Ten Things that made me happy today

1.  I wore my new Christmas sweater

2. in a cheery royal blue

3. to a Conestoga Party

4. at a lovely venue I've never been to

5. with a dinner prepared by Schmidt's Sausage Haus

6. our Friday date-night spot of 40 years ago

7. enjoying Bahama Mamas and German potato salad

8, with cream puffs for dessert

9. sitting with our neighbors Joan and Jerry

10. while renewing old friendships.

Annual Fall Conestoga Bus Trip

Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2019, traveling to Ted Lewis Museum, Green Lawn Abbey and Orange Johnson House Museum
As part of Conestoga’s focus this year on the Ohio History Fund, this bus tour will travel to three sites that have received support from the Fund. Ted Lewis drew standing-room-only houses, sold millions of records, and captured the hearts of audiences for five decades. Some of his hits included “When My Baby Smiles At Me,” “On the Sunny Side of the Street,” and his signature routine, “Me and My Shadow.” At our first stop, we’ll tour the museum dedicated to Lewis’ life and career in his hometown of Circleville. Green Lawn Abbey in Columbus is listed on the National Register of Historic Places in recognition of its fine Palladio-inspired neoclassical architecture and expert craftsmanship. Our stop will include a guided tour of the building’s interior, which has undergone significant restoration. The Orange Johnson House Museum enables visitors to step back into 19th century Worthington – into one of the oldest residences standing in its original location in central Ohio. Surrounded by period furnishings, our guides will describe the everyday pursuits of Worthington’s early 19th century settlers. At each stop we’ll learn how the Ohio History Fund made a difference in these three very different, but equally significant, historical projects. Joining us on the trip will be Andy Verhoff, Coordinator of the Fund. (Please note: The second floors of the Green Lawn Abbey and Orange Johnson House are accessible by stairs only.)

Update: We had to cancel our plans for this trip because our son's surgery was on October 8.

Upcoming Conestoga event on February 7

Conestoga is the "Friends" group of the Ohio History Center, and we do interesting tours within the state, and  also do a Spring fund raiser each year to support the Center.  Sometimes to beat the winter blahs, we have an inside Columbus tour.

On Thursday, Feb. 7, our program will be tours of the Judicial Center and the LeVeque building that we just heard about at the Columbus AIA program 2 weeks ago. It begins at 1 p.m. at the Thomas J. Moyer* Judicial Center/Ohio Supreme Court Building at 65 S. Front St. in downtown Columbus. Our newsletter reports:

"The renowned art and architecture of the Judicial Center creates a building that, while functional, also proudly depicts Ohio history. Its inscriptions and symbols, along with its many murals, celebrate all who shaped the state: the native peoples, explorers, soldiers, presidents, jurists and artists.

The first stop on the tour will be the Kingsley A. Taft Map Room, featuring a well-preserved collection of 16 original, historically significant maps donated by Conestoga member Sheldon A. Taft, son of the late Chief Justice. This collection, which is not usually available for viewing without an appointment, is the product of nearly 25 years of research by Sheldon Taft. Sheldon will be there to share the history of the collection, which dates back to the mid-17th century. In addition, Conestoga Steering Committee member Marilyn Goodman will serve as a tour guide for the Center visit that will also include the court chambers, hearing rooms and Law Library.

After leaving the Judicial Center, program participants will walk to the Hotel LeVeque for a guided tour of its newly renovated spaces. We’ll hear a presentation on the history of the iconic tower, view the original architectural model and visit one of the luxury suites. The tour will end at The Keep Kitchen and Bar."

A personal note: *Moyer, for whom the Center was named, was the longest serving state Supreme Court Justice in the U.S.  and he died suddenly in April, 2010. We moved to Ohio in June, 1967 and were invited to attend First Community Church. Since we weren't members we joined the fall 1967 membership class at FCC.  In our class and sitting at our table was Tom Moyer, who would later become the Chief Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court. He was my age (28), so I don't recall what his position was then, but he had only received his law degree in 1964, so he probably wasn't famous. The only reason I remember him as one of the two people in that class I remember from 50 years ago is because our best man's name was Tom Moir, pronounced the same. Also in the new members class was a woman named Joanne.  She and her husband were in Couples Circle 50, but she wasn't a member of the church, so she was also taking the class.  Through them, we were invited to join their small group of about 8 couples, through which we then met our lawyer and our dentist, found a babysitter in the neighborhood where we later bought a house, and  many lovely couples we socialized with once a month for 8 years until we joined Upper Arlington Lutheran Church in the mid-1970s.

Conestoga trip, October 10

We had a great trip to Fort Ancient Earthworks and Nature Preserve to see the 2,000 year old, human-built earthen walls in the Little Miami River Valley with our Conestoga group (Ohio history). It is believed to be a sacred and ceremonial site, and was never a Fort, but got that name before people knew what it was. http://fortancient.org/

Then we went to Lebanon, OH to the famous Golden Lamb restaurant, had a wonderful meal, and visited the Harmon Museum and Art Gallery. https://www.harmonmuseumohio.org/

I haven’t downloaded photos yet, but I have a bunch!

Conestoga trip to Cleveland

Today our Conestoga group toured the Cleveland Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, had a visit with the CEO Greg Harris, ate in the new lunch area, and saw the newly installed (July) Power of Rock film in the renovated I.M. Pei spectacular building. Harris is a charming story teller in his early 50s, obviously in love with his job, and told us about some of the exhibits, including the wedding invitation on which Doc Pomus wrote the words for "Save the Last Dance for Me." He had polio... as a child and couldn't walk, let alone dance, but at his wedding he watched his bride dance with others, and then wrote that song, covered by many, and known by just about everyone who came of age before the 90s. Probably not a dry eye in our group after that one. We had never been there (opened 22 years ago), but it's well worth the trip and brings millions of tourist dollars to Cleveland every year, offsetting the original and renovating costs many times over.

Then we boarded the bus for a short drive to tour the Christmas Story (film) house. The film about Ralphie and his family is based on the book of Jean Shepherd's semi-fictional anecdotes in his 1966 book In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash. Years after the 1983 film, the house came up for sale on E-Bay and was purchased, then renovated and additional property was bought for a museum and gift house. It opened for visitors in 2006.  It's now quite a popular tourist spot, yet the neighborhood remains much the same.  The docent/employee guide told us that Cleveland was chosen for the set (Shepherd was from Hammond, IN) because Higbee's was the only department store willing to allow them to film the scenes of visiting Santa. That was a year Cleveland didn't have snow, so that is artificial in the Cleveland scenes--and the guide explained how that was done.  Other scenes were filmed in Canada, and there are a few inconsistencies based on the 2 locations, according to our guide.

Monday Memories--the Conestoga trip to Ripley and Georgetown, Ohio

Our Conestoga group supports the Ohio History Connection, and this year we took an all day bus trip on May 18 to Ripley, Ohio, to visit the newly restored homes of John Rankin and John Parker and to Georgetown to President Grant's boyhood home. All three homes are supported by local organizations with the help of the Ohio History Connection. We left the Ohio Center in Columbus about 7:30, and I think the trip was about 2.5 hours. Once the driver got lost as we looked for a McDonald's for our rest stop, so that contributed to some extra driving. Our group was over 40, so we needed to divide into 2 groups to take the tours because both houses are small. One group was dropped off at the Rankin House and then the other traveled to the Parker house which faced the river.

Rev. John Rankin, a Presbyterian minister, built his home in 1829 and he was active in the The Underground Railroad. It is located on a lovely bluff overlooking the Ohio River and the small town of Ripley, which in the 19th century had 9 millionaires. The river was narrower and more shallow then, and slaves came across from Kentucky. The hill was clear in the mid-19th century, so slaves and the conductors had to come at night watching for a candle in the Rankin cottage window. Now the hill is completely forested. The slaves were hidden in the barn as it was illegal to have escapees in the homes which could be searched. Mrs. Rankin and her daughters sewed clothes for them, and shoemakers in the community made shoes--and there were an unusual number of that craft in such a small town. The house didn't look very large from the outside, but had 4 nice sized bedrooms, where the children slept 3 to a bed. The Rankin family left Ripley and went to Kansas after the war, so none of the original furniture is in the house, but it is all appropriate to the era. John and Jean Rankin are buried in Ripley. The site of the Rankin home is having a make-over with a large visitor and education center, but it wasn't ready yet. The home was completely restored in 2014.

Before we switched places we enjoyed a relaxing lunch at Cohearts Riverhouse. The restaurant is located along the Ohio River in the scenic Historic District of Ripley and looks out across the river to the hills of Kentucky. We had selected our menu choice when we signed up so it was all ready for us.

 Half the group then visited the John P. Parker House, home of an African American inventor who helped hundreds make their way to freedom. As a young man he'd been sold 5 times, and his last owner allowed him to work extra at the foundry and save money to buy his freedom. Parker moved to southern Ohio and around 1853 established a successful foundry behind his home in Ripley. Patenting a number of inventions from his foundry, Parker was one of only a few African Americans to obtain a U.S. patent in the 19th century. Though busy with his business, Parker was also active in the Underground Railroad and is believed to have assisted many slaves to escape from the Kentucky side of the Ohio River. Suggested reading: His Promised Land; The Autobiography of John P. Parker Before leaving Ripley.

Then we boarded the coach and traveled about seven miles to Georgetown, Ohio and another Ohio History Connection and National Historic Landmark, the boyhood home of Lt. General and 18th President of the United States Ulysses S. Grant; newly restored to its appearance in 1839. Grant's parents had moved to Georgetown in 1823 and his father was a tanner.  U.S. Grant lived there until he was 17. This home was saved from demolition in 1965 by local preservationists and in 2002 was donated to the state. It had a $1.4 million restoration in 2015. As with the other two locations, we had a wonderful docent.

Originally we'd planned to also visit the schoolhouse Grant attended as a boy, but we were about 2 hours behind schedule so voted to head for home. 

Make new friends, but keep the old . . .

Spending time with old friends is one of the joys of retirement and my age. However, meeting new people and hearing their stories is fun too. (It's challenging for us oldsters to listen--we'd rather talk-- but it's good practice.) At our retirees luncheon on Friday at the OSU Golf Club I sat by another OSU library faculty retiree, Barbara, who had come on staff the year I retired (2000), so we'd never met. She's had a fascinating career with many twists and turns. I'd prepared packages of homemade cookies, and passed out our Christmas card with Bob's painting of the Marblehead Lighthouse in the snow.

Then on Sunday I chatted across the dinner table with a new friend from church, Carol, who told me all about the Winona Public Library where she'd worked in college. I've checked out the links she gave me--fabulous architecture, and like many community libraries it started as a lyceum and private organization with paid memberships and then a wealthy donor. Going to Minnesota is not on my bucket list, but if you're in the neighborhood, it would be worth the visit.

Today is our book club December gathering at Carolyn A.'s home.  We'll be discussing The Annotated Alice,The Definitive Edition by Martin Gardner. 

 
 I've never read Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, don't care much for fantasy, and his fascination with Alice Liddle, from what I'd read, seemed a little creepy viewed from our 21st century sensibilities.  And to make it worse, Martin Gardner was a mathematician (he died at 99 in 2013), and my skills in that area were never strong, and are now zip, nada, zilch.  But I did read in the introduction that Carroll began this whole adventure making up stories to amuse the three Liddle sisters on boat rides and later wrote them down and gathered them into a gift book. Makes me wish my mother had written down the stories she told me while braiding my hair when I was little (to keep me from screaming in pain!).  The ladies of the club are dear, and my goodness, what bibliophiles and scholars they are! And eclectic tastes.  I'd never read a mystery nor would have found Maisie Dobbs which my husband adores if it hadn't been for this lovely group. 

Wednesday is our Conestoga Christmas Party at The Boathouse at Confluence Park, which has a gorgeous view of downtown Columbus, with reception at 6 and dinner at 7. Dancing has been taken off the menu--either we're all too old or it got too expensive.  Conestoga is a friends group or auxiliary  established in 1986 to enhance support for the Ohio History Connection (aka Ohio Historical Society). To date, its members have raised over $500,000. Conestoga members participate in a wide variety of social and educational events, tours of historical sites and museums and lectures. Membership currently costs $100 for a single membership and $150 for a couple membership. Dues include admission to all regularly scheduled Conestoga social events and educational programs, as well as all the benefits of the Plus Family membership.

On Thursday the Pregnancy Decision Health Center, all locations, is having its annual Christmas get together at the Amelita Mirolo Barn in Upper Arlington about 2 miles from here. It can be rented for banquets, parties and weddings/receptions.  I've been to several events there, which is located in Sunny 95 park.  The original barn was constructed in 1838 near Reed and Fishinger roads before there was suburban development for Columbus. In December 1928, it was moved to Lane Road to replace a barn that had burned down on the McCoy family farm. It was used as storage for about 40 years. I remember driving past it many times on Lane Rd.  Residents could even purchase eggs from the location. In 2007, the City of Upper Arlington was planning the new Sunny 95 Park  and an organization was created to save the barn and move it. Mainly it was the timbers and framing--doesn't look much like the old barn. I'm just blown away by the commitment and love exhibited by the staff and volunteers of PDHC. All I do is answer the phone, greet clients, and assemble some papers and sort baby clothes. They do the really tough things, and often can only save one baby out of ten, but they don't get discouraged.

Conestoga visits local glass art

Yesterday our Conestoga group (friends organization for the Ohio History Connection) met at the Ohio Historical Society, got on a bus and enjoyed a delightful day of seeing beautiful glass art in Columbus, Ohio. First we went to Franklin Art Glass in German Village, a family owned and operated stained glass studio since its inception in 1924, the largest in Ohio. We had a tour of the product/sales section and the studios where the artisans prepare work to order. Our guide explained about the design to glass to finished work procedure, and showed us many wonderful pieces.

Then it was back on the bus (we were using a school bus so it was easier to navigate the narrow streets of German Village) for our luncheon spot, Schmidt's Sausage Haus where we enjoyed a lovely buffet lunch of Bahama Mamas, Bratwurst, potato salad, tossed salad, saurkraut, and mini-cream puffs. For a number of years the German Village Schmidt's was our Friday Night date spot, but we hadn't been there for a number of years. Still has great food.

Then it was on to Trinity Episcopal Church down town on Capitol Square where we had a lecture and tour by the Rector, Richard Burnett. The congregation was founded in 1817 and the current building was designed by Gordon Lloyd in the Gothic Revival style and built after the Civil War. The Church in the World window on the west side was designed by William Kielblock and made by the Franklin Art Glass Co., and was dedicated in 1965.  I'd heard about it for years--unfortunately, in 1970 a new organ completely obscured the window from view on the inside, where we were. I understand that you can see it from the outside with interior illumination.  It has been criticized as too secular, with flags of the U.S., landmarks of the statehouse, O'Shaughnessy Dam, city skyscrapers, Port Columbus airport, John Glenn's spacecraft, etc., as though the church is embracing the world. I guess I'll never have the opportunity to judge!  The windows behind the altar had also been somewhat obscured by a huge skyscraper blocking the light--and light is always a partner in art glass. They were in the art deco style.

Then it was a short bus ride to St. Joseph Cathedral which began as a modest brick church building in 1866, but was rebuilt soon after as a stone cathedral when the Diocese of Columbus was established.  The lot size was rather small, so the cathedral is not large.  Conestoga had a Christmas dinner here several years ago, so we had already had a tour of the organ loft, which is really incredible.  We also had a brief concert while we were there.  The windows were replaced during the WWI era, and because of the war, had been buried for awhile in Germany to protect them. They were made by F. X. Zettler of the Royal Bavarian Art Institute. Names of donors appear on the windows.

Our final stop was Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church, and I just don't have words to describe the loveliness of this church and our spectacular guide, who was able to explain all the mosaic art and also provide a wonderful evangelistic story of faith, symbols, and art. It's just amazing what a faithful, small group of Greek immigrants were able to do. All the mosaics were made by Bruno Salvatori of Florence, Italy, and are spectacular in detail and beauty. They consist of about five million tiles of Venetian glass and 24-carat gold.  There's not another church in Columbus (or maybe Ohio) that tells the gospel better through its art.
Check here for further details.

It was a long day, but we came home tired and fulfilled and spiritually uplifted.

Our Conestoga, mid-winter, beat the blahs trip

We had a great time on our bus tour of Columbus today. The Columbus Historical Society offers this tour and can make special arrangements for your group.

"Travel through Downtown with its historical centerpiece, the Ohio Statehouse, and the new Columbus Commons; the Short North Arts District; German Village, the Arena District; Olde Towne East; the Discovery District; Franklin Park and much more. Listen to stories of national significance, international intrigue and local history and lore." http://columbushistory.org/bus-tour-2015

We had a great guide and I learned a lot I didn't know. For instance, in the 19th century, the finest homes and mansions were usually built on the east side of town (there are wonderful old houses on Columbus’ east side).  That’s so the sun was behind them when traveling to or from work.  We had lunch at the Governor's mansion, a delicious box lunch from Panera’s,  with a talk about its 70 year history and residents and visitors. President Reagan had been there (when running for president), as well as John F. Kennedy, and many other candidates seeking support from Ohioans.  Many interesting pieces are not original to the home, but came from the Mansfield Penitentiary storage facility where they’d been stored for decades because about 100 years ago it had a training school in woodworking.   One of the first ladies loved tag sales and one item she got for $500 is estimated to be worth about $15,000. Then it was back on the bus and off to Capital University to see a photography show about the Kennedys by Stanley Tretick, "Capturing Camelot" which will be available until March 25.

In the show about the Kennedys we saw at Capital University there was one photograph that noted the Nixon-Kennedy televised debate in 1960 and how Kennedy looked so tan (it was b & w TV) and Nixon who was recovering from surgery was so pale. What looked like a tan was Addison's Disease and Kennedy actually was abnormally bronze colored, and not a very healthy man, with other health problems. And it possibly won him the election, because it was neck and neck until that debate and Nixon looked so bad.

Today I did go

 

Today I visited Green Lawn Cemetery in Columbus, Ohio, with the Conestoga group. Many famous people await the resurrection here, many species of trees, wonderful sculptures, and hundreds of stories (about 147,000) known only to the families. I'd driven past it for 47 years, and finally visited.  The average temperature this time of year is usually 55, but it was 31, and we were pretty cold.  The Docent did a wonderful job.  I hope to go again when the weather is nice.  Three OSU presidents, Edward Orton, William Oxley Thompson, and George W. Rightmire are buried there and five Ohio governors.   Also, Captain Eddie Rickenbacker, famous WWI pilot.  Samuel P. Bush, grandfather and great grandfather of Bush 41 and 43 is also there. There are over 150 species of trees, and it’s a favorite spot for migratory birds.

The history of beer

I have never tasted beer. Not once. The smell puts me off. But yesterday our Conestoga (Ohio history) group attended a fascinating lecture on the history of beer in the world, in the U.S., in Ohio and Columbus, and the growth of craft beers. I learned why you should never drink beer out of a bottle and why you want to have as much foam as possible when you pour it into a glass. Our instructor at the Winking Lizard was Richard Seemueller, lifelong beer enthusiast. Retired brewer of 38 years turned beer educator, he's an excellent host, presenter and author. He is a "beer ambassador" for the Master Brewers Association of the Americas. We also learned a little about the interesting architecture of brewery sites--many in Columbus which have been converted to other uses.

Now about drinking from a glass, and how to pour it into the glass. He explained that the mouth can sense 4 tastes (sweet, sour, bitter, salty), but the nose can pick up hundreds (it actually can detect many thousands, but there aren't that many in a beer) and so you loose much of the beer experience if you don't have it in a glass. We did that experiment with gum drops and pinching our noses closed while eating them. No flavor. And the reason you want to pour it to encourage the foam is to release the gas (carbon dioxide and/or nitrogen). He poured it two different ways, then inserted a folded paper towel in each glass to simulate eating something after the beer was in the stomach. When more gas has been expelled before swallowing, there is less bloat in the stomach with food.

http://www.mbaa.com/districts/midwest/About/Pages/District-Cincinnati-Profile---Rick-Seemueller.aspx

Friday Family Photo—our trip to Blennerhasset Island

We had a wonderful trip to Parkersburg, WV yesterday with our Conestoga group to visit the Blennerhasset Island and Museum. Conestoga is a "friends" type group that supports Ohio History Connection (aka Ohio Historical Society). It was founded in 1986 and has raised over $530,000 to support the mission of preserving Ohio's history.

We had a tour of a museum, the Blennerhasset mansion, a carriage ride and a paddle boat ride on the river to get to the island.

Our transportation to the island was via a paddle boat, Island Belle, which made the crossing about once an hour.  By the time we returned in the afternoon, we had bright sun light.

The home burned down in 1811, and was restored by a foundation that used archeology and old family letters to restore it. Harman Blennerhassett was from a wealthy Irish family and appointed the home with silver hardware, gold leaf trim, and expensive oriental rugs. The family had left before the fire when they experienced financial and political challenges so most of the furniture had been sold locally. Some has been repurchased by the foundation.  Most of the furniture is authentic to the period, but not the family. It was considered the most beautiful home in Virginia (was part of Virginia before the Civil War.)

In 1806 Harmon Blennerhasset became involved with Aaron Burr financially; Burr was accused of treason and Blennerhassett went to prison for awhile. They didn’t live on the island even a decade and the rest of their family history is just loss and financial ruin.

The tour group was divided, and here we're waiting to see the kitchen which was separated from the main house. The family came from Ireland and brought servants with them. Even with a lot of servants, food preparation in 1800 was extremely challenging on an open hearth.  The other small building connected to the house was the owner’s study.

Haflinger horses are very hardy, a breed from Austria and northern Italy. They stay on the island all during the season, then the owners take them to West Virginia to winter at the family farm where they do various winter season events. The driver also acted as a tour guide with some history of the other buildings on the island and told about the crops that were raised there.

“After leaving the island, “Harman Blennerhassett purchased a small cotton plantation and moved his family to the Mississippi Territory. Their stay at the plantation was short-lived, however, when declining cotton prices and crop failures forced this once proud family to return to Ireland and survive only by the grace and pity of an older sister of Blennerhassett. Harman Blennerhassett died a devastated man on February 2, 1831 from a series of apoplectic strokes. Margaret Blennerhassett survived her husband by eleven painful years, only to give way to poverty and disease in the summer of 1842.

The Blennerhassetts, once the inhabitants of an impeccable island paradise and the toast of the Ohio Valley, had witnessed the destruction of their nearly Utopian existence, and had resorted to living off of the incomes of various family members, including their two eldest sons. In all, the Blennerhassetts conceived five children, although they adopted another. Two sons and a daughter were born on Blennerhassett Island, but only the sons survived infancy. Once settled onto their Mississippi plantation, Margaret Blennerhassett bore two more children, a son and a daughter. Once again, however, the daughter died in infancy. Of the Blennerhassett sons only the youngest bore children, none of which reached adulthood, and when he himself passed in 1862, the Blennerhassett name died with him.”  Source.

http://www.earlyamerica.com/review/2006_winter_spring/blennerhassett.html

http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/w/Harman_Blennerhassett

Lunch at the new art hotel, The Hilton

And then after that breath taking show, our Conestoga group went to the new Hilton, had a fabulous lunch in the  Gallerie Bar & Bistro, a 160-seat full-service restaurant and bar and then another art show which hangs throughout the hotel, much of it commissioned by Ohio artists, others purchased from galleries. The pointillist painting behind the front desk isn’t even a painting, it’s the skyline created by Granville, Ohio artist Christian Faur and is made of 30,000 crayons!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-mBBtgTlrA

The dining area is really lovely.  The art that you can see in the very open area--15,000-foot tall atrium--has a theme—food, or dishes, or glassware, or eatery signs. The artwork is through out the hotel, displayed in functional space, guest rooms (with paintings on the ceiling) and public areas of the hotel and all the furniture, rugs, sculpture, windows, flowers, colors, etc. make it all one big art space. Everything was a feast for the eyes. Our group was divided in the three and we had tour guides.

The food was delicious—everyone at our table agreed on that.  Sorry, I didn’t see the prices listed anywhere since we had paid in advance, so I can’t give you a heads up.

Learning Ohio’s history

We're members of Conestoga--a friends group to support the Ohio Historical Society. It seems to me that if you don't grow up in a state, you just don't absorb its history, so I'm learning what school children (in my era) would have learned in state history class. Today we're going over to the Fawcett Center for Tomorrow to hear about WOSU. If you would be interested in joining this interesting educational/philanthropic/social group check out the web site. http://www.ohiohistory.org/support-ohs/conestoga

Licensed to The Ohio State University, WOSU has been a vital community resource since 1922. It has evolved into multiple services consisting of Classical 101 (FM); 89.7 NPR News (FM); WOSU TV and its sister station, WPBO TV; and regional FM stations in four other Ohio communities. WOSU television covers a quarter of Ohio reaching over 900,000 households.

http://wosu.org/2012/about/wosu-history/

Thursday Thirteen Christmas season 2013

Christmas  these days seems to begin around Halloween when Christmas themed merchandise appears in the stores, although for some retailers it’s even earlier and you see craft and decorating items stocked in strategic places.  This year Thanksgiving was the latest it could be and so the festivities and shopping had one less week. Our holiday season was saddened by the death of brother in law John Sterling, whom we had visited in October in California. He died the Sunday before Thanksgiving.  For us, Christmas more or less began at Thanksgiving when we began to discuss how we would do the holidays.  Usually our daughter has Thanksgiving dinner, but her father-in-law who lives in  Cleveland and who has been ill, was unable to travel, so they needed to be free “just in case,” so we had dinner here, and decided that I would host the family on Christmas Eve, and then we’d all go to our daughter’s for Christmas Day. I fixed a huge turkey, and we’ve had leftovers off and on since.  So beginning with Thanksgiving, we all went to church together at the Lytham Road campus of Upper Arlington Lutheran Church at 10 a.m. where we had worshipped when the children were growing up (began attending in 1974 and joined on Palm Sunday 1976).  Pastor TJ Anderson, our new senior pastor, gave the sermon. At this service we bring sacks of groceries to be distributed by the Lutheran Food Pantry. Our location of UALC has a traditional style worship with hymns and organ; Mill Run has contemporary style worship with praise songs and communion.

1.  On Wednesday, December 4, we attended with our neighbors Tom and Joyce the annual Conestoga (friends of the Ohio Historical Society) Holiday Party at The Boat House at Confluence Park. It was a lovely venue with views of the river and the downtown skyline lit up for Christmas.  Conestoga has 203 individual members and we learn about Ohio history, travel around the state together visiting historical places, and have fund raisers.  All the money supports the Ohio Historical Society. Our current endowment is about $66,000.

2. Mid-week day time Advent services are held on Thursday at the Lytham Rd. location, and we served communion on December 5.  Wednesday evening services are held at our Mill Run Campus. Usually serve at all these Thursday services, but this year we had conflicts on the other two dates. These services are followed by lunch in the fellowship hall.  Generally, it’s an older crowd, and follows the Thursday morning Bible study.

3.  On December 7, the combined choirs of Lytham and Mill Run presented a wonderful Christmas Concert on Saturday evening, “Glory, Peace, Joy” with conductors Brian Carlton and Michael Martin, with an orchestra. Members of our pastoral staff gave the readings from Isaiah, Colossians, Luke, and Matthew. I sat with the other women of our SALT group—our husbands were at home watching the OSU-Michigan football game, and they missed a beautiful concert.

4. On Sunday December 8, we attended our own service (8:15) and the 9:30 Celebration Service at Lytham, so we could participate in the installation of Pastor Thomas J. Anderson. Pastor David Wendel, assistant to the NALC Bishop performed the installation, with Pastors Brodie Taphorn and Buff Delcamp participating. Pastor TJ follows Pastor Paul Ulring who ended his service with the church in September. Pastor TJ said, “My primary mission is to kick you out of the nest.”

5. We were thrilled to have our friends Martti and Riitta Tulamo of Helsinki, Finland with us December 11-13.  We did some touring of the OSU campus where Riitta was a student at the veterinary college in 1978-80.  We spent a lot of time together in those days, so our children remember them well, and we had a dinner here on Friday night before taking them to the Brens where they would enjoy a few days, then going to the Rigolli home in Worthington before returning to Finland. We attended Advent services on Thursday and then stayed for a very nice lunch of lasagna and salad.

6. On Saturday December 14 our church’s Mission ministry had a pot luck at the home of the Camerons to meet with our missionaries Dave and Pam Mann who teach in Haiti and are home during the month of December.  It was so good to see them, and hear about what is happening at the school and clinic.

7.  On Sunday December 15 members of Conestoga were invited to a buffet and program at the Ohio Historical Society.  We went with our neighbors the Rieslings. The theme for this fall/winter has been the 50s—and there is a Lustron on display, so it was decorated with the much more simple décor of the 1950, including an aluminum tree and plastic poinsettias.

8.. Party with Faith of our Fathers study group Monday Dec. 16 and my  first training session with the Pregnancy Decision Health Center on Wednesday Dec. 18 where I hope to continue volunteering.  This is a Christian ministry that saves lives—of babies, but also mothers who may be in great distress with a pregnancy

9. Party for condo association hosted by the Thompson and Rieslings on Sunday Dec. 22.  The Thompsons had their twin 18 month old granddaughters with them, which really enhanced the environment. Joan and Joyce put out a beautiful spread of of wonderful food, and I think I gained back all the weight (6 lbs) I’ve struggled to lose during the fall.

10. We had a get together after exercise class at instructor Christine’s home on Monday December 23, and will have a 2 week hiatus.

11. We hosted our family for Christmas Eve for dinner—ham, roasted squash, potato salad, mixed fruit, cookies. Then together we attended the  UALC  9 p.m. service.  On  Christmas Day, we opened gifts at home after a leisurely morning, then attended church at 10 a.m. where we served Communion, and then went to our daughter and son-in-law’s for a lovely Christmas dinner and more gifts. Such lovely thoughtful gifts, and my daughter spiffed up my wardrobe, something I always look forward to.

12.  Friends of ours are hosting events in their homes in the next week, on Saturday December 28  the Sloughs, and on Monday evening December 30, the Zimmers.

13.  We will attend the New Year’s Eve Jazz Concert and Worship with Communion at our Mill Run church on Tuesday December 31 beginning at 5:30 for music and 6:00 for worship.

Road Trip

Hope to have some good photos to post when I get back, but it is very gray and rainy. Conestoga is a great group which supports the Ohio Historical Society. Ohio is part of the original expansion of the colonies, the old Northwest Territory. The NW Ordinance set the bar very high--no slavery, the importance of education and religion, setting up elections, etc. There are so many interesting historical sites in Ohio, that it would not be possible to visit them all--but we'll make a stab at it.

Conestoga trip to the Air Force Museum, pt. 3

After lunch in the cafeteria we attended the IMAX showing of "Fighter pilot, operation red flag" about the final training of a young pilot, with memories of his grandfather who fought in WWII.

It's so realistic, I had my eyes closed during most of the film. Then we continued our walking tour (without a guide) starting with the Korean War, then the Cold War, then Vietnam and southeast Asia, visiting the space flights and finally a look at our current wars (except Libya). We then gathered in the lobby for the next part of our trip, dinner at the historic Red Brick Tavern on Rt. 40 near London, Ohio.

I think this is a Thunderjet, used in the Korean War, but the light was so poor, I can't see the number. According to Wikipedia, "the Thunderjet became the Air Force's primary strike aircraft during the Korean War, flying 86,408 missions and destroying 60% of all ground targets in the war as well as eight Soviet-built MiG fighters." The better photo is from the museum site.

Symbol of the Cold War--the checkpoint and the Berlin Blockade. There was quite a display of the provisions flown into Berlin.

USAF 517 Grumman HU-16 B Albatross arrived here in July 1973. According to the website, "Grumman designed the versatile Albatross to meet a U.S. Navy requirement for an amphibious utility aircraft which could also operate from snow and ice with skis. During the Korean War, Albatrosses rescued almost 1,000 United Nations personnel from coastal waters and rivers, often behind enemy lines. They also made numerous dramatic and hazardous rescues in Southeast Asia, on occasion taxiing many miles over rough, open water when unable to take off."

I think the Iraq war display was in the Cold War area.

Conestoga trip to the Air Force Museum, pt. 2

There's no way to describe how BIG the museum at Wright Patterson is; but here's an idea--there's an early years of air flight gallery, a WWII gallery (we toured 1934-1945 with a guide for 2 hours), a Korean War gallery; a Southeast Asian war gallery (being renovated); a Cold War gallery; a missile and space gallery; a presidential R&D gallery; middle east wars section (don't know if it's considered a gallery since much of that aircraft hasn't been retired); and various outdoor exhibits. The campus is 17 acres and includes nearly one million square feet of public exhibit space with more than 360 aerospace vehicles and missiles and thousands of historical artifacts on display.

I came away with a new respect for the way wars advance technology in all areas and change entire cultures almost overnight--at least in hind sight. The exhibits have been updated and expanded to bring more focus on people and events as well as the hardware of airplanes, military transport, jets and equipment. Many displays had full size mannequins to illustrate a particular event, like a training accident or Jimmy Doolittle.

It was also stunning to see by walking through these huge hangers that my entire lifetime the U.S. has been at war. When I was younger, I'd say, "When the war is over. . . " and now I know better. I knew that intellectually (I was born as Hitler marched into Poland), and even the era I think of as relatively peaceful was called The Cold War. I know our wars stretch from King Philip's War in the 1600s to Obama's War in Libya in 2011--wars with Indians, Mexicans, Muslims, British, Germans, Russians, Vietnamese--but I wish it weren't so. And if Americans weren't suffering and dying, many Russians and East Europeans and Germans were. Plus, the U.S. has bases all over the world--I think at least 662 in 38 foreign countries either owned or leased--for a total of 4,999 counting our home bases--with advisers, trainers, soldiers, mechanics, spies, librarians, etc. whose lives are constantly at risk.

Conestoga trip to the Wright Patterson Air Force Museum

On Wednesday, April 21, our Conestoga group (an organization that supports the Ohio Historical Society) toured the National Museum of the United States Airforce at Wright Patterson Air Force base near Dayton, Ohio. Although we'd been driving past the direction signs for 43 years and wondered about it, we'd never been there. It's our loss. This is a fabulous place, and it's free! If you live within a hundred miles, it's an easy trip with good roads, and you won't regret it. Our tour guide, Dan, suggested beginning our morning tour with the mid-1930s to see what military aircraft was before the war and closing with the ending of WWII at lunch, then either taking in an IMAX film or accompanying him with more touring. Those who'd visited several times chose to continue touring with Dan (he was an outstanding guide), but we chose the IMAX.

Our tour began with the Boeing P26-A, the Peashooter, which was the first all metal monoplane, and ended with the plane Bockscar, that dropped the bomb the Fat Man atomic bomb on Nagasaki on Aug. 9, 1945. The lighting was so dim inside the huge building, most of my photos really didn’t turn out well enough to post, but here is the Peashooter from a media photo (outside) and mine. What we saw was a reproduction, but they were used by the U.S. from 1933 to 1938, and then later by the Chinese and the Phillipines. It was really amazing to see how the technology changed so quickly in just 10 years--particularly when we saw the German made V-1 and 2 rockets.

Use of the atomic bomb over Hiroshima and Nagasaki is still questioned by some, but I do believe it saved lives in the long run--particularly of Americans because the U.S. would have lost many more soldiers in an invasion. And I know it’s a controversial idea in these days of dithering about troup strength in old wars while rushing into no-fly zones in new wars with political negotiating only to kick the can down the road, but the point of war is to win (and that means killing people and destroying property and resources). But it probably also saved Japanese lives because incendiary bombs were used on 60 cities between November 1944 and July 1945 in Japan resulting in approximately 800,000 casualties and deaths. The use of the atomic bomb against Hiroshima and Nagasaki actually produced fewer casualties in each case than the 3-day bombing of Tokyo earlier in 1945. Considering how many Japanese gave their lives for 2 tiny islands, Iwo Jima and Okinawa (121,000), American leaders concluded, rightly I think, they would defend their homeland even more fiercely.

Photo from B-29 source

Conestoga Spring Soiree

Soiree. Doesn't that sound classy? Well, it was a lovely event, and I learned a lot of history. Conestoga is sort of a "friends" group of the Ohio Historical Society. We do really interesting things and once a year there is a fund raiser. This year it was at the Bricker-Doody House in Upper Arlington. I've driven past that house for 40+ years, so it was fun to get a peek inside, and to also learn the history of John Bricker, former Ohio Governor and Senator. He was Attorney General from 1933-37, Governor, 1939-1945, and in 1944 he was the Republican nominee for Vice President on Thomas E. Dewey ticket.

A reenactor performed as Senator William E. Jenner of Indiana, reminiscing about his days in the Senate with Bricker from the perspective of 1980 looking back on their careers (Bricker died in 1986, Jenner in 1985). It was fascinating. Also two of Gov. Bricker's grandchildren shared memories of staying in the house when they were children.

The home has been beautifully restored and expanded, and it was so nice of the Doody family to share it with us for a good cause.