The Maroon Vol. 2… No. 61 Tuesday, August 9, 2022
“Bringing us all to a place we don't want to lose."
Observer: Drought
Macky’s New York: Get Up Stand Up
William Peay: Tales From The Wood…
RHS Athletic Hall Of Fame: Save The Date: Nov. 5th 2022
M + A NYC: Mighty Are We As One
Jim Schoneman: Rock Hound
Warren Gorlick: Travels To The Galapagos
Daniel Hill: Social Media Strategist
Kathy & Ross Petras: You’re Saying It Wrong
Observer
Drought
According to the National Integrated Drought Information System: As of August 2, 2022, 43.16% of the U.S. and 51.39% of the lower 48 states are in drought.
Whether you believe in man-made climate change or think it is a hoax, you have to admit our country is scorching. All-time records for temperatures are also being toppled around the world.
In my corner of Long Island we’re experiencing mild drought. No water restrictions yet. I can still go outside in good conscience and water the little slice of happiness I call a garden. In light of the drought, I am making plans to grow more drought resistant plants. I have an abundance of perennial evergreen shrubs called Yucca filamentosa in the ‘Excalibur’ family that I can transplant to fill up the sunny parts of the garden. I’ll be planting english ivy to fill in the shady parts of the garden. The mulberry trees which dominate the garden will be given a trim so they don’t litter the sidewalk with their berries. The shade they provide helps keep us all cool.
My guess is we will all be adding more extensive weather apps to our phones and that our conversations regarding weather will grow more serious and fact-based. Talking about the weather will become more than just a way to start a conversation, it will be the Conversation!
Macky’s New York
Matthew Cortellesi Photography
July 24, 2022 - Union Square
Get Up Stand Up
I was taking this photo as a tourist rode past against the wind...funny how people stand up on their bike peddles while they ride through water- is it for balance or to keep their butt dry.
This is a pure reflection shot on Union Square west just north of 14th street looking north with Metropolitan Life Insurance building in distance.
Time 1230pm
#ny1pic
William Peay
Tales From The Wood…
Home Sweet Home by The New York Times...
RHS Athletic Hall Of Fame
Save The Date: November 5, 2022
Visit The RHS Athletic Hall Of Fame & Order Tickets for 2022 Inductees Banquet
Digital Printing for the RHS Hall of Fame provided by Tim Boucher, RHS 1988
M + A NYC
Mighty Are We As One
M + A is a destination devoted to art, artists, artisans and design. We are inspired by art as it relates to design: the soul, the spark that ignites beautiful ideas. We are equally as motivated by craft traditions passed down from generations.
Shop home décor and wearable accessories at www.mplusanyc.com
Jim Schoneman
Rock Hound
I call this piece "Cube of Granite Sitting on an Oreo Rock." It could also be called "This Guy Has Way Too Much Time on His Hands."
Warren Gorlick
Travels To The Galapagos
Peggy and I just came back from a two-week trip in Ecuador, the highlight of which was an eight-day boat cruise through the Galapagos. The trip was lovely, but not without its challenges.
It was just the 14 of us on the boat, Peggy’s former boss, Charles, was the common thread who arranged for various of his friends to share the charter boat rental. It was a modest boat (cruise boats aren't permitted in the Galapagos, but most of the boats are bigger and look like Russian oligarch boats). Our boat was small and cramped, the room that Peggy and I shared was windowless, the air was stale inside, and we slept in bunkbeds. People were seasick and one passenger broke some bones taking a shower on a day the sea was particularly rough, and then she had the misfortune of testing positive for Covid while getting x-rays. I have to think we were all exposed, and in fact Peggy and I did feel a little under the weather for a few days. Peggy also got bitten by a sea lion while swimming, there was a dramatic amount of blood but other than that it was just made for a good conversation topic at dinner. So I am not complaining, just noting that a Galapagos tour is not the same as going on your typical cruise boat from, say, Florida or Alaska.
And it was half the cost of a Nat'l Geo-Lindblad tour, so I guess you get what you pay for. We were also helped by the fact that the weather was remarkably cool, even though we crossed the equator numerous times, the weather never got above the high 70s, on account of a strong south pole current that runs up the South American Atlantic coast. The boat company gave us high quality wet suits to keep us warm while we swam in the ocean, which helped a lot.
And we had a great guide, he actually grew up on these islands and took over his parent's charter boat rental company. These days, he is rarely in the Galapagos, he spends most of his time doing Nat'l Geo-Lindblad expeditions to the South Pole and places like that. One of the other passengers knew of his reputation and asked for him for this trip. Our guide had us snorkeling and hiking every day, and it was an awesome experience to see the sea turtles below us in the water, and the iguanas, tortoises and sea lions on land, all seeming in peaceful harmony with each other.
Of course, we all wondered how we would get along, the 14 of us, about half of them are Charles’ neighbors in Oakland and Berkeley CA, but the rest of us only knew Charles, and not anyone else. But it was great, everyone got along splendidly. On the ship, meals were served family style (not big buffets like on a cruise, but a rather modest piece of meat or fish and some vegetables and rice – I happily lost some weight on the trip), but it was always quite tasty.
After the trip, Peggy and I stayed in the charming Galapagos port city of Puerto Ayora for a few days. Once we flew back to the mainland, and because of civic unrest in Quito, which has since subsided, we chose to stay in a charming little town near the airport, Tababela, rather than go all the way into Quito, where there were food shortages due to the roadblocks. We did go into Quito for one day, and it was amazing, one of the first UNESCO world heritage sites, and lovely Spanish architecture everywhere. And going into Quito, we went right by the fiery Cotopaxi volcano that von Humboldt tried (but failed) to climb on his epic south American journey in 1802. After the great friendly atmosphere of Puerto Ayora and Tababela, it was sad to see militarized police on every street corner. Still, notwithstanding the recent unrest, the country is doing well, there is pretty much universal agreement that moving to the U.S. dollar was a good thing, and the strength of the dollar is helping the overall economy.
Daniel Hill
Digital Creator: I teach people how to build an audience.
LIFE HACK PRO TIP: With the @zoom free account, your meetings will never go longer than 39 minutes.
Kathy & Ross Petras
You’re Saying It Wrong
desultory
Incidentally, it’s tempting to pronounce it otherwise, but with desultory, the accent is on the first syllable. For some reason, to many ears de-SUL-tory sounds classier, quasi-British. It also sounds right probably because of its similarity to common words like “insulting,” which, of course has a stress on the second syllable. But when it comes to desultory, it’s very, very wrong. More