12/26/2007: Balmy Christmas

So I came to Albuquerque for Christmas to visit my parents and spend some time in the sunshine and warmth of the Southwest. I arrived Christmas day and spent the afternoon wrapping presents (can't take them wrapped through security at the airport and they even recommend you don't wrap them in your checked baggage). Everyone else is unwrapping gifts; I'm wrapping. Why be ordinary, eh? ;-)

So Today, December 26, we celebrated Christmas. The temperature range today in Albuquerque was a high of 34 and a low of 16. Guess what . . . back in Farmington the low was only 19 and the high was 39! It was warmer in Maine than in New Mexico! Good thing I brought my long coat. :-)

I hope to get caught up on posting to the blog while I'm here "on vacation". I've got photos from the past 3 months and lists of things to write about. It's really hard to go back and get caught up. My New Year's resolution is to not get this behind again.

12/15/2007 Snowy Sunday

Even for Maine, this snowstorm is supposed to be unusual for this time of year and it's supposed to be a big one. Check out the article below that describes the impending storm, discusses why it's unusual, and uses the word "wicked" as a superlative (a common Maine practice, but I always thought of it as slang and was surprised to see it in print in the newspaper outside of a quote).

We walked to church this morning instead of driving since the roads weren't plowed yet. I was up for the adventure The snow was pretty light and not too deep, but there was enough of it that I was very glad to finally arrive at church and get out of it. During the service you could see out the window that the flakes were getting bigger and the quantity of falling flakes was increasing. I was glad to take Patty up on her kind offer of giving us a ride home.

REGIONAL STORM
Snow could turn to sleet
By DOUG HARLOW
Staff Writer Kennebec Journal & Morning Sentinel 12/16/2007

Here we go again. Another winter storm promising snow, sleet and howling winds was bearing down on the state Saturday night for arrival in central Maine sometime this morning.

By the calendar, it's not even winter yet.

And according to John Jensenius, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Gray, the track of this latest batch of winter weather could mean a change-over to sleet this afternoon, which could mean lower snowfall totals and some wicked travel conditions.

He said 6-10 inches of new snow and sleet can be expected by tonight in Kennebec County, 8-12 inches in southern Somerset and Franklin counties with up to 18 inches in the mountains.

Coastal and interior Waldo County can expect 4-8 inches.

"We expect snow to develop across central Maine probably early in the morning -- 7 a.m., something like that," Jensenius said. "At this point it looks like snow will mix with sleet and freezing rain along the coast and actually mix with sleet in the interior sections as well."

The powerful coastal storm began forming over the Carolinas Saturday night, then rapidly intensified as it moved northeast up the eastern seaboard this morning.

Moisture is forecast to collide with Arctic air, spreading snow up through the entire state.

By noon today, the snow will just be reaching northern Maine and several inches will have accumulated over southern areas of the state, according to the Weather Service. Temperatures are expected to remain in the teens and low 20s, with mighty wind chills making it feel like 6 or 7 below.

Jensenius said the culprit in any possible change- over is warm air being dragged in above the cold air that is already solidly in place.

"What is happening with the storm moving right along the immediate coast, is the winds out ahead of this storm are bringing warmer air in aloft -- between about 7,000 and 10,000 feet," he said. "That warm air aloft is causing the precipitation to change from snow to rain as it falls through that warmer layer and then eventually as it gets into a colder layer, it refreezes back into sleet or when it reaches the ground, possibly freezing rain."

If the track moves further east -- off the coast -- more snow can be expected, he said. Further west, inland, could mean more in the way of sleet and rain.

The intense weather maker is expected to move out of the region tonight.

Strong northwest winds will develop as the system pulls away, creating lots of blowing and drifting snow in all areas on Monday. Winds could reach 10-20 mph, with gusts to 25 mph, Jensenius said.

Central Maine Power Co. is preparing for possible power outages due to ice and blowing snow, company spokesman John Carroll said Saturday.

"We are expecting high winds and lots of snow, which could be heavy and wet along the coast," Carroll said in a statement. "This combination can be tough on our crews and equipment.

"People see the damage storms like this can do and they understand they can cause outages. Our crews will be there to put things back together, but we hope people will also take some simple steps to keep themselves safe and comfortable."

CMP offers customers some simple steps to stay safe and comfortable if power outages do occur.

•Keep battery-operated flashlights and radios on hand.

•Stock up on supplies of drinking water.

•Keep a supply of non-perishable foods.

•Never use grills or camp stoves indoors -- they can give off dangerous gases.

As is common practice during potential storm situations, Carroll said CMP has been in touch with utilities in other parts of New England and in the Canadian Maritimes to discuss mutual needs and capabilities.

Retrieved 12/15/2007 from http://morningsentinel.mainetoday.com/news/local/4568907.html

12/13/2007 Crime Spree in Farmington

My quaint little town had an unusual series of crimes in the past two weeks. The front page of today's paper (Thursday 12/13/07) had two headlines about them:

Farmington bank robbed
and
Assault suspect arrested

There was a mugging on campus Sunday night and the bank was robbed in downtown on Wednesday. Pretty scary. But they do have the suspect in the assault arrested and it looks like they know who robbed the bank. It is unusual to have any crime in Farmington, much less two big ones in the same week.

Here are the stories:

Jailed teen allegedly tried to rob student at UMF
By BETTY JESPERSEN
Staff writer Kennebec Journal & Morning Sentinel 12/13/2007

FARMINGTON -- Three days after a University of Maine at Farmington student was beaten and kicked in a robbery attempt near the UMF student center, Farmington police arrested a man they believe is the assailant.

On Wednesday afternoon, police arrested Caleb Hupper, 18, of 439 Zions Hill Road in Chesterville on charges of robbery and aggravated assault, both felonies.

According to an intake worker at the Franklin County Jail, Hupper is being held on $25,000 cash bail.

The mugging of the 18-year-old freshman from Duxbury, Mass., occurred at about 10:30 p.m. Sunday as he was walking in front of the Education Center on High Street on his way to the Olsen Student Center.

Farmington Police Chief Richard Caton III said Wednesday evening that police followed up on several leads and arrested Hupper at his home earlier in the day.

He declined to comment on whether Hupper has a juvenile criminal record.

Caton said he has no idea why the student was attacked. In an interview Monday, UMF Director of Public Safety Ted Blais called it a random act of violence.

The victim was attacked after he refused to hand over his wallet, police said.

He suffered cuts on his face and bruises on his body where the attacker punched and kicked him and continued to strike him while he was lying on the sidewalk.

The attacker ran off to a waiting car when another student who witnessed the attack from his dorm room at the Mallett Residence Hall rushed out to help, police said.

The student was taken to Franklin Memorial Hospital by NorthStar EMS where he received stitches for facial cuts. He also was treated for a mild concussion, according to UMF officials.

Wednesday was a busy day for Farmington Police. Caton said that as a press release on the Hopper's arrest was being prepared, he and his officers had to rush off to respond to a robbery at TD Banknorth on Broadway at 3:25 p.m.

"We were all excited about the arrest and I was planning on getting the information out when the robbery call came in," Caton said.

Retrieved 12/15/2007 from: http://morningsentinel.mainetoday.com/news/local/4560307.html

AND:

Farmington bank robbed
By BETTY JESPERSEN
Staff writer Kennebec Journal & Morning Sentinel 12/13/2007


FARMINGTON -- Police are looking for a man who robbed the TD Banknorth branch on Broadway Wednesday afternoon.

The suspect, whose image was captured in a surveillance photo although his face is partially covered by sunglasses, is about 5 feet, 10 inches tall with a husky build. He was wearing a brown jacket with a hood, according to Farmington Police Chief Richard Caton III.

"He passed a note to a teller indicating he had a firearm and to give him money," Caton said.

After pocketing an undisclosed amount of cash, the man left the bank on foot, police say. The bank's doors were immediately locked and the staff called 911. Caton said police were there within minutes, including officers with a tracking dog.

Anyone with information on the robbery is asked to call Farmington police at 778-6311.

This is the second robbery of a Farmington business this fall. On Oct. 5, a man claiming to be armed demanded narcotics from the Rite Aid pharmacy in West Farmington and then escaped on foot.

Wednesday's robbery was disconcerting to local employees and merchants.

"It was pretty scary, being so close to home," said Patty Bessey, an employee at the Renys department store on Broadway, who also works across the street at the Farmington Thrift Shop. "A lot of the girls are upset because they have to walk home after dark."

Ron Gelinas, owner of Mainestone Jewelry next door to the bank, said he had been in the bank a few minutes before the robbery.

"It shocks you and makes you nervous. I am just thankful no one was hurt," he said. "The police did a very good job controlling the situation and kept a low profile. People on the street and in the shops didn't even know there was anything the matter."

Retrieved 12/15/2007 from: http://morningsentinel.mainetoday.com/news/local/4560089.html

weather

A friend in Denton Texas just sent this email. How fun is this tidbit of information?! :-)

Date: December 12, 2007 11:44:58 AM EST

Subject: weather

It seems hard to believe but I just checked the weather and Farmington and Denton both had a temperature of 37.4 about an hour ago. Theresa, I am glad you all are finally getting some warm weather today! We in Texas are cold and wet.

Supper to aid ill fireman

I am soooo far behind in writing in my blog. And there is sooooo much to tell. But I wanted to post this newspaper article before the electronic version of it wasn't available anymore. Maggy teaches math education at UMF. She's in my department and is a phenomenal professor who contributes a lot to the community and the state. Her husband is Harry Wyckoff who is the subject of this newspaper article. I went to the Benefit Supper tonight. It's such a Maine thing to do and it's such an awesome thing to do. There were probably 40-50 cars when I got there at 6:30. It was packed inside the Town Office building. People of all ages and a LOT of volunteer firemen were in attendance. I found a table with university folks that I knew and joined them. We had a great time, though there was a somber feeling in the air as well. Harry wasn't there, but I did get to see Maggy. What a strong woman. I think she hugged every person who came.

I had a printout from Google maps with directions but it turns out, I went the wrong way on the very first road. But I still ended up in the right place! If I ever go back to Chesterville, I bet some of the signs that told me which way to go won't even be there. God takes very good of this "flatlander" (another name for 'a person from away' but specifically someone from the other 47 continental states) and He pulled another fast one tonight. On the way home, I figured out what I did wrong, but I still have no idea how I got there in the first place. But Lindsay . . . there were no U-turns!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Supper to aid ill fireman

By Ann Bryant , Staff Writer
Monday, December 3, 2007

FARMINGTON - Harry Wyckoff has spent more than a quarter century as an active volunteer on the Chesterville Fire Department.

"He's watched others face trials and tribulations and how they handled those," his wife, Maggie, said Friday, "and has realized that it's not what happens to you but how you approach what is happening."

"A positive attitude is a gift," she said, speaking of her 65-year-old husband, who is undergoing cancer treatment and faces surgery in January.

The Chesterville Fire Department will support the fellow firefighter with a benefit spaghetti supper from 5 to 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 8, at the Chesterville Town Office on Dutch Gap Road, said Ed Hastings, a friend and member of the department.

With a magic that draws kids in, Wyckoff said of her husband, he enjoys children and has visited schools teaching youngsters through the Learn Not to Burn program.

The couple wrote and received a grant for funds to purchase a 14-foot fire prevention trailer that is used as part of the presentation, Hastings said.

The trailer, painted to look like a child's bedroom, uses stage smoke to simulate a fire. Wyckoff starts in the classroom, she said, teaching the children to get down and to touch the doors with the back of their hands to check for heat.

Then he takes them out to the trailer where he asks if they have a light on while they sleep. He then adjusts the lighting and starts the smoke, she said. The children can hear the smoke coming before the two smoke alarms. They then drop and crawl out to where there is a fake phone to dial 911. The phone is connected to an acting-dispatcher who asks the same questions they could expect from a real dispatcher: town, name, address and problem.

"It gives the children that edgy feeling of a first-hand experience," she said.

The trailer was used during fire prevention week in October, said Chief David Archer as he named several local schools that were visited this year.

"The trailer's available to other departments to use also," he said. "It's a great educational tool, and if it saves one child, then it's done its job."

Wyckoff has written several grants over the years, Hastings said, the most recent one received, a FEMA grant in 2004, brought several thousand dollars to the department to help purchase fire equipment such as air packs.

It's equipment that brought the department up to OSHA standards, Wyckoff added.

A retired self-employed carpenter, Wyckoff is often around to respond to fire calls, Hastings said. He is important to the fire department, especially so when the town's two fire departments merged in the late 1980s.

A little rivalry between the North Chesterville and Chesterville departments was buried when they built the new firehouse together, Wyckoff said.

"They're a wonderful group of people," she said, "and the department has brought in many young people as junior firefighters. Watching them learn and grow has been very edifying for him. He's a real mentor."

Wyckoff has also served as the department's treasurer for years, said Archer, who called him a good friend and his experience a valuable aid.

The Wyckoffs have two sons, one in Baltimore and one in Cape Cod, she said. She is employed at the University of Maine at Farmington.

Donations will be accepted at the supper, Hastings said, to help with expenses expected when the Wyckoffs travel to Boston in January for the surgery.

Wyckoff was undergoing treatment Friday and was unavailable for comment.

Retrieved Dec. 8, 2007 from http://www.sunjournal.com/story/241372-3/Franklin/Supper_to_aid_ill_fireman/#
As seen in Sun Journal newspaper, Lewiston, Maine

11/3/07 Early Bird Sale

I participated in this cultural phenomenon. Details to come!

'Early bird' sales aimed at early holiday shoppers

By BETTY JESPERSEN
Staff writer
Kennebec Journal & Morning Sentinel
11/01/2007

A good deal on a good deal. That promise is what brings out shoppers, often clad in pajamas, at 6 a.m. for Reny's annual Early Bird Sale on the first Saturday in November.

The 27-year tradition of giving customers 20 percent off between 6 and 9 a.m. has become the company's biggest sale day of the year, according to Reny's president, John Reny. And fellow merchants have jumped on board.

In Farmington, most downtown merchants will be open at 6 a.m. with special promotions, and many stores will have sales all day, according to the Downtown Farmington Business & Professional Association. The Farmington Reny's logged the fourth-highest Early Bird sales company-wide last year, according to manager Carol Robbins.

"Some people say they don't like to shop the Early Bird because they don't like crowds. But this is not your normal crowd," she said.

"Everyone is in a great mood. The staff loves it because the energy is incredible," she said. "But after three hours, we are exhausted."

Reny's is a chain of discount stores founded in 1949 with stores in Farmington, Madison, Pittsfield, Damariscotta, Bridgton, Gardiner, Dexter, Bath, Camden, Saco, Belfast, Ellsworth and Wells. They carry clothing, electronics, housewares, garden supplies, sheets and towels, and food.

"If you can't find it at Reny's, you don't need it," quips the company's Web site.

Robbins expects to arrive Saturday by 4:30 a.m. By 5, employees will be brewing coffee and setting out doughnuts -- offered free to shoppers. Doors open at 6 sharp.

"The larger stores have big sales on Black Friday -- the Friday after Thanksgiving. Rather than compete with them, this is our way of kicking off the Christmas shopping season," Robbins said.

Jeweler Ron Gelinas, owner of Mainestone Jewelry on Broadway, said hundreds of people are shopping downtown at 6 a.m. "They are having a ball. This is a great tradition."

He is offering a rare sale -- silver jewelry will be 20 percent off all day.

At Mickey's Hallmark, the sale is 30 percent off nearly everything between 6 and 7 a.m., 20 percent off from 7 to 8, and 10 percent off from 8 to 9, said manager Margaret Silkman. And for the first time, there will be 10 percent off Hallmark gift wrap and holiday cards all day.

"It is a lot of fun," she said.

Thousands of discount movie passes to the Narrow Gauge Cinema are sold by 9 a.m. by pajama-and-bathrobe clad theater owner John Moore.

John Reny said that when he thought up the idea 27 years ago to try the sale at the Bath branch, his father, Robert Reny, thought it was crazy to give 20 percent off of everything in the store.

"I told him, how bad can your sales be hurt in three hours?" John Reny said. "Then my father looked around that first day and saw the streets were filled with people.

"This gets us ahead of the big box stores. It helps the local merchants and the customers and it really works for the downtowns. It gives you a little edge and your customers a good deal," he said.

retrieved 11/6/07 from http://morningsentinel.mainetoday.com/news/local/4428523.html

Elf has a new friend

I haven't made my bed yet. Look who Elf found to snuggle with. :-)

What a great community

Apparently one of the faculty walked by a local church this afternoon and then came back and sent the email below to all the faculty and staff on campus.

Children from the Farmington Children's School are  selling delicious homemade donuts and hot apple cider in front of Old South Church to raise money to buy a guinea pig.

They will be there until about 2:25.

 

A Satisfied Customer

Fwd: [staff list] UMF Receives Libra Grant to Help Develop Alpine Ski Team

Begin forwarded message:

From: "April Mulherin" <April.Mulherin@maine.edu>

Date: October 11, 2007 4:01:34 PM EDT

To: <april.mulherin@maine.edu>

Subject: [staff list] UMF Receives Libra Grant to Help Develop Alpine Ski Team

Reply-To: "April Mulherin" <April.Mulherin@maine.edu>

UMF Media Release for Immediate Release

#R078-009

CONTACT:

UMF Assistant Director of Media Relations April Mulherin

207-778-7081

april.mulherin@maine.edu

*** University of Maine at Farmington Receives Libra Grant to Help Develop

Alpine Ski Team *** 

FARMINGTON, MAINE (October 11, 2007)- University of Maine at Farmington

Director of Athletics, Fitness and Recreation Julie Davis is pleased to

announce that the university has received a grant from the Libra Foundation

to help support the development of an Alpine ski team.

The Libra Foundation is a Maine-based organization that has made significant

contributions to worthy initiatives throughout the state.

UMF has enjoyed a successful student-led ski club in the past, which was

supported by student senate and the ski industries program and volunteer

coach Harry Ricker.  "The Libra grant, combined with funds from UMF's

Student Senate, will allow us to launch the expansion from a student-led

club sport to a more competitive ski team with increased infrastructure and

additional support for coaching," said Davis. "The program will be

accessible to all levels of skiers and will allow us to recruit student

athletes from New England and beyond."

The ski team is currently undergoing dry-land training in anticipation of

the upcoming season, which is scheduled to begin in December. The team will

compete in both Alpine and Nordic disciplines in the United States

Collegiate Ski and Snowboard Association's Reynolds Division. The division

was established in 2006 by Ricker and named in honor of Tom Reynolds, UMF

Athletics Hall of Fame inductee. Other institutions in the division include

University of Maine at Orono, University of Maine at Fort Kent, University

of Maine at Presque Isle, and the Bates College "B" team.

According to Ron Bonnevie, UMF Ski Industries instructor, the Reynolds

Division utilizes mountains in western Maine thereby reducing travel and

providing opportunities for other colleges to have access to the region.

"UMF's access to local ski areas is hard to beat.  We have a great slalom

hill 5 minutes from campus (Titcomb Mtn.) for day and night training, with

Sugarloaf, Saddleback, Black Mountain and Sunday River all less than an

hour's drive," said Bonnevie. "It's about as good as it gets throughout

northern New England. These options provide UMF skiers with more quality on

snow training and flexible training times to coordinate with class

schedules."

Not only will the ski team have lifelong benefits for its student athletes,

but it is expected to have positive impacts on the western Maine mountain

region as well. The importance of the economic vitality of the region was

recognized by UMF in its final Libra grant proposal, which highlighted the

university's existing strong partnerships with the area's ski mountains and

outlined future opportunities to strengthen those relationships.

The benefits of the ski team are too long to list according to Leigh

Breidenbach, director of the UMF Ski Industries program. "We are a snow

sports ski state and this Libra grant says we value those activities and

consider it part of our heritage as Mainers," said Breidenbach. "At UMF,

skiing is a passion as much as it is a sport. After graduation, the vast

majority of our skiers stay in Maine. They are lifelong skiers, guaranteed."

# # # 

For more information, contact UMF Director of Athletics, Fitness and

Recreation Julie Davis at 207-778-7264 or jadavis@maine.edu.

===================================================================

Thank you for sharing the good news at UMF, Maine's public liberal arts

college.

Regards,

April Mulherin

April Mulherin

Assistant Director of Media Relations

University of Maine at Farmington

207-778-7081

april.mulherin@maine.edu 

decorating office walls

So here's the famous diploma in its awesome frame. (Click here to read the posting about this.) I took 2 photos, one with flash and one without. In the one with flash, you can see the rich colors and that the gold is really shiny. In the other, you can see it without glare but also without good color. Maybe I'll be a better photographer in my next lifetime. Better yet, just come visit me in Maine and you can see it in person.

And now, here's the context in which the diploma hangs. This is the wall on the south side of my office. It has room for a little more expansion, but I'm waiting to see what's appropriate and what new stuff might come along. I'll probably take the tam (the blue velvet, 6-sided hat with tassel) down so I don't stretch it out and it doesn't get too dusty or get faded (the west sun shines in my office and has already faded some stuff after only 9 months).

And here's the west wall. The window is to the right. The north wall is the bookcase that was in the "before and after" photos. (Click here to see the blog entry about "before and after".)

9/8/2007 Recycling Day!

It's Saturday morning and it's time to take our recycling to the dump. Err, I mean the recycling center. Ooops, no, it's "The Transfer Station." Semantics.

So all the stuff is loaded in the car.

It's actually not very far. First thing....we run into someone we know: the president of UMF! Yep, everybody recycles in this town (or at least they should). Gotta admit, I miss the days in Richardson where you put everything (yes, you can mix plastic, glass, tin, colored and clear, etc.) in a blue plastic bag and put it out in the alley on Tuesday mornings for the garbage men to pick up. But it reminds me of the old days before blue bags in Richardson when I used to take my stuff down to R.E.A.L.--the Richardson Environmental Action League. It was a non-profit group that started recycling LONG before it was popular or trendy. When I loaded it up in my car to take it down there, I had to sort glass by colors and separate out everything like here.

I'm not sure what the difference is between "high grade" paper and mixed paper. Well, I actually guessed that mixed was everything that wasn't high grade. I asked a fellow recycler and he said he thought that high grade was anything not glossy. Sounds good. Also sounds safe to just put everything in mixed. Maybe someone next time will know.

Hmmmm. #2 clear and #2 colored. I never had to sort the plastics like that before. But I can handle it. Too bad, though, that #2 is the only plastic they take. We have a lot of other plastics that aren't #2. Should I save them up and take them back to Texas with me in December? ;-)

Mary and her birthday loot

As I was leaving today, I ran into Mary on her way to her car. Look at all the beautiful flowers that she got for her birthday!

(That's Heidi's arm holding the photos on the right.)

9/7/2007 another new window

I could only leave Mary's birthday window up for one day, so that night I took down her birthday cake and made the window that I had planned all along for my return. You can see why it took so long. Cutting out all those tiny harbors in the Maine coastline was pretty tricky. It's times like this that make me wish I were in Colorado.

9/6/2007 look what's coming....

Yup. It's that frost in August that did it. Everywhere you look, there are patches of orange, red, and yellow starting to show up in the trees. It's going to be autumn before we know it!

IMG_4706.JPG

9/6/2007 Mary's Double Birthday Present

The window. This is a long story. It started as one little joke and now it's a tradition. I'm going to have to go backwards and blog about the early ones now because I can see it's going to be an on-going entry into the blog now. I'm thinking this is not so much my life with the Mainiacs, but their life with me! Oh well. :-)

So, last semester in February or March or so, when the semester was still new and life in the new building was still new (remember, the Education Center opened in January and I got to be the first one to occupy my office space), Kristin walks into my office and tries to get me to look out my window. I do, and there's Mary in her window across the way, flashing her lights on and off. We had been joking about having each other's windows as our "view" but now she's sending Morse code messages to me.

Well, this is too fun. I immediately find a website with the Morse code alphabet on it and print it out and put it in Mary's box so that next time she flashes her lights at me, she can at least be sending me an intelligible message. Then a few days later, Kristin takes me down to "Everyone's Resource Depot"--a cute little shop in the basement of the Education Center that has all the stuff that teachers try to save because they might be able to use them in their classroom: Styrofoam meat trays, miscellaneous pens and pencils, corks, fabric squares, carpet samples, . . . you know the stuff. The whole Farmington community contributes to it and anyone can come and shop there. For less than $2, I bought long paint sticks, sheets of red and yellow card stock, and other supplies. I went back to my office and made a pair of semaphore flags and printed off the directions for the semaphore alphabet. I wrapped it all up in brown paper and string and Allen, one of our great custodians, to let me in and leave it on her desk. The next day, she's standing at her window sending semaphore messages. Wow. That works REALLY well. This goes on for several weeks and then it's time for me to interview for the 3 year position. When I got the call at 7pm that night from the dean saying I got the job, something inspired me to write "I G O T I T !"--one letter per piece of paper--and tape it up in my window so Mary would know. It was a big joke and lots of fun and other people noticed it and stopped in to congratulate me. Mary and Heidi (Mary's next door neighbor who saw the window sign before Mary and told her about it) even put "Congratulations" signs in their windows. A few days later, I took my sign down and then Mary came and scolded me for not putting something else up in my window. Didn't I know it was part of my new job now to keep her entertained by putting new signs up in my window?!

And that's how it all began.

I will definitely go back and find the photos of the other windows and put them here in the blog. On my last day of the spring semester before I left for Texas for the summer, I put up a window display that basically said, "Gone back to Texas". Mary hated that window. When I got back, she bugged me every time she saw me to take it down. I had a new window planned, but didn't have time to get to it. Then I found out it was going to be Mary's birthday and that night, I made a different new window.

So here's Mary's double birthday present:

One part of the present is that I made a window just in honor of her birthday. The other part of the present is that I finally took down the window that she hated so much.

dogs at play

MRM came home one night and found this in the den:

That's the chandelier with a dog toy hanging from it. It has a little kite tail on it and it's meant to sail through the air, but who knew the dogs could throw it so hard and so high that it would get all the way up there?!

9/4/2007 new student orientation

On the same day as convocation, we have our official new student orientation. They've actually been here for 4 days of orientation already, but today is the department and advisor meetings. Everyone declares a major as freshmen or you can pick "Liberal Arts Undeclared." You can always change it, but they like to get you into a network and get you started on a track to help you get out in 4 years with a degree.

Here are orientation staff members helping new students find the right building to go to for their major:

The Secondary/Middle Education Department had their meeting in Lincoln Hall which is in Roberts Learning Center. Here are all the new students:

And here are the peer advisors. For each concentration (science, math, English, social studies), there is current student who is an upperclassman who works with new students to answer questions, help plan the 4 year schedule, etc.

9/4/2007 Convocation

It's the formal kick-off to the new academic year! Here at UMF, convocation is for new students and faculty. I don't think there's a place on campus (or in town) that can hold the whole student body and all the faculty, so just new students come. The faculty formally process in, there are speeches, and then everyone feels scholarly and we go on our way.

Here are the faculty gathering in "The Landing," a room in the lower level of the student union building.

Then, we formally process out of the building, down High Street, and into the Dearborn Gymnasium where the new students are all seated in folding chairs on the gymnasium floor. The procession is led by a bagpiper!

Afterwards, I had Kristin take my photo outside my office wearing my nifty new regalia.

IMG_4693.JPG

farther than Texas

I parked behind this truck in the Wal-Mart parking lot.
Someone is V E R Y far away from home.

9/1/2007 new faculty picnic

Here's a fun tradition. In addition to all the meetings and formal meals with administrators as part of new faculty orientation, they have a big picnic for us. Families are invited and the folks who were the "newbies" the year before bring the side dishes and desserts. The university takes care of the main course which for us was 2 kinds of salmon and some yummy beef kabobs.

Last year's class had 21 folks in it, so the picnic was particularly large. There are only 8 in our rookie class. Sheena, who lives on the lake where I had my first kayak experience, hosts the annual event at her big Victorian home with large back yard and gorgeous gardens.

IMG_4685.JPG

metal roof

MRM's house needed a new roof but instead of getting a replacement shingle roof, she's getting a metal roof. It fits the period of the house and should last a lot longer than shingles. Apparently, north of here, everyone has a metal roof, and south of here, shingled roofs rule. But here, it's a mix. She's going with a certain grade and a certain shade of green that are eligible for some kind of tax reduction because of energy saving incentives. How handy that the shade of green matches her trim almost exactly. It's going to look great. Now we just have to wait for the first rain storm to see how it sounds inside the house and then the first snow. Snow will slide right off the metal roof after certain amounts of accumulation and certain temperatures (one of the advantages...no walking out of your windows to shovel your roof). Of course, there's great danger in that as well...you don't want to be under the eaves when that big pile of snow avalanches down.

IMG_4676.JPG

9/12/2007 look what's in the yard

I got home before sunset tonight and look what I found in the yard. I picked these 4 because in real life, they're all very different colors. I laid them on the scanner and hit the "scan" button. MRM says there will be several FEET of leaves at the height of the season. When you rake them, you rake them towards the sidewalk and the city has a giant leaf-sucking-up-machine that picks them up. Can't wait to see that!!!

9/11/07 Fwd: Overall (May 07) - approved!

I finished my dissertation in December, I graduated in May, but today, I really and truly actually finished my Ph.D. There's one last step you have to go through and that's to get the graduate reader's approval on your dissertation. Your committee is in charge of making sure that your content is accurate and that you indeed created new knowledge to contribute to the field and that you know what you're talking about. After they approve it, the graduate reader works with you on margins, headings, citations, style (APA or MLA, etc.) and details like that. It took me about 11 hours to get all the work done. But at last I got it done and received this email.

I emailed the final version to her Monday night and so decided that Tuesday I could do fun stuff on my "to-do" list (update the blog, organize top dresser drawer, work on Christmas card,...). One of those was to put my diploma in the really cool frame that Mother and Daddy gave me as a graduation gift and hang it on the wall. I didn't really think much about it at the time, but how appropriate that she got back to me so quickly to say that this last round was good and that I was officially done . . . on the day that I was officially hanging my diploma on the wall!

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Jill Kleister"

Date: September 11, 2007 3:23:07 PM EDT

To:

Subject: Overall (May 07) - approved!

Hello Theresa,

I have finished reviewing your dissertation, and I am pleased to inform you that I have approved your document for publication on the UNT Libraries Web server, and with ProQuest. I have attached a copy of the final approved PDF, for your records. The transcript block has been removed from your records.

Congratulations on your most recent achievement, Dr. Overall, and best wishes for your future endeavors!

Sincerely,

Jill

***********

J. S. Kleister

Graduate Reader

Toulouse School of Graduate Studies

University of North Texas

***********

9/6/2007: 65-year-old gets carded in supermarket

I knew this was news here, but I didn't realize it was national news! Mamma Z in Dallas emailed it to me . . . it showed up as a headliner in her Yahoo News when she logged in to her computer.

Yes, that is the grocery store where MRM and I do most of our grocery shopping.

65-year-old gets carded in supermarket

Thu Sep 6, 4:01 PM ET
AP-Associated Press

FARMINGTON, Maine - A 65-year-old woman who went into a Farmington supermarket to buy wine was turned away because she didn't have an ID with her. But Barbara Skapa of Mount Vernon says that won't happen again.

"I'll be bringing my driver's license with me from now on," Skapa said.

She normally carries her license. But with her leg in a cast, Skapa was being driven by a friend when she went into the Hannaford Bros. market last week in and picked up several items, including a few bottles of wine.

The cashier told her it was policy to check for identification, said Skapa, who believes "no one would mistake me for 30 or even 40." Skapa asked if her friend could buy the wine for her, but that was disallowed too because it's considered "third-party" purchasing. Skapa asked to see the manager.

A spokeswoman for the supermarket chain, Rebecca Howes, said Hannaford's new policy is to check IDs of anyone who looks under 45 and wants to buy alcohol. The previous policy was to check for proof of age of those who look younger than 30.

The policy is not unlike those of many other Maine businesses and chains who want to stop minors from illegally buying alcoholic beverages and cigarettes.

In 2005, the state Legislature passed a law that requires identification from those who look under 27 years old before they can buy either.

The Big Apple chain's 90 stores in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont require clerks to require identification from anyone, regardless of age, who buys alcohol or tobacco. The strict policy went into effect after two Portland stores sold alcohol to minors in one night.

Earlier this year, some Portland establishments tightened their ID policies following an undercover sting of dozens of bars and convenience stores that led to 20 summonses for selling alcohol to underage customers. One restaurant, the Flatbread Co., told employees to card anyone ordering drinks who looks under 40.

A pilot program called Card ME was launched recently by the state Office of Substance Abuse and Maine's Higher Education Alcohol Prevention Partnership. It gives participating businesses educational guidebooks and material to help employees spot fake IDs.

Retrieved 9/9/2007 from http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070906/ap_on_fe_st/65_year_old_carded&printer=1;_ylt=A0WTUdJUpeRGPtwAhRYuQE4F

It's a pretty funny story and I love that it happened in Farmington where I now reside. But really, think about it, it could've happened anywhere. When you were in college, how good were you at judging people's ages? Anyone over 30 was ancient! How are you supposed to guess what 45 looks like? And many of the clerks in that store are college students. I've run into several of my students working there.

MRM said that she used to work in a grocery store and she just carded everyone no matter what because it was easier than trying to guess and the law says the clerk who sells alcohol to a minor is liable. She also told us that once you ask for an ID, you can't "take it back" and say, "Oh that's okay." So the manager, who may have been able to determine that the woman was not 45 or younger, could not dismiss it. Once asked, you have to produce ID or you can't buy.

Thanks for sending me the link, Mamma Z!!

from last winter...snowman soup

I'm cleaning off my desk and came across something that Dr. Grace and Beth gave me. It's something they gave practicum students last December. It's so cute, I just had to share (plus, I really want to get rid of the paper but I don't want to lose the idea).

In a zip loc bag put:
1 packet of hot cocoa mix
a handful of marshmallows
some Hershey's kisses
a candy cane
the following poem:

Snowman Soup
When it's so cold that you holler and whoop,
It is time to bring out the snowman soup!

Pour the packet in a mug, add the snowballs, too
Throw in the kisses from the snowman to you

Now add some hot water, use the cane to stir it
Sip slowly and soon you'll feel the warm winter spirit

...the inside scoop

Only those in the know will really get this cartoon. But those who are "aware" will love it. It came out while I was in Texas, but MRM saved it for me. She knew that I would get it. ;-) And ifhttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif you don't get it, then you need to read this entry in my blog:

http://mainiactheresa.blogspot.com/2007/01/coca-cola-mentos-and-buckfield-maine.html

And then there's this related one:

http://mainiactheresa.blogspot.com/2007/01/later-that-night.html

Here's the cartoon:

Monday, 8/20/07: Autumn's coming

MRM was the first to say it. Last week, she looked out over the treetops when we were on French's Mountain and said, "It's starting to look and feel like the beginning of fall." Then I heard the newscasters say it on the television. Can it really be? Noooooo. It's August! But today in downtown Farmington, the bank sign said, "12:31" and then it said, "65". This was 12:31 in the middle of the day sunshine. 65 degrees! How wild is that?! When I got back to the Education Center, I mentioned to Kristin my dismay at the temperature (dismay in a good way . . . I'm delighted to not be sweating but rather to need a sweater in August). She replied, "There's a frost warning for parts of Franklin county tonight and some counties in Maine just north of here are having a freeze warning." It's August!! how can it be so cold already??? I guess I'll find out soon enough, eh?

When I drove to the airport tonight, I had to take a fleece jacket. I can't wait to get off the plane in Texas tomorrow afternoon with a fleece jacket.

Yea Judy, Fred and Dottie!

Okay, this posting is not about Maine, it's about Texas. But I don't have (and don't want to start) another blog . . . at least not yet . . . so I'm posting it here.

Background:
I taught elementary school in Dallas for 21 years at The Lamplighter School--an awesome early childhood education school for children ages 3-10. My specialty was math and I L O V E teaching math. I had quite a collection of resources for teaching math. When I retired from Lamplighter, I carefully packed up all of those resources. They represented so many years of fond memories of rewarding work. Fast forward to 8 years later (now). Time is a great healer and after 8 years of storing that stuff, I knew it was an incredible resource collection but I didn't have the emotional attachment anymore. I could've sold all the resources piecemeal in my estate sale but instead I contacted Dottie and Fred at my church. They head up the Outreach Committee and have contacts all over the community. I told them about the collection and asked if they knew of a school that could really use the materials. It took a while since it was summer and school was out, but they found one! Our Lady of Perpetual Help is our parish's sister parish and they have a K-8 school. OLPH was thrilled to take the entire collection. They were going to really focus on improving their math curriculum this year, so the timing was perfect.

I had to leave town before all the connections were made, so I called Judy to ask for help. She's a long time friend (and Virginia's mom) who goes to All Saints, too, and works on the Outreach Committee with Dottie and Fred. She agreed to house the entire collection until the connections were all made. Dr. Mari and I delivered all the stuff (it filled my entire Saturn, including the trunk, back seat, and passenger seat, so Dr. Mari had to follow me over there in her car) late Saturday night before I left town Monday. (What? Procrastinate? Wait to the last minute? Not me!) I was going to call Dottie and Fred before I left to tell them where the stuff was, but somehow never got around to it. But Judy made the connection and by the time I called Dottie today, 3 weeks after I left town, she told me they had already found the perfect home, picked up the stuff, and delivered it to OLPH.

Yeeehah!!

God is soooooo good!

Thank you Judy, Dottie, and Fred!!

Saturday, 8/19/07: great license plate

IMG_4659.JPG

8/16/07: Crabcakes and Whoopie Pie

Ooops. This is out of order. But here are photos of our delicious dinner on my last night at OOB with Grace. We went to Bailey's Lobster Pound at lunch to get our lobster rolls and also picked up crab cakes for dinner. They're different from Maryland Crab Cakes but they were oh so yummy. The black is not burnt, it's like blackened cajun seasonings.

And for dessert? Whoopie Pie! A Maine classic.

Does it seem like all we did in OOB was eat? Well, it wasn't. We really worked, and worked hard, but work doesn't photograph well. So all you get to see is what we ate.

IMG_4651.JPG

Saturday, 8/19/07: Texas Barbeque in Maine!

I couldn't resist. I've driven by this place several times but it was usually late at night, coming home from an airport. Today, I was on my own schedule, so I stopped in for lunch. This restaurant is run by Mike and Terri. Mike is an El Paso native. He uses real mesquite wood and everything is really yummy. His meats are incredibly tender and moist. The barbecue sauces aren't as good as Spring Creek Barbecue but they were still good.

They do catering, but imagine this: they're already booked for Texas Independence Day 2008! Who else is having a party that day?? I want to meet them! But we can still stop by and pick up a big load of barbecue for takeout.

They're closed tomorrow so that they can take their sons back to college. I love it! Family first.

IMG_4660.JPG

Saturday, 8/18/07: Red Sox Ice Cream

Look what I found in the local grocery store in Auburn. There were several flavors of Red Sox ice cream, including "Fenway Fudge" and "Comeback Caramel".

IMG_0071.JPG

Saturday, 8/18/07: Dutch Treat

There's a cute little ice cream place on the way out of town on Route 4. Since I was on my own today, out exploring and trying to figure out the backroads to Lewiston Auburn on my own, I could take the time to stop here.

They carry Gifford's ice cream. :-)

This is the house specialty, the "Dutch Treat"--a cone of vanilla soft serve ice cream rolled in Rice Krispies and dipped in chocolate:

IMG_4656.JPG

8/17/07: Native Maine Tomatoes

Grace introduced me to Maine Native Tomatoes (I guess that's a breed of tomato and not a classification?) and to two ways to eat them: 1. a tomato sandwich (one slice of tomato is enough because it's as big as the slice of bread) made with bread, mayonnaise, and the tomato, and 2. her grandmother's favorite breakfast--a slice of tomato on buttered toast sprinkled with sugar. They were both delicious...different from anything I've ever eaten before, but quite yummy.

IMG_4655.JPG

Thursday, 8/16/07: Lobster Roll for Lunch

Oh my. oh my. oh my. How delicious! AND, check out how big this lobster roll is:

Wednesday, 8/15/07: Libby's Chocolates

No way! I read about this place, but Grace took me inside so I could see it for myself. Yes, this is a 1,700 pound chocolate moose at a fine chocolatier shop.

And if that wasn't enough, they've created new chocolate sculptures.

Lobster for people who prefer chocolate to seafood:

Lighthouses (how appropriate) filled with chocolate covered blueberries. They had samples and these were actually quite yummy.

Chocolate for Christmas.

All that and they have ice cream, too!