Christmas Catalog

I  remember growing up how my siblings and I would eagerly wait for the arrival of the Montgomery Ward's  Christmas catalog.
It was heavy, glossy, smelled good, and full of colorful and exciting new  toys and games.

We  would take turns reading it, dogear some of the pages, make our list from the catalog and mail it to Santa  Claus.
We  knew that the arrival of the catalog meant that Mom would start her  Christmas baking- there  would be fondant, fudge, shortbread, and of  course the ever popular  Toll  House chocolate chip cookies.
My  mother would assign us chores during the baking, so we all learned how to make the various cookies, and it gave us a chance to lick the bowls and eat raw cookie dough- and we never got sick from the ordeal.
During this time  my grandfather-Mizzi- would get his Spanish Christmas recipes out and make mantecados- an almond cookie and some kind of a cupcake- He would make a big production out of it- but they were good.

On the weekend, my father, me and my brothers and sister , would pick up a live Christmas tree- no fake tree for us- and we would carry it home- my father did not drive and in our early years we did not have a car- so we would drag the tree about a mile to our apartment.
The tree was still intact when we got home.  My father would trim the bottom and set up in the stand..  my mother would make hot chocolate bring out the cookies and we would spends hours decorating.
One of the most prize possession of my mothers was an  ornament that she had made during WWII- it consisted of blue and silver foil
it was not the most prettiest but it meant a lot to her.
I miss those days of Family get togethers- the aroma of fresh baked
cookies, the aroma of a fresh pine tree,  the lights in the window and most of all  my parents.
There was a magical feeling then- some people may say it is corny and those days  were  from another  era-- it may be true- but it was a time of happiness that one never forgets- if I am grateful for one thing during  Christmas it would be for my memories and if I had to choose a second thing it would be my Family and friends today.

Merry  Christmas  to all of you.

Herman Cain

Unfortunately for the United  States  Herman  Cain  will not be the President.
Due to baseless claims of sexual harrassment  and the continued barrage of negative reports by the media over some of his comments  on foreign   events he had to withdraw from the race.
The media was relentless in their attacks on his errors and or lack of certain foreign countries or the name of certain  leaders.
The  media acted the same toward Sarah  Palin.

It is sad.
Where is the media when the President refers to the  57 states of the United States, cannot pronounce corpseman,  doesn't  know what a pun is, doesn't know what language they speak in Austria, insults  our allies, and  for twenty  years   was a member of a church in which the pastor cursed  and  condemned  the  United  States.
I guess I am too naive to think that the media is fair and balanced- oh well what are we to do it is the way it is- I guess the old adage is true-"Don't  believe everything you read:.

Herman Cain

I am a registered Democrat.
Lately  I have been very disappointed   with the Democrats.
For the past three years  the government has been run by a bunch of mini- dictators who bringing this country to ruin.
In the next election we have a chance to  make a change for the better.
There is only candidate running who can beat Obama and restore this country to the greatness that we  once were.

That man is Herman Cain.He is proud of this country, makes no apolgies for this country.  He speaks his  mind and he has a great  plan that will restore this country to prosperity, lower unemployment, taxes and restore  the shining light that use to shine so brightly on the hill.
I will have more on Mr. Cain  in the  next blog.

Going Red Just to be Green

The idea of going green sounds good. So many lofty ideas that will save energy and money- what a great idea--however- the cost is high and savings won't be realized for many years.

One of the craziest ideas is painting the roofs white- to reflect heat and cool homes.

This might be a good idea if you live in an area that is extremely warm most of the year.

However in the Northeast and in our Midatlantic area it would be impractical.

In Maryland we have more cooler months than hot months- the heat is on for more months than the air conditioner.

Judging from the number of complaints from the past week with our temps in the 50's and residents complaining how cold it was- white roofs would probably have give these people frost bite.

White roofs in the winter would hinder snow melting- those buildings with flat roofs( Americana Finnmark) would be subjected to colder temps in the winter with the snow not melting and even the remore possibilty of a roof collapse if the weight increases from the failure of a snow melt.

Another drawback is the time it takes to warm a unit vs. cooling

a unit- warming your unit will usually take longer-(more wasted energy.

As for solar panels- they are expensive, the conversion from our current source of energy to solar is expensive- they are not reliable.

Geothermal is not practical in our area- we have the Metro running underground, and the problem of underground springs

One of the reasons the Forest Glen Metro is so deep is due to underground springs- we could not dig deep enough to get the geothermal energy we need.

With recent discoveries of natural gas in the midwest I expect the price of natural gas to be reduced- our heat is natural gas-so we may see some savings here- as for the a/c in the summer- if everyone had a dehumidifier in their home they would use less a/c.

An air conditioner is basically a large dehumifier- it removes moisture from the air causing the areas to be cool.

30 years--WOW!

This month Cornell celebrates 30 years with Americana Finnmark.

You all know Cornell, he is the guy you wave to during the day- the guy with the Americana Finnmark uniform- going from unit to another, making repairs, checking on problems, helping a resident.

You know the guy who comes out here at two in the morning when there is an emergency.

Cornell Smith has worked at Finnmark for 30 years.

During those 30 years he has had the opportunity to leave for greener pastures- associations with more money maybe better benefits-- instead he aalways made the decision to stay at Finnmark.

You do not find many people who work at the same job for 30 years.

You do not find many people who are friendly, helpful and will go out of their way to help you.

You do not find many people who are like Cornell Smith.

Congratulations Cornell Smith on your time with Americana Finnmark.

Congratulations on a job well done.

Thank you Cornell Smith for being a good friend.

Bob Fustero

Heidi Harris

A few years ago when I got word that Julie was leaving Americana Finnmark-I was concerned that no one could replace her.

Julie was very efficient, kind, and understanding.

She knew how to get things done- and she knew how to deal with certain residents who were considered troublesome or perhaps too demanding

Julies replacement was Heidi Harris.

I did not think she would measure up to Julie, but I gave her a chance- and as it turned out we became good friends.
As a past member of the BOD I relied on her for many answers concerning contracts, rules and regulations.
She was always quick with the reply and always had the right answers.
Over the years she had to deal with a major fire, a few troublesome residents, and the daily demanding routine of a job that paid less than what she was worth.

This year the staff did not get their Chritmas bonus.
Somekind of cost saving reason is probably the excuse- but for a staff that is underpaid. and overworked-- this is not how you treat them.

Today I received word that based on the recommendation of the BOD CMI fired Heidi.
In todays economy no one wants to hear this news and have it happend to them-but the BOD does not seem to appreciate the time and hardwork of our staff and their decisions have demonstrated this.
It is a sad day for Americana Finnmark.

Carlo Romano with Gabriel's Oboe (E. Morricone)

On a cold winter day it is so nice to sit back and listen to this melody and imagine a warmer climate.