Dogwoods in bloom!

Warm spring weather in Georgia saw the wild Dogwoods in our neighborhood in full bloom this week.

The flowers consist of four bracts below the small head of yellow flowers. The bracts may be pink or red depending on cultivar but the species color is white.

Wild Dogwoods, "Cornus florida", is regarded by most Georgians as unrivaled in beauty.

Easter Basket

The Easter Bunny visited Beth early Friday evening so we could watch "Slumdog Millionaire" which was part of the goodies packet in her basket!

Wicked Weather!

Wicked weather in our area forced Beth, I and family to our basement storm shelter twice yesterday.

This picture taken at 6 PM during full daylight of what the weather folks called a "Super Cell" fully darken the skies over Woodstock causing wind shear totals of 100 mph plus winds, hail and heavy rain.

"Wind shear is the change in wind speed or direction with height in the atmosphere. Wind shear is important for the formation of tornadoes and hail!"

Several tornadoes were spotted around our area forcing the storm sirens to sound a half dozen times.

It was a storm similar to this last year that caused heavy damage to our roof which we had to have replaced.

Luckily we suffered no damage this time!

Stuck in Philadelphia!

Due to heavy thunderstorms in the south my return flight to Atlanta was canceled forcing me to overnight in Philly.

As you can see my hotel room afforded me a wonderful view of Citizens Bank Park home of the Philadelphia Phillies.

After 30 years of playing at Veterans Stadium, the Philadelphia Phillies began a new chapter in their history in April 2004 with the opening of Citizens Bank Park. Just as more than a dozen other MLB teams have since 1991, the Phillies wanted a new ballpark built to replace perhaps the worst stadium in the second half of the 20th century, Veterans Stadium.

The Philadelphia Phillies christened Citizens Bank Park on April 12, 2004 against the Cincinnati Reds. The ballpark has a capacity of 43,647 and consists of three levels, the lower deck, a suite level, and the upper deck. The main grandstand extends from the left field foul pole to homeplate, to the right field foul pole, and into right center field. There is a break in the upper deck along the first base side, allowing the seating area to be closer to the field. Additional seating is located behind the left field fence. One notable feature is the seating bowl, which has many angles, similar to Shibe Park. The main scoreboard/video board is located above these seats. Nearly 400 bleacher seats are located on the roof of the outfield pavilion. Fans are able to see the skyline of downtown Philadelphia from beyond the center field fence. Split level bullpens are located in right center field. Citizens Bank Park has many amenities, including restaurants and a team store.

For more visit: http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/phi/ballpark/index.jsp

Reading and Columbia Railroad and Stations in Lititz, PA.

Lititz PA is home to the most beautifully rebuilt Train Depot I have seen in the US and what a history!

The Reading & Columbia Rail Road started with the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad Company chartered April 4, 1833 by an Act of the Pennsylvnia Legislature. This is all part of a complex story that began locally in 1857 with generated interest in a railroad between Reading and Columbia. A group of influential citizens from Lancaster andBerks Counties secured passage of a charter creating the Reading & Columbia Rail Road Company, which was signed by Governor James Pollock on May 19, 1857.

Upon the demise of passenger service, the Reading Company no longer required the passenger depot erected on the land leased from the Lititz Moravian Congregation. On August 24, 1953, the 999 year Agreement of Lease was terminated. The last complete passenger train to pass through Lititz was on October 28, 1952, at 11:11 a.m.; a special train carrying presidential candidate Adlai E. Stevenson.The 1863 depot was demolished for the building of the Ideal Cocoa & Chocolate Company factory (now Wilbur Chocolate Company); and the 1884 passenger depot and freight station was demolished in May of 1957 to make way for construction of a modern entrance to Lititz Springs Park through the generosity of Elmer H. Bobst, who provided $100,000. for improvements to the Park.On April 1, 1976, the bankrupt Reading Company ceased being an operating railroad ending 143 years of railroading.The "Golden Era" of the Reading & Columbia Rail Road is gone, but a certain spirit feeling of the "good old days" will continue to linger on in the years to come, especially with the construction and dedication on May 8, 1999 for the replica of the 1884 Lititz Passenger Depot and Express Station on the same northwest corner within Lititz Springs Park.

Lititz Springs Park, Lititz PA.

For over 200 years the Lititz Moravian Church maintained the Lititz Springs Park and kept it open to the public. However, over the years, the maintenance of the park became an increasing burden to the congregation. The park grounds were turned over to the community of Lititz, Pennsylvania through a 'Declaration of Trust' on October 19, 1956. This placed the management and operation of the park in the hands of a 12 member Board of Trustees comprised of representatives of various local churches and several members-at-large.Today, Lititz Springs Park, Inc.is a non-profit organization and is not supported by tax revenues. Consequently, the park is maintained through volunteer help; conducted by the trustees; and the rental of park facilities.

For more visit: http://www.lititzspringspark.org/lsphistory.html

Wilbur Chocolate Company

Thsi week saw me back in Lancaster PA visiting CVS stores. I stayed in Lititz PA home of Wilbur Chocolates!

In 1865 Mr. Henry Oscar Wilbur and Samuel Croft started a confectionery business in Philadelphia, PA. Operating under the name of Croft, Wilbur & Co., they produced molasses candies and hard candies.

In 1884 Wilbur and Croft decided to separate the business into a Cocoa and Chocolate Manufacturer and a Candy Manufacturer. H.O. Wilbur & Sons manufactured the chocolate products, while Croft and Allen continued the candy business. H.O. Wilbur was assisted by his three sons: William Nelson, Harry L., and Betram K.

In October of 2002 Wilbur Chocolate Co. purchased Peter's Chocolate from Nestlé USA of Glendale, California. Peter's Chocolate is a leading supplier of premium chocolates with a loyal customer base throughout North America.

For more visit: http://www.wilburchocolate.com

Spring has Sprung!

Yes it's that time of year again. Spring had sprung in the south which means one thing, yard work!

Pigeon Forge TN

Last week found me visiting a CVS in Pigeon Forge TN.

During the late 1700s, settlers from the Carolinas followed old Indian trails through the Smoky Mountains along the Pigeon River to what is today, known as Pigeon Forge. Pioneer Isaac Love established an iron forge in 1820 and his son, William, built a tub mill ten years later. The Old Mill, now a National Historic Site, remains operational. The iron forge and the flocks of pigeons that fed along the river banks in the early years gave the town its name.

Located in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains in eastern Tennessee, Pigeon Forge is within a day's drive of two-thirds of the nation's population east of the Mississippi River. The resort town is 33 miles southeast of Knoxville, four miles south of Sevierville, six miles north of Gatlinburg and five miles north of the most popular park in the U.S., Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Pigeon Forge is equally famous for its more than 200 factory outlets and specialty stores. Packed with music theaters and family attractions, it is also home to the state's top attractions like Dollywood.

For more visit: http://www.mypigeonforge.com and http://www.dollywood.com

Leaving NYC

Bye, Bye NTC! See you in a few months!

Several months of trips to NYC and Detroit have finally come to an end but LA seems to be in my future!

Flintstone Park

Like most of the area Flintstone Park is in decline. Now surrounded by a chain link fence to either keep something in or out the park is sadly in need of repair! The stately Flintstone house has been long since removed and replaced by a play set!

My sister will shed a tear when she looks at this picture.

Neighbors!

Here's a picture of the Hamborsky and Sarc houses on Ashton Street.

The yard between are two houses was the best camp ground and ice rink two kids could have ever had :-)

S.S. Kresge

Before discount stores popped up all across America, there were the variety stores. For decades, Middle America shopped at these stores for their basic needs – housewares and kitchen items, linens, basic clothing, shoes, school supplies, toys and so on. Many variety stores had snack bars or luncheonettes.

S.S. Kresge Company, based in Detroit and officially founded in 1911 by Sebastian Spering Kresge, was the number three variety chain in the US at the dawn of the sixties, behind F.W. Woolworth and W.T. Grant. At the end of 1960, Kresge had 759 variety stores.

Pictured here was the Rosedale Park S.S. Kresge were I worked after school in the toy department under the supervision of Mrs. Bauer for a $1.50 an hour, lol!

Now a Dollar Deals it sits in the decayed plaza where as children we use to roam.

Cunningham Drug Store

Longtime Rosedale Parkers will recognize this building as a former Cunningham's drug store. Cunningham's was once the leading local drugstore chain in Detroit but it has been supplanted by national retailers and is now out of business.

The ghosts of children drinking vanilla cokes with their sting ray bikes outside in a pile can be seen by many of us if we close our eyes :-(

14551 Ashton St

In 1966 our family immigrated to the US from Canada and moved to the Rosedale Park area of Detroit MI and 14551 Ashton St.

The area was beautiful with shaded tree lined streets, well kept homes and lawns.

In the 1970s, when Coleman Young, the city's first black mayor, took office in the wake of civil rights strife, many whites fled to the suburbs, polarizing the area and seeding bitterness that remains palpable to this day.

As many longtime Detroiters fled the crime and grit the city slowly became a fortress of malfeasance and poverty.
Now Detroit sits on the verge of bankruptcy, beset by political scandal, a declining population, troubled industry, high crime and unemployment rates and one of the worst school systems in the country.

It's sad and deeply depressing to see our area now.