Saturday Morning Post: In lieu of flowers

 

I read this in an obituary recently: 

In lieu of flowers or cards, 

Jim would want you to write a card or letter to someone that is special to you.

Dear Travel Penguin Blog Readers,

I never met Jim, kinda wish I had.  He lived near where I was born and raised, I often check obits there, people around my age are often people I crossed paths with when I was growing up.  Those 20-30 years older are often the parents of people I grew up with. Sadly sometimes the younger ones are the children of my classmates.  

You are special to me.  I know a handful of you. I wake up everyday looking forward to interacting in the comments. The statistics tell me there are many more that read, than I have never seen a comment from.  I write for everyone of you.  My sincere hope is that a photo I have posted, or a phrase I have crafted, makes your day a little better.   

I hope through these photos and words I am able to express that life will be okay.  It has ups and downs, we persevere and focus on the good.  The today is all we have, the future is not guaranteed, the past we can't change.  Find joy today.  A pleasant smell, a silly giggle, an image that makes your mind wander, an oddity that distracts you.   

Most people are good.  Yes, there are evil people in the world. There are also a lot of people who are frightened, or hurt, or abused, that respond in the only way they know. If before we die we can each help just one person have a better life, we will have a life well lived.  Remember the old Chinese proverb, it is better to light a single candle, than to curse the darkness. 

I have had a good week.  Nothing swopped out of the sky and tried to eat me.  30 years ago I was sitting in my office in Florida watching a flock of seagulls in the vacant lot across the street. Out of nowhere an Eagle swooped down, the birds scattered, except for a couple that were not as agile, one of them was the Eagle's lunch.  As long as I am not lunch, I have had a good week. 

And I know someday I will be the Eagle's lunch.  Someday I will follow Jim into the crematorium.  I hope when I do, I have lived each day in search of joy, helped others to have a better life, brought a little ray of sunshine into an otherwise dreary day. I hope that I have few regrets about what I have done, and even fewer about opportunities I have passed on.  I saw a T-shirt recently that said, "If I die broke, rest assured I had a million dollars worth of fun." I hope Jim had his million dollars worth of fun.  

Thanks Jim, I needed that, I hope my readers enjoyed, 

Love,

DG

https://thecountypress.mihomepaper.com/articles/james-j-obryan/ 

Fabulous Friday - Public Art

The City of Alexandria Virginia, redid the waterfront at the end of King Street (main street - high street.) This was a long involved process including moving the yacht club.  The new space has expanded public access and a larger park, including a public arts space that hosts rotating exhibits.  The current one is fabulous, I Love You, with lots of light and bright.  The previous exhibit was a bunch of knee hight posts, representative of the pilings for piers along the waterfront, it was not as fabulous.  I need to get down there at night, it lights up. 

Thursday Ramble - End of April Edition

I am working on a post that will appear in a couple of weeks of things that piss me off.  This week added a couple of things to the list. 

We succeeded at ordering appliances for the kitchen replacement.  With luck the cabinets should be ordered in the next week or so. Appliances are still in short supply, the total sorcery cooktop we wanted is delayed at least 6 months, and the cooktop is an essential to the job.  We found a slightly less magic model in stock, it will be delivered this week.  The appliance dude didn't seem very enthused about what I thought was a rather large order. When we went into pay, there was an invoice laying on the counter, the first item was a refrigerator, I had to look twice, I didn't believe my eyes, the first item was a $10,000 refrigerator, makes my order look insignificant. Still I have bought new cars for less.  

The world here has turned green, the last of the trees are starting to leaf out (the one outside my  bedroom window.) We had a nice drive in the convertible with the top down. I am only driving it about 2,000 miles a year, it has just over 50,000 miles on it, at this rate I will be too old to drive by the time it has 100,000 miles on it.  

I applied to four law schools back in the mid 1990's and three of them said yes.  I have accepted an invitation to speak at a conference hosted by the one law school that turned me down.  Should I make a remark about me accepting them after they rejected me? 

Last Friday and Saturday were 7-8 hours each day of Zoom meetings.  A clear violation of the Constitution and the Geneva Convention.  

I have had a couple of long weeks, at least one more to go, oh I should just be real, my work is going to be overwhelming until I retire.  There are days when I wake up and think, I don't want to adult today. 

 

 

The Way We Wednesday - Self-Timer Selfies

My oldest brother had a low draft lottery number, so he enlisted in the Navy the year he finished high school.  After basic training, he was assigned to the Aircraft Carrier Enterprise (now decommissioned and the last I knew it was being dismantled.) Someplace in southeast Asia he bought a Canon Ftb, a nice 35MM SLR. There was also a tripod, the gray zippered case above their arms is the case for the tripod. Looking at this it was taken with the camera on the tripod, and either a cable release or the self timer,  I suspect the self timer as Dale is almost blurred from having tripped the timer and rushed back to be in the picture.  This would have been taken in one of the crew living areas on the ship.  I think Dale only took a couple of rolls of film on the camera, this roll of slides ended up with dad's meaning it was probably in the camera when Dale came home on leave, and somehow Dad ended up keeping the camera.  Dad gave it to me a few years before he died.  After Dad died, I returned it to Dale. I never did quite understand how dad ended up with it to start with. And Dale didn't really want to explain - bottling things up is a family tradition. I learned a lot using it, it had one of the best lenses I have ever used. I never have liked self timers.  

 

Travel Tuesdays - Live Demonstrations

Artisans, craftspersons, farmers, chefs, I love watching them work.  Historic sites sometimes have live demonstrations of how things were done, metalsmiths,  spinners, weavers, broom making, furniture, historic farming making are all fascinating to watch. 

They are also often a financial loss for the venue, the cost of the demonstrations far exceeds the value of what is produced.  The glass blower working in a demonstration shop, produces less at the same cost as a glassblower working in the back room without the distraction of an audience.  So we see fewer of them.  When we lived in Kentucky nearby Shaker Village at Pleasant Hill, had a thriving demonstration program, until a new director mandated that they had to pay their way or go.  The last time I was there one craftsman was working.  Sad that.  

Non-profit does not mean free to operate, or exempt from the economic realities of the world.  That is why there are admission fees, memberships, fundraisers, and why it does really help when you buy that paper weight that was hand made there on site.  Yet it would be 1/3 that price - made in China - sold at the souvenir shop around the corner.  But the difference makes a difference in the artists being able to show their craft and entertain.   

Music Monday : Julian Lennon Performs 'IMAGINE' for Global Citizen's Stand Up For Ukrai...

May there be light at the end of this tunnel. 

The Sunday Five: Around You

1: Where are you reading / responding to this? 

2: How far are you from a phone? 

3: Is it daylight or dark? 

4: What can you hear? 

5: If there is anything to drink within reach, what is it? 

My Answers,

1: Where are you reading / responding to this?  At the desk in my bedroom 

2: How far are you from a phone? Both the house phone and my cell on are on the desk. 

3: Is it daylight or dark? daylight, later afternoon. 

4: What can you hear? A freight train about 1.5 miles away.

5: If there is anything to drink within reach, what is it? A glass of water 

Please share your answers in the comments 

The Saturday Morning Post: A strange way to pick a restaurant

 There are thousands of restaurants in New York City. From one-dollar pizza to the some of the worlds most expensive delicacies, if it can be sourced and legally sold, someone in New York has it on the menu.  When we came down from the walk in the clouds, it was time for lunch.  The Shops at Hudson Yards has a dozen options. All most all of them looked interesting.  So how did I pick one, the sheep on the sign.  Anyplace that has a sheep as its logo has potential to be great.  And it was.  Imaginative British inspired, made with the finest ingredients. 

We were seated at the peak of the lunch rush. The actor filling in a waiter, was sweet and friendly.  He did warn us that the kitchen was a little backed up, to which I ordered a drink and told him our next commitment was a nap then dinner at 6.  He assured us we would be back to the hotel in time for a nice nap.  Lunch was leisurely, but not slow by normal standards. I had a nice salad, and very upscale fish and chips. Jay had a pate followed by a pasta.  It was excellent.  

Interestingly there was no lamb on the menu (or mutton.) 

Fabulous - if slightly late- Friday - New York

Did you miss me?  I almost 8 hours late posting today, sorry! 

The Bryant Park Grill in New York has become our "we have to go back there" stop in New York. It is tucked into the back side of the New York Public Library, on the edge of Bryant Park.  The setting is garden elegant, the food is amazing, with service to match.  The domestic cheese tray is amazing.  
 

Thursday Ramble - Late April edition

I have made the first purchase for the kitchen replacement, a new faucet, and the next day the kitchen sink.  Both should be here by the time this posts.  The faucet is black and square, there was a TV commercial of a couple walking into an architect, placing a faucet on the desk and saying "design us a house around this."  Yes, that kind of a statement piece.  Appliances remain the major loose end.  

I am in a crazy busy cycle at the work, three major trainings in two days, and another next week.  My first board meeting since becoming director is Friday, I get to shake things up. And it is budgeting season. And we are officially returning to the office.  Glad I am taking a week off in May.  

I am back in a reading frenzy, I bought a stack of books in NYC, and I am almost done with those.  More on the Kindle to read.  It was nice to get into ink and paper bookstores a couple of times.  There is a nice small bookstore in the New York Public Library.  And one down in the garment district that specializes in drama. You have to love a city that can support specialty bookstores.  

On the east coast of the US there are three types of long distance trains.  North East Regionals,  Aceela, and named long distance trains.  I have ridden all of them.  The Acela is supposedly high speed, but not by much, not really worth the extra.  The NE Regionals are older cars, not the nicest, often the cheapest.  The named long distance trains have nicer interiors than the NE Regionals.  On the trip to New York we took a NE Regional going up, and the Sunset Limited that goes to Miami on the way back,  The seats on the Sunset where more comfortable and a little farther apart.  If they are the same price, take the nicer train.  Any train is the best way to travel on the upper east coast.  

   

The Way We Were Wednesday - Rollo

This photo of my mother's parents was probably taken before I was born, definitely before his health forced them to retire.  He looks very robust in this photo. He was born into a large family on a farm. He preferred to farm with horses or mules, resisted using a tractor (and a tractor accident started the cascade of health problems that led to his retirement.)

When I was sorting photos after my parents died, I came across a baby photo of him, and discovered that his middle name was Rollo.  I have no idea where that came from.  The best I can determine his family was primarily German in ancestry. As was my grandmother's. She had an unusual first name, Mina. (Yes like the bird.) 

Any unusual names in your family history? 

Travel Tuesday - The Stories

 Almost every photo triggers and memory, or a story.  When I travel I take lots of photos, I come home and sort them, and some stand out.  But many are just there.  I find as I go back through them weeks, months or years later the memories and the stories are triggered.  This photo was pulled at absolutely at random from a list of over 60,000.  It was taken shortly after the first snow of 2022. It was a heavy wet snow, that brought down a lot of branches and trees.  This one was taken near home, as the eagle flies only a mile away near the river.  This is the entrance to the Dike Marsh trail,  I have walked there hundreds of times in the past couple of years.  My estimate would be that 33% maybe more of the trees along the trail lost major limbs in that storm, a couple of dozen trees were toppled. I walked the trail that day. 

This image triggers that memory, and all of the stories related to my time on that trail.  We should all take more photos, trigger more memories, tell more stories. 

Music Monday : The Weather Girls - It's Raining Men (Video)

Something very upbeat this week, we need this. 

The Sunday Five: How Will We Remember - Or Do We Want to Forget

I saw an interview with a New York based Psychologist who estimates that 90% of us will experience post-covid trauma for up to 9 years.  

1: Do you feel a need to remember or a desire to forget? 

2: What artifact of this era will be you memory trigger? 

3: What will be the longest lasting change from the experience? 

4: What can we do to help future generations learn from our experience? 

5: What are you most looking forward to returning to as it was before? 

My Answers: 

1: Do you feel a need to remember or a desire to forget? At my age, this is a part of my life experience that I will never forget. 

2: What artifact of this era will be you memory trigger? Face coverings. 

3: What will be the longest lasting change from the experience? Working from home, I think this flexibility will be retained (I hope so.)  

4: What can we do to help future generations learn from our experience? I am starting to take photos, of what it was like.  Photos that tell a story. 

5: What are you most looking forward to returning to as it was before? Maskless air travel.   

Please share your answers in the comments. 

 

The Saturday Morning Post - Going to the Edge

Over the last few trips to New York we watched the skyscrapers at Hudson Yard be built.  Hudson Yard was a rail yard, one of the last underdeveloped large areas in Manhattan.  We noticed the cantilevered protrusion, near the top of one of the towers, it is called the edge.  It is on the 100th floor, 1,100 feet above ground level, and open to the public.  (Also available for private parties.) I kind of like this kind of high up observation level, so we booked tickets for the elevator ride.  We tried to get lunch reservations on the 101st floor, they were closed for a private function.  Lunch comes with a free elevator ride, well at those prices not exactly free (about $100 per person for lunch.) The morning of our reservations it was cloudy.  Low clouds, as in about 700 ceiling and we were going up 1,100 feet.  And why not?  We could have tried to rebook, but the weather forecast was not promising (it cleared out the following day.) Most people skipped it, the elevator up we had to ourselves, there was only one person with us on the trip back down.  There is a glass section in the floor, but it was wet and slippery and view was into the clouds.  

How many times do you get to go for a walk in the clouds?  

 

Fabulous Friday - Food Alchemy

Real men make quiche. Recently I was bored, looked in the fridge, I had a couple of dozen eggs, cream, a lightly smoked very lean bacon, forbidden cheddar, mushrooms, we always have butter in the freezer, the perfect cold day to make quiche. 

The pastry was a variation on Mary Berry's grated frozen butter, flour, salt, a little cold water and an egg.  Americans don't usually put an egg in pastry, it works.  Pastry is really alchemy.  You mix together simple ingredients and make something devine.  

The filling was 7 eggs, a chunk of grated forbidden cheddar, onions, mushrooms and bacon lightly fried, a dash of heavy cream.  

I blind baked the pastry for about 20 minutes at about 400 degrees F, then added the filling and baked at about 375 degrees for about 20 minutes, turned the oven down to 300 F for another 25 minutes. 

It was good, very good.  

 

Thursday Ramble - Last Wednesday

Last Wednesday, not yesterday, a week ago yesterday, we met up with Mitchell from Moving with Mitchell for a quick chat and lunch. We met up in his original home town, Brooklyn, New York.  Those who read his blog will know he was in town to see his brother Charles (Chuck.)  We were honored to have a little slice of his time, while Chuck was out bowling. 

We took the subway over from Manhattan, we used the trains quite a bit on this trip, a great way to get around.  The subway goes through a tunnel under the east river.  Possibly one my great grandfather worked on 110 years ago, when my grandmother was a child and they moved to Brooklyn (from London.) I have been to London, I had never been to Brooklyn. 

The weather was a tad inclement.  Temperature in the 40's (F) and raining. When we turned the corner by Brooklyn Borough Hall, WINDY, very windy. The plan to stroll down the waterfront was scuttled, then we discovered that the best taqueria in Brooklyn has closed.  Sadness, but not for long, because if you know where to look there is always great food nearby in that city.  We ended up at a great burger bar. Epic burgers, amazing onion rings and a decent margarita (I was on vacation - and not driving.) When we arrived,  the staff said, we aren't open yet, then noticed were were cold and wet and invited us to wait inside while they finished preparations.  

We talked.  We talked about life, about growing up, about family, about the loves of our lives, about moving, about happiness.  And we talked, and we talked, and the next thing we knew it was 4:00 pm. Siesta time.  

It was great.  We had met once before, three years ago.  And it was like picking up where we left off last week, except it was three years ago.  

Until next time, we will see you on the blog,    

The Way We Were Wednesday - Istachatta Florida

 Sometime in the early 1960's my grandparents started snowbirding, going south from Michigan (as Spo describes it the land of perpetual snow and ice) to Florida in the winters.  My grandfather worked for Ford for over 30 years, then left in the late 1950's to move to the farm and keep bees. Bees in Michigan are a seasonal farming operation.  There was no reason for them to stay in the snow in the winter (my parents started doing the same thing when I was in the 8th grade.). 

They bought a newly built one-bedroom house in a fishing village called Istachatta on the Withlacoochee River (Google it, it is a real place.) When I say a one-bedroom, the first year they were there they added on, adding a bathroom and eliminating the out-house that had been build with the house. (Before zoning and building codes.) It was an escape, a second home. They spent winters there together for about 15 years. It was there one winter that my grandmother came to the realization that my grandfather had dementia. After my grandfather died, my grandmother spent one or two winters there alone, then sold and moved across the state to where my parents had bought their retirement home. When she bought the house in Titusville, she remarked that it was the fourth house she had owned, and the first one that had an indoor bathroom when she bought it (two of them.) 

That little house was my first experience in Florida.   

Travel Tuesday: News from Mt Washington

A few years ago I was asked to speak at a conference at Mt. Washington in New Hampshire.  I went in a day early, so I had time to ride the cog-railway to the top of the mountain, went out of my way to book a coal fired steam train.  It was spectacular.  When we got to the top the mountain was in a heavy fog.  I loved it. 

I read recently that there is a proposal to build guest accommodations, a hotel of some type in the national park at the top.  I might need to go back.  
 

Music Monday: Bohemian Catsody

Okay, I need a laugh, I have no idea how I stumbled across this.