"On my way... and back...." written by Janelle on estrip.org

03/22/09 02:56 - 38ºF - ID#48154

On my way... and back....

On my way and back from my short hiking trip (see my last post) I drove through rural NY and I saw...

Reindeer
A camel
Horses
A home that looked inhabitable in which someone was actually living.
Two homes with graveyards in the backyard. I mean, they could open up their back door and touch a grave stone.
Pussy Willows which might be of interest to those planning on celebrating Dyngus day.
An all you could eat Pancake Breakfast at a VFW Hall at which point I almost stopped.
And Greek news coverage of Greek politics, American politics, Venezuelan politics and a general interest story about someone who puts blankets of lights on on all the sheeps in the herd and then trains them to perform a routine...sort of like a marching band.

Permalink: On_my_way_and_back_.html
Words: 134
Location: Buffalo , NY

03/22/09 02:41 - 38ºF - ID#48153

Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge

I bundled up this morning and went hiking at Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge. It's a small wildlife preserve about 45 minutes from Buffalo. East on I90 and north on rural route 77.

I planned on hiking the Swallow Hollow trail followed by the Onondoga trail. Finding the Swallow Hollow trailhead was incredibly easy as it was well marked with signs.

The trail is about 1.3 miles long and takes you through a marsh area. Part of the trail is on a wide, well maintained gravel path and part of the trail is on a well maintained wooden boardwalk right above the marsh. The trail takes you directly through marsh land with an incredible variety of bird calls filling the air. Followed by marsh is a small section of pine followed by a small section of hardwood trees. Then you walk along a dike that takes you around a small marshy pond. Along the way, there is a clearing in the woods for a terrific view across the marshy pond. Standing for a few minutes I saw seagulls, hawks, blackbirds, and canadian geese. Further along the marshy pond signs indicated that you could see snapping turtles and woodland ducks, but my guess is that I would have to come back later in the spring for those sights.

It was an easy walk allowing for no illusions of trail blazing or adventure. It's a good trail for someone who wants to see nature but doesn't want to work very hard or get dirty. Good for little kids too, I would think. Possibly good for someone in a wheel chair. Not a lot of incline or decline and there is a ramp at the trail head that allows wheel chair access down to the path. I would go again just for the wild life viewing opportunities.

I tried going to the Onondaga trail to give that a try but the road to the trailhead is closed between December 1st and April 1st. I was a little disappointed that they didn't post that information on the website.

Permalink: Iroquois_National_Wildlife_Refuge.html
Words: 340
Location: Buffalo , NY

03/14/09 09:34 - 22ºF - ID#48047

SIMS model experiment

So the experiment

quickly took a nose dive.

The family that was supposed to be rapidly procreating was doing it by adoption. It hit a snag however. Adoption in the SIM world, just like in the real world, requires a set amount of finances. I managed to sell furniture and other possessions to adopt the first two, but by the third adoption it was just impossible. So I decided to have the third baby the natural way.

While pregnant with the third baby, mom was a little sleepy quite a bit of the time and didn't understand the real dangers of hypothermia. The oldest boy was out playing in the snow in the afternoon too long. He came in the house after getting too cold, but mom didn't know to gently warm him up.

Next thing I know, there's a social worker at the door.... and well... you know the rest of the story...social worker takes the kid. She even came back after mom had the baby and took the baby too.

So I started over with a pre-made SIMS family with mom, dad, teenager, child and toddler. And immediately set mom and dad to work on having a baby. I think this is cheating though, because usually by the time you have a teenager it gets a lot easier because they are a third adult to help around the house. But we will see if the teenager will help or if they will rebel and runaway to college.

Permalink: SIMS_model_experiment.html
Words: 256
Location: Buffalo , NY

03/12/09 11:14 - 22ºF - ID#48026

Barreling over Niagara Falls

Last night (e:Drew) was reading me the story about the dude who went over the Falls and miraculously survived. This news story led to an argument as to wether or not it was safer to just jump into the falls or use a barrel.

(e:Drew) said the barrels were safer and I argued that surely one could break their neck or other bones in the course of the fall if inside a barrel. (e:Drew) countered that people could be packed in the barrels and I imagined curling up inside a barrel and having styrofoam peanuts stuffed in around me so I wouldn't bump around and break.

So today I found a link that explains the different daredevils who have barreled over the falls and the techniques/equipment they used and the results. I think the most interesting barrel story is the guy in a barrel who survived the fall, but the barrel was trapped behind the falls for 14 hours where no one could reach him and he died from suffocation:

Permalink: Barreling_over_Niagara_Falls.html
Words: 182
Location: Buffalo , NY

03/07/09 09:08 - 38ºF - ID#47979

Overwhelmed

I went to Talking Leaves tonight to buy a book with a gift certificate some people so thoughtfully purchased for me for my birthday.

I browsed the store for nearly an hour.

Fiction versus non-fiction. Standard literature versus classical literature. US author versus a foreign author translated into English. Travel book or food book or travel-food book. Book of Local Interest. Book I'll read again versus book I'll only read once. Number of pages of book versus cost of book.

I found myself overwhelmed at all the books and was unable to select one.

I had to leave book-less.

I'm such a dork.

Permalink: Overwhelmed.html
Words: 103
Location: Buffalo , NY

03/07/09 11:43 - 44ºF - ID#47974

House Assessment

So...to all you home owners out there.... how did you make out on challenging your assessment? They increased the assessed value of our house by $15,000 originally. They knocked off $7000 after we challenged it. I fought the man and I won... sort of...

janelle writes at 09:01:59 03/07/09 - Comment #46233: It should always be implied that I kick ass. 'Cause, ya know, I do.

james writes at 07:49:18 03/07/09 - Comment #46232: I should have also not implied, but rather explicitly said, that Janelle kicks ass.

james writes at 07:12:31 03/07/09 - Comment #46231: I'm sorry. I didn't mean to imply that tons of people got it rolled back and you, by virtue of your own stupidity, didn't manage to accomplish that simple task. Because it is hard as fuck and the home inspection would probably cost you what you would pay in taxes at the new assessed level.

I was just saying it wasn't impossible. Most people who challenged and had some supporting documentation had no change or had a reduction like you.

drew writes at 07:02:38 03/07/09 - Comment #46230: That was Janelle below, btw.

drew writes at 07:02:11 03/07/09 - Comment #46229: Thanks, James. I was feeling pretty good about it getting rolled back some....until you commented.

I knew that it would not have been rolled all the way back because I was honest about the work done on our porch which cost about $3500. I didn't want to be a big liar pants, considering that there were plenty of issues in the house to document.

I sent in a lot of pictures of our insides of the house, water in the basement, cracks in the walls, and the documentation from our home inspector that notes various work that needs done. I think that the home inspection documentation had to be the most helpful, backed up with pictures.

james writes at 06:05:00 03/07/09 - Comment #46227: My office just got results from all the assessments in the district. There were a bunch of people who got the assessment rolled back all the way.

The assessment process works like this. Some guy drives up to your house and takes a few photos and drives off. The interior could be all cinders and they would still think the place is worth 160k. Looking over the files, the ones who were successful in fighting it had photos of the interior with yummy things like mold, water damage, unfinished rooms, etc. A private assessment was done and the city-assessed value was compared to that number and other comparable homes' values per square foot.

Had I known this a few months ago Janelle I would have sent you an email.

janelle writes at 05:25:40 03/07/09 - Comment #46226: My understanding is that you can never get them to roll it back all the way. And I will take something over nothing.

Let's hope they don't reassess in a year or so again...

paul writes at 04:56:10 03/07/09 - Comment #46222: That's awesome. I can't wait till we have to deal with this ;(

gardenmama writes at 02:57:45 03/07/09 - Comment #46219: Congratulations - sort of. From what Iâ€™ve been hearing you actually did pretty well. My understanding is there have been quite a number of people who havenâ€™t had any luck getting them to reduce the amount of their initial set increase. Iâ€™d certainly say half less is definitely better than not at all.

Permalink: House_Assessment.html
Words: 43
Location: Buffalo , NY

03/06/09 08:51 - 54ºF - ID#47968

A taste of spring in the air

Last night there was the smell of spring in the air. So I grabbed the dog and hit Elmwood for a walk down the avenue. I joined the other folks on the street who were also excited by the warm, soft feeling in the air. I landed at a friends' house where I made a surprise visit and we idly chatted away an hour of the evening on their front porch.

As I walked home after the visit I thought about why I didn't stop by my friends' house more often throughout the winter to say hello and I realized that warm weather is much more conducive to spontaneous social activities. I think next winter my goal will be to be more spontaneous through out the season. To keep a well stocked house full of food, DVDs, alcohol and games in order to be ready for last minute get togethers over the winter or for surprise drive bys at friends.

On the other hand, there is some I like about the rthym of coming together with friends slowly in the spring and being crazy busy with friends over the summer, then slowly falling away in the fall and hibernating in the winter.

As a side note, my friends requested that I bring my home made hummus to their upcoming cocktail party and it turned my sad day into a happy day. I love that my hummus is so well liked that someone would specifically request I bring it!

Permalink: A_taste_of_spring_in_the_air.html
Words: 248
Location: Buffalo , NY

03/04/09 12:52 - 24ºF - ID#47943

My favorite cut of meat

is featured in the NY Times along with one of my favorite ways of prepping it. Mhhh... chicken fried steak ....

Permalink: My_favorite_cut_of_meat.html
Words: 30
Location: Buffalo , NY

02/22/09 04:51 - 25ºF - ID#47861

Sims as a model for human experiments

Since you are often limited in conducting true experiments with a control and a variable when using humans as test subjects, I've decided to use The SIMS as a model.

Subject A will be the Amin and Lydia Christian family that is currently working on having one child which they will be responsible for rearing through childhood up to college. They will have one and only one child.

Subject B will be a not yet known family that will adopt as many children as they can until they reach the status of elder. As soon as a baby becomes a toddler they will adopt a new baby and so on.

It should provide some grounds for observations on small family versus large family rearing as well as several future blog posts, I hope.

Permalink: Sims_as_a_model_for_human_experiments.html
Words: 133
Location: Buffalo , NY

02/21/09 03:32 - 33ºF - ID#47851

Another WBC post

I mentioned the whole Fred Phelps thing on a forum where I post and I received this interesting response from a person who lives in Topeka, which is either the hometown for the church or really near it.

The woman who posted is from a fairly conservative church and even they got picketed once according to her.

You guys, in all honesty it is best to just ignore Fred Phelps and his gang as they can't be reasoned with. They will stand there and argue until they are blue in the face, they are so brainwashed. We use to live in Topeka, Ks. and you learn pretty quickly to either ignore them or act civil with them...one time they tried to pickett our church because a college associated with our denomination was supposedly too liberal and supported Gays ... some of our deacons went outside and invited them to come in and join our church service and it was so funny they immediately left ... anger doesn't get anywhere, but kindness burns them.

What really burns them is to ignore them though, they do all this for public attention and if you don't give them any public acknowledgement they will feel slighted

They have to go other places now, because they don't get the rise in Topeka like they use to be able to...the more places ignore them, the sooner they will start to fade into the woodwork of the local looney bin.

metalpeter writes at 10:17:21 02/22/09 - Comment #45807: First of all I did know (not well and haven't seen the person in a long time maybe 7th grade) in the crash. I can't imagine what it would be like to be someone in the direct family. You are looking forward to seeing them and then this happens. Dealing with that is tough enough. But then on top of that you have people saying that your loss of a loved one is because God is punishing you.... I can not imagine what I would do if I was one of the people in one of those families. I would hope that I could deal with it, and not lose it, but I wouldn't blame anyone who was there and saw a protester and decided to go after them. That is why I think the Angle Idea is such a good idea. Yes it is a very respectful and symbolic gesture. I think is also helps guard the family of loved ones of the people who where lost.

Now in terms of the News coverage of it. That is where things get tricky. I think people need to know the entire story. The problem is how do you do it in a respective way that isn't "Dirty Laundery" yes sometimes the news exploits victims for their own gain. What I would suggest is news copter up high enough so you can't hear them and they all zoom in. Then each station sets up maybe a few thousand feet away and they set up places where if people want to talk they can on camera. I will admit it is a tricky thing and there is a lot of gray area on it should be covered. I think the news stations need to understand that if they just film the protesters a certain way that could make them more fired up and get things out of control. The news is there to record what happens and not make the news.

libertad writes at 04:02:27 02/22/09 - Comment #45801: This disaster isn't really all that distant. I know of at least four people personally who knew someone on that plane and I also know that two within Roswell have lost family members. I didn't know anyone so I will not be attending the service but will be outside of it.

(e:janelle), I certainly didn't intend to imply that you haven't thought about this. I just wanted people to think of that point that I was trying to make and that is that this is a way to honor the victims as well as to protect them. I am also praying for the families and for the people who have died and I also decided to take action. You have too and I respect that. I don't know if I completely agree that the news should not include something which I actually think is newsworthy. I do think that the news should not focus as much on the hateful messages of a few but rather the communities response to this hate and the show of support that was caused by it. Of course, the most important thing for them to focus on is the stories of the lives that were lost. Those people were valuable to this community.

james writes at 12:45:38 02/22/09 - Comment #45797: I feel much the same way.

I am not affected by the crash, thankfully. It is a disaster like any other, distant and unfamiliar. I feel bad for the people involved, but going to the service serves no purpose. I would go to the service entirely out of spite for Phelps.

janelle writes at 09:29:36 02/21/09 - Comment #45795: (e:Paul):

I ultimately decided to stay away because I don't know a single person who died in the crash. I would have never considered going if it weren't for Phelps.

Friday, I e-mailed Buffalo ABC, CBS, and NBC news stations asking them to keep the focus on the loss of lives and to not report on Phelps and his group because they thrive off of the media spotlight.

I'll also be praying for the families on Sunday; praying for the people who are going to the memorial to show support; and praying for way to turn the evil into good.

paul writes at 09:23:16 02/21/09 - Comment #45794: How are you going to react to it Janelle? I am at the point where I don't even think I can go because I feel like I couldn't handle myself.

janelle writes at 08:10:38 02/21/09 - Comment #45793: (e:Libertad) - "Think about it."

I have thought about it. I think a lot of people are thinking right now about how they would feel if they were the families; how they feel knowing that this person is coming to town; how they feel that this group says they are Christians.... how they would or should respond to it....

I think there are a lot of valid responses to this situation. I'm not judging anyone's decision how to handle it. I just thought I would share one person's very real and personal experience with this group and their resulting opinion.

I've made my own decision how to respond to it after a lot of thought generated by all these posts. The beauty of e-strip =)

tinypliny writes at 07:10:36 02/21/09 - Comment #45789: Oh the other hand, if I had lost my family and went to a service for them, I would feel miserable if people were shouting slogans against my family. :(

So if I knew people were showing up in support, I would definitely feel a little better.

libertad writes at 07:06:42 02/21/09 - Comment #45788: This really isn't a protest. This is just going to be a show of support for those who have lost loved ones. These people are coming from out of town with a goal of hurting people who are already suffering. The way that we respond is essential here. What that woman said is important. These people can not be reasoned with. I have a lot of experience dealing with religious extremists already, although the ones that I have dealt with wouldn't sink this low.

I feel fairly certain that those attending the services will feel some comfort knowing that so many people can mobilize within days in order to respond to this evil. The times that I have been hurt the most by hate is when others knew that it was happening but didn't come to my defense. Think about it.

lauren writes at 05:29:07 02/21/09 - Comment #45779: I agree with this in a lot of ways...it is best to ignore them...however, they like to show up to things were people want/need to be...ie, they came to New Paltz when people where getting married... are you just not going to show up to a wedding? And same with this...going to a memorial service where people want to show their respect to the dead...therefore, I think the best way to deal is SILENT protest...don't give them any attention what so ever. It's tempting, but they've been at this for years and haven't changed so why bother?