Chester County Edition
April 2015
Vol. 12 No. 4
2,000 Miles of Happy Trails Central PA Woman the Oldest to Hike Appalachian Trail By Rebecca Hanlon
The grisly 2,185-mile stretch of the Appalachian Trail could not take down Nan Reisinger. The Central Pennsylvania resident is not the first woman to tackle the rocky slopes, but she is the oldest. At 74, she has the strength and determination of someone decades younger. Reisinger isn’t going to spend her retirement years cooped up at home. Instead, she canoes in Florida, skies in Connecticut, and climbs the steepest trails in Maine. And she laughs at the idea that she might be getting too old. The record was held previously by a 71-year-old woman. That was all Reisinger needed to hear. “I decided to give it a try,” she said. “Listen, I can beat that. That was the reason for it. Strictly for the glory.” With her friend Carolyn Banjak, Reisinger would leave her home to complete the trek from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mount Katahdin in Maine. Their goal was to finish before winter set in. She would make every last step from March to October with a 25-pound pack on her back, completely self-sufficient on what she considers one of the greatest accomplishments of her life. please see HAPPY TRAILS page 11
Avid hiker Nan Reisinger completed a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail last fall. Here, she pauses along Blue Ridge Parkway in southwestern Virginia.
Inside:
A World-Class Event in a World-Class City page 5
Glimpses of History via Letters page 15
Salute to a Veteran
He was at Guantanamo When an Atomic War was a Hairbreadth Away Robert D. Wilcox obert McRobbie grew up in suburban Albany, N.Y., and was deferred from military duty as he studied engineering at Cornell University in the late 1950s. However, he left college during his senior year to take a job with United Engineers, a design and construction firm in Philadelphia. Hoping to become a naval pilot, he then took the Navy test and found that it brought good news and bad news. The good news was that he was virtually off the chart on the many skills the Navy required. The bad news was that his eyesight was not keen enough to qualify him for flight training. So he joined the Navy Reserve and was assigned to a squadron based at the naval air station in Willow Grove, Pa. There he studied for several months to become an avionics technician, learning how to install, inspect, test, adjust, or
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repair slightest avionics noise made equipment, by the sub. such as radio In its and radar elongated The P2V whose avionics systems in tail, the P2V McRobbie worked on at Willow Grove. aircraft. carried a The P2V magnetic was the plane anomaly Robert E. his squadron detector that McRobbie after flew—and produced a discharge from the whose paper chart The USS Essex, the storied ship Navy in 1963. avionics he of the sub’s on which McRobbie served. helped to trail. And it keep in top also carried a shape—as it served as our Navy’s primary belly-mounted surface-search radar that land-based anti-submarine patrol aircraft. detected surface and snorkeling subs at He got to fly often in that plane. fairly long distances. He explains that the P2V carried When McRobbie flew in the airplane sonobuoys that could be dropped in a as a crewman, he would monitor the circle around a submerged intruder sub radar and interpret the signals from the and would be able to pick up the sonobuoys. Crews like his stayed sharp
by routinely flying practice missions against our own submarines. His next assignment was to the USS Essex aircraft carrier that was going through a major overhaul at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. There he worked in the avionics shop until the vessel was able to proceed to its home port at Quonset Naval Air Station, R.I., where he helped to maintain the ship’s wide-ranging store of electronic and radar systems. They cruised the North Atlantic, patrolling between Nova Scotia and Guantanamo. What was it like aboard the carrier? McRobbie just shakes his head as he says, “It was a floating city … except that it moved at 33 knots. It was nearly as long as three football fields, with 2,600 officers and men aboard and 90 to 100 aircraft. It was stable in the sea, and the food was great.”
As 50plus Senior News celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, we hope you’ll enjoy a monthly peek back at the world in 1995! This month, the technological innovations and milestones of 1995: • The dot-com boom starts. • Yahoo.com domain is registered on Jan. 18. • The unmanned Galileo spacecraft arrives at the planet Jupiter. • DVD, optical disc storage media format, is announced.
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• The U.S. Space Shuttle Atlantis docks with the Russian Mir space station on June 29 for the first time. • Amazon.com is officially opened in July 1995; the domain eBay.com comes online Aug. 4. • Microsoft releases Internet Explorer 1.0 on Aug. 16 and Internet Explorer 2.0 on Nov. 22, officially starting the browser war with Netscape. • Microsoft releases Windows 95 on Aug. 24 and sells more than 1 million copies within four days. • The first computer network wiretap is authorized Oct. 23 and leads later to the arrest of Argentinean computer hacker Julio Cesar Ardita. • Toy Story is released Nov. 22, becoming the first movie that is completely computer generated. www.50plusSeniorNewsPA.com
Then he chuckles about a reminiscence of reaching “Gitmo.” “A few of us went ashore to unload the ship’s vehicles. We stayed at the base overnight. But when we woke the next morning, we found that the Essex had left without us. It had a big role to play in the naval ‘quarantine’ on Cuba in October 1962 when it was discovered that the Soviets were shipping missiles to Cuba. “Having no official duties, we went to
the base commander and asked if he would give us something to do. He was glad to have us as drivers to haul supplies to the Marines who were there in the nearby mountains to deter any Cuban attempt to attack our base. And we’d bring Marines down every now and then for a hot meal and a shower. We were there a month before we were flown back to Quonset.” By that time, McRobbie’s hitch was about up, and he was discharged from
the Navy as a second class petty officer in September 1963. He worked for Rohm and Haas in purchasing while he pursued his degree at Drexel at night and earned a B.S. in mechanical engineering. He then worked for Honeywell, first as a project manager and then as a manager in research and development. After 23 years, he retired from Honeywell in 2001. Friends told him of a retirement community in Central Pennsylvania, to
which he moved in 2007. Since he had been using computers for some 30 years by then, he has been a leading member of the retirement community’s computer club and a regular source of counsel when other residents need help of any kind with their computers. “Which,” he says with a smile, “is surprisingly often.” Colonel Wilcox flew a B-17 bomber in Europe in World War II.
Taxes throughout History “Nothing in this world can be said to be certain, except death and taxes,” wrote Benjamin Franklin in a 1789 letter. But although death is inevitable, taxes have changed and varied widely over time. Consider these ups and downs: • In the year 1913 the tax rates ranged
from 1 to 7 percent on incomes above $3,000. The average annual income that year was $200. • In Colonial America, bachelors were taxed in many communities because the people believed that unmarried men were too easily lured into mischief.
Resource Directory Chiropractic Care Upper Cervical Chiropractic Neurology Centers 533 W. Uwchlan Ave., Suites 101 & 201 Downingtown (484) 593-0328 Disasters American Red Cross Greater Brandywine (610) 692-1200 Chester County Emergency Services (610) 344-5000
American Heart Association (610) 940-9540 Arthritis Foundation (215) 665-9200 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (800) 232-4636 Coatesville VA Medical Center (610) 383-7711 Domestic Violence (800) 799-7233 National Osteoporosis Foundation (800) 223-9994
Salvation Army West Chester (610) 696-8746
PACE (800) 225-7223
Emergency Numbers Central PA Poison Center (800) 521-6110 Office of Aging (610) 344-6350/(800) 692-1100 Financial Services Internal Revenue Service (800) 829-3676 Funeral & Cremation Services Cremation Society of Pennsylvania 4100 Jonestown Road, Harrisburg (800) 722-8200 Health & Medical Services Alzheimer’s Association (800) 272-3900 www.50plusSeniorNewsPA.com
• Peter the Great, czar of Russia, imposed
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American Cancer Society (800) 227-2345
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Housing Assistance Community Impact Legal Services (610) 380-7111 Housing Authority of Chester County (610) 436-9200 Housing Authority of Phoenixville (610) 933-8801 Legal Services
Senior Healthlink (610) 431-1852 Social Security Administration (800) 772-1213 Southeastern PA Medical Institute (610) 446-0662 Hearing Services Pennsylvania Office for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (800) 233-3008 V/TTY
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Nutrition Meals on Wheels Chester County Inc. (610) 430-8500 Pennsylvania Hunger Action Center (800) 366-3997 Office of Aging Chester County Department of Aging Services (610) 344-6350 Pharmacies CVS/pharmacy www.cvs.com
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Housing
a tax on beards in the 17th century designed to make Russian society look more European. Citizens who paid the tax and retained their beards were required to carry a token with them inscribed with the phrases “the beard tax has been taken” and “the beard is a superfluous burden.”
• In 2000 the IRS collected more than $2 trillion in revenue and processed 226 million tax returns. That was its lowest collection rate since 1954, at 39 cents for every $100 (meaning the IRS had to spend 39 cents to collect $100).
Kennett Square (610) 444-4819 Oxford (610) 932-5244 Phoenixville (610) 935-1515 Wayne (610) 688-6246 West Chester (610) 431-4242 Transportation Rover Community Transportation (484) 696-3854 Not an all-inclusive list of advertisers in your area.
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Dread, Drama, and the Drill Saralee Perel anic kicked in like a lightning bolt. The team in white coats swarmed through the offices as medicinal odor encircled me. Yes. I was at the dentist’s office. “It’s so hot in here.” My face was red from a hot flash. I was given water. I closed my eyes so I wouldn’t see the needle. Then came the spinechilling sound of the drill. Terrified, I asked, “Are we almost done?” “Well, we just started,” Dr. Robert Lynch said. Here’s the thing: It was my husband, Bob’s, appointment. I was in the room while he was having a cavity filled. I was there to comfort Bob, who happened to be asleep. I’ll tell you: If he could give birth, he’d sleep right through it. I also had the notion that I could desensitize myself from my fear of the dentist by watching the procedure. Hah! Bernadette was assisting that day. As always, she treated me like I was her best friend. “Do you like your work?” I asked her. “I do. I love the people.” And I love her. Which leads to what I believe is one core of anxiety: isolation. The antidote? Connection. When I’m at my dentist’s office, I am frail and frightened. I tell the staff that. Therefore, what brings down my panic is that they care
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April 2015
mouth, stood up from the chair— and abruptly left. I sent him a letter to which he never responded. Who could relax when being dealt with the way this fellow dealt with me? As I’ve said before, “If someone doesn’t treat me well because I’m afraid, whose problem is that?” Recently, without knowing that I had asked Bernadette the same question, I asked Lisa, a hygienist at Robert’s office, “Do you like your work?” She said, “Oh, yes. I love the people.” Lisa and I don’t socialize, but
when we’re together at the office, it’s as genuine a bond as any other. How I am feeling is priority to her. Just as it is with Robert and Bernadette. In all parts of my life, it is the connection I give and receive that helps settle my angst. Ruminating to myself makes nothing better. Instead it fuels my isolation and anxiety. “We’re done now, right?” I asked Robert. “Just about,” he said. It was hard to hear him over Bob’s snoring. I put my head between my knees so I wouldn’t pass out. Bernadette offered me a cool towel and more water. Then Robert said, “All done.” I didn’t realize he was talking to Bob when he said, “You did great.” “Oh, thanks,” I said. “It was pure hell but I made it through.” As we left the office, I said to my husband, “You’re my inspiration.” He tenderly kissed my forehead and said, “And you’re a doofus.” “Well, I’m perfectly calm now.” We got into our car. I gave him a big hug, told him how relieved I was it was over, put on my seatbelt, and passed out. Saralee Perel is an award-winning, nationally syndicated columnist. Her new book is Cracked Nuts & Sentimental Journeys: Stories From a Life Out of Balance. To find out more, visit www.saraleeperel.com or email sperel@saraleeperel.com.
The Science of Spring Fever
Winner
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equally as much about me as they do about my teeth. I’m not just a patient; I’m a human being who is afraid. Once I saw a dentist for a root canal. I told him I was very anxious. He said, “You’re old enough to stop being a baby.” My terror then soared. So I did something that I’m still surprised I did. As he was about to proceed, I removed his equipment from my
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When the weather gets warmer and your boss, teacher, or spouse asks why your mind is wandering, you might try blaming your spring fever on physiology. Spring fever’s symptoms usually appear during the onset of the vernal equinox. In the northern hemisphere, people begin to feel more energetic, enthusiastic, and amorous because of chemical changes in the body in part produced by increased exposure to daylight. u
Scientist cite a number of factors that contribute to spring fever: • Increased light sends signals to the brain’s pineal gland, which then reduces its production of melatonin, a hormone that regulates our body clock and controls our mood and energy levels. As the days grow longer, the chemical disappears and leaves people feeling more energized and confident.
• Increased light also affects the hypothalamus, the section of the brain that regulates eating, sleeping, and sex drive. • Our other senses—sight, smell, and hearing—also wake up as blossoms and spring breezes assault them. Such stimuli can trigger strong emotions, from euphoria to sadness.
www.50plusSeniorNewsPA.com
Traveltizers
Travel Appetizers: Stories that Whet the Appetite for Travel
A World-Class Event in a World-Class City By Andrea Gross he elevator rises; my stomach drops. Zooming upward at 15 miles an hour, it takes only 58 seconds to reach the observation deck of the CN Tower in Toronto, one of the world’s tallest buildings. Now, from 1,465 feet above street level, I get a wide-angle view of Canada’s most populous city—a labyrinth of buildings interspersed with green parks, traffic-filled freeways, and, not much more than a mile away, the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. This summer Toronto will gain international attention when it hosts the Pan Am Games, the third-largest international multi-sport competition in the world. (It is surpassed only by the Olympic Summer Games and the Asian Games.) Held every four years since 1951, the games bring together amateur athletes from more than 40 countries throughout the Americas who compete in 36 sports.
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Toronto’s waterfront location will be highlighted during the Pan Am Games.
The CN Tower is Toronto’s most famous landmark and one of the world’s tallest buildings.
A double-decker bus provides an easy way to tour Toronto’s many neighborhoods.
They are followed 12 days later by the Parapan American Games, during which athletes with physical disabilities compete in 15 sports.
This means that during 16 days in July and another nine in August, Toronto and its surrounding burgs will host upward of a quarter million tourists as well as
thousands of athletes, coaches, and team officials. We figure we’d better learn how to navigate the city now, in preparation for then. Although the powers-that-be are spending megabucks readying the area for the games, and while much of this is earmarked for transportation, we suspect that in many cases walking will still be the easiest way to get around. Thus we choose to stay at the newly renovated and centrally located Radisson Admiral Hotel. The location is especially perfect for sports enthusiasts. Athletes’ Village, the mini-city that’s being built for participants, is less than a half-hour stroll along the waterfront, and we only have to walk across the street to get to Rogers Centre, the large multipurpose stadium that will be the site of the most anticipated event of the games, the opening ceremony, which will be produced by Cirque du Soleil. Meanwhile, we pay an early visit to the please see TORONTO page 7
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CROSSWORD
Solutions for all puzzles can be found on page 15 bRainteaSeRS
Famous Names of the ’50s and ’60s Find a famous name using consecutive letters. Example: LET’S MAKE IT RUM AND COLA = TRUMAN 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
I LOVE THE JOYFUL BRIGHTNESS OF CHRISTMAS SHE LIKES EATING OLD WATERMELONS I PLUCKED A PEACH OFF A TREE THIS IS NOT THE GAME I REQUESTED I USED TO PLAY CANDYLAND News Events of the ’50s
Fill in the blanks: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Alaska and Hawaii granted s _ a _ _ _ _ _ d 22nd Amendment is r _ _ i _ i _ d U.S. builds its first n _ _ _ _ _ r power plant R _ _ _ P _ _ _ _ refuses to sit in the back of a bus E _ _ _ _ and S _ _ _ _ merge into United Arab Republic
Written by Alan Stillson. Please see http://stillsonworks.com
SUDOKU
Across 1. Farmer’s yield 5. Agent (abbr.) 8. Despot 12. Macramé 13. Antitoxin 15. Seaweed 16. Assist 17. Rapidly 18. Filth 19. Master’s degree 20. Failure 21. Maiden name 22. Frock Down 1. Holding device 2. Spiritual leader 3. Body of water 4. Favorite 5. News account 6. Delete 7. Purplish brown 8. Slight amount 9. Catapult 10. Gibe 11. Grades 13. Beauty parlors 14. Spanish domestic sheep 23. Deflected 24. Fixed charge
25. 28. 29. 30. 33. 37. 38. 39. 40. 43. 45. 46.
Pictures Blowhole Hitch Hosts Roughneck Perjurer Petroleum Scarlett O’Hara’s home Planetary neighbors, possibly? ___-pants Fem. suffix Skewer
47. 50. 54. 55. 57. 58. 60. 61. 62. 63. 64. 65. 66. 67.
26. 27. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 38. 41.
___ de mer Stir up Sun god Shade tree Mine (It.) Convertible Possessive pronoun Needlefish Humorist Buchwald Negative vote Singleton Length measurements (abbr.) 42. Hymn 43. Political arena
In the middle Acrobatic Transgression Netherlands capital Poem Coffee shop Bergen, for one Fencing sword Sign Watered-silk Smear Auto need Arrange Doctrines
44. Metric unit 46. Royal house of Scotland 47. Cravat 48. Florida city 49. Gather 50. Texas A&M student 51. Mechanic’s needs 52. Expression 53. Gauls 56. Commotions 59. Compass pt. 61. Gov’t law enforcement agency
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TORONTO
from page 5
centre, which is home to both the Blue Jays (Toronto’s major league baseball team) and the Argonauts (the city’s professional football team). It’s the nextto-last game of the season, and the crowd goes wild as the Blue Jays beat the topranked Baltimore Orioles. A slightly longer walk gets us to the Distillery Historic District, an area that was once home to the largest distillery in the British Empire. We admire the Victorian architecture that has caused the neighborhood to be designated a National Historic Site and explore the trendy galleries, boutiques, and eateries that line the pedestrian-only streets. I could happily spend the rest of my vacation right here, but we’ve more, much more, to see. In addition to the Distillery District, there’s a Financial District, Fashion District, and Garden District, as well as a Greektown, Chinatown, Little India, and Little Italy. In fact, according to the Toronto Star, there are 239 separate enclaves in this city, which bills itself as “a city of neighborhoods.” We don’t know whether to be dazed or amazed, but we do know that we need help in order to visit even a small proportion of them. Thus we climb aboard a bright-red bus where, from our seats on the upper deck,
Toronto is often called a “city of neighborhoods.”
Toronto has several major Chinese communities.
Plants sprout from a car in what is billed as the “the world’s smallest park.”
The alleys of Kensington, one of Toronto’s most interesting and diverse areas, are filled with murals.
we can get an unobstructed view of streetlevel Toronto. A nonstop tour would take about two hours, but our ticket gives us hop-on, hop-off privileges for three
Nostalgia Road
Dick Dedrick
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consecutive days. Therefore, we hop off in the Theatre District (the third-largest live theatre venue in the English-speaking world, after
www.seetorontonow.com www.radisson.com www.toronto2015.org Photos © Irv Green unless otherwise noted; story by Andrea Gross (www.andreagross.com).
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Whadayawanna Watch Tonight? ovies are better than ever. That was what Hollywood was telling us back in the 1950s. What they meant was that movies were better than television. But we didn’t buy it. Ticket sales have been going down ever since. And ticket prices have been going up. Back then, films were trucked into my hometown in heavy metal containers. It took two people to carry them on a broom handle up to the projection booth. In the cities, the films were new and pristine. In small towns like mine, they were dirty and scratched up. Today movies are digitally downloaded by the theaters. No scratches. No trucks or broom handles required. These days at our house, we do most of our movie watching on Netflix and
London’s West End and New York City’s Broadway); visit Casa Loma Castle, once the largest private residence in Canada and today a location site for movies such as Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2; and attend a neighborhood festival. Finally, we hook up with The Tour Guys to get a more in-depth look at two of Toronto’s most fabled areas, Chinatown and Kensington. Our guide entertains us with stories and peppers us with facts as he leads us down alleyways, past walls filled with murals and art-graffiti, and into small shops we’d never have discovered on our own. But before we leave, there’s one more neighborhood we have to explore, the one by our hotel that houses some of the city’s top breweries. Steam Whistle Brewing is known for what many consider to be some of the best Pilsner in the world, while Amsterdam Brewhouse offers a variety of seasonal and experimental beers. I confess to not being an expert on beer, but the pretzels can’t be beat!
Amazon. There’s no need to go out and find a parking space and pay $10 for a ticket and $5 for popcorn. No need to look at all the new movie posters either. No need to watch a boring newsreel or travelogue, a Three Stooges comedy, or a Tom & Jerry cartoon. No singing along with those Follow the Bouncing Ball features. Or yelling like crazy when the Durango Kid western comes on at the Saturday matinee. No need to go to the lobby for Black Crows, or walk over to the Rexall drugstore after the show for a malt and maybe pick up a Batman comic before you ride home on your bike. Thanks, modern technology.
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Please join us for this FREE event!
Art and Antiques by Dr. Lori
Spring Break for Museum Lovers Lori Verderame f you are planning a trip this spring, consider spending some of your welldeserved break time at one of the world’s most interesting museums and special exhibitions.
Washington, D.C.: The National Gallery of Art is hosting a large exhibition dedicated to the great masters and their interest in drawing and printmaking. This show, dedicated to the history of St. Petersburg, Russia: The new metalpoint—the art of drawing with a Faberge Museum features a 1,500-piece metal stylus—features nearly 100 original collection of drawings by the famous Leonardo da ornamental Vinci, Raphael, eggs. Rogier van der Originally Weyden, presented by Raphael, the czars as Albrecht Easter gifts to Dürer, and their loved Rembrandt van ones, the Rijn, among Faberge others. Museum If you miss reunites these this show in Ringling Museum of Art & Sculpture Garden, ultra-special Washington, Sarasota, Fla. art objects you can visit with the Imperial city. these fine works of art as they travel to Dating from 1885 to 1917, many of The British Museum in London, these works of art have only just returned England, from September through to St. Petersburg since the Russian December 2015. www.nga.gov Revolution. Approximately 200 of the famous New York, N.Y.: The new Whitney Faberge eggs were acquired by Russian Museum of American Art will open in billionaire Viktor Vekselberg from the May in the trendy and accessible estate of Malcolm Forbes for $100 meatpacking district at Washington Street million and brought back to Russia for and Gansevoort Street. this specialty museum located in the The 200,000-square-foot building was Shuvalov Palace. designed by award-winning architect This is a private museum and Renzo Piano and will provide the admission is by appointment. institution with greater exhibition and www.faberge event space. museum.ru The new building will take advantage
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of its close proximity to the High Line, a new outdoor park space in the area. www.whitney.org Other interesting museums that are slated to debut in the second half of 2015 include: Kunsthaus Dahlem in Berlin, Germany, dedicated to postwar European art and culture (www.kunsthaus-dahlem.de); the longawaited National Museum of African American History and Culture on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. (www.nmaahc.si.edu); and the IKEA museum at the site of its first retail store in Älmhult, Sweden (www.ikea.com). The Ringling Museum is a site with multiple museum displays on the vast estate in Sarasota, Fla. It unites fine art
and circus history in one of the best museums in America. If you are going to a hotel or resort, you will find fine art in the lobby, rooms, and conference areas, too. And, if you want to set sail over spring break, you may be surprised to learn that a number of cruise ships also feature art onboard—ranging from antique to contemporary—including Celebrity, Regent, Oceania, and Holland America, among others. Enjoy your break! Celebrity Ph.D. antiques appraiser, author, and former museum director, Dr. Lori hosts antiques appraisal events worldwide. Dr. Lori is the star appraiser on Discovery channel. Visit www.DrLoriV.com/Events, www.Facebook.com/DoctorLori, or call (888) 431-1010.
Believe It or Not? History is full of practical jokers, some more successful than others. Check out these three tales of hoaxes that seemed plausible—before they fell apart: I’ll take Manhattan. A carpenter by the name of Lozier claimed in 1825 that Manhattan was in danger of sinking because of overbuilding on the lower end.
Lozier proposed that the lower end be sawed off, dragged into New York Harbor, and then reattached. He came up with a plan and commissioned numerous laborers. When the day came for the big move, the laborers gathered with supplies and provisions. Lozier never showed up. please see BELIEVE IT page 10
Smile of the Month This month’s smiles belong to two “seniors,” Ethel Jefferis and her granddaughter, Taylor Jefferis, of Phoenixville (Taylor is a senior in high school).
Send us your favorite smile—your children, grandchildren, friends, even your “smiling” pet!—and it could be 50plus Senior News’ next Smile of the Month! You can submit your photos either digitally to mjoyce@onlinepub.com or by mail to:
50plus Senior News Smile of the Month • 3912 Abel Drive, Columbia, PA 17512 Please include the following information: Your name____________________________________________________________ Your town of residence ____________________________________________________ Names(s) of those in photo _________________________________________________ Their town(s) of residence __________________________________________________ Their relationship to you (e.g., daughter, brother, grandson) __________________________________ Digital photos must be at least 4x6'' with a resolution of 300 dpi. No professional photos, please. Please include a SASE if you would like to have your photo returned.
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Do you think your grandkids are the cutest in PA? Now is your chance to prove it! • Go to www.CutestGrandkidsPA.com to submit your photo through June 15, 2015. • Entries will appear on our Facebook page within two business days of submission. • Cast your votes on our Facebook page (www.www.facebook.com/50plusSeniorNews) until June 30, 2015. Be sure to share your photo with your friends and family to receive more votes! • The grandkid with the most votes will win a $250 gift certificate to Big Bright Bounces! • Winner will be announced July 15, 2015.
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Light Moderate Heavy Brief/Diaper Pull-ons Pads/Liners Skincare April 2015
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Calendar of Events
Chester County
Support Groups
Free and open to the public
April 1, 6 p.m. Memory Loss and Dementia Support Group Sunrise Assisted Living of Paoli 324 W. Lancaster Ave., Malvern (610) 251-9994
April 13 and 27, 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Caregiver Support Group Adult Care of Chester County 201 Sharp Lane, Exton (610) 363-8044
April 7, 2 p.m. Grief Support Group Phoenixville Senior Center 153 Church St., Phoenixville (610) 327-7216
April 14 and 28, 5 to 6:30 p.m. Bereavement Support Group Main Line Unitarian Church 816 S. Valley Forge Road, Devon (610) 585-6604 phoenixbereavement@yahoo.com Nondenominational; all are welcome.
April 7 and 21, 6:30 to 8 p.m. Bereavement Support Group Brandywine Hospital Conference Room 2N 201 Reeceville Road, Coatesville (610) 998-1700, ext. 226 April 8, 1:30 p.m. Family Caregiver Support Group Sarah Care 425 Technology Drive, Suite 200 Malvern (610) 251-0801
Coatesville Area Senior Center – (610) 383-6900 22 N. Fifth Ave., Coatesville – www.coatesvilleseniorcenter.org Weekdays, 9 to 10:30 a.m. – Hot Breakfast April 7, 14, and 21, 10:30 a.m. – Art with Carol April 25, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. – Caregiver’s Resource Expo
April 21, 6 p.m. Family Caregiver Support Group Sunrise of Westtown 501 Skiles Blvd., West Chester (610) 399-4464
Downingtown Senior Center – (610) 269-3939 983 E. Lancaster Ave., Downingtown – http://home.ccil.org/~dasc April 6, 12:45 p.m. – Rover Transportation Presentation April 16, 7 p.m. – Live, Learn, and Grow: Art on Canvas Workshop April 23, 5 to 7 p.m. – Spaghetti Dinner
If you have an event you would like to include, please email information to mjoyce@onlinepub.com for consideration.
Programs & Events April 4 and 18, 5 to 10 p.m. Bingo Nights Marine Corps League Detachment 430 Chestnut St., Downingtown (610) 429-8174
April 14, 7 p.m. Hearing Loss Support Group Christ Community Church 1190 Phoenixville Pike West Chester (610) 444-4454 www.hearinglosschesco.com
April 29, 6 p.m. Living with Cancer Support Group Paoli Hospital Cancer Center 255 W. Lancaster Ave., Paoli (484) 565-1253
April 14 and 28, 6:30 to 8 p.m. Bereavement Support Group Jennersville Hospital Conference Room B 1015 W. Baltimore Pike West Grove (610) 998-1700, ext. 226
Free and open to the public April 7, 11:30 a.m. West Chester University Retirees Luncheon For restaurant location, please email darsie@verizon.net
April 9, 6 to 7:30 p.m. Free Community Dinner Grove United Methodist Church 490 W. Boot Road, West Chester (610) 431-4526 grovecommunitydinner@gmail.com
Chester County Department of Parks and Recreation April 19, 2 to 3:30 p.m. – Intro to Hiking, Warwick County Park April 25, 9 to 11 a.m. – Spring Plant Swap, Hibernia County Park April 25, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. – Sheep & Wool Day, Springton Manor Farm from page 9
Not so elementary. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle created the famous detective Sherlock Holmes, but his own deductive powers weren’t always superior to anyone else’s. Two young girls, 16 and 10, once sent him a picture of fairies supposedly photographed in the English village of Cottingley. Doyle brought them national attention. Photography experts declared there had been no
touching up or manipulating of the picture. In the early 1980s, the two girls (now grown women) had admitted that they had posed with paper cutouts of fairies, which had been supported by hatpins. Out of the Stone Age. In 1971, the world was told that a tribe of Stone Age people, never
Great Valley Senior Center – (610) 889-2121 47 Church Road, Malvern April 8, 1 p.m. – Koffee Klatch April 9 and 23, 10 a.m. – Canasta April 23, 2:45 p.m. – Metaphysical Group Kennett Area Senior Center – (610) 444-4819 427 S. Walnut St., Kennett Square – www.kennettseniorcenter.org April 7, 7 p.m. – Wills, Living Wills, and Powers of Attorney Phoenixville Area Senior Center – (610) 935-1515 153 Church St., Phoenixville – www.phoenixvilleseniorcenter.org April 8, 7 p.m. – Wills, Living Wills, and Powers of Attorney Please contact your local center for scheduled activities.
Chester County Library Programs
www.chesco.org/ccparks
BELIEVE IT
Senior Center Activities
exposed to modern civilization, was found deep in the jungles of the Philippines. There was great hubbub about the discovery. Then in 1986, a Swiss journalist revisited the tribe, only to find them living in huts and dressed in t-shirts and shorts. The group of people then revealed that they had been instructed by a government official to pretend they were cave dwellers.
Downingtown Library, 330 E. Lancaster Ave., Downingtown, (610) 269-2741 April 16, 6:30 p.m. – Downingtown Library’s Writers Group April 23, 1 p.m. – Senior Book Club April 23, 6:30 p.m. – Reading the Classics Paoli Library, 18 Darby Road, Paoli, (610) 296-7996 Mystery Book Club – Call for dates/times
What’s Happening? Give Us the Scoop!
Please send us your press releases so we can let our readers know about free events occurring in chester county! email preferred to: mjoyce@onlinepub.com Let
help you get the word out! (610) 675-6240
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HAPPY TRAILS
from page 1
An active person—participating in Kick hate that part of the experience,” she said. ’n Gliders, a cross-country skiing group, “I enjoy it. I feel like a kid getting ready to and the Harrisburg Bicycle Club— build a fort any time I need to set up Reisinger enjoys a challenge. camp and make my dinner.” But this wasn’t her first time on the Tired and hungry, the two planned a trail. She completed a section hike in break for the end of June. They would 2011. It took six years for her to pick up catch up on bills, sneak in a dentist pieces of the trail whenever she had the appointment, and attend reunions before time. heading back out. “I always wanted to do a thru-hike, but In the rush to get home, with just a few it was always tough,” she said. “I was miles between the women and the comfort working and that waited, the never had time to trip nearly ended give up six for Reisinger. months of my life Climbing over to just walk in rocky terrain, her the woods. When foot got caught I finished the and sent her section hike, I flying to the thought I was ground. With a done with it. throbbing knee, Then I found out she made it I might be able home. But she to do something wondered if she’d Reisinger beneath a misty tree in pretty neat.” George Washington National Forest in Virginia. return to the It was Banjak trail. who told X-rays showed Reisinger she the injury looked should try to worse on the break the record. outside. With It didn’t take rest, the swelling much subsided. Not convincing. The wanting to let an two took a trip to injury set her Florida to canoe back, Reisinger before making headed back to their way to the forest. Reisinger atop Mount Katahdin, Georgia to start When they Maine’s highest peak (5,270 feet). the hike. They finally got back would set off on the trail, the together on March 30. pair would have to make up about 5 miles Even though it was just the two of that were missed in Pennsylvania. So, they them on the journey, they had a slew of decided to save it for last. They each asked fans. Reisinger kept a journal and would their families to meet them in the end and mail pieces of it when they would reach a help them cross the finish line. rest stop. Bill Stine, a member of Kick ’n The women would power through the Gliders, would post her stories online. remainder of the hike, making it through Her entries describe the many people the toughest climbing in New Hampshire they met along their way, including Tonya and Maine. They reached their end point and Tina from Germany, whom they on Oct. 4, but it wouldn’t be until Oct. 19 fondly called “T&T.” They also met that they’d hike those last 5 miles into Osprey, a 74-year-old man who wished the Pine Grove Furnace State Park. “biddies” good luck on their journey. About 50 people showed up to join They hiked through rain and hot sun. them for the hike and a cookout that They devoured eggs, bacon, and home followed. It wasn’t just Reisinger and fries when they had the rare stop at a Banjak who celebrated that day—but all restaurant along the way. They dreamed of the people who had kept tabs on their warm beds and hot showers. journey through Reisinger’s blog. Despite her age, Reisinger embraced the “I never thought of giving up, but I can lifestyle that a hike on the Appalachian understand why sometimes people do give Trail requires. She doesn’t know how much up,” she said. “I think I’m in good shape, longer she’ll be able to sleep under the but I know I don’t have the stamina of stars or carry on her back everything she someone who is 25. So, for me, I think needs to survive. I’ve done my last hike of the Appalachian “Some people like the trail, but they Trail. I think I can say I beat it.” www.50plusSeniorNewsPA.com
16th Annual
16th Annual
LANCASTER COUNTY
DAUPHIN COUNTY
May 14, 2015
April 2, 2015 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. Hershey Lodge 325 University Drive Hershey
9 a.m. – 2 p.m. Millersville University NEW ON! ATI LOC
12th Annual
Marauder Court 21 South George Street Millersville
19th Annual
LANCASTER COUNTY
CHESTER COUNTY
Sept. 23, 2015
June 9, 2015
9 a.m. – 2 p.m. Spooky Nook Sports
9 a.m. – 2 p.m. Church Farm School
2913 Spooky Nook Road Manheim
1001 East Lincoln Highway Exton
(Just off Rt. 283 at the Salunga exit)
13th Annual
16th Annual
CUMBERLAND COUNTY
YORK COUNTY
Sept. 30, 2015
Oct. 21, 2015
9 a.m. – 2 p.m. York Expo Center
9 a.m. – 2 p.m. Carlisle Expo Center
Memorial Hall East 334 Carlisle Avenue York
100 K Street Carlisle
Limited Sponsorship Opportunities Available
Exhibitors • Health Screenings • Seminars Entertainment • Door Prizes (717) 285-1350 • (717) 770-0140 (610) 675-6240
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April 2015
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Home Care Services & Hospice Providers Affilia Home Health
Good Samaritan Hospice
(717) 544-2195 (888) 290-2195 (toll-free) www.AffiliaHomeHealth.org
(717) 274-2591 www.gshleb.org
Year Est.: 1908 Counties Served: Berks, Chester, Cumberland, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, Perry, Schuylkill, York RNs: Yes LPNs: Yes CNAs: Yes Home Aides: Yes Medicare Certified?: Yes
Other Certifications and Services: Home care specialists in physical, occupational, and speech therapy; nursing; cardiac care; and telehealth. Disease management, innovative technologies, and education help you monitor your condition to prevent hospitalization. Licensed non-profit agency; Medicare certified; Joint Commission accredited.
Year Est.: 1979 Counties Served: Berks, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, Schuylkill RNs: Yes LPNs: Yes CNAs: Yes Home Aides: Yes Medicare Certified?: Yes
Central Penn Nursing Care, Inc.
Homeland Hospice
(717) 569-0451 www.cpnc.com
(717) 221-7890 www.homelandhospice.org
Year Est.: 1984 Counties Served: Cumberland, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, York RNs: Yes LPNs: Yes CNAs: Yes Home Aides: Yes Medicare Certified?: No
Other Certifications and Services: Providing all levels of care (PCAs, CNAs, LPNs, RNs), in the home, hospital, or retirement communities with specifically trained caregivers for Alzheimer's and dementia clients. Home care provided up to 24 hours a day to assist with personal care and housekeeping. A FREE nursing assessment is offered.
Connections at Home VIA Willow Valley
(717) 898-2825; (866) 857-4601 (toll-free) www.keystoneinhomecare.com Other Certifications and Services: Connections at Home VIA Willow Valley delivers unparalleled, personalized care and companionship in the home, hospital, or senior living community, by compassionate, reliable, dedicated caregivers who are backed by the area’s most trusted name in senior living for more than 30 years—Willow Valley Communities.
Year Est.: 2004 Counties Served: Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, York RNs: No LPNs: No CNAs: Yes Home Aides: Yes Medicare Certified?: No
Good Samaritan Home Health
Senior Helpers
(717) 274-2591 www.gshleb.org
(717) 920-0707 www.seniorhelpers.com/harrisburg
Year Est.: 1911 Counties Served: Berks, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, Schuylkill RNs: Yes LPNs: Yes CNAs: Yes Home Aides: Yes Medicare Certified?: Yes
Medicare Certified?: Yes Other Certifications and Services: Exemplary personalized care that enables patients and families to live each day as fully as possible.
Keystone In-Home Care, Inc.
(717) 299-6941 www.ConnectionsAtHome.org Year Est.: 2014 Counties Served: Lancaster RNs: Yes LPNs: No CNAs: Yes Home Aides: Yes Medicare Certified?: No
Year Est.: 2009 Counties Served: Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Juniata, Lancaster, Lebanon, Perry, Schuylkill, York RNs: Yes LPNs: No CNAs: Yes Home Aides: Yes
Other Certifications and Services: Good Samaritan Hospice provides services to patients and their families facing a life-limiting illness. We are Pennsylvania licensed, JCAHO accredited, and Medicare certified. We provide services 24 hours per day with a team approach for medical, emotional, spiritual, and social needs.
Other Certifications and Services: Good Samaritan Home Health is a Pennsylvania-licensed home health agency that is Medicare certified and Joint Commission accredited. We work with your physician to provide nursing, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, wound care, and specialized care as needed.
Year Est.: 2007 Counties Served: Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Perry, York RNs: No LPNs: No CNAs: Yes Home Aides: Yes Medicare Certified?: No
Other Certifications and Services: Two- to 24-hour non-medical assistance provided by qualified, caring, competent, compassionate, and compatible caregivers. Personalized service with Assistance for Daily Living (ADL, IADL): companionship, meal prep, bathing, cleaning, and personal care needs. Respite care, day surgery assistance. Assistance with veterans’ homecare benefits. Medicaid Waiver approved.
Other Certifications and Services: Offering nonmedical home care to provide positive solutions for aging in place. Companionship, personal care, and our specialized dementia care. No minimum number of hours. Medicaid Waiver approved. Convenient, free assessment.
This is not an all-inclusive list of agencies and providers. These advertisers are eager to provide additional information about their services.
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Home Care Services & Hospice Providers Senior Helpers
Visiting Angels
(717) 271-7531 www.seniorhelpers.com/lancastercounty
Carlisle: (717) 241-5900; Chambersburg: (717) 709-7244 East Shore: (717) 652-8899; Gettysburg: (717) 337-0620 Hanover: (717) 630-0067; Lancaster: (717) 393-3450 West Shore: (717) 737-8899; (717) York: (717) 751-2488 www.visitingangels.com
Year Est.: 2002 Counties Served: Berks, Lancaster, Lebanon RNs: Yes LPNs: Yes CNAs: Yes Home Aides: Yes Medicare Certified?: No
Other Certifications and Services: A PA-licensed, non-medical home care company providing companion, personal, Alzheimer’s, and dementia care from two to 24 hours a day. Call for a FREE homecare assessment and to learn more about benefits available for veterans and their spouses.
Year Est.: 2001 RNs: No LPNs: No CNAs: Yes Home Aides: Yes Medicare Certified?: No
Other Certifications and Services: Visiting Angels provides seniors and adults with the needed assistance to continue living at home. Flexible hours up to 24 hours per day. Companionship, personal hygiene, meal prep, and more. Our caregivers are thoroughly screened, bonded, and insured. Call today for a complimentary and informational meeting.
UCP of South Central PA (800) 333-3873 (Toll Free) www.ucpsouthcentral.org Year Est.: 1962 Counties Served: Adams, Franklin, Lancaster, York RNs: No LPNs: No CNAs: No Home Aides: Yes Medicare Certified?: No
Other Certifications and Services: UCP provides non-medical adult in-home care services to adults, including DPW and aging waiver programs. PA licensed and working hand in hand with your service coordinator, UCP provides personal care attendants who implement your individualized service plan.
If you would like to be featured on this important page, please contact your account representative or call (717) 285-1350.
This is not an all-inclusive list of agencies and providers. These advertisers are eager to provide additional information about their services.
My 22 Cents’ Worth
Family Feuds Walt Sonneville
F
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to 45 percent of families today have some siblings have occurred only after experienced feuds among relatives that the siblings became aged. Brothers Curtis persist over an and Prestley Blake coextensive duration. founded Friendly’s Ice This is lamentable, Cream Corporation in Too often we especially when the 1935. They remained are locked in aged despair of ever friends until they were seeing close to 90 years of unresolved reconciliation. age. Then they had an estrangements The problem is acrimonious dispute most apparent over the future of the within families. during holidays company. when an assembled The Andrews Sisters family senses or witnesses the presence of were enormously successful as a vocal conflict and the absence of unwelcomed trio, but their family harmony began to drift the year they lost both of their kin. Well-publicized estrangements among parents.
“
“
amily feuds are as old as mankind, beginning with Cain killing his brother Abel. Disputes that age into decades can fracture family solidarity through succeeding generations. By the time we reach our senior years, it may be too late to control further damage. During the past few centuries there have been celebrated cases of regicide (killing a monarch) and parricide (killing a close relative) to gain control of the royal throne. Fortunately, commoners need not worry about aristocratic plots in which we escape personal involvement. Yet, too often, we are locked in unresolved estrangements within families. Studies have concluded that 30
50plus SeniorNews
Bandleaders Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey were estranged brothers for several years, reconciling toward the end of their lives. Feuds between parents and children or their stepchildren can be difficult to repair if the parents are in their advanced years. Billionaire T. Boone Pickens at the age of 85 sued his 58-year-old son, Michael, for defaming him on Michael’s website. Anthony Marshall, the son of Brooke Astor (Mrs. Vincent Astor), was charged with unauthorized use of his wealthy mother’s estate. Mrs. Astor at the time was 104 years of age. please see FEUDS page 14 u
April 2015
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FEUDS
from page 13
Patti Davis, daughter of Ronald and Nancy Reagan, had highly publicized personal criticisms of her parents, eventually reconciling. In 2011 film star Mickey Rooney, at the age of 90, testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Aging that a family member had abused him recently. When families fight over the assets of their parents or grandparents, lawyers are likely to reap all the rewards. The legal expenses of some feuds can drain virtually the entire estate.
Actor Peter Ustinov left a fortune said to be in the “tens of millions of pounds” (The Daily Telegraph, Jan. 24, 2013). Almost all of his estate went for legal fees as his children and their stepmother battled for years in various courts. One of the Ten Commandments instructs us to honor one’s father and mother. It seems odd that we must be commanded to do so. This command should include a clause requiring parents to earn that honor. With the divorce rate
at about 50 percent of marriages, blended families with stepchildren and stepparents raise issues of the boundaries of filial obligations imposed by Scripture. Family disputes should reach a compromise that is preferred to a sought-after, but unworkable, dominance. Brothers Abraham and Lot followed this path, as reported in the Book of Genesis. They avoided a fight by negotiating a division of land. The benefit of settlement becomes
more apparent to family rivals as they age. When the battles of our youth and mid-years become distant memories, harmony should be within grasp in our closing decades. Walt Sonneville, a retired market-research analyst, is the author of My 22 Cents’ Worth: The Higher-Valued Opinion of a Senior Citizen and A Musing Moment: Meditative Essays on Life and Learning, books of personal-opinion essays, free of partisan and sectarian viewpoints. Contact him at waltsonneville@verizon.net.
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Fragments of History
Glimpses of History via Letters Victor Parachin Letter to Harriet Beecher Stowe In 1850, a Mrs. Edward Beecher wrote her sister “Hattie,” who had already written and published several books, making this request: “Hattie, if I could use a pen as you can, I would write something to make this whole nation feel what an accursed thing slavery is!” Her sister promptly wrote back, saying that with a new baby, “I can’t do much of anything, but I will do it at last. I will write that thing if I live!” Less than a year later, Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote Uncle Tom’ s Cabin, a book that became a bestseller, galvanized the North against the institution of slavery, and contributed to the outbreak of the American Civil War. In 1862 Beecher Stowe visited the White House, where she was met by an impressed President Abraham Lincoln, who greeted her saying: “So this is the little lady who wrote the book that made the big war.”
Puzzles shown on page 6
Puzzle Solutions
William James’ Letter of Appreciation In 1869 William James graduated from Harvard University as a medical doctor. All his life he struggled with depression, a factor that may have created his interest in psychology. He is regarded as America’s first psychologist, famously declaring: “The first lecture on psychology I ever heard being the first I ever gave.” Offered a teaching position at Harvard University, James accepted and remained there for 35 years. A group of female students from
Radcliff College took a class with him and, at the end, presented James with the gift of an azalea plant. Clearly, James was overHarriet Beecher Stowe whelmed by circa 1852 this gift, indicating it was the first time he’d received such appreciation. Addressing the group as “Dear Young Ladies,” he wrote: I am deeply touched by your remembrance. It is the first time anyone ever treated me so kindly, so you may well believe that the impression on the heart of the lonely sufferer will be even more durable than the impression on your minds of all the teachings of philosophy 2A. I now perceive one immense omission in my Psychology (a reference to his recently published book)—the deepest principle of human nature is the craving to be appreciated, and I left it out altogether from the book, because I never had it gratified till now. I fear you have let loose a demon in me, and that all my actions will now be for the sake of such rewards. However, I will try to be faithful to this one unique and beautiful azalea tree, the pride of my life and delight of my existence. Winter and summer will I tend and water it—even
with my tears. Mrs. James shall never go near it or touch it. If it dies, I will die too; and if I die, it shall be planted on my grave. Harry Truman’s Letter Defending William James His Daughter’s in the 1890s Recital In December 1950, U.S. President Harry Truman’s daughter, Margaret, gave a public singing recital. Present was Paul Hume, the Washington Post’s music critic, who reviewed her performance negatively, writing that her voice had “little size and fair quality.”
He also noted that Margaret sang flat much of the time, adding sarcastically that there were “few moments … when one can relax and feel confident that she will make her goal, which is the end of the song.” Truman was furious and wrote Hume the following letter: “I have just read your lousy review buried in the back pages. You sound like a frustrated old man who never made a success, an eight-ulcer man on a fourulcer job, and all four ulcers working. “I have never met you, but if I do you’ll need a new nose and plenty of beefsteak and perhaps a supporter below.” When the letter was made public, it caused considerable controversy, but most Americans seemed to approve of a father defending his daughter.
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Brainteasers Answers 1. I LOVE THE JOYFUL BRIGHTNESS OF CHRISTMAS 2. SHE LIKES EATING OLD WATERMELONS 3. I PLUCKED A PEACH OFF A TREE 4. THIS IS NOT THE GAME I REQUESTED 5. I USED TO PLAY CANDYLAND 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Alaska and Hawaii granted statehood 22nd Amendment is ratified U.S. builds its first nuclear power plant Rosa Parks refuses to sit in the back of a bus Egypt and Syria merge into United Arab Republic
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