That Pickle Needs More Perk

Thought for the day:  One good thing about living in a state as small as Connecticut. You know where all the speed traps are.

Connecticut oozes with history and "old money." In fact, this little state is considered to be the richest one in the country . . . where "overcrowding" means too many deer in the back yard, most kids take horseback riding, golfing, tennis, swimming AND sailing lessons, and the Colonial style homes really ARE Colonial, as in dating back to the 1800s. The home to the left is the Victorian mansion of Mark Twain. Who knew? I didn't.


Some people claim there's only two choices when you're in Connecticut --- either bowl or be bored. Others say the most challenging thing to do there is the New York Times crossword puzzle. But tiny Connecticut does claim quite a few bragging rights. The Scoville Memorial Library, established in 1771, is the oldest public library in the country, and the Hartford Courant, founded in 1764, is the country's oldest newspaper still in existence. The country's first steel mill was founded in Simsbury in 1728, and our first nuclear submarine was built in 1954 in Groton, home of the U.S. Navy's Submarine Force Museum. Connecticut also lays claim to the first hamburger, (1895) first Polaroid camera, (1934) first helicopter, (1939) and first color TV. (1948) What's more, in Mystic, Connecticut, is B.F. Clyde's Cider Mill, the only steam-powered cider mill in the country. One other wee bit of trivia: Connecticut and Rhode Island are the only states that didn't ratify the eighteenth amendment. (Prohibition)

Let's check out a few pictures:

Nathan Hale's homestead

New Haven lighthouse

B.F. Clyde's Cider Mill

Before I show you the last of the pictures, here's a Connecticut Winter Diary, reminiscent of the one I shared with you about Arizona.

August 12: Moved to our new home in Connecticut. It is so beautiful here. The mountains are so majestic. Can hardly wait to see snow covering them.


October 14: Connecticut is the most beautiful place on earth. The leaves are turned all the colors and shades of red and orange. Went for a ride through the beautiful mountains and saw some deer. They are so graceful. Certainly they are the most wonderful animal on earth. This must be paradise. I love it here.

November 11: Deer season will start soon. I can’t imagine anyone wanting to kill such a gorgeous creature. Hope it will snow soon. I love it here.

December 2: It snowed last night. Woke up to find everything blanketed with white. It looks like a postcard. We went outside and cleaned the snow off the steps and shoveled the driveway. We had a snow ball fight (I won), and when the snow-plow came by, we had to shovel the driveway again. What a beautiful place. I love Connecticut.

December 12: More snow last night. I love it. The snow-plow did his trick again to the driveway. I love it here.

December 19: More snow last night. Couldn’t get out of the driveway to get to work. I am exhausted from shoveling. That  bleeping  snow-plow.

December 22: More of that white crap fell last night. I’ve got blisters on my hands from shoveling. I think the snow-plow hides around the curve and waits until I’m done shoveling the driveway so he can sneak back and  bury the driveway in crap again. What a jerk.

December 25: Merry Bleeping Christmas. More bleeping snow. If I ever get my hands on that SOB who drives the snow-plow I swear I’ll kill the bastard. Don’t know why they don’t use more salt on the roads to melt the bleeping ice.

December 27: More white crap last night. Been inside for three days except for shoveling out the driveway after that snow-plow goes through every time. Can’t go anywhere, car’s stuck in a mountain of white crap. The weatherman says to expect another 10 inches of the crap again tonight. Do you know how many shovels full of snow 10 inches is?

December 28: The bleeping weatherman was wrong. We got 34 inches of that crap this time. At this rate it won’t melt before the summer. The snow-plow got stuck up in the road and that bastard came to the door and asked to borrow my shovel. After I told him I had broken six shovels already shoveling all the crap he pushed into the driveway, I broke my last one over his bleeping head.

January 4: Finally got out of the house today. Went to the store to get food and on the way back a damned deer ran in front of the car and I hit it. Did about $3,000 damage to the car. Those bleeping beasts should be killed. Wish the hunters had killed them all last November.

May 3: Took the car to the garage in town. Would you believe the thing is rusting out from that bleeping salt they put all over the roads.

May 10: Moved to Arizona. I can’t imagine why anyone in their right mind would ever live in that god-forsaken state of Connecticut. I can hardly wait to enjoy some warmth and sunshine.

(Heh-heh-heh.)

OK, a few more pictures:

Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Arch, New haven

U.S.S. Nautilus, Submarine Force Museum

Connecticut Hall,  Yale's oldest building, built 1750-1752

 HQ of  the American Radio Relay League

(As an amateur radio operator, I HAD to include that last picture. It's like the Mecca for amateur radio.)

OK, boys and girls, so Connecticut is plush with history and money. How about their laws? Bet we can find some strange stuff there. By the way, that motto on their flag means,  "He who transplanted still sustains." HUH?

• Town records may not be kept where liquor is stored. (Imbibing must have led to some shenanigans, eh?) 
• You can be stopped by the police for biking over 65 MPH. (Gotta catch ya first.)
• In order for a pickle to officially be considered a pickle, it must bounce. (So if it isn't perky enough, what do they call it? )
• It is illegal to dispose of used razor blades. (Hoard 'em?)
• It's illegal to discharge a firearm from a public highway. (Stay on the smaller roads.)
• In Devon, it's unlawful to walk backward after sunset. (Really?? But they can do it during the day, right?)
• In Guilford, only white Christmas lights are permitted for displays.
• In Hartford, you aren't allowed to cross a street while walking on your hands. (shucks)
• AND you may not educate dogs. (But however will they learn?)
• AND it's illegal for a man to kiss his wife on Sunday. (Can only kiss his mistress.)
• In New Britain, it's illegal for a firetruck to exceed 25 MPH, even when going to a fire. (How absurd!)
• In Southingham, silly string is banned. (Downright silly.)
• And in grumpy ol' Waterbury, it's illegal for any beautician to hum, whistle, or sing while working on a customer. 

OK,  a drum roll if you please, because now, boys and girls,  it's time for (ta-DA!)

The Weirdest News Stories of the Week

*** That building in the picture reminds me of a mausoleum. But it isn't. It's a picture of the Pink Palace, the pinkish colored  660 square foot restroom built on the Boston Common back in the 1920s. Although it hasn't been used as a restroom since the 1970s, it is about to find new life. As a restaurant. It's expected to open sometime in the spring as a carry-out Earl of Sandwich shop. (I wonder why. They already have "seats" in there . . . )

***  When 22-year-old Brooke Collins of Anchorage, Alaska, came upon a black bear hunched over her elderly dachshund Fudge, clutching the poor pooch in its claws, (probably saying grace) she did what any loving pet owner would do, right? She hauled off and punched the bear right in the nose! The bear was so startled, it dropped the dog and took off. The bear had just begun munching on the back of the dog's neck when the angry Miss Collins took matters into her own fist, so Fudge's injuries weren't severe, but he'll be staying closer to home until completely recovered. Don't mess with an irate Alaskan.

*** A French tourist recently used his phone to take a picture of a dog, which he sent to a Tanzanian newspaper. No big deal, you say? Well, actually it is. The picture was taken at Uhuru Peak, Mount Kilimanjaro's highest summit. At 5895 meters (19,341 feet) above sea level, this area is desert-like, stony, and surrounded by snow-topped mountains and glaciers. Oh, and the temperatures there range from minus four to fifteen degrees Celsius, so it isn't exactly a hospitable environment. What's even more interesting is that same dog may have been spotted ten years ago at the mountain's Baranco Camp, which is located at 3960 meters above sea level. So, HOW did that dog get up there and HOW has he managed to survive? No obvious source of food, no shelter, no warm fireplace. Hmmmm, whatever else anyone may say about that mysterious dog, he definitely isn't a "hot dog."

*** There's no indication if Domino's Japan paid a U.K newspaper to print this story, but print it, they did. Says the company is planning to build  a dome-shaped concrete pizza joint . . . on the moon. The article even includes an artist's rendition of said restaurant, both interior and exterior views. Says the company may be able to save some money in the construction of the building by utilizing the moon's mineral deposits to make the concrete. Gee, they may be able to save money on the pizza ingredients, too . . .  I wonder what green cheese tastes like? When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie . . . that's free advertisement.

Until next time, take care of yourselves. And each other.