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Civil War Week at Lakeside

I'd planned to blog about some of the great lectures and musical programs this week at Lakeside that feature the U.S. Civil War, however, Tell Toledo has done such a good job, I'll just refer you there. I will add that the power point failed for Randall Buchman's talk on Mr. Lincoln's 11 train trips through Ohio (last one was the funeral train), so he did the whole thing without visuals. But you know what? When a guy is as good as this retired professor, it didn't make a bit of difference. We could see everything he described!

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Who wants to be a millionaire?

Rev. Jacob Frank Schulman and his wife Alice invested 25% of their income each year (married in 1954). He died in 2006 at 78 with an estate of over $20,000,000. Over the years they have been donors to various Unitarian causes, a branch of Christianity to which he converted in the 1950s. The story was in the WSJ today.

From his obituary: "Dr. Schulman was born March 26, 1927 in Nashville, Tennessee. He had an outstanding academic life with degrees from the following institutions: B.A. - University of Oklahoma; S.T.B. - Harvard University; D.Min. and D.D. - Meadville Lombard Theological School; M.A., D.Phil.,B.D. - University of Oxford.

Mr. Schulman was ordained in the Unitarian ministry in 1954 at the Arlington Street Church, Boston, Massachusetts. He served many congregations: Arlington Street Church, Boston; First Unitarian Church, Worcester, Mass.; First Unitarian Church, Youngstown, Ohio; Emerson Unitarian Church, Houston, Texas; Unitarian Church of Horsham, West Sussex, England; and Huntsville Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in
Texas. His last position before retirement was as Chaplain and Dean and Fellow in Theology at the Harris Manchester College, University of Oxford. Mr. Schulman was also named Minister Emeritus at Emerson Unitarian Church of Houston and at All Souls Church Unitarian Universalist, The Woodlands, Texas.

Frank Schulman was a prolific writer of books, pamphlets, and articles on topics from "Blasphemous and Wicked: The Unitarian Struggle for Equality, 1813-1844" (1997) to the pamphlet he edited, "Ralph Waldo Emerson Speaks." In addition, he was a sought-after lecturer, delivering the Berry Street Lecture (1981); the Minns Lecture (1982); and the Billings Lecture (1983). Mr. Schulman also served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and the Korean War."

However, if you're not interested in the pay of a minister and scholar, you might also consider sending your 18 year old to a state school instead of a private, or ivy-league college, and investing the difference each year in the stock market for the long haul. Your student will probably come out of this decision at age 50 or 60 thanking you and piling flowers on your grave. Plus s/he won't have that huge debt at graduation.

Thursday Thirteen--How I spent my summer

We have a summer home on Lake Erie in Lakeside, Ohio, a Chautauqua community established in 1873, which offers many activities and learning experiences. Here’s a few of the things I did this summer, but not all at Lakeside.

1. Reunions in Indiana and Illinois: Attended the 50th class reunions of Arsenal Technical High School (Indianapolis) class of 1957 and Mt. Morris High School (Illinois) class of 1957, seeing many friends and some former faculty. Had great family get-togethers with my siblings, their children, my parents’ siblings, my husband’s siblings and their children.

With 2 of my nieces
2. Science and social science: Attended several geology lectures by Charles Herdendorf (OSU) about the Great Lakes and sunken ships. They were so interesting I wished I’d taken a geology science elective instead of chemistry. Also attended lectures on Asia (Korea and Taiwan) by Eugene Swanger, always fascinating. Civil War lectures this week were detailed and informative on Lincoln and battles of the war.

3. Endured three laptop failures, losing all information when the software was reloaded. I had to blog from the hotel lobby a few mornings. I've reloaded for the 3rd time, and I'm NOT updating some of the available software, including MS thinking that may be the problem.

4. Enjoyed two ferry trips to Put-in-Bay, once to visit friends who have a cottage there and tour the island, and then with my husband’s sister Debbie and her husband John from California. New visitors' center is wonderful. Great restaurants.

5. Enjoyed lots of early morning cups of coffee at Coffee and Cream where I watch the news channel and read the papers, planning my blogs, and chat with other vacationers and residents. I see lots of daddies on early a.m. duty with kiddoes in the p.j.'s.

6. Helped some of my neighbors rescue feral kittens, finding a home for one of them. Saving the world, one kitten at a time.


7. Writing: Took a writing class with Patricia Mote at the Rhein Center for the Living Arts.

8. Art: Attended a watercolor workshop one evening, but another class I’d signed up for was cancelled. Attended two lectures with Rustin Levenson, an art preservationist and restorer. Purchased a painting by Robert Moyer from the Lakeside Art Show. My husband has sold 7 of his paintings and many prints, which will help finance the trip to Ireland in the fall. Toured the Ohio Supreme Court Building and State House to see the art (in Columbus). The Court building was a WPA project and has murals, mosaics, decorative plaster, bas-relief sculpture and bronze ornaments and a very interesting law library open to the public.

9. Food: Maintained my winter weight loss despite the constant temptations of Lakeside’s business district--delis, ice cream shops, fresh do-nuts, and Abigail’s Tea Room. Tried a delicious blueberry dessert I saw in the Plain Dealer--twice. Also yummy visits to Schmidt’s, Salvi’s and Rusty Bucket in Columbus with friends and family.

10. Movies: "Amazing Grace" and "Away from Her." Julie Christie is still beautiful. However, because it is about Alzheimer's, it's a bit of a downer. Lakeside has the only movie theater in this county.

11. Read: A book of short stories by Alice Munro, one was the story on which the movie "Away from Her" was based. Also listened to two audio books on my walks, and read numerous journals and blogs. From my own bookshelves I loaned 2 novels. Borrowed a book on Canada travel for a future trip, and brought along 2 on Ireland which I haven't opened.

12. Walked: not quite the 250 miles I want to do before September 3, but I’ve got a few days left to do some more. I think I've done about 150.

13. Attended some fabulous programs at Hoover Auditorium and other Lakeside spots, including Phil Dirt and the Dozers, Mike Albert the Big-E, Chapter Six, Verb Ballet, Banu Gibson, "Whose line is it anyway?" Gaelic Storm, Johnny Knorr (dance band with dancing), 8 performances by the Lakeside symphony, Mary Wilson, Brasilia, and The Dodworth Saxhorn Band. There will be a few more programs next week but we'll be back in Columbus.

Well, that about ties it up for the summer. Family, friends, great programming, good food, and of course, many sunsets, a lot of rain (although we haven't flooded yet in this area), church on the lakefront, and blogging.

Check out other TT-ers at the Thursday Thirteen Hub.

Poetry Thursday

I can't find that I posted this poem which I wrote in July 2003. It is based on two incidents 57 years apart.

Pet in the Road at 163 and 269
July 27, 2003

You are sleeping tucked away in bed
when I see your pet.
You are dreaming of the beach
as I pass at 6 a.m.

You didn't see her slip out the door
for that one last chase.
You realize she is missing
when no friend is waiting.

You hide your face and hot tears
when the stranger stops to help.
You turn to your big sisters,
but they are all crying too.

You will keep her in your heart
though your arms are empty now.
You will weep years later
as you pass a pet in the road.

You just never know

I've learned a lot about food allergies reading Janeen's blog who has children with food allergies. You'll be surprised by what's in your wine that could cause an allergic reaction.

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Balancing work and children

It’s not something you usually see a homeschooler/blogger writing about--it seems to be a conflict that employed mothers have. But Sherry, who writes a wonderful book review blog says:

"I have this theory that it’s important for children to see you doing something you love —for me that’s reading and blogging— at least some of the time. Not that I read and blog just to show my children how important those activities are, but I think for them to develop a love for reading, they need to see me reading. Engineer Husband loves science and math, so as they see him doing science and math, they begin to enjoy those subjects, too."

As much as I respect her book reviews, I’ve just got to disagree a little bit. As reported here before, some children will never enjoy reading, and will not grow up to be readers, and particularly will not grow up to be library users, even if they do read books. My children always saw me reading, I read to them, and I taught them to read, and I took them to the library to check out their own books, and they always received books as gifts for birthdays and Christmas, and for no reason at all. Phffft. One doesn’t read at all and hated school; the other loved school and will only read books in hard cover that she personally has purchased and only by a select group of authors.

Here’s my take:

Far sighted children are less likely than near sighted to be engaged readers, even with glasses for correct vision

Athletic children are less likely to chose a good book to entertain themselves

Children who are intuitive and sensitive and love a crowd to charm, are less likely to hang out in libraries or hit the books after school

If your son is a stud muffin, he's much less likely to be a reader than if he's a geek.

Children are born either readers or non-readers, in my opinion. You can stifle it, discourage it, make it difficult for them to get books; their friends can tease them, or exclude them for reading, but if they are readers and derive pleasure from it, they will find a way--billboards, cereal boxes, instructions on games, crawlers on movie screens. The non-readers--well, you can lead them to the library and load them up, but you can’t make them like it. Neither of my adult children have library cards.

This mother's advice: read to your children because you like the story or pictures, and it is good cuddle time. There are other things more important than reading.

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Soldier-moms have work-family conflicts

Now isn't that a big surprise! Women in the Air Force who have served in war zones have a work-family conflict that might be related to PTSD. Weren't the feminists warned this might be the case back in the 70s when they were still insisting there should be were no gender distinctions and differences? Story here. The study was presented at the American Psychological Association annual meeting in San Francisco this month, but I don't see that it has been published in a peer-reviewed journal, so be advised.

The Againstocrats--a review

You'll find the complete review of The Argument: Billionaires, Bloggers and the Battle to remake Democratic politics by Matt Bai, reviewed by Fred Siegal in City Journal. After exposing the fleshy pink underside of the power hungry billionaires and Moveonskis, he gets to bloggers. My personal favorite:

The bloggers, for their part, are as emotionally stunted as the billionaires, but as inhabitants of "a fantasy game inflected world," far less literate: "The Daily Kos and other blogs resemble a political version of those escapist online games where anyone with a modem can disappear into an alternate society, reinventing himself among neighbors and colleagues who exist only in a virtual realm." Bai adds: "One of the hallmarks of the netroots culture was a complete disconnect from history—meaning basically anything that happened before 1998." Unlike the radicals of the 1960s, who knew something of the anti-Stalinism that had preceded them but dismissed its significance for their time, the bloggers take pride in their ignorance. In the eyes of the bloggers, "the more history you knew," explains Bai, "the more bogged down and less relevant you were likely to be."

But if they were short on learning and thinking, they were long on "profanity, hyperbole, and conspiracy theories." America, the bloggers believe, yearns to be governed by Deanlike Democrats, but is thwarted by so-called moderates willing to compromise with the Republican foe. Like sixties radicals, the bloggers see moderates as the real enemy, but unlike them, they have no positive ideology. Markos Moulitsas Zúniga, founder of the influential Daily Kos blog, insists, "I'm not ideological at all, I’m just all about [Democrats'] winning."

You'll not find a more interesting or well-written on-line journal than City Journal. Summer 2007 issue now available.

Monday Memories--Mamas and Papas

Enjoy. John Phillips and his daughter MacKenzie and 2 other drop outs from other groups sang here at Lakeside maybe 10-15 years ago. I think they may have been called the New Mamas and Papas. I have one of their LPs--left behind by a tenant who ran out on her rent ca. 1966.

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Sugar: the new oil

Have you seen that new TV show CANE being advertised where the voiceover proclaims that "Sugar is the new oil?" Here's what's happening in Brazil with sugar as a biofuel. As seen at this Dept. of Commerce website.

• Brazil is the largest sugar cane producer (425.7 million tons produced in 2006/07 harvest).

• Brazil is also the world's biggest ethanol exporter (3.5 billion liters exported in 2006 or US$ 1.6 billion). The United States is the largest buyer of Brazilian ethanol when both direct and indirect exports are considered. The U.S. Government’s Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI) exempts imports from the Caribbean from payment of $0.54 per gallon import tariffs, encouraging Brazilian alcohol exports to that region. As a result, recorded exports to destination such as El Salvador, Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago and Costa Rica are generally destined for the U.S. market; however, exports tend to occur, for limited periods, when gas prices spike in the United States.

• World’s leader in ethanol production (Brazil has 351 producers who generate an output of 18 billion liters/year. About 15 billion liters are destined for internal Brazilian consumption and around three billion are exported.)

• The sugar-alcohol sector’s annual revenue is about US$20 billion (2006).

• 86 new ethanol projects should result in investments of US$17 B (US$14 B in new plants and US$ 3 B in existing plant expansions).

• 80% of flex fuel cars (filled with either alcohol or gasoline, or a mixture of both). In 2006, 1.4 million flex fuel cars were sold in the Brazilian market.

• Alcohol production average cost in Brazil: US$ 1.06/gallon (excludes freight and taxes)

• Petrobras’ large distribution and logistics network in Brazil has always played a key role to boost the ethanol program. The company is investing US$340 million through 2011 to expand its export ethanol infrastructure.

• Petrobras is Brazil’s largest ethanol buyer through its BR Distribuidora subsidiary.

• Petrobras is building ten micro ethanol refineries adopting a family production model. Petrobras is also partnering with Japanese Mitsui to build 40 plants to export ethanol to Japan.

The United States and Brazil are exploring ways to partner on developing second-generation biofuels.

Opportunities may exist in the future for US companies in the biomass to liquids (BTL) and lignocelulose arenas.

Just a thought. Burning sugar sure makes me hot. I wonder what it does for the environment?

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Glut of teachers in southwestern Ohio

Today's paper reported (AP) that school districts in Warren County are being flooded by applicants for job openings. More than 3,000 applied for 63 positions in Mason; 2,000 applied for 21 positions in Springboro near Dayton; and Lebanon had 800 applicantsfor 30 jobs. Even assuming that some applicants applied in all those places, that's a lot of teachers looking for jobs.

Guess who the union protects? The ones with the most experience--I'm not sure they can even accept entry level positions if they are willing. The districts are making the most of their dollar by hiring new grads. Starting salaries are around $34,000. Positions have been eliminated in some of the districts in that area as people move to the suburbs.

Feel badly for underpaid teachers? Study shows the average hourly wage is $34.06, and the districts with the highest pay like Detroit, New York and Los Angeles have the poorest test scores.

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Ohio Birds and Biodiversity

is the title of an interesting blog with some great photographs by Jim McCormac. Great photo of the paparazzi who just found a dragonfly. Britney and Paris look out!


Really terrific photos of unusual flora and fauna with explanations. I didn't know frogs attacked and ate birds, but he's got a photograph of one doing it.

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Lemon Cream Shea Butter

This is so yummy on your skin. I just love Shea Butter (butyrosermum parkii) which comes from a nut tree in Africa. I noticed a jar of J.R. Watkins Lemon Cream Shea Butter at Wal-Mart and bought a 130 g. jar. Marvelous! It's a Canadian company, and they have a web site from which you can order. J.R. Watkins Catalog Other ingredients include cocoa seed butter, apricot kernel oil, avocado oil, coconut oil, jojoba seed oil and a lot of unpronounceables, but I don't care. I just love shea butter. Do nut based cosmetics bother other people with nut allergies, I wonder?

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Annoyed Librarian's Blog

I hope s/he doesn't become so popular that there is a reveal or outing. I'm sure s/he loves the job. AL has passed the 100,000 viewers site meter mark and always garners many comments. AL has become a sounding board for many frustrated, unemployed librarians who were lured into expensive graduate programs with tales of shortages in librarianship. Librarianship is a very liberal profession, 223 to 1 liberal to conservative, but even libs need to eat and pay rent. Today s/he is skewering the Librarian 2.0 Manifesto published in the August issue of American Libraries, line by line, which is itself a take-off on Library 2.0.

"I will create open websites that allow users to join with librarians to contribute content in order to enhance their learning experience and provide assistance to their peers."

I don't want anyone contributing any content in order to enhance their "learning experience." If they want to contribute content, they can get their own website. Or better yet, a blog. Any moron can start a blog. (No wisecracks!)

Anti-2.0 manifesto

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Wiki-wacky wonks and wobblies

Conservatives should be making a stronger presence in using wikis on the internet. Not all are Wikipedia. All sorts are cropping up in every field, but the liberals are running away with this genre. There is a new Encyclopedia of the Earth that is well financed, supported by liberal think tanks and non-profits, and because it is free, you just know that's where the school children will be going. There is a complete book included chapter by chapter, "Climate Change and Foreign Policy" by the International Institute for Sustainable Development, a Canadian (i.e. global) non-profit. Its agenda: promote the needs of the poor through limits set by the state on technology and social organization or some similar socialist/progressive/Marxist chatter.

I'm sure the contributors to the enclyclopedia will have a long line of credentials behind their names, drawing on our finest academic departments from our most liberal universities. Someone with more sleuthing experience than I, like American Daughter or Amy, needs to take a look at this.

I'm 100% in favor of taking care of God's creation--after all, it's the marching orders for Christians from the Bible, but not when animals, plants and political parties come before human beings in a pantheistic based faith promoted by the left.

PS: You won't want to miss the article on Totems (animal worship in the form of carved statues) and how it can be the basis for environmental laws. It's in the same section as fundamental legal rights for animals.

Successful in starting businesses

I saw a small item in the WSJ that successful business start ups are more likely to come from the top 25% income group than the bottom. Well, doh! You mean having educated parents who stay married and provide you with the better things in life really makes a difference? Who'da thunk it.

Didn't Ronald Reagen say something about the difference between a small businessman and a big businessman being the government getting out of the way: see the quote here.

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Al Qaeda's Travel Agent

Be sure to check out Joe Lieberman's opinion piece in the WSJ today. He says,

When Congress reconvenes next month, we should set aside whatever differences divide us on Iraq and send a clear and unambiguous message to the Syrian regime. . .

His suggestion is that we stop all flights into Damascus International to close off Al Qaeda's supply line and stop the murders in Iraq. Of course, it really is a no brainer. However, we've learned since 9/11 that Democrats have no interest in protecting us or the Iraqi people, they only want to bring down the Bush administration. Bush is the #1 enemy, is their rant, and they are sticking with it. Anything that makes sense even from a fellow Democrat, doesn't stand a chance.

Everyone's talking about the weather

It really doesn't make much sense to discuss the weather on a blog, but I will anyway. That's not particularly fascinating for someone in Florida or India. We're getting dumped on big time here in northern Ohio--the drought is definitely over. Yesterday storm after storm rolled in and I even turned the heat on for awhile, even though it is supposed to get in the 90s again in a day or two. To walk to Coffee and Cream, the coffee shop, this morning I tied two plastic bags around my feet covering the bottom of my jeans, put on a hooded rain coat, wrapped my notebook in a bag, wore the coat over my purse, and carried a beach umbrella. There were no puddles less than 2" deep, but the bags held, and I was mostly dry by the time I got there. The fabric above the bags and below the jacket was a bit damp. I threw the bags away, having brought two extra ones with me, but when I left, the rain had slacked a bit. Now it is back, and it looks like a river running down our street. Toledo and Detroit are cancelling a lot of events. I'm signed up for guitar lessons today, but if this keeps up, I won't make it.

The son who transcended his father's failures

A very interesting article about Arthur Miller's son, who was hidden away most of his life because he had Down Syndrome.

Daniel Miller, they say, is a "guy who's made a difference in a lot of lives." They also say he is someone who, considering the challenges of his life, has in his own way achieved as much as his father did. The way Arthur Miller treated him baffles some people and angers others. But the question asked by friends of the father and of the son is the same: How could a man who, in the words of one close friend of Miller's, "had such a great world reputation for morality and pursuing justice do something like this"?

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Great Travel Blog for midwesterners

The Cleveland Plain Dealer has a really nice travel blog, especially if you live in the midwest. I've seen a lot of things for Ohio that I didn't know about. To my knowledge, it hasn't covered the Fall Warbler Symposium here at Lakeside September 8-9 (although it may be in the archives). I picked up the brochure at the hotel--didn't know there was such a program, but then I'm not very knowledgeable about birds. For details you can visit one of the sponsors, or this blog. Speakers include a biologist and ornithologist,, acoustic monitor, field guide authors, and globe trotting tour guide.