Archive for October, 2013
» posted on Sunday, October 27th, 2013 by Linda Lou Burton
Somewhat Contradictory
Linda Burton posting from Hartford, Connecticut – Hartford’s nickname is Insurance Capital of the World, you’ve heard that before. On my first drive-through of this 46th capital city on the Journey Across America, I was surrounded by sparkling highrise office buildings. UnitedHealthcare was spelled out across the top of one; the others I didn’t catch; I was concentrating on street turns to get to the capitol grounds. Ornate Victorian reflected against stark modern 
in the waning afternoon sun that lit up the gold; gold on the trees; gold on the capitol dome. A pleasant sight; but somewhat contradictory; a mass of intersecting freeways cut through the city, yet the spacious grounds of Bushnell Park were serene; I could hear music, a concert of some kind, from across the tree-lined streets. Mark Twain lived here, back in the 1800s, and once said of Hartford “Of all the beautiful towns it has been my fortune to see, this is the chief.” I parked at the side of the capitol and struck out under the trees, kicking leaves, and looking both ways – at the old, and the new. Hartford is one of the oldest cities in the country; Dutch explorers came through in 1613; English settlers arrived in 1635; it was named Hartford in 1637. Samuel Stone, one of the original settlers, chose the 
name to honor his home town of Hertford, England. Hartford is home to the nation’s oldest public art museum, the Wadsworth Atheneum; the oldest public park, Bushnell Park; the oldest continuously published newspaper, The Hartford Courant. Some famous residents were author and abolitionist Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896) who lived next door to Mark Twain (1835-1910); dictionary author Noah Webster (1758-1843); inventor Sam Colt (1814-1862), financier J P Morgan (1837-1913), and poet Wallace Stevens (1879-1955). So what is the contradictory part? » read more
» posted on Saturday, October 26th, 2013 by Linda Lou Burton
Gravel Sucking Trucks
I met with Sandi in Providence. She visited all 50 state capitols before she was 25.
Now she’s going for 50 countries before she’s 50!
We celebrated as she returned from the 40th one.
Linda Burton posting from Providence, Rhode Island – Life is full of the unexpected. For instance, I didn’t plan to be working from the edge of the bathtub this Saturday morning. Yet here I sit, laptop on my lap, door closed to the outside world. Now, why is that? Because, just outside my window, just a few feet from my workdesk, is a gravel-sucking truck. And that truck is doing what it was designed to do. It is sucking gravel off the roof of my hotel. The manager explained. “I know it’s noisy, but we have to get the re-roofing done before winter sets in. We have to remove the gravel in order to put down a new layer of tar.” Well, I 
understand that. So I’ll spend the day exploring Providence, no prob. “You’ll be done soon?” was my plaintive question. Ah no, the work continues through next Wednesday. The gravel-sucking truck will be replaced by a tar-spreading truck. Swapping noise for the nose-burning smell of hot tar? I’d rather adjust life plans. Instead of spending another day with my friend Sandi; instead of leisurely wandering Water Place Park in downtown Providence; instead of having Sunday brunch at CAV as planned; I’ll shorten my Providence stay and move 
ahead to Hartford. I’ll use today to pack, and I’ll use today to summarize. I have company in this tiny bathroom. Alex and Jack crouched in the tub, watching me. If the sound of gravel rattling through a giant metal tube before crashing into the metal truck bed is deafening to me, I can only imagine how excruiating it must be to the cat’s sensitive ears. Suddenly I realized – 90% of the Journey Across America is done! “So Alex,” I said, slipping into interview mode, “what’s your favorite part of the Journey so far?” » read more
» posted on Monday, October 21st, 2013 by Linda Lou Burton
Messing Things Up
Linda Burton posting from Providence, Rhode Island —Changing the status quo can be messy. And Roger Williams (1603-1683) messed things up wherever he went. Roger didn’t mean to create problems, he meant to simplify. At least, that’s the way it’s interpreted now. Now he’s deemed a hero, a fighter for freedom, and, no small accomplishment – the founder of Rhode Island. The Roger Williams National Memorial, operated by the National Park Service, occupies 4.5 acres in downtown Providence, near the corner of Smith and North Main. The Rhode Island State House is just across the easy-flowing Moshassuck River, an impressive sight through the October-gold of the park’s trees. A pot of yellow mums sat by the building’s door; inside, a solemn wooden statue in patriotic blues and golds held a book. I started with the overview movie of Roger Williams’ life; I browsed 
the exhibits, and the gift shop. The Park Ranger gave me a walking map, marking spots in Providence that were important to the Roger Williams story. Enough time inside; I headed for the First Baptist Church in America, a few blocks down Main Street. I passed the Hahn Memorial along the way, and the spring that was discovered by Roger Williams in the 1600s. Roger built his house nearby (although it no longer exists); that fresh-water spring sustained not only Roger and his family, but the settlers that followed. Judge Jacob Hahn donated the land for the park, and the memorial, 
to the city of Providence in 1931; it was given in honor of his father Isaac Hahn, the first person of Jewish faith to be elected to public office from Providence. These items offer hints of what Roger Williams stood for, and that was “freedom of conscience.” Should I start at the beginning, or the end? » read more
» posted on Saturday, October 19th, 2013 by Linda Lou Burton
Grandmother’s House
Linda Burton posting from Providence, Rhode Island – I went over the river and through the woods, but I wasn’t headed for grandmother’s house. I moved from Boston to Providence, Rhode Island today; capital city #45 on the Journey. The river I crossed was the Charles, on the new wing-cabled bridge that was built as part of the Big Dig. The day was October-perfect, but the heavy traffic prevented me from looking left, or right, to see the Charles, where the Head of the Charles Regatta was underway, the world’s largest two-day rowing event. The road dipped into the Big Dig tunnel, where there was nothing to see but tail lights. Out of the worm-hole and back 
into daylight on I-93; the train went by on my right, the T. Remember that Kingston Trio song back in ‘59 about poor old Charlie? Did he ever return? No he never returned and his fate is still unlearn’d. He may ride forever ‘neath the streets of Boston, he’s the man who never returned. Would I ever return? As I hummed the song, trying to remember the gist of it, the outdoor scene transitioned from urban to woodlands. The Massachusetts hills were glowing gold; no need to go to New Hampshire for fall color. Stay home! Signs for Foxboro caught my attention; ah yes, Gillette Stadium is there; home of 
the New England Patriots; tucked halfway between Boston and Providence. I drove through the community of restaurants and shops built just for sports fans, glad it was a no-game day; the stadium seats 68,756. Twenty miles more to Rhode Island, The Ocean State, according to the welcome sign. “I’m stopping at the capitol,” I said to the cats. And that’s where I met Charlene and Evelyn, and learned some things about Providence. » read more
» posted on Friday, October 11th, 2013 by Linda Lou Burton
Boston Proper, Boston Strong
Linda Burton posting from Boston, Massachusetts – If you want to be considered a proper Bostonian, you have to understand Boston English. “Don’t worry about the poor lost New England “r’s” I learned; “we stick them onto the end of certain other words.” Some “r’s” take on an “ah” sound; you can make any Bostonian groan and roll their eyes when you cite the example 
“Hah-vahd Yahd.” But to a non-Boston ear like mine, that’s what I hear. It’s hard (hahd) for most visitors for the first few days, but Boston tour guides plunge forward (fah-wahd) with their dialogue and the tour buses roll on. I dug a little deeper into how it works and found this rhyme: Ah final ahs just disappeah, but wheah they go we’ve no idear. Yes, those floating “r’s” grab onto words such as “idea” and stick there; I can almost hear John Kennedy’s voice ringing in from the past. I even found instructions on “How to Talk Like Kennedy” – so that vigor becomes vigah, and Cuba becomes Cuber. » read more
» posted on Wednesday, October 9th, 2013 by Linda Lou Burton
Greener Is The Grass
Linda Burton posting from Boston, Massachusetts – The other side of the fence. During my days in New Hampshire almost everyone asked “Where are you headed next?” And when I answered “Boston” I noticed eyes light up; suggestions poured forth as to what I should see, how I would love it, how they love it. Ending with “I wish I lived in Boston now.” “It still takes my breath away,” said someone I met in the New Hampshire State House, “when I round that curve and see the Boston skyline ahead of me.” Many claimed Boston as their birthplace; regaling me with tales of Fenway Park and 
memories of baseball games; Ted Williams, Roger Clemens, Carl Yastrzemski. The Sox Nation extends far north into New Hampshire; that’s for sure. With the Red Sox in the playoffs, the New Hampshire passion pulsated loud and clear. The Tampa Bay Rays came to Boston to play; as I rounded a curve on the New Hampshire freeway last Friday a flashing highway sign caught my attention. “Go” was the first line of warning; I expected to see notice of a detour, or road work. But the second line was “Red Sox,” followed by another “Go.” It made me smile. Today 
was my day to “Go” as I moved south from Concord, New Hampshire to Boston, capital city #44 on the Journey. It was less than 70 miles of smooth sailing on a freeway bordered by that famous New England foliage; traffic was moderate. Until I hit the Massachusetts line. And what did I see? Droves of cars headed north, straight into New Hampshire! Here in Boston tonight, the weather report focused on where to go in New Hampshire this weekend, to revel in fabulous autumn scenery. Sounds like a “grass is greener” kind of thing. » read more
» posted on Wednesday, October 2nd, 2013 by Linda Lou Burton
Less Traveled By
Linda Burton posting from Concord, New Hampshire – Two men, born on different coasts, in different centuries. What do they have in common? Robert Lee Frost (1874-1963) began life in San Francisco; Kenneth Lauren Burns (b 1953) in Brooklyn. But each chose New Hampshire as a place to live, and work, and grow; New Hampshire put its stamp on them. And from New Hampshire, they reflected the world back to us; interpreted in ways both simple and profound. Robert Frost was a poet; in his lifetime garnering more than forty honorary degrees, four Pulitzer Prizes, and one Congressional Medal of Honor. Critic Randall Jarrell said of him “no other poet has written so well about the actions of ordinary men.” Biographer Lawrance Thompson wrote that Frost’s poems are “charged with an intensity of cherishing.” And perhaps the greatest accolade is this – Frost’s poems are part of the curriculum in every class on American literature. How many young souls found their life purpose bolstered by the line “I took the road less traveled by”? Did 
filmmaker Ken Burns come across that line when he was a young student? I don’t know; but Burns has certainly lived his life and gone about his work in ways unlike any other. His documentary films have brought him (so far) twenty-five honorary degrees, twelve Emmy Awards, two Oscar nominations, and a Lifetime Achievement Award. From his first documentary in 1981 (Brooklyn Bridge), Burns’ films have mesmerized the public. David Zurawik wrote “Burns not only turned millions…onto history with his films, he showed us a new way of looking at our collective past.” Burns’ father-in-law said his work was “an attempt to make people long gone come back alive.” Besides New Hampshire, what else touched the lives of these men? I decided to dig a little deeper. » read more