Parking available in the lots to the rear of the hall and on the street. Homemade desserts and baked goods sold, along with sodas, coffee, teas, and water. CDs sold by the artists on site.

Feelin’ All Cooped Up?

Then come celebrate the almost-end-of-winter with us at our annual “All Cooped Up” concert at the St. James Coffeehouse on March 23, 2012.

Hear music by Coopsters of all kinds from bluegrass to swing and everything in between.

Coop Concerts is a not for profit collective of musicians and music lovers who share creativity through live performances, music education, peer networking and promoting Franklin County as a hub of live music.

Doors open at 6:30

Acts will be announced soon!

For more information see http://www.coopconcerts.org/

More information about the Saint James Coffeehouse is available at the Coffeehouse Facebook Site. Click here for directions to Saint James.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

]]> http://frogenyozurt.com/2012/03/greenfield-massachusetts-st-james-coffeehouse-to-host-coop-concerts-march-23-2012/feed/ 0 http://frogenyozurt.com/2011/10/greenfield-massachusetts-traditional-choral-evensong-sunday-november-6-2011/ http://frogenyozurt.com/2011/10/greenfield-massachusetts-traditional-choral-evensong-sunday-november-6-2011/#comments Tue, 25 Oct 2011 23:24:49 +0000 Editor http://frogenyozurt.com/?p=24048 We will celebrate a traditional Evensong on All Saint’s Sunday, November 6, 2011 at 4 p.m.  Prayers will be offered in particular for those who have died in the Lord during the past year.  The Saint James choir will lead the congregation in singing hymns.  They will also sing settings of the Magnificat & Nunc dimittis by Ralph Vaughan Williams, as well as service music and the anthem “Open our Eyes” by the 19^th-century American composer Will C. Macfarlane.  The public is cordially invited to attend.

This is an invitation to join us for a:

Traditional Choral Evensong

at the historic Saint James Episcopal Church in Greenfield, Massachusetts – celebrating 200 years of ministry in 2012 – at the corner of Federal & Church Street.

For driving instructions see the Saint James website.

The concert will take place on

Sunday, November 6, 2011 at 4 p.m.

In celebration of All Saints’ Sunday.

Dr. Mary Murrell Faulkner, Organist

Dr. Quentin Faulkner, Choral Director

The Reverend Dr. Joh Cerrato, Officiant

Including Magnificat & Nunc dimittis by Ralph Vaughan Williams

The anthem “Open our Eyes” by Will C. Macfarlane

Organ: Cantabile by Franck, Fugue in E-flat by Saint Saëns

Choristers & singers of other churches are invited to sing!

THE PUBLIC IS CORDIALLY INVITED TO ATTEND.

For more information: http://www.saintjamesgreenfield.org/

Quentin Faulkner, Larson Professor Emeritus of Organ and Music Theory/History at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, holds the degrees B.Mus. cum laudefrom Westminster Choir College, M.S.M. and M.Th. from Southern Methodist University, and S.M.D. from Union Theological Seminary. He also holds the Associate Degree in the American Guild of Organists, and has done post-graduate study, first in Renaissance music in a 1977 NEH Summer Seminar at Columbia University, and then in Gregorian Chant in a 1982 NEH Summer Seminar at Catholic University.

In 1997 Union Seminary honored him with its Unitas (distinguished alumnus) award, and in 1998 Westminster Choir College conferred on him a Distinguished Alumnus award. During the winter semester 1998-9 he was Fulbright Guest Professor at the Evangelische Hochschule für Kirchenmusik, Halle/Saale, Germany. Before going to Nebraska in 1974, Dr. Faulkner served for three years as Assistant Organist of the Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine, New York City.

In addition to teaching organ at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, he developed a series of courses in church music, and served as co-founder and co-coordinator of the nationally acclaimed UN-L Organ Conference.  In 1992 the University honored him with an award for distinguished teaching.

Dr. Faulkner has presented numerous organ recitals throughout the U.S. and in Europe (in particular, on historically significant organs), and together with his wife, Mary Murrell Faulkner, has recorded Duetto – Early Music for Keyboard-Four Hands (Pro Organo CD 7049).

He has written articles on various aspects of church music that have appeared in The American Organist, The Diapason, The Christian Ministry and Liturgy.  From 1984-86 he served as National Councilor for Education in the American Guild of Organists.  Following a l986-87 sabbatical year in Munich, West Germany, he completed an annotated English translation of Jacob Adlung’s Musica mechanica organœdi, as well as a book, Wiser than Despair (Greenwood Press, 1996) on the history of ideas in church music.  A recent area of interest is the interrelationship of religion, culture, and the arts; an article on that topic, “Cult and Culture at the Millenium,” appeared in the Fall/Winter 1996 issue of the interdisciplinary journal Soundings.

Dr. Faulkner has done extensive research into the keyboard technique and organ registration of J.S. Bach, culminating in articles on these subjects in The Diapason, The American Organist, theNewsletter of the Westfield Center for Early Keyboard Studies, and the Bach-Jahrbuch.  He has published J.S. Bach’s Keyboard Technique:  A Historical Introduction (Concordia, 1984) and The Registration of J.S. Bach’s Organ Works (Wayne Leupold Editions, 2008), and is the editor of Basic Bach (Wayne Leupold Editions, 1997), a volume containing the Orgelbüchlein and three free works, all supplied with fingerings.  In 1980 he performed Bach’s Art of Fugue at the University of Kansas and at Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, California.  In 1982 he was invited to present a paper on early keyboard performance practices at the American Guild of Organists Seminar on Organ Pedagogy in Washington, D.C., and he served as a consultant to the Bach Tercentenary publishing project undertaken by Concordia Publishing House.  In 1990 he was invited to present a paper, “Jacob Adlung’s Musica mechanica organœdi and the ‘Bach Organ’” in conjunction with a Bach organ study tour of Thuringia and Saxony, Germany.

From 2000-6 Dr. Faulkner and his wife, Dr. Mary Murrell Faulkner, served together as musicians for Saint Mark’s-on-the-Campus Episcopal Church in Lincoln.  In the fall of 2006 they returned to Halle, Germany, where they served as Guest Professors at the Hochschule für Kirchenmusik during the academic year 2006-7.

In 2009, he and Mary Murrell became the Parish Musicians of Saint James Church. In the summer of 2010 they led a tour of the Bach organs in Germany.

Mary Murrell Faulkner holds the degree B.Mus. magna cum laude from Westminster Choir College, the M.M. and M.S.M. degrees from Southern Methodist University, and the D.M.A. degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  She also holds the Colleague Certificate from the American Guild of Organists and the Zertifikat Deutsch als Fremdsprache from the Goethe Institute.  She has done post-graduate study at Teachers College of Columbia University in New York City.

Before going to Nebraska in 1974, Dr. Faulkner served for three years as Music Assistant at the Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine, New York City, where she was a frequent recitalist.

From 2000 to 2006, Dr. Faulkner was Organist and Director of Music at Saint Mark’s-on-the-Campus Episcopal Church, Lincoln, Nebraska, where she was responsible for all services and events that required music.  During the summer of 2001 she served, together with her husband, Dr. Quentin Faulkner, as organist and organ recitalist for the United Methodist Music and Liturgical Arts Week at Lake Junaluska, North Carolina.

From 1974-1990 she was Organist and Parish Musician at the Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Risen Christ in Lincoln.  In 1989, while holding that position, she planned and directed the Cathedral choir’s pilgrimage to Rome and Assisi, during which the choir sang and she played the organ at Sunday High Mass at Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

Dr. Faulkner was Visiting Instructor in organ at Union College, Lincoln, Nebraska, from 1980-85, and Visiting Assistant Professor of Organ at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1977, 1980, and 1982; she also served as Instructor in the UNL Church Organist Training Program.  During the academic year 2006-7, she served as Guest Professor of Organ at the Protestant College of Church Music in Halle/Saale, Germany.

In the autumn of 2008, Mary Murrell served as a supply organist in Saint James Church. At the beginning of 2009, she and Quentin became our Parish Musicians.

The Faulkners live in Amherst and enjoy visiting their children and grandchildren in Massachusetts and Texas.

Click on image to buy from Amazon.Com

The Maine dogfish are gone—fished to the brink of extinction. Gone too is Linda Jane, and with her the love and the subjunctive Maine that they might have shared. And what of that fabled “Old Maine”? Is it gone for good?

Dogfish Memory is the story of the search for an authentic Maine, a Maine of the past, whether historical or simply imagined, and a Maine of the present, one experienced by both permanent residents and seasonal ones—summerfolk. Joseph Dane is both. He has worked on commercial fishing boats as a local and he has sailed the coast for years like those who are “from away.” Dogfish Memory tells the story of how his often conflicting Maines are intertwined. Authentic Maine is elusive; stories and even photographs of a past Maine often contradict the memories of those who have lived through the changes they record. Dogfish Memory is thus the story of loss, the loss of a Maine recalled and imagined, and the loss of the love with which Maine is irrevocably associated.

Editorial Reviews

Part Maine memoir, part personal reflection, the book beautifully weaves together the geography of the New England coast with the contours of a life. …Yes, sailors will love this book. But to say it is a book about sailing is as accurate as saying that A River Runs Through It is a book about fly fishing. Both of these books are about human love and longing, both are about family and friendship. What Norman Maclean did for Montana, Joseph Dane has done for Maine, for he has scripted out the story of a lifetime lived on water. (Seth Lerer, Dean of Arts and Humanities at UC San Diego )

I’ve read dozens of books on Maine, but few, if any, show the kind of freshness and originality of Joseph A. Dane’s Dogfish Memory. He’s a master at depicting the coastline, the islands, headlands and coves, and even better at describing the more complex and mysterious landscape of the human heart. (W. D.Wetherell, author of On Admiration )

Dogfish Memory combines memoir, elegy, quest narrative, sailing chronicle, and love story, and is held together by a remarkable voice—taut, frequently sardonic, precise, and utterly merciless towards all pretensions, all comforting illusions. It is a beautiful and moving book, propelled and obstructed by its emotional intensity, on the one hand, and its unrelenting, self-deflating intelligence on the other. I found myself thinking of W. G. Sebald’sThe Rings of Saturn: not in its subject matter, but in its compelling inconsolability. But real books by real writers are sui generis, and this is a real book by a real writer. (Franklin Burroughs, author of Billy Watson’s Croker Sack )

In its honesty, focus on family, and lyricism, Dogfish Memory reminds me of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance and A River Runs Through It. And its unforgettable heroine, Linda Jane, is a true American original. (Howard Frank Mosher, author of Disappearances and Walking to Gaitlinburg )

Book review: ‘Dogfish Memory’ by Joseph A. Dane

The Los Angeles Times Book Review – July 8, 2011 (Excerpt)

Joseph Dane probably didn’t know that he was injecting valuable lifeblood into the memoir form when he wrote “Dogfish Memory.” He was just trying to come to some kind of peace with the fog of remembrance; to stake a defiant pose against death and faithlessness and see if he could hold it.

Even as he wrote this book, the memoir form had seen better days. The scandal over James Frey’s highly fictionalized memoir “A Million Little Pieces” in 2003 didn’t help matters. Readers expressed annoyance with memoirs written by authors barely in their 30s. Everyone with a life challenge or a fond memory felt emboldened to launch into a narrative — real or imagined — and pretend they actually understood their lives.

Now here comes the 60-ish Dane trying with no sense of heroics, no nobility, just abject irritation, to either sweep his life clean of half-truths or embrace, once and for all, the ambiguity of hindsight. Again and again he reminds his readers that he really has no idea if his perceptions are correct, or even if the things he thinks happened actually happened.

Maine, as those who have tasted enough of it well know, becomes a state of mind, a place to go to when the current world is not living up to expectations. So Dane, whose forebears were summer people, swanning around grand “cottages” on lawns carved down to the sea in places like Kennebunkport, Swan’s Island and Prouts Neck, is wary of “playing Maine.” Like his father, who he chides for a lifelong desire to be a “regular guy,” Dane longs for the real thing, the real life, free of metaphor, free of narrative, free of human will exerted over sensual memories: sea moss, sand fleas, the smell of “wood paneling and mold and beach roses and salt water.”

All of us want to go back to a time before the accumulation of layers began. To do this, to travel back, Dane has to dredge up the good with the bad; he has to pass through the self-hatred, the sneering, doubting, self-loathing and the self-aggrandizement and the romantic illusions, the playing at Maine. [Read the full article...]

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Boiled Peanuts

A Novel by John Patrick Doyle

A Peeping Tom Goes Nuts Over A Blind Girl

Paul Kirk is a librarian and one of his town’s quirkier residents.  In a childhood home lacking parents (his mother dying of MS and his father an alcoholic) Paul had imagined himself a member of the neighboring family. Now in his late twenties, Paul vicariously participates in the households of his community. His peeping-Tom proclivities express his awkward need for social bonding.

Then Paul meets Bronwyn, a counselor who is lovely, independent and blind. She has inherited her Aunt Phyllis’ house and is newly arrived in town. When Paul first sees Bronwyn at church, he knows he wants to be part of her life. As the mystery of Aunt Phyllis unfolds, Bronwyn and Paul become more deeply involved as they learn about Phyllis’ secrets and how they relate to Bronwyn and her past, but Paul’s peeping ways may ruin it all. [Read more...]

Boiled Peanuts is available through Amazon.Com, Amazon.co.uk, Barnes & Noble, and any other good bookstore.

Time: Saturday, April 9 · 7:00pm - 10:00pm

Location: St. James Coffeehouse, 8 Church St., Greenfield, Massachusetts

More Info: Doors open at 7:00 p.m. Music starts at 7:30. Tickets are $18.00 in advance, $20.00 at the door. Advance tickets at World Eye Bookshop in Greenfield. For reservations or more info, please call 413 772-2213. As always, refreshments will be available.

For more information on future Saint James Coffeehouse events see the Saint James Website or the Facebook Account.

The night’s concert brings original songwriters who work within deep traditions of place and song. One of a pair of brothers who spearheaded a tremendous renaissance in Canadian songwriting in the 1970s and 1980s, Garnet Rogers tells detailed stories of people from all walks of life and their small, everyday victories. He can shift from seriousness to razor-sharp wit in a heartbeat, and no two of his shows are the same. Says Dirty Linen: “He knows and captures what is real and lasting–the joyous, contradictory poetry of living,” and Canada’s Kitchener Record praises his “visionary songs of haunting and mysterious power.” Scottish folk master Archie Fisher is well known all over the British Isles as host of his own BBC radio show, but his appearances stateside are to be cherished. He’s just released new collection of songs, “Windward Away,” on which he’s been working for more than ten years. It’s a haunting collection of introspective ballads, evoking the wild and rough beauty of the Scottish Border country.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

DIRECTIONS

to Saint James Episcopal Church, Federal & Church Streets, Greenfield, Massachusetts

FROM THE SOUTH take Interstate Route 91 North to Exit 26 (Greenfield). From the stop sign at the end of the exit ramp, turn right onto Main Street. Proceed one mile through town to the second light (at the town green). Turn left onto Federal Street (Route 5 North), between the Greenfield Savings Bank and the Pushkin Gallery. Go one block to Church Street. Saint James is to the right at the corner of Federal and Church. Parking is available on Federal Street, Church Street, and Franklin Street, as well as in the Parking Lots behind the church, accessible by turning right off Church Street at Saint James Court (just behind the Parish Hall).

FROM THE NORTH take Interstate Route 91 South to Exit 26 (Greenfield). From the stop sign at the end of the exit ramp, proceed around the traffic circle (under the overpass bridge) and turn right onto Main Street (Greenfield). Proceed one mile through town to the second light (at the town green). Turn left onto Federal Street (Route 5 North), between the Greenfield Savings Bank and the Pushkin Gallery. Go one block to Church Street. Saint James is to the right at the corner of Federal and Church. Parking is available on Federal Street, Church Street, and Franklin Street, as well as in the Parking Lots behind the church, accessible by turning right off Church Street at Saint James Court (just behind the Parish Hall).

It is unfortunate that both, the Farmer’s Almanac and the groundhog, were wrong about a mild winter and spring luring around the corner. However, being back in the house, pouring a cup of good Shelburne Falls Coffee (my favorite Costa Rican Tarrazu), and reading the March/April edition of Yankee Magazine, I learned that spring in New England is not marked by the calendar.

According to an advertisement by visitnh.gov:

For New Englanders, the coming of spring isn’t marked by the calendar. It’s marked by plumes of steam from sugar house in full swing. That’s the signal to shed a layer and shake off cabin fever. For generations, making syrup has been more than a tradition – it’s been a rite of passage from winter to spring. Starting with pancake breakfasts and maple donuts, the days are rich with activity. So come take part in the tradition and you’ll have a much tastier way to mark the change of seasons.

Well, warmed by a really good coffee and these warm, encouraging words, I will continue my day rich with activity. It’s time to get more firewood for our wood stove, and to clear the path for the propane and heating oil deliveries. Then over to the local store and buy some cold medicine for my wife. And the dog plus three-year-old son need to be walked through this winter wonder world.

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Queen of Misfortune

A Lady Jane Grey Novel by Peter Carroll

Queen Of Misfortune is the fictional story of Lady Jane Grey as told by her beloved tutor, John Aylmer. At the time of her execution a stranger is recorded to have assisted her when, blind folded, she lost her way upon the scaffold. Was it the same ‘stranger’ who was also recorded to have visited her when she was imprisoned in the Tower? Little is known of this unfortunate girl who was beheaded for treason in the 16^th Century. She was only 16. She is omitted from the list of monarchs but was actually queen for nine days. Author Peter Carroll, in his novel, follows John Aylmer’s close relationship with Jane as her tutor and later, as she grows up, her lover. [More...]

Available at Amazon.Com, Amazon.co.uk, Barnes & Noble, and any other good bookstore.

Click on image to buy from Amazon.Com

This book of linked stories is a backstage pass to the making of a single town’s legends. We’re there at the fictitious founding of Blackwell, Mass., where a handful of families have trudged west from Boston into the mid-18th-century wilderness. They survive their first winter in the Berkshire mountains off milk stolen from a hibernating bear. Each story brings a new era.

In 1816 a little girl is swallowed by the nearby river. A generation later some people from town catch a glimpse of her by the water before she vanishes again. By the 1940s the town is celebrating its founding with a play about a local 6-year-old ghost who says, “I’ll never leave you.” In the last chapter the drowned girl shows up again (as promised). By now she’s dismissed as pure folklore, “only a story, nothing more,” yet she retains a certain power. A father can’t help thinking of the ghost as he dives into the river to save his own child. (Source: New York Times Book Review)

Editorial Review

The lush and haunted wildlands of Massachusetts provide fertile ground for Hoffman’s endlessly flowering imagination. Like The Probable Future (2003) and Blackbird House (2004), The Red Garden, a sequence of beguiling, linked stories, is rooted in colonial times and reaches into the present. The first foolhardy white folks—the Motts, Partridges, Starrs, and Bradys—to settle in this land of blackflies, bears, eels, and harsh winters in 1750 only survive because Hallie Brady, the first of a line of determined and adept women in what becomes the small town of Blackwell in Berkshire County, goes out into the snowy wilderness to find sustenance. As spring allows the founding families to cultivate the strange red soil in the village’s first garden, Johnny Appleseed stays for a spell, and, later, Emily Dickinson happens by. Generation by generation, humans and animals form profound bonds; women’s lives change, somewhat; men go to war; people are poor and in despair; illness and violence rage; strangers find refuge; and love blossoms impossibly, extravagantly, inevitably. In gloriously sensuous, suspenseful, mystical, tragic, and redemptive episodes, Hoffman subtly alters her language, from an almost biblical voice to increasingly nuanced and intricate prose reflecting the burgeoning social and psychological complexities her passionate and searching characters face in an ever-changing world. –Donna Seaman, Booklist.Com

Review

This story is pure Alice Hoffman magic. She begins the story in 1750 with the settlers who founded the town of Bearsville, MA (name changed to Blackwell in 1786). Every chapter moves the story to another time period concluding sometime in the 2000′s. The book reads like a seamless book of short stories, each chapter informing and building on the previous. Hoffman has a gift for sharply focusing on the main character of each time period as she moves the story of this small mountain town along, revealing an inner truth.

Characters come to town, live, leave, die, wander, return but always carry the thread of the town with them. The characters are so beautifully written, it’s hard to choose a favorite chapter/story. The two chapters I enjoyed most were “The Principles of Devotion”, the story of a loyal dog living at the grave of his owner and the “Monster of Blackwell”, a young man who separates himself from society and lives in the mountains outside Blackwell. These chapters are achingly beautiful.

The red garden refers to the founder’s (Hallie Brady) garden where the soil is as red as blood and everything that grows in it is red. Perhaps a symbol of life and death; the connection we all have to nature and each other.

Hoffman doesn’t go on and on with flowery prose; her writing is edited, beautiful and powerful. She always manages to capture the beauty of a moment and the setting of the story, infusing it with her understanding of humanity. – Katawampas, Amazon Review

This prequel to Kent’s The Heretic’s Daughter (2008) focuses on the early life of outspoken, tart-tongued Martha Allen, from whom the author is descended. Set in seventeenth-century Massachusetts, the novel finds the still-unmarried 23-year-old Martha being sent to live with her cousins as a domestic. Once there, she finds herself intrigued by a hired man named Thomas Carrier. A Welshman, he is the tallest man she has ever seen and one of the most taciturn.

But when he saves her from two marauding wolves, intrigue turns to attraction. But other wolves—human ones this time—may pose an even greater danger to the two. Who is Thomas, in fact? What part might he have played in the overthrow and beheading of England’s Charles I? And why have a clutch of dangerous assassins come from England in search of him? An example of the currently popular genre-blender, the book is part historical fiction, part romance, and part suspense. Skillfully meshing these various elements, the author’s latest effort is bound to please fans of each. –Michael Cart

Review

There is a brutish energy in Kathleen Kent’s prequel to her well-received Heretic’s Daughter, a comingling of harsh animalistic dangers with politics, power and passion. The howling wolves that come for their prey are both the two-legged and the four-legged kind, and each will stop at nothing to prevail.

The book opens with the introduction of Martha Allen, a resourceful and sharp-tongued young woman who is forced to take the position of glorified servant to her weak-willed cousin Patience, who is expecting her third child in colonial Massachusetts. There she meets a giant of a man, the Welshman Thomas Carrier, a hired worker with an air of mystery. It is rumored that for the love of Oliver Cromwell’s cause, he took an axe to the head of King Charles I and now has a bounty on his own head.

For Martha, Patience, Thomas and the other characters, life in the colonies is not easy. They must deal daily with threats of the plague, famished and hostile Indians, hard toil, and of course, the ever-present danger of the wolves. And the dangers lurk not in the community, but from overseas. Unbeknownst to Thomas, King Charles II has ordered a group of brutal Royalist minions to cross the ocean and bring Thomas back to be drawn and quartered for killing his father.

The two stories – that of Martha and Thomas in the colonies and the expertly trained and thuggish killers who are determined to capture Thomas – are juxtaposed, each highlighting the same theme: the courage and independence that are demanded in a time of danger and change.

Kathleen Kent does not shy away from darkness. She depicts everyday life in all its gore: an injured and frightened lamb being used as bait, a horrific recounting of a pit bull dog fight, the impressments of a young lad who is destined to be thrown overboard, the capture and burning of conspirators at the hands of some Indians. Those who have read Heretic’s Daughter know that this is not an author who will whitewash the quest for survival or the challenges of day-to-day existence in an often-unfair world.

Even the progression of the love between Martha and Thomas is tempered by harshness dashed with a dollop of sweetness. At one point, Thomas pauses to tell her, “You are the deer shot through with arrows whose heart grows cold for want of being taken.” And eventually: “But for this day, we live. So bide with me. Bide with me and take from me what you can, as I will from you. And however long we walk this earth, we can stand for one another…”

The book falters a bit when it takes the reader away from the main action to the back streets of London or the tempestuous times aboard a creaky merchant ship. Knowing that this is a prequel, the suspense of the hunt for Thomas is stunted. But then Wolves of Andover always rights itself and shines, capturing – through Thomas’s telling – the turbulent times and battle between Charles I and Cromwell and focusing on life in the plucky colonies and the budding romance of Martha and Thomas.

It bears mentioning that Kathleen Kent is a descendant of the real Martha Allen Carrier, who was hung as a witch during the Salem trials of 1692. She does her ancestor proud with a book that is admittedly not an historical recreation, but rather a page-turning book of historical fiction (emphasis on the fiction) that, once started, is impossible to put down. – Jill I. Shtulman, Amazon Review

‘Wolves’ revisits Colonial America, losing its way in the wilderness

The Boston Globe Book Review – December 18, 2010 (Excerpt)

Kathleen Kent’s “The Wolves of Andover,’’ the prequel to her 2008 bestseller “The Heretic’s Daughter,’’ returns to the author’s familiar stomping ground of the struggle for survival in Colonial America.

While both books are labeled historical fiction, the central story of each revolves around Kent’s real-life ancestor Martha Carrier, who was tried and hanged as a witch during the Salem witch trials. “The Heretic’s Daughter’’ is told from the point of view of Martha’s daughter, Sarah, while Kent’s latest work offers an embellished account (though one that features real-life figures) of Martha’s back story and relationship with Sarah’s father, Thomas Carrier.

Much of the action in “The Wolves of Andover’’ alternates between Billerica, Mass., and England, with the central plot revolving around a group of men who have been hired by King Charles II to sail to Massachusetts and capture the men who killed Charles I (primarily Thomas Carrier in this instance). [Read the full article...]

It is an indisputable fact for most of us that we spend a major portion of our life at the workplace, and I am one of those who has the attitude, but also the luxury, of making my workplace as much of a comfortable place as possible. That level of comfort, besides photos of my wife and son plus the Moody Blues station on Pandora, includes several cups of good coffee in the morning. I admit, I am a snob when it comes to the matters of coffee (Okay, it’s the same with tea. We only drink Barry’s Irish Tea at breakfast.), and I use only whole beans of the best quality. Best quality includes buying coffee beans freshly roasted in the neighborhood, namely the Shelburne Falls Coffee Roasters. Their roasting operation is only a few miles from our house, and their local Greenfield (Massachusetts) coffee store is even closer.

Nestled in the foothills of New England’s Berkshires, the Shelburne Falls coffee roastery hearkens back to an earlier America, a time and place where fine things were produced by village craftspeople who nurtured their products from start to finish. You will find that their hand roasted coffee beans, whether organic coffee, decaffeinated coffee, or the rich assortment of flavored coffees — are as fresh and delicious as coffee can be.

And, honestly, while I am writing this post I have a steaming cup of their Costa Rican Tarrazu right next to me. I love my coffee the French style, meaning with a lot of milk, similar to a cafe au lait. It’s just regular whole milk; my snobbiness does not include a steamer at the workplace or even at home.

This Light Roast version of the Costa Rican Tarrazu coffee classic is an excellent morning coffee! Brew it through your drip machine like I do, and you can experience all its flavors. This full-bodied coffee is delightfully smooth with a sweet, fruited aroma. In flavor, subtle chocolate nuances pair beautifully with notes of sweet citrus. The cup distinctly brightens toward the finish with a sweetly dry, lemon-like citrus nuance that pleasantly lingers. At its best prepared as a drip brew, while the French press produces a somewhat brighter cup with the more pronounced citrus nuances.

The Shelburne Falls Coffee Roasters product line of coffees includes Colombian Supremo, Guatemalan Antigua, Organic Coffees (Mexican, Peruvian, and Sumatran), Flavored Coffees (Hazelnut, Toasted Coconut Cream, French Vanilla, and Roasted Chestnut), and, of course, a large variety of decaffeinated coffees.

If you are in the neighborhood, please take the time to visit one of their stores in Shelburne Falls, Northampton, Greenfield, or Hadley, Massachusetts. The service is always friendly, and you might even learn a few things about coffee as I did during the years.

For example, did you know that their Decaf French Roast is close to having an espresso flavor, but is a quite a bit smoother (in fact, some customers prefer to use this bean as their espresso)? It is also a little known fact that French Vanilla is not a vanilla flavor at all, but a term used to describe the French method of making ice cream using egg yolks, cream, and vanilla pods. The unique flavor and aroma came to be called French Vanilla by perfume and specialty product companies, and has been in use ever since.

Well, if you live in another corner of the country, you can still try and enjoy their coffee by ordering online through the Copperhill Store, a website dedicated to products from New England, including those of the Shelburne Falls Coffee Roasters. Their web site is http://www.copperhillstore.com. Regardless of where you live, their coffee is the freshest thing to having the roastery in your neighborhood. Their coffee beans are slow-roasted to bring out a fuller, more even flavor. The coffee is roasted fresh immediately prior to packaging and shipping, and the the beans are packaged to ensure optimal freshness.

Enjoy!

This wonderful, award-winning children’s picture book tells the story of a family of ducks that decide to make their home on an island in the middle of the lagoon in the Public Garden. Bronze statues of these determined ducks are among the most popular attractions in the Common/Garden area.

It’s not easy for duck parents to find a safe place to bring up their ducklings, but during a rest stop in Boston’s Public Garden, Mr. and Mrs. Mallard think they just might have found the perfect spot–no foxes or turtles in sight, plenty of peanuts from pleasant passers-by, and the benevolent instincts of a kindly police officer to boot. Young readers will love the mother duck’s proud, loving protection of her wee webbed ones, and those with fond memories of Boston will enjoy familiar locales, from Beacon Hill to Louisburg Square, and over the Charles River–often from a duck’s-eye view. Robert McCloskey, creator of Blueberries for Sal, never fails to elicit happy story-time giggles from youngsters, and his soft, brown-toned, Caldecott-winning illustrations make this gentle world come alive. (Ages 3 to 8) –Karin Snelson

Review

Children naturally are interested in understanding a parent’s perspective on the family. Mr. and Mrs. Mallard’s search for a safe home for their future family makes a wonderful story for children and parents to explore and understand more about parental love. Although the book has a 4-8 age reading level, younger children enjoy having it read to them (based on the experiences of my four children). The illustrations are terrific and draw the child’s interest very easily. Older children like to reread the story because of its comfortable connection to their more youthful years and reinforcement of their sense of being wanted, loved, and belonging.

To me, the best part of the book is that the locations are actually easy to find in Boston. So if you live in the Boston area or ever come here, you can also take your children to experience the story. I know my younger daughter thought that her first Swan boat ride in the Public Garden was the ultimate moment in her life (up to that point). She kept wanting to know which duck was Mrs. Mallard, and which one was Mr. Mallard. Then she wanted to spot Jack, Kack, Lack, Mack, Nack, Ouack (my favorite name in the book), Pack, and Quack. I had a ball! There are also statues of Mrs. Mallard and her 8 offspring that the children can touch. There’s also an annual parade that you can participate in.

If you don’t know the story, here’s a summary: Mr. and Mrs. Mallard were looking for a place to live where they could raise a family safely. Whenever Mr. Mallard found someplace he liked, Mrs. Mallard worried about foxes and turtles. Finally they got to the pond in the Public Garden in Boston, and were too tired to go on. So they spent the night on the little island there. The next morning they could not find much food, until the people on the Swan boats began to throw them peanuts. But the Mallards were almost run over by a bicycle, so they felt they needed a safer place. They tried several, but each had a drawback. Finally, they found an island in the Charles River not far from the Public Garden that met all their requirements. Michael, the policeman, fed them peanuts. Soon, Mrs. Mallard laid 8 eggs, and stayed to hatch them. After the ducklings were born, they learned to swim and walk single file behind their Mother. One day, she walked them towards the Public Garden. But they could not get across the highway. Michael spotted them and stopped the traffic so they could cross. He called Clancy at the station and told him to send a car to help Mrs. Mallard and the ducklings cross at the Public Garden. When in the pond there, they met Mr. Mallard on the little island. They decided to live there, and followed the Swan boats for peanuts after that.

I have enjoyed reading this story and reading it to children for almost 30 years. I look forward to reading it to my grandchildren when the time comes. It has also been my favorite book to give as a gift to new parents.

Enjoy the wonderful gift of warm family feeling in this book, and leave your stalled thinking about your cares and worries behind. It will remind you what is really important in your life! – Professor Donal Mitchell

Setting sail from Nantucket, the whale ship “Pequod” and its obsessed Captain Ahab cross the globe hunting for the white whale Moby Dick. Melville’s 1851 novel is more than a profound exploration of the New England whaling industry, but also an existential journey into the one man’s dark soul as he grapples with good and evil.

This classic story of high adventure, manic obsession and metaphysical speculation was Melville’s masterpiece. This edition includes passages from Melville’s correspondence with Nathaniel Hawthorne, in which the two discuss the philosophical depths of the novel’s plot and imagery.

Editorial Reviews

‘In his great whaling epic Melville roamed both the seas, and the secret places of men’s minds. In the alternate playfulness and ferocity of the great white whale he found the perfect metaphor within which to develope his views on life, death and God.’ The Sunday Times

‘An attractive edition to a field rather overcrowded with inexpensive editions. However, the Hawthorne material gives this one an edge.’ Andrew Lyman, Leicester University. ‘ Much better annotations than any other available edition.’ H. Merritt, CCAT Cambridge.

Review

I somehow avoided having to read this in high school or college, and wanted to give it a shot. After struggling through the first chapter and growing accustomed to the style of writing in the book, I was rewarded with a very intriguing book. I was surprised by the thoughtfulness and detail of some portions of the book, and surprised by Melville’s descriptions of whales — anthropomorphizing them through detailed discussions of their anatomy and behavior.

Obviously, as a classic, this is available from many publishers. This edition, while still a paperback, has substance to it being printed on quality paper. The font and print quality is good as well. If you are reading a long novel such as Moby-Dick, you’ll want to invest in a quality edition such as this one to avoid unnecessary strain on your eyes.

The downside of this edition is the rambling and pretentious introduction that contributes little to helping a first-time reader understand the book. Not everyone who reads classics such as Moby-Dick are literary scholars, and I wish publishers would someday understand that and have a more lively and informative modern introduction. – Steve Oakland, Amazon Review

I am sorry, but it will never work. I could never take a man serious who tucks his shirt in his underpants.

It appears our local Rush-Limbaugh-Wannabe, Ben S. Clarke, is having some dating problems. First, there is the cooking issue (“I don’t mind women, as long as they can cook.” – I took some liberty with this quote, but I don’t believe my interpretation is unfair.) Now there is the diaper-changing-phobia (“I have a strict policy about changing diapers: I don’t.”) He says, “It has something to do with “gender equity” and division of infant labor duties.” Hmm, gender equity… division of infant labor duties… I do imagine the busloads of women from all over the country arriving in Greenfield, Massachusetts, trying to get a date with Ben S. Clarke.

The background to this story is Ben’s article in the local newspaper, the Recorder, titled “Family fun at the fair,” sub-titled “Nephews help with true learning experience.” – Add my gagging here… I had sworn, I would never again read his blabbering, but I blame this on my wife. She said, it’s like an accident. It’s ugly, but you just need to look.

As a father of a three-year-old I have changed numerous diapers in the past without feeling a threat to my manhood, and there is a lesson to be learned. First, there are things in life that we don’t enjoy, but they need to be done. Secondly, what I get in return for caring for my son is unconditional love and, surprisingly, the feeling that there is a life more important to me than my own. I don’t get that by throwing money at him. (Ben S. Clarke: “Total investment so far: $45.”)

The question may come to mind as to what kind of mother sends her kids off with uncle Ben with the knowledge that the one-year-old won’t have his diaper changed for hours…? It’s the same uncle Ben who feeds junk food to the one-year-old until he throws up  (It’s all recorded in the article). Yes, I can see how the nephews help with a true learning experience.

When you live in Franklin County and you read the local newspaper, you can’t avoid accounts of Ben S. Clarke’s personal life and, much worse, his offensive views on life in all aspects. We learn way more about his personal life, including his dating problems, than we care for. Help! Information overload!

Why we need to put up with this, I don’t know. What do we care what he does with his three nephews at the local fair? Why does the Recorder publish such a nonsense? What’s next? His digesting problems?

My turn on Ben S. Clarke’s article is simple: Everybody has the right to be stupid. Just don’t put it in writing! It’s bad for the writing career!

Last, but not least, let me explain that Ben S. Clarke “relishes” my rants about him. He enjoys the attention and he enjoys being insulted (Hey, single women, wink, wink, nudge, nudge!)

The Coffeehouse marked its tenth anniversary in the spring of 2o1o. This coming year of 2010-2011 year promises to be an excellent one.

While most of our Coffeehouse concerts happen in the Parish Hall of Saint James, occasionally we move into the church auditorium for larger shows.

The Calendar of Events for 2010-2011

Doors open at 7 p.m. First act at 7:15 p.m. Headliner at 8 p.m. Parking available in the lots to the rear of the hall and on the street. Homemade desserts and baked goods sold, along with sodas, coffee, teas, and water. CDs sold by the artists on site.

September 18, 2010    Bread and Bones, a Vermont trio with great songs and wonderful vocals: a mix of Americana and traditional music. Great humor and stories.

October 9, 2010 Bob Franke, a wonderfully intelligent songwriter. Christine Lavin says, “Bob Franke writes the kind of songs that will still be sung a hundred years from now.”

November 13, 2010 Eric Andersen “Andersen is the most elegant of singers. He is powered by the singular mix of irony and high romanticism that fuels his classic work.” Paul Evans, Rolling Stone Magazine

January 8, 2011 Claudia Schmidt who has a beautiful voice, great stories and high energy. The San Francisco Bay Guardian says: “Schmidt’s shows are a lot like falling in love. You never know what’s going to happen next, chances are it’s going to be wonderful, every moment is burned into your memory and you know you’ll never be the same again.” More succinctly, Garrison Keiller says, “When Claudia sings a song, it stays sung.”

February 12, 2011 Don White is like an emotional roller coaster: there is always uproarious laughter as well as heartfelt emotion. Don is a frequent performer here and always a favorite.

March 12, 2011 Tracy Grammer, of whom Richard Shindell says, “Tracy Grammer has that elusive quality of being able to speak directly to another person’s heart – instantly bypassing all of the usual infrastructure – the moment she starts singing. She’s great.”

April 9, 2011 Garnet Rogers & Archie Fisher appear in a rare twin bill. Two wonderful songsmiths.

May 14, 2011 Bill Staines will return. This promises, as always, to be a wonderful evening of music, stories and laughter.

More information about the Saint James Coffeehouse is available at the Coffeehouse Web Site at www.stjames-gfld.org/coffeehouse.html.

Thanks to the Recorder, the Greenfield newspaper, we found an advertisement by Shippee Auto, Inc. in Hinsdale, New Hampshire. They always have a variety of used Subarus for very reasonable prices that you don’t get here in town. We live in the Western (the forgotten) part of Massachusetts, just a few miles from the Vermont and New Hampshire border. A drive from Greenfield, Massachusetts to Hinsdale, New Hampshire takes about thirty minutes, and we (my wife, my three-year-old son, and I) decided very quickly in favor of a Subaru Legacy.

Next step: The Motor Vehicle Registry. After returning from Hinsdale I walked over to the Farrell Insurance Agency, which is next door to my office. It is not only the close proximity that provides the ultimate convenience; the service was outstanding. Within shortest time I had insurance for the new car plus all papers needed to register the vehicle. This is in stark contrast to the Borawski Insurance Agency in Northampton where I used to live before moving a few miles North. If you want something from Borawski you need to talk to the one and only person who can assist you, and, sorry, she is in a meeting or assisting another customer. She will call you back (Yeah, right!).

The Motor Vehicle Registry in Greenfield works very efficiently and, to a certain degree, impersonal. If you didn’t bring a book or newspaper, you might enjoy the frequent computer-controlled announcements, “Number A-zero-two-eight at counter number three.” You enter the premises, and you take your ticket. On the ticket you find the information of the estimated waiting time. In my case it was 17 minutes, and the estimate turned out to be accurate. I know, other registries have a bad reputation in terms of waiting time, and I am not complaining at all. It was just amusing to watch the lady who took care of my registration. She was not unfriendly, but, at the same time, not very welcoming. It takes a certain attitude and a thick skin to work here.

Nevertheless, after too many words wasted on the subject, let me tell you the story of Felix Bogdanis. I always think of Felix after I spent some time at the registry. Read his story to the end, and you will get the connection between my Russian friend and the Motor Vehicle Registry. And, by the way… Felix, if you’re out there, somewhere, and by the off-chance you read this post, drop a note below…

Felix Bogdanis was a colleague of mine at a German company with American headquarters in Enfield, Connecticut. That was back in the early 1990′s. Felix came directly from the Soviet Union to move to Springfield, Massachusetts, just a few miles North of Enfield. Be aware of the cultural differences between the communist system in Russia and the capitalism as we know it. Add to this the free-spirited attitude of the American people.

At work there was no bell telling you it was time for lunch, and yet another bell to tell you when to return to work. Felix was a very well educated engineer, but he did not appreciate the lack of rules and regulations. He’d rather live in a European country, preferably Germany, where the interest of the community takes precedence over individual needs. As a result, they do apply the so much desired rules and regulations. Well, it doesn’t work over here, especially not, for instance, in New Hampshire where they “live free or die.”

Felix also did not like the “overly” friendly behavior of the American people. If you deal with Germans, French, or any other European culture on a professional basis, you will be well aware of the sober (to put it diplomatically) attitude they display on a daily basis. Don’t get me wrong. They don’t mean to be offensive. That’s just how the system works over there. Why waste time for pleasantries?

Everybody at work loved Felix, and they were very accommodating when he asked for favors. However, they could not find it in their heart to change their social patterns, but they did recommend that he should visit the Motor Vehicle Registry (or whatever the exact title was or is) every now and then when he needed a fix of hostile attitude.

So, whenever I wait at the registry, I remember Felix and I grin. I imagine the medium sized person with dark gray corduroy pants and long-sleeved gray shirt, standing in front of the counter, waiting for his fix. I imagine how the person behind the counter would bark at him, “What do you need?”, and a smile would lighten Felix’ face. “Thank you very much,” he would say. “That’s all I needed.” And then he would turn around and leave.

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by Lorelei Bell

Sabrina Strong is a Touch Clairvoyant who knows a secret. She knows her mother was turned into a vampire when Sabrina was ten. Now that she is grown up, a powerful magnate in the Chicago business world hires her to reveal the identity of who relentlessly murders vampires in his ultra-modern stronghold of a hotel. [Read More...] – Including an excerpt of the first chapter.

Vampire Ascending is now available at Amazon.Com, Amazon.co.uk, Barnes & Noble, and any other good bookstore.

Even the seagulls know that life in Prospect Harbor has changed. For years, when the herring arrived at the sardine cannery, the gulls would cry and hover, thick as clouds, and you’d look up and barely see the sky. Now, a few still circle when the lobster boats head out and return, but an unwelcome quiet has come to this little village just north of the Schoodic Peninsula.

The reporters and television crews, they’re gone, too. Newspapers far and near, and, of course, the blogosphere, all picked up the story: how in Maine, where sardine factories once thrived, only one remained, Stinson Seafood, in Prospect Harbor. And how on Thursday, April 15, the last oval can would come off the belt, and then an industry that had once sustained the Down East coastline would end. So many reporters requested interviews that Bumble Bee Foods, the plant’s owner since 2004, sent people in from California to handle the public-relations fallout, which is what happens when 128 people lose their jobs in a community without other jobs to go to.

Peter Colson, Stinson’s plant manager, said that all the attention beat anything he’d ever known. Bumble Bee had told him early in February, and he’d lived with the secret for days before calling his workers together, many of whom had worked for him for years. “It was killing me,” he says. “I couldn’t sleep, worrying about them.”

And so the world came to know Lela Anderson, 78, who became the symbol of the end of an era. She’d packed sardines since she was 17; had been at Stinson 54 years. “Men couldn’t do this work long,” Colson says. “It takes a woman with a strong back to pack fish.” He’s proud of Lela, who reaches five feet if she stands on tiptoe, and weighs 101 pounds. He calls her “the strongest lady you’ll ever meet.”

Her face revealed every day she’d packed fish: determined, stoic. It was as if the work ethic of sardine workers from Rockland and Belfast, Jonesport and Lubec, had come to rest right here in Lela Anderson. So day after day, she’d step back from her lunch break for a few moments and talk into cameras with an accent so soaked in coastal Maine it made its own poetry. And then there was no longer a need for Lela to talk about her life, because once the doors finally shut that Thursday, for the world beyond the peninsula the story was over …

“On Friday morning I kept looking at the clock,” Lela says. “I said, ‘I’ve got to get up. I’ve got to get ready for work.’ And then I remembered: ‘You fool, you ain’t got to get to work. You’re done work now.’ I bet I wasn’t the only one.” [Read the full article...]

The study of appropriate literature like the Yankee Magazine adds to the experience of being exposed to the typical New Englander. And it was the Yankee Magazine where I found the article titled “How New England Are You?” Let me quote the first three things to do as a native New Englander:

1. Actually Climb Bunker Hill Monument
Two hundred and ninety-four steps doesn’t sound like that many at the bottom, but you feel it about halfway up the narrow spire. They should install inspirational signs along the way, like “How much do you love your country?” When you get back down, make sure to yell, “We made it!” at the park ranger. You’ve earned it, and he’s used to it by now.

2. Bet on Ice-Out
In Kent, Connecticut, spring is heralded not by the groundhog but by ice-out on the Housatonic River. Each year townspeople place bets on the actual day, hour, and minute; volunteer firefighters rig a network of ropes and pulleys, with a clock mounted on a tripod to record the exact moment when the ice breaks up enough to move at least 100 feet downriver. The winner gets as much as a thousand bucks–along with the confidence of knowing that soon that heavy parka can be put away until November.

3. Shop at 3:00 A.M. in Freeport
Although on a busy Sunday afternoon the crush and din of the L.L. Bean retail shop resembles that of a discount department store, you can still brush up against the past, you can still feel its old Maine heart beating, if you come in the middle of the night in the middle of winter, when the temperature is dropping to zero and big black clouds are shouldering in across Casco Bay.

Explore the next 72 things to do at: http://www.yankeemagazine.com/issues/2010-09/features/things-to-do

Sorry, but I can’t help to comment: If you have the time and the budget to do all 75 things as recommended, you should consider a trip around the United States, or even a foreign country. I have heard of people here in New England, who never ever in their lives travelled farther than 30 miles from their home. As they say, traveling extends the horizon, and, being born some 3,000 miles from my current home, I can vouch for that statement.

New York Times, Washington Post, and all other leading newspapers all over the country struggling to survive the Internet boom, move over and hear my ode to The Recorder, serving the people of Greenfield, Massachusetts and the North Quabbin region. Here in Greenfield, Massachusetts, we read the paper version of our beloved newspaper, and, while I have a disturbed relationship with the native Greenfielder, I am far from being sarcastic. My wife and I love the Recorder (as well as our local radio station, WHAI; if only Jay Fedanza wasn’t a Yankees fan).

We moved to Greenfield about eight years ago, totally unprepared for the cultural clash, but who could imagine that you can live in an American equivalent of Leonard Wibberly’s Duchy of Grand Fenwick, or even that a Chevy Chase movie like Funny Farm was not based on mere fantasy, but careful observation.

To put it in a nut-shell, the town of Greenfield (population 17,000+) is mentally, and in many cases visibly, stuck in the 1950s. The native Greenfielder (i.e. born and raised in Greenfield) is emphatically opposed to any changes that would interfere with his established lifestyle, even if it means hanging on to sub-standards, for instance, in medical care and fighting modern intrusions such as a big-box store (Oh Devil, Thy Name Is Walmart!). I frequently make it a point that The Greenfielder is a Soviet-Communist-Amish people – See my post A Species Of Its Own: The Greenfielder.

The Recorder has accumulated a large and stable list of followers, and I don’t expect that this will change in the near future. Their reporting is good, and keeps us up-to-date about what’s happening locally; National and international news are usually by Associated Press. Commentaries written by Chris Collins are a feast to read; those by Ben Clarke usually make me (and my wife) broil, and I can’t wait to get my hands on that keyboard for a flaming response to his offending humor – See my post Speechwriter Ben Clarke And His Offensive Humor.

And this may be the main reason for The Recorder’s success. The Recorder provides all of us an additional means of communication, especially when we thoroughly disagree on local issues, and a face-to-face confrontation is not advisable due to possible emotional outbursts. The letters to the editor are one of the most-read parts of The Recorder, and whether we agree with a reader’s contribution or not, we are exchanging ideas and keep the discussion alive.

And yes, The Recorder does have a website (http://www.recorder.com/), one of those amateurish throw-togethers that make you cringe and run for some TUMS. I always compare it to painting a car, because, believe it or not, everybody can paint a car. You take some oil paint and a big brush… You get the picture; it will not come out as a professional job, and The Recorder‘s website is a fine example.

But, in fact, it doesn’t matter. All those big newspapers around the country depend on top-notch websites these days in order to survive by creating additional income. It even goes so far that a highly regarded newspaper such as the Washington Post needs to sell advertisement space to known scammers, who are currently being investigated by the FBI and the Federal Trade Commission.

The online version of The Recorder is also designed to include ad space, but it is usually about playing golf in the Pioneer Valley, the hidden hills of Western Massachusetts, local TV listings, and the such. In the same spirit they can afford to post on their website:

Why can’t I read the entire newspaper online?

What you’ll find on recorder.com, and what you won’t

You can read the full story in The Recorder…but not ALL the stories.

You can find a lot of very useful information on Recorder.com, such as Classified ads, local Business Directories, links to other useful sites, weather information, local Arts & Entertainment schedules, obituaries, school lunches, the entire text of selected significant stories up to a week old, and many other great features. Many of these items can’t be found in the print version of our paper.

But you won’t find everything on our web site. You won’t find our police and court logs, or the entire local news report or sports. Why? Well, it’s just not good business to give away EVERYTHING we have to offer. Our subscribers mean a lot to us, and they value the service we perform by giving them the news and features they want.

To get the most the Recorder has to offer, our readers can access our web site AND check out our print version over their morning cup of coffee. Between the two, our readers can find out all the best information locally as well as nationally and worldwide.

Source: http://www.recorder.com/Online_Edition.cfm

Greenfield, Massachusetts may be mentally stuck in the 1950′s but their world is still in order when it comes to their local newspaper. Maybe there is a lesson to be learned; I just don’t know what it is.

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The Bleeding Hills

A Novel by Wilfried F. Voss

I have fought a good fight,
I have finished my course,
I have kept the faith.
- 2 Timothy iv. 7

The Irish War is officially a part of history, but not for Finnean Whelan, an IRA veteran of almost 40 years. British Intelligence has produced evidence that he is the mastermind behind a conspiracy to assassinate the First Minister of Northern Ireland. For Whelan this is not only a mission of revenge, but marks the beginning of a journey into the past and the return to the one true love: Ireland. [More...]

The Bleeding Hills is available at Amazon.Com, Amazon.co.uk, Barnes & Nobel, and any other good bookstore.

The line “Ben Clarke spent the past 10 years working as a speechwriter and political consultant in Washington, D.C. He has recently relocated back to Greenfield, where he works as a freelance writer.” garnishes the end of each article that Ben S. Clarke writes for The Recorder, a newspaper serving the people of Franklin County and the North Quabbin Region in Massachusetts.

As an unapologetic liberal let me translate the section He has recently relocated back to Greenfield, where he works as a freelance writer into After George 43 there was no more use for him in Washington D.C. Ben S. Clarke is a hardcore Republican, but, honestly, I won’t hold that against him. My wife is a registered Republican, and we haven’t killed each other yet. In fact, we’re doing very well.

My utterly unimportant blabbering is about his misguided sense of humor under the motto “If I can offense somebody, let’s do it.” He does it so eloquently, and he does it continuously.

On March 3, 2010 he wrote an article titled The Conservative Greenfielder’s Lament. Again, I will not address his political affiliation, but rather the remarks he deems to be humorous. Let me quote:

“I have always resented the liberal presumption of intolerance among conservatives – the notion that we huddle around campfires in endangered forests and seethe in our abhorrence of gays, ethnic minorities, illegal immigrants and France. Don’t get me wrong. I am not proposing we amend the Constitution and smuggle in an undocumented lesbian from Honduras to run for president. But I would at least hear her out. Assuming she could cook.”

In the meantime he wrote another article (which I, unfortunately, did not keep) about his childhood in which he joked about selling his brother’s kidney.

Today he addresses the oil spill situation in the Gulf of Mexico, lecturing us that BP stands for British Petrol (Duh!), and making some discriminative comments like “These guys are BRITISH.” Regardless, let’s have a look at another paragraph where he states:

“The only thing that we should focus on banning in America right now are romantic comedies starring Meryl Streep, referees in NBA basketball games, and tampon commercials.”

I still wonder who at The Recorder allows Ben S. Clarke to continue his Rush-Limbaugh-wannabe tirades, and if someone will tell him that his sense for humor is off. Maybe that is exactly the reason why he is not a speechwriter anymore.

Supplement June 17, 2010

Ben S. Clarke contacted me through this website, telling me that a friend had told him about this post, that he liked my blog, and to keep it coming. Ben, you continue your disturbing sense of humor, and I will definitely keep going. His remark also proves the point that the George-43-gang was – and apparently still is – out of touch with modern communication technologies. My wife googled Ben, and the only reference she could find was through my blog. Say thank you, Ben!

If you want to stay in business as a writer it is imperative to have a blog, and to verify the impact of your writing you put yourself on Google Alerts (i.e. you don’t need friends to keep you up to date). Last, but not least, as a truly professional writer you don’t use GMail. May I add that I am twenty-plus years older than Ben, but that’s merely biological, not mental.

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The Bleeding Hills

A Novel by Wilfried F. Voss

I have fought a good fight,
I have finished my course,
I have kept the faith.
- 2 Timothy iv. 7

The Irish War is officially a part of history, but not for Finnean Whelan, an IRA veteran of almost 40 years. British Intelligence has produced evidence that he is the mastermind behind a conspiracy to assassinate the First Minister of Northern Ireland. For Whelan this is not only a mission of revenge, but marks the beginning of a journey into the past and the return to the one true love: Ireland. [More...]

The Bleeding Hills is available at Amazon.Com, Amazon.co.uk, Barnes & Nobel, and any other good bookstore.

Excerpt from an article by Jim Collins in Yankee Magazine

On a cold October morning at Lighthouse Point in Connecticut, Bill Banks stands in an open field and squints into a brightening sky. The distant roar of traffic along the I-95 corridor washes over him. The sun, coming up behind the condominiums bordering the park, glints off the underside of a small plane heading out of Tweed-New Haven Airport. It’s not a place you’d immediately pick for observing nature.

Lighthouse Point sits on a coastal plain along the southeastern edge of New Haven Harbor, jutting out into Long Island Sound. In the fall, thousands of migrating raptors pass overhead, leery of crossing open water, hugging the Atlantic seaboard as they funnel south toward Mexico.

As it happens, Lighthouse Point is ideal for counting raptors and certain other species during the migration. A day earlier, Greg Hanisek, a volunteer from Waterbury, counted 825, including 15 bald eagles–the highest single-day bald-eagle recording since bird counts officially started here nearly 40 years ago.

Read the full article.

Massachusetts – Mount Wachusett

The summit offers a 360-degree vista and view of the Boston skyline in addition to raptors. Last fall volunteer spotters, who help visitors identify species, counted more than 5,000 hawks, eagles, falcons, and aspreys.

Wachusett Mountain State Reservation
Mountain Road
Princeton, MA
http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/central/wach.htm

Massachusetts – Mount Watatic

This long, steep hike brings fewer people and more room to view raptors throughout the fall.

Midstate Trail and Wapack Trail
Off Route 119
Ashburnham, MA
http://www.mass.gov/dcr/stewardship/rmp/rmp-mtWatatic.htm

Connecticut – Lighthouse Point

The coastal plain site overlooks scenic views of Long Island Sound. The “Migration Festival” is filled with live bird-of-prey demonstrations, guided tours, and fellow enthusiast.

Lighthouse Point
2 Lighthouse Point Road
New Haven, CT
http://www.cityofnewhaven.com/parks/ranger/eastshore.asp#hawkwatch

New Hampshire – Pack Monadnock

Miller State Park’s auto road takes you to the summit parking lot and the trail to the observation site, where during the fall you’ll find Audubon guides to help you identify red-tailed, broad-winged, and sharp-spinned hawks.

Pack Monadnock
Route 101
Petersborough, NH
http://www.nhstateparks.org

Maine – Cadillac Mountain

You can either drive or climb to the top of the highest peak on the Eastern Seaboard’s coastal islands. Soaring raptors compete for your attention with spectacular views of Bar Harbor and Frenchman Bay.

Cadillac Mountain Road
Acadia National Park, ME
http://www.nps.gov/acad/naturescience/hawkwatch.htm

Vermont – Putney Mountain

The survey point here is considered one of the most important along the entire Atlantic flyway. The easy-to-moderate half-mile hike over gentle terrain offers a great view of the Connecticut River Valley and the spine of the Green Mountains.

Putney Mountain Road
Putney, VT
http://www.putneyvt.org/hawks/index.php

Loud and clear calls on CDs for many of the 53 social folk dances

Traditional Barn Dances With Calls & Fiddling will help you

• learn folk dances and authentic tunes that have been performed for over 350 years in the United States, Canada, Australia, and the British Isles;
• teach 53 dances to participants of all ages and abilities regardless of your experience in dance instruction; and
• impart appropriate historical and cultural information about each dance.

Dance instruction has never been made easier than with Traditional Barn Dances With Calls & Fiddling. Created by Dudley Laufman, a traditional New England dance caller and fiddler, and his cofiddler, Jacqueline Laufman, who have more than 80 years of combined experience, this book, DVD, and two-CD package contains everything you need for learning to teach 53 dances to participants of all ages and abilities. Music, calls, and dance steps are included for Virginia Reel, Portland Fancy, Paul Jones, Grand March, Seven-Step Polka, Farandole, and Jefferson and Liberty and more.

With its precise and detailed instruction, you will quickly be comfortable with the various circle, square, and longways dances to teach your group how to move through the steps and figures of the dances. Traditional Barn Dances With Calls & Fiddling contains these items:

• An easy-to-use book that features the calls and directions for the dances in large print so you can read them from a distance as you move about the room to help dancers
• Sheet music for the fiddle tunes to promote interdisciplinary collaborations with general music teachers, orchestra directors, and string teachers and to encourage the use of live music with the dancing
• Folklore, facts, and teaching suggestions for each dance
• A DVD that includes a video glossary showing the moves as well as walk-throughs and full demonstrations for selected dances
• Two CDs of authentic fiddle tunes for many of the dances with the calls on one track followed by the music track without calls

Traditional Barn Dances With Calls & Fiddling is much more than just dance steps. Lovers of both music and folk culture will enjoy the beautiful cadence and lilt in Dudley Laufman’s voice as he calls over the music. The calls blend with the music recorded by traditional dance fiddlers and other musicians on piano, accordion, harmonica, and limberjack, which allow a one-of-a-kind experience in an era when most people will never get to experience a real barn dance, an important part of American cultural history.

This comprehensive package provides the tools for facilitating an interdisciplinary learning experience as participants learn the dances along with their historical contexts. Participants also have the option of playing the music themselves, using the sheet music, or selecting from the music CD tracks. Over time, you will learn the calls, and you can call the dances yourself.

After presenting background on traditional barn dancing and instructions on setting up and calling dances, the Laufmans organize the dances according to three traditional formations, providing detailed instruction on circle dances, square dances, and longways dances. They also cover dances in other formations and provide suggestions for including people in wheelchairs and those with varying abilities.

Traditional Barn Dances With Calls & Fiddling also presents teaching tips and tools, including historical tidbits, a glossary, poems and word search puzzles, as well as an index of dances by various categories, such as formation, difficulty, title, and music track. At the end of the book, they explain how to organize a dance to promote social dancing, music appreciation, and community.

Social folk dancing has withstood the test of time because it appeals to people’s sense of and desire for community while dancing to joyful music. Traditional Barn Dances With Calls & Fiddling will help you build community–and skills–within your group. All will have a great time while taking part in an ongoing tradition of this resounding music and joyful dancing.

The New England Quilting Museum’s groundbreaking exhibition on women’s material history, Women’s Writes: Signature Quilts and Their Stories tells the little-known story of women in the 19th and early 20th centuries taking social action by by combining needle and thread with the power of the pen. The curators for the exhibit, NEQM Acting Curator Laura Lane and quilt historian Lorie Chase, have assembled an extensive group of signature quilts, drawn from both the museum’s own permanent collection and borrowed from private collections, showcasing the wide stylistic and political range of signature quilts.

At a time when women did not have the vote, property rights, or occupational opportunities, and were just beginning to have beyond-basic literacy skills, creating signature quilts was a chance at self-expression and self-sufficiency. Frequently made as charity fund-raisers, signature quilts gave women a measure of both political and economic independence, enabling them to fund their favorite social causes entirely on their own. Groups of women raised money for temperance, abolition, church renovations, the Red Cross, and women’s social clubs by raffling off signature quilts. Many women’s groups also signed the quilts they made for troops during the Civil War, often adding patriotic verses to their signatures.

While making signature quilts for political or social causes was a major means of women’s self-expression, many more personal signature quilts were made. These quilts, too, provided a means for women to assert a more active role within their families and communities. The giving of a signature quilt placed women front and center at major family or local events, such as marriages, births, the departure of an important town resident, or the commemoration of a civic event. The more personal quilts provided an even greater chance at expression, and many signers added favorite poems or Bible verses, as well as personal messages to recipients, making signature quilts a unique window into everyday American women’s values. With family quilts making up a large proportion of these works, they are also of significant interest to genealogists.

So important were signature quilts in 19th century American society that by the middle of the century, industry provided stamps to embellish signatures, patterns, sample verses, and calligraphy advice to the nation’s quilt makers. The tradition continues and is still honored today by contemporary quiltmakers.

Women’s Writes will run from May 13 through July 11, 2010. Support for this exhibition is provided in part by Mancuso Show Management.

Want to learn more about signature quilts, women’s activisim through quilting, or how to made a frienship quilt? Check out our reading list, featuring just some of the books in library on this and other topics on quilting, fiber arts, and women’s history.

New England Quilt Museum

18 Shattuck Street
Lowell, Massachusetts 01852
(978) 452-4207 Ext.15

HOURS & DIRECTIONS

Tuesday through Saturday, 10-4

From May throughOctober, we are also open Sunday, 12-4.

CLOSED MONDAYS

For directions to the museum, visit the directions page.

More than 70 years later the only improvement of the current power distribution system seems to be the addition of telephone lines and, in recent years, cables for the world wide web.

All those comforts of modern life like electricity, telephone, and Internet connection have become an integral part of our life that we tend to ignore the dependency that comes with it. A sore reminder came with a recent savage storm toppling huge trees like they were toys and knocking out power to thousands (including yours truly) in the neighborhood. All in all, we lived without electricity for two full days.

Dealing without electricity was only a small challenge. After all, we have a gas stove and sufficient supply of candles and flashlights. On the other hand we lost all food in the refrigerator and the freezer.

More devastating for me personally (and my wife as well) was the absence of an Internet connection. It was a blogger’s nightmare! All the power backup devices we have installed last only for a few hours, and our cable connection was gone as well. On top of that our cellphones worked only part-time (See also my post AT&T Reaches 99% Of All Voice-Mailboxes).

All this makes you wonder about the technological advantages in the year 2010. All modern technology will fail when it is based on a distribution system that hasn’t significantly improved during the last 70 years. In our case we are dealing with Western Mass Electric Company (WMECO), a company that, like many others, is either not able or not willing to invest into a more reliable system. They rather deal with the occasional disasters one by one. In their view that seems to be the most economical solution. I doubt, however, they compared the benefit of a more reliable system against the unpredictable costs of a disaster clean-up (the same seems to be true for the oil spill situation in the Gulf of Mexico), not mentioning the monetary damage to the people who depend on their services.

This is just how Corporate America works. Profit counts more than human life or the environment that human life so heavily depends on.

Fast-Moving Storm Savages County; Thousands Lose Electricity

GREENFIELD – A huge thunderstorm – powered by record-breaking heat – ravaged Greenfield and other parts of Franklin County, toppling huge trees like playthings and knocking out power to thousands  who may not see it fully restored for days.

Crews worked throughout Thursday to clear hundreds of trees that had fallen on power lines, homes, cars, and streets.

Storm damage was strewn all over the county, with public works crews, firefighters, police, and utility crews working throughout the night and into Thursday to clean up downed trees, poles, and utility lines. About 30,000 customers lost power in 15 minutes.

A state of emergency was declared in several Franklin County towns Wednesday night and residents of Greenfield were asked to stay home during the day on Thursday.

By 8 p.m. on Thursday, 11,752 WMECO customers in Franklin County were without power, including 4,131 in Montague and 2,328 in Greenfield.

A few years back my wife and I spent a couple of days in Newport, Rhode Island. We stayed at a very nice hotel close to downtown. This was close to the end of the regular baseball season, the time when each game seems to count. My experience is that games prior to the All-Star Game are not taken quite as seriously. After all, “we” are playing 160+ games in a regular season, and any mishap during the first half can be compensated later – or not.

Naturally, with my wife being a wicked Red Sox fan, every night activity, such as going out to one of the many fabulous restaurants, had to be scheduled around game time. As a result, we would have a few drinks at the hotel bar around 7 pm to watch the game, and a few innings later we would resign to watch the rest of the game in our room. Well, sometimes the game starts at 8 pm when ESPN – with their painfully incompetent commentators – takes over.

Quite coincidently it turned out that during these few nights in Rhode Island the Red Sox played the hated New York Yankees at Fenway Park. Also quite coincidental, some hotel guests were from New York. One of the guys felt offended by the crowd’s cheers, for instance, when Derek Jeter swung and missed a ball, or when a Sox player walked to first base after the fourth ball. “They would never do that at Yankee Stadium,” he mumbled repeatedly, shaking his head. I felt inclined to tell him that he had never seen a game at Yankee Stadium, but a buddy of his felt the increasing tension in the room. “Hey,” he told his friend. “Remember, you are in Red Sox territory. Of course, they cheer only for the Red Sox.”

I do understand the passion New Yorkers feel for their team, but I never understood how one can live in New England and, at the same time, be a Yankees fan, unless you live in Connecticut, which I personally do not consider part of New England. Mentally they’re New Yorkers, while New England life has nothing in common with New York City. Nevertheless, my motto is, live and let live. After all, baseball is only a game. I may call them the “hated” Yankees, but I am only adopting Red Sox Nation linguistics. The rivalry between the Red Sox and the Yankees is a much needed spice for an otherwise sober game that, more than once, challenged my ability to stay awake during late night hours.

Unfortunately, the same rivalry can go too far, because some fans, regardless of whether they cheer for the Red Sox or the Yankees, just don’t get it.

On April 14, 2010 the Associated Press reported:

“NASHUA, N.H. – A New Hampshire woman convicted of running down and killing a man  with her car after he was said to have taunted her for being a New York Yankees fan has been sentenced to 20 to 40 years in prison.

Forty-five-year-old Ivonne Hernandez was convicted in December of second-degree murder in the death of 29-year-old Matthew Beaudoin in a Nashua parking lot.

Police say the dispute outside a bar started as an exchange about the Yankees and Red Sox.

Hernandez testified she was terrified because Beaudoin and others pounded on her windows when she made a comment about how many baseball World Series the Yankees had won compared to the Red Sox.”

I still remember how Buffy came into my life, or vice versa, whichever view works. Buffy is our dog, sort of a Rhodesian-Ridgeback, a breed used in Africa to hunt lions. There is, however, not a single aggressive bone in her. She is very affectionate, and she likes to please – provided she knows you. In her younger years she liked to run until she would pass out, and she is still very protective of my wife, and, now that he is part of her life, our son Patrick.

In that spirit, she put on her best threat show when she saw me first, ready to kill me on the spot if I was to harm her Alpha. Well, history has shown that I didn’t harm her. In fact, Susan and I dated for a very brief period of time, married a few months later, and moved to the far away and undiscovered territories of Western Massachusetts. Buffy and I became good friends, especially after she started scratching the lawn in the backyard which I still – after eight long years – try to culture. The only solution to the problem was to walk her through our three-and-a-half acres of land, just for a short period I thought, to give the grass a chance to grow. That was several years ago, and she still insists I walk her every morning after breakfast and every afternoon when I come home from work.

Susan and I were already married for five years when we added another member to Buffy’s pack. In the beginning we were very cautious and wondered how she would react to Patrick. During the three days that Susan spent in the hospital I made sure that I brought home one of her T-shirts and assure Buffy that her Alpha was still alive and well. In addition I let her sniff Patrick’s hat, one of those disposable little things you get in the hospital, to prepare her for the new arrival. When Susan finally came home we made sure she and Buffy had a few minutes of undisturbed quality time together before I brought the little bundle into the house. Buffy took only a brief and unemotional sniff like she was saying, “Okay. That’s him.”

In retrospective, all the cautionary measures and worries were most probably not necessary. The day Patrick was accepted into the pack, Buffy, now not being the junior member anymore, took on her role as an elder. For the first few days she notified us as soon as the little guy started crying, or when his diaper started to smell. After that, the four hour feeding cycle and the diaper changing became daily routine for her as well.

Needless to say, all the articles we read about dogs and babies were useless. The saying is that you should never ever leave a dog alone with a baby, even if you trust the dog implicitly. Never has there been an article in any of the multiple parenting magazines about “How to protect your dog from your baby.” As of today, Patrick is roughly six weeks short of his third birthday, and he “tortures” Buffy on a daily basis. The interaction between the two of them is nothing short of amazing. Whatever the little guys is doing to her (with the best of intentions, of course, and without being aggressive), she takes it mostly as a game and complies, and it drives Susan absolutely crazy when the two of them whirl back and forth in the living room and the kitchen. In case it becomes annoying, Buffy politely asks to be let out into our garden where she can relax in the sun.

Also needless to mention, the walks with Buffy now include a third member. The photo in the upper left corner was taken a few weeks ago in the forest close to our house (Click on the photo to enlarge). Buffy hardly ever moves more than thirty feet away from Patrick, regardless of where I am in this whole scenario.

Buffy is now eleven years old, and we hope we will have her for a good number of more joyous years. We love her, and the little boy beside her absolutely adores her. She is truly the Grand Old Lady of Log Plain Road.

Supplement – February 25, 2012

Yesterday, after a short period of being in great pain, Buffy passed on. She was thirteen years old. In the last hours of her life, she was unable to walk, unable to eat or drink. We had told the little guy, Patrick, who is now almost five years old, early in the morning that we had to be prepared for the worst, and, naturally, there were a tremendous amount of tears involved.

Patrick said, he always wanted a real-life Yodie after Buffy. Yodie is his toy-dog. But, in the same sentence, he said he’d rather have Buffy for the rest of his life.

By the afternoon, when we made the trip to the vet, the fact had sunken in that we needed to say good-bye to her, and, again, a lot of tears were shed. Back at home we lit a candle and said a prayer for Buffy.

We couldn’t have asked for a better dog, and we wished we could have had her a few years longer. She will stay in our hearts forever.

Being “Irish-by-Marriage” (my wife’s grandmother came from the island of Inishbofin off the coast of Galway) and appropriately wearing a wedding band based on a Celtic knot design, plus a Claddagh ring on the right hand, it is inevitable that we occasionally receive the Creative Irish Gifts catalog. And we do – occasionally – order through the catalog.

Unlike other catalog offerings this one supports a very special purpose. The following represents a quote from the catalog:

Creative Irish Gifts was originally founded for the sole purpose of financially supporting the activities of the Irish Children’s Fund, Inc. (ICF). The ICF is a not-for-profit organization that fosters understanding between Protestant and Catholic youngsters in the troubled areas of Belfast. Both non-political and interdenominational, ICF programs include a Teen, Summer and Year Round Program in Northern Ireland that have enriched the lives of over 3,000 children since its founding in 1982.

Summer Program in Northern Ireland

As part of ICF’s reconciliation program, 100 twelve-year olds from segregated Belfast neighborhoods have been selected each year to spend a one month summer holiday in the United States. Represented in equal numbers, these Protestant and Catholic children bear the scars of deep historical hatred. Hosted by American families, the youngsters take part in a wide range of activities, including a summer camp that uses team games to build trust and encourage cooperation. More information about all of the programs of the ICF can be found on www.shopirish.com.

“I commend the vital work of the Irish Children’s Fund at this critical time in our history.”
- Mary McAleese, President of Ireland

To learn more about the program contact:

The Irish Children’s Fund, Inc. at
835 Sheridan Place
Downers Grove, IL 60515
Phone: 630-852-1925
Web: www.icfkids.org

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A Novel by Wilfried F. Voss

I have fought a good fight,
I have finished my course,
I have kept the faith.
- 2 Timothy iv. 7

The Irish War is officially a part of history, but not for Finnean Whelan, an IRA veteran of almost 40 years. British Intelligence has produced evidence that he is the mastermind behind a conspiracy to assassinate the First Minister of Northern Ireland. For Whelan this is not only a mission of revenge, but marks the beginning of a journey into the past and the return to the one true love: Ireland. [More...]

The Bleeding Hills is available at Amazon.Com, Amazon.co.uk, Barnes & Nobel, and any other good bookstore.

Amazingly enough, the whole scenario changes dramatically when we offer boiled eggs, because we are in possession of an egg-shell-perforation-causer. We just call out to him, “Patrick, we have boiled eggs,” and he comes running from wherever he was hiding. In my personal opinion every household is incomplete without an egg-shell-perforation-causer, but it also seems the Voss household is the only one in the entire United States to use it.

It is sort of a German tradition to occasionally serve boiled eggs for breakfast, in addition to bread and rolls. My wife and I got into the habit after we had visited Germany together, and especially after a friend of ours gave us an egg-shell-perforation-causer as a gift. Eating boiled eggs is so much more fun with the egg-shell-perforation-causer, and, as I mentioned before, even Patrick loves it. You can say, the egg-shell-perforation-causer keeps our family together.

The basic problem with eating boiled eggs is to produce a clear-cut edge on top where you open a boiled egg. Many people prefer to use a breakfast knife and simply cut the top off. Such a barbaric method is simply not acceptable. The edge is too rough, and you may end up with egg shell pieces in your yoke.

The way to do it, is using an egg-shell-perforation-causer as shown in the following.

.

• First you place the egg-shell-perforation-causer on top of the boiled egg.
• You lift the little spheric weight to the top of the egg-shell-perforation-causer
• Let the weight drop to the bottom of the egg-shell-perforation-causer.
• Remove the egg-shell-perforation-causer.

The egg-shell-perforation-causer has left a perfectly round perforation, and the top of the egg can be easily peeled off. The edge will be as straight as can be.

Thank you, egg-shell-perforation-causer, for saving our family!