The Beauty of Americana Finnmark

Because of my health,  I no longer am able to walk the grounds of Finnmark.The beauty of this great piece of property is a sight to behold.  We have won a couple of awards for our landscaping.  We also have living on our property some amazing gardeners.

     These days I sit on my balcony  and admire the courtyard and whatever else falls within my view.

    If you have never walked the grounds during the spring and summer . you should do so.  There are some really pretty sights- whether it is the natural beauty of our trees and shrubbery, or your neighbors patios and balconies.

    I enjoy my balcony, for the privacy.  When the tree in front of my balcony is in bloom, I am hidden from everyone and it is like my own private Eden. I can listen to the music, enjoy the sights and sounds of local wildlife, sip a Campari and soda, and admire the beauty of the trees and shrubs.

  I have squirrels and chipmunks, scurrying around in the grass, numerous birds, butterflies and sometimes insects I do not recognize.  Early in the morning I can see a family of rabbits, the occasional deer and soon ducks and Canadian  geese.

  Those of you who are mobile- and are able to get around- take a walk- admire the sights, say hello to a neighbor.  Check out the courtyards, the patios and the balconies.

Enjoy the walk and enjoy the beauty that is Finnmark.

Remembering Christmas

Another multi-killing in the United States- but this time the victims were not adults or young adults-they were vey young children-ages 6-10. It is tragic when adults or young adults die- but little children-it is beyond tragic and tears the life out of everyone who hears or reads about the incident. I watched the new reports and my eyes fill with tears-so young- children who have not even started to experience what life is all about. So close to Christmas. The parents have bought and wrapped the gifts, bought new film for the camera-ready to capture that magic momnent- the joy in their childrens eyes when they wake up and see the tree with all the lights and glitter and of course- the many wrapped gifts. The camera will capture the smiles, the wide eyes and the laughter of the children- Pictures that the children will appreciate when they get older- the camera ,however does not show the happiness on the face of the parents. If you go beyond the corny Christmas shows, the lights and glitter, one will realize that the best part of Christmas is the look on the childrens faces. As adults we remember our own happy days and we wonder now as adults- how ould we have believed in something so silly as eight reindeer, pulling a sleigh with an elderly fat man, who travel over the world, climbing down chimmneys and leaving gifts- As silly as this sounds, and as much as we believe in telling our children the truth- we still lie about this idea-- and why-- because of what Christmas represents. Beyond the gifts, and the joy it brings our children, it is also the celebration of the birth of the child of God- Jesus- the simple carpenter who preached unconditional love- sort of the love parents receive from their children. Christmas is about honoring the teachings of Christ- the giving of ones self, the helping hand when someone is in trouble, the respect we show others- and we do this- not to hear the words "Thank you", we do it because it brings happiness to another human who may be hurting- our reward- we feel good for our good deed- and we share the gratitude and happiness of the person helped. With tragic loss this magic might fade- but it doesn't have to. If you have bought gifts, and wonder what to do- donate them to a charity(Toys for Tots etc.) and imagine the magic on the face of those children who will receive your gifts. For the adults who do not have children, but still remember the magic of Christmas- go buy some gifts for a local charity and remember the magic. To everyone- remember this day as the birth of Jesus- the Son of God- and remember the love that is given to us unconditionally. Merry Christmas

Why I am Voting For Romney

The Republican Convention is over and I am excited. No Republican convention has got me this excited since Reagans. The past four years have been bad for millions of Americans. When President Obama was elected the country was excited, people who never voted before cast their votes for a new and exciting era in politics--or so they thought. Instead the people got higher unemployment, larger deficits, partisan politics, a health bill that will ruin this country with its high rates, taxes and regulations. The Democrats and the liberal(progressive) media have been rude, nasty and arrogant. As a Democrat I am ashamed of the antics of Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi- I have never heard such hatred toward other people who disagree with you as these two dispense toward Republicans, conservative voters and the media. I can not support the nominee of the Democrats this year. . I will cast my vote for the Republican nominee- Mitt Romney- not because of any lofty promises, but because of what he has done and will do. Listen to Romney's speech from the convention. Listen to what other people have said about Romney. Read about his background. Now ask yourself- Is this the man you want to lead this country. You see- it is not about his promises. It is not about his religion. It is about the man himself. He has devoted his life to providing for his family, and when he was done with this he devoted his life to helping others. He served as Governor of Mass. for four years and took no salary- he reduced the defict in Mass., lowered unemployment and left the state with a surplus. He took over the U.S. Olympics when it was faced with scandal and financial ruin- again- no pay and he made the U.S. Olympics something to be proud of. He founded an investment group and helped make a number of companies successful(Staples, Home Depot) Granted some did not become succesful- but he did not use taxpayers money and overall he created jobs and saved many companies. During all this time he gave his time to helping neighbors and co-workers in their time of need. He has been successful in business , life with the public and life with his family. Many people condemn his success- but in the real world everyone wants to be successful. Listen to Romney and read some of his speeches. Read what others say about him. Isnt this what people wish for- success- success in family, success in work, and success in your place in society. Romney may not have all the answers- but we know that the current administartion have no new ideas and have exhausted all their other ones. When I look at Romney- I see something more than a politician- I see someone who has achieved great things in his life. I see something that people- no matter what age, gender, relgion, education , race or citizenship status- hope for in their lives. What I see is what people see when they come to this country, or they read about American history- I see someone that everyone aspires to be- Successful,in life, for their family, and for the future.

Hey Romney!

Those who know me. know that I am a nice guy- I do not discriminate, I open my heart and mind to everyone- and try not to make enemies. Those who want to know more- well here it is- I am a 61 year old white male Democrat, who is currently suffering from heart failure and a chronic lung condition that requires me to be on oxygen 24 hours a day. Now that you know all this. I want to make a few comments on this years Presidential election. The country is in bad shape- the Democrats had their chance and only made things worse- it is time for a change. I will be voting for Mitt Romney this year and I will vote for Ken Timmerman for Congress,Bongino for Senate. But before I make that final decison I have something to say--"Hey Romney"! What is your problem- stop being a nice guy and get mean. This current administration is fighting dirty, with lies and innuendos and I hear nothing from you or your PACS- Well I may not know much about campaigning- but I do know this- if I was running for office,and my opponent wanted to fight dirty, he better be prepared- because I will come back at you hard and mean. Wake up your staff, get them angry and get mean- talk about the failure of the past four years, talk about the arrogancy of the current crop of Democrtas and their elected officials- We know you are a good guy, but come on Romney- it is time to put on the boxing gloves and fight back- Enough is Enough.

Campari, Bitter Lemon, Torremolinos

I am sitting on the balcony, sipping a Campari and bitter lemon. In front of me is a small bowl of green olives, a plate consisting of some crostinis and manchego cheese. It is hot, but the sight of the Mediterranean Sea promises an offer of a cool breeze. Torremolinos is a busy resort town on the coast of Spain. The streets are full of tourists, some heading to work, others dressed for swimming and sunning. I am looking forward to a walk along the beach later- maybe grab a cup of blood orange granita,, maybe a plate of ensalada russo, with a hard roll. I will enjoy the sun, maybe a dip in the water- and head back to the hotel. Maybe I will have another Campari and bitter lemon, take a cool shower followed by a nap. The town gets very loud and busy at night. There is live gypsy flamenco music. the smell of grilled meats from the street vendors and vendors selling their wares. For dinner-hmm- I am in the mood for a paella- I will have to ask the hotel manager for a good restaurant. I pour myself another Campari drink-ahhh- so perfect for a hot afternoon in Torremolinos. Someone shouts out my name- I open my eyes- I am slightly bewildered- I hear my name again- "Bob-are you ok? I look around, the beach is gone, the people are gone- and my neighbor is calling my name- I look down from the balcony--"Yeah I'm ok- I was just daydreaming". Man, what happend. Here I am- I am still at Americana Finnmark- did only two Campari and bitter lemon do this-- I look around-my neighbor heads off- do I still hear the gypsy music-- I pour myself another Campari and bitter lemon.

A Renaissance Man

My father was not the stereotypical father. He worked over 30 years at a grocery store. He did not drive. He was not a big sports fan.He did not drink, smoke and seldom lost his temper. He did speak two languages, wrote poetry and love letters to my mother, he sang, he danced and he loved the movies, broadway and award shows, and he was a good artist. he did not become interested in baseball until he met the famous baseball pitcher Camilo Pascual- who shopped at the grocey store. They would talk about politics,(Pascual was from Cuba, my father was from Spain) My brothers and I met Camilo Pascual one day when we went to pick my father up at work. My father soon became a baseball fan-He took us to our first baseball game- and not knowing any better, walked down the aisles to the Senators dugout and shouted out Camilo's name.- Much to our surprised, Camilo came out, shook hands with my father and autographed our baseballs. It made our day and we thought our dad kinda special-he knew somebody famous We attended a few more games over the years, and my father became somewhat of a baseball fan. My father loved to read- and although he did not graduate from high school in this country, he knew American history better than most Americans. We use to watch Jeopardy and he would whiz through the answers- he was really good with history and the arts and entertainment questions. On his days off, he would go down to Georgetown with our neighbor George Psira, they would look for a nice location along the canal, set up their easels and paint-they were both very good painters-a trait I did not inherit. He loved the holidays and made each one special, and filmed or photographed every family get together-when he died there must have been over a thousand photgraphs of family and friends. Award shows were a big deal for him- he loved showbusiness and always had dreams of becoming an actor-. Whenever there was an awards show on, he would buy fancy cheese and meats, crackers, sparking wine and make a big production of the evening- guessing the winners of the Oscars, Tony's or Emmy's. He made a point to see all the nominated movies during the year. When I turned 18, he took me to see my first "racy movie". It was Gypsy- with Natalie Wood, Ethel Merman and Karl Mulden. It was pretty risque at the time and we had a great time. There are so many great stories to tell about my father- and I could go on and on. But that will be for a later date. I can only say, he died to soon, and he is greatly missed. I have said it before and I will say it again- he came to this country to become a great actor- and instead he became a great father. Happy Fathers Day Dad- we still miss you.

When Everyones Mom Was Your Mom

Growing up in the Silver Spring/Wheaton neighborhood 50 years ago was so much different from the neighborhood today. We played football in the street- the telephone poles were the goal posts, the cars lined on the streets were the out of bound markers. Of course we played touch football- getting tackled on pavement would not have been very wise. As in professional football we played in different venues- sometimes it was Tenbrook Drive, sometimes Helena Drive and sometimes Laredo Road. The teams were different each time we played and occassionaly a bit of rough housing would take place.But no one got hurt, and no one held a grudge. On every block that we played on,there would be someones mother who would provide sodas, and snacks- sometimes even lunch. These same mothers would also be the teams mother- if you got hurt you did not go home you would go up the the block mothers home and she would treat you-- she would also scold you if you misbehaved and you would know that when you got home later that day- your real mother would be ready to give you another scolding. I remember these mothers to this day- Mrs. Van Ness, Mrs. Boxall,Mrs. Leo,Mrs. Volz, Mrs. Wood, Mrs. Leonard, Mrs Lycette, Mrs. Knapp, Mrs. Allison, Mrs. Psira and of course my mother. Most of these mothers are now gone- but I still have great memories of their generosity and kindness. I do not know how many families still practice this form of child rearing- most parents are caught up in their careers, children do not play in the street anymore and most children- if they do play sports play sports on their computers. Those were the days of good neighbors, neighbors who watched out for each other and everyone was part of a big neighborhood family I miss my mother and I miss the mothers of these neighborhood- People die, or move away and we gradually lose touch with our old neighborhoods and friends. To all the friends from the neighborhood- and to all my friends- Remember you Mother this Mothers Day and remember how special she was- not just to your family but to the other kids in the neighborhood- Happy Mothers Day Mom- you are in my heart and mind all the time-.