In commemeration of the upcoming 150th anniversary of the Civil war our local PBS station has been rerunning Ken Burns "Civil War" film series from 1989. Last night, they had the last episode-the southern surrender and the aftermath. It included two "moving pictures", one from the "Great Reunion", the 50th anniversary reunion of the Battle of Gettysburg (1913) and one of the 75th anniversary reunion.
I wasn't able to find video of the 1913 reunion online but I did find some still pictures. I was able to find, at this same link, a video (not on the Ken Burns film) showing some of the veterans being wheeled in, one carried in on a stretcher, for the 75th anniversary reunion in 1938.
The last verified Civil War veteran died in 1956.
It has always amazed me, as a person who loves history, how I love to learn about the Civil War when, in fact, none of my family lived in the United States when the war was fought. Or, how I have memories of the 100th anniversary happening, but my parents weren't going to take me anywhere and so I never got to visit any Civil War sites before I was an adult. But the Civil War has a hold on my heart. There is just "something" about it, something that makes me want to learn and experience....more and more and more.
I am far from an expert, I wouldn't even call myself a Civil War buff, but there is just something about standing on a Civil War battlefield. It literally gives me chills. And, I can't wait to do Civil War related things over the next 5 years.
Because of vacation timing at work, I couldn't be at the beginning-in Charleston, SC, 150 years later, April 12, 2011. But I will be there in spirit, with some photos of my recent visit to Charleston and a couple of Civil War related activities. And hopefully, over the next 5 years, I'll be able to visit some special Civil War sites at the "right time."
Incidentally, there are a lot of Civil War websites - I enjoy one in particular, sonofthesouth.net, which contains a section that is a treasure trove of Civil War information. But there are many, many others.
Friday, April 8, 2011
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
And Now, The Lawsuit
It was only a matter of time.
A lawsuit has resulted from the tragic mass shooting at the American Civic Association on April 3, 2009. The Gander Mountain store in question is located in nearby Johnson City.
I have some opinions on the subject, but will not voice them, only to say that I can not put myself in the shoes of one of the people directly affected by the shooting.
It will be interesting to see how this plays out, however, especially given that this shooting took place in New York State.
A lawsuit has resulted from the tragic mass shooting at the American Civic Association on April 3, 2009. The Gander Mountain store in question is located in nearby Johnson City.
I have some opinions on the subject, but will not voice them, only to say that I can not put myself in the shoes of one of the people directly affected by the shooting.
It will be interesting to see how this plays out, however, especially given that this shooting took place in New York State.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Carolina Gold Rice
My recent trip to Charleston, SC held several pleasant surprises for me. First and foremost, was our proximity (an easy walk down the narrow sidewalks of the historic Ansonborough neighborhood where we stayed, a walk appreciated by my gimpy back) to the Charleston City Market.
The Market consists of several open buildings in a four block area. These are the entrances to two of the buildings.
The Market (at least, at this time of year) is not primarily a "farmers market" and not all the goods are locally produced, either. But we had a wonderful time talking and interacting with some of the local artists, and went back several times. (note, there are no pictures of those artists or their work. I would not ever do that without permission, and I know many artists do not want pictures taken.) If I end up posting photos of some work in the future, it will be of work that I purchased and credit will be given.)
One product that is local, and a revival of a historic heirloom food, is Carolina Gold Rice.
What we bought was grown locally and distributed through Charleston Specialty Foods. The distinctive yellow cloth bags packages of this rice are sold by several vendors at the market, and also are for sale at various historical venues throughout the Charleston area. As the bag explains:
"In 1685, a distressed merchant ship paid for repairs in Charleston with a small quantity of rice seed from Madagascar. Dr. Henry Woodward planted the seed in South Carolina, beginning the state's 200 year history as the leading rice producer in the United States."
So why should you pay a lot more for an heirloom variety of rice than the plain old (I won't mention any brand names) stuff you find on the supermarket shelves?
For various reasons, the cultivation of rice had slowed in the South Carolina low country, and much "Carolina Rice" is actually grown outside of the Carolinas. The Carolina Gold Rice Foundation is attempting a comeback for this rice, and as the bag also explains "We are proud to be South Carolina's first product made with Green-e Certified Renewable Energy."
So how can you go wrong? In one swoop you encourage the production of heritage foodstuffs, and support renewable energy and sustainable agriculture.
The rice can be ordered online or by calling 1-877-RICE-4-YOU. (and please note I am not being paid for this, or any other, endorsement I may make.)
So, how does it taste? And what is the rice like?
I would judge it as medium grain.
It's definitely distinctive, and delicious. Spouse (our family cook) made a pilaf with it. It came out fluffy, and nice.
Nothing could be....err, finer.
One product that is local, and a revival of a historic heirloom food, is Carolina Gold Rice.
What we bought was grown locally and distributed through Charleston Specialty Foods. The distinctive yellow cloth bags packages of this rice are sold by several vendors at the market, and also are for sale at various historical venues throughout the Charleston area. As the bag explains:
"In 1685, a distressed merchant ship paid for repairs in Charleston with a small quantity of rice seed from Madagascar. Dr. Henry Woodward planted the seed in South Carolina, beginning the state's 200 year history as the leading rice producer in the United States."
So why should you pay a lot more for an heirloom variety of rice than the plain old (I won't mention any brand names) stuff you find on the supermarket shelves?
For various reasons, the cultivation of rice had slowed in the South Carolina low country, and much "Carolina Rice" is actually grown outside of the Carolinas. The Carolina Gold Rice Foundation is attempting a comeback for this rice, and as the bag also explains "We are proud to be South Carolina's first product made with Green-e Certified Renewable Energy."
So how can you go wrong? In one swoop you encourage the production of heritage foodstuffs, and support renewable energy and sustainable agriculture.
The rice can be ordered online or by calling 1-877-RICE-4-YOU. (and please note I am not being paid for this, or any other, endorsement I may make.)
So, how does it taste? And what is the rice like?
I would judge it as medium grain.
It's definitely distinctive, and delicious. Spouse (our family cook) made a pilaf with it. It came out fluffy, and nice.
Nothing could be....err, finer.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Leopold's Ice Cream
One week ago, I was walking the streets of 87 degree downtown Savannah, GA. As a northerner sick of winter and desperate for spring, I wanted sunshine, but not that much heat. Somewhat exhausted by the walking and the heat, my spouse and I ducked into an ice cream shop we had both heard about, and wanted to try.
We were treated to some of the best ice cream we have every had. I don't say that lightly; I have been a fan of Ithaca's Purity Ice Cream for years, and have also enjoyed the products of the Cayuga Lake Creamery. (As always, I have received no compensation for these types of endorsements).
Make room, upstate NY Ice Cream, I now have a new co-favorite.
Leopold's Ice Cream.
The present owner (Stratton Leopold), one of the sons of the founder, used to be a Hollywood producer and various one sheet movie posters decorate the store along with other movie memorabilia. As the website also explains,
"Much of the décor is original including the original soda fountain, soda fountain cover, back bar, sundae holders, banana split boats, malted milk dispenser, etc., etc., are available and are still being used. Even the old Philco radio and the wooden, interior phone booth from the old store are being used."
This is part of the store interior (it was hard getting pictures, given the crowds and the narrowness of part of the store.)
And these are some of the movie posters.
I wish I could have transported the ice cream back to Binghamton. Of course, it is all natural and artificial dyes are not used, according to the website. (otherwise, would I be writing about it?)
We didn't purchase the Tutti-Frutti favored by Savannah's famed late singer and songwriter Johnny Mercer but the seasonal Guiness and Girl Scout Thin Mints (the founder of the Girl Scouts came from Savannah) were greatly enjoyed. These were seasonal flavors.
Not long after we had the ice cream, the heavens opened and torrential rain and hail poured down on Savannah. We left downtown earlier than we had planned, and headed for the Byrd Cookie Company....a tale for another day.
We were treated to some of the best ice cream we have every had. I don't say that lightly; I have been a fan of Ithaca's Purity Ice Cream for years, and have also enjoyed the products of the Cayuga Lake Creamery. (As always, I have received no compensation for these types of endorsements).
Make room, upstate NY Ice Cream, I now have a new co-favorite.
Leopold's Ice Cream.
The present owner (Stratton Leopold), one of the sons of the founder, used to be a Hollywood producer and various one sheet movie posters decorate the store along with other movie memorabilia. As the website also explains,
"Much of the décor is original including the original soda fountain, soda fountain cover, back bar, sundae holders, banana split boats, malted milk dispenser, etc., etc., are available and are still being used. Even the old Philco radio and the wooden, interior phone booth from the old store are being used."
This is part of the store interior (it was hard getting pictures, given the crowds and the narrowness of part of the store.)
And these are some of the movie posters.
We didn't purchase the Tutti-Frutti favored by Savannah's famed late singer and songwriter Johnny Mercer but the seasonal Guiness and Girl Scout Thin Mints (the founder of the Girl Scouts came from Savannah) were greatly enjoyed. These were seasonal flavors.
Not long after we had the ice cream, the heavens opened and torrential rain and hail poured down on Savannah. We left downtown earlier than we had planned, and headed for the Byrd Cookie Company....a tale for another day.
The Second Anniversary - A Moment of Cybersilence
A "moment of silence" in between blogging about my recent travels.
Today is the 2nd anniversary of the senseless shooting at the American Civic Association building on Front Street in downtown Binghamton.
So much has happened since then - sadly, these shootings continue, such as the recent tragedy in Tuscon, AZ demonstrate. And, several days ago, as (on our way home) we passed the exit for Virginia Tech and I remembered what happened there nearly four years ago.
For us here in Binghamton, what has been the aftermath? For the family, friends and surviving co-workers, life has gone on for them. Money is being raised for a memorial, but we "aren't there" yet. For the rest of us-knowledge that life can change in a split second.
Meanwhile, today, the anniversary will be marked quietly at the ACA building.
Today is the 2nd anniversary of the senseless shooting at the American Civic Association building on Front Street in downtown Binghamton.
So much has happened since then - sadly, these shootings continue, such as the recent tragedy in Tuscon, AZ demonstrate. And, several days ago, as (on our way home) we passed the exit for Virginia Tech and I remembered what happened there nearly four years ago.
For us here in Binghamton, what has been the aftermath? For the family, friends and surviving co-workers, life has gone on for them. Money is being raised for a memorial, but we "aren't there" yet. For the rest of us-knowledge that life can change in a split second.
Meanwhile, today, the anniversary will be marked quietly at the ACA building.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
The Book and the Cook
I am in Myrtle Beach, on a slow connection, so I hope this post is successful.
Today I said a reluctant farewell to the city of The Book and The Cook. I don't know how well off Savannah would be without the book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, which is called "The Book" there locally. As for The Cook, she is (of course), Paula Deen, who is practically a one person industry all by herself. Not that I envy her; she has had a hard life and deserves all of her success.
But I digress.
Since I can't write a long post, I will summarize what I liked about Savannah.
1. Abercorn Street, south of downtown, with its broad boulevard lined with blooming azaleeas and hawthornes, and its canopy of live oaks dripping with Spanish Moss. (and yes, I know enough to stay far away from Spanish Moss. As a former resident of Arkansas, I know a lot about chiggers.)
2. Bonaventure Cemetery. Words could not do justice to the beauty of this place. So I will, again, wait until I can upload pictures.
3. The Byrd Cookie Company. Paula Deen tested, AM approved. There were samples of all the flavors, and each flavor was better than the flavor before.
3. The Savannah Peanut Company. Not really Savannah peanuts, they come from Virginia, but one could make a lunch of the samples. (yes, I bought some, too.) Not as good as River Street Sweets but the price was right.
4. River Street Sweets. Praline heaven! (I didn't buy the pralines, but I wish I could have bottled the fragrance.)
More on Savannah....and Myrtle Beach....when I have a good connection again.
Today I said a reluctant farewell to the city of The Book and The Cook. I don't know how well off Savannah would be without the book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, which is called "The Book" there locally. As for The Cook, she is (of course), Paula Deen, who is practically a one person industry all by herself. Not that I envy her; she has had a hard life and deserves all of her success.
But I digress.
Since I can't write a long post, I will summarize what I liked about Savannah.
1. Abercorn Street, south of downtown, with its broad boulevard lined with blooming azaleeas and hawthornes, and its canopy of live oaks dripping with Spanish Moss. (and yes, I know enough to stay far away from Spanish Moss. As a former resident of Arkansas, I know a lot about chiggers.)
2. Bonaventure Cemetery. Words could not do justice to the beauty of this place. So I will, again, wait until I can upload pictures.
3. The Byrd Cookie Company. Paula Deen tested, AM approved. There were samples of all the flavors, and each flavor was better than the flavor before.
3. The Savannah Peanut Company. Not really Savannah peanuts, they come from Virginia, but one could make a lunch of the samples. (yes, I bought some, too.) Not as good as River Street Sweets but the price was right.
4. River Street Sweets. Praline heaven! (I didn't buy the pralines, but I wish I could have bottled the fragrance.)
More on Savannah....and Myrtle Beach....when I have a good connection again.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
A Rainy Evening in Georgia (with Hail)
Today, after a 37 year wait, I finally set foot in Savannah.
In 1974 we took a trip from New York City to Tampa, Florida, on I-95 and passed through Savannah. I remember seeing all the palm trees (they are probably really palmettos) and wanting to see the city. I've passed through it 3 times since on the auto train, but was never able to stop.
Two years ago we had a visit planned and had to cancel it due to car trouble.
This time-we made it!
We took one of those trolley tours of downtown Savannah. Had about 2 hours of good walking after and then it started getting really dark. Spouse pointed out the blue green color of the sky. It's been a long time since we've seen something like that. He told us we'd better get back to where our car was parked (in the lot of the Savannah visitors center). Not two minutes after we got to the center the heavens opened. Had torrential rains (still is pouring) with lightening and nickel sized hail. I'm sure we had a little damage to the car but not worried about it right now.
So there is still a lot to see. And, eventually I will write about it complete with photos.
Charleston it is not and I was not expecting it to be. There is more crime, and a bit of "edginess" to it but, as a fan of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil....well it did not disappoint, not at all.
You would not believe the scenery. Boulevards with dividers full of blooming azaleas and hawthorn trees with live oaks dripping with spanish moss arching over the roads. The squares...all 22 of them....beckoned with fountains, with flowering trees and bushes, with statues.
Forsyth Park was everything we'd thought it would be, and more. Beautiful fountain. Part of the fountain area was roped off for a wedding. Families frolicked in the heat. It was humid but not overly so.
We haven't made it yet to Bonaventure Cemetary and don't know if we will.
One place we did make it to was the Byrd Cookie Company. That deserves its own blog entry.
Tomorrow it is supposed to rain in the morning and then taper off. Tomorrow it's only supposed to get to 59 degrees! Moreland, Georgia made it into the news with their hail. It wasn't as bad here and we will hope it remains that way.
In 1974 we took a trip from New York City to Tampa, Florida, on I-95 and passed through Savannah. I remember seeing all the palm trees (they are probably really palmettos) and wanting to see the city. I've passed through it 3 times since on the auto train, but was never able to stop.
Two years ago we had a visit planned and had to cancel it due to car trouble.
This time-we made it!
We took one of those trolley tours of downtown Savannah. Had about 2 hours of good walking after and then it started getting really dark. Spouse pointed out the blue green color of the sky. It's been a long time since we've seen something like that. He told us we'd better get back to where our car was parked (in the lot of the Savannah visitors center). Not two minutes after we got to the center the heavens opened. Had torrential rains (still is pouring) with lightening and nickel sized hail. I'm sure we had a little damage to the car but not worried about it right now.
So there is still a lot to see. And, eventually I will write about it complete with photos.
Charleston it is not and I was not expecting it to be. There is more crime, and a bit of "edginess" to it but, as a fan of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil....well it did not disappoint, not at all.
You would not believe the scenery. Boulevards with dividers full of blooming azaleas and hawthorn trees with live oaks dripping with spanish moss arching over the roads. The squares...all 22 of them....beckoned with fountains, with flowering trees and bushes, with statues.
Forsyth Park was everything we'd thought it would be, and more. Beautiful fountain. Part of the fountain area was roped off for a wedding. Families frolicked in the heat. It was humid but not overly so.
We haven't made it yet to Bonaventure Cemetary and don't know if we will.
One place we did make it to was the Byrd Cookie Company. That deserves its own blog entry.
Tomorrow it is supposed to rain in the morning and then taper off. Tomorrow it's only supposed to get to 59 degrees! Moreland, Georgia made it into the news with their hail. It wasn't as bad here and we will hope it remains that way.
Saturday, March 26, 2011
The Quick Highlights of Charleston
Charleston.....such a wonderful place. I will have a lot of really nice memories. I hope to write more in depth later, but for now...
1. The downtown neighborhoods. We made the right decision (a little pricey, but right) to stay in a bed and breakfast. We got free parking and a location in walking distance to almost everything downtown. It was so "cool" to make believe we belonged there. We got a nice piazza to spend some reading time on, too.
One nice thing Charleston does is put the neighborhood name right on the street signs. So you know you are in Ansonborough (the neighborhood we lived in), the French Quarter (yes, Charleston has a French Quarter), or whatever.
The B&B operator gave us good restaurant advice, and let me hook into her internet when my wireless decided not to function. Thank you, Fantasia B&B, you were the peak of hospitality.
2. The historic B&B (see above) we stayed at. Will try to post some pictures when my computer cooperates.
3. Two great restaurants, Hymans Seafood and Jestine's Kitchen.
4. All the historic churches, parks, the Pineapple Fountain and the Charleston City Market.
5. Magnolia Plantation.
6. Fort Sumter, where the Civil War began. In fact, the Confederacy began in downtown Charleston, but Charleston paid the price...more on that later, again if I have the time to write about it.
7. She-Crab Soup, Salmon and Grits (I don't do shrimp), and the other wonderful low country food we ate.
8. KKBE. Another Charleston institution that deserves a blog entry.
9. Watching the Charleston "Rickshaws" (bicycle cabs.)
10. Calhoun Mansion's garden area, free of charge.
11. Earthling Day Spa. Pricey, and didn't do as much for my back as I had hoped, but the masseuse was excellent, and the spa was spotlessly clean.
What did I miss out on?
1. The horse drawn wagon tours. Decided we'd be better off walking....and walking....and walking. Maybe next time. (Note, one thing the tourist guides don't mention is that the streets smell like....well, the liquid the horses leave behind.)
2. The Citadel. Looking forward to the Friday precision drill but they went on spring break at end of classes Friday.
3. Several downtown mansions, mainly because we ran out of time.
4. Middleton Place (another plantation), Charles Town landing, and Drayton Hall.
Thank you, Charleston. I have enough material for a years worth of blogs, if I can remember even half of what I experienced.
And now, on to Savannah.
1. The downtown neighborhoods. We made the right decision (a little pricey, but right) to stay in a bed and breakfast. We got free parking and a location in walking distance to almost everything downtown. It was so "cool" to make believe we belonged there. We got a nice piazza to spend some reading time on, too.
One nice thing Charleston does is put the neighborhood name right on the street signs. So you know you are in Ansonborough (the neighborhood we lived in), the French Quarter (yes, Charleston has a French Quarter), or whatever.
The B&B operator gave us good restaurant advice, and let me hook into her internet when my wireless decided not to function. Thank you, Fantasia B&B, you were the peak of hospitality.
2. The historic B&B (see above) we stayed at. Will try to post some pictures when my computer cooperates.
3. Two great restaurants, Hymans Seafood and Jestine's Kitchen.
4. All the historic churches, parks, the Pineapple Fountain and the Charleston City Market.
5. Magnolia Plantation.
6. Fort Sumter, where the Civil War began. In fact, the Confederacy began in downtown Charleston, but Charleston paid the price...more on that later, again if I have the time to write about it.
7. She-Crab Soup, Salmon and Grits (I don't do shrimp), and the other wonderful low country food we ate.
8. KKBE. Another Charleston institution that deserves a blog entry.
9. Watching the Charleston "Rickshaws" (bicycle cabs.)
10. Calhoun Mansion's garden area, free of charge.
11. Earthling Day Spa. Pricey, and didn't do as much for my back as I had hoped, but the masseuse was excellent, and the spa was spotlessly clean.
What did I miss out on?
1. The horse drawn wagon tours. Decided we'd be better off walking....and walking....and walking. Maybe next time. (Note, one thing the tourist guides don't mention is that the streets smell like....well, the liquid the horses leave behind.)
2. The Citadel. Looking forward to the Friday precision drill but they went on spring break at end of classes Friday.
3. Several downtown mansions, mainly because we ran out of time.
4. Middleton Place (another plantation), Charles Town landing, and Drayton Hall.
Thank you, Charleston. I have enough material for a years worth of blogs, if I can remember even half of what I experienced.
And now, on to Savannah.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Charleston is Awesome....Except For This
Is it my imagination, or are the timeshare sellers getting more desperate?
The Florida landscape is full of information stands that...well, they have informational brochures, but once they get you over to their booth, you are suddenly being offered free tickets to various attractions "if only" you listen to a short presentation.
I didn't expect it in Charleston.
And I didn't expect one of these high pressure salesmen working in, of all places, a restaurant gift shop. He wasn't selling timeshares but some kind of travel website membership. The premise was still the same, get free tickets in return for listening to a presentation.
We ran from that as fast as we could. And oh by the way, restaurant (I won't name the guilty party but I should) you may be interested in knowing I would have bought more of your "stuff" because the price was right, but I didn't want that guy pestering me again. So I didn't.
Before we caught on to these bogus visitors stands we had one of these hucksters literally pull us in from us walking past them on Meeting Street, a main street in downtown Charleston.
I wonder how many tourists get sucked into this. Since we knew this scam from Florida, we sniffed it out quickly. But I bet not everyone does-obviously, or they wouldn't be there. And, quite honestly, I didn't expect something like that.
So if you visit Charleston, beware! (I know there are people who can withstand the sales pitches and take advantage of the tickets, but I don't feel like going through the aggrevation.)
(end of lecture. And also end of my stay in Charleston. Have so much to write about. and so little time....)
The Florida landscape is full of information stands that...well, they have informational brochures, but once they get you over to their booth, you are suddenly being offered free tickets to various attractions "if only" you listen to a short presentation.
I didn't expect it in Charleston.
And I didn't expect one of these high pressure salesmen working in, of all places, a restaurant gift shop. He wasn't selling timeshares but some kind of travel website membership. The premise was still the same, get free tickets in return for listening to a presentation.
We ran from that as fast as we could. And oh by the way, restaurant (I won't name the guilty party but I should) you may be interested in knowing I would have bought more of your "stuff" because the price was right, but I didn't want that guy pestering me again. So I didn't.
Before we caught on to these bogus visitors stands we had one of these hucksters literally pull us in from us walking past them on Meeting Street, a main street in downtown Charleston.
I wonder how many tourists get sucked into this. Since we knew this scam from Florida, we sniffed it out quickly. But I bet not everyone does-obviously, or they wouldn't be there. And, quite honestly, I didn't expect something like that.
So if you visit Charleston, beware! (I know there are people who can withstand the sales pitches and take advantage of the tickets, but I don't feel like going through the aggrevation.)
(end of lecture. And also end of my stay in Charleston. Have so much to write about. and so little time....)
Thursday, March 24, 2011
The Charleston City Market
Forgive me if these blog entries seem a little disjointed. Between my back and trying to learn to use a Mac (with its frustrating disappearing cursor every time something autosaves) this is quite the experience.
We've made (in the last 24 hours) 3 trips to the nearby Charleston city market. By now I am almost a pro at walking down the unbelievably narrow sidewalks.
I wish I had some pictures to show you, but you will have to use your imagination.
Imagine several very long covered buildings. At the front of each, older black women weave sweetgrass baskets. Inside, more older black women weaving baskets, plus what the owner of the B&B calls "trash to treasure". It is a definite step up from a flea market, and....well, they sell everything from trinkets to genuine art.
One thing we purchased (in addition to a small sweetgrass basket-how could we not?) was a painted brick. A Charleston tradition is something called "hurricane painting". Every time a hurricane sweeps through and damages the city, the hurricane artists gather debris and paint on it, creating works of art.
This particular artist was painting on historic bricks, and the designs were wonderful. When I can, I will (if I have the time!) take a picture of this brick. I think the brick came from Hurricane Hugo damage but I honestly do not remember.
We also got some local food, packaged for tourists, but that she-crab soup is so good, we wanted a mix so we could make it at home. And, the bag is quite decorative too.
We've made (in the last 24 hours) 3 trips to the nearby Charleston city market. By now I am almost a pro at walking down the unbelievably narrow sidewalks.
I wish I had some pictures to show you, but you will have to use your imagination.
Imagine several very long covered buildings. At the front of each, older black women weave sweetgrass baskets. Inside, more older black women weaving baskets, plus what the owner of the B&B calls "trash to treasure". It is a definite step up from a flea market, and....well, they sell everything from trinkets to genuine art.
One thing we purchased (in addition to a small sweetgrass basket-how could we not?) was a painted brick. A Charleston tradition is something called "hurricane painting". Every time a hurricane sweeps through and damages the city, the hurricane artists gather debris and paint on it, creating works of art.
This particular artist was painting on historic bricks, and the designs were wonderful. When I can, I will (if I have the time!) take a picture of this brick. I think the brick came from Hurricane Hugo damage but I honestly do not remember.
We also got some local food, packaged for tourists, but that she-crab soup is so good, we wanted a mix so we could make it at home. And, the bag is quite decorative too.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Charleston
I have finally managed (using a loaner Mac computer, which I am trying to learn how to use) to sign onto my blog. I apologize for the lack of pictures but I won't have any until I can use my computer again.
Anyway......
What a sight for spring-starved eyes. While it is busy snowing back home (with temperature highs in the 20's scheduled for tomorrow) I am in a paradise of palmettos, flowering peach, sago palm, azaleas, poppies, yellow jessamine and who knows what else.
Only one problem-my back.
I would highly suggest that you never take a 850 mile road trip 45 minutes after you throw your back out. But it was spring or bust, and I think I have bust.
Today, still in a lot of pain, I made an appointment with a massage person here in downtown Charleston. It was a great 1 hour massage but I don't think it did a whole lot of good. Spouse has been very good about it, and I am sitting here with an ice pack on that very sore back.
About the B&B: It is called the Fantasia B&B on George St., in the historic Ansonborough district of downtown Savannah. The house was built in 1813, which, by Charleston standards, means the house is quite recent. The house has a piazza, which....well, here in Charleston, although the entrance to houses is in the front, the porches are built on the side. These porches are called piazzas. I haven't sat on our piazza yet because my back and the furniture here isn't getting along.
But the B&B owner is absolutely wonderful.
This morning she gave us a couple of walking tour maps, and we did a lot of walking (yes it hurts my back but those horse drawn carriages right now, I think, would be even worse). We went up and down so many streets I can't think of them all. Houses built in the 1740's, houses where George Washington slept, the church that both George Washington and Robert E. Lee worshipped at. And the site of where South Carolina seceeded.
Tomorrow or Friday, we plan to see Ft. Sumter, speaking of the War of Northern Aggres....I mean, the Civil War.
In many of the historic houses, the passerby can catch glimpses of picture postcard gardens. A tantalizing peak at paradise....for some reason it reminds me of Brooklyn.
A local Harris-Teeter store (we have a full kitchen) has supplied a number of meals. And, another sight for sore New York eyes, they sell wine. And not just $2.98 WalMart wine. There is some pretty fine wine in that store. Plus cigars, and other things you would not find in your average New York grocery.
Tonight we are going to have store-made shecrab soup. And speaking of which, my next post will discuss the Charleston City Market.
Anyway......
What a sight for spring-starved eyes. While it is busy snowing back home (with temperature highs in the 20's scheduled for tomorrow) I am in a paradise of palmettos, flowering peach, sago palm, azaleas, poppies, yellow jessamine and who knows what else.
Only one problem-my back.
I would highly suggest that you never take a 850 mile road trip 45 minutes after you throw your back out. But it was spring or bust, and I think I have bust.
Today, still in a lot of pain, I made an appointment with a massage person here in downtown Charleston. It was a great 1 hour massage but I don't think it did a whole lot of good. Spouse has been very good about it, and I am sitting here with an ice pack on that very sore back.
About the B&B: It is called the Fantasia B&B on George St., in the historic Ansonborough district of downtown Savannah. The house was built in 1813, which, by Charleston standards, means the house is quite recent. The house has a piazza, which....well, here in Charleston, although the entrance to houses is in the front, the porches are built on the side. These porches are called piazzas. I haven't sat on our piazza yet because my back and the furniture here isn't getting along.
But the B&B owner is absolutely wonderful.
This morning she gave us a couple of walking tour maps, and we did a lot of walking (yes it hurts my back but those horse drawn carriages right now, I think, would be even worse). We went up and down so many streets I can't think of them all. Houses built in the 1740's, houses where George Washington slept, the church that both George Washington and Robert E. Lee worshipped at. And the site of where South Carolina seceeded.
Tomorrow or Friday, we plan to see Ft. Sumter, speaking of the War of Northern Aggres....I mean, the Civil War.
In many of the historic houses, the passerby can catch glimpses of picture postcard gardens. A tantalizing peak at paradise....for some reason it reminds me of Brooklyn.
A local Harris-Teeter store (we have a full kitchen) has supplied a number of meals. And, another sight for sore New York eyes, they sell wine. And not just $2.98 WalMart wine. There is some pretty fine wine in that store. Plus cigars, and other things you would not find in your average New York grocery.
Tonight we are going to have store-made shecrab soup. And speaking of which, my next post will discuss the Charleston City Market.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
The South Shall Rise Again (Probably Part 1 of Several)
Decided to visit the Wal-Mart in Mt. Airy. There are some regional food specialties we love, and needed to get some supplies for my back problem.
In the parking lot....well, you know the "People of Wal-Mart" website? I wish I had my camera handy when a pickup roared through the lot, complete with a full sized Confederate Stars and Bars mounted in the bed.
Then there was the lady, quite obese, who sported what looked like a tattoo of the Virgin Mary on her upper arm. I didn't want to obviously stare so I gave up trying to figure her tattoo out.
The Wal-Mart cashier didn't blink an eye when we brought our cart to the register. Our haul included:
A box of Mint Crunch Moon Pies. (new flavor, and out of this world.)
Two jars of Dukes Mayonnaise. (Best. Mayonnaise. Ever.) OK, that isn't from North Carolina but don't know if they sell it further north than Mt. Airy.
A six pack of .5 liter Diet Cheerwine. (Cheerwine is not wine. It is a cherry flavored, caffinated soda, a North Carolina product.)
A bottle of Biltmore Estate wine, from Asheville, NC. (noting that in New York, wine can only be sold in liquor stores unless they are wine coolers, or under 5% alcohol, you do not find wine in Wal-Mart.)
Two bottles of a California wine, costing $2.97 each (!!!!!) and a couple of bottles of some other North Caorlina wine. One a scuppernong wine, the other a muscadine. Both are southern type grapes that you do not find in our dreary, cold climate. (some of this wine will be gifts).
And, last but not least, a six pack of North Carolina beer.
Also noting here that Wal-Mart is a native Southern chain, originating in Arkansas.
Yes, the South will rise again, no doubt financed by Northerners who come to the South to escape winter.
In the parking lot....well, you know the "People of Wal-Mart" website? I wish I had my camera handy when a pickup roared through the lot, complete with a full sized Confederate Stars and Bars mounted in the bed.
Then there was the lady, quite obese, who sported what looked like a tattoo of the Virgin Mary on her upper arm. I didn't want to obviously stare so I gave up trying to figure her tattoo out.
The Wal-Mart cashier didn't blink an eye when we brought our cart to the register. Our haul included:
A box of Mint Crunch Moon Pies. (new flavor, and out of this world.)
Two jars of Dukes Mayonnaise. (Best. Mayonnaise. Ever.) OK, that isn't from North Carolina but don't know if they sell it further north than Mt. Airy.
A six pack of .5 liter Diet Cheerwine. (Cheerwine is not wine. It is a cherry flavored, caffinated soda, a North Carolina product.)
A bottle of Biltmore Estate wine, from Asheville, NC. (noting that in New York, wine can only be sold in liquor stores unless they are wine coolers, or under 5% alcohol, you do not find wine in Wal-Mart.)
Two bottles of a California wine, costing $2.97 each (!!!!!) and a couple of bottles of some other North Caorlina wine. One a scuppernong wine, the other a muscadine. Both are southern type grapes that you do not find in our dreary, cold climate. (some of this wine will be gifts).
And, last but not least, a six pack of North Carolina beer.
Also noting here that Wal-Mart is a native Southern chain, originating in Arkansas.
Yes, the South will rise again, no doubt financed by Northerners who come to the South to escape winter.
Monday, March 21, 2011
If Spring is God's Postcard, He has Played a Joke on the North
If you live in a cold, snowy climate (like upstate NY) you know the feeling just about March.....total winter burnout. Hence, we were scheduled to leave the Binghamton area today for the sunny south.
But Binghamton wasn't going to let us go easily.
We got up about 5am. Dressed, made coffee, packed what wasn't already in the car. I was putting gloves in my coat pockets when.....
My back. Huge spasm. OUCHHHHHH
I spent the next 45 minutes trying to get to the point where I could leave the house and get to the car. Wondering if I should even try to travel. Trying to remember when my chiropractor opened on Mondays. But it wasn't near as bad as the back meltdown of a year and a half ago that lead to 4 months of physical therapy, various chiropractic visits and an MRI. So I decided to try it, I was so desperate to experience spring.
Not so fast. It was sleeting outside. It was crunchy and I was wearing sneakers. My wonderful spouse had put ice melt down and held my hand as I hobbled to the car. The next 60 miles or so of driving was sleet, some freezing drizzle, snow. As we got into Pennsylvania snow coated all the trees. The sleet crunched under the tires. It was still dark and a bit scary. Would we make it to Scranton?
We stopped at Dobbs in Great Bend for their wonderful blueberry pancakes. Spouse had an omelet.
Then, south. From Lenox to Scranton it was totally snow and sleet. Had to slow down to 40. Turns out the delay due to my bath was to our disadvantage.
Finally, south of Scranton, the slushy mix was changing over to rain. By the time we got to Hazleton, it was rain and....
Fog. Deep fog. And slush.
For the next 40 miles, fog. Finally we started exiting the mountains and the fog stopped.
And then my son called.
He told me "you are lucky you left." He left work about 7am and ended up driving home in freezing rain. He said he barely made it home.
So our drive to Mt. Airy and my back cost us a lot of time, but we did get here. No Andy Griffith tourism this time (we were too late - those stores close at 5) but there was the local Wal-Mart....which was another story.
Oh, about the title of this blog entry. The "spring is God's postcard" was on a billboard next to a Pentecostal church in southern Virginia.
As for Binghamton, that same deity gave us spring this past week....and then yanked it away.
Yanked it 546 miles away, to be exact.
But Binghamton wasn't going to let us go easily.
We got up about 5am. Dressed, made coffee, packed what wasn't already in the car. I was putting gloves in my coat pockets when.....
My back. Huge spasm. OUCHHHHHH
I spent the next 45 minutes trying to get to the point where I could leave the house and get to the car. Wondering if I should even try to travel. Trying to remember when my chiropractor opened on Mondays. But it wasn't near as bad as the back meltdown of a year and a half ago that lead to 4 months of physical therapy, various chiropractic visits and an MRI. So I decided to try it, I was so desperate to experience spring.
Not so fast. It was sleeting outside. It was crunchy and I was wearing sneakers. My wonderful spouse had put ice melt down and held my hand as I hobbled to the car. The next 60 miles or so of driving was sleet, some freezing drizzle, snow. As we got into Pennsylvania snow coated all the trees. The sleet crunched under the tires. It was still dark and a bit scary. Would we make it to Scranton?
We stopped at Dobbs in Great Bend for their wonderful blueberry pancakes. Spouse had an omelet.
Then, south. From Lenox to Scranton it was totally snow and sleet. Had to slow down to 40. Turns out the delay due to my bath was to our disadvantage.
Finally, south of Scranton, the slushy mix was changing over to rain. By the time we got to Hazleton, it was rain and....
Fog. Deep fog. And slush.
For the next 40 miles, fog. Finally we started exiting the mountains and the fog stopped.
And then my son called.
He told me "you are lucky you left." He left work about 7am and ended up driving home in freezing rain. He said he barely made it home.
So our drive to Mt. Airy and my back cost us a lot of time, but we did get here. No Andy Griffith tourism this time (we were too late - those stores close at 5) but there was the local Wal-Mart....which was another story.
Oh, about the title of this blog entry. The "spring is God's postcard" was on a billboard next to a Pentecostal church in southern Virginia.
As for Binghamton, that same deity gave us spring this past week....and then yanked it away.
Yanked it 546 miles away, to be exact.
Friday, March 18, 2011
Hairy Woodpecker or Downy Woodpecker?
Today, enjoying our 64 degree weather (last day of that for a while) spouse had just gotten out of his car when he heard a tapping sound. Looking up at an electric pole near our driveway, he observed a small black and white bird pecking away where a small piece of the pole was trying to come off.
Looking at a wonderful website the Cornell Lab of Ornithology has, we have concluded he was watching either a Downy Woodpecker or a Hairy Woodpecker.
But which one was it?
Apparently telling a downy apart from a hairy is one of the first challenges a new birder faces. They look very much alike, so much so that Cornell provides a visual comparison of the two.
For the Hairy Woodpecker, Cornell instructs us: "Note the well-developed "comma-shaped" black mark extending from the shoulder onto the breast. This feature is often less obvious in Downy's and is sometimes a useful distinguishing mark."
And, I guess we should have "Look for black on the outer tail feathers."
What spouse had observed the most was the drum. So sure enough, this website had audio files of the call and drum of each, and this clinched it. No doubt in spouse's mind, it was a downy woodpecker.
Is this the beginning of a new hobby for our old age?
Thank you for the research material, Cornell!
Looking at a wonderful website the Cornell Lab of Ornithology has, we have concluded he was watching either a Downy Woodpecker or a Hairy Woodpecker.
But which one was it?
Apparently telling a downy apart from a hairy is one of the first challenges a new birder faces. They look very much alike, so much so that Cornell provides a visual comparison of the two.
For the Hairy Woodpecker, Cornell instructs us: "Note the well-developed "comma-shaped" black mark extending from the shoulder onto the breast. This feature is often less obvious in Downy's and is sometimes a useful distinguishing mark."
And, I guess we should have "Look for black on the outer tail feathers."
What spouse had observed the most was the drum. So sure enough, this website had audio files of the call and drum of each, and this clinched it. No doubt in spouse's mind, it was a downy woodpecker.
Is this the beginning of a new hobby for our old age?
Thank you for the research material, Cornell!
Thursday, March 17, 2011
The Irish Mystery of the Snow Bugs
Today, we got up to 60 degrees - with sun. Only 11 days after our 21 inches of snow, most of it has melted. Must have been the luck of the Irish.
After work, spouse and I took a 25 minutes walk, then we came home to finish up dinner. Reaching for a coffee cup in the car, I was brought up short by an old memory of the years we lived here when there was still lots of snow on the ground at this time of year, and sometimes even into April.
A snow bug was on the coffee cup.
I don't know what they are, and I don't have a camera on my cell phone to show you. But did it ever bring back memories of when my son was young.
Back when we had long winters, starting sometime in February, and certainly in March, I would go out with my young son and there, on the surface of the snow, would be elongated greyish bugs. (maybe beetles, I am no expert.) Lots of them, crawling around on the snow. We loved to watch them.
I haven't seen them in years. But then again we've rarely had snow into the middle of March in the last few years. (Weather, don't get any ideas.)
I tried to google what I saw and didn't have much luck. So, if you know what these insects are, let me know. I found this on a blog, but I don't think this is what our snow bugs (or beetles) are.
Some cities dye their rivers or fountains green for St. Patrick's Day. Binghamton? Well, we have snow bugs.
After work, spouse and I took a 25 minutes walk, then we came home to finish up dinner. Reaching for a coffee cup in the car, I was brought up short by an old memory of the years we lived here when there was still lots of snow on the ground at this time of year, and sometimes even into April.
A snow bug was on the coffee cup.
I don't know what they are, and I don't have a camera on my cell phone to show you. But did it ever bring back memories of when my son was young.
Back when we had long winters, starting sometime in February, and certainly in March, I would go out with my young son and there, on the surface of the snow, would be elongated greyish bugs. (maybe beetles, I am no expert.) Lots of them, crawling around on the snow. We loved to watch them.
I haven't seen them in years. But then again we've rarely had snow into the middle of March in the last few years. (Weather, don't get any ideas.)
I tried to google what I saw and didn't have much luck. So, if you know what these insects are, let me know. I found this on a blog, but I don't think this is what our snow bugs (or beetles) are.
Some cities dye their rivers or fountains green for St. Patrick's Day. Binghamton? Well, we have snow bugs.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Guideposts-A Shout Out For Great Customer Service
Good customer service is so hard to come by nowadays, that good customer service deserves a cyber-shoutout.
There is a magazine called Guideposts. As they say on their website "We’ll bring you true stories of hope, faith, personal growth and positive thinking, plus inspiring quotes, daily devotionals and prayers for every need. A little inspiration…it can change your day, even your life."
My mother in law had subscribed to Guideposts magazine for many years. She is a deeply religious woman and I'm sure this magazine brought her a lot of inspiration and comfort. I would occasionally get her issues after she had accumulated a stack. But in a recent visit to my mother in law, she told me "I haven't seen an issue in quite a while". She gave me the remaining issues she had, which were a couple of years old.
From what I could tell, the subscription expired in 2009. Puzzled, I contacted Guideposts. I explained that she had fallen, was confined to her house due to her injuries and the terrible winter they were having where she lives, and if they could check into this. I found it hard to believe she would have let the magazine lapse.
Indeed, the subscription had expired back in 2009. But what happened next absolutely delighted me. They told me they had given her a free one year subscription. And sure enough, when I visited her last week, she had her first issue of the "reinstated" subscription.
Thank you, Guideposts, for this gesture to a long time customer.
There is a magazine called Guideposts. As they say on their website "We’ll bring you true stories of hope, faith, personal growth and positive thinking, plus inspiring quotes, daily devotionals and prayers for every need. A little inspiration…it can change your day, even your life."
My mother in law had subscribed to Guideposts magazine for many years. She is a deeply religious woman and I'm sure this magazine brought her a lot of inspiration and comfort. I would occasionally get her issues after she had accumulated a stack. But in a recent visit to my mother in law, she told me "I haven't seen an issue in quite a while". She gave me the remaining issues she had, which were a couple of years old.
From what I could tell, the subscription expired in 2009. Puzzled, I contacted Guideposts. I explained that she had fallen, was confined to her house due to her injuries and the terrible winter they were having where she lives, and if they could check into this. I found it hard to believe she would have let the magazine lapse.
Indeed, the subscription had expired back in 2009. But what happened next absolutely delighted me. They told me they had given her a free one year subscription. And sure enough, when I visited her last week, she had her first issue of the "reinstated" subscription.
Thank you, Guideposts, for this gesture to a long time customer.
Monday, March 7, 2011
Binghamton Clothing Fire Aftermath
Back in December, I told you that someone I know, in the communications field, was going to give me various "old time Binghamton" photos. They were in the "public domain" and I could publish them on my blog. I now have these. I haven't had a chance to go through a lot of these but I wanted to post one of these, as an experiment, since I recently blogged about the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire and the similar fire in Binghamton. (and if these are photos that I do not have a right to publish, I guess I am going to find out about it.)
This is a photo of a gathering (before the?) funeral for the fire victims.
I suppose I should be out there taking pictures of the aftermath of our 18 inches of snow but....it is so much nicer inside, thinking of history.
If I have the time (and right now I do not) I will try to get some of the other pictures posted at a future date.
Notes: the Security Mutual building (built 1904, still standing) is visible in the upper right of the photo. The "bump" is a building now occupied by Boscovs Department Store, also still standing. The building right behind where the streetcars are parked, recently renovated in the past couple of years, now houses RiverRead Books, our local independent bookseller.
The actual fire location "probably" was just to the left, outside the range of this photo.
And, don't you wonder how people dressed the way they did (given this was July) without getting heatstroke?
This is a photo of a gathering (before the?) funeral for the fire victims.
I suppose I should be out there taking pictures of the aftermath of our 18 inches of snow but....it is so much nicer inside, thinking of history.
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Notes: the Security Mutual building (built 1904, still standing) is visible in the upper right of the photo. The "bump" is a building now occupied by Boscovs Department Store, also still standing. The building right behind where the streetcars are parked, recently renovated in the past couple of years, now houses RiverRead Books, our local independent bookseller.
The actual fire location "probably" was just to the left, outside the range of this photo.
And, don't you wonder how people dressed the way they did (given this was July) without getting heatstroke?
Robin Igloos
I hope the robins I blogged about yesterday built themselves some snug igloos yesterday afternoon and picked up a space heater or two at Kovarik Hardware, because we have ourselves a state of emergency and the roads are closed due to snow. They won't be flying anywhere for a bit.
The funny thing is I was just messaging back and forth with a local Facebook friend, a FB friend in New Jersey, and my Farming Through the Revolution Facebook friend in Tunisia (things are calm there) about our weather, while emailing someone in Fayetteville, NY (a suburb of Syracuse). Our wonderful electronic age does lead to some interesting situations, which I am reporting to you on using a "web log" (blog).
So I'm home for this morning. I haven't gone out yet. My poor spouse actually made it to work but he had quite the adventure. I'm sure he's not thinking about robins right now.
And gee, I was going to blog about someone I indirectly know who won the lottery, but this is more fun.
Only two more weeks to (ha ha) spring.
The funny thing is I was just messaging back and forth with a local Facebook friend, a FB friend in New Jersey, and my Farming Through the Revolution Facebook friend in Tunisia (things are calm there) about our weather, while emailing someone in Fayetteville, NY (a suburb of Syracuse). Our wonderful electronic age does lead to some interesting situations, which I am reporting to you on using a "web log" (blog).
So I'm home for this morning. I haven't gone out yet. My poor spouse actually made it to work but he had quite the adventure. I'm sure he's not thinking about robins right now.
And gee, I was going to blog about someone I indirectly know who won the lottery, but this is more fun.
Only two more weeks to (ha ha) spring.
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Some Very Ticked Off First Robins of Spring
Two of my Facebook friends reported seeing their first robins of spring today. I didn't have that opportunity, being enroute from a trip downstate - just in time for it to start snowing. Right now we have about 2 inches on the ground.
Yesterday, when I left on my (shortened, due to the weather) trip, it was 48 here.
We got back in time to see part of our lawn uncovered for the first time since December-for a few minutes.
It's supposed to go down to 19 tonight with wind gusts up to 22 mph.
Is that any way to greet the first robins of spring?
Yesterday, when I left on my (shortened, due to the weather) trip, it was 48 here.
We got back in time to see part of our lawn uncovered for the first time since December-for a few minutes.
It's supposed to go down to 19 tonight with wind gusts up to 22 mph.
Is that any way to greet the first robins of spring?
Friday, March 4, 2011
Happy Birthday to a "Lost Friend"
Somewhere out there is a friend from my childhood I've had no contact with since right around the time we started high school. Today would be her birthday.
Although we spent a lot of time together as children, we grew apart in what is now called the pre teen years. We spent a lot of time playing Barbie and Ken. I had a Barbie, she had a Ken. Oh, if only I had that Barbie now, it probably is worth a bunch of money. It must have been purchased in the first couple of years after Barbies came out. It had blonde hair in an early 60's a la Mad Men hairstyle, and a small wardrobe including a red pencil skirt and a (my pride and joy) wedding gown. Its arms and legs would not bend (I so wished they would be able to) and its feet were shaped to only accept high heeled shoes.
Her Ken had brown hair, plastic. Its arms and legs didn't bend either. We would take our dolls on "dates". My Barbie was her Ken's fiancee.
We did other things too, not just playing with Barbies. I loved being in her apartment, with the plastic covered furniture. Everything was so clean. There was a reason for that.
Her mother had a heart condition and was ill. She needed to be on oxygen. Yet, she was very kind to me and after my mother died, I would sometimes go down to her apartment (we lived in the same apartment building) and she would feed me breakfast. Then, my friend and I would walk to junior high together.
When we had our junior high graduation, we went to a beauty parlor early in the morning and had our hair done together. The graduation was at the Loews Paradise in the Bronx, one of the most beautiful movie theatres of all time. Of course, at that time we never realized what a treasure we had in our own back yards (so to speak - we had no back yards in our apartment building.) (My high school graduation was there, too.)
Why did we grow apart? It's complicated but....in the City there were very few options if you lived in a school district that had terrible schools. Our local high school (now closed, in its original form, broken up into several smaller schools inside the building) was Evander Childs. At one time it was considered an excellent school. By the mid 60's, one did not aspire to go there (later it became even worse, which is why it was finally closed. Consider this: both the junior high and high school I went to were closed down because they were so terrible.) I escaped that urban blight of a high school by passing an exam and being accepted to a high school called the Bronx High School of Science.
My friend? She didn't, and went to Evander Childs.
At any rate, I have not seen her in about 40 years.
Whereever you are, friend of my childhood, I hope you've had a good life. I've looked for you on Facebook without success. So I hope you are alive and well. Happy birthday. Maybe one day we'll find each other, and maybe we'll find we have something to connect us once again. I hope so.
Although we spent a lot of time together as children, we grew apart in what is now called the pre teen years. We spent a lot of time playing Barbie and Ken. I had a Barbie, she had a Ken. Oh, if only I had that Barbie now, it probably is worth a bunch of money. It must have been purchased in the first couple of years after Barbies came out. It had blonde hair in an early 60's a la Mad Men hairstyle, and a small wardrobe including a red pencil skirt and a (my pride and joy) wedding gown. Its arms and legs would not bend (I so wished they would be able to) and its feet were shaped to only accept high heeled shoes.
Her Ken had brown hair, plastic. Its arms and legs didn't bend either. We would take our dolls on "dates". My Barbie was her Ken's fiancee.
We did other things too, not just playing with Barbies. I loved being in her apartment, with the plastic covered furniture. Everything was so clean. There was a reason for that.
Her mother had a heart condition and was ill. She needed to be on oxygen. Yet, she was very kind to me and after my mother died, I would sometimes go down to her apartment (we lived in the same apartment building) and she would feed me breakfast. Then, my friend and I would walk to junior high together.
When we had our junior high graduation, we went to a beauty parlor early in the morning and had our hair done together. The graduation was at the Loews Paradise in the Bronx, one of the most beautiful movie theatres of all time. Of course, at that time we never realized what a treasure we had in our own back yards (so to speak - we had no back yards in our apartment building.) (My high school graduation was there, too.)
Why did we grow apart? It's complicated but....in the City there were very few options if you lived in a school district that had terrible schools. Our local high school (now closed, in its original form, broken up into several smaller schools inside the building) was Evander Childs. At one time it was considered an excellent school. By the mid 60's, one did not aspire to go there (later it became even worse, which is why it was finally closed. Consider this: both the junior high and high school I went to were closed down because they were so terrible.) I escaped that urban blight of a high school by passing an exam and being accepted to a high school called the Bronx High School of Science.
My friend? She didn't, and went to Evander Childs.
At any rate, I have not seen her in about 40 years.
Whereever you are, friend of my childhood, I hope you've had a good life. I've looked for you on Facebook without success. So I hope you are alive and well. Happy birthday. Maybe one day we'll find each other, and maybe we'll find we have something to connect us once again. I hope so.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Wendell Berry, Harper Lee and Thoughts on Aging
Wendell Berry....a voice from my past, now to be honored by the President.
It's been many years since I've read one of his books. Right now, I am pretty bummed at the prospect of aging and watching people I love or have been in my life one way or another age. I'm going through a mini-crisis, such as it is, as I approach the ripe old age of 60.
Wendell Berry passed that milestone a while ago. (Another person to be honored, Harper Lee, passed it even longer ago than that.whose sister I knew just lost her sister this past week to Alzheimers. I watch Alzheimer's (or something like it) rob a neighbor of his life, his wit, his memory.
Aging...you become so fragile. It can be so very depressing knowing that I am watching what could be my fate.
But on the other hand....
What a wonderful thing, to have your lifes work influence so many people, to have your writings influence so many people.....and to live to see it.
I can only aspire to a fraction of what these two writers have accomplished....Wendell Berry with over 40 books....and Harper Lee-with just one.
Please someone....tell me that aging has an upside. Because right now I can't see one, and that roll of toilet paper is unrolling faster....and faster....and faster.
It's been many years since I've read one of his books. Right now, I am pretty bummed at the prospect of aging and watching people I love or have been in my life one way or another age. I'm going through a mini-crisis, such as it is, as I approach the ripe old age of 60.
Wendell Berry passed that milestone a while ago. (Another person to be honored, Harper Lee, passed it even longer ago than that.whose sister I knew just lost her sister this past week to Alzheimers. I watch Alzheimer's (or something like it) rob a neighbor of his life, his wit, his memory.
Aging...you become so fragile. It can be so very depressing knowing that I am watching what could be my fate.
But on the other hand....
What a wonderful thing, to have your lifes work influence so many people, to have your writings influence so many people.....and to live to see it.
I can only aspire to a fraction of what these two writers have accomplished....Wendell Berry with over 40 books....and Harper Lee-with just one.
Please someone....tell me that aging has an upside. Because right now I can't see one, and that roll of toilet paper is unrolling faster....and faster....and faster.
Monday, February 28, 2011
The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire and Binghamton
We are coming up on the 100th anniversary of a fire that took more lives in NY City than any event until September 11, 2001. And, this fire has echos in Binghamton, as I've blogged before- we had our own clothing factory fire in July of 1913. 31 people died in our fire.
The Triangle Shirtwaist fire, two years before, took the lives of 146 people in New York City. Right now I'm watching a PBS documentary on this fire.
Ironically, the factory was considered a step up from the "sweatshops". Workers aspired to work there because of the "modern" conditions.
The Binghamton fire helped to fuel (so to speak) the drive to strengthen safety codes that started with the NYC fire. Work in a building that has open exits? Are you protected by a minimum wage law? You owe that privilege to the people that died on those two days.
We must never let anything like this happen again. Think we are safe? Remember that history tends to repeat itself if people forget the lessons that history teaches us. Right now we are still struggling with issues surrounding business, and how much government intervention there should be. Even, yes, child labor.
There is a lot of fascinating history behind the production of shirtwaists (yes, they still exist today) and the union movement. I can remember, in my childhood, small garment factories in buildings on White Plains Road in the Bronx. Sometimes, on very hot days, they kept doors open and you were able to peek inside. wonder, as an adult, about what exactly I was witnessing in those quick peeks as my mother walked me past those buildings.
Meanwhile, in Binghamton, the former site of the factory that burned on Wall Street finally got a monument-last year.
The Triangle Shirtwaist fire, two years before, took the lives of 146 people in New York City. Right now I'm watching a PBS documentary on this fire.
Ironically, the factory was considered a step up from the "sweatshops". Workers aspired to work there because of the "modern" conditions.
The Binghamton fire helped to fuel (so to speak) the drive to strengthen safety codes that started with the NYC fire. Work in a building that has open exits? Are you protected by a minimum wage law? You owe that privilege to the people that died on those two days.
We must never let anything like this happen again. Think we are safe? Remember that history tends to repeat itself if people forget the lessons that history teaches us. Right now we are still struggling with issues surrounding business, and how much government intervention there should be. Even, yes, child labor.
There is a lot of fascinating history behind the production of shirtwaists (yes, they still exist today) and the union movement. I can remember, in my childhood, small garment factories in buildings on White Plains Road in the Bronx. Sometimes, on very hot days, they kept doors open and you were able to peek inside. wonder, as an adult, about what exactly I was witnessing in those quick peeks as my mother walked me past those buildings.
Meanwhile, in Binghamton, the former site of the factory that burned on Wall Street finally got a monument-last year.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Interesting Opportunity to Have Your Say
I haven't spoken in a while about my spouse's brother, who has autism. This from a listserv I subscribe to sounded interesting. Family members, friends, and others, have the chance to "give testimony", they do have to give a name and email address.
I don't know anything about this agency, but it was intriguing. Apparently the original deadline to participate in this was March 1 but it is now extended to March 4. Here is the message: Note, the person with a developmental disability can be any age, child or adult.
In the case of our family member, he is middle aged, and there are a number of concerns. I don't want to get personal, but I am thinking of posting something. Don't know if it will go down a cyber-black hole or not, and I'm a bit leery of giving my email address, but perhaps it is worth a try.
We'll see.
Dear Families, Self Advocates and Provider Networks:
Please take a few minutes and read this note and follow through on offering comments to ADD.
It is crucial that the Administration on Developmental Disabilities (ADD) hear from family members and people with disabilities about accomplishments and successes that have been possible because of the help, supports and education people have had access to. (The U.S. Administration on Developmental Disabilities (ADD) has a mission to improve and increase services to and assure that individuals with developmental disabilities have opportunities to make their own choices, contribute to society, have supports to live independently, and are free of abuse, neglect, financial and sexual exploitation and violations of their legal and human rights.)
We, the families and people who depend on this assistance, need to ensure that cuts to education, services (including Medicaid funded services) and employment supports do not put people back into institutions. As parents of children with disabilities, we learned from or heard about parents who helped pave the way for us and for our children. They had few choices and made sacrifices to make life better for people with developmental disabilities and to help other parents. Their perseverance included truly fighting for educational services we consider an entitlement. Their determination included striving for a place to live other than an understaffed institution ward and activities to enrich a person's day so they do not sit idle. These are things we consider an expectation. We need to be the ones to help pave the way for the future.
The potential for children and adults with disabilities losing services, supports and education that have helped make people successful is real.
The Administration on Developmental Disabilities invites you to share your vision of the future. Because of an overwhelming response, online comments are being accepted through Friday, March 4. Please take a few minutes and add your thoughts. Follow this link and provide testimony about community inclusion, participation, education, capital, employment, self-determination, person centered choices, self-advocacy, etc.
This is the link for submitting your testimony/story/comments:
http://www.envision2010.net/comment_submit.php
I don't know anything about this agency, but it was intriguing. Apparently the original deadline to participate in this was March 1 but it is now extended to March 4. Here is the message: Note, the person with a developmental disability can be any age, child or adult.
In the case of our family member, he is middle aged, and there are a number of concerns. I don't want to get personal, but I am thinking of posting something. Don't know if it will go down a cyber-black hole or not, and I'm a bit leery of giving my email address, but perhaps it is worth a try.
We'll see.
Dear Families, Self Advocates and Provider Networks:
Please take a few minutes and read this note and follow through on offering comments to ADD.
It is crucial that the Administration on Developmental Disabilities (ADD) hear from family members and people with disabilities about accomplishments and successes that have been possible because of the help, supports and education people have had access to. (The U.S. Administration on Developmental Disabilities (ADD) has a mission to improve and increase services to and assure that individuals with developmental disabilities have opportunities to make their own choices, contribute to society, have supports to live independently, and are free of abuse, neglect, financial and sexual exploitation and violations of their legal and human rights.)
We, the families and people who depend on this assistance, need to ensure that cuts to education, services (including Medicaid funded services) and employment supports do not put people back into institutions. As parents of children with disabilities, we learned from or heard about parents who helped pave the way for us and for our children. They had few choices and made sacrifices to make life better for people with developmental disabilities and to help other parents. Their perseverance included truly fighting for educational services we consider an entitlement. Their determination included striving for a place to live other than an understaffed institution ward and activities to enrich a person's day so they do not sit idle. These are things we consider an expectation. We need to be the ones to help pave the way for the future.
The potential for children and adults with disabilities losing services, supports and education that have helped make people successful is real.
The Administration on Developmental Disabilities invites you to share your vision of the future. Because of an overwhelming response, online comments are being accepted through Friday, March 4. Please take a few minutes and add your thoughts. Follow this link and provide testimony about community inclusion, participation, education, capital, employment, self-determination, person centered choices, self-advocacy, etc.
This is the link for submitting your testimony/story/comments:
http://www.envision2010.net/comment_submit.php
Sunday, February 20, 2011
The Nightmare
Night before last, I had a nightmare about my mother in law.
No, my mother in law is not a nightmare. Not at all. But I've been having various nightmares in the last 6 months or so, after years of not having them at all.
I have a lot on my mind.
I believe I blogged about my mother in law, who is in her 80's, and the fact that she has fallen several times in the past few years. She also suffered a small stroke a little over 3 years ago. She fell last in January, and sprained her ankle, after having a dizzy spell in the bathroom. Fortunately one of her children was in the house, and she was able to get assistance after he heard her calls. (she had one of the medical alarm pendants, but was not wearing it.)
As far as I know, she hasn't driven since the fall because of swelling, pain, and mobility issues, combined with the condition of roads where she lives (heavier than normal snowfall, huge piles of snow blocking visibility, roads narrowed more than usual). She's been without a car for a couple of weeks, but is supposed to be leasing a new car later this week. Anyway, to the dream....
She was visiting up here. We were at a local park, a park where I've spent lots of time over the years. In the dream, we were in her car, and she wanted to show us that she could still drive. I was in the back seat. She started the car and almost immediately was going way too fast - before she went too far she lost control and we were off the road and on the grass, going quickly to - where? I was terrified we were going to hit either a tree or a picnic table. (in real life, those would have been hazards, but we also could have ended up in the Chenango River.) But after a few anxious seconds she was able to stop the car. We didn't hit anything or anyone.
At that point I woke up, heart pounding.
I don't think I need a dream interpreter to figure out what caused this nightmare, and what I am worrying about.
We'll just have to see. Me and so many other children and in laws in my shoes.
No, my mother in law is not a nightmare. Not at all. But I've been having various nightmares in the last 6 months or so, after years of not having them at all.
I have a lot on my mind.
I believe I blogged about my mother in law, who is in her 80's, and the fact that she has fallen several times in the past few years. She also suffered a small stroke a little over 3 years ago. She fell last in January, and sprained her ankle, after having a dizzy spell in the bathroom. Fortunately one of her children was in the house, and she was able to get assistance after he heard her calls. (she had one of the medical alarm pendants, but was not wearing it.)
As far as I know, she hasn't driven since the fall because of swelling, pain, and mobility issues, combined with the condition of roads where she lives (heavier than normal snowfall, huge piles of snow blocking visibility, roads narrowed more than usual). She's been without a car for a couple of weeks, but is supposed to be leasing a new car later this week. Anyway, to the dream....
She was visiting up here. We were at a local park, a park where I've spent lots of time over the years. In the dream, we were in her car, and she wanted to show us that she could still drive. I was in the back seat. She started the car and almost immediately was going way too fast - before she went too far she lost control and we were off the road and on the grass, going quickly to - where? I was terrified we were going to hit either a tree or a picnic table. (in real life, those would have been hazards, but we also could have ended up in the Chenango River.) But after a few anxious seconds she was able to stop the car. We didn't hit anything or anyone.
At that point I woke up, heart pounding.
I don't think I need a dream interpreter to figure out what caused this nightmare, and what I am worrying about.
We'll just have to see. Me and so many other children and in laws in my shoes.
Friday, February 18, 2011
13th Valentines Day in Heaven
On February 13, 1998 a friend and co-worker passed on to wherever we go after this life after a 16 month battle with lung cancer.
One day, she had found a lump on her neck. She went to her family doctor and he immediately knew something was wrong. Her bottom line was that she had cancer all through her body, so much so that it took almost two months to trace back where the cancer had originated. By then it was almost Christmastime, and she started treatment. From the first she knew the cancer was terminal but the hope was to prolong her life.
She was a talented craftsperson and spent her first Christmas with cancer making the homemade gifts she loved to make, including for her teenaged grandson and her co-workers: and that Christmas we got the final homemade ornaments she made for us every year.
By that first February after her diagnosis she was no longer able to work.
Sometime that summer, she called me at work and invited me to a picnic lunch. She drove down to her former office, picked me up, and took me to a local park, where she unpacked a lovely picnic set, complete with tiny salt and pepper shakers. She was having a good day. We had a lovely lunch. She said she did not feel sorry for herself, that although she had quit smoking years ago the diagnosis did not come as a shock because of what her husband and she had loved to do-restore old homes. During this work, she had been exposed to asbestos.
She lived in an old Victorian home in the Town of Maine, which they had restored.
At the time we picnicked, our office was literally fallling apart. Due to mismanagement, people were leaving. As summer passed into fall, the last three of us from before this regional manager was hired quit.
One of us got another job right away. The other two of us, along with our former office manager (another victim of the mismanagement), decided we would visit our former co-worker and have lunch with her every week. We did for several weeks, but she was getting weaker and weaker and we stopped-although we kept in touch with her husband.
Her second Christmas was not filled with homemade gifts. Instead, we went to her house (it was the first time I had been there) where her husband gave us a tour. She tried to show us around but had to quit when she couldn't catch her breath.
She was under hospice care.
In January she and her husband were watching the Winter Olympics ice skating. She had fallen asleep on the couch but when he tried to wake her, she would not rouse. He called Hospice, they came over. She had suffered a stroke.
She never regained consciousness.
The Tuesday before she died, the three of us visited her bedside. She lay on a bed in the living room, a radio nearby softly playing the country music she loved. A morphine pump dulled her pain. Her husband told us that although it seemed like she was in a coma, that she did have some awareness. If we wanted to, we could talk to her and she probably would understand, but would not be able to respond.
What do you say? What can you say? I spoke to her for a couple of minutes and said goodbye to her. I squeezed her hand.
I would love to imagine that she tried to squeeze it back.
On Saturday I got "the" phone call. My husband was at work. My son was going to a birthday party in a couple of hours and I did not want him to know I was crying. I vacuumed the floor, silent tears running down my face.
I still think of her every Valentine's Day. Her husband and her loved each other deeply. I think she always expected him to "go" first but that was not to be. The three of us kept in some touch with her husband but finally, as these things go many times, we drifted apart.
Her grandson would be almost 30 now. I had heard he went through some rough times after she died, and I hope he straightened out his life.
At the funeral home, photos of her family and her artwork were placed near her coffin. At the church service, the family invited the three of us to go to the graveside with them, as if we were family. We declined as we felt the family should be together.
In the flood of 2006, I lost almost all of the homemade ornaments she had made for me.
I still think of her when we drive through the Town of Maine.
One day, she had found a lump on her neck. She went to her family doctor and he immediately knew something was wrong. Her bottom line was that she had cancer all through her body, so much so that it took almost two months to trace back where the cancer had originated. By then it was almost Christmastime, and she started treatment. From the first she knew the cancer was terminal but the hope was to prolong her life.
She was a talented craftsperson and spent her first Christmas with cancer making the homemade gifts she loved to make, including for her teenaged grandson and her co-workers: and that Christmas we got the final homemade ornaments she made for us every year.
By that first February after her diagnosis she was no longer able to work.
Sometime that summer, she called me at work and invited me to a picnic lunch. She drove down to her former office, picked me up, and took me to a local park, where she unpacked a lovely picnic set, complete with tiny salt and pepper shakers. She was having a good day. We had a lovely lunch. She said she did not feel sorry for herself, that although she had quit smoking years ago the diagnosis did not come as a shock because of what her husband and she had loved to do-restore old homes. During this work, she had been exposed to asbestos.
She lived in an old Victorian home in the Town of Maine, which they had restored.
At the time we picnicked, our office was literally fallling apart. Due to mismanagement, people were leaving. As summer passed into fall, the last three of us from before this regional manager was hired quit.
One of us got another job right away. The other two of us, along with our former office manager (another victim of the mismanagement), decided we would visit our former co-worker and have lunch with her every week. We did for several weeks, but she was getting weaker and weaker and we stopped-although we kept in touch with her husband.
Her second Christmas was not filled with homemade gifts. Instead, we went to her house (it was the first time I had been there) where her husband gave us a tour. She tried to show us around but had to quit when she couldn't catch her breath.
She was under hospice care.
In January she and her husband were watching the Winter Olympics ice skating. She had fallen asleep on the couch but when he tried to wake her, she would not rouse. He called Hospice, they came over. She had suffered a stroke.
She never regained consciousness.
The Tuesday before she died, the three of us visited her bedside. She lay on a bed in the living room, a radio nearby softly playing the country music she loved. A morphine pump dulled her pain. Her husband told us that although it seemed like she was in a coma, that she did have some awareness. If we wanted to, we could talk to her and she probably would understand, but would not be able to respond.
What do you say? What can you say? I spoke to her for a couple of minutes and said goodbye to her. I squeezed her hand.
I would love to imagine that she tried to squeeze it back.
On Saturday I got "the" phone call. My husband was at work. My son was going to a birthday party in a couple of hours and I did not want him to know I was crying. I vacuumed the floor, silent tears running down my face.
I still think of her every Valentine's Day. Her husband and her loved each other deeply. I think she always expected him to "go" first but that was not to be. The three of us kept in some touch with her husband but finally, as these things go many times, we drifted apart.
Her grandson would be almost 30 now. I had heard he went through some rough times after she died, and I hope he straightened out his life.
At the funeral home, photos of her family and her artwork were placed near her coffin. At the church service, the family invited the three of us to go to the graveside with them, as if we were family. We declined as we felt the family should be together.
In the flood of 2006, I lost almost all of the homemade ornaments she had made for me.
I still think of her when we drive through the Town of Maine.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Book Stores of Dreams
There isn't much to say except my spouse is probably grateful that there are no book fairs like this in the area. It's enough to make me want to hop the Auto Train and get right down to Florida.
So....why can't we have something like this here? Or at least in Ithaca? Ithaca, an hour from here, already has one of the largest library book sales in the country. It has Cornell University and Ithaca College. It has the Book Barn in Dryden, an awesome used book venue I must admit I haven't been to in several years. Why? Well my long suffering spouse has lived with my used book collection for years - and going into this place would be like an addict visiting a crack house.
The Book Barn is in a semi-rural area near Dryden, NY (a suburb of Ithaca). It's....well sort of a barn. It's stuffed with books. It's great, but.....
I have to tell you about an even better used book store, Haslam's Book Store in St. Petersburg, FL. I am fortunate enough to have a relative in the area, and he treated us two years ago to a visit to Haslam's. What can I say except....big time crack house! (Haslam's is actually both a new and used book store...and it would hold its place in a major city like New York. No doubt in my mind. One day I may even visit their Doom Level.) Just thinking of the old and rare books.....
I went to their website after hearing about the 30th Annual Florida Antiquarian Book Fair, and saw where Randy Wayne White (author of the Doc Ford mystery series) was visiting the store later this month. Gaaayyyhh, now I really am going to be itching for a visit to St. Petersburg.
I'm so sick of winter. So sick.
Now I'll spend tonight dreaming of books. And, Sanibel Island. Sigh....
So....why can't we have something like this here? Or at least in Ithaca? Ithaca, an hour from here, already has one of the largest library book sales in the country. It has Cornell University and Ithaca College. It has the Book Barn in Dryden, an awesome used book venue I must admit I haven't been to in several years. Why? Well my long suffering spouse has lived with my used book collection for years - and going into this place would be like an addict visiting a crack house.
The Book Barn is in a semi-rural area near Dryden, NY (a suburb of Ithaca). It's....well sort of a barn. It's stuffed with books. It's great, but.....
I have to tell you about an even better used book store, Haslam's Book Store in St. Petersburg, FL. I am fortunate enough to have a relative in the area, and he treated us two years ago to a visit to Haslam's. What can I say except....big time crack house! (Haslam's is actually both a new and used book store...and it would hold its place in a major city like New York. No doubt in my mind. One day I may even visit their Doom Level.) Just thinking of the old and rare books.....
I went to their website after hearing about the 30th Annual Florida Antiquarian Book Fair, and saw where Randy Wayne White (author of the Doc Ford mystery series) was visiting the store later this month. Gaaayyyhh, now I really am going to be itching for a visit to St. Petersburg.
I'm so sick of winter. So sick.
Now I'll spend tonight dreaming of books. And, Sanibel Island. Sigh....
Monday, February 14, 2011
Watson's Secret
How many of you watched the IBM super-computer Watson battle all time Jeopardy champions Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter on Jeopardy tonight? It was amazing....and scary.
Online, I saw the comment that 'Watson cleaned Jenning's clock." That person was closer to the truth than he or she may have known. Or did the person know....the true secret of Watson?
Terminator series fans may have thought of Skynet....science fiction fans may have been reminded of HAL...but I bet not too many of you thought of Harlow Bundy.
Who he?
Let's turn back the, er, clock to the late 1880's when a man with the last name of Bundy developed a time recording device (the forerunner of our modern day time clock) and he and his brother ended up founding the Bundy Manufacturing Company here in the Triple Cities to manufacture the invention.
One of the brothers built a mansion on Main Street in Binghamton, which today is a museum (and well worth the visit.) As for the Bundy Manufacturing Company, it moved to nearby Endicott in 1906 and eventually became....IBM, through a series of mergers.
So why is the computer playing on Jeopardy called Watson and not Bundy?
Because, in 1914, one Thomas Watson joined the Computer Tabulating Recording Company, which had been formed through a merger of the Bundy Manufacturing Company and several other entities. In a long story which others can tell much better than I can, Thomas Watson renamed the company when he took control in 1924 and became the person known as the father of IBM. Thomas Watson is still revered in the Triple Cities today. The Endicott complex of IBM buildings stands, although much of it is no longer occupied by IBM.
When I came here in the 1980's, people aspired to work for IBM. Today, it is way shrunken. What remains? A few thousand employees and a street named after Thomas Watson, ....Watson Boulevard. (which, when it enters Johnson City, changes its name to Harry L. Drive - named, of course, after one of the Johnson family that Johnson City was named after. And of course, readers of this blog know what happened to THEIR company, Endicott-Johnson.)
In the meantime, IBM has moved on...and $30 million dollars later, its computer named Watson is playing Jeopardy while we humans watch in a combination of pride....and horrified fascination.
Watson even had to pass the same test human contestants must pass to get on the show.
Tonight we got through single Jeopardy. Tomorrow is Double Jeopardy and Final Jeopardy. Wednesday is an entire second game.
Will Watson continue to clean up? Or will humanity persevere and conquer? Will Watson become the first millionaire computer? (no, IBM will donate its earnings to charity. But just think if they allowed the computer to keep its earnings and invest them...)
I'll be in front of the TV, watching.
Online, I saw the comment that 'Watson cleaned Jenning's clock." That person was closer to the truth than he or she may have known. Or did the person know....the true secret of Watson?
Terminator series fans may have thought of Skynet....science fiction fans may have been reminded of HAL...but I bet not too many of you thought of Harlow Bundy.
Who he?
Let's turn back the, er, clock to the late 1880's when a man with the last name of Bundy developed a time recording device (the forerunner of our modern day time clock) and he and his brother ended up founding the Bundy Manufacturing Company here in the Triple Cities to manufacture the invention.
One of the brothers built a mansion on Main Street in Binghamton, which today is a museum (and well worth the visit.) As for the Bundy Manufacturing Company, it moved to nearby Endicott in 1906 and eventually became....IBM, through a series of mergers.
So why is the computer playing on Jeopardy called Watson and not Bundy?
Because, in 1914, one Thomas Watson joined the Computer Tabulating Recording Company, which had been formed through a merger of the Bundy Manufacturing Company and several other entities. In a long story which others can tell much better than I can, Thomas Watson renamed the company when he took control in 1924 and became the person known as the father of IBM. Thomas Watson is still revered in the Triple Cities today. The Endicott complex of IBM buildings stands, although much of it is no longer occupied by IBM.
When I came here in the 1980's, people aspired to work for IBM. Today, it is way shrunken. What remains? A few thousand employees and a street named after Thomas Watson, ....Watson Boulevard. (which, when it enters Johnson City, changes its name to Harry L. Drive - named, of course, after one of the Johnson family that Johnson City was named after. And of course, readers of this blog know what happened to THEIR company, Endicott-Johnson.)
In the meantime, IBM has moved on...and $30 million dollars later, its computer named Watson is playing Jeopardy while we humans watch in a combination of pride....and horrified fascination.
Watson even had to pass the same test human contestants must pass to get on the show.
Tonight we got through single Jeopardy. Tomorrow is Double Jeopardy and Final Jeopardy. Wednesday is an entire second game.
Will Watson continue to clean up? Or will humanity persevere and conquer? Will Watson become the first millionaire computer? (no, IBM will donate its earnings to charity. But just think if they allowed the computer to keep its earnings and invest them...)
I'll be in front of the TV, watching.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Chirp Chirp Winter is Almost Over
No, the snow hasn't magically melted nor will it for a while longer.
But this morning February 13....I walked outside my door-and the birds were singing.
YES!
This is the first sign that winter is loosening its grasp on the Southern Tier of upstate NY. The next step will be the sap rising in the trees. While traveling down Rt 17 this morning, I looked to see if that was the case but the tips of the trees along the road still were stark brown against the cloud sky. No signs of the red glow in the treetops that signals the sap rising.
That won't come quite yet. But it will. March will bring the time of maple sugaring. I just must be patient.
But one can dream. Dream dream dream....no more ice, no more snow, no more fear of falling. One day I'll go out and not only will the birds be singing, but the crocuses will be poking above the ground.
Still have about 8 inches of snow resting in our front yard. So no spring bulbs yet. But soon.
Please, soon.
But this morning February 13....I walked outside my door-and the birds were singing.
YES!
This is the first sign that winter is loosening its grasp on the Southern Tier of upstate NY. The next step will be the sap rising in the trees. While traveling down Rt 17 this morning, I looked to see if that was the case but the tips of the trees along the road still were stark brown against the cloud sky. No signs of the red glow in the treetops that signals the sap rising.
That won't come quite yet. But it will. March will bring the time of maple sugaring. I just must be patient.
But one can dream. Dream dream dream....no more ice, no more snow, no more fear of falling. One day I'll go out and not only will the birds be singing, but the crocuses will be poking above the ground.
Still have about 8 inches of snow resting in our front yard. So no spring bulbs yet. But soon.
Please, soon.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Them Changes
I'm trying to fool around with the best way to share a video on this blog. I tried a couple of different ways and this one seemed to work best. This is the Super Bowl ad created for Chrysler featuring rapper Eminem talking about the city he grew up in, to the beat of a song I love, Lose Yourself. (warning, explicit language.)
Ten years ago, if you had told me I would be praising Eminem in any context, I would have told you that you were sadly mistaken. In those days of the early 21st century, parents of school aged children dreaded any mention of Eminem. He was evil. He corrupted the young with horrible, violent lyrics.
Later, as a teen, my son had his poster in his room. I did not comment. Wise parents pick their battles with their teens.
Then, I listened to his more recent music. Especially "Lose Yourself". Hmmm.....
This is one of the main lessons aging teaches us. People change, and we change. And, things aren't always what they seem to be.
The auto industry has had to change, just like so many of us here in America, to survive. Detroit (which I have never visited, but I have been to Flint) has been through some very rough times, and this commercial can not disguise that their struggle has a long way to go.
You see, I live in a "burnt out industrial town", too. Not on the scale of Detroit, but we've seem hard times here too. Some places, especially nearby Johnson City, boast more crumbling, vacant factories than open, vibrant businesses. If you want to see them (and trust me, you probably don't), just drive a block or two off of Main Street and there they are, in all their former glory.
Sometimes I get so frustrated that people here dwell on the glory days of Endicott-Johnson that they don't spend enough time in the present. Detroit had to learn that the hard way with their auto industry, too.
A year or two ago, I blogged about walking around downtown Binghamton during a First Friday (first Friday of the month "art walk") and overheard a young couple comparing Binghamton, not kindly, to Detroit.
So, in a way, I took this commercial very personally. I can only hope that Detroit does rise from the ashes. If it does, some Americans may be very surprised how, and also many be surprised at the ethnic groups that make it happen. But we will just have to wait and see.
There is one P.S., though: my husband and I have only owned one American car (a Saturn) since 1976. The other cars have been imports, ranging from Germany to Japan to Korea. There's a reason for that. We never found much to like in American cars. Many of our generation felt the same way.
But in the meantime....of the various relatives that condemned us for owning imports....well, guess what many of them own now.
Yes, times do change.
And soon, they are going to change even more.
Ten years ago, if you had told me I would be praising Eminem in any context, I would have told you that you were sadly mistaken. In those days of the early 21st century, parents of school aged children dreaded any mention of Eminem. He was evil. He corrupted the young with horrible, violent lyrics.
Later, as a teen, my son had his poster in his room. I did not comment. Wise parents pick their battles with their teens.
Then, I listened to his more recent music. Especially "Lose Yourself". Hmmm.....
This is one of the main lessons aging teaches us. People change, and we change. And, things aren't always what they seem to be.
The auto industry has had to change, just like so many of us here in America, to survive. Detroit (which I have never visited, but I have been to Flint) has been through some very rough times, and this commercial can not disguise that their struggle has a long way to go.
You see, I live in a "burnt out industrial town", too. Not on the scale of Detroit, but we've seem hard times here too. Some places, especially nearby Johnson City, boast more crumbling, vacant factories than open, vibrant businesses. If you want to see them (and trust me, you probably don't), just drive a block or two off of Main Street and there they are, in all their former glory.
Sometimes I get so frustrated that people here dwell on the glory days of Endicott-Johnson that they don't spend enough time in the present. Detroit had to learn that the hard way with their auto industry, too.
A year or two ago, I blogged about walking around downtown Binghamton during a First Friday (first Friday of the month "art walk") and overheard a young couple comparing Binghamton, not kindly, to Detroit.
So, in a way, I took this commercial very personally. I can only hope that Detroit does rise from the ashes. If it does, some Americans may be very surprised how, and also many be surprised at the ethnic groups that make it happen. But we will just have to wait and see.
There is one P.S., though: my husband and I have only owned one American car (a Saturn) since 1976. The other cars have been imports, ranging from Germany to Japan to Korea. There's a reason for that. We never found much to like in American cars. Many of our generation felt the same way.
But in the meantime....of the various relatives that condemned us for owning imports....well, guess what many of them own now.
Yes, times do change.
And soon, they are going to change even more.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Global....something
Bad weather is a'comin.
So how would I know that? Well, from some very bad memories.
In 1980, we lived in Wichita, KS. A record low was set on February 10, 1980. It snowed on April 4, 1980. And, what followed was the summer from hell, highlighted by highs of 110 on July 10, 111 on July 11, and 112 on July 12. All together, 20 heat records were set between June 24 and August 13, 1980, "all of which still stand", according to NOAA. My spouse had an outdoor job. We did not have air conditioning in our house.
We left for good the following March.
Well....this morning (February 10, 2011) Wichita hit a new record low of minus 17. So did Fayetteville, Arkansas (also minus 17), where we lived after moving from Wichita. This followed record snowfalls on February 9. In Springdale, AR (where we also lived after moving from Wichita), someone measured 24 inches of snow on their porch. Nearby Northwest Arkansas airport hit a record low of minus 20 this morning.
The low at our house for this winter, in the Triple Cities of upstate NY, on the other hand, has been minus five. It is supposed to reach zero tonight.
I was actually seriously thinking about visiting Arkansas this spring to "celebrate" the 30th anniversary of us leaving. Sure glad we changed our travel plans.
So, are Kansas and Arkansas the new snowbelt? Not exactly. While we here in Binghamton have enjoyed a winter full of single digit lows and recently icy sidewalks, Fayetteville, AR should be in the 50's by the weekend. Good thing too, as they probably have as much snow removal equipment as they did when we lived there...which wasn't much.
Meanwhile, New York City continues to suffer with ice and snow.
Climate change? Global warming? Sunspots? You decide. For sure, the Weather Channel has it made.
There are drawbacks to getting older. Too many memories. Finding patterns. Dreading another 1980.
Sure hope I'm wrong.
So how would I know that? Well, from some very bad memories.
In 1980, we lived in Wichita, KS. A record low was set on February 10, 1980. It snowed on April 4, 1980. And, what followed was the summer from hell, highlighted by highs of 110 on July 10, 111 on July 11, and 112 on July 12. All together, 20 heat records were set between June 24 and August 13, 1980, "all of which still stand", according to NOAA. My spouse had an outdoor job. We did not have air conditioning in our house.
We left for good the following March.
Well....this morning (February 10, 2011) Wichita hit a new record low of minus 17. So did Fayetteville, Arkansas (also minus 17), where we lived after moving from Wichita. This followed record snowfalls on February 9. In Springdale, AR (where we also lived after moving from Wichita), someone measured 24 inches of snow on their porch. Nearby Northwest Arkansas airport hit a record low of minus 20 this morning.
The low at our house for this winter, in the Triple Cities of upstate NY, on the other hand, has been minus five. It is supposed to reach zero tonight.
I was actually seriously thinking about visiting Arkansas this spring to "celebrate" the 30th anniversary of us leaving. Sure glad we changed our travel plans.
So, are Kansas and Arkansas the new snowbelt? Not exactly. While we here in Binghamton have enjoyed a winter full of single digit lows and recently icy sidewalks, Fayetteville, AR should be in the 50's by the weekend. Good thing too, as they probably have as much snow removal equipment as they did when we lived there...which wasn't much.
Meanwhile, New York City continues to suffer with ice and snow.
Climate change? Global warming? Sunspots? You decide. For sure, the Weather Channel has it made.
There are drawbacks to getting older. Too many memories. Finding patterns. Dreading another 1980.
Sure hope I'm wrong.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
7th (Snow) Fall
Falling has been on my mind a lot lately. So has aging.
The other day, the Weather Channel talked about the 7th major snowfall set to hit the NY metropolitan area. I was downstate about 10 days ago, helping my mother in law, who had fallen in her home two weeks before. An unusual amount of snow has fallen, leaving massive drifts and narrower than normal roads. This kind of thing is somewhat normal for municipalities in our area (especially to the north of us) but not for NYC and the area just north.
My mother in law, injured, has been almost a prisoner in her home, due to her fall and the snowfall. She hasn't tried to drive since the fall-and there are few public transit options in her area. Even when she feels recovered enough to drive, I wonder how she will cope with the changed landscape.
It's not my mother in law's first fall, either.
Then, it happened to me. Last Tuesday, I was walking in my neighborhood. Fresh snow covered the sidewalk. I should have known better - this particular house, I knew, doesn't take good care of their sidewalks. I thought, though, there shouldn't be a problem.
I was wrong. There was ice under the snow. My feet slid from under, I fell on my butt, and hit an icebank on my right side.
I thought I wasn't hurt. I got up, my dignity slightly damaged (someone was cleaning off their car, and I don't think even noticed), and proceeded on my way. But by the time I got to work, I knew I had hurt myself.
Three days later I saw my massage therapist, my back hurting and pain occasionally shooting down my leg. He worked on me for an hour. He said nothing felt wrong, but I obviously had given myself quite a jolt. Even now, a week later, my back still doesn't feel right.
I've fallen on the ice before trying to get to work - although I certainly don't try to make a habit of it. I don't think I've fallen on ice in about three or four years, though. (I do have ice cleats, if it gets really bad.) Other times I bounced back. This time, not as fast. I'm sure the extra weight age (and other factors) have put on me haven't helped.
The next day, one of my husband's co workers, who happens to be the brother of someone who works at my company, fell on the ice on his driveway (freezing rain having fallen) flat on his back. He had a backpack on because his school aged daughter had asked that he bring the backpack out to his car. No lasting damage, fortunately, because of the backpack (for one thing, it probably prevented him from hitting his head.). His doctor told him to put heat pads on his back. Maybe I should have done that.
Meanwhile, my balance stinks and I have to do something about it. My local Y (where I exercise) doesn't offer Tai Chi, which I've read could be of help. Yoga, I'm not so sure about, with my back problems. I've heard mixed things about Pilates for those with back problems. I need a back friendly exercise that will help with my balance. My search will continue. As for my mother in law.....
My mother in law-well she is in her 80's and she is not bouncing back very quickly. I fear she will never be the same, although it could have been worse. She said to me "I've fallen before and hurt myself more, but this time it is just not healing."
Aging stinks. So does winter.
The other day, the Weather Channel talked about the 7th major snowfall set to hit the NY metropolitan area. I was downstate about 10 days ago, helping my mother in law, who had fallen in her home two weeks before. An unusual amount of snow has fallen, leaving massive drifts and narrower than normal roads. This kind of thing is somewhat normal for municipalities in our area (especially to the north of us) but not for NYC and the area just north.
My mother in law, injured, has been almost a prisoner in her home, due to her fall and the snowfall. She hasn't tried to drive since the fall-and there are few public transit options in her area. Even when she feels recovered enough to drive, I wonder how she will cope with the changed landscape.
It's not my mother in law's first fall, either.
Then, it happened to me. Last Tuesday, I was walking in my neighborhood. Fresh snow covered the sidewalk. I should have known better - this particular house, I knew, doesn't take good care of their sidewalks. I thought, though, there shouldn't be a problem.
I was wrong. There was ice under the snow. My feet slid from under, I fell on my butt, and hit an icebank on my right side.
I thought I wasn't hurt. I got up, my dignity slightly damaged (someone was cleaning off their car, and I don't think even noticed), and proceeded on my way. But by the time I got to work, I knew I had hurt myself.
Three days later I saw my massage therapist, my back hurting and pain occasionally shooting down my leg. He worked on me for an hour. He said nothing felt wrong, but I obviously had given myself quite a jolt. Even now, a week later, my back still doesn't feel right.
I've fallen on the ice before trying to get to work - although I certainly don't try to make a habit of it. I don't think I've fallen on ice in about three or four years, though. (I do have ice cleats, if it gets really bad.) Other times I bounced back. This time, not as fast. I'm sure the extra weight age (and other factors) have put on me haven't helped.
The next day, one of my husband's co workers, who happens to be the brother of someone who works at my company, fell on the ice on his driveway (freezing rain having fallen) flat on his back. He had a backpack on because his school aged daughter had asked that he bring the backpack out to his car. No lasting damage, fortunately, because of the backpack (for one thing, it probably prevented him from hitting his head.). His doctor told him to put heat pads on his back. Maybe I should have done that.
Meanwhile, my balance stinks and I have to do something about it. My local Y (where I exercise) doesn't offer Tai Chi, which I've read could be of help. Yoga, I'm not so sure about, with my back problems. I've heard mixed things about Pilates for those with back problems. I need a back friendly exercise that will help with my balance. My search will continue. As for my mother in law.....
My mother in law-well she is in her 80's and she is not bouncing back very quickly. I fear she will never be the same, although it could have been worse. She said to me "I've fallen before and hurt myself more, but this time it is just not healing."
Aging stinks. So does winter.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Farming During a Revolution Part 2
Today's "what the heck" moment came when I was playing FarmVille, picking up the gifts and helping out my FarmVille friend in Tunisia....while listening, live, to President Mubarak (of Egypt)'s speech.
The Tunisian revolution has spread. And while I listened to Mubarak announce that his government would resign and there would be a new government tomorrow (although he was going to stay in power), I was gathering valentines, wooden boards, bushels of produce and freshly "baked" virtual bakery goods sent to me from Tunisia.
Now, I am watching live riots in the streets, in the dark. People clapping and shouting, cars on fire.
The unrest is spreading to Algeria, to Syria.
Cairo is on fire.
My FarmVille friend says, of Facebook, that it "helped overthrow a President/Dictator who was in power for 23 years. 3 weeks of protests and the flow of info on Facebook brought him down." But the situation is wearing on him, there in Tunis. We are very lucky, here in the U.S. -at least for right now. We get to watch it on TV.
My FarmVille friend is still living it.
The Tunisian revolution has spread. And while I listened to Mubarak announce that his government would resign and there would be a new government tomorrow (although he was going to stay in power), I was gathering valentines, wooden boards, bushels of produce and freshly "baked" virtual bakery goods sent to me from Tunisia.
Now, I am watching live riots in the streets, in the dark. People clapping and shouting, cars on fire.
The unrest is spreading to Algeria, to Syria.
Cairo is on fire.
My FarmVille friend says, of Facebook, that it "helped overthrow a President/Dictator who was in power for 23 years. 3 weeks of protests and the flow of info on Facebook brought him down." But the situation is wearing on him, there in Tunis. We are very lucky, here in the U.S. -at least for right now. We get to watch it on TV.
My FarmVille friend is still living it.
Another 25 years ago Moment - Challenger
There are two events linked together in my mind and heart.
January 21, 1986: the death of my father. And, a week later, the explosion of the Challenger.
I wasn't a member of the generation which had this event as their "defining moment" but I can still remember exactly where I was. I was in an office in Fayetteville, Arkansas, that Tuesday, just having returned from burying my father out on Long Island. I was at work, when one of my co workers announced he had just spoken to one of our customers, and he relayed the news to us.
It was the first time I had felt anything in a week. Simply, I had been numb since getting that phone call that my father had passed away in a Brooklyn emergency room. This was the first thing I felt since that phone call.
The space program had meant so much to me growing up. I became a big fan of science fiction - for some years, in fact, it was all I read. So the shock penetrated through the numbness. Now I was really surrounded by death.
It is so hard to imagine that 25 years have passed since that day, and here we are, with the manned space program soon to end. 25 years later, and an astronaut by the name of Mark Kelly ponders whether he will fly in that last mission, because his wife lies in a rehab center, survivor of an attempted assassination.
Two 25 year commemorations in a week. And to think I was a teenager when we had the 25th anniversary of the end of World War II. Time flies when you are having fun (or not).
January 21, 1986: the death of my father. And, a week later, the explosion of the Challenger.
I wasn't a member of the generation which had this event as their "defining moment" but I can still remember exactly where I was. I was in an office in Fayetteville, Arkansas, that Tuesday, just having returned from burying my father out on Long Island. I was at work, when one of my co workers announced he had just spoken to one of our customers, and he relayed the news to us.
It was the first time I had felt anything in a week. Simply, I had been numb since getting that phone call that my father had passed away in a Brooklyn emergency room. This was the first thing I felt since that phone call.
The space program had meant so much to me growing up. I became a big fan of science fiction - for some years, in fact, it was all I read. So the shock penetrated through the numbness. Now I was really surrounded by death.
It is so hard to imagine that 25 years have passed since that day, and here we are, with the manned space program soon to end. 25 years later, and an astronaut by the name of Mark Kelly ponders whether he will fly in that last mission, because his wife lies in a rehab center, survivor of an attempted assassination.
Two 25 year commemorations in a week. And to think I was a teenager when we had the 25th anniversary of the end of World War II. Time flies when you are having fun (or not).
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Another Johnson City Downtown Idea
Let's see. Downtown Johnson City has been declining for years. Although, I blogged a month or two ago, that there seems to be a little improvement: thanks, no less, to a Wal-Mart opening a mile or so away, I really can't see much else happening.
So finally there is an idea floated: free parking.
Two hours worth. Long enough to shop, or eat.
Of course, if a certain election issue had been passed, there wouldn't even be a Johnson City right now. Pick, pick, pick.
Free parking would be nice. Even nicer would be a downtown where people feel safe in walking. Or working. But, it's a start. If you get people downtown, then momentum may build, and that day of a safe downtown may come. (the only question is-Endicott thought of this years ago, why did it take the trustees so long?)
I wonder if the Wal-Mart effect is working. I could really dream, and hope that some of those nice historic buildings downtown get renovated.....one day. But as they say, long journeys start with a single step. Or, parking space, if you will.
So, trustees, what about it? Are you going to vote free parking in?
So finally there is an idea floated: free parking.
Two hours worth. Long enough to shop, or eat.
Of course, if a certain election issue had been passed, there wouldn't even be a Johnson City right now. Pick, pick, pick.
Free parking would be nice. Even nicer would be a downtown where people feel safe in walking. Or working. But, it's a start. If you get people downtown, then momentum may build, and that day of a safe downtown may come. (the only question is-Endicott thought of this years ago, why did it take the trustees so long?)
I wonder if the Wal-Mart effect is working. I could really dream, and hope that some of those nice historic buildings downtown get renovated.....one day. But as they say, long journeys start with a single step. Or, parking space, if you will.
So, trustees, what about it? Are you going to vote free parking in?
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
It Isn't Easy Heating Green
The repairman left about an hour ago.
I had briefly blogged, earlier this week, about my concerns that our year old "green" heating system would not be able to cope with the minus temperatures of earlier this week. Well it did....and fortunately for us, chose this afternoon (41 above) to break down, rather than a couple of days ago.
When spouse came home from work, he noticed it wasn't as warm as it should be. Going down to the basement, he was greeted by a flashing light and a notification of "A6". He whipped out the owners manual and "A6" was pump failure. He called the contractor who put the system in (December of 2009) and a repairman came out - several hours later; apparently they were having a lot of "no heat" calls.
Wonder if we were the only A6's.
Not only that, but the tankless hot water heater associated with the "furnace" was down too. So we had neither hot water nor heat, thanks to the wonders of modern technology.
Hmmm. We got rid of an old furnace, almost 19 years old, last year because of a tax break, and a rebate from our gas/electric utility. That furnace never gave us any major trouble. So we took the green plunge and....
It seems that these pumps have proved troublesome. Apparently there is a newer version, and hopefully we will get one tomorrow. Right now we have a temporary pump, so at least we have heat. And hot water. The best part was, the unit was still under warranty.
I still like the idea of "heating green". But my faith in any type of computerized appliance/system continues to fade, as does my faith in much that is modern (period). We recently got rid of a washer, bought new about 5 years ago, that continuously had the same part break down. We bought a used one, without the fancy bells and whistles. So far it is working fine.
Now, to hold our breath about the heating system. If it had broken down two days earlier, it would have been below zero. Two days later...we would have been out of town.
At least it had good timing.
I had briefly blogged, earlier this week, about my concerns that our year old "green" heating system would not be able to cope with the minus temperatures of earlier this week. Well it did....and fortunately for us, chose this afternoon (41 above) to break down, rather than a couple of days ago.
When spouse came home from work, he noticed it wasn't as warm as it should be. Going down to the basement, he was greeted by a flashing light and a notification of "A6". He whipped out the owners manual and "A6" was pump failure. He called the contractor who put the system in (December of 2009) and a repairman came out - several hours later; apparently they were having a lot of "no heat" calls.
Wonder if we were the only A6's.
Not only that, but the tankless hot water heater associated with the "furnace" was down too. So we had neither hot water nor heat, thanks to the wonders of modern technology.
Hmmm. We got rid of an old furnace, almost 19 years old, last year because of a tax break, and a rebate from our gas/electric utility. That furnace never gave us any major trouble. So we took the green plunge and....
It seems that these pumps have proved troublesome. Apparently there is a newer version, and hopefully we will get one tomorrow. Right now we have a temporary pump, so at least we have heat. And hot water. The best part was, the unit was still under warranty.
I still like the idea of "heating green". But my faith in any type of computerized appliance/system continues to fade, as does my faith in much that is modern (period). We recently got rid of a washer, bought new about 5 years ago, that continuously had the same part break down. We bought a used one, without the fancy bells and whistles. So far it is working fine.
Now, to hold our breath about the heating system. If it had broken down two days earlier, it would have been below zero. Two days later...we would have been out of town.
At least it had good timing.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Fire and...Water
I bet that businesses near the Press Building in downtown Binghamton are revamping their disaster recovery plans in the wake of the December fire that I blogged about earlier.
Sadly, the latest news concerning damage to the historic Press Building is that the damage is a lot more extensive than first suspected - not so much from fire but from the water used to fight the fire in the neighboring Midtown Mall (aka Strong Building).
Chenango Street is still closed at the intersection where the buildings burned. The Midtown Mall is boarded up and much of the damage is not visible to the public.
The law firm that helped renovate the building-just a mere two years ago? -and partially occupied the building, is now in the position of setting up temporary offices. Fortunately they had a good disaster recovery plan. A lot of downtown businesses are helping them, in the spirit of "the best of Binghamton", including other downtown Binghamton law firms and a neighboring life insurance company. One day they may move back in but it will be a long hard process.
The winter drags on....and only time will tell if the Press Building will be saved.
Sadly, the latest news concerning damage to the historic Press Building is that the damage is a lot more extensive than first suspected - not so much from fire but from the water used to fight the fire in the neighboring Midtown Mall (aka Strong Building).
Chenango Street is still closed at the intersection where the buildings burned. The Midtown Mall is boarded up and much of the damage is not visible to the public.
The law firm that helped renovate the building-just a mere two years ago? -and partially occupied the building, is now in the position of setting up temporary offices. Fortunately they had a good disaster recovery plan. A lot of downtown businesses are helping them, in the spirit of "the best of Binghamton", including other downtown Binghamton law firms and a neighboring life insurance company. One day they may move back in but it will be a long hard process.
The winter drags on....and only time will tell if the Press Building will be saved.
Monday, January 24, 2011
17 Below!
17 below zero - not at my house but at my son's. (he's in a cold spot). Others I know living in the country reached the double digits of below zero so it wasn't just him. We reached 6 below at our house, mercifully without much wind, so it was mainly a non event. And, our heating system (see last post) worked just fine.
So, for me, Arkansas still holds my "lifetime" cold record of -15.
The only nice thing about this type of weather is we have sunny days. Nothing like the sun to lift your spirits.
But there is sunlight at the end of the winter tunnel: the days are getting visibly longer on both ends (sunrise and sunset). Before you know it I'll be able to walk after work....no wait, there is still that little matter of all that snow on the ground. Especially in Binghamton, which doesn't believe in residential snow removal.
Now...back to normal. Tomorrow back to the clouds, back to some snow.
So, for me, Arkansas still holds my "lifetime" cold record of -15.
The only nice thing about this type of weather is we have sunny days. Nothing like the sun to lift your spirits.
But there is sunlight at the end of the winter tunnel: the days are getting visibly longer on both ends (sunrise and sunset). Before you know it I'll be able to walk after work....no wait, there is still that little matter of all that snow on the ground. Especially in Binghamton, which doesn't believe in residential snow removal.
Now...back to normal. Tomorrow back to the clouds, back to some snow.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
The Arctic White Chill Descends on our "Green" Heating System
Right now (6:15pm) it is 6 above. It is supposed to be at least 6 below by morning.
This type of weather is not unknown but it has been a few years since our last major cold snap - and the first since we've gotten a new heating system, a "green" gas-run heating system made by a company called Quietside.http://www.quietside.com/Quietside/index.php?option=com_wrapper&view=wrapper&Itemid=2 Instead of our old hot water heat system, we have a small box on our basement wall and a vent in our back yard that is steaming up quite a storm right now. We also have a tankless hot water heater. We've had this system a little over a year (thanks in part to some tax breaks but it was still a stretch for us financially) and now it is going to have its first real test.
Others in NY would laugh at this trepidation. In Lake Placid, for example, it will probably be around minus 25 or so by morning.
I have a lot of memories of "extreme cold". In fact, our coldest weather within spouse and my experience wasn't even here: it was in Northwest Arkansas. Our thermometer got down to minus 15. A neighbor a little lower than us had his thermometer measure at -21. As all our wild blackberries died, I don't doubt the minus 21. And we survived this with a homemade barrel wood stove. It wasn't easy and it wasn't comfortable, and I'll tell the story (maybe) in this blog one day. But we did it.
It was common, in that part of the country, for pipes to freeze. Radio and TV stations would broadcast warnings for people to keep a trickle of water running in their pipes. Moving water doesn't freeze as fast.
Now, in the comfort of our more mainstream "American" home, we will see how the new heater fares. (and how our gas bill fares.) So far so good.
More later this week.
In the meantime.....dreaming of the South.
This type of weather is not unknown but it has been a few years since our last major cold snap - and the first since we've gotten a new heating system, a "green" gas-run heating system made by a company called Quietside.http://www.quietside.com/Quietside/index.php?option=com_wrapper&view=wrapper&Itemid=2 Instead of our old hot water heat system, we have a small box on our basement wall and a vent in our back yard that is steaming up quite a storm right now. We also have a tankless hot water heater. We've had this system a little over a year (thanks in part to some tax breaks but it was still a stretch for us financially) and now it is going to have its first real test.
Others in NY would laugh at this trepidation. In Lake Placid, for example, it will probably be around minus 25 or so by morning.
I have a lot of memories of "extreme cold". In fact, our coldest weather within spouse and my experience wasn't even here: it was in Northwest Arkansas. Our thermometer got down to minus 15. A neighbor a little lower than us had his thermometer measure at -21. As all our wild blackberries died, I don't doubt the minus 21. And we survived this with a homemade barrel wood stove. It wasn't easy and it wasn't comfortable, and I'll tell the story (maybe) in this blog one day. But we did it.
It was common, in that part of the country, for pipes to freeze. Radio and TV stations would broadcast warnings for people to keep a trickle of water running in their pipes. Moving water doesn't freeze as fast.
Now, in the comfort of our more mainstream "American" home, we will see how the new heater fares. (and how our gas bill fares.) So far so good.
More later this week.
In the meantime.....dreaming of the South.
Friday, January 21, 2011
25 Years Ago Today in Brooklyn
25 years ago tonight I got a phone call...my father had passed away in an emergency room in Brooklyn.
My father was an almost-lifelong resident of New York City, a veteran of the Army Air Force, a single father, a loving husband, a man who liked to invent and..a traumatic brain injury survivor back in the day when there was little or no support for a brain injury.
When I follow the progress of Gabrielle Giffords in the news, I think of my father, and I know a little of the hard road back that she faces (despite the optimism of the rehab center she entered today.)
I think of the many sacrifices he made for me, when I was too young to appreciate it. I think of the many walks we took on Sunday afternoons when I was a little girl. He used to love to watch houses being built. I would walk at his side, transistor radio blaring a Yankees game. He could strike up a conversation with anyone, and his very shy daughter must have puzzled him tremendously.
He loved to read, bought two newspapers daily, and read them on his commute to and from work on the subway.
He loved his city. He gave birth to a daughter who fled that same city as soon as she graduated college (who didn't even attend her graduation, she was so eager to leave).
He would have been 97 years old in July. But by writing about him, he will live on forever (or at least as long as Blogger stores blog entries) through the Internet.
You did a good job, Dad. You passed on your love of history. In some ways I have turned into you. I still don't step on metal grates in the winter because you taught me not to.
I will always miss you.
My father was an almost-lifelong resident of New York City, a veteran of the Army Air Force, a single father, a loving husband, a man who liked to invent and..a traumatic brain injury survivor back in the day when there was little or no support for a brain injury.
When I follow the progress of Gabrielle Giffords in the news, I think of my father, and I know a little of the hard road back that she faces (despite the optimism of the rehab center she entered today.)
I think of the many sacrifices he made for me, when I was too young to appreciate it. I think of the many walks we took on Sunday afternoons when I was a little girl. He used to love to watch houses being built. I would walk at his side, transistor radio blaring a Yankees game. He could strike up a conversation with anyone, and his very shy daughter must have puzzled him tremendously.
He loved to read, bought two newspapers daily, and read them on his commute to and from work on the subway.
He loved his city. He gave birth to a daughter who fled that same city as soon as she graduated college (who didn't even attend her graduation, she was so eager to leave).
He would have been 97 years old in July. But by writing about him, he will live on forever (or at least as long as Blogger stores blog entries) through the Internet.
You did a good job, Dad. You passed on your love of history. In some ways I have turned into you. I still don't step on metal grates in the winter because you taught me not to.
I will always miss you.
Monday, January 17, 2011
Tracking the Revolution using FarmVille
The last 24 hours or so has been a surreal experience.
Yesterday evening I was on Facebook when a relative contacted me. I have a cousin stationed in Tunis, Tunisia, and this relative had asked for everyone he knew to pray for the safety of the cousin and family. (If you haven't been following the news, do so: there is quite an interesting political situation going on there right now.) He gave me some updates and I decided I would try to friend the cousin's husband, who was posting several updates daily regarding their situation. His posts were pretty scary, especially the part about sleeping on the floor the night before with their children because of nearby gunfire.
So, while my spouse was on the phone with his family about a situation in his family, I was chatting with someone in Texas and trying to friend someone in Tunisia.
Anyway, I sent a friend request and when I came home from work tonight, I found he had accepted. Now I can read his posts directly instead of getting them through the other relative.
I also had a pleasant surprise. The cousin's husband plays FarmVille. And, he had recently planted some 12 and 24 hour growth crops.
Farming during a revolution. Now I will be able to track how stable his everyday situation is through how he plants his crops. Or, maybe he is just an optimist.
Gives a new meaning to social gaming, doesn't it.
Yesterday evening I was on Facebook when a relative contacted me. I have a cousin stationed in Tunis, Tunisia, and this relative had asked for everyone he knew to pray for the safety of the cousin and family. (If you haven't been following the news, do so: there is quite an interesting political situation going on there right now.) He gave me some updates and I decided I would try to friend the cousin's husband, who was posting several updates daily regarding their situation. His posts were pretty scary, especially the part about sleeping on the floor the night before with their children because of nearby gunfire.
So, while my spouse was on the phone with his family about a situation in his family, I was chatting with someone in Texas and trying to friend someone in Tunisia.
Anyway, I sent a friend request and when I came home from work tonight, I found he had accepted. Now I can read his posts directly instead of getting them through the other relative.
I also had a pleasant surprise. The cousin's husband plays FarmVille. And, he had recently planted some 12 and 24 hour growth crops.
Farming during a revolution. Now I will be able to track how stable his everyday situation is through how he plants his crops. Or, maybe he is just an optimist.
Gives a new meaning to social gaming, doesn't it.
Sunday, January 16, 2011
For Binghamton Fire, It's "Deja Vu All Over Again"
Yogi Berra couldn't have said it better. The actual headline was "Will the Strong survive?"
I had blogged about the fire in December that could have taken out three historic buildings in downtown Binghamton. The fire started in something called the "Midtown Mall" which originally was called the Strong building.
Someone, right after the fire, had promised me some historic photos of downtown that I could post on this website, including at least two pictures of other historic downtown fires. I still don't have the promised photos, but the newspaper article has a picture of a 1919 fire (a fire with similarities to the December fire) next to a photo of last month's fire.
Similar? Well, both fires apparently started in similar areas of the building. Both fires didn't involve injuries (thankfully) but the fire fighters of 1919 and 2011 had to use heroic measures to save the buildings.
In 1919 the "phoenix rose from the ashes", so to speak, and the department store that occupied part of the building stayed in business, and even expanded, until the 1970's and the move to suburban mall shopping killed it.
There had also been a masonic temple, and that was rebuilt on Main Street in Binghamton in 1922. That Main Street building has had a bit of an interesting history but today stands majestic, but empty. Its renovation ended, partly done, over 20 years ago.
Let's hope the same doesn't happen for the Strong building. Downtown Binghamton deserves better.
(And let's hope I can get hold of those photos. I'd love to post them!)
I had blogged about the fire in December that could have taken out three historic buildings in downtown Binghamton. The fire started in something called the "Midtown Mall" which originally was called the Strong building.
Someone, right after the fire, had promised me some historic photos of downtown that I could post on this website, including at least two pictures of other historic downtown fires. I still don't have the promised photos, but the newspaper article has a picture of a 1919 fire (a fire with similarities to the December fire) next to a photo of last month's fire.
Similar? Well, both fires apparently started in similar areas of the building. Both fires didn't involve injuries (thankfully) but the fire fighters of 1919 and 2011 had to use heroic measures to save the buildings.
In 1919 the "phoenix rose from the ashes", so to speak, and the department store that occupied part of the building stayed in business, and even expanded, until the 1970's and the move to suburban mall shopping killed it.
There had also been a masonic temple, and that was rebuilt on Main Street in Binghamton in 1922. That Main Street building has had a bit of an interesting history but today stands majestic, but empty. Its renovation ended, partly done, over 20 years ago.
Let's hope the same doesn't happen for the Strong building. Downtown Binghamton deserves better.
(And let's hope I can get hold of those photos. I'd love to post them!)
Social Justice Brewing in Americus Coffee
Today, on a chilly January day in upstate NY (supposed to go down to zero tonight) I visit, in cyberspirit, Americus, Georgia. It is 62 degrees according to a blog I read by a resident, and the small amount of snow they had a week ago is now a distant memory.
One thing lead to another and I ended up visiting the website of Americus's coffee shop, located not very far from the Habitat for Humanity store in Americus. We had visited this place last March and it is the real deal - people who are in business to serve humanity and promote social justice - not to promote "fair trade" as a type of brand. (In fact, you can read more on their site about trying to stop what some people are trying to make "Fair Trade" into.)
The description of their recent "snowstorm" was, I hope, tongue in cheek. You have to read it and enjoy (hopefully, while brewing a good cup of coffee.)
There is a coffee on the website that sounds so delicious that we would buy it except right now we have bags of coffee on the microwave, in the freezer.....I don't know how we got overstocked but we did, so it is going to be a few months before we have to buy coffee again.
I've been a bit "under the weather" the last few days, and thoughts of that 62 degree Americus sunshine sound really appealing just about now.
One thing lead to another and I ended up visiting the website of Americus's coffee shop, located not very far from the Habitat for Humanity store in Americus. We had visited this place last March and it is the real deal - people who are in business to serve humanity and promote social justice - not to promote "fair trade" as a type of brand. (In fact, you can read more on their site about trying to stop what some people are trying to make "Fair Trade" into.)
The description of their recent "snowstorm" was, I hope, tongue in cheek. You have to read it and enjoy (hopefully, while brewing a good cup of coffee.)
There is a coffee on the website that sounds so delicious that we would buy it except right now we have bags of coffee on the microwave, in the freezer.....I don't know how we got overstocked but we did, so it is going to be a few months before we have to buy coffee again.
I've been a bit "under the weather" the last few days, and thoughts of that 62 degree Americus sunshine sound really appealing just about now.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Duck!
So many people, when they think of ducks, think of several things:
1. That "duck" dish that some Chinese takeout places sell, the one with pieces of duck crowned with tops of fatty skin
2. Those nice ducks quacking in ponds, with the brownish females and the colorful males. Nice to throw bread to and watch them dive for it
3. And, if they have been to a zoo, maybe those really beautiful mandarin ducks (not related to the ducks in item #1). Long ago, when I lived in Wichita, Kansas, I lived near a park that had a small (free!) zoo, and they had a pair of these ducks, if my memory is correct. They were so colorful and regal.
4. Ducks for hunting, duck decoys, duck and cover...
Many of us don't know it, but ducks are so much more. How about eggs? Years ago, when spouse and I lived in rural Arkansas, we raised ducks for eggs. We mail ordered a breed called the Campbell, which, sad to say, is now on a "watch" list of rare, endangered livestock. The Campbell duck is a bit on the thin side, with an upright posture. Their eggs are a tiny bit bigger than chicken eggs, white in color. They make excellent baked goods - I would gladly buy duck eggs from someone for that purpose. So moist, and like goods baked with honey, containing natural preservatives. They also make excellent hard boiled eggs. (sorry, vegan friends.) Scrambled or omelet- not so good-their whites have a consistency, if cooked in that way, that reminded me of (sorry), mucus.
Need a good, lean duck for meat? The muscovy is your choice. We personally did not keep them as we leaned more towards birds for eggs and companionship (can you tell I love birds?) but many small farmsteads in Northwest Arkansas kept them. They are large, and they don't quack. They have very warty heads but, as people like to say, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
The game FarmVille (no, please don't run away, this isn't about my obsession with FarmVille) is finally recognizing the world of ducks, too. (Hurray, they are finally listening to me!) They are having us build duck ponds (using construction items donated by our farming neighbors) and when we are done, rumor is that we will be given the opportunity to obtain these ducks:
-Pekin (these are your white supermarket meat ducks, btw)
-Golden Eye (these are a sea duck, to my knowledge not domesticated)
-Cayuga (for some strange reason I can't remember for sure if we ever owned a pair-well, it's been almost 30 years), domestic meat/egg ducks that originated in NY State
-Muscovy (there are many colors/types, I hope they pick a colorful one)
-Scoter (another sea duck)
-Red bill (an African duck)
The nice thing is, we will have opportunities to learn more about ducks of the world. (the probably not so nice thing will be that most if not all of these will be expensive, and I refuse to spend "real money" on this game.) Still....it did bring back nice memories of a time when ducks were in my life every day.
1. That "duck" dish that some Chinese takeout places sell, the one with pieces of duck crowned with tops of fatty skin
2. Those nice ducks quacking in ponds, with the brownish females and the colorful males. Nice to throw bread to and watch them dive for it
3. And, if they have been to a zoo, maybe those really beautiful mandarin ducks (not related to the ducks in item #1). Long ago, when I lived in Wichita, Kansas, I lived near a park that had a small (free!) zoo, and they had a pair of these ducks, if my memory is correct. They were so colorful and regal.
4. Ducks for hunting, duck decoys, duck and cover...
Many of us don't know it, but ducks are so much more. How about eggs? Years ago, when spouse and I lived in rural Arkansas, we raised ducks for eggs. We mail ordered a breed called the Campbell, which, sad to say, is now on a "watch" list of rare, endangered livestock. The Campbell duck is a bit on the thin side, with an upright posture. Their eggs are a tiny bit bigger than chicken eggs, white in color. They make excellent baked goods - I would gladly buy duck eggs from someone for that purpose. So moist, and like goods baked with honey, containing natural preservatives. They also make excellent hard boiled eggs. (sorry, vegan friends.) Scrambled or omelet- not so good-their whites have a consistency, if cooked in that way, that reminded me of (sorry), mucus.
Need a good, lean duck for meat? The muscovy is your choice. We personally did not keep them as we leaned more towards birds for eggs and companionship (can you tell I love birds?) but many small farmsteads in Northwest Arkansas kept them. They are large, and they don't quack. They have very warty heads but, as people like to say, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
The game FarmVille (no, please don't run away, this isn't about my obsession with FarmVille) is finally recognizing the world of ducks, too. (Hurray, they are finally listening to me!) They are having us build duck ponds (using construction items donated by our farming neighbors) and when we are done, rumor is that we will be given the opportunity to obtain these ducks:
-Pekin (these are your white supermarket meat ducks, btw)
-Golden Eye (these are a sea duck, to my knowledge not domesticated)
-Cayuga (for some strange reason I can't remember for sure if we ever owned a pair-well, it's been almost 30 years), domestic meat/egg ducks that originated in NY State
-Muscovy (there are many colors/types, I hope they pick a colorful one)
-Scoter (another sea duck)
-Red bill (an African duck)
The nice thing is, we will have opportunities to learn more about ducks of the world. (the probably not so nice thing will be that most if not all of these will be expensive, and I refuse to spend "real money" on this game.) Still....it did bring back nice memories of a time when ducks were in my life every day.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Drowning? Text a Lifeguard
I'm still in disbelief about this and it's been almost two weeks.
I go to a water aerobics class at our local Y. I've been in this class for years. The lifeguards are college aged young people, for the most part. They do, I am sure, a wonderful job.
A couple of times over the years, I have made reports where I felt the lifeguards weren't paying attention. As young adults will do, sometimes these lifeguards have friends come over, and talk to them. I'm not thrilled about that. Their job is to watch people exercising in the water, including a number of seniors. It takes just a second, if someone had a heart attack, to (heaven forbid) slip under the water.
A couple of weeks ago, the class had not yet started. Right before our class is a lap swim period, and it was winding down. They were taking the lane markers out of the water, but a couple of people were still swimming. And, there were some water aerobics class members already in the pool.
What was the lifeguard doing? She was....texting. OK maybe she wasn't texting. Maybe she had her cell phone out and was making random motions on the keyboard. Or was surfing the net. Or was watching a TV show. At any rate, the more I think about this-I don't care if the class hadn't started, there were people in the water.
I don't want her fired. I want to know that the Y has a policy about this type of thing. I was wrong to let it go so long without a report. I've never gotten feedback regarding my previous complaints. But I hope the Y doesn't think it is OK for their lifeguards to be paying attention to their cell phones while on duty.
I go to a water aerobics class at our local Y. I've been in this class for years. The lifeguards are college aged young people, for the most part. They do, I am sure, a wonderful job.
A couple of times over the years, I have made reports where I felt the lifeguards weren't paying attention. As young adults will do, sometimes these lifeguards have friends come over, and talk to them. I'm not thrilled about that. Their job is to watch people exercising in the water, including a number of seniors. It takes just a second, if someone had a heart attack, to (heaven forbid) slip under the water.
A couple of weeks ago, the class had not yet started. Right before our class is a lap swim period, and it was winding down. They were taking the lane markers out of the water, but a couple of people were still swimming. And, there were some water aerobics class members already in the pool.
What was the lifeguard doing? She was....texting. OK maybe she wasn't texting. Maybe she had her cell phone out and was making random motions on the keyboard. Or was surfing the net. Or was watching a TV show. At any rate, the more I think about this-I don't care if the class hadn't started, there were people in the water.
I don't want her fired. I want to know that the Y has a policy about this type of thing. I was wrong to let it go so long without a report. I've never gotten feedback regarding my previous complaints. But I hope the Y doesn't think it is OK for their lifeguards to be paying attention to their cell phones while on duty.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Whiteflies and Impatiens
Aaaargh! Watering plants on my front living room window sill this afternoon, I found a very suspicious, heart sinking sight....these tiny white oval things.
The dreaded whiteflies have struck.
I had them once before, a couple of years ago. Several years ago, I had an outpatient procedure and a friend of mine very nicely got me a kalanchoe plant as a "get well soon" gift. Softharded as I am, I kept the plant after it stopped blooming. I had it, oh, a couple of years. It grew but never bloomed again.
One day, the whiteflies came. I didn't know what they were at first but (ha ha) I soon found out. I did manage to keep other plants from becoming infested. I since found out that kalanchoes are very prone to these pests. So a year or so ago, after a neighbor had surgery, got one of these plants, didn't want to take care of it, and gave it to me, I kept it until it finished with its blooming...then put it outside (it was late summer) and finally let the frost claim it.
Well, this time, the pests have appeared on several impatien plants I had potted up for the winter. (How do I do that? Simple, impatiens root very easily in water. I take promising cuttings when the first frost is predicted, and if they root, I plant them and keep in a pot on a north windowstill. They will even bloom for me, but not as nicely as they do outdoors. I don't try to keep the actual outdoor plants through the winter, I have done that but find the cutting method works better.) And, it also infested two plants next to it - one a plant I call a Charlie plant because someone called Charlie I met at the Ithaca Art Trail event in October gave me a cutting. I have no idea what the plant is, but it does nicely on the north windowsill, especially if you take new cuttings each fall. These root nicely in water, too.
So what am I going to try to do? The same thing that worked last time (after I got rid of the infested kalanchoe) to save plants neighboring the infested plant. Luckily I had some insecticidal soap in the house, and spouse nicely mixed a small batch for me. This is the first line of defense.
I hope it works.
This is the first time my Charlie plant, or my impatiens, have gotten whiteflies. It's always "something".
The dreaded whiteflies have struck.
I had them once before, a couple of years ago. Several years ago, I had an outpatient procedure and a friend of mine very nicely got me a kalanchoe plant as a "get well soon" gift. Softharded as I am, I kept the plant after it stopped blooming. I had it, oh, a couple of years. It grew but never bloomed again.
One day, the whiteflies came. I didn't know what they were at first but (ha ha) I soon found out. I did manage to keep other plants from becoming infested. I since found out that kalanchoes are very prone to these pests. So a year or so ago, after a neighbor had surgery, got one of these plants, didn't want to take care of it, and gave it to me, I kept it until it finished with its blooming...then put it outside (it was late summer) and finally let the frost claim it.
Well, this time, the pests have appeared on several impatien plants I had potted up for the winter. (How do I do that? Simple, impatiens root very easily in water. I take promising cuttings when the first frost is predicted, and if they root, I plant them and keep in a pot on a north windowstill. They will even bloom for me, but not as nicely as they do outdoors. I don't try to keep the actual outdoor plants through the winter, I have done that but find the cutting method works better.) And, it also infested two plants next to it - one a plant I call a Charlie plant because someone called Charlie I met at the Ithaca Art Trail event in October gave me a cutting. I have no idea what the plant is, but it does nicely on the north windowsill, especially if you take new cuttings each fall. These root nicely in water, too.
So what am I going to try to do? The same thing that worked last time (after I got rid of the infested kalanchoe) to save plants neighboring the infested plant. Luckily I had some insecticidal soap in the house, and spouse nicely mixed a small batch for me. This is the first line of defense.
I hope it works.
This is the first time my Charlie plant, or my impatiens, have gotten whiteflies. It's always "something".
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