Saturday 9: Indian Lake

Saturday 9: Indian Lake (1968)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) In this song, a family gets on a bus and heads off on vacation. Think about the last trip you took. Did you travel by car, bus, train, boat, or plane?

A. The last trip I took was by car.

2) Once they get to Indian Lake, they swim, have a picnic and go canoeing. Are you looking forward to any of these activities this summer?

A. I am not looking forward to any of those activities this summer. 

3) "Indian Lake" became familiar to TV audiences because it was used in commercials for the Dodge Charger. In the 1960s, most households didn't have remote controls to enable viewers to mute or skip commercials. Today, we do. When a commercial comes on, do you watch or do you turn down the sound or, if possible, fast forward past it?

A. I thought commercials were the signal to get up and go to the ladies room. And some shows won't let you fast forward through commercials anymore when you're streaming.

4) The Cowsills were a family singing group who had four Top 10 hits between 1967 and 1969. The brothers were self-taught musicians who enjoyed playing at church and school events. When their father, Bud Cowsill, became their manager, he insisted his wife Barbara and their youngest, Susan, join the band. He wanted the Cowsills to become "a latter-day Von Trapp family." Without looking it up, do you know who the Von Trapps were?

A. The Von Trapps were the Austrian family immortalized in the movie The Sound of Music.

5) The Cowsills were the inspiration for the sitcom The Partridge Family. It ran for four seasons and the fictional Partridges had three Top 10 hits, were nominated for a Grammy and made David Cassidy a star. Are you familiar with The Partridge Family?

A. I am quite familiar with The Partridge Family. I thought David Cassidy was quite handsome, and I wished I were as subtly beautiful as Susan Dey.

6) The Cowsills starred in an advertising campaign for the American Dairy Association. On TV and in magazine ads they proclaimed that "Milk is the lift that lasts." Decades later, oldest brother Bill recalled that he seldom drank milk. How about you? Do you often drink milk?

A. I am allergic to milk, so I do not drink it.

7) While Bud Cowsill engineered the family band's success, he also contributed to their demise. The Cowsills were scheduled to appear 10 times on the influential Ed Sullivan Show but were fired after the second because Bud was too confrontational backstage. He also had a reputation for being abrasive with record company executives and concert promoters, and this affected the band's ability to find work. Do you have a hard time biting your tongue or controlling your temper?

A. I can have a temper sometimes. I try not to but am not always successful.

8) In 1968, when this song was popular, Leonard Bernstein released his award-winning recording of Mahler: Symphony No. 8. Do you enjoy classical music?

A. I like to listen to classical music sometimes.

9) Random question – Here we are in March. If you made any New Year's resolutions, have you kept them?

A. I did not make any New Year's resolutions.

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I encourage you to visit the posts of other participants in Saturday 9 and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however. 

When the Reporters Are Gone: What We Missed About the Data Center

I’ve been watching the conversation about the proposed Google Data Center at the Botetourt Center at Greenfield, and I want to offer a perspective that comes from 40 years of covering local government in Botetourt County.

A lot of people are angry at the Board of Supervisors right now. I understand why. Nobody likes feeling blindsided. But the truth is more complicated, and it points to a deeper problem we don’t talk about enough.

1. The Board didn’t hide anything. The zoning change happened in November 2024. The county advertised a public hearing to amend the RAM zoning district to include data centers as a permitted use. That was the moment when this project became possible. It was public. It was legal. It was properly noticed.

I remember seeing the ad and thinking, “They’re preparing for a data center.” Anyone who understands zoning would have recognized it.

But most people don’t read legal ads, and most people don’t follow zoning language closely. Most people don't even read a newspaper anymore. That’s not a criticism. It’s just reality.

2. The public didn’t react because the public didn’t know what the change meant. And this is where the real issue comes in.

When I was still writing, I would have explained what a RAM district is, broken down what “permitted use” means, connected the dots between the amendment and the likely project, interviewed county staff about the RAM use change, and written the kind of article that helps people understand what’s coming before it arrives.

That’s what local journalism is supposed to do. That's what I used to do.

3. But we don’t have that kind of local journalism anymore. The paper today prints very little that could be called “news.” They avoid controversy. They don’t have the staff, the time, or the institutional memory to cover land use, budgets, or long‑range planning.

It’s not the media's fault entirely.  People stopped buying papers, stopped advertising, and the economics collapsed. I stopped working because I was ill, and the paper never replaced my position.

But the result is the same: the county lost its watchdog, its explainer, its translator, because no one stepped up to take on that role.

4. So now people feel blindsided. The Board did not hide anything, (though they could have been a bit more forthcoming). But the information ecosystem failed. Not just the local paper, but also the TV media, and the daily paper. The Botetourt Bee ceased publication in the summer of 2024, before this public hearing happened. And it ceased publication because some members of this county acted inappropriately.

But this data center is what happens when a community loses its reporters. Important decisions go unnoticed, legal ads become the only form of outreach, people don’t understand the process, outrage arrives months or years too late.

The data center isn’t just a land‑use story. It’s a story about what happens when local news disappears.

5. I live half a mile from the site. I raise cattle. I have my own concerns. I’m sensitive to low‑frequency noise, and I’m paying close attention to what this means for me, my land, and my herd. I’m not dismissing anyone’s worries.

But I also know how the process works, and I know this didn’t come out of nowhere.

6. If we want better outcomes in the future, we need better information, not more anger. Communities can’t make informed decisions if they don’t have access to informed reporting. That’s the real loss here, and it’s one we’re all feeling now.

Watch the news. Buy the local paper, the weekly and the daily. Support local journalism if you want to be informed.

Communities need their watchdogs.

Thursday Thirteen

Thirteen Reasons Physical Therapy Can Be Helpful

1. It teaches you how your body actually works. It's a marvelous miracle, full of mechanics and patterns, and there are habits you didn’t know you had that affect many things.

2. It builds strength in the places that quietly hold everything together, not just the obvious muscles.

3. It helps restore movement you didn’t realize you’d lost. Small changes in range of motion can make a big difference and make daily life easier.

4. It gives you tools to manage discomfort, not just endure it.

5. It helps you relearn trust in the part of your body that’s been hurting, which is its own kind of healing.

6. It breaks big problems into small, doable steps. Being able to do something with a body part that wasn't working properly can be a relief when reaching for the peanut butter feels overwhelming.

7. It encourages consistency over intensity, a rhythm that often fits real life better.

8. It helps correct imbalances that build up over years, the ones you only notice when something finally complains.

9. It supports recovery after injuries or surgeries by guiding movement safely and gradually.

10. It improves stability and balance, which can give you confidence to do everyday tasks.

11. It helps prevent future issues by strengthening weak spots before they become problems.

12. It offers a structured space to pay attention to your body, something most of us rarely do.

13. It reminds you that healing is active, not passive. It is something you participate in, not wait for.

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Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while, and this is my 952nd time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.

Sunday Stealing

 

Have You Ever ...

1) Skipped school?

A. Yes. I used to skip 6th period, which was band class, where I played the flute. My other band, the one where I played guitar in joints on the weekends, the five of us skipped school one day and went together to see The Rose at the theater. We all came out crying, even the guys.

 

2) Lettered in a school sport?

A. I lettered in band, which is not exactly a sport, and I was a member of the National Honor Society.

 

3) Made a prank phone call?

A. Of course, but that was like, 55 years ago.

 

4) Paid for a meal with coins?

A. Maybe when I was young. We still pay with cash at restaurants, so we don't eat at restaurants that don't take cash. I won't let my credit card out of my sight, and the wait staff always want to walk off with them.

5) Laughed until some sort of beverage came out of your nose?

A. I think I have done that, yes, but I can't recall when. Or what beverage, although it was probably either a Dr. Pepper or a Diet Coke.

 Thank you for playing! Please come back next week.

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I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.

Saturday 9: London Town

Saturday 9: London Town (1978)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) Have you ever visited London?

A. Only in my dreams. Oh, wait, the plane I was on when I went to Spain landed in Heathrow, and we had to switch planes to get to Spain. So, I guess I have been there. Sort of.

2) In this song, Paul sings of encountering a London street musician playing the flute. Are there street musicians in your town?

A. I do not know of any street musicians where I live, since I live in a rural area. There may be some in the nearest city, but I've never seen them in the news.

3) It's raining as he wanders around London. How is the weather where you are today?

A. Today is warm and partly cloudy.

4) "London Town" is one of a handful of songs credited to Paul McCartney and Denny Laine, his bandmate in Wings from 1971 to 1981. They became fast friends in the mid-60s when Denny was with The Moody Blues, the band who opened for The Beatles on their final UK concert tour. Paul has acknowledged Denny's outstanding vocals and guitar playing, as well as his humor and generosity. Share the good qualities of one of your close friends.

A. One of my close friends is a terrific artist and she enjoys sharing her talent with others.

5) Wings broke up in 1981 when Paul decided he was weary of touring. His kids were in school, his Beatle bandmate John Lennon had been murdered, and he simply felt more comfortable staying put and working in the studio, rather than performing live. Denny believed this would mean his role, and his financial compensation, would diminish so he quit Wings. Tell us about why you left one of your jobs.

A. I left one of my jobs because of stress. Actually, except for my career as a freelance writer and one where I didn't get a raise that I thought I should have gotten, stress is the reason I left all of my jobs.

6) Linda McCartney also wrote and performed with Wings. In addition to music, she is known for her photography and cookbooks. Of these three – music, photography and cooking – which do you enjoy most?

A. I enjoy music and photography. I am not a cook.

7) Paul's first car was a 1964 Aston Martin DB5. He selected it himself before The Beatles went off on their first world tour and it was waiting for him when he got home to London. He drove it when he shouldn't have, as he didn't get his license until spring of 1965. When did you get your driver's license?

A. I got my driver's license when I was 16. 

8) Speaking of driver's licenses ... Last year someone bought one of Paul's expired driver's licenses at auction for $20,000. When you get a new license, passport, or state issued ID, what do you do with the old one?

A. Given the way things are today, they would be a trail of documentation that I have existed and been a citizen for 62 years. I probably should have kept them. 

9) Random question – Which do you have more of: dirty dishes in the sink or dirty clothes in the hamper?

A. Clothes in the hamper.

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I encourage you to visit the posts of other participants in Saturday 9 and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however. 

Thursday Thirteen

Things that happened on March 19:

1. In 1687, La Salle was killed. René‑Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, was a French explorer who claimed the Mississippi River basin for France and named it Louisiana. On his final expedition, after missing the river’s mouth by hundreds of miles, his exhausted and starving men mutinied and shot him. His death marked the collapse of France’s most ambitious North American colonial dream.

2. In 1815, The Battle of New Orleans officially ended. However, the War of 1812 was already over on paper, as the Treaty of Ghent had been signed months earlier. News traveled slowly. Andrew Jackson’s ragtag force of regulars, militia, free Black soldiers, and Jean Lafitte’s pirates defeated the British anyway. The victory turned Jackson into a national hero and reshaped American identity, even though it changed nothing diplomatically.

3. In 1831, the first U.S. bank heist occurred when thieves broke into City Bank on Wall Street and stole $245,000. It was an astronomical sum at the time. Most of the money was recovered, but the heist exposed how quickly the young nation’s financial system was growing, and how unprepared it was for modern crime.

4. In 1863, The SS Georgiana sank. This state‑of‑the‑art Confederate cruiser, loaded with munitions and medicines, attempted to slip through the Union blockade. She ran aground and was destroyed on her maiden voyage. The wreck, found exactly 102 years later, became a touchstone for Civil War maritime archaeology.

5. In 1865, The Battle of Bentonville began. This was one of the last major battles of the Civil War, fought in North Carolina as Confederate General Joseph Johnston tried - and failed - to halt Sherman’s march. It was a final, desperate attempt to slow the inevitable end of the Confederacy.

6. In 1918, the U.S. standardized time zones and adopted Daylight Saving Time. What began as a wartime energy‑saving measure became a permanent reshaping of American timekeeping. Railroads had pushed for standardization for decades; Congress finally made it law.

7. In 1920, the U.S. Senate rejected the Treaty of Versailles again. President Wilson wanted the U.S. to join the League of Nations. The Senate refused - twice - choosing isolation over internationalism. The decision shaped American foreign policy for the next two decades and arguably helped set the stage for World War II.

8. In 1931, Nevada legalized gambling. In the depths of the Great Depression, Nevada took a gamble of its own. Legalizing casinos was meant to boost the economy; instead, it transformed the state’s identity and eventually created Las Vegas as a global symbol of spectacle and excess.

9. In 1941, The Tuskegee Airmen’s 99th Pursuit Squadron was activated. The first Black military aviators in U.S. history began their service under segregation, scrutiny, and doubt. Their combat record in WWII helped dismantle racist assumptions within the military and paved the way for desegregation in 1948.

10. In 1962, Bob Dylan’s debut album was released. The album was mostly traditional folk songs, recorded quickly and cheaply. It barely sold. But it introduced a voice that would reshape American music, politics, and protest culture within just a few years.

11. In 1979, the U.S. House began formal consideration of the ERA extension. Congress had already passed the Equal Rights Amendment in 1972, but not enough states ratified it by the deadline. In 1979, lawmakers debated extending the deadline to 1982. It still fell short. Where it stands now: Nevada (2017), Illinois (2018), and Virginia (2020) eventually ratified it, reaching the required 38 states. Legal and procedural disputes mean the ERA remains unrecognized at the federal level.

12. In 1991, NFL owners stripped Phoenix of the 1993 Super Bowl. Arizona voters had refused to establish Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a state holiday. The NFL responded by pulling the Super Bowl, a rare moment when a sports league took a public stand on civil rights. Arizona reversed course in 1992.

13. In 2003, The Iraq War began. The U.S. launched airstrikes on Baghdad, beginning a war justified by claims that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction. Those weapons were never found. The conflict reshaped U.S. foreign policy, destabilized the region, and continues to influence global politics and veterans’ lives today.

Sources include the National Archives, the U.S. Senate Historical Office, the National Park Service, Encyclopaedia Britannica, the Nevada State Museum, the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site, and contemporary reporting from the New York Times and BBC News.

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Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while, and this is my 951st time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.