This week’s Veterans Day observance could not arrive at a more important time for our nation -- as a reminder and as a reflection. If there is a single national day of honor on the calendar that can and should serve to unite us, it’s this one.
Veterans Day offers a chance to pause to remember the fundamental greatness of the United States of America and those who have made it so, and then to keep pushing forward – pushing forward to find solid ground again during a time that has upended s
As summer’s warmth gives way to the cooler days of fall, our thoughts turn to cold-weather projects, and that of storing food for the coming winter. Without that process, our ancestors would be hard pressed to get through the bitter cold months, unless, of course, you could afford to purchase all your food supplies at the local general store.
Once upon a time, most families cultivated large vegetable gardens and raised a barnyard menagerie to put food by for the coming winter – a vital n
If asked, I would generally recommend both a ghost tour and a ghost hunt. They are the same, but different. In the end, it comes down to what you want to get out of it. You want an experience, you want some history, you want a little bit of both, possibly with a drink in hand? Now, I’m able to speak with some semblance of authority on this matter because I’ve been fortunate enough to have participated in both a ghost hunt and a ghost tour. What can I say? I’m down for such things once October ro
Oh goodie! We now have another number to add to our long and growing list of numbers and passwords needed to survive in our electronically connected world.
As of October 24, when you make a local call in the 607-area code you must include the area code when dialing. The reason: officials don’t want people mistakenly dialing the newly created 988 national Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
I’m all for reducing suicides, but I can’t deal with adding another number to my swirling sea of digits,
In the autumnal season of life, as we age and retire out of the workforce, some of us may begin to feel unwanted and useless. We’ve done our job, and certainly did our best… we put heart and soul into our family and career. But now that we’re a few years removed from a busy active life, and no longer able to do what we once could, maybe some of us feel like we’ve been “put out to pasture” and left to watch time slowly tick away.
I hope you’re enjoying a great autumn season as the leaves t
by Erin Doane
For 125 years, Rosenbaum’s was the place in Elmira to get the latest specialty fashions for women and children. From the early 20th century until it closed in 1989, the business put the newest styles on display for the shopping public in seasonal fashion shows at the store and other locations throughout the community.
Rosenbaum’s fashion show participants, Star-Gazette, October 3, 1933
Rosenbaum’s opened on East Water Street in 1864, just one day before Elmi
“Rain, rain go away.”
“I don’t want to friggin’ mow my lawn again today!”
I’ve been uttering that ditty all summer and fall because of all the !@^%$! MOWING I’m doing because of all the !@^%$! RAIN. (Editor’s note: Upper case letters and exclamation points signify that the writer is really @^%$! PISSED OFF!!!!!)
My lawn has more mow lines then the outfield at Fenway, and they are deep enough to grow corn.
My life revolves around a series of repeated lawn aggravations: Mow. Wa
Anniversaries…I like to think of them as brackets that hold our special memories marking the ever-flowing years. October 26th is our wedding anniversary, and goodness, but how the years have flown! There’s a lot of life lived within those years, a lot of water under that bridge… years that took a young bride and a little older and wiser groom through many stages of growth… years that saw carefree and happy days, but also years which saw many losses and changes that left their marks. Truth is,
I’m sure we’ve all heard of Johnny Appleseed and those apple seeds he planted “everywhere.” The 1948 Disney movie, “Melody Time,” and their 2002 version, “American Legends,” both include a short story about him with a simple upbeat song: “The Lord is good to me, And so I thank the Lord, For giving me the things I need, The sun and rain and an apple seed, Yes, He’s been good to me…”
But who was this legendary man? Not many Americans know the real story behind the myths perpetuated in fi
Leaves are turning all shades of brown, bronze, gold and scarlet ---- and falling ---- falling ---wafting down into crunchy heaps---- and there’s a morning chill in the air. As the spooky time of Halloween nears and the weather grows less balmy, our daylight hours will shorten with the ceasing of DST next month. I moan and groan about this every year since, when the darkness closes in, my mind tells me it is time to cease labors and go to bed. Five o’clock is a bit early for that message. T
I puttered around the kitchen yesterday, an early October morning, baking Ed’s favorite chocolate chip cookies and my hearty squash. Every now and then I glanced out the windows. I love the scenery of our backyard… the gardens, bushes and trees… all planted by us once upon a golden time. And the creek, fields and hills beyond, all formerly part of Ed’s family’s farm, now filled with cart paths and well-kept green grass circles that swallow up dimpled golf balls… with a few that manage to find
In the near future, a New York State Wage Board, established under a 2019 law known as the “Farmworkers Fair Labor Practices Act,” will revisit one of the key provisions of that law – and its decision could forever impact New York agriculture as we have known it.
Specifically, this Wage Board could decide, without legislative approval, to lower the mandatory overtime pay threshold from the current 60 hours to 40 hours.
In other words, the future of farming in New York State still han
Change… whether visible on the exterior or inside and unseen, it can be a hard adjustment to make. I don’t like change. Those who know me, know that aspect of me well. Change has not always been kind to me. But, once I wrap my brain around it, understand and accept said change, I roll with it and move forward. Because, as I’ve grown older, and wiser with the years, I’ve learned change is inescapable… of value for the lessons it teaches… and have learned not to fear it. Perhaps some of you
October ---- – the elixir of autumn! Of course, we have had snow in October; not often, but I remember one or two snowy Halloweens, and while Kerm was still with Cooperative Extension, there was always a inter-county horse show on Columbus Day weekend. More often than not, weather was yucky sometimes to the point of snow showers. The horses wouldn’t be too happy but the kids were fine. It takes quite a lot of weather to dampen the spirits of horse-riding teens. But in my personal view of O
As a mental health counselor, I am witnessing an emotional ass-beating unlike anything I’ve ever witnessed before. People are coming into my office defeated, exhausted and some, barely able to function. Others are restless, uneasy, walking out of jobs and even marriages without a second thought. Some are fleeing, making big moves, a futile attempt to escape themselves. Some are consumed with rage, guilt and shame. Prior to COVID, it wasn’t unusual to have parallels between my story and the
Your grandparents earned money selling to their neighbors. And, they didn’t need an annoying pyramid scheme to do it. Selling what you have extra, and helping out neighbors in your spare time can be more valuable than you think.
In most places in the world, the idea of doing business with your immediate neighbors is not that unusual. People are bartering and trading over fences and across hedgerows. The family works for the family, and generally speaking, the money stays local.
The other day I was sitting in a coffee shop when a rap song began playing in the café. The F-word—you know, the one that rhymes with muck and yuck—featured prominently in the lyrics. I was happy there were no children present.
After leaving the café, I went to our library to return some books. Next door to the library is a public park with two basketball courts and a playground for children. On my way back to the car, I could hear some kid yelling the F-bomb as he called on his teammate t
Under disgraced former Governor Andrew Cuomo, beginning in March 2020, we witnessed an unleashing of state government by executive order unlike ever before.
Cuomo utilized at least one hundred Executive Orders that allowed him to unilaterally change hundreds of state laws, as well as implement rules and regulations and make spending decisions, without legislative approval or local input. Any semblance of legislative checks and balances was abandoned. The same was true for local decision ma
“You have breast cancer.” Among the scariest words we can hear. I was in shock. My mind was racing. Tears began to trickle down my cheeks. I was both numb and yet devastated emotionally. It caught me totally off guard. Me? Cancer? I could not think clearly. My heart was pounding. I was in panic mode. This cannot be happening! I have so much to do to take care of my husband. I don’t have time for this interruption in my life!
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Diagnosed
Learning that last Sunday, 09/19/21, was Abuse Awareness Day in the Christian Reformed Church (in which both Ed and I grew up), I am sharing my blog which was posted to their website in 2017.
There once was a man who appeared on the scene. Suave and debonair with confidence bold. Flattery oozed like syrup sweet. And despite her protests, he flattered yet more. After all, he said, she deserved the praise for she was worth it. Despite her protests, she absorbed the attention… until she
by Erin Doane
I had never heard of local Elmira folk artist Alsace S. Blandford until recently which is not surprising. The ex-slave painted during most of his life but few of his works seem to have survived. The museum has three paintings donated by his son in 1966. Our own archives only has a slim folder of information about him. The few sources available provided just a tiny glimpse into his long life.
Alsace S. Blandford was born a slave on March 17, 1858 in Maryland. H
It doesn’t feel as if history has been all that kind to the Red Hot Chili Peppers and while they’re reportedly working on a new album, it remains to be seen if anyone is reportedly waiting to hear it. I mean, I am, but I might be in the minority there. But such is life for a band once they close in on nearly four decades together. At a certain point, an act faces a fork in the road. One path consists of playing the hits and keeping things going, while the other path is made up of new material an
New York Governor Kathy Hochul has now put forth one of her administration’s most ambitious public policy proposals to date and, in doing so, gave all of us a good look at her administration’s vision for addressing one of our state’s most urgent short- and long-term challenges: energy.
With that in mind, it’s fair to say at this juncture that the Hochul administration is squarely following in the footsteps of the Cuomo administration – which only continues to raise serious and troubling qu
