Maine…Again!
I read, the other day, that residents of Maine live longer than any state in our nation.
On our, previous, two journeys to Maine we stayed at a Bed and Breakfast located in Southwest Harbor which is located on Mount Desert Isle.
Southwest Harbor is the town that the Steven King movie, ‘The Storm of the Century’, was filmed!
Southwest Harbor is just a few mile from Bar Harbor.
‘Champlain visited Mount Desert Island in 1604. The first permanent English settlement took place in 1763. Originally known as Eden, the name was changed to Bar Harbor in 1918. That name was derived from a sand bar, which connects Mount Desert Island with another island nearby.’ History of Bar Harbor Maine
‘Bar Harbor a Long-Time Haven for the Rich, Famous and Powerful. Bar Harbor from Great Hill, Mount Desert Island, Maine. …But on the visit to Maine, where he landed Isles des Mount Deserts (Mount Desert Island) for the bare rock peaks of Cadillac Mountain and its neighbors.’ History of Bar Harbor Maine
This year we have charted a destination to Booth Bay Harbor!
‘Just an hour’s drive north of Portland lies the village of BoothBay Harbor, Maine-a seaside getaway embodying the quintessential midcoast. Its shoreline, fringed, with evergreen forests and rocky outcroppings, is an idyllic setting for any weekend escape, and its downtown, filled with a variety of attractive shops and restaurants, ensure the the whole family will enjoy the trip.’ New England Today Travel
We took two Maine vacations, in 2009 and 2010.
I remember thinking that I would enjoy living in Maine! The atmosphere was peaceful and serene and inviting for reflection.
The conclusion of my career at Southern Illinois University was on my mind during both Maine sojourns! Although I, throughly, enjoyed my service to SIUC…I was ready for other challenges.
I could read the handwriting on the wall of the university and I had concluded that the housekeeping division of the campus…no longer had the importance to the mission of recruitment and retention of our precious students…that I had, heralded, for 25 years!
Now, please do not misunderstanding me…the cleanliness of our campus was and is of, paramount, importance to the recruitment and retention of our student body…but, the, fog, of financial distress had hidden that fact from university leadership!
Later, the president of the university told me that my concerns regarding leadership, that I had expressed to him, just prior to my retirement, were correct…and that he regretted not listening to me.
I recall thinking, while we were in Southwest Harbor…on the front porch of the Bed and Breakfast, that we stayed in both years that we were there, and while we were enjoying some, wonderful, complimentary red wine, that I would love to take a European Cruise as a celebration of my retirement!
In 2011 we took a Mediterranean cruise that included; Genoa, Italy, Tunis, Tunisia, Barcelona, Spain, and Nice France…where we visited with our lifelong friend, Margo, and…there were more visits to Europe…yet to come!
Maine has a feeling of beginnings! It has a solid feeling of life…as it should be lived!
We visited a, quaint, bookstore where I purchased an antique set of the Pentateuch. Also I bought the finest umbrella that I have ever seen!
The rocky coastline of Arcadia National forest provides a majestic vista to consider the, ancient, permanence of nature and the fragility of mankind!
We have wanted to return for, over, eight years…and this year we shall do so!
Photos: Courtesy of Getty Images and Google Search.
A Peaceful Drive in the Countryside on a Pleasant Summer’s Day
A great Blog by Jonathon Brooks! 🌞
A journey down memory lane can be a peaceful drive in the countryside on a pleasant summer’s day. I live in the present, but I recollect the quality stuff from my past often. I have movie stubs that date back to 1998 when I was a boy of fourteen. Then there’s stamp book collections from 1984 (my mother bought these for me) through 1991. Of course there’s also photographs from the last thirty-five years. In addition I have also collected friends throughout my lifetime that I’ve worked hard to hold on to. Yes, I enjoy driving in the present and I take joy in the long drive home of reminiscing about the past.
Life is what we have the courage or cowardice to make of it. Optimism or pessimism. Love or hate. Kindness or meanness. Hope or despair. Beauty or ugliness. Overcoming or giving up. As I wrote in a…
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Johnny Cash @ Folsom Prison
Yesterday, I purchased the, original vinyl record of Johnny Cash’s performance at Folsom Prison in 1968. At the end of 1968…I was eleven years old.
I wanted the vinyl record due to having listened to the Audible Book entitled, ‘Folsom Untold’ by Danny Robins.
The story was a fascinating account of Mr. Cash’s performance at Folsom and what a boost that it gave his, then, sagging career!
‘At Folsom Prison is a live album and 27th album by Johnny Cash, released on Columbia Records in May 1968. After his 1955 song, ‘Folsom Prison Blues’, Cash had been interested in recording a performance at a prison. His idea was put on hold until 1967, when personnel changes at Columbia Records put Bob Johnston in charge of producing Cash’s material. Cash had recently controlled his drug abuse problems, and was looking to turn his career around after several years of limited commercial success. Backed with June Carter, Carl Perkins and the Tennessee Three, Cash performed two shows at Folsom State Prison in California on January 13, 1968. The resulting album consisted of fifteen tracks form the first show and two tracks from the second.’ Wikipedia
During the performance at Folsom Prison, Glen Sherley was sitting on the front row. He had written a song called, ‘Greystone Chapel’, and he did not know that Johnny was going to perform it.
After his release from prison, ‘Sherley subsequently wrote and performed a number of other songs. However, despite help from Cash, he was unable to adjust to life outside prison, eventually committing suicide at the age of 42.’ Wikipedia
‘In 1971, CBS Evening News reported that, after 11 years imprisonment for armed robbery, Sherley was paroled. Cash sponsored Sherley and had helped push for his release.’ The Californian
As Jonathon and I were listening to the Folsom Prison, 1968, recording, I was reminded of my mom and I watching Johnny Cash on his, weekly television program in the 1960’s!
Cash was a captivating performer and his phrasing of a song…caused you to feel the lyrics in your soul!
Many of the asides that are on the live Folsom recording…reminded me of my step-father and his humor.
Johnny Cash was a representative of the dichotomy of our human experience! He was plagued by many human temptations…and he succumbed to many!
But, he had a heart and a passion and he cared about his fellow man…he looked to Christ for help and succor and understanding of his predicament.
As we listened to Johnny sing to the prisoners in Folsom…it was obvious that he was not putting anything on for their benefit…he understood their nightmare and how they felt and their pain and hopelessness!
I have watched God reach out to man…in many unconventional forms…at Folsom…on January 13th, 1968…God was speaking through a Kingsland, Arkansas singer…named Cash!
There are so many of us that will never be university professors.
Many of us will never know the privilege of attending university or enjoy the support of family and friends and colleagues who will encourage us to expand our academic horizons and reach for the stars!
Many of us…understand the school of hardscrabble and rearing of, ‘bootstrap and belt buckles.’…and often it appears that there is no place for we, unfortunate sons!
Many of us live in the rust belt.
Many of us live in coal country.
Many of us…worked for General Motors!
Many of us are intellectually challenged!
Many of us are physically challenged!
Many of us have returned from serving our country….with…fears and nightmares….and an anxiety that we need assistance to control!
We are Native American…we are African American…we are Hispanic American…we are Muslim American…we seek someone that understands that we matter…too!
Note: Photos of Johnny Cash and Glen Sherley are courtesy of Google search.
Observing Anger…Twice In One Day!
Today, Mary Jane and I made our monthly trek to our local Wal-Mart Super Center.
The store is so large that it served as my daily walk!
As we made our way, slowly and aisle by aisle, I began hearing a gentleman screaming at other member of his party. The, angry man, noted that, ‘now he was pissed’, while his; family or friends, or colleagues…attempted to display that they were not with the loudmouth.
Have you ever witnessed someone who was so angry that they appeared to be transported to another world…and the rest of us were not a part of their reality?
We then drove, northward, to our favorite, locally owned market, Arnold’s, and again we were aurally assaulted with the, extreme, raising of voices, coming from a home that was adjacent to the market.
The venomous comments that were wafting from the home, was a duet, of a man and a woman who appeared to be equally, extremely mad at each other!
Anger is a legitimate human emotion and all of us experience it, from time to time. However, it can, also, be a dangerous emotion when those who are experiencing it to the extent that they have lost perspective regarding their surroundings.
As I was entering our Kroger Supermarket, about a year ago, I was greeted by someone who was screaming so loudly, at a cashier, that it was deafening! The, apoplectic, individual was announcing, over and over, that, ‘they were a human being!’
Our world is cranked up and turned over! People are undergoing stressors that I did not witness in my youth or middle years.
There is a disconnect in the United States that, one day, will explode!
As I watched, former Trump campaign chairman, Paul Manafort receive a fraction of the prison sentence that was suggested for his, white collar, crimes, I was not shocked.
It is not unusual for an African American person to receive, many more years, than Mr. Manafort received, for possession of marijuana!
It has been suggested that Mr. Manafort has been treated like a terrorist for being kept in solitary protective custody while awaiting his trial.
Where is a similar outcry for people of color or poor white people…when they do, heinous time, before their trial and then are sentenced to, exorbitant sentences for much less the crimes, that Mr. Manafort pleaded guilty to?
When our society becomes a cadre of oligarchs and the rest of us struggle to make ends meet…something has to break!
‘General Motors Chairman and CEO Mary Barra had total compensation in 2017 of $21.96 million.’ Google
‘Average General Motors pay ranges from $12.24 per hour for Customer Service Representative $42.00 per hour for Performance Engineer.’ Google
‘The top 10% of families–those who had at least $942.00–held 76% of total wealth.’ Google
So we, firmly, believe in the vision of the American dream! We are satisfied that if you work hard and apply yourself…you will succeed in America!
But for many Americans…the dream…has become a nightmare!
Opportunity is wonderful and great and, ‘apples of gold in pictures of silver,’ Proverbs 25:11 KJV
But…first…someone has to open the door of opportunity for you!
We upper middle class, folks, and the rich…tend to judge the success of the middle class and the poor by our comfortable surroundings!
We know that opportunities were, readily, available to us…and in our, white privilege, we accessed our role in society…and had, ample, assistance by our mentors and friends to secure success!
I, vividly, recall when the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, a respected professor and a former SIU athletic star, and a name that is revered by our university…was stopped on campus by the police and had to present his identification and prove that he had the right to drive a nice automobile…while being black!
The template that we apply to the poor and the working class and, even, the middle class of our society…is not working for the majority of our society!
How To Keep a Good Employee
Over my 32 year career at Southern Illinois University, with 31 years being involved in either supervisor or management/administration, I discovered several elements involved in retaining a good employee.
When I began at the university I, immediately, felt appreciated!
As a 20, almost, 21 year old I wanted to not only produce a good job…I wanted to produce an excellent job! I had not worked a week when office occupants, in Thalman Hall, began to tell me that they appreciated the cleanliness of their; offices, and rest rooms, and public areas.
During those first days of being a member of the SIUC community, I had determined that I had friends that were professionals, such as accountancy and insurance executives, and that I was going to be a housekeeping professional!
My supervisor made me feel welcome…from my first night of work, as did his supervisor. Within the first few days of my service…the custodial supervisor for the night housekeeping operations…visited me and told me that he had been hearing good things about me and invited me to go to Personnel and take the Building Custodian exam…which is the position that my boss held.
I was amazed at the positive attention and feedback that I had received…so quickly!
I felt that I was a new member of a, career, housekeeping family!
Now in the first years of my time at SIUC, it was customary to receive an 8% raise annually. I knew that this was a wonderful pay raise…as I had not been accustomed to receiving any in my previous positions.
I recall asking a colleague if he was excited about the 8% raise…and he began to laugh so hard that he bent over and grabbed his knees and tears came to his eyes and then he asked me, ‘do you think that 8 cents is a good raise?’
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
I did to have the heart to correct him, as he had enjoyed the joke….so much!
The popular motivational speaker, Zig Ziglar, said that, ‘I really do not care how much you know…until I know how much you care…about me.’
Photo by Helena Lopes on Pexels.com
The vital component to keeping a good employee is that the person must feel that they are an essential member of the team!
This would be the same for professors and janitors…and all members of a university community or any workplace.
Periodic pay increases are extremely important. My wife and I have been retired since the end of 2010 and February of 2011. We have, regular received 3% pay increases, for each year of our retirement…accept the first.
If you want to retain, outstanding staff, you, at the minimum, must keep an eye on the cost of living.
The university, has undergone extreme challenges…that include; not having a state budget for two years and the, subsequent, abdication of, fiscal, responsibility by the state …for public higher education.
I have been told, on numerous occasions, that my supervisor, or manager, or administrator…supported me and loved my job performance and that they could not replace me…but and if there is no financial support…the words are hollow!
Money…in the university or in the workplace…equals support for the hard work of, supremely, dedicated staff! In the university…financial support is an un-equivocal marker of recognition and appreciation!
Over 40 years I have watched as my, beloved, university builds majestic buildings and seems to find the money for, top, administrators and leaders!
The church…is not the building…it is the congregation.
The Union…is not the Union Hall…it is the members.
The University is not the buildings or the beautiful campus…it is the people that make it run…and are, unfailing, in their dedication to it’s success!
I have known, throughout my career, many staff for which money…is not their primary motivator! These precious people love their school! They are working…night and day…and many hours for which they are not paid…to re-build and strengthen and secure SIUC…from the winds of change and the vagaries of a state that has been AWOL and the revolving door of leadership at the campus level.
As we build our recruitment and retention efforts and bolster our academic programs…let us re-build the people that have kept our campus afloat!
It is money well spent!
150 Years of Southern Illinois University
Today begins Southern Illinois University’s celebration of it’s 150th anniversary in Carbondale, Illinois.
I have been admiring the jubilant faces of faculty, staff, and students as they pose for photos that encourage people to give to the university.
The signs that the SIUC students are holding, for the photos, are clever in their plea for financial assistance for various segments, of a large and diverse, academic institution. The signs state that if the student had, $1,000.00…that they would give it to their, favorite discipline or department.
When I saw chancellor John Dunn’s big smile, I was reminded of the can-do spirit that founded SIUC and that has kept it vibrant for the past 150 years!
I served on chancellor, Walter Wendler’s, Southern @ 150 committee, several years ago, and the group was comprised of 258 individuals who served on a plethora of sub-committees.
I remember thinking that the committee’s goals were ambitious and the target date for their completion was a mere 16 years away!
One of the most enjoyable experiences I had, while serving with the, august group, was listening to Dr. Samuel Goldman. Dr. Goldman had such wisdom and a far reaching understanding of not only the university but also the Southern Illinois region…and what it would take to make both flourish! Dr. Goldman, later went on to become the chancellor of SIUC.
The years from the Southern @ 150 committee to the realization of the 150th anniversary of our school…have raced by!
During those years we have undergone the triple threat of; abysmal state funding and two years without a state budget, a precipitous decrease in our student enrollment, and poor management by a revolving door of chancellors.
The General Motors plant in Lordstown, Ohio will close Friday. Thousands of GM employees will be laid-off. This is not only devastating to the laid-off employees and their families…but also to the businesses in Lordstown and the economy of the area!
Lordstown, Ohio is a company town…as is Carbondale, Illinois!
Dr. Samuel Goldman understood the dynamic of town and gown…and he explained it to us, clearly and succinctly, in our sub-committee…so many years ago.
SIUC has been an integral part of my life for over 40 years.
The success that the university has afforded me…did not come to me in the traditional academic route.
I was hired as a Building Service Worker I, which is a janitor, and it was the best job that I had ever had!
I could not believe my good fortune to have a job that had a good pay and great benefits!
Being a member of the university community…I wanted to avail myself of the academic opportunities that were available to me.
As I enrolled in classes…and gained confidence in my academic ability…and received encouragement from wonderful professors such as, Carol Burns, I began to believe that I could accomplish anything that I put my mind to!
Happiness and contentment…do not adequately describe my career at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale! It is, simply, a wonderful place to grow and become a more developed human being.
My world expanded, ten fold, through my years at SIUC.
When I think of the opportunities that I was able to offer to people that do not, typically, receive opportunities…I am speechless!
SIUC is an open door that has opportunity written above it and on the lintels of the door posts!
SIUC is an ocean of knowledge and understanding and growth and acceptance of others who may be different than you are…and it is located in the midst of Little Egypt…and it is a hidden treasure….and, often, people that move here…never leave…why would you want to leave nirvana?
There is a feeling of anticipation that is, palpable, in the air around SIUC!
Students from the northern parts of Illinois and Chicago…want to come here…it is beautiful and sedate and peaceful and a natural laboratory that is worthy of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and Thoreau!
Students from across the globe…want to attend Southern Illinois University at Carbondale…because it is like nothing that they have ever experienced…and it possess the, epitome, of academic programs!
The people of Carbondale and of Southern Illinois…love their university and they love…SIUC students!
Over many years, when I worked at Building Services, we had an annual Thanksgiving dinner. The primary focus of our dinner was our 200 student staff. Chancellors and presidents came to have Thanksgiving dinner with us…and they marveled at the unity and the love and the…family…that we had!
Thinking About Spring!
Although the temperatures have dipped into the single digits, the last two nights, and we have snow on the ground, I am thinking of spring!
Winter has been especially cold this year…or at least it seems so to me.
I am watching the geese on our pond, and they do not seem to be worried about anything. When Parker, our Lab, barked at them, earlier, they honked, a little, and moved, even less!
I was overwhelmed with the goodness of God over the winter when a member of my family had surgery and her, terrible pain was alleviated!. I did not have time to feel lonely or forgotten, due to so many members of our church coming to our aid and bringing the most delicious meals and fellowship to us.
I think that winter must be a time to regroup and reassess and renew our life’s journey and be the cartographer of our living map.
You know, really, our life is nothing more than a series of choices, and often is is difficult to discern which bend in the road to follow!
I see so many positive and productive moves being made by our chancellor at SIUC, such as the approval of a nursing program for our school…that will, greatly, benefit our entire region!
The fragility of life…walks arm in arm with the permanence of life!
‘My beloved speaks and says to me:
‘Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away;
for now the winter is past,
the rain is over and gone.
The flowers appear on the earth;
the time of singing has come,
and the voice of the turtle-dove is heard in our land.
The fig tree puts forth its figs,
and the vines are in blossom;
they give forth fragrance.
Arise, my love, my fair one,
and come away.’ Song of Solomon 2:10-13 NRSV
It seems that we must rise and seize the day…and claim the, majestic gift, that we have been given!
Photo by Plush Design Studio on Pexels.com
Anxiety!
‘Anxiety – A feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome.’ Dictionary
Feelings of anxiety are unpleasant.
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Anxiety and nervous worry…is debilitating!
I can, vividly, recall being asked to officiate at funerals for deceased members of the little church that I attended, so many years ago, and feeling an, overpowering nausea, for a period of two hours or more before the service.
I was so nervous that I was not up to the task…or that I would say the wrong thing…or that somehow I was inadequate! However, once I began speaking, I felt calm and secure and determined to deliver a message, that with God’s assistance, would be a comfort to the family of the deceased and, credit, to their life!
I have always felt an, unease or anxiety, before public speaking. Yet, upon, speaking to, many, audiences for over 40 years…I have received, many gracious compliments.
When I was 29 years old I became the assistant superintendent of Building Services at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. This position entailed the management of 150 full time staff and 200 part time staff and the 24/7 housekeeping of over 200 campus and off campus buildings.
I reported for work at 3:30 p:m:…and I was sick to my stomach each day…for at least two years!
Prior to my promotion to the assistant manager of a large academic/custodial organization…I had been a crew supervisor, as well as a foreman with several crews reporting to me. I was comfortable with these levels of supervisory responsibility due to being able to, empirically, inspect the quality of the cleaning that our staff was performing…but the idea of being responsible for several hundred people and 200 hundred buildings…was a bit overwhelming!
I believe that many of us are, privately, consumed with feelings of anxiety and extreme worry…and fear of what awaits us around the, next, corner!
Now…as you know…most feelings of anxiety are baseless!
Most worry…is a specter in or our mind and a shadow, that lurks in our peripheral vision, that we can not see well…but feel it’s foreboding presence!
So many things that worry us are fog banks that seek to hide our abilities from us.
Photo by Pedro Figueras on Pexels.com
Our current political environment can make us ill…with anxiety!
Whether you are a Republican or Democrat…if the news make you anxious and effects your sleep or your general feeling of wellbeing….a good idea would be to consume less of it.
So much of what we see in the media, can cause you to feel left behind or not good enough…or as the Saturday Night Live character, Stuart Smalley, as portrayed by Al Franken…’I’m good enough, I’m smart enough, and doggone it, People like me.’
Happiness is not contained in…things!
Many of us require an automobile…but do we need a Mercedes Benz?
Photo by Dima Visozki on Pexels.com
We require shelter and a comfortable home, is a blessing….but do we need the largest home in the neighborhood…or a summer cottage?
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
We don’t want to be hungry…but is gluttony the answer?
We want to be clothed…but do we need a $2,000 suit…is it not still made of cloth?
Real life is not depicted in our nightly commercials or our, rat race, to ‘keep up with the Jones family!’
We are cajoled into believing that there are enemies lurking around every corner and behind every bush. The fear mongering of, self-serving, politicians has made us afraid of our neighbors and anyone who looks different from us…or who worships differently than we do…and assured us that only a few countries are worthy of us allowing, their refugees, entry into the United States.
Now we sit in our houses with our doors securely locked and our alarm systems engaged…and when we see our neighbor suffering…we experience anxiety!
‘Worry never robs tomorrow of the sorrow, it only saps today of its joy’ A Healthy Place
‘Your mind is your prison when you focus on your fear.’ A Healthy Place
‘For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.’ II Timothy 1:7 KJV
Brothers!
Yesterday, dear Marcy and Brock visited us!
We had originally planned to get together in October and then in December…but illness prevented our reunion!
Each opportunity that I have to visit with the Tennessee Brooks…I realize what wonderful and sweet people that they are!
I am the oldest of our father’s lineage and Brock is the youngest. We first met in August of 2016 at the Marriott Airport Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee. Brock and Marcy, graciously, drove over an hour to meet us for lunch…upon our return from our visit to the United Kingdom.
We enjoyed dinner at Walker’s Bluff, The Tasting Room, that is located about three miles from our home.
The Tasting Room is a quality restaurant and a relaxing venue to to enjoy drinks and a leisurely dinner…with a, wonderful musician to serenade our familial bonds!
The musician was, Leight July, and her singing and guitar playing was virtuosos!
When I am with Brock and Marcy…I feel like that I am home!
They have the most lovely children, Jeb and Jaime…and I loved them from the moment that I met them!
As we were talking with our family…this morning, over some of Mary Jane’s, famous, coffee cake and Hardee’s biscuits…I reflected on how fortunate that we are to have been united with such wonderful and caring people!
When you become older, as I have, you realizes that miracles do not happen…every day. But, a miracle happened to bring these, precious, people, into my life!
I think that I was a, rather, lonely child…once we moved to Eldorado, Illinois from our, seemingly idyllic, home in Sauk Village, a suburb of Chicago.
I often wished that I had a brother or a sister…and that I had someone to bounce ideas off of or to discuss the many concerns that I had, as a youngster…from a broken home.
Since 2012 I have known that I have 6 siblings….that I have communicated with…but only two that I have met….
Jonathon, introduced us to his, Story Cube, game. This is a game with nine dice with pictures on each side of the individual die. One person roles the dice and then each player in turn, draws a die and creates a portion of the story that the group, ties and subsequently, constructs…together!
Truly…the story of the Illinois Brooks and the Tennessee Brooks…is being constructed in expert fashion!
I can not wait to read the next chapter!
The Happy Traveler 