Returning to Wisconsin

(note: the photograph with the Smokey's birthday cake is of, from left to right, Joy, Jennifer, and Buddy.)


On August 5th, I arrived in Madison, Wisconsin, to join a peace walk from Camp Douglas to Fort McCoy, about 22 miles. The plan was to walk for three days, from August 7th until August 9th. The walk, titled simply "Walk for Peace," was organized by Voices for Creative Nonviolence, a Chicago-based group that had organized last year's "Witness Against War" walk from Chicago to Saint Paul.
Although this year's 22-mile walk didn't quite as big an adventure as last year's seven-week-long, 500-mile trek, I was looking forward to participating in it. I especially looked forward to another visit to Tomah, Wisconsin, the boyhood hometown of Frank King, the artist who created the comic strip "Gasoline Alley." I also looked forward to a reunion with friends that I had made on last year's walk. I was excited about walking with a group again. Although I walk nearly every day here at home, I generally tend to walk on my own. It can be hard to find walking companions for long adventures. And, of course, I was looking forward to another visit to Fort McCoy.
My first trip to Fort McCoy resulted in my failure to achieve my goal. I had gone there, hoping to meet with members of the Wisconsin National Guard. I wanted to give them copies of the letter that I was carrying. One of the main points of the letter was that the federal authorization to deploy the National Guard overseas had expired. The authorization was given by Congress to the president in the War Powers Act of 2002. The legislation was subject to the sunset provision, and it was not renewed. Hence, there was no legal authorization for deployment.
Despite that, the 32nd Red Arrow Brigade Combat Team of the Wisconsin National Guard was deployed to Iraq this year. It was the largest call-up of Wisconsin National Guard since World War II.
So, last year, before the big deployment, thirteen of us tried to walk onto the grounds of Fort McCoy, to talk to the soldiers and to let them know that they had options. This is something that their commanding officers should have told them but probably didn't. We also had an important phone number for them: 877.447.4487. This is the number of the GI hotline. People are there who can talk to members of the military about options that they might have to deployment. One of those options is to apply for conscientious objector status. There are many other options to deployment that members of the military can pursue.
Many members of the National Guard have been sent on repeated deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. This is very difficult for their families. I met one woman during the Witness Against War walk who said to me that her son was on his fifth deployment.
"I just want him to come home," she said.
And, once the soldiers are demobilized and return home, they still have a lot to deal with. Many suffer with post traumatic stress disorder. Some are left with physical disabilities or with traumatic brain injuries.
For some information on a creative way of telling the stories of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, take a look at the Winter Soldier presentations at the Iraq Veterans Against the War website (http://ivaw.org/wintersoldier.)
Unfortunately, our group of thirteen was arrested before we could meet any soldiers. The police confiscated my stack of letters, and I never saw them again!
On the last day of the walk, a group of about 50 arrived once again at the gates of Fort McCoy. This time, I had no expectation of meeting with soldiers. But I still brought with me cards that gave information about the GI hotline (it's always best to be prepared for the unexpected). Nine of us crossed the street and walked to the Fort McCoy gate with the same result. We were met by cops, not soldiers. We were arrested and processed and four of us, who were called "repeat offenders," were delivered to the Dane County Jail in Madison, where we spent a night. We were released the next day. The other five members of our group were issued citations and were immediately released.
So... before I got tossed into the clink, I did have fun in Wisconsin. I saw the Tomah Historical Society Museum and received a personal tour from the lady at the desk. She showed me the exhibits of Frank King's cartoons and charcoal drawings. They were really quite impressive. Frank King was very skilled in his use of pen and ink and charcoal. His pictures were very detailed. "Gasoline Alley" was a very famous comic strip because it was the first (or at least one of the first) in which the characters grew older, just like real people.
I also had fun at the Mill Bluff state park, where we camped for three days. I learned how to tend the campfire, adding logs or paper or sticks to make the fire bigger and to give it more air. And I was lucky enough to be at the Mill Bluff State Park on Smokey Bear's 65th birthday. I had always thought that his name was Smokey The Bear. But I found out that wasn't quite accurate. The word "the" was added in 1952 by songwriters Steve Nelson and Jack Rollin. The purpose of adding the extra word was to fit in with the rhythm of the song. Of course, everyone was confused and thought that Smokey The Bear was the bear's name. The National Park Service has been engaged in a (losing) campaign to educate the public about Smokey's real name for more than 50 years. Anyway, the birthday party was fun. It was attended mostly by a Boy Scout troop that was camping out at the park. There were a few grownups there, as well. We got to eat birthday cake and to have our pictures taken with Smokey Bear. He didn't stay very long and he didn't eat any cake. Everyone got party favors. I got a ruler with the words: "A rule to prevent forest fires... 'Smokey's friends don't play with matches.'"
On a more somber note, we also had a vigil during the evening of August 6th to remember the victims of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombings. The vigil was held at the park, in a large shelter. It was organized by a group from LaCrosse. The stories were very horrifying and sad. The fires that these bombs created were massive, and many people died.
Oh boy.
We can't use that sort of weapon, ever again.
We need to pressure our government to dismantle all of them. We need to pressure all governments to dismantle all of their nuclear weapons.
Remember.
Smokey's friends don't play with matches.
And they don't kill people with atomic bombs.

Virginia adventure

On July 30th, my sisters Vivian and Diane and my nephew Jamie and I got into Vivian's car and headed southeast, toward Suffolk, Virginia. Suffolk is not far from Norfolk and from Virginia Beach. I enjoyed my trip. Just watching the road signs was fascinating. It is like seeing little pieces of history! We passed many sites of civil war battles, such as Manassas and Yorktown. We passed Colonial Williamsburg. Unfortunately, we had little time for tourist fun so we didn't get to visit Colonial Williamsburg or Jamestown or any of the many historic sites in the area.
One place that I did get to visit was Virginia Beach. I went there with my nephew's dad, Dan, my nephew's paternal grandmother, Barb, my other nephew, Jamie, and his mom, (my sister) Diane. It was a hot, windy day, and the sand was blowing in our faces. Having sand in my eyes isn't really my most favorite thing but, still, it was fun to be on a beach and looking at the vast expanse of the Atlantic Ocean. The area was quite touristy, with big hotels and other such gimmicks but there was plenty to see, such as the statue of Neptune, the Roman god of the sea.
I walked along the boardwalk, which really wasn't made of boards but of cement, and I cooled off by standing underneath outdoor showers. I got me and my clothes nice and wet but, within minutes, I was dry again.
All in all, it was a fun time in the sun.

wedding!

My nephew Devin and his girlfriend Chrisha were married on July 31st in Suffolk, Virginia. A beautiful wedding ceremony was held at Beech Grove United Methodist Church. The bridesmaids were all dressed in Chrisha's favorite colors, blue and green.
After Devin and Chrisha were pronounced husband and wife, the entire bridal party danced out of the church, just like in that famous U tube video that made the national news on what must have been an incredibly slow news day!
Oh, to be lucky enough to time your antics to occur on an incredibly slow news day!
The happy couple are now sailing in the Caribbean (away from the highly unromantic hurricanes)...

Relay for Life

The annual Relay for Life event will be held here on Grand Island on June 5th. Relay for Life is a big fund raiser for the American Cancer Society... with BIG being the operative word. The event lasts all night, on the track behind the high school! Wow. This is my first time to attend Relay for Life. It just happens that, this year, people will be enrolled for the Cancer Prevention Survey - 3. It is a longitudinal survey, and the American Cancer Society is looking for people between the ages of 30 and 65 who have never been diagnosed with cancer to participate in this survey. When you are enrolled to participate in the survey, you have to provide a blood sample (a phlebotomist will be available to relieve you of some of your blood) and a waist measurement. You'll do some paperwork there and then, later, you'll receive a longer survey to answer at home and mail in. I believe that there will be surveys to fill in on a regular basis. The goal, according the American Cancer Society website, is to "help researchers better identify the lifestyle, environmental, and genetic factors that cause or prevent cancer." The American Cancer Society also makes this request: "Please spread the word and visit the Cancer Prevention Study-3 website for more information about how to participate in research today for a cancer free tomorrow!"
The pictures here were taken at a fund raiser held prior to Relay for Life at the Knights of Columbus on Whitehaven Road in Grand Island. At the event, people enjoyed food and they could buy crafts, stuffed animals, and used books. Face painting was also available. People who came even got to listen to oldies, both recorded and presented by an emcee/singer, and they could dance! It was a fun way to raise money for cancer research!

the history of aprons

Every year, a different clothing item is displayed at the Grand Island Historical Society's Victorian Tea Party. Last year, the item selected were hats. and everyone attending the tea party was asked to complete their fashion statement with a hat. This year, people were invited to lend aprons to the show. A number of these aprons were put outside on a laundry line, where they fluttered in the wind. I'm not sure how the items in the laundry basket stayed together and didn't fly away.
After the tea party inside River Lea, Maggie Gushue narrated the fashion show. It featured all sorts of aprons, from the simplest to the fanciest. The simplest aprons were feed bags with a string attached so that they could be tied around someone's waist. That was probably a good thing to have for an apron, especially for people who lived on farms, where they were cooking large quantities of food, washing clothes by hand, and doing other things that had great mess potential. It was important for them to keep their clothes clean. First of all, they didn't have very many articles of clothing. Second of all, since doing laundry was such difficult work, they didn't do it very often. So they had simple aprons to protect their clothing.
Another very simple apron design would not have done much of anything, not even protected clothing. It was nothing but a piece of gauze!
Other aprons were more intricate. Some of them were embroidered or crocheted. Some of the aprons had holiday themes. These were very fashionable aprons but they were too lovely to risk getting covered with grease or bits of food. They were truly photo op aprons.
Apparently, at some point in the mid to late 20th century, aprons sort of went out of favor. Of course, you don't really need to wear an apron to warm stuff up in a microwave oven!
I'm sure, though, that plenty of people still wear aprons when they are cooking or washing the dishes. I know that, if I don't wear an apron when I wash dishes, that I risk taking a bath!!!
Maggie also displayed some of her mother's aprons and some aprons made for small children who liked "helping" their moms in the kitchen.

On April 19th, I got to have the fun of dressing up and going to the Grand Island Historical Society's annual Victorian Tea, held in River Lea. My companion for the fun event was Julie. We belong to the same book club, and we had gone to a tea party for two book clubs at Serenitea, a cute little tea shop located on Grand Island Boulevard.
As you can see from the pictures, we ate "finger sandwiches," drank tea, and ate yummy desserts. Since I have been fairly good about consuming cholesterol-laden goodies, these desserts were a special treat for me, not an every day event. For that reason, I consumed them very slowly (to make them last much longer!!!)
We were served our tea in bone china tea cups by volunteer servers dressed like Victorian servants. One of the "Victorian servants" was Mary Cooke, a member of the historical society and of the Grand Island Town Board.
All provided delicious tea, a special blend called "Maisie's tea," and smiles.

water, water everywhere...

A few weeks ago, it start snowing, and the snow just kept on falling. Of course, it happened on a weekend, and I had to go to choir practice on Sunday morning. So I walked the approximately two miles to get to church. It was a real adventure in walking. I walked on the very snowing shoulder of the road because the town that I live in is not especially blessed with sidewalks. The few sidewalks that exist were pretty snow covered, anyway. I never go anywhere without a camera so I got some interesting (and not very colorful) views of my world, buried in snow.
Anyway, walking through the snow felt sort of like walking through sand (cold sand!) on a beach. It was an aerobic workout, to be sure. After church was over, my friend said that she and her husband were going to drive me home and not drop me off at the bike path, which is where I usually go. I said that the bike path was buried under snow.
A few days later, it started to rain... and on one wild and windy day, the temperature hit 60 degrees! That was rather bizarre after the deluge of snow.
The snow is gone and has been replaced by... water! Lots and lots of water! I've been walking outside every day (except on the wild and windy day, when I went to the gym and went on the treadmill) and, of course, I had to take pictures. I was interested in the new lakefront property.
It's gotten a lot colder today, so some of that water has turned to ice... and now it might be just about ice skating time...
Speaking about new lakes, I have a friend named Cassandra, whom I met when I was walking through Wisconsin last summer with the Witness Against War walk. She said that, when Wisconsin experienced its terrible flooding last June, new lakes formed where lakes had never existed. She said that they were beautiful. Some of them lasted through the summer.

Fun with felines

This morning, I was sitting on the couch, crocheting a lapghan (that's a lap-sized afghan). Big Smokey (the gray cat pictured here) was happily seated on my lap, making crocheting a big adventure. I had to crochet around the cat! Zoe sat near my head, on the upper part of the couch. Before long, Zoe decided that she wanted to get closer to me and my yarn (mostly the yarn... Zoe is a notorious thief!). She walked onto the arm of the couch, right next to me and Smokey. Smokey is a bit territorial, and I am his human property. He took one look at Zoe (normally his girlfriend). He grabbed hold her her leg and bit it!
Chomp!
She jumped off of the couch.
He jumped off of my lap.
The two cats went in separate directions.
I continued to crochet.

Everything about this tea house, called SereniTea, was very colorful, cheerful, and relaxing. Doesn't that food look very yummy?
It's just a memory now. I consumed all of it. The tea was great. I added honey and lemon, which brought out the flavor of the passion fruit tea.

tea and books

Earlier this month, I went to a tea house for a joint meeting of two book clubs. These two book clubs get together for a joint meeting once a year. As I had joined my book club in February, this was my first experience with the other book club.
To prepare for the meeting, I had to obtain and read Olive Kitteridge, by Elizabeth Strout, in thirteen days. Of course, one of those days was Thanksgiving! Fortunately, I was able to get a copy of the book at the library. The library lends out new books such as this one for just seven days so I had to return the book a few days before the book club meeting. Fortunately, the book was just 288 pages so it didn't take long to read.
The book is actually structured as a series of thirteen short stories that are tied together by the presence (either as a major character or in the background) of Olive Kitteridge, a retired math teacher, whose relationships with other people tended to be uncomfortable. Because Olive keeps her pain inside of her and because she is not exactly the warm and fuzzy type, people tend to view her in a negative light.
Olive's life comes across as incredibly painful. She endures one trauma after the next. The other characters don't fare much better. A girl suffers with anorexia, a man finds that his marriage has gone cold and his wife is no more than an acquaintance...
The book was well written and I liked the short story format. I found Olive's story to be difficult to read at time, however, because it was so unbelievably harsh. In fact, the mood is constantly dark. I see that as a weakness in the story. It's sort of like music. If there are no dynamics in the music... if, for example, the musical piece is played at the same volume all of the time... the music becomes less interesting. I wanted to experience the characters' joys, as well as their sorrows.
We discussed all of this at the book club meeting. Some liked the story, some did not.
It was a good conversation... and we had tea and scones and pastries in a charming tea house. We drank our tea out of bone china tea cups. We were presented with wooden boxes, in which there was a great selection of tea bags. I especially enjoyed the passion fruit tea. I also enjoyed the scone with whipped butter.
It was all great fun and the only thing that I didn't care for was that the fun had to end.
Alas.
I am always ready for a tea party!

One-year anniversary

Last year, on September 19, 2007, I was released from the federal prison camp in Danbury, Connecticut, after completing my six-month sentence. As happy as I was to get turned loose onto an unsuspecting world, it was a sad experience, too. I had to leave behind friends, who had far longer sentences than I had.
Spending time in prison, especially when that time is measured in years, not in months that can be counted on one or two hands, is very hard on women. Many of them are mothers, and they must endure long separations from their children. The children grow up without their mothers, which is hard on them, too.
I believe that too many people are in prison. Keeping people in prison is expensive and nonproductive. I would very much like to see more people sentenced to probation and community service and restitution (if necessary) than to prison sentences. I would also like to see more use of restorative justice. It is important for people to take responsibility for their actions, to apologize, and make right what they have made wrong. Occupying space in prison does not accomplish any of that. So these are a few things that I have learned from my time in prison.
I have also learned that being in prison is challenging but it is an experience that the overwhelming majority survives. They then go on to other things and other adventures. I have also learned that going to prison for something that you believe in is somewhat difficult but far from impossible. I believe that change can occur when ordinary people, such as me, are willing to make sacrifices for the things that they believe in.
In two months, there will be another vigil at Fort Benning. Undoubtedly, some people will choose to cross the Fort Benning fence. Might you be one of them? Would you be one of those who chooses to take that step (literally) to say yes to life and human rights and no to torture and assassination? Or, if you prefer to travel to Arizona, rather than Georgia, might you take that step, instead, at Fort Huachuca?
And, speaking about steps, I have finished my 500-mile walk from Chicago to Saint Paul, Minnesota, with Witness Against War (see http://www.vcnv.org). It was a good experience, and I will write more extensively about it in later posts. Above is a photograph of me on the top of Brady's Bluff at Perrot State Park, in Trempealeau, Wisconsin. The upper Mississippi River is in the background.

Witness Against War

Hi all!
I am part of the Witness Against War walk from Chicago to St. Paul, Minnesota. We started the walk on July 12 and will finish on August 30.
For more information and to see the blogs that I have posted, take a look at the Voices for Creative Nonviolence website at http://www.vcnv.org
Bye bye for now, and I will post on this blog when I return home!

Sister Agnes Marie of the Eternal High Priest

On Saturday, May 31, Sister Agnes Marie of the Eternal High Priest took her final vows as a Carmelite nun at the Discalced Carmelite Monastery of Buffalo, New York. She is an "extern sister," which means that she deals with the public. I asked Sister Agnes how she knew that God had called her to the religious life, and she said that she felt a "certitude" about her calling.
Most of the sisters who live in the monastery are cloistered. They spend much of their time in prayer. During morning mass, they can be heard singing a variety of chants. When they are not praying, they are busy working at such tasks as cooking, cleaning, and tending the garden. They are vegetarians who eat what they grow in their garden.
Buffalo's Carmelite monastery was founded by Mother Mary Elias of the Blessed Sacrament in 1920. It was the fulfillment of a promise to St. Therese of Lisieux, a French Carmelite who died at the age of 24, that Mother Mary Elias made after she and another nun had been sentenced to death and placed before a Mexican firing squad. The firing squad discharged their weapons but missed. Either they were bad shots or there was divine intervention.
So Mother Mary Elias went far away from Mexico and ended up in Buffalo, New York, where she fulfilled her promise by founding the monastery. Before she passed away, she wrote a book about her life and her dedication to "the little way." She had been quoted as saying, "I am a very little soul, who can offer only very little things to the Lord... I will spend my Heaven doing good on earth... After my death I will let fall a shower of roses."
Buffalo's Carmelite monastery was officially dedicated on the same day that St. Therese was canonized, May 1, 1925.
The Carmelite monastery is one of two cloistered orders in Buffalo.