Bellingham is a great place in the summer. The sun doesn't set until nearly 10 p.m. (which can also be confusing) and you can find live music somewhere almost every night -- often free!
I listed most of the park concerts on the kitchen calendar today and the month is covered with musical notes.
Not profound, I know, but this is really a joyful scene! Here are some of the performances:
Western's Summer Noon Concert Series (Wednesdays in July)
Marrowstone Summer Music Festival
Downtown Sounds (Wednesday evenings in July and August)
Concerts in Bellingham Parks
Fairhaven Outdoor Cinema and music
Anybody know about any others?
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Friday, June 25, 2010
Custer's Anniversary
Today is the anniversary of Custer's last stand, more properly called the Battle of the Little Bighorn.
It's not a particularly memorable moment in history for me, but I noticed the historical reference to its 134th anniversary because, for some reason, my dad was always fascinated with this particular event. He was keen on visiting the battleground on a family vacation and I must have been underwhelmed, because I can't say I remember anything significant about that stop on the route. (We did a lot of family driving vacations through the Western U.S., as did many families in the 1960s and 70s. Today I would much rather fly.)
I can't attribute Dad's fascination with Custer to a family connection, either; it's unlikely his New York family (most of whom were born, lived and died within the city or at least county limits) had a member who fought in that dubious stand. I do remember him joking that Custer's last words were "Take no prisoners!" which I did not understand as a kid but as an adult realize it was an humorous example of the very definition of futility.
A member on the other side of the family had an artifact -- a Native American tomahawk -- that was purportedly from this battle. I remember seeing this old weapon as a kid, and we even got to take it to "show and tell." We all marveled at the dark stain on the blade that we were sure was blood, but who knows? It is hard to authenticate such things, although a cousin did some research to make the attempt.
So there you have it: Random history of the day, spurred by the "This Day in History" meme I put on my iGoogle page, provoking childhood memories. I'll have to tell Dad it's the anniversary of Custer's last stand . . . and I know he'll tell his joke.
It's not a particularly memorable moment in history for me, but I noticed the historical reference to its 134th anniversary because, for some reason, my dad was always fascinated with this particular event. He was keen on visiting the battleground on a family vacation and I must have been underwhelmed, because I can't say I remember anything significant about that stop on the route. (We did a lot of family driving vacations through the Western U.S., as did many families in the 1960s and 70s. Today I would much rather fly.)
I can't attribute Dad's fascination with Custer to a family connection, either; it's unlikely his New York family (most of whom were born, lived and died within the city or at least county limits) had a member who fought in that dubious stand. I do remember him joking that Custer's last words were "Take no prisoners!" which I did not understand as a kid but as an adult realize it was an humorous example of the very definition of futility.
A member on the other side of the family had an artifact -- a Native American tomahawk -- that was purportedly from this battle. I remember seeing this old weapon as a kid, and we even got to take it to "show and tell." We all marveled at the dark stain on the blade that we were sure was blood, but who knows? It is hard to authenticate such things, although a cousin did some research to make the attempt.
So there you have it: Random history of the day, spurred by the "This Day in History" meme I put on my iGoogle page, provoking childhood memories. I'll have to tell Dad it's the anniversary of Custer's last stand . . . and I know he'll tell his joke.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Hello, world!
With this post, I'm joining the blogosphere.
The impetus is a summer course on blogging. We'll be blogging, reading blogs, commenting, assessing and generally experimenting.
I'm not really brand-new to blogging. I helped launch Today@PCWorld in 2004 when the magazine launched a staff blog. As online news editor, I helped establish the blog and build its community; today, as a contributing editor, I still edit, post and occasionally write for Today@PCWorld.
Thoughts About Blogging
"Web logs" are a phenomenon enabled by the Internet, but I believe the concept is not a new one. The first American newspaper, Publick Occurrences Both Foreign and Domestic, which Benjamin Harris launched in 1690, was a single broadsheet with news on three pages and the fourth page was left blank for comments, updates and new reports as readers passed it along. So newspapers have a long history of interactivity, even if it has not always been explored.
What I don't always mention about Publick Occurrences is that its first issue was also its last. The colonial governor shut it down. So angering public officials is another long history of journalism.
More to Come . . .
In the weeks ahead, I'll post material from our class and hope to draw discussion not only from course participants but others who find their way to this blog.
The impetus is a summer course on blogging. We'll be blogging, reading blogs, commenting, assessing and generally experimenting.
I'm not really brand-new to blogging. I helped launch Today@PCWorld in 2004 when the magazine launched a staff blog. As online news editor, I helped establish the blog and build its community; today, as a contributing editor, I still edit, post and occasionally write for Today@PCWorld.
Thoughts About Blogging
"Web logs" are a phenomenon enabled by the Internet, but I believe the concept is not a new one. The first American newspaper, Publick Occurrences Both Foreign and Domestic, which Benjamin Harris launched in 1690, was a single broadsheet with news on three pages and the fourth page was left blank for comments, updates and new reports as readers passed it along. So newspapers have a long history of interactivity, even if it has not always been explored.
What I don't always mention about Publick Occurrences is that its first issue was also its last. The colonial governor shut it down. So angering public officials is another long history of journalism.
More to Come . . .
In the weeks ahead, I'll post material from our class and hope to draw discussion not only from course participants but others who find their way to this blog.
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