The air waves are filled this morning with reports of Britney Spears being wheeled on a stretcher to an ambulance after holding police "at bay" for 2-3 hours. Something about being distraught over custody hearings for her kids. I'm sympathic to her situation but it seems that the democratic leader of Pakistan being assasinated might be slightly more important. How about the sale of plutonium to Iran? Hello! Or the fact that millions of Americans might lose their homes because of deceptive loan practices. We need to get our priorities right. Leave Britney alone!
Jay Leno is back "live" writing his own jokes. His observation last night was that the government is going to require fast food restaurants to disclose calories in each product.. "Isn't there a common sense factor here? When you order large fries at McDonalds, you can expect a fat ass! If you tell them to super size the fries, you will get a super fat ---." Dah!
I am still discovering my Christmas gifts. I've had time to browse the pictorial book on the History of Plymouth (from the Grasshopper No.1 family). I thought I knew a lot about the city history especially the downtown area. I was wro--.
Plymouth was named after a town in Connecticut, the burial place of the sweetheart of one of the original founders, Tom Davidson. I didn't know that!
Plymouth was the name chosen from potential candidates Springfield, Tahanta, Quitauite, Quit-Quit-Oc of course Plymouth. I didn't know it was so difficult.
Many streets that I frequented as a kid where named after one of the original finanical giants, Horatio Nelson Smith, who helped lay out the street system. There is a Smith street along with streets named after his children Stafford, Caroline, Taylor and Elizabeth. I am obviously not very important because there is no "Charles" street. They missed an opportunity.
Believe it or not, the City Club was only one small piece of Plymouth history. There were other hotels, banks, breweries, flour mills and saw mills. Early businesses depended on the mullet river and nearby springs to survive.
I guess when you think about it, Plymouth has existed for 160 years on an official basis and the Andrews family only particapated for about 60 years. Yet to a kid growing up, World War II became the major event and my world revolved around the City Club.
So the historical collection of photos and facts in my Christmas present has been enjoyable.
The lesson Grasshoppers is that we all possess memories of childhood years. Those memories belong to each of us. They shaped our lives. Having a collection of photos recalling those memories in time is kind of neat.
So now it is on to other Christmas offerings. Come to think of it I used a free car wash certificate (given by Grasshopper No. 3) this morning. The Saab, colored white by salt crystals sprinkled with specks of black metal is now shining black like the black "grocery getter" (a Grasshopper No. 4 term) that it is.
I can't wait to get into my Hardy Boy novel.
Love,
Dad