Sauntering Up the Edge of New York
Monday, February 18th, 2013
The second half of the New England road trip began on Wednesday, July 11, 2012. Bob and I had seen and experienced a great deal and it seemed like it had been forever since we began the road trip. But even though there was as much time on the road ahead of us as there was behind it, I could feel the pressure that time was pushing on us, knowing how much we still had left to see as we began the descent toward the end. Nevertheless, it was nothing worth stewing about so we pressed on as best as we could, beginning with the sights in Hyde Park, where we had just spent the night. Read the rest of this entry »
Whatever your opinion of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, I think we can all agree that his presidency was unlike any other. Logistically setting it far apart from any President before or since his administration was the simple fact that he was elected to four terms, which is two more than any other President ever would be. His role as our nation’s 32nd leader from 1933-1945 came during some of the most trying times in our country’s history. Through his Fireside Chats, he offered hope to the American people through his direction and intense social reform, many programs of which still resonate today. Then he saw the Allied Powers through nearly all of World War 2, before dying in office and passing the torch to his Vice-President Harry S. Truman. It is little wonder that the public loved him so dearly to elect him even in the gravest of health, having never publically seen the man walk on his two polio-stricken legs. 
Tuesday, July 10, 2012, would mark the seventh day of the road trip through New England that Bob and I had been undertaking, effectively bringing the first week of the trip to close. After this day, we’d still have another full week ahead. But as of this day, we were still in the southern half of the New England states, specifically in Waterbury, Connecticut at the American Motor Lodge. This location put us just a quick drive from our first stop of the day (besides Bob’s quick run-in to one of the many Dunkin’ Donuts in the region). 
I try not to get too political on this website, so I am treading with caution when I talk about President George W. Bush, our nation’s 43rd President, who narrowly won two different elections – losing the popular vote in the first – and served from 2001-2009. His performance in office is generally ranked abysmally by the bulk of historians, and his lack of experience and good-old boy demeanor generally was interpreted to mean that Bush wasn’t very smart. I have no doubt that he is a smart guy, and generally a good man, but I’d have to say that without a doubt, he has been the worst President in my lifetime.