Spring Cleaning at Sterling Nature Center

Sterling Nature Center

N 43° 22.706 W 076° 39.404

Along with 25 fellow geocachers took part in the Sterling Nature Center CITO event cache. Cleaned from the trail head of McIntyre Bluff to the Lake Ontario shoreline. Collecting over 40 bags of trash and a lot of stuff that wouldn't fit in the bags, like a washing machine and a tire rim.

Proved to be a fun adventure with good pizza and soda. The organizer, Mystery Nut, provided a keepsake reward.

Check out the Sterling Nature Center web site at:
www.cayuganet.org/sterlingpark/

So it goes.

Kurt Vonnegut, the author of Slaughterhouse-Five, died today at the age of 84.

Vonnegut once said George W. Bush is so dumb it wouldn't surprise me if he thought Peter Pan was a washbasin in a house of ill repute.

In his last book, A Man Without a Country, a collection of biographical essays, Vonnegut concludes with a poem called Requiem.

It has these closing lines:

When the last living thing
has died on account of us,
how poetical it would be
if Earth could say,
in a voice floating up
perhaps
from the floor
of the Grand Canyon,
"It is done."
People did not like it here.

It's a dirty weed, but I like it.

People enjoy doing it. It is addictive. It has no known alternative. It will never become obsolete.

No wonder Wall Street finds a lot to like about tobacco.

"I'm the decision maker"

Garry Wills got it right. The president is not the commander in chief of civilians. For the Constitution clearly states: “The president shall be commander in chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the militia of the several states, when called into the actual service of the United States.”

President Bush may well be the “decision maker”. But the American people and their elected representatives will still have a say in American involvement in Iraq.

Will Rogers with Chutzpah

Art Buchwald, who satirized the follies of the rich, the famous and the powerful for half a century as the most widely read newspaper humorist of his time, died this evening in Washington. He was 81.

Buchwald came to the realization at the age of six or seven that the world was mad. He spent the rest of his life recording it. His column would not split your sides, but they would make you smile. Avoiding exercise because he felt it was dangerous to his health, Buchwald gravitated toward big cigars and rich pastries.

Known in the hospice as The Man Who Wouldn’t Die, Art Buchwald left us with a beaming joyful smile upon his face.

“Godfather of Soul”

James Brown, the singer, songwriter, bandleader and dancer who indelibly transformed 20th-century music, died Monday, December 25, 2006 in Atlanta. He was 73. Brown died of congestive heart failure after being hospitalized for pneumonia.

Through the years, James Brown did not only call himself “the hardest working man in show business.” He also went by “Mr. Dynamite,” “Soul Brother No. 1,” “the Minister of Super Heavy Funk” and “the Godfather of Soul”.

President Gerald R. Ford

Former President Gerald R. Ford, who gently led the United States out of the tumultuous Watergate era but who lost his own bid for election after pardoning President Richard M. Nixon, died Tuesday, December 26, 2006 at his home in Rancho Mirage, Calif.

He was 93, making him the oldest former president, surpassing Ronald Reagan, who died in 2004, by just over a month.

The quote that I associate with President Ford is his statement --- “You can disagree without being disagreeable.”

Oswego’s “Historic Maritime District”

Sunday, December 10, 2006

Out for a Sunday drive, we visited the H. Lee White Marine Museum in Oswego for its annual “Christmas at Sea” Open House. Rosemary Sinnett Nesbitt was acting as Mrs. Santa Claus. Greeting Mrs. Nesbitt I disclosed how once she gave my class a tour of Fort Ontario. With a smile she said, “Oh yes, I remember you.” The museum is extensive and also houses an underground railroad exhibit.

Adirondack Shootout

Friday, December 8, 2006

Cold weather and a great, hardpack snowy base on the runway created perfect conditions for posting fast stock times at the Snow Week/DynoTech Research Shootout in Woodgate, New York.

Although the temperature never broke over 7, it was a great way to jump start the snowmobile season.

A Child’s Christmas in Wales

This evening at 7:30 Joan and I experienced A Child’s Christmas in Wales as adapted by Polly Hogan at the Auburn Public Theater. The play featured Ron Ritchell, Polly’s husband of 35 years, as the the narrator, the voice of the poet Dylan Thomas.

The cozy space of APT and the simple but charming set brought the essence of Christmas to all those in attendance.

Let’s hope APT makes this production a Christmas tradition for Auburn.

Leo Pinckney - A Handshake & A Smile

Leo Pinckney died yesterday morning a day after celebrating his 89th birthday.

My first introduction to Leo was when he labeled me the general in his sports column while covering the Mt. Carmel basketball team. This moniker would provided hours of amusement to my college roommates.

Later Leo as chairman of the March of Dimes enlisted me as a volunteer.

When I was chairperson of an annual men’s breakfast Leo was instrumental in getting Frank Maloney, then Syracuse football coach, to be the main speaker.

Over the years Leo would mention me in his annual Christmas column.

When I had political aspirations Leo assisted my mentors in Brennan's back room.

In recent summers Leo has acknowledged me from his box seat at Falcon Park.

For as long as baseball is discussed in Auburn, Leo’s trademark firm handshake and pleasant smile will be remembered.

John & Zoe’s Gala

Sunday, November 5, 2006

John and Zoe Cameron enter the ballroom of the Springside Inn to the applause of 150 invited guests. Clan Cameron under the direction of Jack, Bobby, and David Cameron arranged the ceilidh. The party celebrated John and Zoe’s 65th wedding anniversary and John’s 90th birthday.

Anytime You Feel Like Quitting

Recall the story of this person:

He failed in business in ‘31.

He ran as a state legislator and lost in ‘32.

He tried business again in ‘33 and failed again.

His sweetheart died in ‘35.

He had a nervous breakdown in ‘36.

He ran for state elector in ‘40 after her regained his health.

He was defeated for Congress in ‘943, defeated again for Congress in ‘48, defeated when he ran for the Senate in ‘55, and defeated for vice-president of the United States in ‘56.

He ran for the Senate again in ‘58 and lost.

This man never quit

He kept on trying till the last.

In 1860, this man was elected President of the United States.

'Maine' man

John Maine’s uncle, Dave Maine profiled.

MPNnow.com: 'Maine' man

A Lone Star State Progressive

Ann W. Richards died September 13th, at her home in Austin.

Richards, a champion of women’s rights, once told a television audience, “Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did. She just did it backwards and in high heels.”

This silver-haired Texas activist declared, “... in politics, your enemies can’t hurt you, but your friends can kill you.”

As Texas governor, Richards underestimated her Republican challenger George W. Bush and was upset in 1994. Later, Richards acknowledged that Bush had been much more effective at “staying on message” and made none of the mistakes that her campaign strategists had expected.

A voice for "New Texas" has been silenced.

What should I do with all the time on my hands?

Well. Allow about a year and a half for planning, building and photographing. Lay out your 75,000 Lego pieces. Build a Lego Church.

Once completed your Lego Church will be 7 feet by 5 1/2 feet by 30 inches. It will seat one thousand three hundred seventy-two Lego church members. It will have three thousand nine hundred seventy-six windows. It will feature a balcony, a Narthex, stairs to the balcony, restrooms, coat rooms, mosaics, a nave, a baptistry, an altar, a crucifix, a pulpit and an elaborate pipe organ.

Half our life is spent trying to find something to do with the time we have rushed through life trying to save. - Will Rogers

Keep an eye on your license plate!

Have you checked your license plate lately? It seems people are stealing the plates to get free gas.

With gas prices soaring, people are putting stolen license plates on their car, filling up at the gas station, and driving off without paying. When the license plate is reported as the "drive off vehicle", guess who gets a visit from law enforcement.

Are your license plates where they are suppose to be?

Remembrance

Blessed are the meek,
For they shall inherit the earth.

One’s spirit accepts God’s dealings with us as good. This meekness before God is a fruit of power. Meekness places the infinite resources of God at one’s command.

Classroom Inquiry and Teacher Response

"What are we doing today?" After being in the system for years, as a student should realize that this lesson is the activity for the day.

"Why do we have to learn this?" Using vast statistical reviews, educational textbook editors have determined this information to be a basic necessity for your growth.

"When am I ever going to need this in real life?" While skepticism maybe the door post of your adolescent viewpoint, one cannot always anticipate a future need.

"Will this be on the test?" Only if grades are due.

"Can I go to the bathroom?" Of course.

Let the fun begin.

Welcome back.

As the school doors open, the schoolhouse seems to be little changed. This might be the year to accomplish those things that you previously only dreamed about attempting.

Why not begin by putting some fun in your classroom. Sign up to participate in an Online Project.