On US20: Boston to Newport, Oregon --
Driving through the history of the expansion of the 13 Colonies
Travel from the Tea Party in Boston Harbor to the fishing fleet in Newport, Oregon. What a History! It unfolds from Puritans and Indians to Patriots and Soldiers. Climb the Berkshires and visit the Shakers. Pass through the sunny remnants of the ìDark and Bloodyî land of French and Indian Wars and two wars with Britain. Cross trails with the Lewis and Clark expedition and the Oregon Trail. Follow the steam engines as they lay track through Iowa, Nebraska and Montana. Experience those statesí Indian wars. Savor the stories of the Mountain Men, trappers and guides to the West Coast. Imagine the journey of the Oregon-bound wagons as they passed through the foreboding Craters of the Moon in Idaho. From the high desert in eastern Oregon, climb the remnants of great, sleeping volcanoes before reaching the Western Sea. Some of the history along the route was new to this author, most completed the stories learned and forgotten in high school. Come experience what I have found interesting, unusual and provocative.
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Driving through the history of the expansion of the 13 Colonies
Travel from the Tea Party in Boston Harbor to the fishing fleet in Newport, Oregon. What a History! It unfolds from Puritans and Indians to Patriots and Soldiers. Climb the Berkshires and visit the Shakers. Pass through the sunny remnants of the ìDark and Bloodyî land of French and Indian Wars and two wars with Britain. Cross trails with the Lewis and Clark expedition and the Oregon Trail. Follow the steam engines as they lay track through Iowa, Nebraska and Montana. Experience those statesí Indian wars. Savor the stories of the Mountain Men, trappers and guides to the West Coast. Imagine the journey of the Oregon-bound wagons as they passed through the foreboding Craters of the Moon in Idaho. From the high desert in eastern Oregon, climb the remnants of great, sleeping volcanoes before reaching the Western Sea. Some of the history along the route was new to this author, most completed the stories learned and forgotten in high school. Come experience what I have found interesting, unusual and provocative.
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Five centuries separate the appearances of AIDS
and syphilis. Nevertheless, the human response to the epidemics proves
that society has learned little about coping with sexually
transmittable diseases. Both were labeled “God’s Judgment” by
contemporary zealots. Both epidemics appeared mysteriously. The social
response to both diseases included blaming and exclusion of the
affected, denial of the extent of the disease, scientific bickering,
retribution for becoming infected, charlatans with “cures.” To follow
both of these infectious diseases is to expose the human foibles that
make history and novels interesting, but inhibit the institution of
preventive measures.
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While finishing Making Friends Leaving
Loneliness Behind I began to read a translation of Tao Te
Ching by Stephen Mitchell. It’s Chinese author, Lau-tzu lived four
centuries before the Christian era. His “book of the way” is a series
of meditations on the art of living. I found it an excellent model for
exploring the art of friendship. When asked if there was a spiritual
component to friendship I quickly replied: “Yes! We create something
greater than ourselves with friendship. The you and the me
become we.”
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Are Rites of Passage Necessary for Responsible
Adulthood? Follow the lives of the graduates of Shattuck School, Class
of ‘50, through the profound changes of the last half of the 20th
century. Why do these men have a lower death rate and a lower divorce
rate than their contemporaries? The school itself suffered a mid-life
crisis beginning in the late 1960s but survived to grow and change to
celebrate its sesquicentennial.
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Take a modern Voyage of Discovery from Illinois
to the Pacific Coast on the last “blue highway” across the U.S. Follow
the record of westward migration over the U.S. 20 corridor, which is
little recognized by contemporary narratives. Visit the railroads or
their remnants that deposited emigrants at the temporary terminals.
Find out what happened ten million years ago to bury rhinos, camels,
and three-toed horses. Pass through layers of geologic history from the
Precambrian to recent times and then through fields of solid lava.
Finally, discover the mysteries of life in the Pacific Ocean.
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Treadwell connects his experience as a child
sitting on the lap of a former slave with his first exposure to African
slavery. He traces his family’s Scotch-Irish origins to their slave
owning in Gentry County, Missouri and how their slave decided to stay
with the family until her death 75 years later. The impact of the Civil
War and its aftermath on the county and the state is documented. He
discovers that there may be African-Americans with the same blood line
as his and a county memory of a “lynching” in a neighboring county. The
former slave serves as a ghostly presence remaining in the county.
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Return to farming with horses as a boy is tested
under the watchful eyes of his grandfather. Feed the free-ranging pigs
and chickens. Collect the eggs. Milk the cows. Experience the cycle of
haying, the Saturday night band concert, and Sunday go-to-meeting.
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Making friends takes effort, time and energy but
knowing how to overcome our internal barriers makes the process easier.
Men and women have different expectations of their friends and
different relating styles. Explore the differences. Understand the
avenues of cross-sex friendship.
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