Ballpark has gone to the dogs

We've been enjoying a streak of Septemberish weather, which has made spending time outdoors so much more pleasant. Last night was "Bark in the Park" night at the Jammers game.

We left our hound at home because we thought he would be too excited by all those other dogs. Maybe not. They were all very well behaved and nary a bark was heard. One young Lab in particular strutted proudly at the "tail end" of the dugout-to-dugout dog parade, clearly thrilled to be included by his human in this special activity, and could be seen in the stands wagging his tail for the rest of the evening.

Where were you, Jamestown? There were so many empty seats in the park on such a perfect night for baseball. Why would you stay home and watch television instead of going out and watching these "kids" (young men, but I'm old, so it's about perspective) playing their hearts out for their chance to move up the food chain to the big leagues?

Earlier in the evening, we stopped in at the "great unveiling" in Mayville's Lakeside Park of the newly minted Chautauqua County Greenway Plan.   There was information galore from biking, hiking, equestrian, nature and conservation interests -- all of the usual suspects.  Jump on board, Chautauqua county peeps, because this is part of our salvation -- to quit stuffing our faces with high carb and GMO snacks in front of our corporate entrainment devices, and get out and get active and healthy while enjoying the beautiful natural world we have been gifted with.

Between Mayville and the ballpark, we had a healthy dinner at one of our favorite locally-owned and operated establishments, the Labyrinth, which was also pretty darned quiet. I know the summer tourist season is winding down, and kids in neighboring states have gone back to school. But I hear so much crying from some of the locals about what a lame place this is and how there's nothing to do. REALLY, Jamestown? I guess that's true if you never get out and do anything.

Come out, come out, wherever you are!

THIS WEEKEND
 Tonight and Saturday:
7th Annual Celtic Festival & Gathering of the Clans
Lakeside Park, Mayville


Friday through Sunday
44th Annual Fredonia Farm Festival in Barker Commons
Craft and trade show, music, food vendors, children's activities

Saturday 10 am - 4:30 pm
Monarch Butterfly Festival
Jamestown Audubon Center and Sanctuary
1600 Riverside Rd.

Jammin in the Vines III at Willow Creek Winery with Rusted Root
 Special Guests: Big Leg Emma, Red Wanting Blue, & Gina Vecchio with Coaltrain

2627 Chapin Road
Silver Creek, NY 14136

Gates: 2pm
Tickets:
$25.00 Advance
$30.00 Day of Show
Available @ Winery Box Office & Tickets.com

Camping:
$10.00 a couple

Saturday night, closer to home
Serpentine Fire (Earth Wind & Fire Tribute Band) at Bemus Bay floating stage  8 pm

Perfect Day

 It was 75 and sunny today, my idea of perfect summer weather.

We've been having some miscellaneous work done on the house by a friend who does those things, and I've been trying to keep the dog and cat out of his way.

I had lunch with Tom on the lawn at the college while reading over and discussing the climate action report he has been writing. I wonder how many schools that signed on to the 2006 commitment to reduce their impact on the planet understand the challenge at their feet.  Even the right wing climate deniers are finally having to admit that our planet is burning up with a fever that is manmade.  So when is the reality going to dawn on people that they need to change their behavior -- we're talking a major cultural shift here -- and when are our so-called leaders going to break the news? Surely not in an election year.

Alas, I will enjoy the 75 and sunny days while we have them, before humans resort to living in caves again (or something) to beat the heat. I worry about the world we're leaving to our grandchildren.  A world in which harvesting rainwater is becoming illegal in some places.

Speaking of rain, we finally had some. Big, beautiful, nitrogen-producing thunderstorms that didn't cause any damage.  And now, the grass is starting to grow again.

We still have too much lawn. I'll definitely be adding another raised bed, maybe two more, for veggies next year. It's great having fresh food just a few steps from the back door.  While farms have been suffering from the dry summer, our much smaller "farm" has been manageable. The deer have discovered that they can reach over the fence and nibble on my pole beans (note to self: plant those farther away from the fence next time), but we are now harvesting carrots, beets, cabbage, tomatoes, and enough zucchini to feed a small African nation.  Time to plant the fall crop of kale, chard, and arugula.

As is usual for summer in Chautauqua county, there's lots going on--it's Lucy Fest time again, Gerry rodeo time, Italian Festival time, and the Jammers are playing at home.  I've been keeping myself entertained with a couple of church-related projects, and most people seem pretty occupied with summer travel and family activities. So there hasn't been a whole lot of activism going on here, except for a brief and amusing anti-fracking protest episode, which included a brief and amusing encounter with a sheriff's deputy. It was actually a very pleasant conversation with a dedicated public servant who confirmed the completely legal nature of the protest. With our country rapidly turning into a police state, it's a good idea to cultivate mutual respect and avoid stunts like fishing with donuts.

P.S. I wrote this yesterday and forgot to publish it. DUH!

Meanwhile, back at the ranch...

We're not close to done chewing what we've bitten off with this project home of ours. But I finally hit my limit for tolerating chaos and called a halt to mess-making with impunity--at least until we clean up some of the disorder. We've had a really bad case of college dorm room going on here.

After a good deal of vacuuming, mopping, dusting, putting away tools, and general tidying up, I'm enjoying a heightened sense of serenity, temporary though it might be. We now have a functional second bathroom, with a beautifully tiled floor and shower, though we still need to prime and paint the walls, install baseboards and towel bars, and work out the storage shelf thing. Alas.

And the summer is just flying by.  The general lack of rain here means I've been developing my muscles from hauling the watering cans around, but overall the garden has been doing well. The snow peas just finished up when we got back from Boston (I was surprised that they lasted so long in the heat), chard is about done, and now it's The Attack of the Giant Zucchinis. I'm finding it a surprisingly good addition to omelets and stir fry.  Our diet is skewing more and more towards vegetarian just because of the abundance of, and need to use, fresh ingredients.  Almost daily I peruse the internet for new ways to prepare these things and am rewarded with new favorites. By happenstance I ran across some recipes for veggie burgers that I decided to try (I always found the store bought kinds unexciting) and have become sold on them.   Now, I see lots of green tomatoes, baby jalapenos, and lots of cilantro...there is definitely fresh homemade salsa in our future.

This morning I nearly stepped in something that leads me to believe the black bear cub sighted in our neighborhood paid us a visit last night. Just passing through, I guess, because there was no damage. The blueberries were left untouched. But I'm expecting to see astronomical growth in my potentillas.


LOTS going on here, as usual. The Westfield Antique Show is this Saturday and Sunday. There is also the Scandinavian Folk Festival at the Gerry Rodeo Grounds, and a juried art show at the Village Park in Bemus Point.  On Saturday evening, Chautauqua County Roller Derby's Babes of Wrath take on the Rubber City Roller Girls from Akron, OH at the Allen Park rink. The whistle blows at 7 pm. And next week is the County Fair.  You people who think small towns are boring...are you really enjoying your traffic jams that much?

Our grandaughter has arrived

We've just returned from a quick trip to Boston to meet our new grandbaby, Elizabeth Quinn Schweppe.  Here's a short video introduction to Quinn and her proud big brother, Logan.

Why some people don't need dogs

I'm really upset about some man-on-dog behavior I witnessed on my walk this morning.

These people who moved in a few months ago have two smallish dogs that are often (not always) tied outside. And today, which is rather warm, they were tied on the front porch, sheltered from the hot sun. Good.

They bark when we walk by. Almost every dog in the neighborhood barks when somebody walks by. That's what dogs do. They serve as an early warning system for their owners.

And we usually hear "SHUT UP!" yelled from inside the house.

Today the guy came out on the porch and was screaming at the top of his lungs out of control at them for barking. And then, I think he hit one of them. I had turned the corner and didn't see it, but I heard a yelp. And then he screamed (at the other dog, I assume, hopefully not his wife), "YOU WANT SOME TOO?"

I think I'm mostly upset with myself for not walking right up there and offering, "If you don't want to deal with these dogs, I'll take them off your hands right now."

But he was a scary, screaming dude. What the hell, maybe he's protecting an illegal home enterprise. And what right do I have to intervene anyway?  Do dogs have the same rights as kids? And aren't people allowed to yell at and spank their kids?  Back in my days of adventures in social volunteering, I wasn't sure that children's rights were anything but words on a piece of paper. I knew a mom whose toddler helped herself to garbage from last night's dinner plates in the roach-infested kitchen while Mom slept in. The same mom sold her 15-yr-old's virginity to a crack dealer for the price of the monthly washer/dryer rent. And I remember the overwhelmed caseworker telling me, the kids are clean and clothed, there's food in the house, there's nothing I can do.

I'll keep an eye on those dogs when I walk past that house. I don't know what I'm going to do, but I'm watching.

So, how does your garden grow?

I forgot what this is. But I like it.

Bonica

America

Good, dependable Knock Out

The peas are very tall

It's a jungle out there

One of my pots

A nice spot to sit in the afternoon

Feeling summer

Tom and I attended a public input meeting this week at which consultants presented a draft of the City of Jamestown Pedestrian and Bicycle Plan. Coordinated by the Chautauqua County Health Network's Creating Healthy Places to Live, Work, and Play project, which promotes a more healthy and active lifestyle,  the focus of the plan is finding out how to safely and comfortably connect key destinations (for cyclists and pedestrians) such as schools, shopping, services and parks with neighborhoods and downtown Jamestown. There was a good-sized crowd there, including Team Hollyloft, and it seems quite possible to quickly implement some of the recommendations if interested parties work with city officials to make them happen. (Too often people sit back and wait for somebody else to do something.) Enhanced crosswalks with more visible paint and additional signage, for instance, are an easy and inexpensive way to increase pedestrian safety. The "walking school bus," where children walk to school together with an adult chaperone, just needs volunteers to come forward. Other things like bike lanes, and especially a bike track that traverses the city, will take extensive effort and the location of funding sources in order to be accomplished. The vision is there, and now we need to see some follow-through to put the usual grumbling naysayers in their place.

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I wanted to say something about the "working poor," since I see quite a few of them around these days and the stereotype of  "lazy, unmotivated" people who get food stamps is just WRONG.  In fact, I know some very hard-working young people who piece together two or three part-time jobs (because full time hours with benefits are not offered) and perform important (but low paying) functions like assisting disabled and elderly persons, or standing on their feet for hours and cashiering/bagging to help you on your way with your groceries.  Some of them take classes in addition to working, although one cashier told me she doesn't have the money to spare for college right now (it has gotten quite expensive, if you haven't noticed). Some of them are frightened off by the crushing debt some of their peers are incurring in pursuit of degrees which no longer guarantee employment that will cover both living expenses and loan repayment.  Oh, the two or three part time jobs these "lazy" people are working don't amount to a living wage either, so they find themselves accepting food stamps as well in order to feed their children. But of course they make just a little too much to qualify for Medicaid, so if they get sick, they're on their own.

Why have we become so mean-spirited towards those who don't fit some arbitrary definition of financial success?  I think about this a lot, because I grew up in a hard-working family, in a different time. My father came from a large family with immigrant parents. His father died when he was still a child and he had even younger brothers. So when the Great Depression came, he was forced to quit school after the 8th grade to help support the family. Fortunately for him, our government came to the aid of its struggling people with civilian jobs and job training, and a military that taught marketable skills in exchange for service, and he was eventually able to support a family of his own, become a homeowner, and build a successful business.  Because life handed him some formidable challenges, he lacked formal education, and he accepted government assistance, but nobody would have called him lazy and unmotivated. Nowadays, life is still handing out all kinds of challenges, but rather than extending a hand (via our tax dollars, which we would rather see spent on low interest loans to Wall Street tycoons and unmanned aircraft that kill people, I guess), we kick people to the curb, expecting them to pull themselves up by their bootstraps when they can't afford boots.  Farewell, humanity.

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We finally figured out our tile pattern for the new bathroom, and that will be our project this weekend.  Hopefully, we'll also have time to take a break and check out the Yassou Festival at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church. Good baklava is hard to find. I'll be thin in my next life.