Memory Hole

I sit in an empty and quiet office this dreary afternoon. It's been a busy couple weeks with numerous 12 hour work days work and having some doctor recommended testing done - the work has been mentally exhausting, there being a lot of new "things" to learn, the testing has left this human pin cushion, black, blue, and yellow.

The results of the testing was good news - the old ticker was unharmed by the blood clots that knocked me off my feet last October - the EKG trace nice and regular with no sign of abnormal valve noises or miscues. The blood thinners continue to do their thing, and the blood remains at a steady "just thin enough" state (which apparently is not usually the case).

This rainy but warm morning, found me at a funeral home some miles away - where my former Scoutmaster Joe Hartman laid in rest. The minister gave a nice talk and asked for people in the audience of about eighty or so to help her celebrate Joe's life by recalling a favorite memory or two.

My brother recalled times long past - events from the mid-1970s... a camping trip in Maine that the Troop took in two vehicles, one van and Joe's orange and white VW micro-bus. To pass the time on the way, we played chess between the two vans via CB radio (there was no such thing as cellphones back then). One of the boys in the troop was a Chess Wizard - he was one of the smartest guys I have ever known.

Once, I took a shuffled deck of 52 cards, and showed him the cards, one by one, but only for a second or so each... 5 minutes later, he said, "Okay, the cards are... and promptly and correctly rattled off the 52 cards, both number and suite, in the right order.

Anyway, he played a chess board in the "Creamsicle," as the VW micro-bus was called...and my brother and I and 5 other Scouts played a board in the van. He beat us all - four consecutive times...and if that wasn't bad enough, when we pulled over at a rest stop, we learned that they didn't even have a chessboard - he did it all from memory!

On the other hand, there was a boy that was, shall we say ... loyal, and dependable... but he really struggled with things. One of the few requirements for "advancement" in the ranks of Boy Scouts is learning First Aid and getting the merit badge. This poor kid just couldn't "get it".

Scoutmaster Joe pulled him aside one camping trip "down the shore" and said, "We really need to get this thing worked out." So the infamous (to us) Calamine Lotion All-nighter was held.

You probably know that Calamine Lotion is pink and is used to ease the itch from Poison Ivy. Well, so did this Boy Scout. But his first aid knowledge began and ended there. Every first aid-related question asked in the First Aid merit badge exam, he answered "Calamine Lotion."

"What is the treatment for Shock?"

"Calamine Lotion...nn?"

"What do you do for a sprained ankle?"

"Umm... You use Calamine Lotion. I think."

...and so it went. My Scoutmaster assigned older boys to drill first aid questions and answers... at first it was two boys, 15-20 minutes each... and then 2 more... and 2 more... and then the rotation started and each boy did 30 minutes....

The sunset on the bay to the sounds of "No, no, noooooo... forget Calamine Lotion!! Think!! Think!!!" and the same sun rose hours later over the ocean to the hoarse whispers of "Oh my gosh! He got one right!!!"

I left the troop that year and it was several years later, when I came across this boy's name in the newspaper. The headline read, "EMT Saves Life of 5 Year Old" and my interest piqued, I read on and found that the EMT had pried open the door of a burning car, pulled the young girl out, and revived her with CPR. I gasped out loud when I saw the name of the EMT... you guessed it, it was none other than Mr. Calamine Lotion. I think I sat there in a daze for quite some time with the newspaper fallen from my hand.

One of my memories was of Scoutmaster Joe having a "who can make the hottest Chili contest." I prided knowing my way around a campstove and made up a batch. Joe sampled it and smacked his lips and said, "Hmmm... Meh... barely warm but no... that's not Chili." I said, "Oh well, more of whatever it is for me!" and about burned my lips off eating it.

Other boys made batches, and my brother, who had cooked a pot of jalapeno peppers and navy beans that left me unable to taste anything at all for 3 days, got a, "Hmm.. getting warmer... that's almost edible chili..." Finally Scoutmaster Joe decided to show us all how it was done. Even though I only had one spoonful, I don't think I could even speak for the rest of the weekend except to ask for a ice cold glass of "WAATT-AHHH!" You've hear tales of coffee being strong enough to stand a spoon in... well this chili was strong enough to melt the spoon! Scoutmaster Joe sat there with a big steaming bowl of the "stuff" and chowed down on it. I don't think there was a single boy in that Troop without wide opened eyes and admiration of his "unique talent"!

Some of the other folks at the funeral were neighbors of 45 years... recalling rides my Scoutmaster had given them when their cars broke down; and snow plowing help; and being offered dozens of plump red tomatoes from his garden; and help finding lost dogs and dog sitting at a moments notice and all the things only the best neighbor in the whole world would do...

Some of the folks were members of the local RV club - and recalled RV trips over 15 years - where the story was the very same - ever dependable - always available to lend a hand...

I was honored to be ask to be a pallbearer. The ground was wet and muddy. The rain came down. It mattered not at all... I was privileged to have been there for part of his journey through life... and truly honored to be there to bear the burden of his final one.

I've been mentally worn down of late - and as I sit in this empty office... the sun has burst through the clouds... and I feel less worn and will in a few days, be ready to get back into work... and hopefully catch up with what all of you have been up to.

The Final Voyage

Yesterday, I got a phone call telling me that my former Boy Scoutmaster was in the hospital. While working on his car, he had had a stroke and a severe brain hemorrhage. He was in a coma and wasn't expected to pull through.

Joseph Hartman was a everything a Boy Scout is supposed to be - Trustworthy. Loyal. Helpful. Friendly. Courteous. Kind. Obedient. Cheerful. Thrifty. Brave. Clean. Reverent. He was truly a one of the "good guys". I didn't get a chance to say "goodbye and smooth voyaging."

Last night he crossed over the lake - to the other side.

He leaves his wife, a son and daughter, and many now-full-grown "boys" that have wonderful memories of summer scout camps and weekend trips to the woods.

He was an inveterate car-tinkerer, forever "messing" with some offbeat cars, like a VW Beetle, a VW minibus (the hippie mobile) and lastly a Honda Prius hybrid. He was a modest engineer that watched the computer grow from the days of the vacuum tube with awe and sense of boyish wonder that said, "Oh, this is so neat!"

He taught me how to paddle straight, to be patient... kind... helpful... and showed me the way I wanted to live.

I offer these words to the Great Voyager in the Sky in his honor and in his memory -

For Food, For Raiment,
For Life And Opportunity,
For Sun And Rain,
For Water And Portage Trails,
For Friendship And Fellowship,
We Thank Thee, O Lord.
Amen.

A Thank You from Ryan

I got this wonderful hand made "thank you" card from Alice Kay's gransdon, Ryan (with some help from his mommy.)

What can you say besides, "Awwww..... shucks! You are quite welcome!"

:)

New Years Day With the Birds

About halfway between my house and my parents house, just outside the town of Doylestown, is the Peace Valley Nature Center, located on the end of Lake Galena.

Having been asked to stop at the Doylestown Mennonite Church to see if a certain Godshalk family was buried in the church yard cemetery, I made plans to meet my mom afterwards at the nature center, which is just up the road a piece.


In the quiet stillness, surrounded by old stones, I found the gravestones of William (1781 - 1837) and his wife, Magdalena Kratz Godshalk (1782 - 1868). I've never seen a gravestone quite like this one. The green stone says, "In memory of William Godshalk who died the 12th day of December 1837, aged 56 years (obliterated) month and (obliterated) days. I saw that his wife outlived him by many years.

At the nature center, located on Chapman Road, is a bridge over the Neshaminy Creek.


This bridge, now closed to vehicle traffic, is no spring chicken, having been built in 1886.


From Chapman's Bridge, one can see down the 3-mile long, man made, Lake Galena, created when Bucks County flooded the valley in 1972.

Before that time, much of the lakebed had been part of the village of Leven, the economy of which was based largely on lead ore (known as Galena) mining. Mining of galena (in addition to small amounts of zinc, silver, copper and gold) had been mildly successful since the 1860's.

Down beneath the surface of the water, near the center of the 3-mile long lake, are the long abandoned lead mine shafts and smelting operations.

Water from the lake is used to provide cooling water for the PECO*-owned Limerick Nuclear Power Plant and for augmenting public drinking water supplies. It is also used for recreation by man and by "more than 250 species of birds."

*Philadelphia Electric Co.


The nature center end of the park has miles of trails winding through the woods along the bank of the Neshaminy Creek. Neshaminy is a Native American word that means "the double drinking place," or "where we drink twice".


On New Years Day (and the week later), the recreational folks were out in force, enjoying the unseasonably warm weather - and so were the birds.


I saw a pair of Snow Geese, much to my mom's excitement, as we've never seen them before in Pennsylvania (they cover the empty corn and wheat fields in Maryland when they migrate.)


Lurking around the rocks at the foot of the dam, I spotted a Great Blue Heron. I think this one was actually a little smaller than most as they run to 4 feet tall. They usually eat small fish, though they will feed on a wide range of shrimp, crabs, aquatic insects, rodents and other small mammals, amphibians, reptiles, and small birds. Herons locate their food by sight and usually swallow it whole. It is quite a sight to see the lump in their necks as they strive to "get something down."


With a great commotion, a large flock (or brace) of Mallard Ducks took to the air when disturbed by a large raptor. In this case, I think it was a Sharp-shinned Hawk, looking for dinner. I got a blurry shot of the hawk (here).


Circling the lake, we returned to Chapman's Bridge, where the widening of the Neshaminy Creek makes a small pond that holds fish, snakes, and my favorite, turtles. Even unseasonable weather wasn't going to bring the warm sunshine loving turtles out of their winter hibernation, buried in the mud.


As I mentioned, Chapman's Bridge is closed to vehicle traffic. A braided wire, strung between two bollards and into this (un?)fortunate OCHA's head, blocks the road at one end of the bridge. I thought it had pierced ears, but Ladystyx tells me this OCHA is a rare Nordic Viking. My mom thinks it's a University of Texas Longhorn fan. What do you think?


Peeking into the Nature Center's giftshop, I spotted a couple t-shirts that made me laugh loud enough to have the saleswoman come over to see if I was alright. My mom wanted to know if I was taking my medication regularly, like I'm supposed to.

Well... I thought it was funny.

:)

The hurrier I go, the behinder I get

Now while you might think the title of this entry is a "Pennsylvania Dutch" saying, and it well could have been, it was written by Lewis Carroll in his "Alice in Wonderland."

In any event, it is so appropriate - since this entry is about my Christmas.

I had a very nice Christmas - Santa was very good to me. I got seasons two and three of SpongeBob Squarepants on DVD from LadyStyx; the SpongeBob Squarepants book from Kero; a Charles Morgan whaling ship model from ToriZ; and a year's subscription of Flickr from Alice Kay; beautiful cards from many of you (including one from Marmite Toasty!) and nearly 17 hours (I think its 12 DVDs) of movies showing train rides across the USA, a years subscription to Trains magazine and some brand new (gasp!) underwear. I got two other things that have been keeping me pretty busy, one is a heck of a head cold and the other is a new Nook Color electronic book reader.

I'll spare you the details about (and any photos showing) the head cold.


I've been (not so) secretly "coveting" one of these slick devices ever since seeing the one-legged woman down at Rolph's Wharf using hers last spring and summer. All summer long, she would be sitting in the shade somewhere and reading and reading and reading... and finally I asked her about it - and she told me of being able to read thousands of books (and for free!) downloaded from the Internet with it - she lent me her user manual to read so I could "digest" what this little 4 inch by 7 inch by 3/8 inch gadget could do.

Santa must have thought I was a good boy! It was in my stocking Christmas day!

I spent the Christmas weekend at my parent's house in Washington Crossing, Pennsylvania. As the name implies, this little town is situated on the Delaware River between the states of Pennsylvania and New Jersey, about ten miles upstream from Trenton, NJ. Each year, there is a reenactment of the crossing:

"General George Washington and men of the Continental Army and militia crossed the Delaware River on Christmas night 1776 and marched to Trenton, New Jersey. There they attacked and defeated Hessian troops quartered in and around the village. This surprise attack and victory set the stage for Washington's subsequent victories at the Second Battle of Trenton and Princeton."

These victories were the turning point of the American Revolution - "from times that tried men's souls" - to renewed vigor and restored confidence that the war could be won.

I did not see the reenactment (this year). Rather, I was taken to a spot further upstream so that I could walk for several hours.


The Thompson-Neely House, known as the "house of decision" where General George Washington planned and decided to attack Trenton. This house was built in 1702 and served as a hospital for the Continental Army and Militia forces both before (for those ill from disease, exposure, poor nutrition, exhaustion and unhealed wounds) and after the battles of Trenton and Princeton.

Alexander Hamilton was recovering there from illness before the battle (he dragged himself out of sickbed to fight at Trenton), and James Monroe and William Washington (George's cousin) were brought back to the Thompson-Neely House to heal from battle wounds. There were very few "American" casualties at Trenton, 2 killed and 5 wounded.


Christmas morning, the year 2011, was very different from that of 1776. The weather, while cool, was bright and sunny, and I found the nearby towpath of the Delaware Canal deserted. The only movement I saw was of sheep in a pasture. Perhaps you can spot them - I am always reminded of Punkn's sheep when I see a flock of the grass munchers. A close up of the sheep is here.


Up on the hill beyond the Thompson-Neely House is Bowman's Tower.

This tower is built on the site of a lookout that was manned during the American Revolution. The tower itself was not there in 1776, it was built in 1930. It is 125 feet tall, and contains a very narrow staircase and an elevator that takes visitors to an observation deck at the top of the tower.


The tower is lit each night during the holiday season by a white star on each of the four sides. On a clear night, it can be seen as far away as Trenton (14 miles) and is rather haunting to me.


On the grounds of the Thompson-Neely House, is a small cemetery with a number of graves. It is speculated that 40 to 60 soldiers died while in the area and the names of almost all of the soldiers who died at the Thompson-Neely House during the winter encampment of 1776 are unknown.

The only soldier's name that has been passed down through history is that of Captain-Lieutenant James Moore who died on December 25, 1776 of "camp fever" at the Thompson-Neely House.

The Delaware River lies just over the embankment behind the flagpole.


As I walked on the towpath beside both the canal and the Delaware River, alone and lost in thought, I found my head lifted by the strident call of a goose, a "white chin-strap duck" known to others as a Canadian Goose, spoke to me as if to say, "Hey! Look at us! We are reenacting the crossing!" I christened one of the geese, General George Goose, and watched them swim across the river - in conditions that General George Washington might have envied, because for him:

"...the river was icy and the weather severe, the crossing proved dangerous. Two detachments were unable to cross the river, leaving Washington and the 2,400 men under his command alone in the assault. The army [then] marched 9 miles south [in the bitter cold and in the darkness] to Trenton.

The Hessians had lowered their guard, thinking they were safe from the American army, and did not post a sentry. After having a Christmas feast, they fell asleep. Washington's forces caught them off guard and, before the Hessians could resist, they were taken prisoner. Almost two thirds (896) of the 1,500-man garrison was captured and their commander Colonel Johann Rall was killed."

Side notes:

The winter encampment at Valley Forge took place over the winter of 1777–1778, the following year, so there were many more days of difficult fighting ahead for General George Washington and his troops.

There is a Washington Crossing Park in Pennsylvania and one in New Jersey across the river - they are two separately run state parks.

Should you wish to visit the park, more information can be found here. Should you wish a tour guide, I'm available at no charge.