I used to wrangle with paper maps. And once I opened one of those things, I could NEVER fold it back up. NEVER. It was like the Rubik’s Cube to me. HOW THE HECK DO YOU DO THIS, AGAIN?!?! In frustration, I would wad up the tablecloth-sized map and toss it in the back seat. A few years later, I married and I started to have children, and they needed a place to sit, so….

So I got a GPS last year, while in Virginia. I saw my brother with one and fell in love with it. It helps me to drive at night because the display shows the curves of the roads. Oh, I am no longer so nervous driving through the big cities with the GPS!

It’s been a really great tool, until last week when I had to drive to the other side of the state. For some reason, my GPS went bananas. TWICE.

Do you know how a GPS works? You punch in your destination, and a graphic display of the map shows up. Small directional arrows point the way, while a soothing voice (I like TomTom’s “Richard”) talks you through. Well, Richard was a little loopy one day. While driving out toward Rochester, I came to an intersection. The screen showed an arrow pointing me left. Richard chimed in, “Turn right.”

:blink:

“Did you hear that??” I asked my daughter, next to me. “Did you just hear him telling me to turn right?”

Daughter: Mmhm. Yep.

Me: Well… where do I go??

So I decide to ignore the visual cue and follow Richard’s lilting voice.

Stupid man. :hmph: Why oh why did I listen to him?!

We drove on for about 3 miles. When I started to see cows dotting the landscape, I realized we were not driving toward the city.

Me, screaming: RICHARD, you dummy! I believed in you!! Do you have any idea how expensive gas is?!
:rants:

Muttering angry threats and wondering if TomTom, Inc. has investments with Citgo, Inc., I turned away from the cud-chewing cows and sped back to where we started. Lo and behold, Richard (no doubt realizing I was about to throw him out the window) directed me appropriately. OK OK, I am a forgiving person. I made amends. Richard was good and we reached our destination.

But on the way back, he did it again!!! The screen pointed me LEFT and Richard said “Turn right.”

Oh Richard, Richard…. how can you do this to me?! I lamented so loudly that some folks at the gas station turned to look at me. I trusted him! He betrayed me again!!
:whyohwhy:

My poor daughter was silent for a while, listening to me rant and rail against Richard. When I was finally quiet, she giggled and said:

Maybe he means “The Other Right,” mom.

I bust laughing at that.

But from now on, I’ll always be watching out for Richard… maybe I should scrap him and go for Bonnie or Sam…. hmmmm…

We visited Howe Caverns in Cobleskill, NY. It was fabulous.

Photo taking was tough. The place is dimly lit and my great lack of photography skills is showing….

We went on a boat ride on an underground lake!

The beautiful Schoharie Valley.

OK, enough photos, lol. I’ll be posting about the amazing Howe Caverns as well as narrating some of our usual crazy and quirky stories that always seem to be happening with us…..

Questions:

1. I really need to clean my _________?

Um… house. :duncehat:

2. What food makes you think of Christmas?

Anything cinnamon. I sometimes boil potpourri with cinnamon sticks to manufacture that nice nostalgic Christmas-y feel.

3. If you could choose to stay a certain age forever, what age would it be?

Tough one. I guess, like everyone, I’d like my 18-year old body back but I’d like to keep my 40+ wisdom, experience, and temperance. Funny how when we’re young (mid 20s) we think we are SO mature, SO experienced. Get to 40 and that’s nothing, baby. NOTHING.

4. What was your first paying job?

When I was a kid, my stepdad needed nails picked up from the driveway. He’d renovated a big barn and had scattered a ton of old nails around the property. No one wanted to do it. So my stepdad said he’d pay us a penny a nail. That was very inspirational, and me and my brothers went out to do it. The boys gave up after a day, as it was late October and bitterly, bitterly cold. I still remember that extremely painful feeling of my fingers freezing from clawing the mud for old nails. I was determined to make some cash (it was scarce and we never got allowance money back then). After a few days of my persistent digging and running into the house to thaw my hands and then running back out to dig again, my stepdad felt sorry for me and gave me a huge horseshoe-shaped magnet to collect nails. I tied a string to it and swung the magnet back and forth. I think I eventually got every bitty nail in the yard. I can’t remember how much money I got, maybe around $5.

5. Have you read the Twilight series?

Nope. I never will. Right now I’m reading a biography about William the Marshal, a medieval dude who served as regent to a few kings of England. It’s cool!

Have a great week, friends!

… to go on vacation than right after the CRAZY holidays. Oh yes! All that house cleaning wears on a lady, you see. Mom needs a break, too, away from all the cooking and cleaning and shopping. And what better place to visit than Branson, Missouri? Actually, if you want to skip the whole Thanksgiving meal work and let someone else cook, Branson is the place to be. Right next to Branson’s illustrious Hilton Promenade at Branson Landing is a special luxury hotel with Level 2 Steakhouse, serving Thanksgiving brunch with all the fixings! And if that’s not enough there’s the “Turkey to Go” special, too. The hotels are pet friendly, too!

I’ve seen photos and read about the events at Branson, and this is THE place to visit for the holidays. Christmas is especially beautiful there. The entire place is bedecked with colorful lights, and the shows and events are all family-friendly.

The Ozark Mountains are the beautiful backdrop for some of the country’s most amazing attractions and events. For this winter season, Branson features the cute Santa Claus package with deluxe accommodations, breakfast with Santa at the Level 2 Steakhouse and gifts for the kids. Besides Santa, there are over 40 live shows, including the very popular “A Christmas Carol and Frosty.” And there’s the Silver Dollar City package for the more adventuresome families. And that’s not even the whole of it– explore Marvel Cave, ride rollercoasters, and shop til you drop at the scores of stores. All very, very nice.

When we travel west, we are definitely stopping at Branson. The rates at the Hilton Branson Convention Center Hotel are outstanding. It’s very affordable and definitely a perfect family vacation. Check out the links to learn more about Branson.

I’ll have more photos and some interesting stories on my travel blog, New York Traveler.net. I have about 200 photos and 20 video snippets to hash through yet. :blink: But today, I have to work and catch up on stuff I missed from yesterday, UGH.

Ah, but first things first– Meet Me on Monday… Tuesday edition!

Questions:

1. The best part of waking up each day is __________?

…Folgers in your cup….

2. How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you are?

I’ve always looked young for my years. Up until I was in my late 30s, I couldn’t buy a bottle of wine without being asked for ID. But I aged, suddenly, just a few years ago. I had herniated disks in my spine and was in a lot of pain for a long time. I took a lot of wacky drugs to help with the pain and I think that stuff, plus my very strenuous jobs while renovating my rickety old house, aged me. All of a sudden, my skin was saggy, my hair was limp and turning white… weird! But I am on my way back “up” again. I’m starting to feel stronger and have more energy, thank God. So I guess I am probably now looking my age, which is mid-40s.

3. Red or Green Apples?

Red.

4. Do you forgive easily?

Yep. By the glory of God, I do. I wrote about forgiveness in one of my posts: Forgiveness, Or He’ll Give Ya POWAH.

5. If you could live in any home on a television series, which would it be?

Gosh, I have no idea. I don’t watch television. I’m trying to remember some of the old TV shows I used to watch as a kid… hmmm…. maybe Grizzly Adams? LOL. Or…. uhh… I can’t think of anything! I’ll take one of those log cabins from the DIY Network, definitely.

Have a happy week, friends!

Here’s the original image:

This is the “Albumen” effect, a method of photography from 1855 to 1890s. Notice how the clouds are almost completely washed away.

The next is “Platinum,” from 1873 to 1920. This type of photography used real sheets of platinum. It was a very expensive process, and therefore abandoned in favor of other methods. The lines are very crispy and clear, though– I like that.

This is “Box Camera,” from 1900 to 1960s, an example of the typical box cameras at that time.

The next one is “Early Color Autochrome” developed from 1904 (initially) and onward.

This is more like photos I remember from my very young years– the 1960s. Paint Shop Pro calls it “Cross Process.”

I don’t for sure which one I like. Maybe “Early Color Autochrome.” It’s grainy and has an almost tangible texture to it.

By far, my favorite photo of our trip is this image. It was taken early in the morning as we drove across the Adirondacks toward the high peaks to the east. I think it’s stunning.

I just CAN’T WAIT to go back!!!

There, we learned just about everything there is to know about the Adirondack Park region. The museum had a section dedicated to Lake Placid, a small village in the northern area of the park. Do you remember Lake Placid? The tiny town held the Winter Olympics (in 1932 and 1980). I remember watching the Olympics as a young lady– I am not fond of spectator sports but I love watching the Winter Olympics. I used to watch every figure skating and speed skating competition that I could. How disappointing it was to have to go to school and miss some of the competitions!

This week, I have done a little digging into the games. I found a nice DVD on the history of Lake Placid (“Small Town, Big Dreams” by PBS) and found scads of video clips online of some of my favorite skaters. My son and I watched Scott Hamilton clips for over an hour last night! I always liked Scott Hamilton. He was such an exuberant skater with a touch of humor and goofiness. We found this video of Hamilton and Kurt Browning (another very entertaining skater) and LOVED IT! I don’t often post videos here, but this one is really worth watching. The final 3 minutes are hilarious and the skating is nothing short of stunning. Enjoy!

I also found this video. It’s of Kurt Browning (a much younger man here) skating to Singing in the Rain. WOW!!!

Anyway– I wrote a post about one of the biggest hurricanes to hit New England. You can read about it here: New York Traveler.net: The New England Hurricane of 1938. It’s a fascinating story.

This hurricane was so powerful that it carved a path through Long Island, now known as the Shinnecock Inlet. Back then, meteorologists didn’t give names to hurricanes. This one wasn’t named for a long time after, because no one outside of New England knew it hit us. We had no instant communication back then, and power and telegraph lines were down. The story is just amazing. Like the Titanic, no one saw the iceberg coming except a few people whose voices were ignored. Much of the beach houses of Long Island and Napatree Point in Rhode Island were wiped out.Some of the stories are miraculous, some very tragic.

The hurricane began as a tropical depression west of Africa sometime before or around September 13th. It crashed into the Bahamas on September 20th, registering as a Category 5 storm. U.S. meteorologists knew the storm was drawing near to the United States, but according to their calculations, they predicted the hurricane would move eastward out to the Atlantic Ocean. The cold waters of the North would grind the storm into a rainshower. All the meteorologists agreed with this prediction, except one young man: Charles Pierce.

… When it was all over, at least 688 people were killed, 4500 injured, and over 75,000 buildings damaged. The rising waters would flood inland cities with up to 20 feet of water, with 40 feet of coastal waters.

Shinnecock Inlet after the hurricane.

Here are some of the keywords generating traffic to my travel blog. Whew! I’d say people are curious! Some folks have even left comments of their own eyewitness accounts of the hurricane!

Olana is beautiful. It was the home of the late Frederick Church, one of my favorite painters. He was an apprentice of Thomas Cole, my most favorite painter ever. These painters were part of the Hudson River School, a group of artists that created a distinctive American romantic art movement called Luminism. I studied them in art school, and it was a real treat to see Church’s home and some of his paintings.

This is his home. It’s designed in Persian architectural style. After traveling through the Middle East, Church and his wife were smitten with the colorful designs of Persian and Arabic architecture. I love it.

At the top of the hill, the views were exquisite. This is the Rip Van Winkle Bridge over the Hudson River. We had to cross it to get to Olana. The view from the bridge was well worth the $1 toll charge.

I’ll have more photos and stuff about our trip on my travel blogs. We encountered some really quirky things in Catskill, NY, and had a blast! Stay tuned…. :D

This time it was the Skittles Man. How I wish I’d gotten a photo of him! He probably would have posed for one, too, after all the wheeling and dealing he had to do.

We’d been enjoying the scorching sun and fresh briny air of Battery Park, at the lowermost tip of Manhattan island. A ferry was filling with tourists in preparation for a trek across the harbor to see the Statue of Liberty.

This was the closest I’d ever been to the Statue of Liberty. Even when I lived in Manhattan as a young student, I didn’t see the landmark; in the 80s when I was here, the Statue was undergoing repairs and was closed to the public then. I considered taking my daughters to see it today, but then I read that the wait time for the ferry was approximately two or more hours! And I thought waiting in line to see the Empire State Building was agonizing….

Anyway, so we sat on solar-powered benches that had reached 1000 degrees thanks to the super-hot day and lack of trees. We watched the ferry bob precariously up and down and back and forth (can you say seasickness?) while the people continued to load the boat. We watched the dozens of helicopters buzz around the islands like dragonflies (the sightseeing helicopter rides must be very popular). And the salty smell of the sea burped out from small iron grates on the concrete piers.

After sweating off a good portion of the gallons of water we’d slaked down earlier, we decided to call it a day and head for the subway (the trains are air conditioned now! woohoo!). On the way there, the Skittles Man accosted us.

Well, he didn’t exactly ACCOST us. But pretty close, lol. He appealed to the tender hearts of “young ladies,” and grasped our hands with vigorous handshakes. He was selling Skittles candies for a school fund raiser. Four bags were *only* $20. TWENTY DOLLARS for candy. Uh huh. I told him thanks but no… was he selling bottles of water, per chance? We were nearly fainting from the heat. We started to walk on, but he followed us, shoving a paper under our nose.

I don’t remember all that he said, he seemed to go on forever. All I could think was “I’m about to perish from this heat,” lol. He said if we didn’t want any candy, he’d accept a donation, even a dollar. LOL. That made me chuckle. I looked in my wallet for a $1 (well worth the cost to get us on our way), but can you believe it, I was out of ones?!?! All I had was a $5. *sigh* I handed him the $5 and said, “Here ya go, a donation!” He profusely thanked me and handed me a bag of Skittles, saying we deserved a bag of treats. I took the bag and wished him well, and we were on our merry way to cooler ground.

He was so charming, I must admit. The perfect salesman. He would get an “A” for effort in my book. Which probably explains why I fall for these things. I mean– WHO would pay $5 for a bag of Skittles?! I never, ever would in Upstate New York. Nay, the city makes you do strange things, like dole out money to street hawkers… well, I tell you what, next time I’m coming loaded with $1 bills and a ton of water.

We’re back after a whirlwind day in New York City. The girls and I feel like we could sleep all day. We got up @ 4am to drive to Albany, to take the train to Manhattan. I spotted the “coffee tanker truck” on the way and it gave me a little boost of energy. :D

Our visit was great, very productive! I’ll have some photos posted soon. While we were gone, TWO tornadoes and a microburst hit Upstate New York, near home. No one was hurt, but my son called me to report they’d lost power and the storm was vicious outside. I think this event totally threw the weathermen off, because the day was forecast to be 20% chance of rain. :-? If I’d known there was a sudden tornado alert, I’d have directed my sons into the basement! As it was, the tornado touched down about 8 miles away, and the microburst hit about 6 miles away. Thank God for His protection on everyone.

Well…. I guess this wasn’t a very “wordless” Wednesday. Never is!

Have a good Wednesday, friends!