) to the annual MacKenzie-Childs barn sale.
MacKenzie-Childs is not for everyone. Their pottery, furniture, and other decorative items are...shall we say, quite bold. If you love checkerboard patterns, this is your place.
Here is an example of some of their furniture.
Unfortunately, photography was not permitted inside their "farmhouse" which was decorated in this style: but this will give you some flavor
Outside, there is a "chicken palace" where normally there is a nice collection of rare chickens - to my disappointment the chickens were removed for the occasion. They did leave some geese, who ran up to everyone who came close-I assume waiting for a handout:
Some metal work was featured. Here is a gate showing the detail put into their garden gates plus a little peak into one of their gardens:
Finally, here is a view of one of their gardens.
One day I may afford one of their artisan pieces. Until then, I will feast on the art.
MacKenzie-Childs is not for everyone. Their pottery, furniture, and other decorative items are...shall we say, quite bold. If you love checkerboard patterns, this is your place.
Here is an example of some of their furniture.
Unfortunately, photography was not permitted inside their "farmhouse" which was decorated in this style: but this will give you some flavor
Outside, there is a "chicken palace" where normally there is a nice collection of rare chickens - to my disappointment the chickens were removed for the occasion. They did leave some geese, who ran up to everyone who came close-I assume waiting for a handout:
Some metal work was featured. Here is a gate showing the detail put into their garden gates plus a little peak into one of their gardens:
Finally, here is a view of one of their gardens.
One day I may afford one of their artisan pieces. Until then, I will feast on the art.
Memories of Arkansas at the Swim...I mean, Relay for Life
Lots of rain part 2 at our Relay for Life this morning. So it is shutting down a little early and I am home early. I didn't win any prizes but if I had known which number Relay this was for our area, I would have won two nice tickets to an area golf tournament next week. Oh well, my bad.
Last night, at our tent (company team), I heard someone being asked "so you lived there when Bill Clinton was governor"? My ears immediately perked up because spouse and I had also lived (in Arkansas, it could only be one state!) when Bill Clinton was governor. So, after that conversation was all done I introduced myself and we ended up walking together for the next 1 1/2 hours. She asked me where I had lived - we lived in three places in Arkansas but I answered the largest one, Fayetteville. The response was, she had gone to college at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. (soooo......eeeee!) She was too young to really remember Bill Clinton as governor of Arkansas (I'm not!) but we spent our walk time talking about many things. The memories flowed. She has family in several towns we were familiar with We remembered fairs, state parks, streets....
We lived in Arkansas from 1981 to 1986 and she moved out of Arkansas in 1998, but goes back frequently. So I heard firsthand about what I knew from reading. The area (Northwest Arkansas) has grown tremendously. She worked for Wal-Mart while a college student and later was an assistant store manager for a year. Her mother works for Wal-Mart optical headquarters. (Wal-Mart is headquartered in Bentonville, AR). Small nothing towns near Wal-Mart's headquarters are now anything but because of a Wal-Mart requirement that all vendors have an office in the Bentonville area.
We've never gone back but our discussion has whet my appetite for going back, just to see how it has changed. I know that the rural dirt road I lived on outside of Morrow, AR was paved with city water and street addresses and I was happy to learn that the area is still rural. But as for Fayetteville....my Relay friend told me that every time she goes back, Fayetteville has changed completely.
Even the airport was moved somewhere else.
Will we go back one day? Will we like what we find?
Last night, at our tent (company team), I heard someone being asked "so you lived there when Bill Clinton was governor"? My ears immediately perked up because spouse and I had also lived (in Arkansas, it could only be one state!) when Bill Clinton was governor. So, after that conversation was all done I introduced myself and we ended up walking together for the next 1 1/2 hours. She asked me where I had lived - we lived in three places in Arkansas but I answered the largest one, Fayetteville. The response was, she had gone to college at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. (soooo......eeeee!) She was too young to really remember Bill Clinton as governor of Arkansas (I'm not!) but we spent our walk time talking about many things. The memories flowed. She has family in several towns we were familiar with We remembered fairs, state parks, streets....
We lived in Arkansas from 1981 to 1986 and she moved out of Arkansas in 1998, but goes back frequently. So I heard firsthand about what I knew from reading. The area (Northwest Arkansas) has grown tremendously. She worked for Wal-Mart while a college student and later was an assistant store manager for a year. Her mother works for Wal-Mart optical headquarters. (Wal-Mart is headquartered in Bentonville, AR). Small nothing towns near Wal-Mart's headquarters are now anything but because of a Wal-Mart requirement that all vendors have an office in the Bentonville area.
We've never gone back but our discussion has whet my appetite for going back, just to see how it has changed. I know that the rural dirt road I lived on outside of Morrow, AR was paved with city water and street addresses and I was happy to learn that the area is still rural. But as for Fayetteville....my Relay friend told me that every time she goes back, Fayetteville has changed completely.
Even the airport was moved somewhere else.
Will we go back one day? Will we like what we find?
Friday, June 19, 2009
Walter Cronkite Gravely Ill?
A blog reports that Walter Cronkite is gravely ill, and MSNBC seems to have picked up on this.
Say it ain't so (oops, wrong person). An icon of our generation. Meanwhile, I wonder if my son would even know who he is.
Say it ain't so (oops, wrong person). An icon of our generation. Meanwhile, I wonder if my son would even know who he is.
Relay Day!
Tonight is our area's Relay for Life. This is an event to benefit the American Cancer Society. Team members, of course, raise money for the American Cancer Society and its various worthwhile programs. The reward is the almost 24 hour event. It's a combination celebration of life and party. Last year the theme was Mardi Gras, so you get the flavor. This year the theme will be "luau".
We know now to bring money because a lot of the teams run Chinese Auctions (hope that one isn't politically incorrect, but that is what they call them here) or other fundraisers so you walk the track, see what you would like to try to win, buy tickets...and of course I have never won. The local Frito Lay team has giveaways of snacks. Most teams have someone who cooks supper. Our cook lost both parents to cancer.
Cancer survivors can attend a Survivor's/Caregivers dinner Friday night and a Survivor's/Caregivers breakfast Saturday. Everyone walks. And, the goal is for each team to have at least one team member on the track at all times. Our team won't but the larger teams full of people in their teens and 20's will. For those who stay overnight, there is music, karaoke, contests, etc. to keep everyone awake.
One event I have never stayed for is the luminary lighting. This is an extremely emotional event. People purchase luminaries in honor or in memory of loved ones, and decorate them. Team members then put them on the track in front of their tents. After sunset, they are lit and everyone walks the track to observe, to honor, and remember. This year there will be a bagpiper too. Quite honestly I have never stayed because it would have been a little too emotional for me but this year I am ready. I think.
The midnight sun it is not but may those luminaries express everyone's prayer that cancer be conquered in our lifetimes.
We know now to bring money because a lot of the teams run Chinese Auctions (hope that one isn't politically incorrect, but that is what they call them here) or other fundraisers so you walk the track, see what you would like to try to win, buy tickets...and of course I have never won. The local Frito Lay team has giveaways of snacks. Most teams have someone who cooks supper. Our cook lost both parents to cancer.
Cancer survivors can attend a Survivor's/Caregivers dinner Friday night and a Survivor's/Caregivers breakfast Saturday. Everyone walks. And, the goal is for each team to have at least one team member on the track at all times. Our team won't but the larger teams full of people in their teens and 20's will. For those who stay overnight, there is music, karaoke, contests, etc. to keep everyone awake.
One event I have never stayed for is the luminary lighting. This is an extremely emotional event. People purchase luminaries in honor or in memory of loved ones, and decorate them. Team members then put them on the track in front of their tents. After sunset, they are lit and everyone walks the track to observe, to honor, and remember. This year there will be a bagpiper too. Quite honestly I have never stayed because it would have been a little too emotional for me but this year I am ready. I think.
The midnight sun it is not but may those luminaries express everyone's prayer that cancer be conquered in our lifetimes.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Just Racin' in the Rain.....
Just got back from the 2009 Corporate Challenge, an annual event in our area (and maybe nationwide). Employees of various businesses compete, in good fun, in various walking and running events. I'm not a runner, so I did the one walking event, the Predicted Mile. In this race, you race the clock, not others. Participants predict the time they will finish the mile in and the person closest to their prediction wins. The key here is that you can't have a watch or any other way of telling time on your person.
This is my third year of participating and it is a blast.
The first year it was held in August and it was in the 90's, with runners collapsing and ambulances responding. Not a pretty sight. Last year the weather was pretty decent. This year, the heavens opened.
It's been raining since last night with a few breaks. At noon, my walking partner and I did 1 1/2 miles, with rain at the end. Tonight the rain started about 5:30 and it didn't let up. The runners loved it. As for the walkers...well, my new walking shoes aren't so new anymore. But it sure beat being in the 90's.
This year's Corporate Challenge had the highest turnout in 10 years, and they had to split the walkers into two groups. 41 companies, large and small. It's a good event and I hope to participate in the coming years, too.
I'll know tomorrow if I (ha ha) won.
This is my third year of participating and it is a blast.
The first year it was held in August and it was in the 90's, with runners collapsing and ambulances responding. Not a pretty sight. Last year the weather was pretty decent. This year, the heavens opened.
It's been raining since last night with a few breaks. At noon, my walking partner and I did 1 1/2 miles, with rain at the end. Tonight the rain started about 5:30 and it didn't let up. The runners loved it. As for the walkers...well, my new walking shoes aren't so new anymore. But it sure beat being in the 90's.
This year's Corporate Challenge had the highest turnout in 10 years, and they had to split the walkers into two groups. 41 companies, large and small. It's a good event and I hope to participate in the coming years, too.
I'll know tomorrow if I (ha ha) won.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Got Twitter? Got a Consumer Problem?
I don't use Twitter but I absolutely loved this article about using Twitter as a consumer tool.
The responses to this article were even more interesting.
The responses to this article were even more interesting.
Fairbanks has reached Maximum Sunrise-Sunset (Well, not so fast)
The bad news, of course is, that shortly our days will be getting shorter, daylight-wise. Enjoy your 21 hours and 47 minutes of daylight, Fairbanks, in the meantime. In only 6 months you will be down to less than 4 hours.
SUNRISE AND SUNSET
JUNE 17 2009..........SUNRISE 300 AM AKDT SUNSET 1247 AM AKDT
JUNE 18 2009..........SUNRISE 300 AM AKDT SUNSET 1247 AM AKDT
(note: I was off a little - the actual maximum was 21 hrs and 49 minutes...oh well)
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Blue Angels and Flood Memories
Over the 4th of July weekend we are being treated to an airshow. This one features the Blue Angels. What a wonderful treat for our area.
It only seems like a few minutes ago, but it has been almost three years, since our Great Flood of June 28, 2006 caused so many disruptions, loss of property (I know two people who lost their homes and one who lost most of her belongings), and cancelled so many events in late June and early July of 2006. One of the events cancelled, if I recall correctly, was an air show.
There are two nice videos on YouTube that show the flood and its aftermath. I didn't see my neighborhood on either of them but parts of our neighborhood were evacuated - we personally were very lucky but if the river (we estimate) had been another foot higher it would have been a different story.
I hope we have much better weather for the Blue Angels.
It only seems like a few minutes ago, but it has been almost three years, since our Great Flood of June 28, 2006 caused so many disruptions, loss of property (I know two people who lost their homes and one who lost most of her belongings), and cancelled so many events in late June and early July of 2006. One of the events cancelled, if I recall correctly, was an air show.
There are two nice videos on YouTube that show the flood and its aftermath. I didn't see my neighborhood on either of them but parts of our neighborhood were evacuated - we personally were very lucky but if the river (we estimate) had been another foot higher it would have been a different story.
I hope we have much better weather for the Blue Angels.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Dexter Kefir Cheese
Saturday we made a trip up to Aurora, NY for the MacKenzie-Childs Barn Sale. And found something totally different.
You either love or hate MacKenzie-Childs. In our case...well, I would need a lot more money in my bank account. I will write about this sale another time because I need to pull pictures off my camera. We didn't buy anything but as they say-the pictures are "priceless".
On the way back, we stopped at the Long Point Winery. After a wine tasting, we bought a bottle of wine for that night's supper and noticed a sign offering raw milk Kefir cheese for sale. I know what Kefir is but have never drank it. The woman at the counter explained this cheese was made by a local farmer, who lived a short distance away. She gave us some directions, we bought a small piece without even tasting it, and we were on our way to the creamery.
A very friendly farmer greeted us and asked if we would like to see the dairy animals who gave the milk for the cheese.
The breed he uses is the Dexter, and a handsome breed of cattle they are. These are small and, as the farmer explained, very hardy. They would make a fine milk cow for the small farmstead, giving about 2 gallons a day per cow. They are very inquisitive, too. I am more of a poultry person but these animals had a lot of personality.
Too bad, no milk for sale (and I am not going to get into the controversy surrounding sale and consumption of raw milk as I am not completely knowledgeable on the subject) but we were able to sample some cheese. This cheese is quite legal, incidentally, and in fact Cornell helped them develop their recipe.
The Kefir cheese is a good source of probiotics, but also very expensive. This, however, is artisan cheese and is made in small quantities by a farmer treating his cattle in a very humane manner. So, if you live or visit the Finger Lakes region, consider trying to find this cheese. This farmer sells his cheese at the Ithaca farmers market, too.
You either love or hate MacKenzie-Childs. In our case...well, I would need a lot more money in my bank account. I will write about this sale another time because I need to pull pictures off my camera. We didn't buy anything but as they say-the pictures are "priceless".
On the way back, we stopped at the Long Point Winery. After a wine tasting, we bought a bottle of wine for that night's supper and noticed a sign offering raw milk Kefir cheese for sale. I know what Kefir is but have never drank it. The woman at the counter explained this cheese was made by a local farmer, who lived a short distance away. She gave us some directions, we bought a small piece without even tasting it, and we were on our way to the creamery.
A very friendly farmer greeted us and asked if we would like to see the dairy animals who gave the milk for the cheese.
The breed he uses is the Dexter, and a handsome breed of cattle they are. These are small and, as the farmer explained, very hardy. They would make a fine milk cow for the small farmstead, giving about 2 gallons a day per cow. They are very inquisitive, too. I am more of a poultry person but these animals had a lot of personality.
Too bad, no milk for sale (and I am not going to get into the controversy surrounding sale and consumption of raw milk as I am not completely knowledgeable on the subject) but we were able to sample some cheese. This cheese is quite legal, incidentally, and in fact Cornell helped them develop their recipe.
The Kefir cheese is a good source of probiotics, but also very expensive. This, however, is artisan cheese and is made in small quantities by a farmer treating his cattle in a very humane manner. So, if you live or visit the Finger Lakes region, consider trying to find this cheese. This farmer sells his cheese at the Ithaca farmers market, too.
Friday, June 12, 2009
I Sing the Job Non-Electric
Two jobs, two days in a row.
June 10: son is at his supermarket job, power goes out. Just what happens when a modern supermarket loses power? Think about it. Electric doors, electronic cash registers tied into computers/ scanners, freezers, refrigerators, air conditioners, misters for the produce,electronic customer-service produce scales printing produce price tags.
In the case of this particular supermarket, they have a back up generator, enough to run the cash registers and other necessities. Otherwise, they might have had to turn the customers away. Luckily, the outage lasted only a couple of hours.
This is a far cry from my childhood, where they would have been able to convert an electric cash register to using a crank. With the prices being stamped on each item, it would have been warm and inconvenient but not critical-until the frozen foods started to melt, anyway.
June 11: I am at my office job, we are experiencing a downpour, suddenly the lights blink and go out. The lights go out along with our computers, and our Internet-serviced telephones. Part of the building is out and part isn't, so our IT department tells everyone to turn their computers and surge protectors off. So we sit and wait as the electric company is called. The rumor is that the power failure is confined to our building. That seems to be true, as there is a baseball stadium near our office, and (a game was in progress) their field lights are on.
The call center near where I sit, well, there are no phone calls. And if customers were calling, they would have been out of luck because our reps wouldn't have had computers or scanned electronic records to service them with. Back at my desk, there is my work, which has suddenly turned into non-work. My job, which was mainly paper years ago, is almost totally e-mail and Internet based now. Even my research, which used to be conducted out of books, is now done on online databases. What we are left with is a whole lot of dead time. Luckily, in my department we have other work we can turn to and we do.
Apparently a squirrel caused this outage, and paid for it with his life.
After about an hour the IT people come by, announcing we can power back up. The socializing ends and back to work we all go.
The power failure scenario is so familiar. I am a "survivor" of the Great Northeast Blackout of 1965, which taught me (at age 12) what happens when the power goes out in November, and you live on the 4th floor of an apartment building. (no water. no elevator. no heat.) Luckily that one lasted, for my neighborhood, only 12 1/2 hours.
I escaped the Great Northeast Blackout of 2003 only because we were on vacation at the time and driving into the driveway of an Iowa relative just about the time it happened. We were in Toledo, OH only a couple of days after their power was restored. My boss was in Toronto and was without power for three days in the middle of a heat wave. And so it goes.
But have we learned anything from these and other blackouts? Have we really?
The two incidents bring right back-just how fragile our life style is.
It can, and will, happen again. And not just for an hour or two.
June 10: son is at his supermarket job, power goes out. Just what happens when a modern supermarket loses power? Think about it. Electric doors, electronic cash registers tied into computers/ scanners, freezers, refrigerators, air conditioners, misters for the produce,electronic customer-service produce scales printing produce price tags.
In the case of this particular supermarket, they have a back up generator, enough to run the cash registers and other necessities. Otherwise, they might have had to turn the customers away. Luckily, the outage lasted only a couple of hours.
This is a far cry from my childhood, where they would have been able to convert an electric cash register to using a crank. With the prices being stamped on each item, it would have been warm and inconvenient but not critical-until the frozen foods started to melt, anyway.
June 11: I am at my office job, we are experiencing a downpour, suddenly the lights blink and go out. The lights go out along with our computers, and our Internet-serviced telephones. Part of the building is out and part isn't, so our IT department tells everyone to turn their computers and surge protectors off. So we sit and wait as the electric company is called. The rumor is that the power failure is confined to our building. That seems to be true, as there is a baseball stadium near our office, and (a game was in progress) their field lights are on.
The call center near where I sit, well, there are no phone calls. And if customers were calling, they would have been out of luck because our reps wouldn't have had computers or scanned electronic records to service them with. Back at my desk, there is my work, which has suddenly turned into non-work. My job, which was mainly paper years ago, is almost totally e-mail and Internet based now. Even my research, which used to be conducted out of books, is now done on online databases. What we are left with is a whole lot of dead time. Luckily, in my department we have other work we can turn to and we do.
Apparently a squirrel caused this outage, and paid for it with his life.
After about an hour the IT people come by, announcing we can power back up. The socializing ends and back to work we all go.
The power failure scenario is so familiar. I am a "survivor" of the Great Northeast Blackout of 1965, which taught me (at age 12) what happens when the power goes out in November, and you live on the 4th floor of an apartment building. (no water. no elevator. no heat.) Luckily that one lasted, for my neighborhood, only 12 1/2 hours.
I escaped the Great Northeast Blackout of 2003 only because we were on vacation at the time and driving into the driveway of an Iowa relative just about the time it happened. We were in Toledo, OH only a couple of days after their power was restored. My boss was in Toronto and was without power for three days in the middle of a heat wave. And so it goes.
But have we learned anything from these and other blackouts? Have we really?
The two incidents bring right back-just how fragile our life style is.
It can, and will, happen again. And not just for an hour or two.
The 10 Dumbest Tech Products
Another masterpiece from PC World.
I'm proud to say that I never used any of these "dogs" (or, cats).
I'm proud to say that I never used any of these "dogs" (or, cats).
Almost at the Solstice in Fairbanks and Longyearbyen
The lucky folks in Alaska had a beautiful morning in Fairbanks - 61 degrees there at 2am their time,
nice and daylighty (is that a word?) at 2am their time.
By tomorrow they only have another 15 minutes or so to maximum daylight...here in Binghamton
I think we have another 2 minutes to go.
SUNRISE AND SUNSET
JUNE 11 2009..........SUNRISE 308 AM AKDT SUNSET 1237 AM AKDT
JUNE 12 2009..........SUNRISE 306 AM AKDT SUNSET 1239 AM AKDT
AMOUNT OF DAYLIGHT TODAY (HOUR:MIN)........21:29
Meanwhile in Longyearbyen, Norway, it is actually 39 degrees and the snow is melting!
Thank you, Internet, for allowing me to indulge my Midnight Sun obsessions.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Vintage TV-Goodbye Analog Forever
Now we are finally on the eve of the digital TV switchover. This time it is for real. Your old TV, as of tomorrow night, will not be able to receive the new digital signals unless you have a converter box. Get ready for Channel 12.1!
So now is a good time to reminisce one last time about the analog TVs of yore.
This is a website with lots of old vintage consumer electronics, including TV's.
And, if you need to fix that set, here is the site for you.
There is a site I found this morning that had old experimental sets - I can't seem to find it again-it had pictures of a projector TV from the late 1940's and a TV you could use to watch two TV shows at once. I didn't have time to read it this morning and I forgot to bookmark it. Sigh.
And last, but not least, while searching for the website from this morning I found this....not exactly vintage TV but it is connected with the area where I live.
Goodbye, TV of our youth. Goodbye, VHF! Goodbye, UHF!
So now is a good time to reminisce one last time about the analog TVs of yore.
This is a website with lots of old vintage consumer electronics, including TV's.
And, if you need to fix that set, here is the site for you.
There is a site I found this morning that had old experimental sets - I can't seem to find it again-it had pictures of a projector TV from the late 1940's and a TV you could use to watch two TV shows at once. I didn't have time to read it this morning and I forgot to bookmark it. Sigh.
And last, but not least, while searching for the website from this morning I found this....not exactly vintage TV but it is connected with the area where I live.
Goodbye, TV of our youth. Goodbye, VHF! Goodbye, UHF!
MacKenzie-Childs
The items MacKenzie-Childs makes and sells are gorgeous...and way beyond my budget.
Still, you may be interested in their annual Barn Sale.
This place is an Aurora area institution. Their grounds are gorgeous (I hope they have tours this weekend) and the little village of Aurora is a lovely college town. These are artisan items-not your made in China stuff. Their website is a visual treat, too. If you are interested in American-artisan locally made stuff this is the place for you.
Still, you may be interested in their annual Barn Sale.
This place is an Aurora area institution. Their grounds are gorgeous (I hope they have tours this weekend) and the little village of Aurora is a lovely college town. These are artisan items-not your made in China stuff. Their website is a visual treat, too. If you are interested in American-artisan locally made stuff this is the place for you.
Oreo or Hydrox?
If you are Jewish and of a "certain age" you will know exactly what this blog post is talking about. Oreo or Hydrox?
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Binghamton-the Land of Dinosaurs?
My spouse had a slightly different take on the "HART of BC" project related to the BC comic strip character Gronk riding a dinosaur, to be created as public art, as a symbol of Binghamton's revival.
My life partner finds it a bit strange for this project to use a dinosaur (symbol of being out of step with the times) for symbolizing our "rebirth" Considering that several years ago a NY Times article referred to Binghamton as a "burnt out industrial town" (I couldn't find an online link to this article), I wonder if people outside of Binghamton will be more bemused than impressed. I hope my spouse is wrong.
This Smithsonian blog entry had still another take on the matter. In fact, it is what Google came up with when I searched for "Dinosaur Binghamton".
Stay tuned.
My life partner finds it a bit strange for this project to use a dinosaur (symbol of being out of step with the times) for symbolizing our "rebirth" Considering that several years ago a NY Times article referred to Binghamton as a "burnt out industrial town" (I couldn't find an online link to this article), I wonder if people outside of Binghamton will be more bemused than impressed. I hope my spouse is wrong.
This Smithsonian blog entry had still another take on the matter. In fact, it is what Google came up with when I searched for "Dinosaur Binghamton".
Stay tuned.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Sampling the Blue Slate Turkey
I never did post on our experience in eating the young Blue Slate Turkey we purchased over the weekend.
Its only crime was not being attractive enough to be used as breeding stock.
Both my spouse and I have enjoyed true free range chicken, back when we raised our own chickens some 25 years ago. So we know what it is like to eat birds that are full flavored and...let's be honest here....tough, needing special cooking techniques. (there was a reason back in the good old days for chicken soup and chicken stew).
Grilling this turkey was not the best cooking technique. We will know for next time that it needs a gentler cooking technique with moist heat. However, the bird was flavorful. The surprise was...it didn't taste like turkey.
I'm not talking "factory" turkey here but rather the taste of our Bronze turkeys from many years ago, which I could describe at "Turkey +++" Sort of like eating supermarket tomatoes all your life and then biting into one fresh from the garden. You know it's tomato right away. I can't say what this Blue Slate tasted like, however. Which isn't a bad thing. But at $4.00 lb, next time I may stick to this farmer's bronze.
Its only crime was not being attractive enough to be used as breeding stock.
Both my spouse and I have enjoyed true free range chicken, back when we raised our own chickens some 25 years ago. So we know what it is like to eat birds that are full flavored and...let's be honest here....tough, needing special cooking techniques. (there was a reason back in the good old days for chicken soup and chicken stew).
Grilling this turkey was not the best cooking technique. We will know for next time that it needs a gentler cooking technique with moist heat. However, the bird was flavorful. The surprise was...it didn't taste like turkey.
I'm not talking "factory" turkey here but rather the taste of our Bronze turkeys from many years ago, which I could describe at "Turkey +++" Sort of like eating supermarket tomatoes all your life and then biting into one fresh from the garden. You know it's tomato right away. I can't say what this Blue Slate tasted like, however. Which isn't a bad thing. But at $4.00 lb, next time I may stick to this farmer's bronze.
Midnight Sun Festival Time
We are approaching the time when we all (in the Northern Hemisphere) will experience our maximum sunlight.
Today, on the Fairbanks webcams at 2am, it was fully light and 61 degrees. Meanwhile here, at 6am (4 hours ahead of Fairbanks) it was 63 degrees and thundering. In Fairbanks, it even got up to 79 degrees yesterday. Too bad today they are cloudy and it hasn't really gotten any warmer.
So, here is hoping Fairbanks has a wonderful Midnight Sun Festival this year. The Fairbanks News-Miner newspaper has a webcam trained at their parking lot, where some of the festival takes place. I'll be there in spirit. Today, on the News-Miner webcam, looks like they are starting to set up.
The way newspapers are endangered (I have an in-law in the business so know "from the inside"), I hope the News-Miner is around next year to help with this festival.
Today, on the Fairbanks webcams at 2am, it was fully light and 61 degrees. Meanwhile here, at 6am (4 hours ahead of Fairbanks) it was 63 degrees and thundering. In Fairbanks, it even got up to 79 degrees yesterday. Too bad today they are cloudy and it hasn't really gotten any warmer.
So, here is hoping Fairbanks has a wonderful Midnight Sun Festival this year. The Fairbanks News-Miner newspaper has a webcam trained at their parking lot, where some of the festival takes place. I'll be there in spirit. Today, on the News-Miner webcam, looks like they are starting to set up.
The way newspapers are endangered (I have an in-law in the business so know "from the inside"), I hope the News-Miner is around next year to help with this festival.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Those Poor Orphans!
I got such a kick out of this Slate article about people who used Twitter once and quit. What about all those "orphaned tweets?" Do you care? As an anthropology major in college, I found this Slate posting rather....curious.
There's also a blog, according to this article, about orphaned blogs.
There's also a blog, according to this article, about orphaned blogs.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Blue Farming-The Blue Slate Turkey and Heritage Breeds
Yesterday we went to the Farmers Market in Otsiningo Park (this is the same park where our community garden plots are) and visited two meat vendors. One was McRey Farm of Glen Aubrey. We wanted some brisket, but they were out. So we splurged on a pound of cruelty free veal cutlet. Cooked it last night. It was thin and was cut the way it should be, and of high quality.
The other vendor we visited was Twin Oaks Farm in Port Crane, where we bought a small, whole Blue Slate turkey. This is a heritage breed of turkey. We are cooking it now, and will report on the results.
I realize some readers of this blog are vegetarian, so ask their patience while I continue with this entry.
What are "heritage breeds"? These are breeds of farm animal that have been "left behind" in our transition to agribusiness to feed our ever growing population. The fact remains that some of the older breeds of animals are better suited to the small farm setting, or may have characteristics that should be preserved. Some of these characteristics include tolerance to heat and cold, leanness of meat, ability to forage. Have you heard the story of turkeys bred so that they don't have enough sense to get out of the rain-and drown? This lack of survival sense is not a trait you will find in heritage breeds.
For birds, this may also include broodiness (the tendency to "get in the mood", so to speak, to sit on and hatch eggs, and rear the resulting young.)
Years ago, before I even knew what "heritage breeds" were, my spouse and I lived out in rural Arkansas and raised various old fashioned breeds of chickens. I won't bore you (in this post, anyway) with the list of chickens we raised at one time or another, but we also raised several other breeds of chickens, ducks and geese that are on a watch list (or even considered critical now) during our 4 year stay in the countryside.
So why should I ask that you care about heritage breeds, and the small producers who are keeping them alive?
Simple. At your local farmers market you will find small farmers who care about their animals, and care about the people who will be eating their animals-because they meet them weekly and talk to them. If you talk to these farmers they welcome your questions They will answer all of your questions patiently and knowledgeably. They know the slaughterhouse their animals go to and can speak knowledgeably about its practices. As a result of these practices, I firmly believe that your chances of getting E. Coli or worse from these animals is greatly reduced. You can also be sure these animals are not being fed anything that would ever result in Mad Cow Disease.
If you must eat meat (and I have been a vegetarian at times of my life, so I am sympathetic to those who do not eat meat) locally grown is ideally the way to go. To put it even more bluntly, if there is no financial incentive to keep these breeds alive, they will become extinct.
I do admit that not all the meat in our house is locally grown. There are reasons-convenience, cost - so I am not always "walking the walk". We will be working on walking this walk more as this year progresses.
The other vendor we visited was Twin Oaks Farm in Port Crane, where we bought a small, whole Blue Slate turkey. This is a heritage breed of turkey. We are cooking it now, and will report on the results.
I realize some readers of this blog are vegetarian, so ask their patience while I continue with this entry.
What are "heritage breeds"? These are breeds of farm animal that have been "left behind" in our transition to agribusiness to feed our ever growing population. The fact remains that some of the older breeds of animals are better suited to the small farm setting, or may have characteristics that should be preserved. Some of these characteristics include tolerance to heat and cold, leanness of meat, ability to forage. Have you heard the story of turkeys bred so that they don't have enough sense to get out of the rain-and drown? This lack of survival sense is not a trait you will find in heritage breeds.
For birds, this may also include broodiness (the tendency to "get in the mood", so to speak, to sit on and hatch eggs, and rear the resulting young.)
Years ago, before I even knew what "heritage breeds" were, my spouse and I lived out in rural Arkansas and raised various old fashioned breeds of chickens. I won't bore you (in this post, anyway) with the list of chickens we raised at one time or another, but we also raised several other breeds of chickens, ducks and geese that are on a watch list (or even considered critical now) during our 4 year stay in the countryside.
So why should I ask that you care about heritage breeds, and the small producers who are keeping them alive?
Simple. At your local farmers market you will find small farmers who care about their animals, and care about the people who will be eating their animals-because they meet them weekly and talk to them. If you talk to these farmers they welcome your questions They will answer all of your questions patiently and knowledgeably. They know the slaughterhouse their animals go to and can speak knowledgeably about its practices. As a result of these practices, I firmly believe that your chances of getting E. Coli or worse from these animals is greatly reduced. You can also be sure these animals are not being fed anything that would ever result in Mad Cow Disease.
If you must eat meat (and I have been a vegetarian at times of my life, so I am sympathetic to those who do not eat meat) locally grown is ideally the way to go. To put it even more bluntly, if there is no financial incentive to keep these breeds alive, they will become extinct.
I do admit that not all the meat in our house is locally grown. There are reasons-convenience, cost - so I am not always "walking the walk". We will be working on walking this walk more as this year progresses.
Firefly Impatiens and Fittonia
A few weeks ago I bought a pot of Firefly impatiens and decided to move them to my office. These impatiens are a genetic dwarf - I haven't seen mention of them being suitable for house or office plants so this is an experiment.
So far they seem to be doing well, in a brightly lit (but no sun) corner next to my "low light" requiring cardamon plant. The original flowers fell off but now they are reblooming. I am watering them twice a week. This week I will try to remember to bring some plant food in.
Today, on impulse, I bought a fittonia plant ("Red Anne") hoping to bring it to my office too as it said "low light". What it didn't say is that they do best in a terrarium setting, or at least in a very high humidity situation. So I don't think that is going to work in an office situation. I'll have to figure out what to do now. That's what plant growing is all about, after all.
So far they seem to be doing well, in a brightly lit (but no sun) corner next to my "low light" requiring cardamon plant. The original flowers fell off but now they are reblooming. I am watering them twice a week. This week I will try to remember to bring some plant food in.
Today, on impulse, I bought a fittonia plant ("Red Anne") hoping to bring it to my office too as it said "low light". What it didn't say is that they do best in a terrarium setting, or at least in a very high humidity situation. So I don't think that is going to work in an office situation. I'll have to figure out what to do now. That's what plant growing is all about, after all.
Friday, June 5, 2009
Blue Picasso and River Read
Last night was First Friday in Binghamton, the first Friday of each month event where many downtown Binghamton art galleries and related businesses open from 6-9pm.
One gallery featured items from various private collections, and the collection of Binghamton University.
I got to see a small Picasso painting, from his Blue period. And since I don't know a thing about art, I will just mention it was a harlequin boy, and dated from 1904. I looked on Google images, and there were quite a lot of images from Picasso's "blue" period. (yes, the pictures are mainly done in blue). I didn't find this particular image, which I understand must have been done close to the end of his blue period.
In the same gallery was a Book of Hours from 1497. A "book of hours" is a devotional book popular from the late 15th century to the early 16th century. I am not an antiquarian book expert either, but love to look at old things.
Some of the other things we did (besides going to the web site launch of my last post) included taking my spouse to RiverRead Books. This is an independent bookstore (a dying breed deserving our support) that opened several months ago in a renovated building in downtown Binghamton that (I believe) dates from 1854. The book store is very well set up, cozy, friendly and its web site is well done also. It was crowded, with people awaiting the arrival of local author Liz Rosenberg. Since neither my spouse nor I enjoy crowds, we left just as Ms. Rosenberg arrived.
I must admit I have not been doing my part to support River Read, because if I bring any more books into the house the other occupants will probably rise up with pitchforks and torches. And, with the economy, I admit to frequenting the library more than perhaps necessary.
We also visited the renovated Press Building. I will try to upload some pictures (not of the building itself but something interesting in front of it) and talk about that in my next post. If you go to this article about Binghamton, at least right now, look at the first photo on the right. In that picture, there is a tall red building on the left side of the photo - that is the Press Building. Another web site featuring pictures of this building is here.
One gallery featured items from various private collections, and the collection of Binghamton University.
I got to see a small Picasso painting, from his Blue period. And since I don't know a thing about art, I will just mention it was a harlequin boy, and dated from 1904. I looked on Google images, and there were quite a lot of images from Picasso's "blue" period. (yes, the pictures are mainly done in blue). I didn't find this particular image, which I understand must have been done close to the end of his blue period.
In the same gallery was a Book of Hours from 1497. A "book of hours" is a devotional book popular from the late 15th century to the early 16th century. I am not an antiquarian book expert either, but love to look at old things.
Some of the other things we did (besides going to the web site launch of my last post) included taking my spouse to RiverRead Books. This is an independent bookstore (a dying breed deserving our support) that opened several months ago in a renovated building in downtown Binghamton that (I believe) dates from 1854. The book store is very well set up, cozy, friendly and its web site is well done also. It was crowded, with people awaiting the arrival of local author Liz Rosenberg. Since neither my spouse nor I enjoy crowds, we left just as Ms. Rosenberg arrived.
I must admit I have not been doing my part to support River Read, because if I bring any more books into the house the other occupants will probably rise up with pitchforks and torches. And, with the economy, I admit to frequenting the library more than perhaps necessary.
We also visited the renovated Press Building. I will try to upload some pictures (not of the building itself but something interesting in front of it) and talk about that in my next post. If you go to this article about Binghamton, at least right now, look at the first photo on the right. In that picture, there is a tall red building on the left side of the photo - that is the Press Building. Another web site featuring pictures of this building is here.
The Hart of BC
The late Johnny Hart, cartoonist and creator of the comic strip BC, is one of several nationally known people who grew up in the Triple Cities. Now, his grandson Mason Mastroianni (who took over the strip after Johnny Hart's death) and some other community members have launched an effort called the Hart of BC to help revitalize our community.
The dinosaur "Gronk" from the BC strip has been an icon here for years, decorating everything from our local mass transit buses (BC Transit) to the entrances of our parks. (Since our community is located in Broome County, NY, the association was a natural) Now, the Hart of BC proposes to erect up to 100 fiberglass sculptures of Gronk, as envisioned by area artists, throughout our area, targeted for 2010.
Tonight, I witnessed the launch of the Hart of BC website-complete with free champagne and popcorn. Mason Mastroianni and family were in the audience. After the events of the past few months, our area could use something this creative and light hearted. I wish them the best of luck.
The dinosaur "Gronk" from the BC strip has been an icon here for years, decorating everything from our local mass transit buses (BC Transit) to the entrances of our parks. (Since our community is located in Broome County, NY, the association was a natural) Now, the Hart of BC proposes to erect up to 100 fiberglass sculptures of Gronk, as envisioned by area artists, throughout our area, targeted for 2010.
Tonight, I witnessed the launch of the Hart of BC website-complete with free champagne and popcorn. Mason Mastroianni and family were in the audience. After the events of the past few months, our area could use something this creative and light hearted. I wish them the best of luck.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Ads from the Past and Future
A friend forwarded me an email I've seen before, but I still love. It has old ads from the past, including advertising Lysol as an, er, feminine cleansing aid (this is a family blog after all), and another advocating buying sanitized tapeworms to help you keep weight off. The email also contains the usual collection of ads featuring doctors endorsing cigarettes and the ad featuring the happy family that eats lard. (maybe they were happy. No one had ever heard of cholesterol.).
Just think of the ads our grand kids will look at and wonder why those companies are no longer here.
"Enron-Ask Why"
"See the U.S.A. in your Chevrolet" (Oops, not quite yet.)
"Welcome to Circuit City, Where Service Is State of the Art"
"TWA-Up Up and Away" *
"Eastern Airlines-The Wings of Man".
*this was a merger with American Airlines but still, the name no longer exists.
I have told my 19 year old son time and again, that although I may not live to see it, that he may well live to see Wal-Mart or Microsoft file for bankruptcy. Sounds inconceivable now but think of the large corporations of our youth (for those of us in our 50's I mean!) and how many of them are still around. So why shouldn't we be surprised to see what passed as state of the art or common wisdom 50 years ago.
Just think of the ads our grand kids will look at and wonder why those companies are no longer here.
"Enron-Ask Why"
"See the U.S.A. in your Chevrolet" (Oops, not quite yet.)
"Welcome to Circuit City, Where Service Is State of the Art"
"TWA-Up Up and Away" *
"Eastern Airlines-The Wings of Man".
*this was a merger with American Airlines but still, the name no longer exists.
I have told my 19 year old son time and again, that although I may not live to see it, that he may well live to see Wal-Mart or Microsoft file for bankruptcy. Sounds inconceivable now but think of the large corporations of our youth (for those of us in our 50's I mean!) and how many of them are still around. So why shouldn't we be surprised to see what passed as state of the art or common wisdom 50 years ago.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Are Lifeguards Supposed to Guard Lives?
I rarely feel like ranting on my blog but I've had a pet peeve for a while and tonight brought it to a head.
Silly me, I always thought the purpose of a lifeguard at a pool was to watch carefully and make sure no one needed help in the water. That only, no multitasking.
That must not be what they are teaching at lifeguard training nowadays.
I take a water aerobics class at a local non profit agency pool twice a week. There is a lifeguard there. Apparently the lifeguards feel that life guarding is a secondary occupation.
Their primary job duties seem to be (in no particular order):
1. Paperwork
2. Socializing with members of the opposite sex
3. Texting, or otherwise doing "stuff" with their cell phone
Yes, I've complained about it. But after a while the behavior starts over.
I feel like I am the only one complaining. I don't complain often, only when it is really blatant, or when I am in a mood to. And maybe that isn't right. Maybe I should be a pain, but that isn't my nature.
Because I'm not normally facing the lifeguard during the entire class (only when we turn in certain directions) I am not paying attention during the entire class.
I'd love to know if this is against NY law.
This is why this behavior really concerns me:
Back in 1999 my family was enjoying an August trip to a municipal pool in Iowa City, Iowa. Suddenly, all hell broke loose, we were being chased out of the pool, people were shouting and pointing. As I got out of the pool, I looked back, and there was a person lying prone in the pool. Lifeguards (there were more than one; this was a large pool) were speeding their way to the victim and the rescue was made as we watched in horror.
The pool was closed for about 1/2 hour, which my (then) 9 year old son didn't appreciate.
Thankfully, while we were waiting, an announcement was made. This was a drill, there was no victim. Everyone was thanked for their cooperation and for the inconvenience.
As the parent of a teenager, I would not like to see any teen spend the rest of their life in an agony of remorse because someone had a heart attack and died during a water aerobics class, while they were busy chatting or texting.
Silly me, I always thought the purpose of a lifeguard at a pool was to watch carefully and make sure no one needed help in the water. That only, no multitasking.
That must not be what they are teaching at lifeguard training nowadays.
I take a water aerobics class at a local non profit agency pool twice a week. There is a lifeguard there. Apparently the lifeguards feel that life guarding is a secondary occupation.
Their primary job duties seem to be (in no particular order):
1. Paperwork
2. Socializing with members of the opposite sex
3. Texting, or otherwise doing "stuff" with their cell phone
Yes, I've complained about it. But after a while the behavior starts over.
I feel like I am the only one complaining. I don't complain often, only when it is really blatant, or when I am in a mood to. And maybe that isn't right. Maybe I should be a pain, but that isn't my nature.
Because I'm not normally facing the lifeguard during the entire class (only when we turn in certain directions) I am not paying attention during the entire class.
I'd love to know if this is against NY law.
This is why this behavior really concerns me:
Back in 1999 my family was enjoying an August trip to a municipal pool in Iowa City, Iowa. Suddenly, all hell broke loose, we were being chased out of the pool, people were shouting and pointing. As I got out of the pool, I looked back, and there was a person lying prone in the pool. Lifeguards (there were more than one; this was a large pool) were speeding their way to the victim and the rescue was made as we watched in horror.
The pool was closed for about 1/2 hour, which my (then) 9 year old son didn't appreciate.
Thankfully, while we were waiting, an announcement was made. This was a drill, there was no victim. Everyone was thanked for their cooperation and for the inconvenience.
As the parent of a teenager, I would not like to see any teen spend the rest of their life in an agony of remorse because someone had a heart attack and died during a water aerobics class, while they were busy chatting or texting.
Monday, June 1, 2009
How do you grow houseplants in Fairbanks?
Fairbanks has a little more than an hour to go before they reach their maximum day length. Now, at 2am, it is definitely morning.
I really don't wonder how people sleep with 24 hour sunlight. That I can imagine. (I imagine they do not sleep well.) What I do wonder about is how they grow houseplants. I know they grow wonderful flowers outside; I've been to southeast Alaska in early September. This is an interesting website that talks about gardening on Kodiak Island, for example.
But I've never been to the true northern part of Alaska. You can't really grow houseplants there without artificial light in the winter, can you?
Or can you?
This article is a bit scientific, but it talks about growing jade plants in Alaska.
How do houseplants cope with the uneven distribution of sunlight in Alaska?
I really don't wonder how people sleep with 24 hour sunlight. That I can imagine. (I imagine they do not sleep well.) What I do wonder about is how they grow houseplants. I know they grow wonderful flowers outside; I've been to southeast Alaska in early September. This is an interesting website that talks about gardening on Kodiak Island, for example.
But I've never been to the true northern part of Alaska. You can't really grow houseplants there without artificial light in the winter, can you?
Or can you?
This article is a bit scientific, but it talks about growing jade plants in Alaska.
How do houseplants cope with the uneven distribution of sunlight in Alaska?
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