7/2/08

A leap forth of faith or The first Fourth


TRI-O’s:Oddities, observations & opinionsBy Herb Kandel


The BH (Better Half) and I were rummaging in a quaint antique store. There among the distressed furniture and curios was this beat-up wooden chair with a high back on which were some carved initials worn smooth. After a quick dusting, it provided a surprisingly firm and solid seating.

On each side were levers, much like the ones on modern recliners, three on the right and two on the left. The right arm rest had embedded in it three rows of dials, the left had two similar ones. Each dial had a pointer which rotated to the barely visible markings on the circumference of the dial.
Curiosity soon took hold. The creaky levers were shifted about and the rusted pointers, in need of WD-40, were turned. I closed my eyes and, as if by magic, my journey started. Come along with me to where this chair, now turned chariot, transported this rider.

The day was pleasant with a slight breeze. “What city is this?” I asked a man in knickers passing by.
“You are in Philadelphia, brother.”

“Can you tell me what that building is and why all the activity of folks milling around here?”

“You must be a newcomer to our city. That’s the State House and those men entering it, in the weskits, ruffles and wigs are the delegates to the Continental Congress. Two days ago, on Tuesday, July 2, they endorsed the idea of a Declaration of Independence. Today the Congress is to approve a final, edited version of the document.”

My newfound friend, Percy, and I went to the open window of the State House and listened to the debate conclusion and the morning vote. It was about 11 o'clock. Twelve colonies voted for it, and New York abstained. It was then ordered that the document be authenticated and printed. Only two people signed.

“That’s John Hancock, the president of Congress. The other is Charles Thompson, the secretary,” whispered Percy.

The Congress went on to other mundane business.“Percy,” I said in amazement, “they just passed the Declaration of Independence freeing us from the king and proclaiming a new country, the United Sates of America. Why are there no shouts and celebration?”

“Oh, they will when it is read aloud to the public on Monday, July 8 in the State House Yard. There will be parades, cannon discharges, drums, bonfires and bells clamoring.
"But you should have been here this past Monday and Tuesday. Monday was when John Dickinson, delegate from Pennsylvania, fought against a separation from England and wanted a reconciliation within the framework of the law. He abstained from voting and signing the document. He said of independence that it would be 'to brave the storm in a skiff made of paper.'
“He was opposed by John Adams, delegate from Massachusetts, who desired independence from the mother country even if it meant bloodshed. Adams’ impassioned speech (some say the greatest in his life) had Jefferson say ‘[it spoke] with a power of thought and expression that moved us from our seats.’

“Two crucial things then happened Tuesday, July 2: Caesar Rodney, Delaware delegate, a swing vote for independence showed up. One side of his face was covered by a silk scarf to hide the ravages of cancer, he had ridden 80 miles on horseback to vote to free his country. The other event was the two empty chairs belonging to John Dickinson and Robert Morris. Without their dissent, Pennsylvania voted for independence. So, at last, with the words and the votes the colonies declared their independence.
“Yes indeed, Adams later said that 'The second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epocha in the history of America … to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations from one end of the continent to the other from this time forward forever more' ”

“And here I thought all along that this July 4 in 1776 was the day of tribute and celebration. What about the heat and flies we were told about?”

“Well we did have some scorchers, and there were plenty of horseflies from the stable nearby. In fact Tom Jefferson observed, 'That it is not at all unlikely that this debate will be ended not by the sharp logic of the delegates but by the even sharper bite of the horseflies,’ ”

Percy laughed at this and tapped me on the shoulder for emphasis. The tapping continued.
“Honey, wake up.” I opened my eyes. There was the BH’s hand on my shoulder. “You dozed off while I was gone. How could you do that in such an uncomfortable looking chair?”
“It wasn't so bad,” I said as I stepped away from the wooden relic. It was then that I more closely inspected the carved initials on the back piece, “HGW.”Nah, it couldn’t be! Me, a time traveler!!

Note: Though the trip was imaginary but the events are factual from “John Adams” by David McCullough.

http://www.baldwincountynow.com/articles/2008/07/02/columnists/doc486a8968eb5f8913655322.txt

6/18/08

Thinking Out Loud In The Silence


Tri-O's Oddities, observations, and opinions
By Herb Kandel

Here is another of an occasional meandering, putting on paper the ricocheting thoughts that flash randomly inside one’s skull during the quiet wee hours before sleep sometimes turns them into dreams.

• I get a satisfying feeling when I stop at a traffic light and pull up next to the car that passed me a few miles back as if I was tethered to a stump.
  
• Red cars traveling on the highway always seem to be in a hurry and angry.
  
• Why do audiences find it funny when young children and even toddlers utter vulgarities?
  
• Do carousels still offer brass rings entitling its holder to a free ride?
  
• I still feel “Fat-Free Half and Half” is an oxymoron.
  
• It is a major oversight that Peter O’Toole never won an Oscar, with the exception of an honorary one.
  
• Why will dogs roll in the grass, and whatever matter lies in it, right after they are bathed?
  
• Blueberries among broccoli florets remind me of hydrangeas.
  
• Bob Costas is to sport casting what William F. Buckley was to news commentary: articulate, eloquent, erudite, witty, knowledgeable, and classy.
  
• You know you are in bad circumstances when your doctor, drug store, dentist, and cable service are on your telephone speed dial.
  
• Why is it when you drip paint performing a house project you are an awkward klutz, but when Jackson Pollack did it he was a genius?
  
• I can't imagine anyone approaching a person who has body piercing and not think of the pain involved.
  
• We’ve come a long way from the days of Edward R. Murrow, for if I am seeing right, one of the Mobile weekend TV anchors has a tongue stud. Yumpin’ Yimminee!
  
• If Barack Obama chooses Hillary Clinton as his running mate, it means that Bill will have no need to explain this Vice.
  
• As a master of sardonic and wry humor why does David Letterman resort to facial contortions to get laughs, and why does the audience respond with such enthusiasm? Can it be from the urging of the “Applause” prompt sign flashing?
  
• The same goes for Conan O’Brien with his opening frog jump and body schtick. He has some outstanding parodies and sketches but it seems his openings are there just to consume some time.
  
• I fear the day will be coming in the very near future when one person will say to another, “I remember when gas was only $5.50 a gallon.”
  
• Since wearing sandals most of the time donning socks and tying shoes is becoming a lost personal procedure. Neckties too went that same route years ago.
  
• It is written that John McCain, because of his POW imprisonment tortures, can not raise his arms to even comb his hair but if he has it his way he will have no problem placing his left hand on the Bible while elevating his right.
  
• Since the Constitution states no requirement that any book be used to administer the inauguration oath of office, sacred or otherwise, I guess the incoming President may or may not use the customary Bible.
  
• Some choices for inauguration texts on which to take the oath by a variety of contenders: John McCain, Red Badge of Courage; Barack Obama, No Country for Old Men; Al Gore, The Sun Also Rises; Hillary Clinton, Excuse Me, But I Was Next; John Edwards, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn; George W. Bush, Take Me To Truth: Undoing the Ego; Bill Clinton, Pinocchio or Playboy.

And now, at last, to sleep.

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To see the column online click below
Http://WWW.baldwincountynow.Com/articles/2008/06/19/columnists/doc48573598df90f814529990.txt