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Fancy paper doilies
On a back street in Oneida, NY sits the shuttered Smith-Lee factory. The company was founded in 1898 by Charles A. Lee in nearby Canastota. Its original product was paper milk bottle caps. In 1899,...
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Electing Guardians
When I'm getting ready to vote, especially when there are numerous local, state and national candidates up for election, I turn to the League of Women Voters for help. Our local papers publish the...
View ArticleThanksgiving 2010
DawnThe coldest morning so far this seasonAcross the valley directly east the Dome is silhouetted by a band of bright orange skyJoli, my morning companion these many years trots jauntily up our block...
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Joli in the Morning
It’s morning. Dark. Got to go out.Toenails click on hardwood as I get him.I smell his warm breath. I sense he has heard me.Soft nose poke. Poke. His hand gropes for my head. Ah, he’s awake.Joli, go lie...
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Brainpower
The culture of Upstate New York is centered in its six largest cities. Five are strung along the Thruway as it cuts west from Albany to Buffalo following the track of the Erie Canal. Albany, the...
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OC - First Visit
My first visit to the Oneida Community Mansion House was in June 1988. I had arrived in Central New York only a few weeks earlier to seek my fortune as a small town lawyer. I was thirty nine years old....
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The Conversion of John Humphrey Noyes
Early on I realized that if I wanted to understand the Oneida Community I had to learn what I could about its visionary leader, John Humphrey Noyes. Older community descendants that I met generally had...
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Little Venice
Should you by some wild chance find yourself with a little time on your hands in downtown Binghamton, NY, I have two suggestions. First, take a little stroll around the city center and look at the...
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Millenarianism
It is impossible to understand the Oneida Community without a firm grasp of its core theology. In the next few posts I will explore some key concepts, then return to the story of how exactly John...
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Perfectionism
John Humphrey Noyes was an intensely intellectual person living in a time when almost all moral discourse was framed in religious terms. It is not surprising, therefore, when Noyes thought about the...
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Bible Communism
During the period between 1832 and 1838 John Humphrey Noyes traveled the northeast. He met and argued with other Perfectionists. He wrote exhaustively. He read the Bible daily.He slowly became...
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The Battle-Axe Letter
John Humphrey Noyes fell in love with Abigail Merwin early in 1834. He met her at the Perfectionist Free Church of New Haven. She was the first person to publicly ally herself with him after he made...
View ArticleOneida Community: a bibliographical essay
Several readers have asked me to collect all my Oneida Community writings in one easily accessible place. I've finally done that by setting up a new blog: oneidacommunity.blogspot.com. It also has...
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Triangle
This coming Friday, March 25, 2011, is the 100th anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire. At noon Friday, Merry and I will be standing on Greene Street in front of the original factory...
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Reclining on the High Line
We were in New York City just for Friday last week. Our object was to attend two events related to the 100th anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire (see post of 03/20/11 for details). Almost all...
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Ireland 2011
Ireland May - June 2011 organized by Champlain College, DublinHere's an internet enhanced review of our recent trip to Ireland. I haven't included pictures here because Merry has posted a very nice...
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Joli is gone
Our sweet dog, Joli, departed her long and happy life this morning.She was our constant companion these last 14 years. She was a pure-bred Border Collie, born in eastern Pennsylvania. Her mother was...
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My surprise
“Don't plan anything for Saturday morning, I've got a surprise for you.”The rest of the week Merry taunted me, challenging me to guess. The only clues she would give were that we were going to nearby...
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Cotton mill robots
Over the course of his 15 years working for Hanesbrands at their Parkdale cotton mill the claimant I was questioning had done virtually every job in the factory that a guy with only a high school...
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Pickpockets
Merry and I arrived at the Madrid airport extremely bleary after a flight delay of four hours. We left home the day before at 9 am. Now it was noon the next day. Accounting for the time difference, we...
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Fighting Fascism at the Museo Reina Sofia
By accident we approached the museum from the rear entrance between the 2005 glass and steel additions and the 18th Century Sabatini building. As a result we found ourselves in a soaring courtyard with...
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Thanksgiving with Gaudi
The most visited tourist site in Barcelona is the unfinished cathedral designed by Antoni Gaudi, the Sagrada Familia. We visited it, of course, the day we arrived by “Ave” high speed train from Madrid,...
View ArticleJoyeux Noelle
Dear Friends, I know it's been a long time, but my writing time has been focused elsewhere recently. Even though I promised to stay away from posting Social Security stories, this one just needs to be...
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Brenner
Say hello to Brenner, our new family member. Brenner is a seven-year old BC who the SPCA removed from a bad situation in PA. He made his way to Glen Highland Farm, a wonderful border collie rescue...
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Beckta
Beckta Dining & Wine (613) 238-7063 www.beckta.com226 Nepean St., Ottawa, ONRating: 5 stars Price: $$$$ Last visit: August 11, 2012Those who know me well, understand my passion for great food. For...
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