A great winter

Been getting lot's of snowshoeing in. Here are some photos of my wife, our friends the Rapps, and myself, while snowshoeing near Pine Hill NY. This area has some of the most under rated scenery in the east.

Those old long socks did not help keep the bottom of my jeans dry. I'll stick to real mountaineering gators and synthetic fabrics, for any real winter treks. 

China Cabinet Part 3 (or is it Part 4?)

Upper doors, and therefore cabinet, are almost complete; just need to mount hinges,mount the knobs, install the catch, get the glass cut, install the glass and 
two more coats of finish.

Ken Burns

I simply forgot to post about what was one of the more inspiring evenings of the last few years. Jean and I went to see Ken Burns present a  preview of his new series on the three Roosevelts who influenced this country's history so dramatically, Theodore, Franklin and Eleanor.  I was not expecting to be impressed,  the little I've seen of his work seemed too slow paced and somewhat too focused on a particular point to be made.

I has an epiphany. The material he presented on the Roosevelts was excellent and I now plan to watch the full series when it is broadcast this fall.

What was even more impressive was Burns himself. He was articulate, intelligent, and amazingly well informed; the best speaker I have heard in a long time. Perhaps he is helped by not running for office.

He made several statements that were impressive for their clarity, for their  profundity, and perhaps most for his sincerity in expressing them. The one that seems to be central to his beliefs is " there are no ordinary people."

Here's a link to an article about the event.

http://www.recorder.com/home/10672263-95/there-are-no-ordinary-people

It is the white season

Until today, I have forborne from publishing a plethora of winter time pictures but I can't be good forever.

Today was a great morning for a walk in the snow. A photo from the trail that runs behind my house showing the double birch archway formed by still living trees one  from our backyard showing my snowshoe tracks 

 one  from our backyard showing my snowshoe tracks

and the sight that is welcome even after a delightful walk in the woods: home sweet home.

Movies: Labor Day and some coming attractions.

Yesterday we saw the movie Labor Day and we both liked it very much. Warning: there are no flaming car wrecks, no massive shootouts, no blood splattered scenery, just a few people working important things out.

The coming attractions for Pompeii and Need for Speed were another matter: special effects and mayhem triumphing over all other considerations. It didn't occur to me until somewhat later that they really aren't movies; they are simply non interactive computer games.

Growing Seasons

We have two growing seasons up here. During the first growing season, from late spring to early autumn' we grow lots of greens, many tomatoes, corn, melons, squash, berries, and in particular in our neighborhood, apples. 

In the other growing season, this is what we grow:

Under the ice

Remember that post of the frozen waterfall?Here's what's underneath that stuff.

The Good Not So Old Days

Was sorting through my pictures when I found this one. Days of Glory might be a bit too grandiose, but they were good days.

Some cool ice ( pardon the pun)

It has been cold here for a while. Salmon Falls in the village of Shelburne Falls is one of the "scenic attractions" in these parts. Here are some photos of what it looks like now. In warmer and drier weather the multicolored rocks currently covered with ice and water,with their large number of potholes, are also pretty impressive.

Some real progress at last

I must admit I am satisfied out of all proportion to the actual accomplishment. After one month of practice making joints and about three weeks of shaping and cutting and fitting and gluing,  I now have assembled one lattice work door.

There are twenty individually cut and trimmed pieces of molding, fourteen hand cut mortise and tenon joints, and twenty other glue joints on this door. Now, to complete this door all I have to do is scrape off the glue, level the back, mortise in three hinges, mortise in the catches, drill a hole for the handle, cut 44 thin strips to hold the glass, get the glass cut, stain the strips  and lattice interiors, apply a finish, and install it.  ... and then there is the other door.

Why on earth did I ever get started on this?

Cards for Ms. Taavoste

As some of you may have heard, Mrs Taavoste, one of the best math teachers Ridge was lucky to have, had a stroke a couple of weeks ago. She has made great strides in her recovery and is continuing with her therapy at Kessler Institute. The address is:

Patty Taavoste
Kessler Institute
201 Pheasant Hill Road
Room 202
Chester, NJ 07930 or at her home 

57 High Pond Lane
Bedminster NJ 07920

I am sure she would love to hear from her students and colleagues.

A little bit of envy?

It's great to see so many of you having such great adventures during your college years. I spent my winters on the upper west side and my summers pushing clothes around Lord and Taylor's; with the occasional escape to the Adirondacks.

Nothing Special

We had our second light snow of the last two weeks. It makes everything look nice but it is too shallow for snowshoeing or cross country skiing. It seems I'd have to go to New Jersey to see some real snow. It seems a shame to waste all this cold weather on just walking.

In the mean time I am making slow progress on the lattice work for the china cabinet doors and getting some nice local walks and the occasional concert in. Hope to post pictures of the [nearly... make that partially] completed cabinet doors soon.

Some News from Daniel

Daniel, our younger son, has just become one of the conveners for the Physics Group working on the Long Baseline Neutrino Experiment. He generally does pretty well without my advice.