Happy 29th Birthday

Exhibit

I'm having my own little exhibit at the library!
Very exciting. The title is, 'Pinellas'.
I had to think of a theme, and the only one I could come up with
where I have a fair amount of decent photos, is Pinellas.
They're all framed and ready to go.
When I look at them now, they look boring and crooked.
I wonder if I should put prices on them.
One has already been sold, and to someone I don't know,
which makes it more legitimate.

Here's a sample.

Books and Music

Stellar season for books and music ...

All the Roadrunning - Emmylou Harris and Mark Knopfler. I think Love and Happiness for You, is my favorite.

Pay the Devil - Van Morrison Van's gone country on this one.

Modern Times - Bob Dylan Faves - Spirit on the Water, Thunder on the Mountain, When the Deal Goes Down

Face the Promise - Bob Seger - release date Sept. 6 Everything he does is great.



Possible Side Effects - Augusten Burroughs

The Cold Moon - Jeffery Deaver another Lincoln Rhyme

The Messenger - Daniel Silva

Wild Fire - Nelson DeMille - not until November!

I Feel Bad About My Neck, and Other Thoughts on Being a Woman - Nora Ephron - disappointing

BMI

Here's an easy way to figure out my BMI.
http://www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi/

The formula: dividing a person's weight in pounds by his height in inches, squared, and multiplying that total by 703.
I must have done it wrong- it was in the 100's.

Here's the report on my state -

http://healthyamericans.org/reports/obesity2006/release.php?StateID=NY

Summer Project

What I Did on My Summer Vacation



thanks, Picasa

It's Hot

Wouldn't it be nice to have just one day of snow?
Just a light flurry?
It used to be that we'd only need the AC for a total of a week for an entire summer.
Now, the AC is on more than it's off.

Identifying Stephen King 1sts

Leave it to a daughter to bring this to my attention:
Identifying First Editions of Stephen King's books.

http://www.stephenking.com/IdentifyingFirstEditions.pdf

Excellent!

Ahhhhh

Quench it ...

Poolside, it's going to be ...

Saranac Ginger Beer

www.saranac.com

Saratoga Sparkling Water in the cobalt blue glass bottle

www.saratogaspringwater.com/index.html

I can't wait. Maybe tomorrow.

PC World's 25 Worst Tech Products

PC World Magazine's List of the 25 Worst Tech Products
by Dan Tynan, May 26, 2006

http://www.pcworld.com/resource/printable/article/0,aid,125772,00.asp

(printer friendly version)

I figured AOL would be on the list, but I was surprised that it was listed as # 1.
That's kind of mean. AOL did serve a purpose.
It got new users online.
For a long time, it was the only ISP easily available.
There was a sense of community in the early to mid 90's.
I'll always have a soft spot for AOL.

Clinton Square

When you're too tired to go anywhere - too tired to even go downtown.

http://www.syracuse.com/clintoncam/

Waikiki Beach

When you want to get away right this very minute ...

http://www.co.honolulu.hi.us/cameras/waikiki_beach/waikiki.htm

Challenge Continues

Bedbugs can be extremely tenacious. I can't bear to put a photograph of one here. They're too disgusting for words. I should point out that there are no bedbugs in MY house. Anyway, if you call on ORKIN to do the job, make sure they come back often for rechecks and second and third treatments. Make sure they don't damage your furniture. If they do, point it out to them, get it repaired, and send them the bill.

You might also want to try Diatect stuff. It's at www.diatectresults.com
The active ingredients are Pyrethrins (African Daisy extract), Diatomaceous Earth (silicon dioxide), Piperonyl Butoxide (synthetic sassafras oil). They've got a very informative Website, and they send nice emails to you offering lots of encouragement.

And, put Vaseline on your bed's legs, and a piece of packing tape (sticky side up) underneath each bed leg.

Launder, or dryclean all your clothing, bedding and linens. Another option is to place stuff in sealed bags and put them in the freezer, but they have to be in there for TWO weeks.

That should do it. Remember, this is war. They aren't going to win. Creepy little critters. Worse than spiders.

Stumbled Upon - April 2006

April, 2006 Looks like they're all libraries. That's ok. Next time you're out, stop at the library and browse.

Carnegie Libraries of Scotland
http://www.scotcities.com/carnegie/index.htm

Clifton Park - Halfmoon Library, New York
http://www.cphlibrary.org/index.shtml

Brunswick Community Library, Eagle Mills, NY
http://www.brunswicklibrary.org/

Seymour Public Library, Auburn, NY
http://www.seymourlibrary.org/

Saratoga Springs Public Library, Saratoga Springs, NY
http://www.sspl.org/

New Challenge

Harvard School of Public Health on Bed Bugs

http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/bedbugs/

Booklist Online

ALA, the American Library Association, finally put Booklist online. So far, I'm not impressed.
I'll have to look at it more carefully, but looks and feels like nothing more than a teaser. I'd love to subscribe to the print version, but I can't afford $ 295.00 for a one a year subscription. That's why I was so excited to see it was going to be available online.
I wonder why they feel it's necessary to include a blog. It's written by Keir Graff.

Here's a link to the official blog: http://www.booklistonline.com/blog/

Here's the link to the practice blog:
http://alaboldev.ctt-inc.com/default.aspx?page=general_info&id=55

Ho-hum.

Complaint Letters

Instead of complaining to friends about things, I'm going to start writing letters.

So far, I've written to Senators Hillary Clinton, and Chuck Schumer. I received decent replies within two days from both of their offices. Schumer's staff sent the same form letter twice.

I was going to write to Rep. James Walsh with lots of complaints, but his record at Vote Smart isn't that terribly bad. He does have a scary stand on abortion, however. He thinks they should only be legal if the life of the mother is in danger. He probably carried that over from Catechism days.

I wrote to Kohler about their lousy Staccato sink. Model K-3361-3. It's too deep, the edge in the back is too small, the bottom of the sink is completely flat. It's such a dumb sink. I wonder if there were any women on the design team. I am not going to stand on a stool to use it. Maybe some high wedgie shoes would work.

Next was Jessica McClintock to complain about the lack of sleeves on wedding dresses. You cannot find a wedding dress with a sleeve. They have a couple in the Women's sizes. Not every bride wants to have a strapless, or halter gown. David's Bridal doesn't have any contact or feedback form. Figures. Alfred Angelo has one, and it's pretty. I'll have to write and tell them.

Stumbled Upon - March, 2006

March
22 Controversial ad by Australia Tourism
www.wherethebloodyhellareyou.com
23 Niko's Mediterranean Grill & Bistro
http://nikosgrillnyc.com/page/o5pw/Home_Page.html
24 Eliot Spitzer's remarks at Maxwell School, Syracuse University, March 21, 2006
http://www.spitzer2006.com/main.cfm?actionId=globalShowStaticContent&screenKey=cmpSpeeches&htmlId=5263
25 Steve Ellwood's photographs of Northeast England
http://www.steve-ellwood.org.uk/
31 Nellie and Joe's Lime Juice http://www.keylimejuice.com/

Favorite Places

I wonder why I can't settle on a theme for this little blog. Some of the very best blogs stick to one topic, tho the political and news oriented ones get so tedious. They also tend to have links to other blogs running down the entire sidebar. Boring.
I really would like to do just one topic, but it's never going to happen, no matter how much I want to. One Bookmarked site leads to another, and before I know it, I'm somewhere totally off in w.w.w.land.
Here's what I've been doing tonight - wandering around looking at my favorite local restaurants.

My favorite sub shop is Jreck's. I've been eating them since the 60's, back in the Potsdam days. A Jreck's sub meant spring had arrived. We'd get a couple and eat them down by the Raquette River. Heaven. Now, I've got a brand new Jreck's right up on the corner of Kasson Rd. and W. Genesee St. (Route 5). They're way better than Wegmans subs, or Subway.

Tucked in Elm Hill Plaza, maybe it's called Town Center, or something, is Cora D's. Either way, it's at the corner of Hinsdale Rd. and Milton Ave. Classy with a good menu, but not as fun as the three below. It's a decent replacement for Poor Richard's, which used to be at the mall.
Now, we get to have Walmart, Lowe's, and Applebee's. Add in Wendy's, Dunkin Donuts and Quiznos, and we'll all be fat and happy. I can't even think about Camillus Mall. It's so depressing.

First is Victor's Inn in Camillus. Many happy memories here. It used to be the Green Gate Inn. Some of us think they should have kept the name. We still call it that, so I guess it doesn't really matter. It's cozy and comfy, all done up with Victorian furnishings.
Have a look at it Victor's Inn. It's right in the heart of the Village of Camillus. They have these divine little onion rings they serve with the open steak sandwich. They pile them up on top - yummy.

Heading west out of the village on Route 5 is Gilfillan's West Hill Catering Club. It's a great place for a wedding reception, and the food is excellent. Every reception I've been to there has been a lot of fun. The only drawback is the brown wood paneling in the upstairs room. It makes it hard to get a decent photograph. Also, the cord from the big wall air conditioner hanging down to where it plugs into the wall isn't too attractive. Come to think of it, the restrooms could be spiffed up.
February 22, 2008 update: They don't have a website anymore. I hope they get one back up and running soon.

West of Gilfillan's, on Route 5, is The Inn Between. The salmon with asparagus and dill sauce is good, but they only serve it at private parties. I think. It's the perfect place for a baby or bridal shower. You don't have to lift a finger, and the porch is gorgeous. The price isn't bad considering the meal and service. It's worth every penny.

**Update January 22, 2008 - Gilfillan's doesn't have a website anymore. Victor's Inn was bought, and now it's back to its original name, The Green Gate. Reviews are mixed. The two times I went there, the service was so slow, I felt like leaving. Skip it, and go to Cora D's.

This is Spring?

This is the first day of Spring?
Clinton Square in downtown Syracuse looks a tad bleak.

Happy St. Patrick's Day