Saturday Quote
Recently I came across this link.
It’s a story about a 26-year-old guy named Nick Kleckner who, having discovered that material goods didn’t nourish his soul, decided to walk 2600 miles across America, starting in Jacksonville, Florida, with little more than an ipod and a cell phone, fasting until given food to eat, receiving and giving, communing with the homeless. Finally, he ended up in Southern California’s Huntington Beach.
From the story, in The Orange County Register, by Laylan Connelly.
He had rules when he set out. He’d only accept help from complete strangers, and he never took help from the thousands of followers who would eventually end up tracking his journey on Twitter. The only solicit he had was a cardboard sign that read “food,” which he would use if he was really hungry. But he never verbally asked anybody for anything.
In Mississippi – the poorest state in America – he was overwhelmed with kindness.
“I had so much food, I couldn’t carry it. I had so much money, I was worried carrying that much money around. They’re just nice people,” he said.
“It just hit me that I needed to give back.”
So he’d give away what he didn’t use or need to other people on the streets. He started handing out granola bars tied with rubber bands to a $5 McDonald’s gift card and a $5 bill.
Soon, he started hearing from people wanting to send him stuff. He’d tell them to give to (the) homeless in their area instead.
Then other messages started coming in. People would send stories and photos to his Twitter account about how they’ve helped a homeless person, a sort of version of paying it forward.
One note, sent by Ricky Kennewell, is typical: Following the story from Australia, mate. If closer, I’d have helped you out. I’ll give generously to local homeless instead.
Read the entire piece.
It reminded me of Matthew 10:9, in which Christ tells his followers they should go forth and proclaim that the Kingdom of Heaven was upon them, that they should take no money with them, nor even a walking stick or shoes for the road.
Support the Huletts Post Office
A postage paid order form to buy stamps by mail from the Huletts Post Office.
Pam Stragnell recently mailed out her October newsletter with order forms to purchase stamps by mail. Please remember to support the Huletts Post Office even if you are not in Huletts. Ordering stamps by mail is a great way to support the Huletts Post Office.
Saturday Quote
“Not one day in anyone’s life is an uneventful day, no day without profound meaning, no matter how dull and boring it might seem, no matter whether you are a seamstress or a queen, a shoeshine boy, or a movie star, a renowned philosopher or a Down’s-syndrome child. Because in every day of your life, there are opportunities to perform little kindnesses for others, both by conscious acts of will and unconscious example. Each smallest act of kindness—even just words of hope when they are needed, the remembrance of a birthday, a compliment that engenders a smile—reverberates across great distances and spans of time, affecting lives unknown to the one whose generous spirit was the source of this good echo, because kindness is passed on and grows each time it’s passed, until a simple courtesy becomes an act of selfless courage years later and far away. Likewise, each small meanness, each thoughtless expression of hatred, each envious and bitter act, regardless of how petty, can inspire others, and is therefore the seed that ultimately produces evil fruit, poisoning people whom you have never met and never will. All human lives are so profoundly and intricately entwined—those dead, those living, those generations yet to come—that the fate of all is the fate of each, and the hope of humanity rests in every heart and in every pair of hands. Therefore, after every failure, we are obliged to strive again for success, and when faced with the end of one thing, we must build something new and better in the ashes, just as from pain and grief, we must weave hope, for each of us is a thread critical to the strength—to the very survival of the human tapestry. Every hour in every life contains such often-unrecognized potential to affect the world that the great days and thrilling possibilities are combined always in this momentous day.”
Dean Koontz, From the Corner of His Eye
Reader Submitted Photo
I received this picture from Peter Ballantyne of his dog, Pippin, behind the wheel of his boat on Lake George.
Peter had this to say; “Here is Pippin driving the ski boat. This took years of training. He’s still learning to pull skiers.”
Click to see full-scale.
Thanks Peter. Swimmers better get out of the way!
Saturday Quote
If a wise man has an argument with a fool, the fool only rages and laughs, and there is no quiet.
PROVERBS 29:9:
English Standard Version
Now For Some History: 1962
This photo was sent to me by Russ Considine showing his family in 1962 in front of the pond, gate, and gazebo.
Russ had this to say about the picture; “It (was taken) around 1962 and shows my father (Howard), mother (Dorothy), sister (Carole) and me. (I think) we just returned from Sunday Mass.”
Many people may remember that the Considine’s owned Oriole cottage in the 1960’s.
Thanks Russ for the great picture!
Click on the image to see full view.
Saturday Quote
“When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years.”
– Mark Twain
Saturday Quote
“I walked a mile with Pleasure;
She chatted all the way;
But left me none the wiser
For all she had to say.
I walked a mile with Sorrow;
And ne’er a word said she;
But, oh! The things I learned from her,
When Sorrow walked with me.”
Robert Browning Hamilton
Interview with Stanley Barber
Stanley Barber (right) with me.
Recently, I had the chance to talk with Stanley Barber. Mr. Barber is the youngest child of Royden Barber, who was instrumental in selling the first Hulett hotel to William H. Wyatt. (To learn more about Royden Barber, you need to buy: The Hulett Hotel Fire on Lake George!) Royden Barber had three children, all of whom are still living: Frances: age 99, Agnes: age 97, and Stanley: age 94. So all the Barber children seem to have the longevity gene.
Stanley Barber is also the nephew of Henry and Cora Buckell, who owned the first Hulett hotel. He is presently 94 (having been born in 1917) and will turn 95 later this year. Stanley Barber would only agree to be photographed if I would join him in the picture. He said, “I’m so old I’ll break your camera. So if you’re in the picture, you can’t blame me for breaking it!”
Interview with Stanley Barber. (Age 94, son of Royden Barber and nephew of Henry and Cora (Barber) Buckell.)
Your father’s sister, Cora Barber, was married to Henry Buckell making the Buckell’s your aunt and uncle. The Buckell’s owned and operated the original Hulett hotel. Do you have any memories of the Buckell’s and their time in Huletts?
Uncle Henry ran a really tight ship. He kept people working at the hotel and my father once told us, he rented cottages that weren’t even built when he rented them. He would take a reservation, tell his workers to cut the wood and build the house, and when the people arrived it would be built. The wood was cut at the Huletts sawmill. That was Uncle Henry, always trying to get people to come to Huletts.
He later retired and moved to Hudson Falls but he worked his entire life. He believed in thrift and hard work!
My Uncle Henry and Aunt Cora had five children: Gladys, Raymond, Hazel, Bernard (Bud) and Naomi. They were my cousins. The youngest, Naomi, just passed away in 2011 in Florida. One sad story that I remember is that a boat sank off of Agnes island and a few of the passengers went down with the boat. Bud, who was an excellent swimmer, dove down and brought the bodies up. They were dead, but it was my cousin, Bud, who got them to the surface. It was in over 40 feet of water but he was a great swimmer and he was the one who did it.
The Buckell’s owned the original Hulett hotel before the age of the automobile. Did you actually ride in a horse-drawn carriage when you were young?
Absolutely. My father bought a car in the 1920’s but as children we crossed the mountain in a horse-drawn carriage. In the winter, you would wear a “lap robe” over your waist and legs to stay warm as the horses pulled the carriage. It was made out of cow hide and the wind couldn’t go through it. It kept you warm. The stable in Huletts was located very close to the present Casino, the new one, back from the water. The horses really labored pulling you up the mountain. I can remember them snorting and pulling. It was a good pull for them going up the mountain. They had to work, but they liked going down the mountain. It was difficult crossing the mountain, and I still remember the sounds the horses made.
Could you tell us one of your memories about Huletts Landing which some people might not know?
Well one of the things I did, which is interesting, is that I actually surveyed a lot of Huletts Landing in the late 1940’s. When Arthur Wyatt died, (the owner of the Hulett hotel at that time) I was hired by a surveyor, from across the lake in Hague, named Henry Watts. He was hired by the corporation to survey the lands of Arthur Wyatt. I believe it had something to do with insurance. I surveyed those lands with Henry Watts and Robert Borden, Franny’s father. We traversed all types of terrain and found some stone markers going back 100 years or more.
Could you tell us what life was like in the 20’s and 30’s in Dresden?
One interesting fact that people don’t know, is that when aviation first started there was a revolving light beacon on the top of Spruce mountain. It spun in a full circle and the next one was about 40 miles north on some mountain. The pilots of planes looked out at night and saw the beacons below to fly by. There was also a “blinker” light on the Black mountain tower. It was different than the Spruce mountain beacon, but it was there so planes wouldn’t fly into it.
As of this interview, you are 94 years old. Can you tell us your thoughts on aging?
Right now, it’s hard. Some days you just ache all over and every move you make hurts. I once worked in a nursing home and you have to fight through it, you can’t give up. I saw old people give up and once that happens they were done. I decided long ago, that however old I got I would always fight and never give in. I don’t know if I’ll be here tomorrow but I’ll go out fighting. My father lived to be almost 101 years old, and he was an example to me.
Mr. Barber, it was a pleasure speaking with you. Thank you for sharing your memories.
Just let people know, if the picture of us breaks your camera, you did it and not me! (Big smile.)
Bits of Everything
The Whitehall Times Profiles the Washington County Sheriff
Learn more about Jeff Murphy, the Sheriff of Washington County.
The Free George Looks at Matthew Brady, the Father of Photojournalism
We’ve all seen his famous civil war photographs, but a recent discovery proves he was born nearby.
NY Times: Info-graphic on Every Olympic 100 Meter Medalist.
How would a 13 year old runner today stack up against an Olympic medalist from the 19th century? Find out here.
The Guardian: I Crash-Landed in the Hudson
An interview with a woman on the plane that crash landed in the Hudson River.
The Post Star: Washington County Again Considering Privatizing Transfer Stations
Saturday Quote
“All men are by nature equal, made all of the same earth by one Workman; and however we deceive ourselves, as dear unto God is the poor peasant as the mighty prince.”
Plato
Elephant Mountain Fire Followup
Yesterday’s fire on Elephant mountain is described firsthand by Huletts fireman, Pat Paterson, who was at the fire site.
Today, I had a chance to talk with Huletts Landing Fire Chief, Jay Vanderplatt, and fireman, Pat Peterson, about yesterday’s fire on Elephant mountain. Pat Peterson brought two NY state forest rangers to the scene of yesterday’s fire and was actually on the ground when the water was dropped.
At about 11:30 a.m. on Thursday, July 25th someone reported seeing whiffs of smoke on Elephant mountain. When the Huletts volunteers got the call, Pat, accompanied by Huletts Landing Fire Chief, Jay Vanderplatt, and a few other Huletts Landing firemen went out on Lake George by boat to get a clearer view. Once the site was established, forest rangers were called and the site was designated on a map.
Sometime in the early afternoon, Pat and one forest ranger headed up the Elephant mountain trail on an ATV with supplies. They could only drive about halfway to the fire site because downed trees blocked the path. Because of this, they had to climb the rest of the way. Another forest ranger followed about 45 minutes behind them.
Pat Peterson did confirm that the fire appeared to have been started by a lightening strike two days earlier and was smoldering in the ground for some time. When they saw the fire for the first time it was long and narrow and was going up the mountain. Pat’s estimate was that it was roughly 100 feet long and about 10 feet wide. The original tree where the lightening hit had a strike mark on it according to Pat. “You could see the hit mark and the lightening must have traveled through the root and ignited some pine needles. It was difficult terrain, because it ran up the mountain,” said Pat. “We had to crawl on our hands and knees, it was so steep.”
Once they saw the fire, the forest ranger contacted NY state officials and a decision was made to bring in the state police helicopter. A perimeter was established by Pat and the two forest rangers and before each water drop they scampered above the fire to get a clearer view of the water hitting the target. “We couldn’t see the helicopter until it was right over us,” said Pat, who would call in a “3, 2, 1.. drop” to the helicopter above him. “The pilot did a heck of a job. Every time we called for water on a certain spot, she put it right on the mark.”
Pat continued, “Seeing that water come through the trees was such a sight. But it’s dangerous also, the water has a lot of weight and can knock off heavy limbs that can really hurt you. Every time the chopper came in, we had to climb above the site and after it left we had to climb down and see what was left of the fire.”
After a number of water drops the fire came under control. Pat was emphatic about yesterday’s events. “It was really touch and go at the beginning. If that fire had ignited some trees, the entire mountain could have gone up.”
Many thanks to Pat Paterson, the entire Huletts Landing Volunteer fire department, the NY state forest rangers, the state police and all those who responded yesterday.
Mrs. Galbraith Memorial Service: Thursday
