Ring out the Old, Ring in the New...

Lord Alfred Tennyson's poetry, combined with Crawford Gate's music, make for a fine combination. "Ring Out Wild Bells" is a favorite personal hymn. I knew Gates when I was 20 and resided in Beloit, Wisconsin for a few months. He taught music at Beloit College. I like the way he's taken Tennyson's words, set them to his bitter-sweet melody, but then, in the very last part,...
"...Ring in the Christ, that is to be" he ends by resolving the discontenance with a harmonious sweet chord. It's very effective, and very nice.

There have been some years that I was just glad to see gone. As I get older, however, that happens less and less. I certainly feel a sense of peace living where I do on this quiet cul de sac. My back yard and home are places of refuge. I'm coming to understand that in the final analysis, yes, the kids leave home, make lives for themselves, leaving a man and a wife once again, alone. I'm blessed with a fine wife, whom I love. Note her beauty in this recent photo. She gets prettier & more lovely, inside and out, as time goes on. As much as I love my children and granddaughter (who is an absolute joy), and as much as I love being with them, it is Genia, in her company, that I feel most comfortable. She is the heart of our home and family.

I recently saw an interview, (PBS, Charlie Rose episode) with the dean of Harvard's Business School, Clayton Christensen (a fine Danish name). Although only 6 years older than me, he's recently had a stroke as well as undergone treatment for cancer. Given time to think about things, he has recently written an article in the Wall Street Journal about measuring sticks. Said Clay Christensen, "...when I die and have my interview with God, I rather suspect he'll not be concerned with titles, CEO positions, etc., but rather, He will want to know what I did with the talents He gave me to serve and help individuals." Succinct. I like that. When society measures people by standards germane to position, title, economic status, and even within religious circles, people are sometimes ranked and valued by the erroneous measuring stick of what callings or positions they have held, I resonate towards the measuring stick Clay Christensen speaks of: "How have I used my various talents to serve and help individuals at the various points and times in my life?"

Recently, in Denver with our son and one of our daughters, we came across this amazing Courtyard by Marriott lobby with amazing Mardi-gra decor. I've included some of those photos, including their uniquely bright Christmas tree.

At home, our own white Danish Christmas tree with red and gold decor, has aged, it's now yellowed into a dull wheat color. So we retire it now. We'll go back to a tree with multicolored lights and the ornaments used when we had small kids at home. Bring back the old..

Although 8 hours ahead of us, I just watched our Danish Queen Margarethe give her annual New Years Eve address to fellow Danes, live online. I appreciate her optimism as well as the fact that everyone outside Amalaborg Castle, the Danes gathered there, look like me. Ha ha

And so, another year passes, Ring in the New....
Be well, do good.

Airships Ahoy

In the spirit of Jules Vern and Robert Louis Stevenson comes the fine novel for young adults titled AIRBORN. I've always liked learning about airships. The Nazi propaganda ship HINDENBURG became a movie with George C. Scott and Anne Bancroft. It's a favorite of mine. So too is the kid's picture book by the same title. After decades of absence, yet another airship sails now: over the San Francisco Bay and Golden Gate Bridge is the newest of these amazing floating airships & for $500 a person can take a one hour tour ride. www.airshipventures.com is the web address. (I'm too tight to pay that kind of money for a 1 hour ride, but I do enjoy looking at the website and photos from the Zeppelin.) I listened to AIRBORNE on CD while I traveled so much this month. "Full Cast Audio" presents it in full cast drama style, complete with sound effects, and well, literally, a full cast. It was a great 10.5 hours!
Be well, do good.

Land of Cool Sunshine

When artist Georgia O'Keefe left New York City and traveled west to paint because of the amazing light here, and when photographer Ansel Adams declared the light of the Southwest to be superior for photography, the area became a mecca for the artistic minded. These photographs of northern New Mexico illustrate the influence art has on the area. Temperatures are cold in the winter, and cool in the summer. Vegetation is typical of arid regions. And while I love the green forests of the Atlantic seaboard, the lush vegetation of the Pacific Northwest, the rolling green hills of the Midwest, and the landscaped gardens of Southern California, I find the vast openness and sunlight of the Southwest holds my appeal.
Be well, do good.....

San Fran Expo 1915

Every holiday season I make sure to take in interesting history workshops, conferences, or trips. The best ever? Colonial Williamsburg. Google that, then once on their site, in the search box type Christmas or Decorations. On the right hand side you'll see "Media". Treat yourself to slideshows and videos that are amazing.

But this year....
I've been intrigued with how after the 1906 earthquake and fires, San Fran was able to rebuild and then host this amazing World's Fair just 9 years later. The Palace of Fine Arts and it's Golden Gate Park area are what remain. Nearby Golden Gate Bridge and The Presidio Compound were interesting. But what I found most interesting was the role San Francisco took in the formation of various treaties being signed and the formation of the United Nations. Obviously the area is rich in Asian culture, so this too was of interest. While there, I took in cultural events: The Nutcracker at the War Memorial Building, and two night concerts at Davies Hall. The San Francisco Symphony is an equal favorite alongside New York's Philharmonic and Chicago's Symphonies. Not only did I attend the Nutcracker Ballet, but one of the concerts I attended in Davies hall was selections from the Nutcracker. It was interesting to learn that the strange keyboard instrument used in the Sugar Plum Fairy dance/music was new to Tch. But when he heard it in Paris, he knew he wanted to be the first to use it. So he did. He had it sent to Russia in a box labels "machinery" so that no one would discover it and use it before him. The "celeste", pronounced, "cellesta" is that instrument. Tch. died before his Nutcracker became popular. In his last years he believed it was a failed ballet. Ten years after his death it began to become extremely well-loved, world wide. Ironic.

I have read some fine books this fall. "Miniature Rooms" is a photography-accompanied-with-text book about the 68 miniature rooms at the Art Institute of Chicago. Two close up shots of each room and then a detailed summary give the reader an understanding of historical eras. Great book. Next, an interactive book about Dr. Watson, the sidekick of Sherlock Holmes, being accused of murder, titled: "The Crimes of Dr. Watson" was a fun book. Every other page contains a large envelope with clues (tickets to an event, unsigned post cards, small mail-order catalog, folded full-spread newspaper page, etc.) wherein the reader is to solve the crime. I wasn't able to do so. Yet. I'll try reading it again before I open the sealed "solution" envelope at the back of the book.

Dr. Pauline Maier of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston was a guest lecturer I enjoyed this summer, she spoke about her decade-long writing of her latest book, which in July had not yet gone to press, "Ratification". So, seeing her on Book TV on CSPAN 2 this fall, was a lot fun. She gave her t.v. address at the National Archives in DC, a place I often enjoy going when I'm in Washington. Like these other historians I've learned from, she is unassuming, has a quick wit, and is very well schooled in the specifics of this era. Getting the Constitution ratified was no small matter, and I look forward to reading this fine book.

Of the many places I've been during the Holiday Season, each is unique. LA (with it's Disney decorations and fireworks & the Rose Parade) and San Francisco offer warmer weather. NYC offers wonderful window scenes at Macy's, Barneys, Lord-n-Taylors, Saks 5th Avenue, etc. & Broadway shows. Salt Lake City has the most amazing lights and fabulous, free music as well as the best food anywhere. Philadelphia has great concerts. Milwaukee, Wisconsin has an amazing German influence. It's German food and culture are celebrated, as are all it's many ethic cultures annually at this time at a Cultural Fest held downtown. Great music, food, and ethnic dancing in costumes. But it is "The Domes" of Milwaukee's south side, 3 amazing glass domes, that is unique. One dome is "Arid/Desert" themed, another is "Tropical". But the 3rd one changes according to seasons: a mass of landscaping design and floral color unrivaled anywhere. What they do with summer flowers in the winter, especially the holidays, complete with a train that travels thru the various floral displays, is really very, very cool. Portland, Oregon has their amazing pine scent, year round really, and laid back people, it's just a fun place to be during the holidays. Albuquerque and Santa Fe have their amazing luminaries: candles in sand-bottom-filled paper bags.... on roof tops, on sidewalks, everywhere. Chicago has wonderful German foods & festivals and the Joffrey's presentation of The Nutcracker, 2nd to none, anywhere. Denver has great lights: City and County building downtown. But....

... back to Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia. It outdoes them all. What a great place any time of the year, but during the holidays.........amazing place. Everything and everywhere is decorated with greenery and colorful fruits, herbs & spices. Ornate wreaths and window boxes from common foods. The music is Colonial Era. Everything is candle lights. There's simply no place like it. Re-enactors in historical costume. It's stepping back into time. A time of refined graces, old world social etiquette, Virginia ham and hot spiced cider. A dust of snow may settle, but otherwise, the weather is temperate, day and most nights.

Home, however, near a warm stove and family, with our Danish Christmas decorations and tree ornaments from when the kids were small, remain my favorite. Instead of fighting crowds and traffic, which sometimes has to be done in order to experience and see much of what I mentioned above, I can relax with PBS, the Home & Garden Channel, the BYU Channel, old Christmas movies. I listen to The Carpenters on CD while drawing at my art table. Aromas waft of family and Danish recipes being baked. Sometimes we ski or go tubeing in the fresh snow of nearby mountains. We hear from family and friends.
And by the end of the holiday, seed catalogs begin arriving in the mail.
Be well, do good...

"...Heal her infirmaties..."

We visited one of our daughters recently. We attended Church services with her. At her congregation a young woman, in her twenties I assume, spoke. It became apparent that there were some physical limitations. Her speech was slow and labored, somewhat slurred at times. She walked with difficulty. I noticed she was with child, she sat down after her comments next to a man in his late 20's/early 30's, I assume her husband. At the conclusion of the meeting, she was asked to give the benediction. She returned to the the front of the chapel and began taking steps up to the podium area when I noticed she stumbled and nearly feel. She caught herself somehow, regained her balance, and proceeded to offer the closing prayer. I can't remember a word she said. I just felt so ashamed for taking for granted my health, my ability to run and walk without difficulty, my ability to talk and converse and carry myself. I watched her return to her husband there after, she made it down the stairs without problems, but again, her hands/arms were extended to help her get her balance. Her blond hair, tied back in a ponytail, she dressed not in Nordstrom's fine attire, but in a clean and comely dress, and seemed genuinely happy, not embarrassed nor upset by her condition. I remember somewhere in all of this thinking, "I wish the Savior could heal her infirmaties now." I've seen movies where He is portrayed healing the blind and those with infirmaties. And I desired this for her. Now. But I've had to tell myself that this isn't my call. Only God sees all. I trust Him. Paul spoke about praying 3 different times in his life to have the "thorn in his flesh" removed. It wasn't. There was a reason why God allowed it to remain. Perhaps the same thing can be said of this young lady. I don't know. I felt like I knew her from somewhere. It can't be. She lived in Phoenix before living in Western Colorado. But she's made an impression on me. My prayers may or may not be "Heal her infirmaties..." But I'll ask "Help me to remember her and the graceful, humble way she goes about her life, and help me be more like that." Maybe that's how we're to live our lives: with grace and humility regardless the afflictions and infirmaties we live with in mortality. I think so. I hope I don't forget her nor her radiant face. Instead of "...but for the grace of God, go I there..." I think I'll say, "...with the grace of God perhaps I can carry on as she does with gratitude and humility."

Having said that, with the end of summer came putting my garden beds to bed for the winter. It's taken a lot of time getting the soil cleaned of summer roots, then tilling both garden spot as well as large and small pots for spring planting. But it's done. My greenhouse now becomes my winter reading spot. And I'm surrounded by soil that is ready for spring planting. I washed the greenhouse windows to allow maximum sunlight so that sitting in my Adirondack chair anytime between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., on Saturday's or Sundays, while it's 20 or 30 degrees outside, I can read and write in temperatures of 70's or maybe 80's. I've planted about 50 different spring bulbs in there too so that when last spring frosts kill my outdoor tulips, I'll still have "indoor" ones that give color and help fight off that white-knuckled grip that winter holds year after year.
Be well, do good...

chuck jumps

Skydiving, Woodcutting, & Garden Harvest: Summer's Done

I've wanted to go Skydiving for a few years now. Wanted to go bungie-jumping as well. Finally went skydiving, with our son and one of our daughters, and while I'm really glad I did it, especially with them, my good wife and their mom there to support us, I've decided I no longer want to go bungie-jumping. That free-fall, going out of the plane backwards, was really kind of frightening. Actually, the New Zealand Maori guy that I tandem jumped with, (all his Maori tattoos, protruding tongue that showed that intense Maori warrior face), was as frightening as the actual jump at 12,000 feet. The 120 - 140 mph speed down to the earth was kind of a rush in some sick way, and when, at last, the parachute opened, it jerked like crazy, but I actually then enjoyed the view: Denver off to the south, Boulder to the west. Both of the kids were allowed to land on their feet, but my tandem-guy had me/us land on our rear-ends, and I gotta tell you, alfalfa fields are bumpy on the ol' bum. Ouch! But I'm glad I did it. It's been a few weeks now and I'm beginning to think I may do it again sometime. The best part was being with part of my family. I missed those that weren't there, that was the worst part. I paid extra to have a professional skydiving video record me. I'll try to figure out how to include that in this posting. If you want to see and hear the look of unadulterated terror, check out the video.

For the first time in years, I didn't have my son home to help me get winter firewood cut and stacked. He's away at college. I missed him. I know he never really enjoyed that, it's hard, boring work that I don't enjoy either. But what I did enjoy was having him next to me, working together. I'm thankful for the years we had together to do this. Some men never get a son to work with. I'm lucky.
I still have some Wisconsin Pine (from a building project that I had permission to use. This will be the 3rd winter it's helped warm us. I was laughed at by other teachers who saw me daily after school loading wood with nails, into my truck. But this wood burns hot and is remarkably clean!)to cut, but otherwise, I'm mostly done. And not any too soon. It's not yet the middle of September and we've already had a few nights of freezing. At 7,650 feet above sea level, it's cold here.

I wasn't home much this summer, spent most of it in New England (my previous posts show/tell about my Sailing in the Atlantic and research fellowship at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. I saw Dr. Gordon Wood, live, 3 hour lecture, again last week on CSPAN II. No one but me, and perhaps the other 29 that spent time with him this summer, enjoyed this as much as me). So I didn't have my typical garden. Rather I planted in pots and window boxes and used the greenhouse. This saved a lot of water and seemed to give us just enough fresh produce. Unheard of here, my Pear trees are still growing, 2 out of 5 have survived the past 2 or 3 winters. They've not born fruit yet, maybe never will, but Hope keeps me thinking that they might. A chock cherry tree, apricot tree, and our apple trees grew, but little fruit, but Perhaps next year. And my raspberry and strawberry patches gave us some fresh berries.

We're empty-nesters now. We enjoy going to Pueblo, walking along the River Walk there, it's one of my favorite places to be. But we miss our kids and grandchild. But we Skype, text, email, and phone visit, and so that's something nice, technologically, that our parents and grandparents never had in their life times. I would still rather be nearer to them all, especially that granddaughter of ours, she's just the cutest, smartest, and busiest kid I know. If I ever DO bungie-jump, it will because she wants me to go with her. For her, I would do anything.
Be well, do good...