The Hummingbird Summer

For the first time that I remember at Montgomery Ave, we've had hummingbirds in our yard over this summer - since early July, after hanging a simple feeder outside the kitchen window.  By late August, we were up to 3 different tiny birds (I don't know what species).  It's fascinating to watch them, and our neighbor Crystal was inspired to get a feeder as well.  As a bonus, we spent a day at Lake Skaneateles and saw many swooping around the Warner cottage where there are 3 feeders.  Unlike the past few summers which were stormy, we had a dry summer with a few heat waves.  Voluntary water restrictions are now in place.  Around the country & world, extreme weather patterns and full-scale disasters like flooding are a serious problem - so far, we've had no dramatic changes here in the northeast, but it's getting steadily warmer.  Here are three pictures Steve took at home through the kitchen window.

I like to believe it's still summer though mid-September, but there are signs of wind-down....   😒 Haven't seen a hummingbird for a few days, so maybe they are moving south.  WA football games have begun - we can hear the loud-speaker from our house.  Labor Day is on Monday, we'll probably go to the Italian Festival at courthouse square in Scranton tomorrow.  I am making seasonal foods while I still can - tonight it's shish kabob on the grill and Aunt Ginny's blueberry pie.  (I made an extra pie, and brought some to Daisy Court & Davenport Street this afternoon.  Delicious!)  

Here's an update on what happened in July & August.  

• Azec - Alex, you seem to generally like your job at the Azec Company, though aren't sure if you will stay in Human Resources long-term.  You have already taken on additional responsibilities and recently been promoted.  Yay!
• Sabatini's - Rob, you started as a busser and are now also a salad-maker.  You haven't complained in spite of the hard work, sometimes get to walk pizzas across the parking lot to the beer store/bar next door and are doing fairly well with tips.  Keeping your maroon red Sabatini's shirt stain-free is an uphill battle, but we do our best using lots of Shout.
• Maine vacation - On NCFE, Steve wrote a series of posts while we stayed in Cushing ME, near St. George where the Rivers family settled starting in the 1690's (including wonderful pictures, especially of sunsets over the bay).  Alex, you had recently begun your job at Azec and unfortunately couldn't join us.  Rob, it was great having you there.  You stayed in the bunk room with your cousins, which was fun although poorly ventilated.  One of my favorite memories is you calling bingo, very professionally & graciously.  You seemed to enjoy time with Noel, Larson, Luke and Grace - who read tarot cards for you.  Very interesting!  We also played croquet, some volleyball on Larson's olympics-themed 11th birthday and had evening campfires.  Many family chats - Grammie, Grandad, Aunt Julie & Mark, Aunt Di & Uncle Lawrence and Uncle John & Aunt Fran were there.  Also - lest we forget - there was Baby Bea who turned 1 in Maine.  Her "pterodactyl" screaming lived up to its reputation.  One special thing - we spent a day driving over to Benton, Maine where you had lunch and spent the afternoon with your friend Reece.  On the day of his 21st birthday!  wow!  Steve and I drove south on I-95 to Augusta during your Reece visit; it is quite simple for a state capital, likely we will not return.  Here you are with Aunt Julie's dog Blue.

• Santana Concert - Alex, you went to a Santana concert with Aunt Pam and her friend Dawn.  Carlos Santa certainly loves to perform, he and his band have had an amazing run since 1966 i.e., essentially all of my life.

• Rob's 20th Birthday - Rob, you quietly turned 20 this year.  We had a traditional Grace Rivers chocolate cake.  Your favorite gift seemed to be an Action Park t-shirt from Steve (you have learned much about this now defunct, but well-known amusement park in northern Jersey - and shared many interesting stories about its owner's philosophy, safety issues, lawsuits etc.).  In addition, while driving to/from and intra-Maine, you educated us on Henry Kissinger - an interesting figure who you do not admire.

• Lake Skaneateles - The three of us plus Taylor spent a Saturday visiting cousins Ellen, Dave & George at their cottage.  We had perfect weather.  Alex, I think you and Taylor enjoyed it most - fishing, swimming and jet skiing.  Plus we had a lovely boat ride up to the northern end of the lake.  Ellen is a great hostess, very generous in many ways.  I spent quite a while attempting to take hummingbird pictures with my phone, which is a challenge. 

• Kitty News - Aunt Pam got an adorable, tiny Siamese kitten Freddy (named for Frederic Chopin).  He is now getting along ok with Wolfie.  Alex, you and Taylor rescued sister & brother kittens - named Octavia & Raven.  You have 4 cats now, with Macie and Azula (!)  And Rob, you found a tailless, collarless gray kitty that came right up to you around midnight as you left work at Sabatini's last Friday.  You brought it home & the next day we went door-to-door in the neighborhood trying to find an owner.  We took him to the SPCA to get checked on Sunday morning (male - no chip), then shortly after Steve posted on the Luzerne County Lost Dogs & Cats Facebook page that we had a "found" cat, a lady from Exeter posted that she had a "lost" cat fitting the right description.  So 13-year old Momo - who we were told likes to lie on the sidewalk at nights - was re-united to his family.

• Sony's Playstation 5 -  This high-end game system came out in 2020 just after COVID-19 hit us all like a frying pan in the face.  Everybody wanted it, only the few and the very lucky could get it.  It costs more than $500 to start with, and for quite a while was selling for well over $1,000 on eBay.  This was supposed to be your 2020 Christmas gift, Rob.  Well just a couple weeks ago, Alex you discovered that Walmart has an on-line lottery which you can enter to be selected to be the fortunate buyer of a Playstation 5.  You won almost immediately, and told Rob about this great.  Rob, you then were able to find and order it shortly afterwards.  So, 2020 Christmas gifting is complete!!  The main difference you noticed so far is much quicker loading time; we have yet to get a Playstation 5 game to find out what the full-upgrade player experience will be.

• Yard Improvements - You know how Steve likes to keep busy.  He did a lot of landscaping work creating a border around the front porch using edging stones and decorative rocks.  And built a beautiful flagstone walk-way from the deck steps over to the driveway, using lots of colorful materials.  Very hot, sweaty work - and it looks fantastic!  As always, we have lovely flowers in front and in the back yard thanks to his effort and consistent watering.  And thanks to you, Alex, for keeping things watered during the Maine vacation.

• Swing State Politics - With the mid-term 2022 election coming up, it's amazing to me that Pennsylvania is getting "national" type attention yet again.  Last week, President Biden came to Wilkes University and gave a major speech (after which, Steve got stuck in traffic and it took 1.5 hours to get home from Wilkes-Barre).  Today, former President Trump had a rally at Mohegan Sun casino.  There are significant governor (Shapiro vs. Mastriano) and senate (Fetterman vs. Oz) races.  Lots of enthusiastic supporters are out on both Democrat & Republican sides.  This tent was set up in Forty Fort today.

The Courting Years (mid 1980's)

I got started at King's College just when your Dad was finishing there (he took classes part-time my freshman year).  In the meantime, Dad was hired to work as an insurance agent at American General Life Insurance, probably in 1983.  Here are memories from this time.

• Living with my grandmother Phyllis Rivers (your GrandNana) worked out well, she was a sweet lady and extremely generous to me.  Her home was at 21 Lehman Ave, just a short distance from where Aunt Pam now lives on Davenport St.  I learned a lot of family lore during the years I was there, including about the McCausland and Walker families in Webster, MA and older generations of my grandfather's family in Cambridge, MA and St. George, ME.
• I did not have a car (remember, my family didn't have extra money and to my knowledge didn't help any of us kids get vehicles).  The LCTA is the reason this entire arrangement worked.  I took the bus back and forth from Dallas (route 6) since my grandmother's house was 2 blocks away from the 5-way intersection in Dallas - you know, the one with that now has a roundabout.  The bus went to Wilkes-Barre public square, where King's College was 3 blocks away.  Also there was a bus from Wilkes-Barre to West Pittston (route 11) that went across Market Street into Kingston, then north on Wyoming Ave where I got off at 7th St in Wyoming, 1 block away from Dad's house.  It  was fine especially since I was accustomed to public transportation.
• Dad did have cars.  He spent a lot of time driving back and forth to Dallas, let me tell you!!  When I first knew Dad, he had a boat-sized Mercury Montego (rust red) that had previously been a Maryland State Police car and he got through Uncle Melvin.  Uncle Melvin worked as a mechanic for the state police.  Dad was not happy when I accidentally knocked over an open bottle of Grandma's home-made dill pickles and his car smelled of pickle juice for a few weeks.  Also, Dad had a cool sports car he used in good weather only - a Triumph that previously belonged to Jimmy Rogers.  (You can ask Jimmy or Sheri about it.)  As you'd expect, quite small and low to the ground.  Fun except I could imagine tractor trailers literally flattening us.  Later, Dad's first new car was an efficient Renault Alliance (metallic blue) that he brought in New Jersey.  After I graduated, my first car was a small sedan given to me by your Grandma Carroll i.e., when she got a newer car.  I can't remember what make it was, and by the time I was 22 I was really happy to have a car of my own.

Mercury Montego, June 1984:

The Renault, in front of GrandNana's house - June, 1984:

• Dad had a Sunday newspaper route.  This may seem odd, but he had been delivering newspapers since having a daily paper route as a kid.  Also, remember this was pre-internet so many people had home delivery of newspapers as a primary source of news.  Once Dad was driving, he got a Sunday paper route delivering the Sunday Independent (which discontinued publication in the 1990's sometime), the Pittston Dispatch and out-of-town papers like the Scranton Tribune, Philadelphia Inquirer, and NYC papers.  I remember the Daily News and NY Times.  This was quite a business - people would leave money under a mat or in the mailbox, so typically there was no need to collect at another time.  Initially, he had routes in Wyoming and West Wyoming/Toy Town.  Eventually, he ended up with just the Toy Town route, which continued into our early married years.  So guess what this meant?  Getting up at 6:30 am on Sundays, getting started around 7 and delivering until 10:30 or so.  It was ok except when weather was bad, especially rain or extremely cold/snowy.  So I typically stayed over at Dad's house Saturday night (slept on the couch) and helped him.  Besides black ink on hands & clothing, one of the other problems was getting away, since it was not easy to have someone else deliver the papers.  Our most faithful "backup" carrier was Uncle Jason.  yes, really!

Here's a picture from Atherton Ave, Wyoming in winter, 1984.  The house in the background is on 8th Street, the house where Jim & Kevin live and you guys have gone for hair cuts:

• We spent time on the weekends with friends from King's, and as time when by with friends that Dad met at American General.  One special thing we did was coordinate canoe trips.  College friends would come and often Aunt Julie, Aunt Di and Uncle John would come too - which meant staying over in Dallas or in Wyoming.  The canoeing was based from Camp Lackawanna, since Dad and I knew the caretakers there (Don and Alice Kocher, who I still talk to occasionally since they are members of Trinity Presbyterian in Dallas).  Don had been my boss when I was the camp maintenance person, so I had known him fairly well.  We rented camp canoes, which Don transported up the river on a trailer pulled by the Camp truck - typically to Laceyville.  We paddled back to camp, which took a good part of the day and included stopping for lunch at a public river access next to the Mehoopany bridge.  These trips were usually on the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend - the river water tends to be higher in the spring, which is helpful for a longer trip.  Lots of fun.

This picture is probably at the Mehoopany boat launch - May, 1984:

• Over the summers, we would go camping.  One favorite spot was at Assateague State Park in Maryland, about half an hour from Ocean City.  You should remember crabbing (dropping lines baited with chicken pieces into the bay) at the park's "Old Ferry Landing" dock - we typically went over each time we spent a few days in Ocean City MD.  Sometimes Dad and I camped locally, like at Hickory Run State Park with Cindi and her boyfriend Dennis.  Dad loved to travel.  He tended to put off coming home as long as possible, as your Grandma said to me "he'll stay until the last bell rings!".  Dad could drive for 10-12 hours a day without getting excessively tired (which I think is unusual).  One particular trip I remember was to Tennessee where we camped near the resort town Gatlinburg and the Great Smokey Mountains national park.  It was hot, humid and beautiful - interesting to visit (the Gatlinburg area was much less developed than it is now).  

These pictures are from camping at Assateague during the summer of 1984.  The wild horses would eat almost anything that was left out, including ketchup packets.

 Here are some additional pictures from these times.....

All College Ball - Nov, 1983:

Me, Dad and Aunt Julie - Thanksgiving, 1984:

A formal picture, not sure why it was taken - May, 1985:

When I Met Your Dad

Shortly after I married your dad, the movie (romantic comedy) "When Harry Met Sally" came out.  What I'm going to write about won't be super funny, but it's the story that ultimately led to the two of you.  Here goes "when Bob met Chris"....   We met when I was 15 and your Dad was 20.  

After graduating from Wyoming Area in 1978, your Dad was going to King's College (he studied Communications and Government, I'm pretty sure he had a double major).  He had worked one summer at Arthur Treacher's Fish & Chips in Dallas, which he said had a batter or some other recipe that was a secret (?) - whatever it was he never did tell what the special ingredients were.  Anyway, after that in 1979 he became a counselor at Camp Lackawanna, in Vosburg (out past Tunkhannock).  It's affiliated with the Presbytery of Lackawanna (and as you know, Dad's home church was Wyoming Presbyterian).  I was in high school and wanted to work at Camp, after going there is a camper.  In 1980, I became a Counselor in Training.  As a CIT, I went to counselor training in June then came back two assigned weeks over the summer.  The next 2  years I was at camp all summer - I was a maintenance/janitor person, and then a lifeguard the final year (believe me, the lifeguarding was much easier).  I first met your Dad at the counselor training in June.  He was good friends with Virginia Miner, who was another counselor.  (In 1982, they were co-Directors for a week of camp - and Virginia went on to seminary at Princeton then became a Presbyterian minister in the Scranton area.)  My first impressions of your Dad was that he had a nice twinkle in his blue eyes, was intelligent and reserved.

Your Dad and I started to "go together" the summer of 1981, even though relationships among camp staff were discouraged.  It was pretty obvious, since I sat his cabin's table for meals.  Camp was my favorite place to be - it was great to be involved in a camp ministry, play my guitar & sing after meals and at campfires, and develop friendships with the counselors and other staff (not to mention being away from Philadelphia!).  During that summer, I went to his house in Wyoming for the first time where I met Dad's parents and sister.  Did I ever tell you I found his Dad (Grandpa) to be intimidating?  Very kind, but a tall and intimidating person.  And his Mom (Grandma) was very sweet, as you know.  Dad also came to my grandmother Phyllis Rivers's house in Beaumont (where I typically stayed over weekends), which was my grandparents' retirement home.  Later, Dad and I helped Nana with packing and moving into town at a rented house in Dallas.

Your Dad and I definitely had fun at camp - canoeing on the Susquehanna River was the best part.  We would typically paddle from Laceyville (long trip, with a stop to eat soggy sandwiches) or Meshoppen (short trip) back to Camp.  It was interesting to go by the river bank where my family swam when we stayed summers at the Mehoopany cabin years before - and then pass the Charmin (now Proctor & Gamble) plant.  

Camp Lackawanna, outdoor chapel - July, 1981:

The relationship continued over the next school year, which was senior year for both us.  I came up to visit Dad in Wyoming, also he came down to visit me in Philadelphia.  We wrote letters in between, and once a week on Friday nights we talked on the phone (which was quite expensive in those days).  I was back at camp the summer of 1982, after graduating  high school.  I then went on to King's College myself, living with my grandmother.  I will write more about that in a later post.

I remember this song from the summer of 1981, which happened to be from another romantic comedy movie "Arthur":

Growing up in Philadelphia

I've written before about time in Allentown, San Pedro and Ventnor, but when my childhood comes up I always say I grew up in Philadelphia.  We moved there in the spring of 1972, when Grandad was called to Gloria Dei (Old Swedes) Church, on Swanson Street in South Philly.  My first memory of it is walking through the rectory (where we met the retiring minister Dr. Roak, shaving in an upstairs bathroom), then having lunch at a McDonald's on Broad Street.  It's the oldest church in Pennsylvania, established by Swedish settlers.  They built a block church in the 1640's, then the current church was built around 1700 (of course with subsequent additions & improvements).  It was originally a Lutheran church, but later became Episcopal.  

This was the beginning of my connection to rivers.  The church is along the Delaware River waterfront, and since marrying Dad in 1987 I have lived within a few blocks of the Susquehanna River.

The church location is interesting, it's between I-95 and Columbus Blvd (formerly Delaware Ave).  This is part of the Queen's Village neighborhood.  One of the constants of my childhood was traffic noise & a fine dust that accumulated all around.  Only during snow storms was it blissfully quiet.  One of the great things about the church is that its property is the middle of a city block, and the land on both sides of it is owned and maintained by the national park service.  I believe the park service purchased the property & razed structures include many houses around the church in the 1960's.  By the early 1980's, Swanson Street was closed off and the area in front of the church was converted to a small park.  We lived in the rectory next to the church and enjoyed a lovely back yard, church yard and national park grounds.  I spent a lot of time day dreaming in nice green spots - like about how much fun it would be if I were a bird or dolphin, and how fascinating it would be if I could walk the streets of Philadelphia during colonial times.  You can understand why I am quite comfortable in cemeteries, in fact I enjoy walking through them.

Here are some of my memories of childhood in Philly.

• I finished 2nd grade at McCall Elementary School (7th St. near Pine St.) and continued through 8th grade.  McCall's was a well-integrated school that included a substantial ESL program.  It was about a mile away and we walked to and from school (there was no school bus service in the city, and Grammie believes in exercise).  I was a year younger than my classmates, and didn't make friends easily.  But I did well academically and had some good teachers (I'm sure you can think of your own mix of good & not-so-good ones).  I remember one particularly well - Mr. Pietrafitta (Mr. P) was an English teacher and my home room teacher who loved opera.  Mr. P taught us 7th graders to sing a duet from Mozart's Don Giovanni.  The boys sang Don Giovanni's part and the girls sang Zerlina's part of La ci darem la mano.  I still remember the words.
• Great Uncle John McCausland's unexpected death over the late summer of 1972 (Edie's father).  We had visited Webster very shortly before and stopped to see him at the police station.  And had a family picture taken at 14 Hill Street, except for Diana.  Grandad brought me with him when he went for the funeral; I didn't attend the service, but went to the viewing (My Uncle John was the first deceased person I saw, I kept thinking he was just asleep).

• Uncle John's birth in September of the same year - you know that he's named John McCausland Rivers after Great Uncle John.  Early in the morning, I remember Grandad calling up from the bottom of the stairs to tell us we had a little brother.  This was not an easy time, as he had a birth defect which required surgery almost immediately after he was born.  John was a big, sturdy baby and fully recovered.  As far as I was concerned, he was a delight since when he cried it was a dull roar... unlike when baby Diana cried, which was a piercing shriek (very similar to your cousin Beatrice!).  I remember that Julie and I took turns feeding him his morning bottle as quickly as possible, sitting in the rocking chair in his room.
• Julie and I dressing up as little Swedish girls for events like an early summer Colonial Fair which was held annually in the early years.  It was fun, and my other fond memory is of delicious strawberry shortcake which was sold by the church ladies at the Fair.  In later years, we were in a kids Swedish folk dancing group.

• House work.  Grammie was a firm believer in learning by doing.  In the rectory, we cleaned the upstairs on Wednesday afternoons, the downstairs on Sundays before church and folded laundry a couple days as well.  Julie & I took turns doing dinner dishes/clean-ups.  On Saturdays we typically had extra jobs like sweeping the patio.  During the summer we had "special" jobs like cleaning silver, going through closets and the dreaded sweeping of the basement which created clouds of dust. (I did get a fundamental understanding of many household cleaning & washing activities, however did not get much experience with food shopping, cooking or personal finance stuff.)
• These efforts were rewarded by an allowance.  I don't remember how much exactly, but it was enough for Julie and me to walk to Pop's store at 2nd & Christian St. for treats.  As far as I could tell, he sold just newspapers and candy.  One of our favorites we called "nominators", which are actually "Now and Later" fruit candy, reminiscent of Starburst.  You can try them too - they're available at the Ballyhoo shop on Luzerne Ave.
• Living simply.  A family of six is relatively large.  Many of our clothes were from thrift stores, although some new items were purchased from Sears; Grammie would order from the catalog by phone.  There were some hours of joy looking through Sears catalogs mostly at the toy section.  Grammie shopped for produce at the open-air Italian market on 9th St (made famous by the Rocky movies).  Grandnana was a talented seamstress and did make clothes for us (especially dresses) and knitted items with our initials (I still have my Christmas stocking and a pair of CR mittens).  We didn't have normal milk, we had powdered milk (which was mixed with water in the morning, and never cold enough when eating cereal for breakfast).  We didn't use facial tissues (toilet paper was a good substitute), avoided using paper towels and almost never had restaurant meals.  But did go out for ice cream now and then.
• Attending Sunday school and then church on Sundays.  Wearing a dress and 'church' shoes was a must.  Also Sunday evening meetings and various outings with the Girls Friendly Society, which met at a parish building.  I just read about it and now realize it's a girls ministry of the Episcopal Church - there more about Girls Friendly here.  Here's a picture from Easter, 1975 (Nana made the girls' dresses).

• Having overnight and other visits with the Rivers family (Uncle Dick and Aunt Ginny), who lived in a Philadelphia suburb.  They had a literal mansion on N. Ithan Drive in Rosemont.  It had a ball room, servant's quarters, 9 bathrooms & was the absolute best place ever to play hide and seek.  Their kids were close to our age - Matthew, Jessica and Steven - where all my other cousins were older.  Below is a picture taken when we spent a summer afternoon together at the Mehoopany cabin.  Back row is me, Jess and Matt; middle is Steve and John; front is Di and Julie.  You know the special connection with cousins your own age, in your case it was Kyra and Lucy.

• Trips to northeast PA (Wilkes-Barre and Beaumont/Noxen area).  We visited the Kerr family (Aunt Mary and Uncle Bob) on North Franklin Street, W-B.  And spent time with Grandnana and my Grandad at their retirement house.  Grandad had been the rector at St. Stephen Episcopal Church in Wilkes-Barre and retired in May, 1972 - notably, just before the Agnes Flood.  The picture of them below is from 1974 or so.

• Occasional day trips, for example to Washington Crossing State Park along the Delaware River (you can guess how it got its name); Lums Pond State Park in Delaware and the Jersey shore.  Usually we went to the park at Barnegat Lighthouse (the beach was great, the hour plus drive back to Philadelphia in a sandy bathing suit sitting on a wet towel was not).  
• Vacationing a couple summers in Mehoopany (I wrote about previously, also see picture above), and later at Good's Campground in Red Rock.  We took some other vacations including to Cape Cod and the blue ridge mountains going down to North Carolina - to visit the Carlson family (Aunt Margaret & Uncle Jack) and Grammie and Grandad Zeller.  I cannot overstate how unbearably hot it was in Philadelphia during the summers.  Often over 90 degrees & 100% humidity.  We had fans, but other than Grammie and Grandad's bedroom and the kitchen there was no air conditioning.  Getting out of the city was a blessing.
• In 1976, the 200th anniversary of adopting the Declaration of Independence was celebrated across the country.  You can read about it in this Bicentennial Wiki article.   This summer was unique because most days the church was open for tours hosted by church members in traditional Swedish garb.
• Going to Camp Lackawanna (in Vosburg, up-river from Tunkhannock), affiliated with the Presbytery of Lackawanna.  The presbytery had purchased Camp Sterrett, a neighboring camp property, from the Episcopal Diocese of Bethlehem.  Grandad and his family spent happy, busy times there during the 1950's while the camp was associated with St. Stephen's Church in Wilkes-Barre.  Kids having a connection to St. Stephens were welcomed to Camp Lackawanna.  During each summer from 5th - 7th grade, Julie and I spent a week at Camp.  The first time was hard, I was pretty homesick.  This week was still special, since Cindy Clauser from Slatington was in our cabin (maybe the put all the "south of the tunnel" types together?).  We continued to be cabin-mates in later summers, then pen pals.  And have stayed friends all our lives, she is now Cindi Reitz.  I enjoyed camp so much that I came back as a Counselor in Training when I was 15.  I'll write more about this in another post.
• The Lucia Fest.  This was a Christmas-time pageant (and fundraiser) at the the church, held the weekend closes to Dec. 13th - the traditional winter solstice in Sweden.  You can read about current traditions in Sweden in this article about St. Lucy.  You are familiar with Lucia at Old Swedes, I will write about your star boy time later.  I started at age 7 as one of the smallest candle girls (Julie started as a coffee girl at age 6).  We had to learn 4 songs in Swedish.  As the years went along, I learned more Swedish songs to sing with the big girls during the offertory.  It was a special experience, and I remember feeling completely drained after 2 services on Friday then 3 each on Sat & Sunday.  I wore the crown with candles to sing my Lucia solo in 1981 at age 16, which was exciting.  Dad came to the ceremony.  On chilly Sunday afternoons in November, I still think of rehearsals (I remember all the songs).  And still wear my Lucia pendant around Christmas.  

• I started high school in 1978 and graduated in 1982.  Rather than our local South Philly high school, fortunately Julie, Diana and I went to the Philadelphia High School for Girls on North Broad Street and John went to Central High which was just down the hill from Girls High.  Both were college prep magnet schools.  Getting there involved a bus ride from Front St to Broad St, then a subway ride which totaled 45 mins plus each way.  Other than the most obvious problem (no boys!!) and being so far away, Girls High was a good experience.  I made some friends, who I have since lost touch with.  Overall effective teaching, interactions with smart classmates and a wonderful music program.  The best part of high school was being in the choir (then called "Treble Clef") and the orchestra playing cello. I worked hard, my GPA placed me close to the top of my class and at graduation (held at the Academy of Music on Broad St) Grandad gave the invocation since I was the highest ranking student whose father was a clergyman.  I had a graduation party in the back yard later in the day - below is a picture of me, my friends Lynne and Lorraine, Uncle John and Aunt Julie.  Dad came to both the ceremony and party.    

Although the Philadelphia years weren't ideal for me socially, Philadelphia was an interesting place to spend formative years.  After that it was off to King's College in Wilkes-Barre.  I have no regrets, and have been happy to spend the majority of my life by the beautiful mountains and Susquehanna River in the Wyoming Valley.

Half Way Through

It's mid-year already!  I am always surprised when we've "suddenly" arrived at the July 4th holiday - coming up on Monday.  It's time to plan a cook-out and think about making blueberry pies.  Here are a few updates:

• The Supreme Court is issuing a set of rulings showing its current conservative bent.  A ruling against the EPA's regulation of power plan emissions does not bode well for addressing climate change (or the power of the EPA generally).  Vacating Roe v. Wade will have significant consequences for women specifically, and their partners and families in states where legislatures are opposed to abortion rights.  Your Grandnana spoke about many horrible outcomes with illegal abortions prior to RvW and fully supported Planned Parenthood, as do Steve and I.  It's truly upsetting, though heartening to know that a majority of Americans are pro-Choice and that Congress can take action to legalize abortion.
• Jan. 6, 2021 Congressional hearings are in progress.  It has become clear how just how hard President Trump tried to remain in office after losing the 2020 election.  Given the increasing economic strain on low- and middle-income Americans over decades, it's not surprising that the status quo seems unacceptable to so many people.  But it's still difficult to accept that a determined minority is no longer committed to democratic values.  
• We are not done yet with our latest mouse situation (or is it an infestation, now that we are in the 8-10 range this spring)?  Both kitties are doing their jobs, though Oren is more enthusiastic than Rambo.  He growls when the mousey is in his mouth, and is not eager to "drop it!" when requested by co-habitating humans.  I believe only one escaped the kitty brigade, but we hope it has since been caught.  Rob, you have perfected your mouse-catching techniques and your specialty seems to be the "back of the closet" captures.  We now keep a specific "mousy" tupperware container under the kitchen sink - handy for taking meeces out to the back yard.  Oren spends time in the kitchen carefully watching the dishwasher area (near the kitty food bowls).  Our neighbor Crystal told me a couple weeks ago that she discovered a visiting mouse on the kitchen counter watching her between her flower pots...  so it's not just us!

• Alex, you are wrapping up week 2 at Azec.  Other than getting a work iPhone (which you hate), all is well working in the HR Department.  On your second day, you texted me that "Everyone is so positive and friendly.  I really like it so far and there's going to be lots of opportunity for me to move up.  I met the plan manager and he was telling me there's people who've worked 4 or 5 different careers in the company and that they prioritize internal hires above external.  So I'm excited and I think there's a lot of potential."  You celebrated your 8th anniversary with Taylor on May 3rd, then her 25th birthday last Saturday.  And you've had some nice fishing time - today you send me these pics:

• Rob, you're now working a couple shifts per week as a busser and salad maker at Sabatini's in Exeter.  Seems to be a good job, although it would be nice to work more often.  We have been trying to figure out solutions for some foot pain, including shoes to fit you comfortably.  And enjoying some time away, as you & I just visited Ontario to spend a few days with Uncle John, Aunt Fran and kids.  Noel and Larson are doing well (14 and 10), and Bea (11 months) is sweet and exhausting.  Below is a nice picture of us, with the Almonte waterfall behind us.  Her favorite and only word she uses consistently is "this?" as she looks at someone/something.  At this very moment, you are on the front porch talking with some Mormons who rang our doorbell (holy rollers, as Grandma used to say).  I'm sure you are giving them a run for their money, as you are quite the intellectual and deep thinker.  You just came in and are having a laugh, as you let them chat away (to delay pestering the neighbors)....   They asked which of Jesus's acts was your favorite, and you told them it was beating up bankers (their reply, was "yeah, we like that too!").  They said you are a man of great faith!  They gave you a Mormon bible and are coming back next week (July 7th at 3!).  You plan to prepare carefully for the next discussion - and in advance will get some extra tips on Joseph Smith & LDS beliefs from Steve.  We'll be sure  to have some cold drinks on hand for this debate.

• As usual for this time of year, Steve has been busy with outdoor projects.  He built a handsome planter for the deck.  And over a hot weekend while Rob and I were away, he did most of the work to create a beautiful walkway from the deck steps over to the driveway, using pavers, landscape edging and gravel.  With the hottest months approaching, it's time to relax more.  We do appreciate all his efforts, we get compliments on our many flowers & blooming bushes which look Fantastic.  And we will be celebrating our 7th wedding anniversary on July 3. 

• I now have a fitbit.  As you know, I am far from an early adopter of new technology.  The real reason this happened is that Steve got it for me & mostly set it up.  I'm getting used to having it on my wrist, and yes it does motivate me to be active.  I really do love walking outdoors when it's not too hot and not too uphill.  It helps that I still get to the gym with Laura Lewis Emmett most Thursday nights, where we do equal parts exercising and talking.

The Prettiest Season

For many years, my favorite season was fall.  Now my favorite is spring, with warm breezes, longer days and the world turning green again.  Tulips are lovely, the flowering trees are gorgeous.  I had a nice dose a few weeks ago, with a day trip to New York City (which had an Earth Day parade) and since then much outdoor time today watching Steve put bricking along the front sidewalk and plant flowers.  Alex, you showed me flowers and vegetables (including many pepper plants) that you got at Golomb's last week on an outing with Aunt Pam.  We went for the first time yesterday, and as we drove down to the flats in Plains it seemed like stepping back in time about 50 years.  

As an update, you are currently job hunting - after your contractor position at US Foods came to an end.  In your spare time, you've been fishing with Taylor, painted Aunt Pam's back porch and yesterday called me to say you have COVID-19.  Heavy sigh!!   You seemed to have so many close calls with illnesses since the pandemic started, but only tested positive this time.  Mild symptoms like head congestion and sore throat, let's hope it stays that way!!!!  Taylor had it in January.  Suspiciously, you had been at Mohegan Sun casino shortly before each of you came down with it - so think you likely got exposed there.  All your aunts & uncles have now had it, but so far not Grammie or Grandad, Steve, Rob or I (that we know of at least).  And no serious sickness or long-term consequences.  Wisely, we are all fully vaccinated & boosted.  You and Taylor have plans to spend next weekend at the finger lakes in NY with Aunt Pam and Dawn.

Rob, you are studying for finals.  This is the end of your second semester at LCCC, going part time.  You have been going Tuesdays & Thursdays, which include a weekly chemistry lab and tutoring a few students in math.  It isn't easy with your headaches.  I am encouraged because overall they are not as severe and your light sensitivity is reduced (migraine glasses do help).  You are seeing a headache-specialty neurologist Dr. Chua, as well as Mark Kovalchik at the Saxon practice.  You love time with Rambo and especially Oren.  They've had a some fun over the last couple week catching 4 mice - to my distress.  Oren growls when carrying a rodent about.  I do appreciate your efforts in capturing them as soon as possible, though sadly the mousies do not fare well no matter how quickly they're taken out to the back yard.  One particularly memorable situation resulted from Rambo bringing his prey upstairs, where it tried to hide until you caught him (her?) in the back-hall closet.

Going back how much I love this time of year....  Here's a hauntingly beautiful rendition of "For the Beauty of the Earth" that I listen to now and then.  Absolutely magnificent.

On Hiatus

Well, it's been a long time since I posted anything.  Work has been hectic, etc., but the main reason for the gap is that the flash drive that many of my pictures were saved to melted after being inserted into the my computer USB port for way too long.  This was a huge mistake on my part, I knew that pictures from recent years had not been backed up & didn't take time to do it (in spite of gentle reminders from Steve).  I was so upset - feeling sick to my stomach when I thought about it.  SO A REMINDER TO YOU, be sure to save important files and especially pictures IN 3 DIFFERENT PLACES.

This is what I was told after taking my flash drive to Custom Computers in Kingston (which Laura Lewis recommended after her computer hard drive crashed, and they helped to retrieve 20 years of her sermons).  The flash drive could not be read, so they sent it away to a restoration company which also could not read it after several weeks told me it was hopeless.  That was a really bad day.  😢  Well, so what to do about this situation.....  Of course I had help, because I have an absolutely wonderful husband (I highly recommend that you also find/have a wonderful partner).  So Steve copied pictures from my two latest cell phones and one of Rob's old cell phones.  Since I had backed up pictures a few years ago, I found every flash drive in the house, looked at their contents using Steve's laptop and labeled the flash drives.  I went through files on my computer hard drive and consolidated all those pictures.  Then Steve saved all the various pictures from many sources onto his computer & backed them up.  In the end, I lost many pictures from 2016 - 2018, but have mostly everything else.  I feel like am the "keeper" of your childhood memories, of which quite a few things were unfortunately lost during the time I was separated from Dad, he moved from the apartment to the front house in Wyoming and ultimately the property sold.  So losing pictures was painful, but all-in-all in could have been much worse.  I can say that thanks largely to Steve's patience, support and significant time & effort.

Now that I have calmed down, hopefully I will get back into a writing routine.  Besides catching up on what you guys are up to, I also want to reflect a bit on 10 years since I created this blog.  It was on 11/11/2011 that I started CarrollBoys.....  The anniversary has come and gone.....   

So until I get those thoughts together, here is a picture from the Santana concert in Bethlehem that you went to with Aunt Pam in September 2021.  You know that I love you very much.