What I Learned in 2014

      Here goes:

1. Going to bed at 1:00 a.m. and sleeping until 9:00 a.m. is the life.
2. Charley's Other Brother went all to hell when the original owner sold it.
3. A cortisone shot in the shoulder really doesn't hurt.
4. Malcolm Gladwell is one of the coolest writers out there.
5. David Sedaris is one of the funniest writers out there.
6. Kindles are wonderful devices.
7. Elderly me is beginning to act a lot like elderly Mom.  Whoda thunk??
8. There is something called powder coating, and it makes things look pretty.

     I still don't know why they paint vacant gas stations gray.  Maybe I'll find out in 2015.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

   
          

Significance of the Name "Tris" in the Movie "Divergent"

     We just blew $4.99 renting "Divergent."  This makes me think of 'Hunger Games,' we both said.  It wasn't that good, Mike said.  I kind of liked it, I countered.  Normally, that would have been the end of our intellectualizing about the film, but the protagonist's name was stuck in my head.
     The film's heroine is a teenage girl named Beatrice.  Like all 16-year-olds in her society, Beatrice has to choose her social group.  She can pick the group into which she was born, or she can join a different group if she is willing to walk away from her family.  The social order in this future world consists of five classes known as factions plus a sixth group who have failed to fit in anywhere, the Factionless.  Beatrice comes from the group known as Abnegation.  They are selfless, social worker types.  Because they always put others first, the Abnegation faction runs government.  The other four groups are Amity (peace loving, staring-at-the-navel types), Candor (honest, blurt-out-the-first thing-that-pops-into-the-head types), Dauntless (brave, dare-devil types), and Erudite (the brainiacs).  All the sweet 16's take an aptitude test.  They can choose their faction based on their test results  or they can go rogue and pick a faction based on their whims. Whatever they pick, they are stuck with for life.  Beatrice gets a test result that is cause for alarm.  Unlike most people who are strong in only one area, Beatrice is equally strong in three areas.  This makes her a Divergent.  Divergents are a threat to the world order, and they are exterminated.  The sympathetic test administrator lies about Beatrice's result, recording in the official records that Beatrice is an Abnegation-type, like her parents.  She advises Beatrice to pick Abnegation as her life's work and never to reveal her real results.
     Beatrice, who knows she could do equally well in Abnegation, Dauntless, or Erudite, ignores the advice of the tester to go into social work and joins the Dauntless group.  During her training phase, Beatrice discovers the Erudites want to rule the world.  They are planning to overthrow the Abnegation government.  They will accomplish this by injecting the Dauntless group with mind control drugs, turning them into zombie soldiers.  Mind control only works on a full Dauntless.  As a Divergent, Beatrice is immune to the drugs.  She and her Dauntless mentor (another Divergent personality, it turns out) foil the Erudite coup.  After their victory, Beatrice and a some others hop on a train and head for the end of the line.  I'm sure a sequel will follow for Beatrice, her mentor/boyfriend, and the others on the train.  The movie is based on a trilogy of teen books written by Veronica Roth.  The movie "Divergent" follows the first of the three books.
     Here's the thing about Beatrice's name.  When she begins Dauntless training, she is told to pick a new name.  She picks the name Tris.  Sure, Tris is short for Beatrice, but so is Bea.  I knew I had heard that word before, so I looked it up.  Tris is tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane. It's an organic compound which is used as a buffering agent.  Buffering agents keep things stable. For example, buffering agents stabilize shampoo at a slightly acidic level because that's what you need to get the cleanest hair.  Brewers use buffering agents to keep the pH of fermenting beverages stable.  Yeast needs a stable pH to do it's work - creating alcohol.  Society in this movie needed Tris/Beatrice to prevent all hell from breaking lose.  She far, she has prevented things from breaking down, though I don't know what happens in books two and three of the trilogy.
     It was all over the internet that the names Ana and Mia in Fifty Shades of Grey stood for anorexia and bulimia.  Did Veronica Roth select Tris as a nickname because she wanted to add an extra layer of significance to the character?  Did she want to appeal to the chemistry geeks?  I figured someone out there must have made the Tris connection besides me, but Google as I might, I didn't find anything.  Whatever it is or isn't, I got a kick out of retrieving some high school chemistry from the memory banks.  Thank you, Mrs. Hearon.
         
       
                 

Winner, Winner Pot Pie Dinner

     I love pot pies.  My grandmother always had a beef roast on Sunday.  She made beef pot pie on Monday with the leftovers.  I usually managed to "miss" the bus on Monday afternoon so I could walk to Grandmom's house, located across the street from the school, and have dinner with her.
     I love chicken pot pie, too.  I just tried a recipe that is to die for.  I followed this recipe exactly, but the next time I make it, I'll try some cholesterol lowering substitutions.

Chicken Pot Pie

About 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast cut into bite sized pieces
4 medium carrots, sliced
3/4 cup frozen peas
2 ribs celery, sliced
1/2 cup chopped onion
4 small potatoes, cubed
5 Tbs. butter
1/3 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. celery seed
1-3/4 cups chicken broth (that's a 14.5 oz. can)
2/3 cup whole milk
2 - 9" unbaked pie crusts, store bought or home made

Method:

Preheat the oven to 425°.

Get a pot of water boiling and add carrots.  Boil for 5 minutes, then add chicken, celery, and potatoes.  Boil 5 more minutes, then add frozen peas.  Boil 5 additional minutes for 15 minutes total cooking time.  Remove from heat and drain.  Set meat and vegetables aside.  The recipe says you should reserve the liquid in case you need to extra for the sauce.  I used a small amount of the liquid to replace what boiled away in the next step.

In the same pot melt butter.  Cook onion in the butter until it is translucent.  Stir in salt, pepper, and celery seed.  Finally, add flour a little at a time while stirring.  Once the flour is incorporated into the butter, slowly add milk and chicken broth.  Simmer over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until the mixture is thick.  Remove from heat and set aside.

Put one 9" pie crust into a 9" pie plate.  Don't use a deep dish pie plate if you use store bought crusts as the bottom crust might be a little too small to come to the top edge of the deep plate. Mix the meat and vegetables with the sauce.  Spoon the mixture into the crust.  Cover with the top crust and seal the edges.  Make some slits in the top of the pie for the steam to escape.

Place the pie on a baking sheet (to catch drips) and bake 30 to 35 minutes.  I baked for 30 minutes.  Cool for 10 minutes before cutting.  Makes 6 servings.

     This is not a quick meal, but it is so good that it's worth the effort.  Using store bought crusts cuts down preparation time.  Using leftover chicken would also save time.
     Next time I make this, I will substitute two tablespoons of olive or canola oil for two of the tablespoons of butter.  I might also cut the milk back from whole milk to 2% milk.
     If I'm feeling really adventurous, I might try this with leftover turkey and a can of turkey broth.  I might also switch out the peas for green beans.  I'll let you know.

It was just as good warmed up.

Home Made Christmas Cards

     I used to get up early the day after Christmas and scout around the stores for half price Christmas cards.  The merchants must have caught on that the masses were stock piling cards for the year ahead.  Now they pack up all things Yule on Christmas Eve and take it who knows where.  Any cards offered at clearance prices are usually ugly or damaged.

     Now, since retirement leaves me with time on my hands, I make most of my Christmas greetings.  You can do it the expensive way (with rubber stamps and color coordinated paper and inks from Stampin' Up)  or the inexpensive way (with discounted card stock, a greeting card program, and your printer).  Naturally, I take the frugal route.

     Here are two of this year's cards:

This reindeer border was perfect.  The sentiment starts out innocently enough...

but takes a turn - "Crap! There go the solar panels."  You can get the template for the reindeer pop up at:
http://wp.robertsabuda.com/pop-make-reindeer/

This card is so simple.  Cut out squares or rectangles in several sizes.  Tie a bow with embroidery floss.  Glue the "packages" on to a piece of card stock that has been folded in half.

Simple and appropriate for almost anyone.

      If you use 8.5 X 11 card stock (called a half fold card), you can buy boxes of envelopes in just about any color at office supply stores.    

Mixing Up the Reading List

     I pointed out in my August 25, 2014 blog entry that I read mostly non-fiction.  Since then, I have tried to add some fiction to my library borrowings.  I wasn't really moved by any of the following novels.  They were just okay in my book.

     The Wind Is Not a River by Brian Payton - In 1942, a Canadian born journalist loses his pilot brother to the war.  Said journalist leaves his lovely young American bride to go traipsing off to the the Aleutian Islands to get the story of the recent Japanese invasion of American soil.  An exceedingly improbable tale follows in which our journalist assumes his dead brother's identity, dupes the American military into flying him to the Aleutians (because the Americans would not necessarily know that a Canadian pilot was dead), survives crash landing in the icy Alaskan waters, and eludes the Japanese on the island of Attu by living in a cave (all the while stealing their food and coal).  In the meantime, his wife, who hasn't sung since appearing in a high school play, manages to get a job in a USO show that is going to Alaska.  She lets a few people know that her husband snuck into the Aleutians before the show disbands.  In the end, the journalist is rescued and reunited with his wife, but he dies from his ordeal three days after their reunion.

     Boy, Snow, Bird by Helen Oyeyemi - Things are not what they seem.  Boy is actually the name of a young woman.  Snow is the name of Boy's step-daughter.  The child is named Snow because of her lovely white complexion.  Snow, Snow's father (Boy's husband), and all of the in-laws that Boy knows are really black people passing as white.  This secret comes out when Boy gives birth to her daughter Bird.  Bird comes out looking like a mixed race child, so the whole family has to own up to their genes.  Here's the real spoiler:  Bird discovers that her grandfather (Boy's father) is really a woman who has masqueraded as a man since the rape that caused her to conceive Boy.  Yikes!

     The Blue Girl: A Short Story of Scotland Yard's Murder Squad by Alex Grecian - Short stories are nice.  Usually they are found in collections, but this one was a stand alone.  I added the work "bespoke" to my vocabulary as a result of reading this piece.

     The Wives of Los Alamos by Tara Shea Nesbit - This is a work of fiction but the book was inspired by the  World War II Los Alamos, New Mexico atomic testing facility.  It's the story of how it might have been to be a wife in that place, during those times.

     The Yonahlossee Riding Camp for Girls by Anton DeSclafani - In the 1930's Thea Atwell is banished to boarding school after her part in a family scandal.  I doubt I would have handled things the way Thea did.

     The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian by Sherman Alexie - You might have heard of author, Sherman Alexie.  He is a native American poet, writer, and film maker.  In the 1990's, he published a collection of short stories titled Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven.  This collection inspired the all-Indian 1998 film "Smoke Signals."  He also published the novels Reservation Blues in 1995 and Indian Killer in 1996.  I "discovered" Alexie in the 90's when he appeared on "Sunday Morning" or "60 Minutes" or maybe both of those shows.  I grabbed up this latest book, a young adult novel, because I wanted to see what Alexie would write for a younger audience.  In my opinion Diary is just a reworking of his old stuff - the same semi autobiographical stories.  I also think he could have edited out a lot of the cussing since the audience for this tome is supposed to be of tender years.

     My non-fiction reading included:

     How I Became Hettie Jones by Hettie Jones - Hettie Cohen married LeRoi Jones (now Amiri Baraka) in 1958.  Her Jewish family cast her out for marrying a black man.  Her black husband cast her out when his work as a civil rights activist was hampered by having a white wife.  This is Hettie's struggle to find her own identity.

     The Lost Child of Philomena Lee: A Mother, Her Son, and a Fifty Year Search by Martin Sixsmith -  Ireland was not the place to be an unwed mother.  The nuns, who seem to have run all the homes for unwed mothers, enslaved young mothers and sold their children to couples who could not conceive.  Philomena's son came to the United States.  He looked for her, but he died of AIDS before he could find her.  His partner buried him in Ireland.  Philomena, finally able to admit to having a child out of wedlock, began searching for her son.  She found him in his Irish grave.  The movie "Philomena" was based on the book.

     Before I Burn by Gaute Heivoll - This book was translated from Norwegian.  It is about a series of arsons committed in the 1970's.  The author was a baby living in the community at the time the arsons occurred.  The stories he heard his whole life compelled him to write the book.

     Last of the Blue and Gray: Old Men, Stolen Glory, and the Mystery That Outlived the Civil War by Richard Serrano - This book tells the story of two men who were still alive in the 1950's, when the federal government began making preparations for the Civil War centennial celebration.  Both men claimed to be Civil War veterans.  Only one old soldier is telling the truth.  You have to read the book to find out who is the impostor.  It seems that the Great Depression of the 1930's drove lots of old men to claim they served in the Civil War.  It was a way to get a monthly pension check.  It was especially easy for Southerners to get a pension.  Most of their records were destroyed, so they just got someone to swear that they served.  They usually claimed to be drummer boys during the war since children as young as eight or nine years old would serve in this capacity.  Others claimed to be 15 or 20 years older than their correct age.  Once you tell a lie you have to stick to it - all the way to your 100th birthday and beyond.            

   

            


  

How to Make a Turkey Out of Rice Crispy Treats

     Damn you Pinterest for giving me ideas that are awfully difficult to execute.  Someone pinned a picture of a turkey made out of Rice Crispy treats.  Mike loves Rice Crispy treats.  I was betting he would get a kick out of a Thanksgiving bird made from these special goodies.
     I made a pan of Rice Crispy treats only once before, and I declared them too messy to ever make again.  Mike had to resort to buying huge boxes of the factory made treats at Costco.  With this being the Thanksgiving holiday, and with me feeling thankful for getting such a good husband, I decided to give the oooey, gooey sweets another try.  It wasn't all smooth sailing, but it turned out okay in the end.
     The ingredients are simple enough (I doubled this recipe for my turkey):
         
          3 Tbs. of butter
          One 10 oz. bag of marshmallows
          6 cups of Rice Crispies

     Melt the butter in a big pot using low heat.  Add the bag of marshmallows to the melted butter and heat until the marshmallows are melted.  Stir the butter and marshmallows until they are well mixed.  Remove from the heat.  Add the Rice Crispies and mix until the white fluff is evenly distributed throughout the cereal.  Normally, at this point, you would dump the gummy mass into a pan and press it down.  However, for our project, this is the time to begin sculpting a form that resembles roasted poultry.
     I divided the mixture into five parts - two small piles for the two drum sticks, two even smaller piles for the wings, and one large pile for the body of the turkey.  I wasn't successful at forming bird body parts at first because the warm mixture wouldn't hold together.  As it cooled, it acquired its adhesive properties.  I had to work pretty fast once the mixture "set up" because the limbs wouldn't stick to the body if the mixture cooled enough to start forming a hard shell.  The secret to sculpting with this glue is to coat your hands with melted butter.

The breast looks more human than avian.  I didn't get the stuffing cavity right.  The mixture was too cold to start over.   

Boo hoo.  The wings were a little warm and not compressed enough so the tip fell off.  Repairs were executed.

I made the fringe-y things out of card stock (what are they called?) and added them to the drum sticks.  Since I didn't make a proper body cavity, I dumped M&M "stuffing" on top.  I garnished with green Easter grass. 

  
        I'm thankful for this project because I got to lick my fingers and I realized that making standard Crispy treats will be a snap after this.  That's a Thanksgiving blessing for Mike.  Happy holiday, everyone.          
      

One Thing Leads to Another

     One thing leads to another.  That was one of Mom's warnings.  However, she was always referring to physical intimacies or alcohol consumption.  I think the old saw applies just as aptly to home repairs.  Get into one fix, and more issues reveal themselves.  That's what happened when Mike and I observed that the soap dispenser at the kitchen sink was leaking.
     The little green puddles in the sink bothered Mike more than they bothered me, so he did some research.  The solution to the dripping problem is to remove the pump and soak it in hot water. When the dish detergent in the pump softens, pump hot water through the pump and rinse everything thoroughly. Next, water down the liquid soap in the dispenser.  Reinstall the pump.  If you solved the problem, the reason it developed in the first place is that your detergent is too thick and heavy for your dispenser.  You are probably using Palmolive or Dawn.  You'll have to water it down.  If the fix didn't work, you probably have a crack in the pump.  You'll have to buy another dispenser.
     So, we successfully cleaned out the dispenser and got it pumping again.  In the process I found a puddle of water under the sink.  Before I call in the pros I like to see if I can fix things on my own.  What that really means is I like to see if I can fix things on the cheap.  Hey, it worked this time.  Here's how:

The leak didn't damage the inside of the cabinet because I keep a plastic pan under the sink.  The water stayed inside the pan.  I cleared all this stuff out and checked every connection for dampness.  I found the leaks at the top of each white slip joint nut.  

One side disconnected.  One side to go.  The waste pipes had black slime on the inside.  The P-trap on the left is the lesser used sink.  The water in this trap was really stinky.

This is the original slip nut.  My videos lead me to believe an O-ring goes in the groove.  However, when I got to Lowe's I couldn't find any such part.  I took the trap and the original slip nut with me.  I found a man in the plumbing aisle who looked knowledgeable, and I asked for his help. 

My new friend told me that I would have to discard the old slip nut and purchase a new nut/washer combination.

I put the slip nut on the upper pipe.  Then I slid the washer up the pipe.

Next, I replaced the P-trap.  The upper pipe goes down inside P-trap.  I moved the washer down to just above the threads on the trap.  Then I tightened the slip nut.  I made it as tight as I could with my hands.  The videos warned against using tools and tightening too much.  There's a black slip nut on the other end of the trap that I tightened next.  Finally, I repeated the routine on the other side.  

I filled up the sinks.  Then I pulled out the stoppers.  I continued running the water while the sinks drained and I flipped on the garbage disposal.  Yea!!  No more leaks.  The price of this repair - $5.33.  

        

The Day the Tape Deck Died

     I decided I needed some music while I sewed the other day.  I switched on the IPod and began listening to LeAnn Rimes album "Twisted Angel."  Wow, I said to Mike.  She sure did change her style between "Blue" and this album  I mean, where did the country go?  I started looking for "Blue" on CD and discovered I had it on a cassette tape.  When was the last time I played a tape?
     I popped the tape into the tape deck and there was nothing except some feeble clicking.  The end of an era passed with click, click, click, click, click.  Gone was one third of the Phillips Magnavox mini system bought in the 1990's.  Gone was the little tape player/radio that was once housed in the garage.  I sold it at a yard sale.  Gone was the 1997 van that had a tape player in the dash.  It was replaced by another vehicle a couple of years ago.  Long gone was the Walkman that I never really used anyway.
     The day the tape deck died might usher in the day some of my music dies.  I have about 100 cassette tapes, some homemade, containing music by Willy Nelson, Squeeze, Robert Cray, Lionel Ritchie, and Huey Lewis.  There's lots of Springstein and Billy Joel.  There's the sound track from Eddie and the Cruisers.  Years ago I transferred all my vinyl to tape.  Will I lose the Beatles and the Monkeys?
     Is it possible to buy a cassette player these days?  Well, you can't get one in an automobile. The last car to have a factory equipped, in dash cassette player was a 2010 Lexus.  By 2011, no car manufacturer installed cassette players.  Fortunately, you can still buy a tape player at Walmart, Target, or Best Buy.  They cost less than $50.
     So, the question then arises, "Will I ever play those old cassettes again?"  How long had "Blue" been gathering dust?  I'll bet the last time that tape went from reel to reel was around Y2K.  Should I put those 100 tapes out on the curb?  Nope.  Some day I might want to hear Leann Rimes and Eddie Arnold yodeling "Cattle Call."  For that I'll need to have a $24.99 tape player.  I'm off to Walmart to pick one up before they stop making them.

    

Leaves, Then and Now

     Mike and I spent the weekend raking, blowing, and mowing leaves.  When the township posts the signs, the residents scurry to get the leaves to the curb.
     We didn't move our leaves to the street when I was a kid.  In fact, we hardly even raked them. My father chopped them up with the lawn mower, so they would decompose and feed the lawn. When we did rake, we threw the leaves on the garden.  Then Dad fired up the rototiller and plowed them into the soil.  Sometimes though, he threw a match into that leaf pile and stood by to watch it burn.  He said ashes were good for gardens.
     Methods change, but I doubt things have gotten better.  Some people say burning produces no more pollutants than the engine on your lawn mower or the engines on the trucks that suck up the spent foliage.  Some people say piling leaves up at the curb and composting big heaps of them produces mold spores that are just as irritating as engine emissions.  Some people say the cleaning up of autumn's droppings is best left to homeowners.  They'll do it for free.  The salaries and equipment needed for municipal pick up is a budget buster.  This person says same problem, different day.  I'm for keeping things tidy and taking advantage of the services for which my tax dollars paid.  I'm against people starting fires in my vicinity.
     I'm also against jumping into big piles of leaves.  I tried it as a kid.  The crispy things crumble, go down your collar, and scratch all the way to the waistband of your pants.  Once, when I was about twelve years old (probably the most modest time of life), wallowing in leaves lead to a yellow jacket going up my pants leg.  Multiple bee stings ensued.  I hopped around yelling, and my mother commanded, "Take your pants off."  I chose to suffer a few more stings while I beat at my leg.
     Do kids still play in leaves?  I have my doubts since most of them are out playing soccer or puffing on asthma inhalers.  These days the leaf pile belongs to the family dog.  Check it out.

            

I Hate Windows 8

     I hate Windows 8.  To be completely accurate; utterly precise; rigorously exact; categorically, unequivocally, expressly understood about this - I frickin' hate Windows 8.  It must be bad if it has an old lady using the almost f-word, right?  Yes, it's that bad, and more.
     I've often said to Mike that my timing is awful.  I always end up buying high and selling low.  It figured that when I needed a new computer, the operating system that had just appeared on the scene was Windows 8.
     So what has me all hot and bothered?  Let me begin.
   
     1. Windows 8 (actually Windows 8.1 - it has already undergone changes because everybody hates it) is a radical departure from any other Windows operating system you might have used. Nothing about it looks the same.  Somebody at Microsoft decided that desk top computers should look and act like smartphones and tablets.  When you start up your computer, you get a bunch of pictures (called tiles).  No icons to double click, no "Start" button, just tiles.  'Cause we all want apps, right?

Tiles

     
     2.  Wrong.  We want our old desktop.  There is a tile called "Desktop."  If you click the "Desktop" tile, you will be taken to something that resembles the old Windows start up screen.  This desktop is a fooler, though.  It won't do what your old desktop did.  At first there wasn't a "Start" button to bring up your programs.   Somebody at Microsoft must have heard the wailing and gnashing of teeth because in the 8.1 update, they added a so-called start button.  Can you see it on the illustration below, on the bottom, left corner?

Starting to feel familiar?

 Here's a bigger pic:

The new start button.

  
What happens when you click the new start button?  You get sent back to the tile page!
     3.  I started out by saying that Microsoft created Windows 8 to push the idea of using apps, like phones and tablets.  So, my new PC came with a touch screen.  Every time I sit down at my computer that greasy, smeared touch screen stares me in the face.  I don't like doggy nose prints on the car windows, I don't like flossing splatter on the bathroom mirror, and I especially don't like finger prints all over my monitor.
   
     So, what can you do if you don't like using tiles and you find trying to navigate the woefully inadequate excuse for the old desktop too complicated?  You can install a program that makes Windows 8 look and operate like the older versions of the Windows operating system.  One of these programs is called Classic Shell.  You can downgrade to Windows 7.  Really, would you? You can wait for the next Windows system to be released.  I hear they are going back to the tried and true desktop.  That's an admission that Windows 8 is a flop.  Maybe disgruntled Windows 8 users should get a free upgrade.
     Wait, there's another solution.  Buy a Mac.  Did you hear me, Bill Gates?  I'm piqued off, and I'm not gonna take this any more.   

Frederick, Maryland

     Mike and I spent an pleasant day in Frederick, Maryland.  We checked out the Canal Walk, poked around a huge antique and architectural salvage store, strolled around town, had lunch in one of the many restaurants, and visited the National Museum of Civil War Medicine.

Mike along the Canal Walk.  Check out the big fish in the water.

I couldn't resist pretending to grab the window sill in this trompe l'oeil painting.

Is it going to rain?

Gee, not my best angle.  This fellow stands at the entrance to the National Museum of Civil War Medicine.  He's there so you can take a Civil War selfie.  

          I wondered why we have a National Museum of Civil War Medicine.  I thought the so-called doctors of the era hacked off injured limbs without anesthetizing patients, and spread infection from soldier to soldier with their bloody, ungloved hands.  I had to revise those notions after viewing the museum's displays.  There were many developments in medicine around the time of the Civil War.  Some doctors had no formal training, but others attended medical school and served apprenticeships with established physicians.  Medical schools were springing up everywhere and medical theory was moving away from leeches and bleeding patients to other schools of thought - homeopathy being the fastest growing of the new philosophies.  Civil War MD's were quick studies who realized that bleeding a person who had already lost a large volume of blood was the wrong way to go.  The museum had pictures of some wounded soldiers who had plastic or reconstructive surgery, and the results were pretty good in some cases. Anesthesia was commonly used at the time of the Civil War, and 95% of patients received it.  So, biting the bullet was a fallacy.  And amputations were the usual course of treatment for wounded extremities, not because doctors were unskilled, but because the minié ball ammunition used by soldiers shattered bones into so many pieces that removal of the limb was the only option.
     Museum displays bring to attention the diversity among people fighting this war.  It wasn't just that Afro-Americans joined up to fight for the Union side.  Children fought the war on both sides, if not as soldiers then as musicians.  Women, both black and white worked as nurses.  Some women were spies.  There were even women who served as soldiers without ever being discovered as transvestites.  One veteran soldier lived out her life, collecting a Civil War pension, and it wasn't discovered that she was a woman until after she died.
     The sheer number of Civil War dead lead to advancement in embalming methods and the development of mortuary science as a profession.  Undertakers set up shop near battle sites and field hospitals.  The dead had to be embalmed so the bodies would not decompose before they were shipped back to relatives.
     So all of the above is interesting and only slightly gruesome.  You get the point of the museum when you come to the final exhibit.  It's a display of modern military medicine.  The system of treating and evacuating military casualties today is the same as it was during the Civil War.  The Letterman Plan, developed by Dr. Jonathan Letterman, director of the Army of the Potomac in 1862 and 1863, included first aid stations at the front lines, mobile field hospitals, an ambulance corp, and use of the principles of triage for sorting out the injured.  Medical treatments have improved in the last 150 years, but no one has come up with anything better than the Letterman Plan.
     George Wunderlich is the Executive Director of the Museum of Civil War Medicine.  Check out his video:

              

National Watch and Clock Museum, Columbia, Pennsylvania

     I like learning new things - if it's not too difficult, or complicated, or technical.  I guess you could say I'm into lite learning.  Lite learning is the purpose of class trips, equal parts fun and education.  The National Watch and Clock Museum in Columbia, Pennsylvania is the perfect class trip - or senior outing.  http://www.nawcc.org/index.php/museum
     The first thing I learned on this outing was a new word - horology.  Horology is the study and measurement of time and the art of making clocks and watches.  Humans first measured time with sun dials (for daily measurements) and with huge monuments (like Stonehenge) for seasonal measurements.  Now we use atomic clocks.  Here's a good article that covers most of what the museum presents: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_timekeeping_devices 

The museum has a big collection of long case clocks.  They are also called tall case clocks or just tall clocks; however, most of us call them grandfather clocks.  

Clocks got small enough to put on the wall.

Or on the table.  Eventually, time pieces got small enough to wear on the wrist.  The museum has an extensive pocket watch and wrist watch display, but I didn't get into that in this post.  

Telling time at sea was more difficult than telling time on land until the development of marine chronometers.  

Here is a nice display of car clocks.

Europeans developed a round clock face, but Asians developed pillar clocks called Shaku-dokei.  The passage of time was read from top to bottom, and the hour markings were unequal.  Evidently, some hours of the day deserved more space on the pillar - hmmm, maybe cocktail hour?

These novelty clocks are called Pendulettes.  The cases are made from wood dust and resin.  The politically incorrect minstrel singer (second row up from the bottom, second clock from the left) was a sign of the times when this clock was manufactured.  

More novelty clocks.  These are rolling eye clocks.  The right eye marked the hour, and the left eye marked the minute.

Another novelty clock, the mystery clock.  These clocks are called mystery clocks or impossible clocks because the hands float on the glass with seemingly no mechanism to propel their movement around the dial.  The first mystery clocks were invented by a Frenchman named Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin.  Robert-Houdin was a clock maker and a magician.  Ehrich Weiss took the stage name Harry Houdini to honor Robert-Houdin, whom Harry Houdini considered to be "the father of modern magic."  Here's an article about how mystery clocks work -
http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/gadgets/clocks-watches/mystery-clock.htm

Mike is standing in front of an astronomical clock.  Astronomical clocks show the time of day as well as astronomical information such as the position of the sun, moon, and constellations of the zodiac.  Pennsylvanian, Stephen Engle, spent twenty years of his spare time building this clock, completing it in the 1870's.  This clock was more for entertainment than accurate time keeping.  During the course of an hour, the clock played hymns and patriotic songs while Jesus, Satan, the disciples, Father Time, and even Molly Pitcher popped out of the doors surrounding the clock face.  The clock was exhibited all over the United States until the 1950's when it disappeared.  It turned up in upstate New York in 1983 and came to the museum a couple of years later.  

     My big take away from this museum visit was the explanation for how we got the four time zones - Eastern, Central, Mountain, and Pacific.  Before time zones, every town in the United States operated on it's own time based on high noon.  Everybody who had a watch set it to 12:00 when the sun was directly overhead.  We had Hainesport time, Philadelphia time, and Lancaster time.  This didn't present a big problem when people walked or rode on horseback from place to place, but it created a mess when people began traveling  with lightening speed - on trains.   In order for everyone to be on the same schedule, the U.S. and Canadian railroads instituted standard time in time zones in 1883.  The railroad's system became law with the passage of the Standard Time Act of 1918.  Maybe I should have learned this in school, but, as they say, better late than never.  
             

Antique Automobile Club of America Museum

     Mike and I are not car nuts.  That didn't stop us from going to the Antique Automobile Club of America Museum in Hershey, Pennsylvania.  They have done a fantastic job of presenting their collection of cars, buses, and Indian motor cycles.

I don't remember what kind of car this is, but I like it.

The Hershey Kiss Mobile sits at the entrance.

A 1905 Cadillac.  We've come a long way.

This is a 1913 Ford Model T delivery van.  Henry Ford recognized the need for commercial vehicles and began producing large numbers of vans in late 1912.

Frank Hartmaier left this 1929 Ford to the museum in his will.  Mr. Hartmaier bought this as a new car when he was 17 years old and he used it his whole life, until 2008.  He restored it four times.  The odometer stopped working at 400,000 miles.  The car cost $450 - Frank got his money's worth.

Drive-ins are part of the car culture.  This was a great display.  A docent warned us not to eat the plastic burgers, though.

You need a gas station for all those cars - another fantastic display.

This bus was loaned out to Hollywood.  It was used in the movie "Forest Gump" during the scene in Washington, D.C. when Forest waved goodbye to Jennie.

This is a 1965 Skat-Kitty minibike.  This little thing was street licensable.  It was popular with Shrine units for parading (probably popular with mummers, too).  You could purchase a Skat-Kitty with S & H Green Stamps or you could buy one at Sears.  The price was between $170 - $300.

   
     I didn't take any pictures of the Indian motorcycles.  They have about 25 motorcycles on display along with paintings of Indian cycles by David Uhl, a motorcyclist and painter.  They also run a movie, "The World's Fastest Indian," a mostly true story, starring Anthony Hopkins.  So, if you have the time, there's a movie included with the price of admission.  Enjoy the moment of victory -

   

Steel Toe Tour - Harley-Davidson Plant, York, Pennsylvania

     You can take a free tour at the Harley-Davidson plant in York, Pennsylvania or you can pay $35.00 for the Steel Toe Tour.  Take the $35.00 tour.  You'll be outfitted with steel toe shoe covers, safety glasses, and a bright orange vest.  You'll see a short film, then spend a couple of hours walking around the super clean factory floor with a guide who explains every step of the process of motorcycle manufacturing.  Since photography inside the plant is prohibited, the Harley people give you a souvenir photo of your group at the end of the tour - so you can prove you were there.  Like all factory tours, this one ends at the gift shop where you can use the $5.00 discount coupon that accompanied your entry ticket.
   

Here are my steel toe shoe covers.

This is the closest I'll be getting to riding on a motorcycle.

 
     Since I couldn't take any pictures inside the plant, here's a video I found on YouTube.  Take notice of the fender stamping process.  They cut fenders and gas tanks from steel sheets.  Those sheets come from huge rolls of steel.  Our guide emphasized that Harley recycles all steel left over from the manufacturing process.  You'll also see the powder coating of gas tanks.  Powder coating is superior to painting because it is more durable.  Our guide explained that black is the most popular color.  That electric green bike that I am sitting on in the picture sports a 2015 custom color.  Also, check out the pinstriping.  Harley paints the stripes.  They don't use vinyl appliques.  Those orange carts seen in the video are run by computer.  Once a frame is assembled and painted, it is attached to the cart.  The cart weaves its way around the plant, and employees have about 80 seconds to complete their part of the process.  The plant produces 800 bikes per day, 400 bikes on each 10 hour shift.        


   
     Here's our tour group photo -

Hershey Chocolate World

     Mike and I like the TV show "How It's Made."  We have watched the manufacturing process for paper umbrellas, mascot costumes, crayons, and more.  Our idea of a fun time is taking a factory tour.  We recently heard about a self directed tour at Hershey Chocolate World.  We were in the car and on the way before you could say, "Break me off a piece of that Kit Kat bar."
     The Hershey complex is huge.  There are restaurants, indoor and outdoor stadiums, an amusement park, and places to shop, but there is no real factory tour.  There hasn't been a true factory tour since 1973.  What the Hershey people offer now is an amusement park ride that operates inside the Hershey Chocolate World building (think "It's a Small World" at Disney).  The ride begins in a farm setting where three singing cows warble about the tastiness of Hershey's chocolate, and it dumps you out above a store where you can buy Hershey products.  I might have given the "tour" a C-minus if I had been able to hear the narration about the production process, but the singing cows (who never stopped) drowned out the speaking sound track.
     So, unless you want to enjoy the other things that Hershey offers, don't make a special trip for the "tour."  Our bad for not doing our homework!

The Entrance to Chocolate World

And the Tour Begins

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♪ ♪

Even though we couldn't hear the narration, it was obvious that Hershey puts milk in their chocolate.  You'll get 8% of your minimum daily requirement of calcium from a 1.55 oz. Hershey bar.
http://www.hersheys.com/pure-products/details.aspx?id=3480

We helped ourselves to a Kit Kat at the end of the tour.

The real reason to come to Chocolate World - to stock up on candy.