Utica - Makes the National News

Utica was in USA Today! "Ten Great Town with International Flair" How awesome is that!


This picture is in the article - yes, I copied it from their site. Thornberry's is behind the Stanley Theatre and is a great place to eat. I didn't even realize that they were part of the Utica Monday Nites - I guess I have to pay attention and go next summer. UMN is a fantastic thing.

There are multiple music venues - the Oneida County Historic Society has talks, the Stanley Theatre has tours. It's just amazing and it happens every Monday night in the Summer.

So...come to Utica - visit Munson Williams Proctor Arts Institute, the Saranac Brewery, the Utica Zoo and all the other wonderful things that Oneida County and Utica has to offer. Hey - bring your bike (or cross country skis in the winter) and go on the Canal Trail!

Painting

With my mom in Texas more than 1/2 of the year I decided that I would like to paint some rooms and mom told me to just do whatever colors I want. I hope that she's okay with what I came up with for the bathroom! :)

First - "Doc" at the Home Depot in New Hartford was AWESOME. I thought that I had a good color picked out - I was trying to match a towel - not exactly but close so I could match other stuff that I have. So - Doc showed me how to better match the color using the special light. The Home Depot lights are nothing like my home lights and when he showed me the color that I did pick under the incandescent lights - not pretty. So he helped me find the right color and he was an absolute sweetheart...he helped me find good brushes, a good roller and told me how to use them. What great guy!

I also looked at new vanities - the one in our house was a $70 - prefab white fake wood. It's tired and I was going to buy a new one but the ones I liked were VERY pricey. I went back home figuring I'd just deal with the old one and then it hit me - I'll paint the old white one! So - back to Home Depot. Doc wasn't there anymore, but a very nice young lady helped me find the color that I wanted and then another gentleman helped me find new handles for the cabinet doors and new faucet handles. I figure I'm going to try and make this thing look like it's brand new.

I'm painting a little at a time and I'm sooooooooooo excited by the colors! I don't want to give them away yet - I have some before and during and will have after pictures. And I'll give it away then! Woo Hoo!

Urbanik's Paint is a great place to go for paint as well - I don't want to convince anyone to not go to a local place. I just needed a lot of things and going to multiple stores wasn't what I wanted to do.

Well - off to continue on my painting!

WIBX 950

This is our local AM station that does news, weather and talk radio. Rush, Glenn Beck, Lars Larson, etc. I listen to it a lot. Yes, I am conservative - but that aside, I actually called in today and spoke to Representative Dave Townsend. I've always wanted to call in to a talk show - but never had the time - or the nerve. But I had the time today, he was looking for calls and something he said just struck a chord.

When you buy gas from the Oneida Indian Nation- your receipt shows that you paid tax. Well - you did, but not to NY - it's a 'tax' for the OIN. That's fine - but it will come and bite you in the butt sooner or later. NY State passed a law earlier this year, or last year, saying that the OIN had to pay NYS tax. They don't and no one is going after them to get it. NY State Tax department isn't going after them, they are going after the customers. Rep. Townsend shared a story about a local business man that now owes the NYS $24,000.00+ in taxes for all the gas purchased for his company from the OIN. What I didn't understand at first was that the taxes that the OIN collect aren't for NYS and figured that NYS was double dipping - and choosing New York Residents to go after (because we are easier targets AND we don't have the money and lawyers that the OIN has). Rep. Townsend explained that the 'tax' that the OIN charges is for them not to pay what they owe NYS.

So if you think that you are putting one over on NYS and buy gas at the OIN or Savon gas stations, beware. That $0.60 cents that the OIN charges you for 'tax' could be doubled if NYS Tad Department catches up with you. Do yourself a favor and save yourself a headache and buy local.

About Rep. Townsend - I appreciated the way he spoke. He's calm, intelligent and collected that is a good thing to hear in a politician these days.

These Colors Don't Run

These Colors Don't Run
Originally uploaded by Martha Anne

It was an incredible day at Roscoe Conkling Park at the top of the ski slope. It was cold and windy - but the leaves and the sun and clouds were incredible. I was fortunate to catch the flag on top of the hill unfurling and so beautiful and majestic. It reminds me that I love America as it was meant to be, as our Founding Fathers wanted it to be. I do not love Obama's idea of America - not in any way shape or form. We need to remember what this flag stands for and what it means to us.

Here are the original words to the "Star Spangled Banner" by Francis Scott Key.

Oh, say, can you see, by the dawn's early light,
What so proudly we hail'd at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, thro' the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watch'd, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof thro' the night that our flag was still there.
O say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore dimly seen thro' the mists of the deep,
Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?

Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam,
In full glory reflected, now shines on the stream:
'T is the star-spangled banner: O, long may it wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle's confusion
A home and a country should leave us no more?
Their blood has wash'd out their foul footsteps' pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave:
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

O, thus be it ever when freemen shall stand,
Between their lov'd homes and the war's desolation;
Blest with vict'ry and peace, may the heav'n-rescued land
Praise the Pow'r that hath made and preserv'd us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause. it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust"
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Here is the History:
In 1814, about a week after the city of Washington had been badly burned, British troops moved up to the primary port at Baltimore Harbor in Maryland. Francis Scott Key visited the British fleet in the Harbor on September 13th to secure the release of Dr. William Beanes who had been captured during the Washington raid. The two were detained on the ship so as not to warn the Americans while the Royal Navy attempted to bombard Fort McHenry. At dawn on the 14th, Key noted that the huge American flag, which now hangs in the Smithsonian's American History Museum, was still waving and had not been removed in defeat. The sight inspired him to write a poem titled Defense of Fort McHenry. The poem was eventually set to music that had originally been written by English composer John Stafford Smith for a song titled "The Anacreontic Song". The end result was the inspiring song now considered the national anthem of the United States of America. It was accepted as such by public demand for the next century or so, but became even more accepted as the national anthem during the World Series of Baseball in 1917 when it was sung in honor of the brave armed forces fighting in the Great War. The World Series performance moved everyone in attendance, and after that it was repeated for every game. Finally, on March 3, 1931, the American Congress proclaimed it as the national anthem, 116 years after it was first written.

Fighting Cancer....one tweeter at a time...

Drew Carey, aka @DrewFromTV, is now the latest celeb to jump on the philanthropic twitter wagon and he's upping the ante.

In an exclusive sit-down interview, the host of CBS's "The Price Is Right" told me that he will donate $1 million to Lance Armstrong's LiveStrong Foundation if he gets 1 million followers by midnight on December 31, 2009.

Fatcyclist put this on his blog - and I can't get to it - blogspot is having hiccups I guess. So I figured I would include it in mine. If you have a twitter account - please sign up to follow Drew Carey - @DrewFromTV - if he gets enough followers - like 1,000,000 - by 12/31/2009 - he'll donate that much to LiveStrong Foundation!!!!

Friday and Saturday...

Friday was a rainy icky day - Oh - and I have to make a quick plug for October being Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I had to have a mammogram at Faxton - not one of my favorite things, but the techs, nurses and personnel there are very good at what they do and very professional. Everything that can be done to make it a more positive experience is done. I'm just glad it's only yearly.

That being said - I was also starting to feel sick on Friday - I put it to stress and allergies - but am finding that that's not the case. But it didn't stop me from going to Brenda's house for some crafting and girl time! But boy was I in for a surprise! I walked in the door with my scrapbook kit and supplies and found dinner and friends and cake waiting for me. I have fantastic friends. Brenda, Shelly and Debbie all worked together to put on a fantastic dinner! Of course we got to also celebrate Tim's birthday on the 8th (Debbie's husband) and Shelly and Paul's anniversary on the 8th too! So lots of things to celebrate.

It was beautiful Saturday. Period. Just one of those days that Central New York has that is just right!

It was also a busy day yesterday. The Toastmasters Area 8 contest took place at St. Luke's Hospital in the Allen Calder Conference room. We had a great turnout and even better than that we had 3 great evaluator contestants and 4 great humorous speech contestants. I've never laughed so hard in my life. Little did I know that fishing could be so stressful and dangerous to your health! Or that a manly man could feel embarrassed about drinking wine! Or that Peanut Butter almost cost an international incident! Or that fear should push us to try things not shy away! Congratulations to Troy Bishopp for winning the Evaluation Contest and to John Krzeminski for winning the Humorous speech contest. Their next step is Division Contest next Saturday in Liverpool.

After that was over I went home and convinced myself that I didn't have a cold - but more like allergies and if I ignored it, it would go away. Not! But - before it hit me broadside I had a wonderful day with my friend Kelly in Syracuse. We went shopping - and not just in one place, no - that would be silly! We hit Carousel (Lindt Chocolate, Caramel Popcorn and Borders Books), then the Christmas Tree Store, Fashion Bug, and Wegmans. And of course to fortify ourselves for all of this shopping we went to the Olive Garden for dinner! It was wonderful! We got home around 8 - I think I was in bed by 9:30!

I am lucky to have such great friends! My life is in a weird transition right now with my Mom moving to Texas part-time and I think that my friends are trying to make sure I stay busy! LOL, it's working.

Hopefully the weather and my health will cooperate next week and I'll be able to go for another bike ride.