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CynthiaW's avatar

I came in 3rd at Wingspan again.

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Jay Janney's avatar

A real brief comment, but July 4th is kinda a celebration for Pam and I dating. I met her during a spring break work camp, the same week as Christy's surgery. She kinda knew I was off the market, but didn't know about Christy. After Christy died 3 weeks later i walked Pam home, where she kissed me, and I began crying (too soon, grief). I encouraged a friend to ask her out, and they dated for 3+ years.

After they broke up I was a camp counselor, and on Thursday the 4th that year she came to camp to hang out (she had been on staff there, everyone knew her). We watched fireworks over the lake, and she kissed me (she and Vince had been broken up for 4+ months by then). I grinned, and leaned forward to kiss her, and she pulled back. She left after the fireworks. Two days later I visited her at work and asked her out "Took you long enough" she scolded me, then offered to stop by after work with sandwiches. We planned a first date for the following Friday, July 12th. On Friday July 19th I told her I was clear about her (that she was the one I should marry). It scared her simply because she assumed it'd take me 2 years to finally propose. She told her Mom the next day that "she was off the market"...

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R.Rice's avatar

That's an All American romance story, very nice.

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Jay Janney's avatar

Katie is aboard her plane to Roma. I need to buy her and jen's weekly metro/bus passes before they arrive. I bought Katie a 2-litre of coke zero....

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CynthiaW's avatar

I hope you all have a very nice time.

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C C Writer's avatar

We started the day with a little light rain, and it was quite gloomy out. I put my little flags out anyway. Now it's cleared up and it's getting warmer and humidish, but won't be so oppressive that I can't do some grilling on my Smokey Joe later on. Now I'd better go finish making potato salad and thaw the chicken wings.

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CynthiaW's avatar

Son F, who wasn't expected to be home until late this evening, has turned up (with his driver-friend) to take a shower. He said his friend didn't have the kind of shampoo he likes. Maybe he'll end up like his brother Beau, taking showers night and morning "because I get dirty while I'm asleep."

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Jay Janney's avatar

I've been showering 2-3x a day here in Roma. Others do as well, else the city would be called "Aroma" (and not in a perfume way).

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Kurt's avatar

When will we, as a civilization, advance to the point where the number of hot dogs in a package equals the number of buns in a hot dog bun pack?

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CynthiaW's avatar

My guess is "never."

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Kurt's avatar

Anyone wanna know what life in China is like for a few hundred million folks? Read this. I've seen the labor market in Guiyang and in other cities.

https://www.eastisread.com/p/430-am-at-a-day-labour-market-in?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc4e2ff8c-a97b-4b15-9d4b-7670e6675352_1125x2259.png&open=false

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Denise's avatar

Last comment of the day bc I’ve procrastinated long enough my outside duties. But I thought I’d let you know I just got a text saying Gavin Newsome is coming here next week to “connect with rural SC” -

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Jay Janney's avatar

Is it too late to hide? 😬

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C C Writer's avatar

Oh, did he change from being governor of California to governor of South Carolina? I didn't know they could do that.

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Brian's avatar

Happy Independence Day. The Free Press started a new Honestly podcast series called The Words That Made America. I listened to the first episode and it was very good. It helps me keep a balanced view and remember there’s an awful lot of good to offset the nonsense around us now.

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Angie's avatar

Happy July 4th, All!

I am home, and don't have any plans, and feel a bit sluggish and yucky this morning.

Rick's mom was life-flighted to the Cleveland Clinic last night...he is understandably worried...she has developed blood clots in her legs, and her kidneys are failing. They aren't sure what is going on. She was in her local CC doctor's office, and he made the decision to send her to the main campus. She is in the ICU. At least she is in one of the best hospitals in the world. Rick has to work 12-4 today, but he left earlier to go see her. Traffic shouldn't be too bad this morning going to downtown.

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LucyTrice's avatar

Sorry you all have another load. Having an excellent hospital to rely on is a comfort and not guaranteed east of us.

How did Rick's party go? Was he surprised?

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Angie's avatar

Yeah, it is good to have an excellent hospital, dr services close by

The party was great, and he was very surprised, never saw it coming...

And thank you

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C C Writer's avatar

Thanks for the update. I was hoping the party went well and he was surprised. Sorry to hear about his mom. I understand from my sister and brother in law that Cleveland Clinic is definitely the place to go.

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Angie's avatar

Yeah, it is an excellent hospital and attracts wealthy people from other countries, some pretty famous. There are several campuses in my county, so you don't always have to go to downtown Cleveland

My dad was there before his heart transplant, and they transferred him to Emory Hospital in Atlanta, as they are experts in transplants...

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C C Writer's avatar

Several years ago my brother in law had to be flown back home to Cleveland from South America on a medical plane, not sure which campus. They eventually fixed the issue with an operation. He still sees doctors for various other stuff.

I get the impression from my sister that they are fairly well organized from the standpoint of making it easy to coordinate things, access your information, get appointments with the right people, and so on. That seems important, because having health issues is enough of a hassle.

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Angie's avatar

Yeah it is, it is massive, like a small city...lol

I actually use Mercy because when they bought the local hospital, Lorain Community , that is where I got all my medical stuff, and they are a non-profit, and when I didn't have insurance, they gave me a good discount.

I have no complaints about them either, and my oncologist was awesome.

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Denise's avatar

That’s tough. It’s so good to have excellent health care facilities that are close. Hubs heads to TN on Wednesday. His dad is in hospice and has 24/7 care at home, it’s a remote and rural part of TN. He’s confused a lot, his wife is in a wheelchair and not handling the sitters well, my SIL is trying to keep the peace. Hubs goes every 4-5 weeks to relieve them. Everyone is exhausted and sad. I hope they get some answers for his mom.

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Angie's avatar

Thanks Denise...I hope things work out for you and your family, too. It is exhausting and sad.

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Wilhelm's avatar

Independence Day “will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. … It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade with shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.” – John Adams (1735-1826) wrote on July 2, 1776. He was a man ahead of his time.

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DougAz's avatar

199 years ago on this day, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson both died.

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BikerChick's avatar

Happy 4th! I arrived at the lake yesterday. I was doing a little yard work after I arrived and raked over a ground wasp nest. The bat rastards got me twice and my leg sting is still throbbing. The finger wasn’t as bad because I had gloves on. I’m glad I’m not allergic! There’s a local rabble rouser (long story) who’s calling for people to block the parade today. The best part of the parade is that it’s preceded by three F35s that will do a flyover. I heard John Podhoretz mention on the Commentary podcast he’ll be at a parade in Eagle River, about 20 min away, where his kids are camp counselors. The area is known for its camps. Kids (mainly Jewish back when the camp was established in 1916) from Chicago would spend summers at the camps. Our local camp is called Camp Kawaga and is restricted to boys and now they come from all backgrounds. I must go kayak before all the crazies get on the lake.

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Jay Janney's avatar

Have fun Kayaking, it sounds fun!

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C C Writer's avatar

My family used to go up to Eagle River, Nicolet National Forest. We liked camping there, and enjoyed the nature trails.

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CynthiaW's avatar

I hope you have a great time kayaking! Nobody is doing much here. Fang goes to work at 2:00. Vlad went uptown last night to play Magic with Thor; I assume they'll both turn up here eventually. And Dau. D isn't getting up.

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Denise's avatar

Double ugh! Hubs brought me a bag from the dock to wash. I stuck my hand in there and got a wasp sting for my trouble!

We have our oldest and spouse coming in for the holiday. Tomorrow we have fireworks all over the lake but the sail club does a nice one not far. We have some friends going, should be nice. No rain just hot.

I worked out with my trainer this morning, lots of red white and blue in the gym! I have hung buntings on every horizontal surface I can find. The ones on the upper dock look good. The home build next door is busy, even today. We had Spectrum at our house until 10p last night 😵‍💫fixing the cable line they cut for the 4th time. BUT WHO IS COUNTING.

Wishing everyone a very safe and happy 4th!

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LucyTrice's avatar

Same to you! I hope the sting fades quickly.

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Kurt's avatar

Wisconsin summer camps...reminds me of the John Candy/Dan Akroyd movie "The Great Outdoors". Wisconsin summer camps are so perfect. And the roadhouse restaurants with the knotty pine paneling.

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BikerChick's avatar

Supper clubs!

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LucyTrice's avatar

There used to be supper houses in Eastern NC. We passed them on our way to the beach. The barbecue places and seafood restaurants on the beach had the knotty pine paneling.

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Kurt's avatar

Yeah! Supper clubs. Roadhouse isn't the term they use. Supper clubs. They are so quintessentially Wisconsin summer. The knotty pine paneling. Families on vacation eating out. Jam packed parking lots on a Saturday night in July.

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BikerChick's avatar

And the quintessential relish tray. Definitely makes you feel nostalgic at some of the classic places. Little Bohemia in Manitowish Waters is famous for a Dillinger shootout, there’s still bullet holes in the paneling.

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Kurt's avatar

RELISH TRAY!! Some of those places are priceless.

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Denise's avatar

Growing up in VA, camps were just not a thing! Vacation Bible School was as campy as it got 🙃. But I still had fun each summer as a kid.

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Kurt's avatar

I only went to camp one summer....a YMCA Camp. Camp Kern. I thought it was a little mickey mouse because we were already semi-feral rural kids that had been building fires in the woods, using knives, shooting guns and stuff. Camp was kinda like "What do you mean I have to ask permission?"

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Denise's avatar

My FIL has a lot of land from farming. He has a 1+ acre “lawn”. He can no longer do it as he’s on his deathbed. Hubs normally cuts it when he’s there. His cousin, across the street in a trailer (yes), has been doing it with his 11 yr old grandson who can drive a tractor pulling a big mower thing like it’s nothing. He can also back the truck and bass boat into the lake on the ramp. 🤪 He’s tall but he’s 11.

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Kurt's avatar

Sounds right. I was 14-ish before I could back a trailer up with the tractor.

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IncognitoG's avatar

We had VBS locally, and also 4H camp locally. I went to 4H camp from ages 9 through 12, I think.

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Denise's avatar

I don’t remember those either. I’m going to have to ask my mom. They were busy working and school at night switching off those years. Like Cynthia says, it could have been they just couldn’t afford to send me.

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IncognitoG's avatar

Interesting potted history of 4-H, although it suffers from the Wiki affliction of too many editors having worked on it over time.

Our local camp had a reach about the size of our rural county, to the best of my knowledge. I never understood the depictions in TV and movies of kids being bussed in from great distances. Ours was only about a mile from where we lived.

The agricultural/ USDA roots of 4-H were still plainly obvious when I was in school. As was the tie-in with our state land-grant U and the county ag extension service.

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Denise's avatar

I just looked up 4H here. Next week they’re having a kid’s canning workshop. 😀

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CynthiaW's avatar

I never went to camp as a child. Maybe it was our generation or our socioeconomic status.

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LucyTrice's avatar

It wasn't a thing in our area, either.

Our elementary school did a sixth grade camp, a week at a church camp near Harper's Ferry. It was a big deal and it was a lot of fun. Of course, there were only two 6th grade classes.

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Kurt's avatar

As the man said, you were not poor. You might have been broke is all.

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CynthiaW's avatar

We weren't poor - my parents owned whatever houses we lived in from about 1970 on, except a few times in military quarters, and rental properties. But we were very thrifty. And my parents had never gone away to camp, so they didn't think it was something my brother and I needed.

My kids have gone to Scout camp, one week per summer. And Scouts day camp, a different week. And worked on staff.

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Dsfelty's avatar

Camp Bashore,BSA, through the early 70's. One week in the heat of summer. But a great time and actually learned some stuff! My sister was a GSA and envied my bro and me because boy scouts seemed much more fun than what they were doing.

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Kurt's avatar
Jul 4Edited

"Camp" isn't what anyone really needs, so no loss. My depression era parents never went, my old man thought it was silly...of course...but my Mom thought it was something nice people did, so we did one week at camp. I didn't like it for lots of reasons not the least being sleeping in a stinking hot wood bunkhouse with scratchy blankets. Although it did introduce me to table tennis, which I loved.

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Denise's avatar

Yea, I can’t think of a soul that went from my childhood friends. In college, I always heard about sleep away camps from people who lived mostly up north. Maybe it’s because we had neighborhood pools and whatnot. I went on a lot of vacations with friends and my parents always took a friend on ours bc being an only child sucked especially on vacation. I’m not sure I would have gone anyway. My dad always made a midnight run to get me even from my grandma’s house bc I was a sleepover weenie.

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LucyTrice's avatar

We did weekend church retreats occasionally, and the elementary school did a week at camp near Harper's Ferry for 6th graders. That was a blast.

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LucyTrice's avatar

Yesterday, over on the mothership, there was discussion of not celebrating Independence Day because of those current government actions that violate the American ideal. It has disturbed me a great deal.

To celebrate is to remember the whole expanse of time - the good and the bad. After one looks back, one must again look forward. Looking back properly is a defense against despair because it recognizes and remembers the struggle.

Some years we look back and look around and there is not much to be done. We are not in one of those years.

We are not and never have been defined by the current administration. We are defined by our founding principles and are struggles to live up to them.

Happy Independence Day! It is always good to have work to do!

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Kurt's avatar

Nicely said.

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LucyTrice's avatar

Thanks. It took a while.

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Denise's avatar

Well said, Lucy. I find it hard to get all in a swarm anyway. It’s all so predictable. Does anyone think Pre Harris would not be spending into oblivion? Nope. They’re all addicted to it but against it when they’re out of power. Yawn. I love America and I’m a proud American irrespective of the crazy. I know the sacrifices so many have made, still make for our country. I wish I could tell their stories. We just hung a huge LED flag on our dock in the boiling sun. It looks great at night. Every boater that’s heading back to the ramp will see it. 🇺🇸

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LucyTrice's avatar

Thanks. The flag sounds great!

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IncognitoG's avatar

> We are not and never have been defined by the current administration. We are defined by our founding principles and are struggles to live up to them. <

Nicely put.

We are also defined by a long tradition of freedom to disagree and dissent. Today we *also* celebrate the dissenters’ right to disagree.

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LucyTrice's avatar

Thanks.

And amen.

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DougAz's avatar

“I love America more than any other country in the world and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually.”

James Baldwin

Happy Independence Day! The Freedom to Speak Freely!!

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Kurt's avatar

Why in the world would we not celebrate...(?)...because Fearless Feckless Leader has "violated the American ideal...(?)

Folks unclear on concepts.

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LucyTrice's avatar

I think the issue is all the other elected officials within the R party that don't challenge the fecklessness AND the elected officials in the D party that think the answer is to double down on divisive positions.

Personally, I find the damage done to the use of language and practical value of integrity seriously disturbing. We've stirred up a lot of unhealthy sediment and it will take a long time for the water to clear enough for us to be able to see again.

But 249 years of various contemporary idiocies have yet to destroy the truths at the core, and that is something to hold on to.

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DougAz's avatar

Nose. Face. Don't cut it off out of spite, just cause it's a bit smashed and bloody.

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BikerChick's avatar

Larissa Phillips wrote a piece over at the Free Press about how she will finally fly the American flag she’s had for years. I don’t think those of her ilk (she calls them “my people”) can ever see the good in America. She’s had a change of heart so the story had a nice ending.

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CynthiaW's avatar

Ms. Phillips isn't to blame for the way she was brought up.

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Brian's avatar
Jul 4Edited

I read that and couldn’t help thinking of Meathead from All in the Family. Did nothing but complain while living rent-free in his in-laws’ house and sleeping with their daughter. Glad to see she’s a convert and I hope she can influence those like her.

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Dsfelty's avatar

Oh that's great! Thanks. I'll be sending it to my kids.

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The original Optimum.net's avatar

Hope they enjoy it. I love the calendar at the beginning.

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Kurt's avatar

This is a good one.

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Phil H's avatar

Good morning. Happy Independence Day! 74 degrees now, rising to the high 80s and sunny. Perfect weather. Several articles relating to the day on the mothership.

Columbus had its large “Red White and Boom!” Fireworks show last night. We pass on that, but will be going to a local parade this morning and a local fireworks show this evening.

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Angie's avatar

I miss going to parades, I always loved them,

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The original Optimum.net's avatar

Thanks, Marque. Hope everyone has an enjoyable---and safe---holiday.

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