OUCH!

Some things I learned today:

• Eastern Yellowjackets are wasps of the genus Vespula
  
  
• They can build nests in spaces left by voles in the soil in potted plants
  
• If you lift the pot and begin to weed it, the yellowjackets get angry
  
• They are very aggressive and will follow you a great distance
  
• Yellowjackets can sting multiple times, especially if they get inside your shirt
  
• Those stings are extremely painful and the pain is long lasting
  
• My middle-aged, overweight carcass can really move when sufficiently motivated
  
• I can still type although my right hand resembles a baseball glove right now, but I do have go back and correct a lot of mistakes
  
• A little knowledge is a good thing but a little Benadryl is a better thing
  

Degrees of Separation

2 posts in one swell foop!

I watched a fascinating program just now on the Science Channel about networks and connections and it got me thinking about my connectedness and I must admit I was gobsmacked.
Here are a few of the connections I could think of:

• I am 2 handshakes away from Theodore Roosevelt (my grandmother, as a very young child, attended William McKinley's funeral where she shook hands with TR.)
  
  
  
• 2 from President Barak Obama
  
• 3 from Queen Elizabeth II
  
  
  
• 3 from Peter Jackson and therefore 4 from the entire cast of LOTR by one route; 2 and 3 by another
  
• 5 from Albert Einstein
  
  
  
• 2 from Liberty Hyde Bailey
  
• 4 from NC Wyeth
  
  
  
• 2 from Kevin Bacon (had to add that one...)
  
• 2 from Paul McCartney
  
• 2 from Bo Bo Brazil, originator of the Coco-bop
  
  
  
  (Bo Bo's on the right, not delivering a Coco-bop, but such is life.)
  
  

And I am just a nobody originally from a tiny village in Ohio, now from a small city in upstate NY. None of these are connections that I could call upon, they are merely handshakes but still it boggles my mind. Wow...

Treasure Hunt

My piece for the Saugerties Artists Studio Tour's "Explore Saugerties Artists Treasure Hunt" is in place. ( I have to say that there have been 2 storms since I put my piece up and who knows about vandals, maybe I need to go check it...) Anyway, I am relatively happy with it but mostly happy that I got it done in time. Since I no longer live in Saugerties I am out of the loop and even more out of touch than I used to be- if that were possible... so I have no idea if anyone has made the effort to decipher my clue and found the piece. But I would be happy if only 1 person did that, just that one hardy, persistent soul would be vindication enough.