Christmas 2005- My Sister Won!

It was a great Christmas. After all the presents were opened, my sister won the prize for the craziest gift award. She gave our Mom a “Pet Stroller”. Mom has a young cat named “Katy”. Sis thought that, instead of forcing Katy to perform the tiresome chore of walking on her own personal feet, Mom can put her inside the stroller and push her where she needs to go. For example, she could push Katy to the park, and if the kitty sees a chipmunk and wishes to pursue it, Mom could actually do the running, while the kitty most likely will scream with delight from the safety and comfort of her pet stroller. This stroller is also a good way to walk pets that otherwise might be housebound, such as squid. (These descriptive comments are taken mainly from Dave Barry’s Gift Guide.)

Mom is apprehensive about walking the kitty on her street since the neighbors may interpret this behavior as strange. (No kidding!) I explained that Wal-Mart would be a good training area for her new present. Mom was NOT amused with my suggestion. Katy currently hops in her stroller and Mom strolls her around the living room, into the kitchen, and ending in the bedroom. Oh, what fun! Next year I have to search for the gift that is the craziest. I am now on eBay looking for an automated skateboard for Katy – of course it will have a training video, safety helmet equipped with a cam recorder, and kneepads.

Have a great New Year. Will see back on the Blog in 2006!

The Old Glenville Cemetery
















Today was a brisk fall day. With winter being only four days away, I decided that I would walk through the Old Glenville Cemetery located behind Louis Bennett Hall at Glenville State College. The historic cemetery is located on what we called “tank hill”, because one of the water tanks for the city of Glenville is located there. As I walked along the path that meanders along the border of the cemetery, my thoughts went back to the 1970’s when I, along with several of my colleagues, first established this nature trail. The physical work creating this trail involved several students who were part of a student summer work program. During the summer months, they blazed the trail, added mulch, and created handrails. They even established a wet area (which never was too wet since it would not hold water) and a small amphitheater.
The Old Glenville Cemetery has been ignored throughout the decades. Trees and vines had established their grip on the area. Not only have the graves been an integral part of the cycle of plant succession, but they also have been affected by vandalism. A number of gravestones have been destroyed, damaged, or misplaced by thoughtless individuals. Several years ago the Gilmer County Historical Society made an effort to clear the area of brush and trees.

My last posting detailed the death of Sarah “Sis” Linn and I decided I needed to provide for you another photo of her final resting place. As you see, her gravestone is intact. I have included some other photos of interesting gravestones. Even though the marker of J. J. Hendrick (Date of Death - 1957) is not as old as most of the markers, I always smile when I read his “message.”