Archive » March 2016 » Columns

There's nothing quite so quintessentially American as a Western movie. I'm a baby boomer and I can remember Westerns for as long as I can remember. Little boys back in the day (and many today still I'm sure) spent hours pretending to be cowboys as they imitated their Western movie idols.

The thought of a strong, handsome cowboy packing a six-shooter while straddling his gallant steed is a virile image we all know and admire. I guess that's one reason Western movies, books, clothing, and music are still so popular today.

So I've enjoyed plenty of Western movies, no doubt about it, but I've always wondered about some things when I've watched them over the years. For example, in every Western movie I've ever seen, when the bad guys ride into town, the first thing they do is find the local saloon and order shots of whiskey.

Now whiskey is a wonderful thing — in moderation of course — but if I'd come into a place all dusty, dirty, and dry like those banditos, the first thing I'd do is order three big glasses of water to rehydrate myself. I know Sports Nutrition wasn't a big thing in the time period of the Western movies, but humans are humans. Who wouldn't want a big glass of water after being out in the boonies with the rolling tumbleweeds all day before having that first glass of hooch? Never could figure that one out.

Then, of course, as they start drinking more and more, the guys in all the Westerns get all loosey goosey and want to have a good old time. That's when the music and the women come into the picture.

There always seems to be a guy just waiting at a piano to play some honky-tonk at a moment’s notice. I guess being there were no stereos back then they'd like you to think the piano player was a fixture in the saloons and bars, always available to get the cowboys drinking and spending their money.

I wonder if it really was like that. You'd think if you could play that well you'd open a piano studio where you could give lessons in peace and not have to worry about getting shot or punched out. Seems obvious to me, though I suppose the tips in the saloon would be pretty good — if you could live long enough to spend them.

Then you had the women. Without fail, every saloon in these movies featured the most beautiful women all dolled-up in the fanciest dresses you could imagine, with big hair, makeup, the whole bit.

What always killed me about that is you'd look at the towns these saloons or bars were in, and they were the most rundown, depressing, dirt-filled Podunks you could ever imagine. So how then did these ladies get all dolled-up all the time?

Was there a Macy's or a Kohl's or a Filene's around the corner behind the blacksmith's shop? Was there a hair stylist or beautician shop there as well? I know there was always a Sears catalog where you could order anything, so the fine duds could have come from there.

And maybe there was a gal or guy in town who could really do up the hair and makeup. But it always struck me that in these miserable, depressing places, women could achieve such levels of beauty and style that would still be admired today.

I know, I know, it's a movie and it's really just a story, but I like things that are somewhat based on truth or history. The more believable the better. That's why I never liked time-travel stories. If time travel were possible, wouldn't it have happened already? Yes, it's not easy being a fact-based party-pooper all the time but that’s my lot in life so be it.

A Western movie wouldn't be complete without plenty of horses. Now I bet on horses for many years, and that's really the extent of my knowledge about them, but it sure seems to me horses had it pretty rough in these movies.

When they weren't getting shot at, they were expected to run at top speed for hours and hours in the dusty desert heat. I know horses are big and tough, but I can't imagine that's a good way to treat them.

Every now and then, you'd see a horse drinking out of a wooden trough in a Western movie, usually in front of the saloon, but I don't think I ever saw a horse eat in one of these movies. You'd think horses, being that they were serving as primary transportation back then, would have been treated better (and I'm sure in real life they were).

Another staple of Westerns is the macho cowboy, say Clint Eastwood, riding around with a little unlit cigar in his mouth. Now Clint can do whatever he wants, whether in the movies or real life, but I know when I'm lucky enough to obtain a fine cigar it's either in my humidor or it's giving me a relaxing smoke. No way I'm just walking around with it unlit, just poking out of my mouth. That would be like having an icy cold drink on a hot day and not being able to enjoy it. What’s the point?

Of course, you can't talk about Westerns without talking about guns, a timely topic even today. I've never owned a gun but I've shot them, and I know they have recoil, yet, in all the gun battles in these movies, they are fired willy-nilly like they're water pistols. A gun, of course, is a precision-machined instrument, yet you rarely if ever see guns misfire or get cleaned in these movies, despite the dusty and dirty conditions.

Finally everyone in these movies shoots like there's no tomorrow, yet isn't it common sense that you'd only have a finite supply of ammunition? There's only so much ammo you could carry. If I were ever in a gun battle, I'd make sure, as best I could, that every shot counted instead of just firing wildly. But then that wouldn't make as good of a movie, I guess.

If I'd have been a cowboy, there are several things I would have done differently. First, I'd have kept my hair in a permanent buzz cut, to keep the dirt out of it and make it easier to keep clean. There was probably no sunscreen back then, so I would have asked the lovely ladies in the saloon for some of their facial cream, to keep my face from getting all dried up and leathery in the sun.

Then I would have tried to figure out a way to make my own toothbrush and dental floss — maybe from hemp fiber — to keep my teeth looking good. I'd probably always be carrying around a gallon of water and a change of clothes too, especially underwear and socks. I mean, yuck, after being out for day after day in the sun, you must get pretty rank

And I'd tell my fellow cowboys to at least treat the Indians with respect since they were here first. Now that I think about it, I'm sure I would have made kind of a wussy cowboy, but that's just how I am.

Western movies are a time-honored American tradition. If you don't examine them too closely like I unfortunately do you can still enjoy them very much to this day.

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— Photo by Greg Goutos
All smiles: James Gray, a Guilderland honors student, serves a drink to Omni resident Elsa Butrym.

Community Caregivers hosted a special Italian-style dinner for the residents of the Omni Senior Living Community on Carman Road in Guilderland on March 19.  The community room was filled with smiles and laughter, as the residents gathered for this annual event.

This was the 15th year the event has been held, and this year students from the Guilderland High School National Honor Society were on hand to help serve the dinner.  Over 60 residents from the Omni attended.

The event was sponsored by Community Caregivers, a Guilderland-based, not-for-profit organization that provides non-medical services to Albany County residents by matching local volunteers with nearby clients.   

The community room was decorated to reflect the theme for this year’s dinner, which was “You Are the Stars.”  Over the years, there has developed a great fondness between those who have helped organize and serve the dinner, and the many residents of the Omni who look forward to attending it year after year.

Many comment that it is one of the highlights of the year for those at the Omni.  This year’s theme echoed the feeling that the seniors are truly stars in the eyes of the event organizers; however, the appreciation for those involved with sponsoring the dinner is also very evident.

The evening began with welcoming comments, and then a brief overview of the types of services and programs that Community Caregivers offers.  It was noted that several in attendance have either served as volunteer providers for the organization, or as clients that receive direct services.  Community Caregivers was founded in Altamont in 1994, and has offices located at 2021 Western Ave. in Guilderland.Altamont in 1994, and has offices located at 2021 Western Ave. in Guilderland.

A special highlight of the evening was celebrating the tremendous efforts of the Quinn family who have organized all the details for the event for many years.  The Guilderland family has been involved with the dinner for more than 10 years, and parents Suzanne and Kevin have inspired their two teenage boys to take the lead during that time.

Sean and Conor have developed into truly remarkable young men who are shining as examples of what it means to serve as volunteers in their community.  Since Sean will soon be graduating from Guilderland High School and going off to college, Community Caregivers wanted to take this opportunity to thank them by presenting both Sean and Conor with framed certificates of appreciation.  As the two were congratulated when receiving their honors, those in attendance enthusiastically applauded as they recalled watching them both grow up over the years.

After the dessert was served, the evening’s festivities continued with the random drawing of prizes, all of which were donated by local businesses.  Excitement was in the air as the lucky recipients waited to hear if their names would be called, and to enjoy a gift presented to them by one the members of the National Honor Society.  Others at their tables were fortunate to take home the centerpiece vases, which were filled with decorative stars attached to flower stems to reflect the theme of the event.

A special thank-you goes to the 13 volunteers who participated, including student, Sean and Conor Quinn, Alec Betancourt, Jason Falvo, James Gray, Hayli Bazan, Catherine Seita, and Mohona Sengupta.  Adult volunteers included Suzanne and Kevin Quinn, and Nellie and Greg Goutos.  Mary McGann, a resident of the Omni, deserves special recognition for once again serving as the site coordinator.

All the food for the dinner was generously donated by several area restaurants.  Special thanks to:  The 99 Restaurant on Wolf Road, Bountiful Bread, Ciao Italia Restaurant, Paesan’s Pizza, TGI Fridays, Milano Pizza, Via Fresca Italian Gourmet Market, and Marotta’s Towne Pizza.  Also, Price Chopper, ShopRite and Hannaford Supermarkets.  And to Stewart’s for donating the ice cream for dessert.

Prizes were donated by the following local businesses:  Carman Wine & Liquor, Candy Kraft, Robinson’s Hardware, The Pottery Place, Bamboo Restaurant, and The Altamont Enterprise.

For more information about Community Caregivers, please contact the office at 456-2898, or online at communitycaregivers.org.

Editor’s note: Greg Goutos is a longtime Community Caregivers volunteer.

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On Tuesday, March 22, the Old Men of the Mountain met at Kim’s West Winds Diner on Route 145 in Preston Hollow.

This restaurant is a new one for the Old Men of the Mountain, and it was well received. The Old Men of the Mountain’s clock is now beginning to resemble an amoeba.

On a whiteboard in the restaurant was a message that read, “Welcome to the other side of the Mountain — The Old Men of the Mountain.” That was true because, to many of the OFs, it is the other side of the mountain.

The restaurant, new to the OFs, has been in Preston Hollow for some time and was recommended by one of the OFs who knew of the place and said it would meet our criteria.

Hiking mentor

Back again to the hiking chatter. One of the OMOTM who is part of a group made up of serious hikers (this is another group within the group of OFs) would hike with Fred Schroeder. This OF said that Mr. Schroeder was his mentor as far as this OF becoming an accomplished hiker.

Fred and Martha Schroeder are the ones that donated the money to build the nature center on Ketchum Road in the town of Knox. The Schroders donated it in the name of Emma Treadwell Thacher for all the work she did in donating land that would eventually became John Boyd Thacher Park, one of New York State’s jewels hidden in the Helderbergs.

Tough sledding

Some of the OFs run their ATVs and snowmobiles like many other people who use these pieces of equipment as a hobby and for recreation. This year, it was necessary to travel quite a distance to find any snow to use these expensive toys, and equally expensive gear, other than planters in the yard for holiday decorations.

They would take the time to travel north to Old Forge or the Tug Hill Plateau or Tupper Lake to find snow. They do not have snow guns on snowmobile trails like they do ski areas.

Keeping pace

Electronics are developing faster than the OFs can keep up. One OF said he watches his grandkids only 3 years old play computer games.

Say what!

Many of the OFs were just learning to talk at 3 years old.

One OF mentioned the newer cars, and how, on a smartphone with the right electronics in a car, he saw a car that was in a Texas airport parking lot.  The owner of the car was standing next to him on the mountain in New York State, and he had the phone tell him everything that was going on with that car, in real time, and that car was 2,000 miles away.

The phone recorded where the car was, what parking spot it was in, that the doors were locked, the mileage had not changed, the amount of oil in the car, etc., etc. The OF said that the car could even be started from here on the mountain. One OF said this is getting creepy.

There are negatives and positives to this type of technology. Again, on the positive side, another OF related a story of a friend of his who purchased a car where this type of technology was free for six months and then, if you wanted to keep it, there was a monthly charge.

His friend said “no” to continuation. His friend’s car was stolen after the grace period. The friend went to the police to report the stolen vehicle.

The police were able to access the information from the car, located where the car was, and in short time located the vehicle, and made an arrest. That is a plus in one way, but a negative in another; with that information, now anyone will be able to tap into that “extra” on the car and locate where you are.

So any time an OF stays out late, the wife can have the grandson take his smartphone and find where he is. Then they get in the grandson’s car and find the OF is at Sleazy Joe’s Girly Joint and Bar.  Now that OF is in trouble!

And now one OF said hackers are hacking into the automobiles as they are driving and steering and applying the brakes and the driver cannot control the vehicle. That, too, is scary.

As the OFs have said, just give me a regular engine, standard transmission, a rear end, four wheels, and brakes, and the OFs will do the rest

One OF said to his friend, “The way you drive, you left off one necessary item, a horn.”

What’s next?

A few weeks ago, the OFs discussed Teflon, as the newest, best thing for cooking and cleaning up afterward. Now we are hearing about PFOA (perfluorooctanoic acid). In case someone has been living under a rock, the PFOAs, man-made toxic chemicals, have contaminated the water supply in Hoosick Falls and a couple of other places that we know of.

The same difficulty turned up with asbestos.  Asbestos used to be the newest, best thing for building materials and who knows what else, and now it is the worst product going.

The OFs are wondering what’s next.

One thing the OFs are doing is reviewing their pots and pans and getting rid of the ones with the old Teflon coating on them. Of course, there is one OF who interjected a little common sense — that is, why worry about it now that we are OFs?  We’ve got what (health problems) we have, no changing that.

“The only thing is,” one OF said, “it keeps the grandkids safe by getting rid of this stuff.” That is true — keeping them safe and out of harm’s way is paramount.

Those OFs who traveled to Kim’s West Winds restaurant in Preston Hollow and were pleasantly surprised were: George Washburn, John Rossmann, Roger Chapman, Miner Stevens, Harold Guest, Robie Osterman, Bill Lichliter, Dave Williams, Don Wood, Mark Traver, Glenn Patterson, Chuck Aelesio, Lou Schenck, Jack Norray, Mace Porter, Wayne Gaul, Gerry Irwin, Matt Famin, Bob Fink, Bob Benninger, Elwood Vanderbilt and his grandson Derrick, Mike Willsey, Gerry Chartier, Marty Herzog, Harold Grippen, and me.

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An 1867 map shows the telegraph lines in operation, under contract, and contemplated, to complete the circuit of the globe.
 

Marshall McLuhan — the great assessor of the impact of mass media on our lives — wrote an essay in 1963 called “The Agenbite of Outwit.”

He said that, when humankind implemented the telegraph in 1844, it radically altered the state of human consciousness because it had projected its central nervous system out onto the world. Every conscious neuron was thence connected by immediate-information-giving utilities to every other.

McLuhan was aware that human inventions involved extensions of the body into space: the wheel an extension of the foot; the hoe, the arm; clothing, the skin; and the book an extension of the eye.

But with humankind’s global connection through its nerves, the axis of reality shifted radically; it created benefits of course but it also created a new set of obligations because no neuron could deny the presence of every other.

The late great contemporary composer John Cage took a liking to these ideas. It was not that they flipped reality on end but more that they presented opportunities for living more sanely. They redefined the concept of sharing so that it now includes sharing not only the benefits but also the burdens of others — fully supportive of the axiom: People are happier when dog no longer eat dog.

In his classic, “A Year From Monday,” Cage says (and I paraphrase, you can see the original on Page ix): it is now incumbent upon humankind to implement globally the disciplines people traditionally practiced to be at peace, at one with themselves — meditation, yoga, psychoanalysis, and every related modality.

When such disciplines are practiced globally people recognize that others are not threatening and greedy by nature. They are better able to see the needs of others (people are more inclined to speak of them) and moved to take steps to meet those needs without resentment or derision. Such is how an effectively working planet-wide central nervous system operates.

For a long time, Cage was interested in producing a list of utilities that connect us to each other (e.g., the telephone, radio, Internet) whereby we come face to face with every language, custom, and ritual situated along the spectrum of humanity.

In “Agenbite,” McLuhan said that, since the world contracted to the size of a tribe or village where everyone knows what’s going on everywhere, the human community feels compelled to participate. Participation is the democratization of happiness.

Understandably McLuhan has long been thought of as one of the inventors of “global village” but a village free of zenophobia. Zenophobes fear diversity, it contradicts assumptions about self and other that thrive on a divide-and-conquer ethic.

Anyone interested in anthropology knows that people living in pristine tribal cultures — there are a million studies on it — find it impossible to think of themselves as an “individual” or “independent” operator.

Of course “primitives” recognize differences — some folks are faster, smarter, stronger, and more efficient in amassing prized money-shells — but the faster do not tax the slower to enhance their prestige. A consciousness wired to every other induces genuine humility and compassion.

For centuries, the Roman Catholic Church tried to promote global connectedness through the concept of a “mystical body” asserting that through Jesus all Christians share a mystical, spiritual bond that cannot be broken.

And Alexander the Great proposed a similar idea in his “homonoia,” a universal union of hearts, a “brotherhood of man” but, in his brotherhood, brother does not share the burden of brother.

Though we continue to reap the benefits of a fully-operative global nervous system, the human community still has not faced up to the task of putting flesh and bone on those nerves, that is, of creating a political economy designed to meet the needs of all, one that fits the complex of nerves.

And needs-based means providing not only full health care for everyone, from the day we’re born to the day we die, but also housing, daily sustenance, old age care, the works — the opposite of a deserts-based, dog-eat-dog, tribal mind.

Thus the potential for achieved well being is no longer limited to Christians or Macedonians or any other sect but extends to every physical, neurological, consciousness in our global home.

Disbelievers in this connectedness are at least willing to acknowledge that what happens in China (and Mexico, Vietnam, and Japan) affects the quality of our lives in the United States. They acknowledge globalization but only in so far as it relates to money, trade, power, and deserts-based benefits.

Otherwise their battle cry is for walling off the self and nation from what exists on the other side of the synapse and for siphoning off “differences” among populations into “ghettos.”

This is nervous-breakdown thinking and explains why at any moment some group somewhere can rise up and terrorize the world, claiming their dreams were shattered through demonizing, exclusionary, needs-denying practices.

Quite astoundingly, two of the 2016 presidential candidates in the United States are calling for revolution: one for “political revolution,” the other for a guilt-free battering-of-the-weak-without-reprisal revolution based in an ideology that stigmatizes difference.

The Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard predicted this would occur when his “The Concept of Dread” appeared the same year the telegraph was born. He was addressing the dread of connectedness, the dread of facing up to a needs-based political economy that being linked neurologically requires.

Pope Francis recently said that people who wall themselves off from others, who classify and divide, are destroyers of the mystical body and cannot call themselves Christians. They tear away at the limbs of a universal needs-meeting body.

Which brings us to the true function of the computer. People might use the machine to Google cheap flights to Spain or find a good house at the shore but the computer exists primarily: (1) to inventory the needs of every neuron in the cosmic system; (2) to inventory every available worldwide resource (every kind everywhere); and (3) to find the best way of getting what’s needed to those in need without charge or delay.

We do know of course that in every Eden people steal, cheat, rob, and raid your cache — sin is a given — but in the meantime, in this era of our neurologically-connected needs-based revolution, every person on the planet is treated like the richest person on earth.

Now that’s a revolution of dread.

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The good weather is still holding for we OFs who currently travel to the furthest restaurant on our schedule to have breakfast. The Hilltown Café in Rensselaerville is a hike for some but right in the backyard for other OFs. On March 15, the spring-like weather was still around.

The OFs used to complain about Route 85 going to Rensselaerville but not any longer.  That portion of the highway has been paved so the conditions of all the roads the OFs take to have breakfast at the Hilltown Café are in good shape and, unless there is a big argument going on in the cars, it is a pleasant trip.

Most of the time, as the OFs arrive at the restaurants, each carload sits with the same group they drove there with. On occasion, there isn’t enough room for a particular carload to sit together at a table and that splits one OF out and he enters another group. This makes for interesting conversation because the OF who does not generally sit with that group brings different tales to the tableOFs arrive at the restaurants, each carload sits with the same group they drove there with. On occasion, there isn’t enough room for a particular carload to sit together at a table and that splits one OF out and he enters another group. This makes for interesting conversation because the OF who does not generally sit with that group brings different tales to the table

This is just like square dancing.  Four couples will travel to a dance and form their own square for most of the dance. (Except if you danced to caller Ken Downs. He had a few calls that would mix the party up pretty good and that was fun).

A split-up happened this past Tuesday and it was found that, at the table with four unlikely OFs, the conversation was spirited, lively and interesting because all at the table were involved with scouting, outdoor activities, and hiking. The topics covered Boy Scout camps throughout Albany, Schenectady, and Schoharie counties.

One OF is still involved with scouting while the others had to draw on fond memories of when they were in Scouts, and were Scoutmasters. For some of the OFs, that was going back a ways.

The OFs discussed the Boy Scout “freeze outs,” which were overnight camp-outs in the winter. Most of the time it was as tough on the scoutmasters as it was the Scouts.

One OF, a, former scoutmaster, remembered taking a couple of Scouts home in the middle of the night from a freeze-out at Thacher Park. After dropping the Scouts off, this OF was thinking about stopping at his own home while he was so close, because he was freezing, but he resisted the temptation; he dutifully went back to the tent. This OF is still involved with scouting and on the Eagle Scout review board.

One OF mentioned that, while his son was in Scouts (when they had the freeze-outs on Long Island), the campsite was already set up and ready to go. Not so with some of the freeze-outs upstate.  Here the Scout had to learn how to set up tents (while there was a foot or more of snow on frozen ground) and how to prepare these tents so they were dry and reasonably comfortable inside in the dead of winter.

Another former scoutmaster remembered becoming snowed in on a freeze-out off Singer Road in the town of Knox. This was a long time ago and cell phones hadn’t been invented yet.

So a scoutmaster had to snowshoe out from the campsite to the Thompson Lake Road to make a phone call and have the town send out plows followed by cars to get the Scouts out. The Scouts had a blast, not so the scoutmasters and adults that were there.  (Scribe’s note: As a matter of fact, phones then were still the black rotary phones; that was all there was — even the Princess phone was still a figment of someone’s imagination).

What the OFs learned as Scouts and from being involved in scouting, and what they continued to learn as scoutmasters (along with serious outdoor people who hiked and camped out) was invaluable to their overall adult lives later on. The OFs were remembering years ago but they assumed scouting must still be similar only with more up-to-date equipment today.

Early spring

This year, so far, is nothing like some of those years with the Scouts.  The pussy willows have already bloomed, some crocus and snow flowers are popping their colorful heads out of the ground, the cluster flies have decided to wake up and buzz all around the sunny windows, and lawns are being raked.

One-stop shop

The OFs next talked about the Montgomery Ward building on Broadway in Menands. Malls are not that new.

“Monkey-wards” in Menands was a mall. It was a bustling place in the 1930s, ’40s, and ’50s. The OFs could not quite remember when it started to fizzle out.

It was a planned trip from the farm to Wards. The OFs remember going there with their families. Their fathers would purchase items from the floor, and then from the catalog, and the kids would go to the pickup area and wait. It was fun to watch through the doors that went into the warehouse to see the workers hauling items from the shelves.

Wards had a restaurant, snack shop, beauty salon, camping supplies, farm supplies, and clothes.  There was everything there except a movie theatre.

It even had medical supplies for people and animals. You could purchase a small tractor, or a canoe. The store even sold windmills, barns, and sheds, and the newest radio or telephone.

Try finding those in one of these new malls.  One OF said that all he sees in the new malls are shoe stores, clothing stores, and the occasional jewelry store.

The OFs that made it to the Hilltown Café in Rensselaerville, and would love to see a store like Montgomery Wards come back, were: Robie Osterman, George Washburn, Roger Chapman, Miner Stevens, John Rossmann, Bill Lichliter, Harold Guest, Dave Williams, Karl Remmers, Alvin Latham, Mace Porter, Chuck Aelesio, Otis Lawyer, Glenn Patterson, Mark Traver, Lou Schenck, Jack Norray, Wayne Gaul, Gerry Irwin, Don Wood, Bill Rice, Henry Whipple, Ted Willsey, Mike Willsey, Warren Willsey, Gerry Chartier, Jim Rissacher, Elwood Vanderbilt, Harold Grippen, and me.

 

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Most junior and senior boys are studying for the new SATs, waiting to hear from colleges, trying to find jobs, and maybe figuring out who they want  to take to the junior prom and the senior ball. Conor, and Sean Quinn, 16 and 18 respectively, are doing all these things plus one other pretty big activity: They’re in charge of putting together a pasta dinner for 50.

The dinner is for the residents at the Omni Senior Living Community in Guilderland on March 19. And for the last three to four months the brothers have done all the work.

They begin by contacting Community Caregivers who sponsor the dinner and prepare the letters the boys send out to vendors for raffle items, decoration materials, and the food: salads, rolls and butter, pasta with sauce, and desserts. Any furniture, silverware, trays, etc. come from Altamont Reformed Church where Greg Goutos, a longtime volunteer with Community Caregivers,  has connections

This year, four or five  students from the Guilderland High School Honor Society  will help serve. Tyler Mazone, clarinetist, has asked the boys if he can provide entertainment.

Conor says, “Tyler is a happy, upbeat person, full of enthusiasm. We like people like this — happy — to be a part of the event.

The boys’ mom, Suzanne Quinn, says her sons have been in charge for the last two to three years, and she’s very proud of that fact.

As Conor reflects on the work they do, he says some parts are hard. “Lots of businesses give to a lot of organizations. They don’t all say, ‘Yes, we’d love to help.’ We do what we have to do.

But, he says he isn’t discouraged. Sean explained that the day before the dinner the tables and chairs, table settings, decorations — all the physical stuff — are dealt with.  The day-of, they spend time getting the food and getting it heated. And, yes, Mom makes meatballs and extra sauce.

What do these guys do for work and fun and what are their future plans? Sean does odd jobs such as walking dogs and mowing lawns. And, he’s a scuba diver. Two years ago, he went to Bali and, aside from diving, he also taught kids English for three weeks in July. As a senior, he’s waiting to hear from colleges and is interested in history.

“History has always fascinated me,” he said. He wants to make history “usable, applicable. Why does this matter?”

Conor does a lot of volunteer work. At Whispering Willows Wild Care, he helps animals get back into the wild. He mentioned hawks, owls, and kestrels as a few of the creatures the organization has rehabbed. But he’ll do anything there like providing water, cleaning cages, talking to them.

“I love to bond,” he adds.

Since he was 15, he’s volunteered  at Homeward Bound in Schenectady. This place helps dogs get adopted, and he does whatever they ask him to do.  Right now, he’s hoping to get his real first time job at a doggie day-care business. And you guessed it, for his future he’s looking at a career dealing with animals.

When the boys began their connection with this dinner, they were  “unofficial mascots.” They went around hugging people and being cute. As they grew older, they talked with the residents and listened to their stories.

Sean says, “I’ve always loved storytelling because it’s entertaining and a good way to connect with people.”

As the years went on and he got to know the people, he realized the residents were part of his community and also his friends

“It feels good.” And he concludes, “Satisfaction comes from helping people.”

Conor says now that they’re older, one of the responsibilities he and his brother take on is seeing that the Omni  residents are comfortably seated. Some are in wheelchairs so the boys help them get situated.

He says, “We try to make sure everyone is comfortable and well fed.” As with the animals he works with, Conor likes to bond with people, too. “I like to  help people and make them smile.”

Community Caregivers has been fortunate to have this family as volunteers. With Sean off to college next year, he can’t predict  his involvement with the dinner. What we can predict is these two guys will move through life with some pretty strong volunteering skills and love of helping their neighbors.  Mom has taught her sons well.

 

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On March 8, the Old Men of the Mountain met at the Home Front Café in Altamont. It was a nice uneventful early morning.  The sun was coming up and, though a little chilly, there was a Florida feel to the air

Maybe it is more than global warming; the planet may be tipping on its axis at a greater rate than originally was thought.

The OFs who were (and still are) farmers of sorts are a little concerned about this early warm weather. In their bucket of wishes, they hope for some snow, the wet warm kind, and plenty of it.

These rains aren’t going to mean much because the ground has a lot of frost in it and the rain is just going to run off.  Snow, the farmer OFs say, will suck the frost out of the ground and the water from the melting snow will be able to get to the aquifers

They also say that, if a few days of real cold weather should happen to come by now, it will severely damage the early budding of trees and plants that has been brought on by such early warm days and nights.

One OF thought that, if the weather holds true to their bucket wish list, third cuttings of hay will be normal and first cuttings could end sometime in April.

Then one OF said, “Look how long we are going to have to put up with mosquitoes if things become this warm this early.”

“Maybe,” another OF said, “fall may start in June; who knows?”

With the spring-like weather coming sooner than expected, many of the OFs who are collectors of sorts — actually bordering on hoarding — were talking about clearing out some of their clutter. This is only talk, mind you; this is not cast in any kind of stone.

The stone for this rhetoric hasn’t even been found yet and this scribe doesn’t think any of the OFs are even looking for it.

One OF said to another OF that, for him to clear out his clutter, he would need a tractor trailer. The other OF replied that, that OF should talk; it would take two tractor trailer loads just for him to clear off the top of the pile.

“Wait a minute,” the other OF said. “What I have is collectible; it is my wife that has the clutter.

It was strange because the reply from the other OF was in agreement; he said, if he didn’t watch his collection of old tractors and farm machinery and parts, his wife would have the junk dealer come in and haul it away.

That conversation led to how the collectors of large items are going to have these collections for awhile because the bottom has fallen out of the price for scrap. Then another OF (one who is not part of the collector group of OFs) said he just purchased an anvil so he could strap his wife to it and sell her for scrap.

Another OF said, “You are stuck with her for now. Wait until the price goes back up; then you ship her off to the scrapyard.”

Navy vs. Air Force

At the table Tuesday morning, an OF who was in the Navy, and an OF who was in the Air Force sat directly across from one another and these two began talking about which one of them had it tougher in the service

The OF in the Navy described what it was like on a ship that was not much larger than a Saudi’s yacht. His ship had only four toilets, he said, for everyone on board, and these toilets were made of wood

The Air Force OG maintained that they did not have conditions like that.  The Air Force had bunks and regular latrines, whereas the Navy OF slept on a hammock that he shared with another fellow

But the Air Force OF said that their attrition rate was much higher than the swabbies.  So the debate goes on between the different branches of the military.

Sick bay

Quite often, the OFs discuss other OFs who are ill, or laid up, and at Tuesday morning’s breakfast some mentioned a collection of OFs who are out of commission for one reason or another. The concern for them all was genuine, because many of the OFs can safely say the old phrase, “Been there, done that,” and be right.

The OFs started talking about attitude when one of them is under the weather; how some moan and groan and that allows for some semblance of relief.

Others just grin and bear it; some take the attitude of, “Well, I got it — now what,” and still others become so miserable no one wants to be around them. Some appreciate company because talking takes their mind off whatever it is that is bothering them, and others just want to be left alone. Still others equate visitors like vultures waiting for the OF to pass away, which may or may not happen.

One OG mentioned he does not know what to do.  This OF said he does not want the ill OF to feel that everyone has abandoned him, but he doesn’t want to upset him either.

And then there are the Job visitors who belie the OF who lies there in his misery, with the comments of his sorry life, i.e., we told you that your smoking would bring you to this, or how many times did we tell you to lay off the booze.

Then some OFs would tell the OF that they came to visit he was surely going to have to put up with what he has. This OF said his problem was chasing all those women and catching them.  The most accurate declaration of all would be, “We told you to slow down, you OF; you are not 50 years old anymore.”    

Many of the OFs feel like these OFs at one time or another; still, all the OFs are concerned about the ones who are temporarily not with us and can’t wait until they get back to the breakfast table. Then the returning OF can continue with his story, which is likely to be 20-percent exaggeration, 40-percent fabrication, and the balance might have a smattering of the truth tucked in there someplace.

Those OFs who made it to the Home Front Café in Altamont, and claim, “The weather is what it is; deal with it,” were: Roger Chapman, Karl Remmers, Bill Lichliter, Dave Williams, John Rossmann, Harold Guest, Bill Tinning, George Washburn, Otis Lawyer, Mark Traver, Chuck Aelesio, Glenn Patterson, Ted Willsey, Jim Rissacher, Lou Schenck, Gerry Irwin, Jack Norray, Mace Porter, Wayne Gaul, Mike Willsey, Bill Rice, Henry Whipple, Gerry Chartier, Harold Grippen, and me.

 

The Old Men of the Mountain gathered together on March first (on the Hill, March roared in like a lion during the night; the wind rattled the windows — welcome March) at the Chuck Wagon Diner in Princetown. The sun was shinning so bright in the morning that the blinds had to be shuttered because of the glare.

The Chuck Wagon is on Route 20, which runs east and west in New York State.  The windows on one side of the restaurant face just about due east, and, while enjoying the breakfast at the restaurant early in the morning, the OFs can welcome the sun as it eases its way over the hill.

One OF found that using the microwave to boil sap is not a good idea. The steam generated started to loosen the wallpaper in the kitchen.

The OFs remembered renting steamers, or making steam on their own to do just that — loosen the wallpaper — so it becomes pliable, and then with wide putty knives the OFs could scrape the wallpaper off the wall. Then they would hang new wallpaper.

That was back when wallpaper was popular. Some of the OFs still prefer wallpaper to paint. One OF said with the wallpaper there is still the insulation aspect of the paper on the wall.  The OFs that know how to apply wallpaper would rather do that then apply paint.

Eerie talk

How this next topic came up, this scribe does not know, not having caught the beginning. The subject was wax in their ears, which is normal, but a rather curious conversation at breakfast.

However, the OFs continued on by pointing out that they had gotten bugs in their ears. The range covered most flying insects, from the no-see-ums, regular cluster flies, the occasional small moth, and lightening bugs, to the really bad bugger — a hornet. Inside the ears is no place anyone would want to be stung.

Pure water and fresh air

The OFs who live on the Hill said, with all the water problems that seem to cropping up in other areas, they are glad they live up here with the trees and rocks. The Helderbergs do not have much dirt and except for the areas that will support a pond and a few small lakes there is not a lot of water on the Hill to support industry.

One OF mentioned the prevailing winds blow across a lot of open real estate before it reaches the Hilltowns. This, the OFs thought, also allows the Hilltowns to breathe fresh air.

One OF mentioned that the few that want to bring industry to the Hilltown are thinking more of the buck, than of the health of those that live here. As time marches on, the OFs are beginning to see there is a considerable downside to many industries as far as the general health of the public is concerned.

The OFs were in a preachy mood on this subject.

Some of the OFs say they are going to make a change to stainless steel, glass, or cast-iron cookware now, and not use anything covered with Teflon.

Practical advice on planning funerals

It seemed strange that, after this subject was covered, the OFs went on to chat about something else and the topic was funerals. None of the OFs want to experience a funeral from the inside.

One OF mentioned how some funeral directors lead the family to purchase the best caskets.  An OF thought this was easy to do because of the state of mind the family is in due to the death of a family member. It was a form of conjecture on how the OFs have their ducks lined up in case the OF’s foot meets the bucket.  

One OF thought that, if you know you are going to die, it is a good idea to get the family together and straighten things out so they are not left with a mess when you do enter through the pearly gates.

On the other hand, if your demise is sudden, and the OF is in good health, the family is left with this type of mess unless the OF has taken the time to show someone in the family where the paperwork is, and what kind of funeral the OF wants, and what kind of casket, etc. It seems the OFs have covered this before but this time it seemed to come from a different angle and be a bit more practical.

Good vibrations

The OFs discussed how much technology is now crammed into a little smartphone. They mentioned how clear the tiny little speakers are.

One OF said he can put his phone on speakers, put it in his shirt pocket, and have a conversation. The OF said people can hear him, and he can hear them.

Some of the OFs said that is where they carry their phone but most of the time they can’t hear it when the ringtone is calling them. They also mention that, when the phone is on vibrate, it needs to be close to them or they can’t feel the vibrations

The OFs said that, though the technology is beyond their understanding, the age-old idiom is true: As the OF gets older, his sense of hearing is dimmed, and his sense of feel is beginning to migrate from the body. This may be the reason for their complaints, the OFs can hardly hear Big Ben, or sense the vibration of a concrete leveler.

Antiques experts

Many of the OFs are antiques, and it stands to reason that many watch the “Antiques Roadshow” on PBS. Quite often, the objects some people bring in are what the OFs have hanging around the house or are still using.

One OF suggested someone should bring him in and see how much he is worth as an antique. I’ll give you five bucks was a reply to which another reply was that it was too high.

Those OFs who made it to the Chuck Wagon Diner in Princetown and all still very much alive and ambulatory were: Miner Stevens, Bill Lichliter, George Washburn, Robie Osterman, Roger Chapman, Roger Shafer, Bill Tinning, John Rossmann, Harold Guest, Jack Norray, Mace Porter, Gerry Irwin, Wayne Gaul, Lou Schenck, Glenn Patterson, Mark Traver, Chuck Aelesio, Ted Willsey, Jim Rissacher, Elwood Vanderbilt, Harold Grippen, and me.   S

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The 15th annual Italian Night is taking place this year on St. Patrick’s Day. For the last 12 or so years, the Quinn family has been intricately involved: Mom, Dad, Sean, and Conor.

When the family started, Suzanne Quinn said, “Conor, the little person, gave hugs. Sean would help with passing things out.” She estimates the boys were about 4 and 6. Today the boys do everything.

The Quinn family started with Community Caregivers when there was Caregivers Kids. Suzanne said there was also  a song, “Teach Your Children Well” by Crosby, Stills and Nash  that inspired her.

She went on, “Community Caregivers provides services to the community, but I felt strongly children should give back, from the get go.”

So the boys were pen pals , through 4H, with a resident at Kingsway. And then they got involved with Caregivers Kids where they raked lawns and did odd jobs for families.

When the time was right, the family became involved  with the annual pasta dinner at the Omni in Guilderland. Today, they practically, really, do it all.

They have help. The Guilderland High School Key Club has helped. This year the high school’s Honor Society will help. The members of the organization serve the dinners

The Quinn boys and their family set the tables, make decorations, get the room set up, and do all the leg work for donations of food and prizes for drawings. Suzanne said her role in recent years is to give advice mostly dealing with getting started two to three months out.

“Go early,” she tells her sons. “You have a better chance of getting people involved.”

The theme this year is “You are the stars.” During the spring break, the boys made the decorations.

In the past, they have asked other groups in the community to get involved. One year, Westmere Elementary made the decorations.  Last year, a friend of the boys volunteered to play music during the dinner.

Suzanne said, when her family took over the event, her intention was to make it a party “of who they (the residents) are and what they’ve contributed.” She added, “The  relationship you make with the folks is more valuable than the activity itself.”

That song, “Teach your Children Well,”  convinced Suzanne she wanted her boys “connecting with the world. If we start small, it’ll grow bigger, the contributions and the sense of community.”

Next week, you’ll hear from Conor and Sean, now 16 and 18,  and how they handle the annual pasta dinner. Suzanne and her husband have every right to be proud. Community Caregivers is proud, too, that this family takes on  this activity.

The CC staff provides letters for vendors and follow-up thank-you letters. It should be noted that Greg and Nellie Goutos are also involved with the dinner. Greg is a past Acting Executive Director of Caregivers, a former board member, and member of the Finance Committee,  and a longtime direct service  volunteer.

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Baron von Steuben, born in Prussia as Friedrich Wilhelm Ludolf Gerhard Augustin von Steuben, in 1730 had connections to Guilderland. He died at the age of 64

Baron von Steuben, known for his knowledge of military discipline, has not been widely known in the Hellebergh history annals. However, he was touted for his military skills, and he did have a great connection with Frederick Crounse, one of the town of Guilderland and Altamont's prominent ancestors.

Born in 1730, von Steuben was educated by the Jesuits and became a Prussian officer. Benjamin Franklin recommended him to George Washington as a Lieutenant General. Schooled in the armies of Frederick the Great, he brought invaluable military knowledge to the disheartened troops of Washington at Valley Forge.

On Feb. 23, 1778, von Steuben reported to Valley Forge and was put in charge of Washington's battered army encampment for training. He wrote a training manual, drilled the men hard, and whipped the army into shape. Coming without a contract or monetary promises, he waited many years after the war for Congressional recognition.

His adopted son and aide-de-camp was Colonel William North who had a mansion on Duane Lake near Duanesburgh.

While he would visit his son in the Hellebergh area, Baron von Steuben, would also call on one of the most famous German men in this area, Frederick Crounse, the man renowned then for furnishing food from Hellebergh farms for the victorious armies at Saratoga; the man who had also helped many captured Hessians to find work here and at Schoharie, and the man who had been one of the first members of the German Society of New York State founded by Baron von Steuben in 1784.

Historian's Note: This information was found in an Altamont Enterprise of July 9, 1976 written by the late Guilderland historian Arthur Gregg.

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