Category Archives: Community Events

Living History

Posted on September 25, 2011 by mohawkvalleygirl

Saturday I had a chance to attend an event I have always been interested in but never had the chance to go to: Living History Weekend at German Flatts Town Park.

The event ran from Friday Sept. 23 to Sunday Sept. 25 in the park, which is located adjacent to the Fort Herkimer Church, something else I’ve always wanted to check out. Steven and I drove out route 5S Saturday morning. We were too early for the battle reenactments, but reenactors were present with tents set up and fires burning. We admired their costumes.

I heard one Union soldier asking a Confederate soldier what was the quilt tied around his shoulder for.

“That’s my bed roll,” the other soldier said, in a quit asking stupid questions kind of voice.

“That’s you rebels,” the union soldier said. “You never know when they’re going to want to lie down and take a nap.”

“We don’t have supply trains following us around,” the Confederate told him. “We have to carry what we need with us.”

“That’s not something to brag about, Mr. Confederate Guy,” I told him, but he wasn’t listening to me. I started to give Steven an American history lecture about how much better prepared the North was for the Civil War, but he was not listening either. I don’t blame him; I was being rather didactic.

We walked around the tents they had setup, and checked out the vendors as well. A band was playing. We enjoyed the music, but I did not catch who they were. We purchased a Living History Weekend t-shirt and a plate of cookies.

The historic Fort Herkimer Church was not open, but we walked around the graveyard which surrounded it. A lot of the lettering on the grave stones had worn away. Some were obviously replacements of historic markers. We found one grave marked with the name of the street we live on (I won’t tell you what that is, because I don’t need anybody walking by my house and seeing how much the grass needs mowing). Steven said he knew our street was named after a prominent local family. I’ll have to research that a little more. Historic prominent local families might be a good subject for a future blog post.

We also looked at some displays of historic artifacts. Steven said the dental instruments looked scary.

“Modern dental instruments are scary,” I said.

“Modern dentists are scary,” said a man in a uniform. I agreed, although my own dentist, Dr. Zilka, is a very good dentist who I have never found to be particularly alarming. Hey, most of us don’t like going to the dentist.

We left for home, toying with the idea of returning for the afternoon’s battle reenactment or the evening’s fireworks. I mean to watch for future events at the Fort Herkimer Church, and I will definitely mark my calendar for next year’s Living History Weekend.

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HALO Hoedown

Posted on September 21, 2011 by mohawkvalleygirl

Sunday Steven and I went to the HALO Hoedown at Silverado, Marginal Road, Herkimer. HALO is the Helping Animals Live Organization, a no kill, no cage, not for profit cat shelter in Little Falls, NY. This was their third annual Hoedown. We had attended last year’s and enjoyed it. When I noticed it advertized again, I made a note.

We had a bad moment Sunday when Steven looked at the Community Calendar in the Telegram and saw the Hoedown listed for Saturday. I was sure it was Sunday. It was Sunday last year or I would not have been there (work schedule). For once, I managed to find something online (when it comes to computers, I am so twentieth century): HALO’s Facebook page (love that Facebook).

Misunderstanding cleared up, we headed over. The Hoedown had been going on for over an hour when we arrived. A large crowd seemed to be having a very good time. A lady at the door stamped our hands with a paw print after we’d paid our admission, in case we stepped out. That was a definite possibility for me, because it was warm in that place. I was foolishly wearing long sleeves. Oh well, who can predict how to dress this time of year?

We fought the crowd to get our tickets for the Chinese Auction. They offered a number of creatively put-together baskets. Two books, two coffee mugs, fancy tea and biscotti; two bottle of wine, cheese and candles; two DVDs with microwave popcorn. The cans you put the tickets in had labels telling the complete contents of the baskets. We passed on the gift cards but put in for a lovely picture of a rainbow. It’s always so fun to walk up and down deciding what you want to try for. I’m sad to report, we did not win anything. Then again, we had just purchased a number of really cool items at garage sales on Saturday. How much junk do we need (apparently more, because we keep buying it).

We found seats at the bar and settled down to enjoy the music. A number of talented musicians had volunteered their time for the event. We heard two groups, but I didn’t catch who they were. I drank a beer and took in the scene. It was quite a cross section of people, all ages, shapes and sizes. I saw a few cowboy hats, appropriate for the Silverado. Some people were two-stepping on the dance floor. I’d like to learn how to two step. Steven is not confident in his own abilities, but I’m fairly sure I can count to two.

We stayed long enough for some door prize drawings (again, we didn’t win), but left early enough to have some more of Sunday afternoon to enjoy. I later saw on Facebook (because of course I Liked HALO) that the fundraiser had been a resounding success. For more information about HALO check out their Facebook page or visit their website: http://www.halorescue.net.

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Saturday Spaghetti

Posted on September 20, 2011 by mohawkvalleygirl

I love church dinners. They are a great way to eat out, not spend a lot of money, and support the community. Saturday my church, Christ Episcopal in Herkimer, held a spaghetti dinner.

I must confess (and what better place than a church to confess?) that I have not been attending church lately. But they still consider me and Steven members, so we got a call earlier in the week asking us to donate a dessert. It was the first I’d heard of the dinner, and I said, “Yay!”

We attended last year’s spaghetti dinner with a sister and two nieces. It was the same weekend as Little Falls’ Garlic and Herb Festival, so we made a real weekend of it (alas, those were pre-blog days). We’ve also attended roast beef and ham dinners there. We’ve got some good cooks in our church.

We made brownies from a mix, adding chocolate chips, just to be a little fancy. We responsibly taste tested them once they had cooled. Then Steven wrapped them thoroughly to discourage further tasting (full disclosure: it was not completely effective).

Saturday afternoon we walked to the church to drop the brownies off. Tabby was happy to walk with us. Tabby loves our church. They do a Blessing of the Animals in October, which she has attended, and she has gone with us to drop things off for rummage sales or get prayer shawls blessed. She always meets nice people there who want to pet her, so the church has earned the Tabby Paw Print of Approval (more full disclosure: Tabby is a very nice dog who often meets people that want to pet her).

The sauce smelled enticing, and we could see a number of delicious-looking desserts had already been dropped off. A sign was posted warning one dessert per dinner. I wondered if they’d sell me more dessert for a further donation.

We could hardly wait for four o’clock when the dinner started. We left Tabby home this time and were among the first to arrive. We sat down with our generous servings, and Steven went to get us coffee. He needn’t have gone. There were a number of very nice kids offering to get people drinks and ready to take away plates when they were done.

Some other church members sat with us, so we had a nice visit while we ate. The spaghetti was cooked just right, not overcooked as can too easily happen at these large dinners. I confined myself to one dessert, per the sign, and that was quite sufficient after the generous serving of spaghetti (I knew I should have told that guy to stop when he was heaping on the noodles).

They were not doing a Chinese Auction as they do with some dinners, but they were doing a 50/50 raffle. We bought tickets but did not win.

Good food. Fun evening. Church dinners, check them out. Even if you don’t go to church, you probably eat food. And you can find church dinners anywhere, not just in the Mohawk Valley.

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My Saturday Morning Adventure

Posted on September 19, 2011 by mohawkvalleygirl

We began our Saturday in the Mohawk Valley with breakfast at Philly’s, formerly known as Chet’s, on South Caroline Street in Herkimer. I’ve blogged about Philly’s before, but it’s worth another mention. The food is good, and the service is fast. We both had eggs over medium with bacon and sourdough toast.

After breakfast we headed to a garage sale Steven had read about in the paper. It was a multiple household sale, so there was a lot of stuff. They had some old yearbooks, which I find fascinating. I remember looking at my mom and dad’s yearbooks when I was a kid. Different times. I found a compact and an old bowl I liked. They had a bunch of books that were free, so I took a few of those, too.

From the garage sale we drove to Middleville for a rummage sale at the Methodist Church. We had been at a rummage sale there before, so Steven knew right where it was (I had forgotten). Past Lady Carousel Woodworks, the Crystal Chandelier Restaurant, and the Diamond Mines, all potential future blog topics. There is an old graveyard behind the church I’d like to walk through sometime.

At the rummage sale we found a couple of books, a nice tin and a Christmas decoration (can’t have too many of those). They were having a bake sale as well, so we treated ourselves to some frosted sugar cookies. Yum! We peeked in the church itself before we left. It is quite beautiful.

We hit another garage sale, then drove back into town by way of some back country roads we had not been on before. That was an adventure. The roads twisted and turned through the hills, and we saw some lovely views of the countryside. Herkimer County is blessed with many such country roads. We made up our minds to drive through them again when the fall colors are at their peak.

One more garage sale tempted us before we got home. We purchased about four Christmas tins and an old fashioned Santa Claus candle. We returned home with our loot, all of which I have not even mentioned, much to the delight of our loyal dog. It wasn’t even noon. Plenty of time for further Mohawk Valley adventures.

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Paying Our Respects

Posted on September 18, 2011 by mohawkvalleygirl

I am a veteran. I almost never do much about it, except wear my field jacket in the cold weather and occasionally say things like, “I can carry that; I was in the Army!” Friday, however, Steven and I attended a ceremony honoring national POW/MIA recognition day in Myers Park in Herkimer sponsored by Chapter No. 827 Vietnam Veterans of America.

We walked down with our schnoodle Tabby, since the park is quite close to our house. We had meant to take a longer walk first, so Tabby would not be too restless, but time got away from us, as it is apt to do. I had in my hand two postcards to mail to soldiers, since the post office is nearby the park. I thought that was appropriate.

Some people were gathered when we arrived. We saw some American Legion guys in white shirts and black pants, two holding flags, two holding rifles. Steven hoped they would not fire the rifles and scare Tabby, but I said they were more likely to hold them at present arms during the ceremony. A man came up and thanked us for coming and asked if we would like to hold a candle for the missing soldiers. Of course we would. We had noticed several other people doing so as we had approached.

“If if starts to burn you, just drop it,” he said. The candles were in plastic cups with the bottoms ripped out. A lady also came up to us and said she recognized our dog as one who had been very well behaved during a concert in the park. Tabby wagged her tail.

“She’s just magically good,” I told her. “We don’t know how to train a dog.” I don’t want to take credit where none is due.

“She came that way,” Steven added.

The lady told us some troubles she was having with a dog she had rescued and petted Tabby before it was time for her to join the ceremony. Part of the ceremony was a small table set up with an empty chair. As a man was explaining the symbolism, I looked down and noticed our well-behaved dog had slipped her leash and wondered off. It was obviously not the moment to yell, “Where’s my dog?” which is our method at home when we don’t know where she is. Steven spotted her standing under a tree looking around. She wagged her tail when I went up to her and got her back on the leash. She stayed with us, so we could pay attention to the rest of the ceremony.

The table I was talking about had lemon on the plate to symbolize the soldiers’ bitter fate, and salt to symbolize the tears shed for them. The wine glass was upside down because they could not raise a toast with us, and the chair was empty because they were not with us. Then several people read the names of soldiers who were POW/MIA from Vietnam. The master of ceremonies read a story of one individual believed killed in action, putting a face to the name. He also read an excerpt from a book which I believe was titled Body of Secrets.

It was a short ceremony, but very moving. It was sometimes difficult to hear people talk, since they weren’t miked, but somehow that was appropriate too. We left feeling solemn and glad we went. I was especially glad to be mailing post cards to soldiers. I said an extra prayer for all who served.

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The End of the Run

Posted on August 23, 2011 by mohawkvalleygirl

When I crossed the finish line of the DARE 5K on Saturday, I neither felt or looked particularly triumphant. I was having a full blown VCD attack.

I suffer from Vocal Chord Dysfunction or VCD. When I overexert the muscles in my throat tighten to the point that air cannot get through. It looks and sounds a lot like asthma, but the cause and the cure are different. I rarely have attacks, because I sensibly slow down when I need to slow down. But I obviously can’t finish a 5K slowing down. Not with all those nice people clapping and cheering for me, as this crowd did for every finisher.

As I walked rather unsteadily into the Court House parking lot, trying to get a grip on myself, a very nice young man followed me in some concern. He got me a cup of cold water and offered me a chair.

“I’m better off walking around,” I managed to tell him. After a few deep breaths and a sip of water, I tried to explain to him briefly about VCD. I think he was mostly relieved at the fact that I was standing and talking coherently, and not passing out or dropping dead of a heart attack. It was really very helpful of him, because in getting my breath to explain to him why I was all right, I actually got my breath and was all right. And the water was very welcome. I didn’t get his name, but I noticed his number was 22, because 22 is my lucky number. So if anybody reading this blog knows who was number 22, tell him thanks again. I appreciate it.

After I drank more water, and got Tabby some water, I watched more runners come in. You see, I was not dead last. At one point I saw a whole group of young people running together. Turns out only one of them was finishing. The others had finished earlier and went back to run their friend in and encourage him. I thought that was really cool. As I said, the crowd cheered and clapped for everyone.

We walked over to where they had one of those bouncy houses, which Camille (my 6 year old niece) expressed an interest in. They were serving food, so I got a hamburger and a couple of cookies. Steven ate a cookie, but declined the meat. After a while the DJ started a limbo contest with the junior runners. I thought maybe I’d better leave before he invited the 5K participants to limbo, too. As I walked down the sidewalk, a young man was waiting to high five me. It was my friend number 22.

“You see, I’m doing much better,” I told him.

“I was a little worried about you,” he said.

“It was very nice of you,” I told him. So that was my DARE run. A challenge, a lot of fun, good hamburger, nice crowd, and a good Samaritan. I look forward to next year.

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I Finally Ran the DARE!

Posted on August 22, 2011 by mohawkvalleygirl

Saturday I finally ran the DARE 5K.

The night before the race, my sister Diane, niece Camille, nephew Tommy, husband Steve and of course dog Tabby walked to the bottom of College Hill so Tommy could see what was in store for him Saturday morning. Tommy lives in Liverpool and recklessly agreed to run the 5K with me having never seen the hill up to Herkimer County Community College (HCCC). He would have liked to walk all the way up it, but was overruled. We went for a long walk anyways, walking by the finish line and through Meyers Park, because Camille likes parks.

Saturday morning I walked over to the corner of Main and Church streets to pick up our numbers. Registration was in Christ Episcopal Church, which is the church I go to. They were just setting up. A lady told me pre-registrations were at 190, and they were expecting more registrations that day. Along with our numbers we got t-shirts, re-usable bags, and a few other goodies. Very nice for a $20 registration fee. Tabby, who had accompanied me, made a few new friends before we walked back to our house.

I love these smaller community runs. Of course the Boilermaker is exciting and overwhelming, but a smaller run is so relaxed and friendly. And an event walking distance from my house is awesome. No worries where to park the car!

The Youth Fun Run took place at 8:30 am. This was limited to children under 12, but parents were allowed to accompany them. I saw a few 5K numbers running along with the young participants. I thought that would be a great warm-up and made up my mind to do that next year, if possible, with my niece Camille. Everybody cheered the young runners as they came in. Some were very young. The littlest couldn’t have been more than two. Her father was carrying her. I yelled, “Good assist!” She ran the last few steps. What a cutie! Finally it was time for my event.

The start line was further down Main Street, almost at German. I was feeling plenty nervous by now. I don’t know why. I kept saying, “After all, somebody has to finish last. It might as well be me. People can laugh and point.” Several people assured me that even if I was last, people would cheer not laugh, and Tommy was of the opinion that I would not be last.

“Just don’t walk,” he advised me. “However slow you run, just don’t walk.” Good advice. In fact, that is my usual method.

Once we started the run was a lot of fun. Tommy took off strong, and I soon lost sight of him. I daresay I could have gotten a better time if I didn’t wave to the people on the sidelines cheering us on. Of course the cheering sections were not as big as at the Boilermaker (why do I feel I must compare every run to that?), but I was impressed with the number of people along the way shouting encouragement. As I have mentioned in previous blogs, I also like to call out remarks as I run. I didn’t feel much like doing that as I ran up College Hill (although I felt proud of the fact that I did not walk, as others did), but on the way down I shouted, “Gravity is my friend!”

“I think it’s everybody’s friend about now,” another runner said.

When we reached the off-road portion, I yelled, “I always wanted to know where this path went! I’m all excited!” I guess I was feeling a little high after the uphill exertion. A small group was cheering for us at the turn to the path. “Thank you for your support!” I told them.

There were a couple of uphill portions on the path, which I took exception to. At the top of College Hill, somebody had posted a sign saying it was all downhill from there. I believed it, but it was a lie! Other runners did not seem to feel these little upslopes were a problem, so I suppose I was just being that way.

After a while, a runner way ahead of me turned around and said, “Don’t stop, Aunt Cindy, you’re almost there!” I immediately suspected Tommy had walked, or I would never have gotten that close. Then again, he was definitely still ahead of me.

“Good job, Tommy!” I yelled.

Later on German Street I did catch up with him. We passed Bellinger. “Just Prospect, then Main,” I told him, giving him benefit of my familiarity with the geography. We almost caught up with another runner who turned around when he heard our feet. “Don’t look back, just keep going, you’re almost there,” I encouraged. He did, and I did not come close to him again.

Once we got on Main Street, Tommy took off and left me in the dust. I sprinted at the end too. And I see now my word count is over 800. This is the longest post ever! This is about a 5K, not a marathon! Is anybody still reading? I’ll finish up about the DARE 5K tomorrow. Remember, we left me approaching the finish line!

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I Prepare for the DARE

Posted on August 20, 2011 by mohawkvalleygirl

As I write on Friday the DARE 5K is bearing down on me! And since I’ve had an extra hour’s sleep and three cups of coffee this morning, I feel pretty terrific about it.

I ran up the hill to Herkimer County Community College (HCCC) Saturday, Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. The Tuesday and Thursday runs were quite an effort, because I did them in the hot 4 p.m. sun after working a 10 hour day. On Tuesday’s run as I started the downhill portion I felt like Wesley in The Princess Bride after being introduced to Count Ruger’s torture device. If you’ve never seen the movie (and if you haven’t, I highly recommend you do), he cries like a baby. That’s what I felt like doing, but was sure my body lacked sufficient hydration for such an action.

See, normally I hit the spring during that run and at least get a sip or two. I know there are water stations on the 5K (for one thing I can see “H2O,” a water drop and an arrow spray painted on the hill), but I didn’t take any water on the only other 5K I’ve run. I can run at least a half hour without water. Will a 5K take me more than a half hour? We shall see.

Tuesday I saw a girl sitting on a porch. She smiled and waved.

“You look so comfortable!” I said. “That’s what I’d rather be doing!”

Thursday I felt a little better. I looked for the girl on the porch, but she wasn’t there. Then I saw a lady across the street.

“That’s what I need to do!” I called. “Find myself some shade and sit down!” I like to call out remarks when I run.

I ran just a little bit further on Thursday, by virtue of seeking out the shadiest sidewalks to run down. The nice thing about running is that even if you don’t feel particularly good after a run, you usually feel good that you ran, if you know what I mean.

The DARE 5K, once again, is Saturday, August 20, beginning and ending in front of the 1834 Jail in Herkimer. For more information, check the Herkimer DARE Facebook page or call the police department, 866-4330.

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Additional Adventures in Little Falls

Posted on August 18, 2011 by mohawkvalleygirl

Steven and I drove over the bridge to Canal Place, continuing our Little Falls adventures last Saturday.

Our first stop was the Mohawk Valley Center for the Arts where the Annual Regional Fine Arts Exhibition was on display. The Telegram had printed a picture of one painting that had won a prize, and I wanted to see the original. It was a painting of a lady at some sort of party and she looked as if she was about to say something interesting. I was so impressed that the artist had put such expression in the face. There were other works of art on display that were lovely or striking or just plain cool.

We chatted up the lady that was working there. Steven mentioned a gorgeous frog the center had been selling raffle tickets for during the Garlic Festival. Alas, he had not won. The lady showed us some paintings that were currently being raffled. We took a flier and may take a chance on one of them.

After the Arts Center it was just across the street to Chicks Along the Canal. This was an outdoor market billing itself as “Cheeky Chic Chicks and Savvy Woman Entrepreneurs.” We strolled through the booths, admiring various wares. We only purchased some mix for a horseradish dip, but we picked up several business cards for future reference.

A band was playing, and Steven heard a song he particularly likes. We moved closer to listen and ended up sitting down and enjoying the performance for the rest of the time they were on. We found out the band was Common Thread. Although many in the crowd (me included) called for an encore, the lead singer said they must make way for other bands. I know good ones were scheduled all day.

I was getting a little overheated as the day warmed up, so we walked into the shops to enjoy the air conditioning and look at antiques. We purchased some post cards of Little Falls, so be sent to some soldiers I know. We left for home, having had a wonderful day in Little Falls.

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More Little Falls Fun

Posted on August 17, 2011 by mohawkvalleygirl

This is a continuation of our delightful day in Little Falls partaking of the Canal Celebration activities.

After leaving Eastern Park we noticed signs saying “Book Sale Today” at the public library, which was right across the street. We decided to hit that on our way back and continued down Main Street.

The time was about 11:30, and I knew the Farmers Market ran till noon. It was a lovely morning for a walk, and Main Street in Little Falls is distinctive. Steven says it looks like an old fashioned town, and he’s right. There is a strip mall across the street, but the side we were on had a covered sidewalk and various interesting looking businesses. We passed Smokey D’z BBQ, which is located where East End Steakhouse used to be. We also passed Little Falls Hardware, FF Floor and Furniture Restoration Co., and All Events Engraving, to name a few.

From a distance we had seen a tent. Getting closer we saw it was the German Mannerchor. There were tables and chairs under the tent, but nothing had started there as of yet. I saw beer mentioned on a sign and said I’d like to check it out later, but alas, that never happened. I later found out that Johnson & Co. had performed there that evening. I was sorry to have missed that. I have beer at home, but a good band like Johnson & Co. you don’t hear every day of the week (although we did hear a good band at Canal Place Later; that’ll be in tomorrow’s post).

In due course we got to the bank and the Farmer’s Market. Lots of fresh produce and some pretty flowers. The only thing we bought, though, was Herkimer Home t-shirt. We love the Herkimer Home. We walked back along a parallel street, just for variety’s sake. We saw an Amish horse and buggy waiting at a corner so quietly we didn’t realize at first it was a real horse.

At last we reached the library and after a couple of tries found the right door to get in. Ah, book sales. One of my favorite things. I quickly found a few books: a biography of F. Scott Fitzgerald, a Jacqueline Susann novel and a couple collections of plays. I was glad we were parked close as I carried out my treasurers. Soon we were headed towards more adventures in Little Falls. Stay tuned!

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