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 |   A Journal to impart knowledge and facts |
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July 22, 2015 I'm going to start today to record on a daily basis whatever happens to strike my fancy. So, it is a very cool breezy day. I just posted 5 short book reviews to The Monthly Reading Challenge. I'm suppose to put away some winter wood today from the woodpile outside but I'm playing hookey from work to write so starting this blog will get done. I'm having a daily fight with a flock of English Sparrows that are trying to take over my barn. They are making a terrible mess so they have to go. I have destroyed several nests so far they don't leave but they get out of the barn when I am around. I'm just starting the fight so I guess I don't know how far I have to go to discourage them. I'm trying not to spread myself to thin on WDC because I find so many things that are interesting here and I am trying to work on a new story. I really enjoy sitting at my desk with a cup of tea and reading blogs on WDC. |
 Prompt: The biggest plus for living in your town area. There are lots of plus ideas here. I think if you are rural inclined it's a place with opportunities and a positive life. However, if you are looking for a particularly large income and have big plans for advancement in manufacturing or education, or technology. Those kinds of careers are around for only a few people. So, there is lots of competition for jobs like those in the area. This property I live on has been in the family at least 150 years. It passed from my grandparents to my dad and then to me. It was a farm for the families who raised children here. Dairy cattle, work horses, then dairy cattle and tractors, then to me, horses, sheep, milk goats, with a few chickens, turkeys, ducks for just the experience. My family raised their own eggs. One of my sons sold the extra to schoolteachers for his allowance money. Two of my sons were entrepreneurs, before they left to go to higher education institutions. All three of my sons did something special with their lives. Even if it does not seem special to other people I know, they worked for what they now have in life. I'm not sure how well another bar would be appreciated in the nearest towns. Even a fun one like Andre runs. We used to joke, that there was a bar for every church in near towns. Not so much anymore. Bars and churches exist because, of a particular batch of customers. People looking for something that one or the other can provide in a social atmosphere. I read a psychological fact today in a website I visited. "Kindness is not flirting." It says a lot about small town and rural area living. You always have to be aware of what is going on around the area. It can be the safest place or the most dangerous place to live. Automobile accidents on rural roads at 2 or 3 a.m. where people lost their lives. When you wonder why people were out there at that time of the morning. Human prowlers at any time after midnight, when you wonder why they don't just go home and stay for the night. In a small town or rural area people can be trying to guess what you are doing or thinking instead of just talking to you. They often take what you say and twist it to mean nonsense. Watching the deer, rabbits, counting bird species at the feeders. and the peace of caring for livestock, that becomes a way of life is one of the pluses. After my children grew up, some of them realized how much we actually had even though we could not always supply some things city kids grew up with. Not as many summer vacations. Home baked cookies instead of store-bought treats. One Christmas instead of a big turkey dinner, which we could have had, I bought all the fixings for submarine sandwiches. I still smile at how much everyone enjoyed that as a celebration treat. The biggest plus for me is the wilderness. Watching the Snow Geese flocks moving toward Canada in front of a storm. Looking for the Canada Geese as they move onto the Beaver Dam on an Early Spring Day. The first birds, Red Winged Black Bird scouts, arrive back even before the snow stops. This year a whole flock showed up at the feeders just the day before a weeklong snowstorm moved in. I was happy we had extra bird seed to feed them through the cold. We have deer eating apples off the ground under the apple trees and grazing on the hay fields after haying is over. The back yard shows us wild rabbits, chipmunks, squirrels. and sometimes an owl in a tree or a red-tailed hawk flying off with a rodent it caught in the field. The green comes back into the forest at different months of the year depending on the weather. Last year we had green in the trees in early April, this year not until May. I've lived in city homes and dwelled in trailer courts. It's easier to have real friends in a more human crowded living area. And, I miss some of the just pure friendships I had in less rural places. Still, there is no better place to watch the earth and nature just be itself, than where I am now. Every place has its up's and down's. What is your reason for being where you are? word count:763 THE END  |
| Prompt: What industry was your town/area noted for in past years? Industries :Since I'm rural. Five miles from nearest small places, 16 miles from nearest medium communities, and 25 to 35 miles from nearest larger cities, kind of settles it. When I was 30- or 40-years younger there were some Oil refineries in the area. Not to close, not too far away to travel back and forth in one day. They are gone now. There were also furniture factories and a foam factory. All are gone now. I worked as an assistant to a secretary in an intern capacity, in a factory, that made church pews, when I was a senior in high school. Wow, about 60 years ago. That factory is no longer in the area. Other places I worked for short periods of time during my life: one of the furniture factories, the boat factory, and a donut shop. None of the chair factories or furniture factories are here anymore. Some went out of business, others moved to Southern States in the USA. There is a Boat factory still putting out boats. Other manufacturing in the area include: a Dog Food factory, tool design, exotic metal fabrication, lumber, hardwood, floor materials, Feed mills that serve the farming community by taking in crops and turning the crops into feed for animals. I probably left out some manufacturing lots of small business in the area. Easy to drive to included: pewter making, pottery, Amish quilt and blankets, candy making, cake baking. Because the area is so rural, there are lots of people willing to run a small business from home. Word Count:255 THE END ![Merit Badge in Anon-Y-Monkey's Badge
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| Home Sweet Home: Prompt for Richard and Andre What food or foods are your town/area noted for? What's the prevalent cuisine? Where is your favorite place to eat out in your neck of the woods?  ![Merit Badge in Food Cooking
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"Good insight into your eating habits over the years. *^*HeartO*^* A very simple diet growing up (me:yes), supplementing with homegrown foods (me:no), lots of self restraint (so not me). I was raised on leftovers so that's what it often is. I hate throwing out food. My diet isn't good. I'm often sluggish. I have less urge to eat when I travel."](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/genre-Food_Cooking-625.gif) Well, I'm winging this one. There are lots of small towns in the area. Eating places in small towns come and go. Probably, has a lot to do with cash flow. The cuisine is so varied I can't find one, that is more prevalent than any other. Right now, there is a new coffee shop in a close town that, one of my neighbors is raving about on Facebook. Another town about 16 miles west of us has a gas station with a food venue inside. We can get good chicken tenders there. The same town has a really good hoagie and submarine sandwich shop. There is a good pizza place 10 miles or so north of us. The best pizza often comes from my kitchen. I bake it in a Nuwave oven, spread it with whatever sounds good or is available. There is a McDonald's close. During Covid 19 pandemic they stopped selling salads. The last time we were there we stopped for milkshakes and burgers We rarely go out to eat. Over the winter food seemed unimportant. I still cook. Baked potatoes, meatloaf, spaghetti, chili, sloppy Joes Tila Pia with vegetables, beef stew, with beef chunks or hamburger stew, chicken with stuffing, or just potatoes and veggies. we have a large variety of different meals at home. There are lots of fast-food places in the area. McDonalds, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, The grocery stores also offer choices of small meals that can be heated up. Some of the grocery stores cook meals. Tops cooks' whole chickens for pick up. Also, whole Thanksgiving dinners can be ordered. We used to go grocery shopping in one of the larger cities nearby. Stopping at a restaurant was a treat then. We kind of got out of the habit because of Covid-19. Seems like we've been home pretty study for at least two years. That really isn't a bad a thing. Cooking for two people who don't really crave a special kind of food very often is pretty easy. I looked up Restaurants near us.. This is the list, J.J.s Retro Eatery, Subway, Goldstar's Chinese Restaurant, The Buzz of Union City Cafe, Pizza Hut, Countryside Grill, MaDonna's Family Restaurant. The Frog Pond, and Happi Jax. Happy Jax is at the lake and only open summers. It is basically takeout. Certain times of the day and times of the year it is so packed you can barely get into the parking area to go order at the window. The food is pretty good. If I had to choose It would be Subway because of all the fresh veggies, they pile into a sandwich. I don't know what K would chose. A big thing about food is it's a recreational thing. We have so much recreation time on our hands, that food is not all that big a deal. My dogs are hungrier than we are. They eat with gusto. We use to keep a regular eating schedule. The scheduled meals are not so necessary as they use to be. Nevertheless food is a well versed subject: "Blueberries" by Robert Frost Frost's ode to blueberries contains the lines: "Blueberries as big as the end of your thumb, Real sky-blue, and heavy, and ready to drum In the cavernous pail of the first one to come! And all ripe together, not some of them green" "The Pumpkin" by John Greenleaf Whittier Whittier's 19th century poem about pumpkins discusses both eating and carving pumpkins. It contains the lines: "Then thanks for thy present! none sweeter or better E’er smoked from an oven or circled a platter! Fairer hands never wrought at a pastry more fine, Brighter eyes never watched o’er its baking, than thine!" https://www.writerswrite.com/poetry/food/?msclkid=554c6ae0d16511ecad96542fb2dc1e... Another thought, about food has to do with keeping the children fed as they grow. Once that phase of life is done, food is not as necessary as before. You can pick and chose what you want to eat or not eat. Word Count:696 |
| Home Sweet Home: Sundays's prompt; Tell us about a famous person or persons who lives or came from your Home Sweet Home by Richard. {{center} {/center}If you put in the state name beside the words Famous Person's you will find a very long list of authors, musicians, artists, actors and actresses, politicians and others, in Wikipedia. To many to name them all. Just to name a few: Sharon Stone was born in a city about 25 miles from me. She was quite famous in the 1990's. Stared with Michael Douglas in Basic Instinct.Also with Leonardo Di Caprio, in The Quick and the Dead. Will Smith and Taylor Swift are both from this state. Others from the state are Marc Brown a children's Author, Patrich Monahan, W.C. fields, and Bette Ford. Daniel Dobbs was the builder of the U.S. Naval Fleet for the Battle of Lake Erie. Dobbins Landing is named after him. I was working in a Donut shop one night after the Crawford County Fair. Dolly Parton was appearing at the fair. She stopped at the donut shop after the fair. I sold her a dozen donuts. The one I found that was closest to where I live was George Washington. In 1753 He traveled through Union City, Pa. to Fort Le Boeuf on French Creek. There is a statue of him in Waterford where the Fort once stood. Washington was a 21-year-old major in the Virginia militia at that time. He carried a letter to the French at the Fort. I've always been interested in the amount of famous authors in this state. Bob Saget —Philadelphia Diane Salinger —Philadelphia Richard Sanders — Harrisburg Tom Savini —Pittsburgh Jennifer Sciole —Philadelphia Lizabeth Scott — Scranton David O. Selznick —Pittsburgh Amanda Seyfried — Allentown Craig Sheffer — York M. Night Shyamalan —Philadelphia Just to name a few. Also listed as the most famous author from Pennsylvania is James Mitchener. He won a Pulitzer prize for "tales of the south Pacific." He wrote about Places he traveled while serving in the Navy and other travels during his life. A couple miles from my home within Crawford County is the second largest natural lake in Pennsylvania. Its' history has been traced to 1798. https://www.canadohtalake.org/ The first name of the lake was Washington Lake, In 1860 the name was changed to Oil Creek Lake. Then 1894 the Lake was renamed for the Chief of the Cornplanter Tribe, Chief Canadaughta, of the six nations. The name Oil Creek Lake was a reference to the discovery of Oil by Edwin Drake in 1859, near Titusville, Pennsylvania which is about 16 miles from Canadohta Lake. In 1930's there was a dance hall near Canadohta Lake called Collins Dance Hall. The featured players at the dance hall were Guy Lombardo, Rudy Vallie, and Ozzie Nelson. Later in life the dance hall became a Roller-Skating Rink. When I was in my twenties, Local bands played there on Friday nights. Local and Popular in the 1970's:The Raiders (19) Profile: The Raiders were from Canadohta Lake, PA. Members: Bob Papotnik (bass and vocals), Gilbert Scouten (lead guitar), Dave Lillie (drums and vocals), and Jerry Williams (rhythm guitar, keyboard, and vocals). Sites: reference: rcs-discography.com Members: Bob Papotnik That is enough to make you think, I guess? I rambled some as I found information. word count : 540 |
| Today's Prompt for Home Sweet Home Blogging Challenge! If Andre visits your Town, what are some places/sites/locations he should visit? 2. Famous locations or places to see in the town/area 1. 16 Miles South of me there is the Oil Creek Railroad, and Oil Creek Park. The Railroad is an original train. I road it once. It is a pleasant ride through the Oil Creek valley scenery. It is overgrown and you can see fisher men on oil creek, deer in the forests along the way, as well as other native wildlife and birds. On the route you can see abandoned mines and machinery from glory days of oil. There is a stop along the way at the museum. There are Trails to ride with bikes, and hike, and a museum. If you want, you can explore the trails by bike or on foot and catch the train half-way through to its' home destination. You can board the train and ride the rest of the way in. 2. 5 miles northwest of me, there is a small town with a museum. It has history of the area and the town's highlighted history. 3. 35 miles northwest (?) there is the peninsula which has beaches. Every year there is a tall ship festival. And it is home to the city's tall ship. Big shopping area too. People come down from Canada to shop in the mall. The shopping center in the area is quite large with lots of stores. Before Covid there were two famous bookstores. I don't think they are there anymore. If you like zoo's, there is a zoo there. It is part of a national zoo system that breeds animals to release into the wild. Every year they get different animals from other zoos to raise during the summer months. They are trying to help species, that are endangered. I haven't been there in a few years; before covid there was a Australian part, that you could walk through, with parrots to feed and young kangaroo's to pet and feed. 4. 3 miles or so southwest is a lake. There are boat rentals, a restaurant, summer rental cottages, a swimming beach, and souvenir shop, roller skating rink, laundromat. In very recent years small health clinics run by two or three Doctors are springing up in small communities. Many of the Doctors are Osteopaths educated in largest city, 35 miles northwest. 5. 16 miles east is a small city with grocery shopping, many different fast-food places, a hospital, and a mile or so further a Walmart. And to get to any of those places are rolling hills, lots of young forests, Amish farms with Amish stores, small communities with a local store or churches. Just scenery pleasant to view as you travel along. Some roads follow French creek. You will see small businesses along the way. If it is summer, residential stands along the road selling fresh produce. Farm machinery sales, small communities selling soft serve ice cream if you are traveling. We are close to route 8 which has lots of different small communities along the way. Route 8 is also considered the William Flynn highway. Route 8 will take you to Titusville where the Oil Creek Railroad resides complete with an over-night motel where you can sleep in a train car. Route 8 also runs through Wattsburg borough, first settled in 1833, which was once a thriving stagecoach stop. It also has a trading post. Route 8 merges for short spaces with other routes along the way. Lots of route signs. You won't get lost. word count 597 |
Prompt #1: A bit of history of your town or area. May 1, 2022 Our Area We live in a triangle of space between a borough, a township, and a small town. Our particular road has a place where one county ends and a different county begins. I live in one county. I went to high school in another county. There are small boroughs about 5 miles from us. Our property is in a township. The township has a small lake which houses a lot of summer vacation homes from a major city in the state. There is a community inside the township where I attended grade school. The school has been torn down and the community is basically a residential community at this time. With the close proximity of the lake some small businesses have grown up. There is a Dollar General Store, gas station, boat rental, restaurants, rental vacation homes, ice cream store, laundry, real estate office, batting balls area, a putter golf, a bar, and a small business that has a book exchange, snack and food area. I don't spend much time at the lake so, I may have left one or two out. Resident incomes hover in the 25,000 to 35,000 dollar amounts. Incomes depend on places of employment. At one time the area was saturated with dairy farms and factories. One town near us had chair factories, furniture factories, and Milk production plants. There are still many factories in the area. Factories employ male and female workers. You can drive 25 miles in one direction to shop in a major city or 35 miles in another direction to shop in an even bigger major city. One of the small towns is located on Oil Creek. The Oil Creek railroad use to run through it. It has nearly always had a logging industry. Although, there are lots of trees stands and woods areas, the trees now range very young and very small. People in the area also farm Maple Syrup. The small community nearest us has a lake. It is a vacation area for residents of a major city in the state. Another town near us is located on French Creek which meanders through many towns in both counties. The town has always been a manufacturing area. A place for job production. At one time there were chair factories, and furniture factories. The area is also a major Volunteer Fire Department area. Every small borough, town, or city maintains its own Volunteer fire Department. Histories vary but, most histories of the farms and businesses start in the late 1700s or early 1800s. I know some of the personnel history of the property I live on. It has been in the family for at least 100 years. I've been told my great grandfather bought the property, split it into two pieces and gave it to his son and daughter. The Daughter went to college and became an Osteopath, medical Doctor. Her share of the property passed to one of my uncles. My grandfather's share of the property passed eventually to my dad. Dad brought his children here to live after my mother died. Dad moved to town. I bought it in 1971. I started a horse stable, riding school, and raised sheep, dairy goats, and 4 children. My dad and his brothers and one sister grew up on this property. My grandmother was college educated. When their children were growing up there were a lot of small one room schools at the junction of roads. Those schools were also churches. My grandfather used to pick up children and take them to school at the end of our road. The transportation was a horse and wagon. The entire area has been a manufacturing, farming area. It is also a large church area with many different denominations from which to chose . Word count: 642 |
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