Getting Smudged

Back in September 2008 I was homeschooling Ashley. This story pre-dates this blog. She was interested in Native Americans so we took her to two places -- Churchvillle Nature Center in Pennsylvania and Plimouth Plantation in Massachusetts. 

I'll admit going into it, my expectations were much higher for Plimouth Plantation. After all they are a huge place with lots of staff and glossy marketing materials. Churchville Nature Center seemed to me the type of place you would pop into once and say "been there, done that, no reason to return." 

I could not have been more wrong.

Yes, Plimouth Plantation was nice, but we caught the place on a bad day, and let's leave it at that. 

Churchville Nature Center exceeded all of our expectations -- even the high ones we had for Plimouth Plantation. Our guide, Miss Patti, gave us the tour through all five stations (birthing hut, garden, games, hunting, and cooking) and answered our questions. We told her we were homeschooling our 1st grader. She said normally when she gives school tours they give the kids an arrowhead necklace and invite them to come back with their parents. Since we were already there, she invited us back, and gave Ashley an arrowhead necklace. 

We went back. Again and again and again. 

Since that time Ashley is now in her third Lenape outfit. She has been helping Miss Patti give tours, has helped Che teach summer camp, and spent a night in a Wickawam with Don during a survival weekend (again, pre-blog days). Last weekend she became an EIT -- Educator In Training. She is only 11. She is not allowed to lead school groups until she is 18 (which is a good thing, because the cannot take a day off from school in order that someone else can have a school field trip). Last weekend she was smudged during the ritual ceremony to kick off the summer gardening season (the weather this year has been so crazy, it took until now to start the garden). She and Don spend most Sundays between April and October at the Lenape Village, unless we are out of town or something else takes priority.

Ashley was recently granted her own station. If you take one of their Sunday afternoon tours you are very likely to have Ashley teach you about hunting. Last summer she created "scat" that is so realistic people refuse to touch it and naturalists have asked where did they purchase it. She is now in the process of creating foot prints. The idea will be guests will be asked to match the scat with the footprint with the animal skins (which sadly do not no have paws attached to them) to guess the animal. The presentation is a work in progress.

Once Ashley reads this and corrects me I'm sure there will be some changes. For now this is how I remember it all happening and that is the story I am sticking with.

Summer Fun

I think the Summer of 2012 has been one of my favorite summers thus far. We spent most of it at home, or close to it. We saw lots of friends and family. I'm sad to see it come to an end.

I summed up our summer recently to a friend in the following message (since edited):

* Ashley thinks having a bearded dragon is even better than she ever imagined. I still can't believe we own a reptile.

* Ashley taught herself how to do a handstand and a cartwheel. She enjoys doing them over and over and over again. Skills I never mastered! 

* We survived our "cruise to nowhere" out of NYC. This satisfied my desire to see the inside of a cruise ship -- a wish that dated back to the 1980s when I watched "The Love Boat" each week. Not sure if we will go on a cruise again, but if we do I want to go somewhere -- preferably someplace without rain.

* Don rode his bike 200 miles in June. I'm tired just thinking about it.

* Our contractor finished our master bathroom project. We now have 2 1/2 working bathrooms again (the 1/2 being the downstairs powder room). It will be nice not having to wait in line for a shower again. Reminded me too much of college days. Ashley is happy to have "her" bathroom back again.

* I'm thinking I am insane for signing up for two more half marathons (Columbus, OH on October 21 with family, and Trenton on November 10 alone since my friends signed up for the 10K). Hopefully once school starts and the humidity disappears I'll enjoy running again.

* Ashley was cast as Lucy in "Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe." November 30-December 16 at Somerset Valley Players. I see lots of drives to Hillsborough in our near future. She sees lots of lines to memorize (120 of them). Should be a good show as the director is insisting on British accents for the family members and is treating the children as adults.

* I signed up to join a couple of committees -- Sustainable Lawrence and Somerset Valley Players. Trying to gain some grant writing experience. I believe strongly in both of these organizations and look forward to seeing where this takes me.

* One of my Patch articles received the WPIX Pix of the Day award earlier this month. With it comes bragging rights and nothing else. Freelancing was light this summer. I'm looking for more steady income once the school year starts again.

* Ashley loved Terhune Farm Camp, Lenape Camp (Junior Counselor again this year), VBS, and a few days in Williamsburg with my parents. Most of the days she was in camp I was running in the heat and humidity. I'm really looking forward to more pleasant running weather. What doesn't kill me just makes me stronger, right?

* Saw all three plays at Edison's Plays in the Park as well as a couple of other community theater productions. Wish I saw more shows.

* We loved going to Music in the Park almost every Thursday this summer. We only missed the one week to cover the Sustainable Jersey Farm to Table Fundraiser at Terhune for the Lawrenceville Patch.

* We learned how to Skype this summer! Ashley had several Skype playdates with Emma, her best friend from kindergarten who now lives in Michigan.

* I was thrilled to get together with Melanie and her family in NYC, Karin and Michelle at Quiet Valley Historical Living Farm, and Heather and Jolie at their house. Play dates with Sophie, Maia and other friends too far to see regulary, in addition to play dates with closer friends, such as Emily, plus pool dates with my parents, and a visit with Aunt Barbara and Uncle Al. Don couldn't believe he got together with Tony in NYC after all these years. We enjoyed three Kappa parties (thanks Pattersons, Kaspers, and Trish) -- one in each part of New Jersey. (If I left anyone out, blame it on my old brain cells and not on our lack of having fun with you -- the joy of an online newsletter is that I can edit it in a flash.)

* We all read lots of books, most of which we borrowed from our local library.

The best part of summer, though, was seeing Ashley's spark return. Her eyes twinkled. She became animated and really fun to be with again. I want that 

spark to always remain with her.

Guess it has been a busy summer after all. 

Tell us about your summer!

Bag it! and other eco-friendly thoughts

This weekend was saw "Bag it" a 2010 movie where one man decides he's had enough with single-use plastic bags. 

A couple of months ago we saw "The Clean Bin Project" where an ordinary couple hold a contest to see which one of them can create the least amount of trash.

A few years ago I read "Not buying it: my year without shopping" about a couple who decided enough was enough and they were not going to buy more.

Detecting a theme, yet?

It is no surprise we consume too much in this country. If we want our children to be able to enjoy the planet, we each need to do our part to cut back.

In a 5-minute encounter with Jane Goodall I was convinced we all have the power to make changes to improve the planet. We won't all become household names, like Dr. Goodall, but we can call help save the planet.

What does saving the planet look like? It looks different for everyone, but for me I'll start with:

• Not collecting more single-use bags (except for Halo bags, because we use them as trash bags)
• Buying used plates to use at picnics rather than using paper plates
• Cooking at least one meatless meal a week, and increasing that goal

It is easier to achieve a few small goals than many large ones.

Let's all work together to leave the planet a better place for the next generation.

Bike Activist

This year my role as cyclist has transformed into activist. It all started innocently enough when I attended the NJ Bike Coalition annual summit in February. Since then I've gotten involved with the township’s bike/pedestrian task force, attended similar committee meetings in neighboring towns to both learn about their actions and to meet compatriots. I also participated in several "touring" rides to witness firsthand the progress being made. In NYC, I rode along the city’s Greenbelt circling Manhattan Island and rode through the Big Apple’s streets on their spiffy new bike lanes. I participated in two different East Coast Greenway rides. The first showcasing the newly completed trail from Lawrence Twp to Trenton (a trail link I now regularly use for commuting home from the train station) and the second discussing the challenges and planned improvements for the route from Trenton to Philadelphia. In September, Kevin Gruenfeld and I participated in Philadelphia’s Naked Bike Ride. In case you are curious, yes, I did wear my helmet.

Amidst all this activism, the number of bike commutes has suffered this year. Late last year I set a personal goal of cycling more of the route and relying less on NJ Transit’s RiverLine rail service. Interestingly enough, between the longer distance and fewer trips, I ended up commuting the same number of miles. The past two years I commuted 3,000 miles with my bicycle. I need to figure out if my primary objective is to ride longer or drive less.