Not That Kind Of Corona

I feel badly that one of the things I sometimes find myself saying lately is - the more I'm alive the less I like people. But you get it, right? After 43 years I've seen some things and maybe my tolerance isn't what it used to be. But this week I am happy to say my outlook is different. This week I am filled with love for my fellow man all because of the sun. (Cue George Harrison's guitar intro for "Here Comes The Sun".)

I spent Monday - Eclipse Day - at a couple of community gatherings held to celebrate and embrace the celestial event. I was happy to see so many people show up to participate in the festivities. I did not expect that; one because it fell during a work day and two I thought it was a "nerd" thing.

I can say that because I have always been one of those "nerds". During the partial eclipse of '94, as a college student with a summer office job, I made a paper plate camera I could use to safely view the sun. I tried to entice my adult co-workers to come outside on break with me and check things out, but no one was really into it like me. Plus, we were supposed to be working. There were phones and customers to deal with.

As a middle school student, I remember using my grandfather's old telescope to check out a few lunar eclipses. I would always end up outside in our backyard alone, alone in terms of people, but with plenty of company of the animal variety. After a few owl hoots or rustling in the grass sounds, I would end up going back into the safely of my home.

But this year it was different. I was not alone.  I was able to experience the eclipse with my kids, my sister and her family and people I had never met before. My sister and I stood side by side, decked out in our special glasses - staring at the sun. Folks,  it doesn't get better than that. So many people gathered at the community event we attended and when our kids got bored, they could hit the playground. It was surprisingly a delightful day that allowed many people to take pause and marvel at our world.

What I am most impressed with are the people who took time to plan fun community events. People took time away from their regular jobs dealing with budgets, agendas and bills to create an afternoon of enjoyment for their residents. And this wasn't unique to our area - it happened all over the country. It was especially nice to be among the sun gazers because everyone seemed - happy.

It was an exciting atmosphere where people could enjoy food, fellowship and a view of the eclipse that at one point was almost completely obscured by cloud cover. When it counted, the clouds parted, providing an incredible vantage point for those who were watching with anticipation. There was even a point where some rain drops fell and boy my heart was racing thinking their might be an eclipse and a rainbow.

I am glad that people were able to embrace this amazing event. People of all ages were gathered to be a part of the happening and for me it was, just incredible. I was in awe of the sight I witnessed once I put my NASA approved glasses on. It sure beat my paper plate set up from a few decades ago. Even still, many took time to construct a cereal box camera and one gentleman even allowed me to give it a go!

I hope kids who participated in Monday's eclipse learned a thing or two about our universe and how amazing it is that something so large - the sun - can be dimmed by something much smaller in size - the moon - with a distance of millions of miles separating the two. Maybe now words and phrases like corona, umbra and path of totality, make sense to these young minds who are getting a better dose of STEM (science, technology. engineering and math) in schools these days.

All I know is that I am already planning to flee to the 'Cleve (Cleveland, Ohio) in 2024 for the next solar eclipse. I am going to save the pair of glasses I got this week and instead of the 80% totality we had in Pittsburgh get a 100% dose of corona (not the beer), which is predicted for parts of Ohio and northwest PA. It is going to be a long wait but hey, on Monday smiles returned to faces and once again to invoke Mr. Harrison - it's alright.

                       Nolan and my nephew, Connor, during the Great American Eclipse

It Takes A Village...For Village

This is my favorite time of year and its only in small part because it is my birthday week. The third week of August means International Village in McKeesport. This three day festival, which is in its 58th year, is an ethnic festival featuring foods and entertainment from around the globe. More than a dozen booths line Stephen Barry Field in Renzie Park manned by volunteers selling yummy delights that make your mouth water.

I have been coming to this festival for as long as I can remember. My childhood home is about a five minute ride away. Memories from my youth include getting honey balls from the Greek booth, for my mom, waiting in a huge line at the Croatian booth for lamb, for my dad, and getting a gingerbread man at the English booth, for me.  One of my greatest memories from International Village is when I performed on stage with my church's Carpatho-Rusyn dance group. As a little girl, I loved the way my black patent leather shoes sounded on the wooden stage when we did our lively stomps.

The festival has been around since 1960 when it started as a 10 day event called Old Home Week. It began as a celebration of McKeesport history. And although that is no longer the focus, there is a lot to celebrate about McKeesport, despite what you hear on the news. There are many great people who were born and raised in the 'Port, as we natives lovingly call it, many of whom come back for this annual August event.

I am not sure how many new guests come to Renzie Park each year to try out this awesome event, but I do know how many people I run into while I am there that keeps the Old Home Week tradition alive. I have seen former teachers, friends from my old neighborhood, former childhood crushes - it is a walk back in time and it will always be something I treasure. It is nice to catch up, even if just for a few minutes, and then move on to get your favorite ethnic delight.

Many of the booths are run by churches, temples or social organizations in the area. These groups enlist a number of volunteers to sell food to benefit their organization. Because participating in International Village is a lot of work, and a lot of people are needed to make it a success, sometimes organizations drop out. Then, a small part of that consistency and familiarity, those of us who keep coming back expect,  is gone.

I am sad to report that a few years ago the English Booth went away - no more gingerbread men - and we also lost the German Booth - no more German Chocolate Cake- but there have been a number of new additions to fill the void. All I know is that my Greek booth is still going strong and I can count on my usual 'Super Gyro' and baklava plus, my mom still gets the honey balls.

So it seems it was written in the stars that I would eventually find myself more intimately involved in Village. My children's Tamburitzan group has run the Slovak booth for a number of years. The kids also perform on the first night of the event. It truly is a full circle moment to see my kids on the stage I was once on many moons ago. It makes me proud to share a part of my past with them and who knows, one day they might bring their families to McKeesport to experience the magic.

Being a volunteer is a labor of love for sure. Many come from work to put in a few hours. Some take time off from work in order to volunteer, and some even help make the food which is served. Many parents in our group spent the past weekend making dough for the ceregi we will fry up fresh each night. These little donuts taste amazing, but the couple minutes in an oil bath does not represent what happened prior to the dip. It is great to keep these traditions alive, from whatever ethnic group you represent,  in the hopes of making a nice profit to keep your organization in the black.

Unfortunately the weather plays a big part. Last year, storms sent people away and kept people away for the first two nights. It was disappointing, but out of our hands.  Hopefully as you are reading this, we will have had a few dry days in anticipation of our final night tonight, Thursday, August. 17.

It takes a village to keep International Village going each year. I am proud to be part of this festival. And each year on the final night as hundreds of volunteers, representing many nationalities, religions and clubs, tear down the dozen or so food booths and put a cap on three days of hard work - it is always nice to hear these sweet parting words - see you next year!

    Tammy Parents putting the Slovak booth together.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

There is nothing like a good dose of nature to put things in perspective. Right now my family and I are in the midst of a prolific journey watching an egg hatch into a caterpillar and then watching that caterpillar turn into a butterfly - a monarch's tale. This is something I learned to appreciate when I was a little kid and luckily I've been able to pass the tradition onto my kids who hopefully will do the same.

I was probably about 8 or 9 when I raised my first butterfly. Our babysitter at the time took my brother, sister and I for a walk and pointed out milkweed plants. They looked like ordinary weeds to me, but the underside of the plant's leaves possibly held a secret - a tiny little white bump that contained a teeny, tiny caterpillar. A tiny guy that would make a most amazing transformation from fat stripey wiggler to magnificent winged butterfly.

My babysitter's dad was a biology teacher. I never had the opportunity to have him in class, but I am guessing he played some part in me having this unique experience. And it truly is a unique experience. It makes me confident in my belief that there is something bigger out there who had a hand in creating this great world we live in. In the United States alone there are 750 species of butterflies - worldwide there are more than 17,000!

If I was creating a species I might make at least three but less than ten. I am not sure where you stand on this but I am confident that the number 17,000  (17,500 to be almost exact) would not be your target number either. But this number gets even more staggering when you try to wrap your head around the insect family, which butterflies are a part of. It is estimated that more than 900 thousand insect species exist in the world. And that number might be a conservative guess according to a Smithsonian Encyclopedia website. We could be talking 30 million.

So yeah, I've bored you with some figures but only to illustrate my point. All these beautiful butterflies cannot be random.  Plus, the process of changing from caterpillar to butterfly includes a period of time when the caterpillar is wrapped in a cocoon. I don't know what is happening in there (which is what is currently happening in our special container right now) but it is a little weird. The monarch caterpillar hangs upside down making a letter "J" and its white, black and yellow striped body (cue the Wiz Kalifa jam) turns into a green pod with gold trim. Random - I don't think so.

The cocoon will eventually turn black as the butterfly prepares to emerge. Once it does, it's orange and black wings are wet and need to dry. This is the part I did not like so much when I first raised a butterfly. I was supposed to put my hand in the jar so it would climb aboard my arm to finally take flight. I did not want a "bug" crawling on my arm so I laid the jar down sideways on the porch so it could find its way out. Yes, I was chicken and I regret that, but luckily my kids do not mind getting right in there. The moments I have caught on camera with a butterfly on their little arms are precious.

They fly away and although it is sad to see them go, the butterfly has work to do. Within a few weeks, our butterfly will lay eggs on milkweed plants somewhere in the south. Those eggs will hatch and eventually complete a four generation cycle (completed in one year) that will wind up flying to Mexico. Our butterfly will not live long but will have done its job to keep its species alive.

So now is where you thank me for the biology lesson. You're welcome. But seriously, nature is amazing when you stop to think about it. We take for granted these little beauties of nature. Unless someone would have taken the time to show me this wonder up close and personal - (decades ago), I never would have known the backstory. So thank you, Carol wherever you are. After all these years the fascination with monarch butterflies continues.