HMMMM, GOOD: Pat Clark, of Palermo, photographed this Baltimore Oriole on one of her suet feeders.
NOT MUCH HERE: Michael Bilinsky, of China Village, snapped these mallards pecking in the snow last winter.
SIGN OF SPRING: Joan Chaffee, of Clinton, photographed these pussy willows by the side of the road, recently.
Better vision due to cataract surgery meant seeing lanes and pins clearly and so better bowling for one enthusiast.
(NAPSI)—If you ever have trouble seeing your way clear to getting your eyes checked, here’s a case to consider: Genida White could tell her vision was gradually getting worse, but she rationalized away the need to see an ophthalmologist—a medical doctor who specializes in eyecare. She could still do all the things she enjoyed, such as bowling every Monday. But mostly, she was nervous to hear what the doctor would say about her eyes.
Her daughter provided the encouragement she needed, telling her about a radio advertisement she heard about free eye exams with EyeCare America. No more excuses; it was time for an appointment. While, unfortunately, Genida did receive the diagnosis she feared—she would need surgery to remove cataracts in both eyes—the results were brilliant. The improvement in her vision was swift and dramatic.
“I’d never had eye surgery before,” Genida said. “Before I knew it, it was over.”
A cataract is when your eye’s natural lens becomes cloudy. People with cataracts describe it as looking through a foggy window; vision is blurred and colors are dulled. About half of all Americans over age 75 have cataracts. As you age, you’re increasingly likely to develop cataracts.
Fortunately, cataracts are treatable. An ophthalmologist surgically removes the cloudy lens and replaces it with an artificial one. Cataract surgery is the most effective and most common procedure performed in all of medicine with some 3 million Americans choosing to have cataract surgery each year.
Within two weeks of calling EyeCare America, Genida had cataract surgery in both eyes — just in time to enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday. She was amazed at how simple it was to set up the initial eye exam with EyeCare America and at how quickly her vision was restored.
“Reading the eye chart was so bad at first,” recalls Genida. She could just barely read the last two lines of the eye chart during her initial eye exam with her ophthalmologist, Douglas Wilson, M.D. The day after surgery, Genida was able to read the whole way through the chart, top to bottom. “Dr. Wilson asked me, ‘Are you sure you couldn’t see before?!’ and I said, ‘Yes, I’m positive!’ It was amazing.”
Proof of her quick recovery was evident at the bowling alley, where Genida didn’t miss one Monday on the lanes.
If the cost of an eye exam is a concern, the American Academy of Ophthalmology’s EyeCare America program may be able to help. This national public service program provides eyecare through thousands of volunteer ophthalmologists for eligible seniors, 65 and older, and those at increased risk for eye disease, mostly at no out-of-pocket cost to the patient.
To see if you or someone you care for qualify, visit www.aao.org/eyecare-america or follow @AcademyEyeSmart.
by Debbie WalkerThat’s right. Since my granddaughter told us she was pregnant with a baby girl due in May 2020 the memories have taken over. I have experienced so many different memories. These memories include the little heart tugs and the laughs and there have been many.
I have to admit I was thrilled when they told us, “It’s going to be a girl!” While she was pregnant, I admit to having had a few giggles. When I was pregnant with her mother, my daughter, women were just “pregnant”, maybe morning sickness, and then the “birth”. That was it. No big discussions telling me the development stage of the baby. If I remember right, a nurse showed me how to bath her before we left our five-day visit in the hospital. That was it.
A co-worker and I had to deal with her sister, my daughter, And…….another co-worker, all pregnant at the same time. These women would go to the doctors and come back with papers to show the stage the baby was in and all the talking about morning sickness and something called a “mucus plug”. What in the heck is the mucus plug! I have lived this long without knowing what it is, I can live without knowing! We heard all the stages and details with all three of them.
Well now with Tristin it was all “mother’s” websites where you could learn all you ever could want to know. That is only the beginning of all we learned with her pregnancy.
Those are only the beginnings of the memories that have come out. So many differences. Some amazing things and some ridiculous ones. It is amazing to me that we can have video visits. The neatest thing is that the baby’s Momma can video those special moments that dad’s usually miss out on. So nice.
Think about it. It wasn’t that long ago if you lived out of their area you had to wait for pictures or possibly a video to arrive in the mail. Now you can video chat with them, in real time, as often as all agree.
There are times when Addi’s (Addison Grace) facial expressions remind me of her mother or grandmother, and I was even told she looked like me. The neat thing is how many times her features have changed. I love watching these changes every couple of weeks.
My grandmother had a ring that was mine from the first day she showed up with it. I must have been about seven or eight years old. I love that simple amethyst ring and as time went on, our relationship with that ring changes. Gram let everyone know that the ring was to be mine. About a year before she passed, I had a tiger eye ring that she liked, and we traded. Years of history there.
Addi and I seem to be bonding over my rings. She likes checking out the details on each one and I hope it continues. Since it was passed on to me from grandmother to granddaughter, I believe I will pass Gram’s ring down to my granddaughter, Addi’s mom.
I am sure we are in for many more choices and I will hopefully enjoy them all.
I am just curious what memories babies have brought to you over the years. Please pass on a few. You can contact me at DebbieWalker@townline.org with questions or comments. Thank you for reading and have a wonderful week.
by Peter Cates
Robert P. Tristram Coffin
Continuing the weekly series of paragraphs from Robert P. Tristram Coffin’s essay Kennebec Crystals:
“Then a sharp blue wind came up out of the northwest, the mercury in the thermometers tumbled. The pines roared on into the dark, the stars snapped in the skies like sapphires. Good weather for future soldiers, Napoleon once remarked. Napoleon be hanged! So thought the farmers along the Kennebec, who were up in history as they were down in their pork barrels. There were enough small pairs of pants running around their farms already. What they needed was nights to breed that life-giving ice which would keep the small thighs in the trousers going. Good freezing nights for starting the crop of the water.”
Third paragraph next week.
Paul Whiteman
On December 15, 1922, Paul Whiteman (1891-1967) and his orchestra recorded a pair of fox trot arrangements of two songs — Ivy (Cling to Me) composed by James P. Johnson (1894-1955) and Isham Jones (1894-1956); and I Gave You Up Just Before You Threw Me Down, by Bert Kalmar (1894-1947) and Harry Ruby (1895-1974).
Whiteman was often criticized for the sameness of his dance music arrangements but I have found the piles of his shellacs and other records quite enjoyable. The musicians performed with perky rhythms, savory phrasing and, at times, imaginatively improvised detail within the sometimes constricted trotty parameters that might be lacking in the foxy element.
James P. Johnson was an African-American barrelhouse pianist from New Jersey. Isham Jones was one of the early ‘30’s big band leaders who left a number of very good 78s. Coincidentally, Jones was born January 31, 1894, one day before James P. Johnson.
Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby wrote such songs as I Wanna Be Loved By You which was immortalized by Betty Boop and Who’s Sorry Now, itself a megahit MGM 45 for Connie Francis in 1957. They were the subject of the classic 1950 MGM musical Three Little Words, starring Fred Astaire (1899-1987) and Red Skelton (1913-1997) as the songwriters.
ZeroZeroZero is a recent crime drama series that premiered on Amazon Prime February 16 with a package of eight episodes. It depicts the activities of Mexican cocaine dealers; Mexico’s semi-corrupt military fighting the dealers, often murderously, while taking cash as well; a New Orleans family who owns a fleet of container ships and acts as middlemen between sellers and buyers; and the elderly mafioso big scale buyer in Calabria, Italy, whose grandson is secretly planning to feed Grandpa to his sow and take over that family business while pretending to be loyal and loving.
I watched the first two episodes this past weekend and am now hooked.
Yftach Herzog, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
by Evangeline T.Hello and welcome to Maine Memories, little snippets of life from our home state. For this installment, I have a story about my dad as a youngster and one memorable day when he fed the pigs. He sure learned a lesson!
I’d been born in my grandparents’ large farm house, and as a young girl, I’d spend a week or two with them each summer. I loved it there.
My grampy was a happy and full-of-fun guy. He had a name for me – Bambi, because I reminded him of the little deer in Walt Disney’s movie. Why, I never knew, but the nickname stuck. Bambi was cute, so I didn’t mind.
We used to sit together on his front porch, and he’d tell me funny stories about my dad’s childhood growing up as a farm boy. I loved hearing those memories, and I’d like to share one with you now. Hopefully, you’ll laugh as much as I did and still do!
Every year, the farm harvested what’s called cattle corn. It would be stored in a silo for winter feed, to keep the pigs healthy. Everyone worked really hard, chopping corn hulls and putting in enough to last the entire winter and spring.
Well, one year, Grampy gave my dad the duty of cleaning out the silo before refilling.
The bottom was covered with old corn hulls soaked in liquid. This was the first time Dad had been given this particular duty, and like all the chores expected of him, he took it very seriously.
But what to do with the stuff? Seemed a waste to just throw it away. In his young mind, he thought the pigs might enjoy a treat, so Dad dumped the old corn into their pen.
Bad idea!
Soon, Grampy returned with a load of fresh corn for the silo. That’s when he heard strange sounds coming from the pens. Investigating further, Grampy couldn’t believe his eyes…or his ears. The pigs were wobbling around, bouncing into one another, squealing, snorting, and rolling on the ground! What strange behavior. Pigs aren’t supposed to act like that!
He yelled at my dad, “What the heck have you done, son?”
“Nothing. Just fed the pigs. Why?”
“You fed the pigs, all right. Those hogs are drunk on pure corn alcohol!”
“What?!”
I bet my dad learned his lesson not to do that again. The pigs recovered their senses and were able to walk without toppling over. I don’t know if they had hangovers!
My grandfather and I both got a big laugh over his story, just one more slice of life on the farm. Never a dull moment.
by Dan BeaulieuNo matter what your customers ask, always find a way to help them. If they ask for something that you don’t normally do, then find a way to do it. IF it is a service that you don’t or cannot possibly do then find someone who can provide that service and either partner with them to provide your customer what she needs or introduce them to the customers. Regardless, the role of any service company is to be helpful in any way that we can.
Here are a few examples:
You run a successful landscaping company and your customer’s fence is in need of repair or replacement. This is not something that you do, but you know someone who does. It’s in your best interest to make the introduction. Actually, you have a choice of either making the introduction or acting as the prime contractors and handle the fence repair company as your subcontractor. Thus, not only servicing your customer but expanding your business and your revenue as well.
You run a car repair shop specializing in revitalizing classic automobiles. Your company handles all the mechanical and electrical as well as the body work, but you don’t do interiors; upholstery and such. That’s when you find the best upholstery and interior rehab and you partner with them making you a full service provider. Your customer benefits, your new partner benefits, and your company benefits, it’s a win, win, win situation and it does not get any better than that.
These kinds of partnerships all start out with you trying to meet your customers’ needs in the best way you can.
The best result of these kinds of strategic thinking is that it will allow you to scale your business well beyond your own in house capabilities.
The second best part of this is that as you start partnering with more strategic partners, they in turn will provide you with some business opportunities, as well. This will be additional business that you don’t have to take the time to chase.
When you share with strategic complementary businesses you all grow and profit to the point where you all get much more stable and stronger.
But the key is to find the right partners. Here are a few suggestions for what to look for when looking for the right partners
Always remember that a true partnership is when entities come together and accomplish things far greater combined than they could individually.
Developing true synergistic cooperative partnership is one of the best ways to make your customers happy and, yes, of course, grow your business.
Porcupine.
by Roland D. HalleePorcupines. Nuisance, or ecological necessity?
It all depends with whom you talk. I know some people who are overrun by the animals to the point where they are raiding the gardens, and having to deal with their dogs being injured by porcupine quills due mostly to their own curiosity. While others find a use for them.
Simply put, porcupines are rodents. That puts them in the same class, and are actually related, with raccoons, rats and beavers. They are indigenous to the Americas, Southern Asia, Europe and Africa. They are the third largest of the rodents, behind the capybara and beaver.
They can grow in size to be 25 – 36 inches long with an 8- to 10-inch tail, and weigh from 12 – 35 pounds.
The common porcupine, Erethizon dorsatum, is an herbivore, so look out gardens. It eats leaves, herbs, twigs and green plants. They may eat bark in the winter, evidence of which I have seen in many places. The North American porcupine often climbs trees to find food. Like the raccoon, they are mostly nocturnal, but will sometimes forage for food in the day.
Because of the scarcity of predators, porcupines are plentiful and are not endangered.
The name porcupine comes from Middle French porc espin (spined pig). A regional American name for the animal is quill pig.
The porcupines’ quills, or spines, take on various forms, depending on the species, but all are modified hairs coated with thick plates of keratin, and they are embedded in the skin.
Quills are released by contact with them, or they may drop out when the porcupine shakes its body. The porcupine does not throw quills, but the flailing muscular tail and powerful body may help impel quills deeply into attackers. The quills’ barbed ends expand with moisture and continue to work deeper into flesh. Porcupine quills have mildly antibiotic properties and thus are not infectious. Quills, however, may cause death in animals if they puncture a vital organ or if a muzzle full of quills leads to starvation.
Once embedded, the hollow quills swell, burn and work their way into the flesh every time a victim’s muscles contract, digging a millimeter deeper each hour. Eventually, they emerge through the skin again, some distance from the entry point though sometimes they spear right through the body.
I have had first hand knowledge of how painful a porcupine quill can be. Many years ago, my children had chores to do after they got home from school. One of them was to make sure they picked up after themselves following their after-school snack. Upon returning home from work, I found a folded paper towel on the counter. I grabbed it to crush it into a ball to throw away when this sharp pain shot through my hand. When I unwrapped the towel, I found a porcupine quill inside, but now imbedded in my hand. It turned out my daughter had brought it home from school to show it to me. She obtained the quill from a “show and tell” session at school.
Because they have few effective predators, porcupines are relatively long-lived. The average life span of the porcupine is 7 – 8 years, however, they have lived up to 15 years in the wild, and 18 years in captivity. A predator needs to learn only once to leave a porcupine alone. Bobcats, great-horned owls, mountain lions, coyotes and wolves, when extremely hungry and unable to catch anything else, may give it a try, anyway. The fisher, however, is a skilled porcupine killer. It uses its speed and agility to snake around a porcupine’s rear guard defense and viciously bite its face until it dies.
Porcupine in a tree.
At one time, however, especially when game was scarce, the porcupine was hunted for its meat and considered a delicacy. A practice that continues in Kenya today. Because they are slow, and can remain in the same tree for days at a time, they are about the only animal that can be killed simply with a large rock. Native people of the North Woods also wove elaborate dyed quillwork decorations into clothing, moccasins, belts, mats, necklaces, bracelets and bags. Because the work was so time-consuming and highly valued, quill embroideries were used as a medium of exchange before the coming of Europeans.
When not in trees or feeding, porcupines prefer the protection of a den, which can be found in rock crevices, caves, hollow logs, abandoned mines and even under houses and barns.
Porcupines are highly attracted to salt. They may chew on any tool handle that has salt left from human sweat. They have even been known to chew on outhouse toilet seats. Road rock salt is very tempting to them, and puddles of water from the snow-melt in the spring are especially luring and could account for their high road-kill mortality rate. They have even been seen gnawing on automobile tires that have been exposed to rock salt.
In Maine, porcupines join a short list of other animals that are open to hunting all year, including coyotes, woodchucks and red squirrels.
So, are porcupines a nuisance, or do they have a role in the grand scheme of things, ecologically?
Which pitcher, who played for the Red Sox between 1977 and 1989, is the only player from the state of Maine to receive All Star honors?
by Marilyn Rogers-Bull & PercyReceived the following email from Carol Dolan and my many thanks for this recent news! She wrote: I’ve been asked to circulate the following from the New Portland Library Cutest Pet contest. Our activity for April is the “Cutest Pet” contest. Our pets have given us unconditional love, have been our faithful companions, and perhaps our best company over the past year. Pets include dogs, cats, rabbits, birds, pigs, you name it.
We are accepting entries throughout April; $5 per entry with a chance to win $25. Fill out an entry form telling us why your pet should win and submit a picture to the library. Winner will be chosen first week of May. The picture will be on display and will remain up for a time in the library to cheer us up.
They are located at 899 River Road, in New Portland. They are open Tuesdays and Saturdays 8:30 a.m. – noon and Sundays 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. Call us at 628-6561. Sheila Atwood; New Portland Community Library.
The old news this week is from an Old Somerset Reporter: “Somerset County’s hometown paper for 145 years.” This one was published January 31, 1985, and I was writing for it at that time.
The following officers were elected at the annual meeting of the Solon Federated Church held Friday evening at the Methodist Church Vestry. Clerk, Constance Hopkins; treasurer, Ellen Hills; Finance chairman, Marilyn Rogers; spiritual advance chairman, Gordon Ripley; pulpit decoration chairman, Peggy Rogers; benevolence chairman, Catherine Starbird; music chairman, Gordan Ripley, Sunday School Superintendent, Mary Walz; auditors, Perley Loomis and Albert Starbird.
Other news in this paper was: The blood pressure clinic will be held Monday, February 4, from 9 to 11 a.m. at the Methodist Church Vestry.
That paper ended with these words: “Just want any of you who may have passed by last Thursday when I was stopped beside the road talking with that big handsome fella in the New England Tel. car to know I wasn’t having a secret rendezvous; that was my son, Mark! You know how gossip gets started.
This is going to be a rather mixed up column this week, I just came across an OLD Somerset Reporter, 1976, with lots of information about long ago river driving which I find really interesting, and hope you will, also. Won’t be able to get it all in this week. Will start with this story called Bert Morris remembers: Long logs and good men, West Forks – Bert Morris has lived his whole life near the Kennebec River. He was born close to its banks in 1889; he started driving logs in its headwaters when he was 15; he guided fishermen through its rapids and he still lives beside the river today.
If he was trying to be melodramatic, Mr. Morris might say he “loves” the Kennebec. But he doesn’t talk that way. His reminiscences are straightforward and factual. He talks about the river and the forests around it with an understanding that can only come from a lifetime of experience. He doesn’t need melodrama.
He started driving at 15 years old. Mr. Morris served as foreman for the Kennebec Log Driving Company for years. It was a post he earned. When he started, at age 15, he began at the bottom. “They started me out on a big, wide boom, maybe four or five feet wide. The logs went down a sluceway – long logs they were – and there were four or five men on each side with long pick poles to keep them straight. They could run a raft through pretty fast; everybody kept to his business,” he recalls.
That first job, with a driver named Daniel Burns, was at Indian Pond. After four years there, Bert Morris went to work for Jim Kinsley, on Moosehead Lake, a post he held for five years. “They towed the logs through Moosehead Lake with those big boats then. Then we’d sluice them into Indian Pond. That’s where the wind would start to work on them, and they’d pile up and jam, he remembers.”
That’s all the space I have room for at this time, if I’m going to get Percy’s memoir in. His memoir today goes way back in time also, and is called Practicing Penmanship : You may recall the copybook of schoolboy days with its well-worn look, And its rounded script of chaste design, That topped each page in graceful line. We took our stance all set to go, With a toe hooked firm in the seat below, And with vice-like grip on the old steel pen, We wrote up hill and down again, Carving our way at a creeping pace, With many a pucker and painted grimace, As over and under we wrote sage words, That meant far less than the singing birds, We could hear outside, as with labored scrawl, We did our stint at the master’s call.
Lara Garey provides full-time care to her husband Tom, who lives with ALS, caused by his military service.
(NAPSI)—There is good news for many individuals who care for a loved one living with an injury or illness connected to military service. They’re now eligible for free professional assistance.
A new program offered by the Elizabeth Dole Foundation provides veteran caregivers with trained professionals to perform daily tasks, including housekeeping, meal preparation, grocery shopping, and grooming.
Military caregivers nationwide can apply for 24 hours of services free through the Foundation’s website hiddenheroes.org/respite. The number of available hours is limited, so caregivers are urged to apply right away.
“Military caregivers have always struggled with the enormous responsibility on their shoulders, but the risks and restrictions of COVID-19 have sent rates of caregiver burnout, depression and isolation soaring,” said Steve Schwab, CEO of the Elizabeth Dole Foundation. “We developed this emergency assistance program to give America’s hidden heroes the precious time they need to rest, relax and recharge.”
The Foundation is managing the program in partnership with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, CareLinx, Wounded Warrior Project, AARP, and Bob Woodruff Foundation. The professional caregivers are provided by the trusted and licensed professionals of the CareLinx network and follow CDC guidelines to ensure everyone’s safety.
“I was skeptical that using respite care would actually help—I thought it might be more work than it was worth,” said veteran caregiver Jennifer Mackinday. “But it was game-changing. It was the first step for me to start taking better care of myself mentally and physically.”
If you assist a service member or veteran with dressing, bathing, transportation, managing medication, physical therapy, or dealing with the symptoms of post-traumatic stress, you may be a military caregiver.
For more information about military caregiving and available services, visit hiddenheroes.org/respite.
by Debbie WalkerGood Day! I have been leafing through some of the helpful hints I have collected over the past few years. I love this stuff, as you probably have noticed.
This one I have to try. This is our time of year for condensation on our windows and windshield of our vehicles. The people from a First magazine shared what works for them. Fill a sock with kitty litter, tie it up after you fill it; lay it across your dash for the night. The litter absorbs the moisture in the air. Let me know how it works for you. I have to buy or beg for kitty litter.
Another thing I have come across is to clean your interior windshield with shaving cream. I tried it with my bathroom mirror and the fogging disappeared.
To organize home office supplies you could try using a wine rack. Fill the rack with plastic glasses (Dollar Tree) and you have storage. Be creative. Most of all, have fun.
I love this one! I could have used this so many times over the past many painting projects. Today I received mail from Do-It-Yourself magazine, associated with Better Homes and Gardens. In it they included a small newsletter. The following is a small portion of the newsletter: Painting:
Have you ever wondered what finish would be best for what room? Gloss, Semi-gloss, Satin, Eggshell and Flat. The answers:
GLOSS adds shine – lots of it. It’s easier to clean than flat finishes but harder to apply. Best for trim and cabinets.
SEMI-GLOSS – again easier to clean. Walls in high traffic spaces such as a kitchen or mudroom.
SATIN is super popular and less shiny. Best for walls that aren’t pitch-perfect. It’s more forgiving than glossy finishes.
EGGSHELL – softer and less sheen than semigloss. Harder to clean so not great, though so not great for kitchens and baths. Best for less than perfect walls.
FLAT is less sheen so hard to clean. Not super resistant to stains. Best for ceilings which are often painted and flat.
I hope you find this as helpful as I do, especially with my renovation project. The following is more information from the same newsletter:
The RIGHT PAINTBRUSH: Width matters: 1 – 2 inch brush is for trim. 2-inch brush size for cutting in around doors and windows. 3 – 4 inch brush size is for flat surfaces.
LATEX = nylon or polyester bristles. OIL = Natural bristles.
Paint Rollers:
Nap is an important word: A larger nap means a less smooth surface of the roller. This works well on rough textured surfaces like brick. The longer fibers make it easier to get into all those nooks and crannies. At the other end of the spectrum, the smallest naps – about ¼ inch – after a super smooth finish for walls and other consistent surfaces.
Roller Frame: Smaller rollers are designed for small areas like trim and cabinet. A bigger frame makes quick work of walls and ceilings.
Best Roller Technique? Zigzag to overlap the lines, going from top to bottom. Once done, lightly roll again vertically from ceiling to floor.
Okay that’s all I have today. I’m just curious what some of your tips would be. Hope this was helpful. Contact me at DebbieWalker@townline.org Thanks for reading. Have a great week!
