Deepavali - Diwali - in Cleveland

The Federation of India Community Associations (FICA) hosted Deepavali, The Festival of Lights, in the Rotunda of Cleveland City Hall on November 16, 2012.

The formal program featured  Ratanjit Sondhe who explained Sikhs and Sikhism to the diverse crowd.

The entertainment included a Manipuri Dance by Sanjib Bhattacharya (above) who is visiting from India and a modern Punjabi dance by a group of CWRU students called Spartan Bhangra. (below)

  See more from 2012 Diwali in Cleveland

Hospice of the Western Reserve

At some point in your life, if you haven't already, you will be involved with hospice.  Personally I don't know how the staff and volunteers handle their work and I give them all the credit in the world.

The Hospice of the Western Reserve has volunteer opportunities for all ages, interests and talents with an extraordinary love and a common bond of concern for others.
"I get so much more out of it than I give."
"This is the most important thing I have done in my life."

Direct Patient Care Opportunities:

• Provide Socialization, Comfort and Companionship,
• Legacy Work,
• Bereavement Calls,
• Music Access,
• Errands,
• Respite,
• Attorney,
• Notary,
• Veterans Serving Veterans,
• Licensed Hairdresser, Massotherapist,
• Pet Therapy,
• Transportation,
• Light Housekeeping,
• Teens,
• Spiritual Care

Support Opportunities:

• Clerical/Data Entry,
• Reception,
• Teens,
• Community Outreach,
• Speaker’s Bureau,
• Resale Shop,
• Flower Arranging,
• Group Helper,
• Volunteer Education,
• Fundraising,
• Special Events,
• Volunteer Marketing

Group Opportunities:
We are always appreciative of community volunteers who offer anything from a few hours to an entire day of service at our in patient facilities or our headquarters. There is a wide range of tasks including clerical, painting, cleaning, landscaping, entertainment and special meals at David Simpson Hospice House in Cleveland, Ames Family Hospice House in Westlake, as well as clerical and maintenance at our headquarters office in Cleveland.

Learn more about how you can volunteer for Hospice

Nacy Panzica Profile

Nacy Panzica was born in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania, a coal mining town, in 1927. He had five sisters but was the only son of Anthony and Mary Panzica.

His birth name is Ignatius but he has been called Nacy all his life. "Now remember, it's not Nancy with an "N" - it's Nacy." The way he laughs when he says this you know he has clarified this many times through the years...

Official ClevelandSeniors.Com profile of Nacy Panzica.

Family is the cornerstone to this builder's success.

Medical Yatras helping the poor

The Association of Indian Physicians of Northern Ohio (AIPNO) was founded in 1983 as a non-profit organization of physicians of Indian origin in Northern Ohio. One of their projects is the Medical Yatra (trip) where teams of physicians and others go to remote areas where most people have never even seen a doctor.


To date AIPNO has helped more than 100,000 people in India and around the world in their health needs and provided FREE medicines, some surgeries and free numbered eye glasses, and lot of Cataract surgeries.

They have also assisted in disaster relief outside of India such as the Haiti earthquake (2010) and Hurricanes Katrina(2005) & Isadora (Mexico - 2002)

Learn more about the AIPNO Medical Yatras

Mother Teresa Statue

During her lifetime, Mother Teresa was named 18 times in the yearly Gallup's most admired man and woman poll as one of the ten women around the world that Americans admired most. In 1999, a poll of Americans ranked her first in Gallup's List of Most Widely Admired People of the 20th Century.

Mother Teresa founded the Missionaries of Charity, a Roman Catholic religious congregation, which in 2012 consisted of over 4,500 sisters and is active in 133 countries. Members of the order must adhere to the vows of chastity, poverty and obedience, and the fourth vow, to give "Wholehearted and Free service to the poorest of the poor".

She said, "By blood, I am Albanian. By citizenship, an Indian. By faith, I am a Catholic nun. As to my calling, I belong to the world. As to my heart, I belong entirely to the Heart of Jesus."

On September 22, 2012 a 7' tall bronze statue of the Nobel Peace Prize winner was unveiled at a ceremony attended by Albanian President Bujar Nishani. 

See more of the Mother Teresa Statue in Cleveland

St Emeric reopens

With its church bells tolling its reopening at noon on Sunday, November 4th, nearly 600 people gathered to celebrate Mass at St. Emeric  Roman Catholic Church for the first time since its closing more than two years ago.

The Rev. Sandor Siklodi returned to the Hungarian  parish as its pastor after serving for 25 years as its spiritual leader.

More from the reopening of St Emeric Church

Is Flash still the best choice?

For many years, the best tool for elements such as interactive video, animation and 3D online was Flash.

Is that still the case?

The Great Lakes Geek sat down with two of the pros from Aztek to get the latest on Flash.

Dave Skorepa is Chief Creative Office and Matt Mesenger is Director of Web Marketing at Aztek Web Design in Cleveland and they live and breathe this stuff.

 As you will see, Dave in particular is not shy about his opinion. The 2 pros argue that HTML5, CSS3 and jQuery allow them to do almost all of Flash's functionality without the problems of Flash.

 

Leap of Reason by Mario Morino

The Great Lakes Geek just finished reading Leap of Reason: Managing to Outcomes In an Era of Scarcity

I have been a fan of Mario Morino and the way he thinks - and acts - for many years.

But this isn't really a science, tech or business book. It's written for non-profit organizations. So what's it doing on the Great Lakes Geek's shelves?

While geared toward non-profits, Leap of Reason has a lot of good ideas for any business - especially "in an era of scarcity."

And when you get a chance to learn from a success such as Mario Morino, you should take the time and check it out.

Leap of Reason book review

Prime Minister of Ireland in Cleveland

The Taoiseach (Prime Minister) of Ireland Mr. Enda Kenny was in Cleveland on October 12 and 13, 2012. It was the first ever visit of a sitting Irish Prime Minister to Cleveland.

ClevelandPeople.Com covered the historic visit with photos and videos from many of the weekend's event starting here. 

1) Taoiseach Enda Kenny at a special presentation of the City Club of Cleveland (Intercontinental Hotel on Cleveland Clinic Campus) on Friday, October 12, 2012.

 2) Taoiseach Enda Kenny at a private meeting at Cleveland City Hall with Mayor Jackson and other city officials.

 3) Irish Cultural Garden visit. Besides the main page, there are 6 more pages of photos of the hundreds of attendees in the Garden. Who do you recognize?

 4) The last public appearance of the Taoiseach was at the annual Mayo Ball where James C. Boland was named 2012 Mayo Person of the Year.

A child during the Vietnam War

Beyond the Rice Paddies - Book Review
by Linda West
(born Tran Thi Bach Yen Oanh )

The 111 pages of Beyond the Rice Paddies are organized into a series of 3 or 4 page stories. You will keep saying to yourself 'Just one more' until you realize you have read the entire book.

It is a fascinating look into the world of a young girl in Vietnam in the mid-1960's. Tran Thi Bach Yen Oanh (the author, now known as Linda West) lived with her paternal grandmother, the beloved Ba Noi, in the village of Bien Hoa near Saigon.

The vignettes describe the joys (some American chewing gum, a doll with yellow hair, etc.) and hardships (a toilet comprised of two rickety slats over a maggot and fly infested area) of life in that historic place and time.

The war affects the villagers but not always directly. For example, Young Oanh wakes up one day with 'bubbles' over her one side that they determine were caused by a powder that came from a plane. Bodies are left in the market square to be claimed. Her hut has a dugout area so she and her Ba Noi can hide from the bullets when firefights erupt.

The author tells of the joy of the parade as the "giant-sized" American GIs marched into town to go "Beyond the Rice Paddies' and fight the Viet Cong. She then describes the fear and confusion when only a handful of them limp back a few days later, sans the fanfare.

Her mother worked as a 'bargirl' in Saigon and eventually marries an American who takes Oanh and her brother to the US in 1970. The author is now a real estate broker, a mother of three children and lives in Tucson, Arizona.

It's a fascinating yet humbling book that will make you count your blessings and perhaps look at war and the world in a different way.

60 years after the Korean War

For the 3rd year in a row the Korean American Association visited the 2100 Lakeside Men's Shelter in Cleveland and brought with them 350 meals and 350 heavy winter jackets. Two years ago, the Korean American Association donated 500 blankets. Last year they also donated winter coats. Song Pil-Gak, chairman of the Korean province of Gyeongsangbuk-Do spoke (with translator) at the Cleveland men's shelter at 2100 Lakeside as part of the annual Korean American Association outreach. He has participated all 3 years.

In the words of Jeong (John) Szongchan of the Korean Association "It is only right that we do something like this. 60 years ago America helped us. We are happy that we can help now."

Superhero, Star Wars and Zombie Family

Have you seen those stickers on the back of cars?  They show an image of a family - maybe a Dad and Mom and kids and pets.

Now you can get cooler and geekier decals for the car or window or wherever.

Marvel Superhero Family Car Decals are the product of a partnership between ThinkGeek and Marvel. One package contains 50 decals, plenty to decorate multiple cars and your wee geeks' bedroom windows.

Four characters are included: Iron Man, Captain America, Wolverine, and Spider-Man. Each character comes in six versions: Dad, Mom, Daughter, Son, Dog, and Cat. Assemble your team of heroes and proudly display them wherever your Fantasti-Car may take you.

Product Specifications Family car decals for fans of Marvel superheroes 50 decals in all, 2 sheets of each set Ironman (Dad, Mom, Boy Child, Girl Child) Captain America (Dad, Mom, Boy Child, Girl Child) Wolverine (Dad, Mom, Boy Child, Girl Child) Spider-Man (Dad, Mom, Boy Child, Girl Child) Pets (Cat & Dog versions of Ironman, Captain America, Wolverine, Spider-Man) Marvel logo Stick easily to any clean, flat surface Officially licensed Marvel collectible.




Besides the Marvel Superheros you can also get Star Wars family and Zombie family. Just click on any of the images for more info.

Responsive Web Design

Responsive web design (RWD) is the latest approach to web design. It employs CSS3 media queries to provide an optimal viewing experience across the numerous different devices people view content on.

The Great Lakes Geek sat down with two of the pros from Aztek to get the latest on RWD. Dave Skorepa is Chief Creative Office and Matt Mesenger is Director of Web Marketing at Aztek Web Design in Cleveland and they live and breathe this stuff.

Besides the primer on Responsive Web Design, they answer the Geek's questions about scrolling, resizing, Pinterest, SEO and other related issues.

Look for more on Web Design, SEO, Social Media and more from the pros at Aztek coming soon at GreatLakesGeek.Com

Leif Ericson Day

The Scandinavian community of Cleveland, including those from Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Iceland gathered at the bust of Leif Ericson in front of Shooters in Cleveland's Flats. Leif Ericson was a Norse explorer regarded as the first European to land in North America (excluding Greenland), nearly 500 years before Christopher Columbus.

Each year on Leif Ericson Day they toast the explorer and his maritime accomplishments with a drink of Aquavit, a 40 proof Scandinavian liqueur. Aquavit is said to get its special flavor from its trip to the Equator.

Photos and videos from Leif Ericson Day in Cleveland

Fitness for Geeks

I  just finished reading Fitness for Geeks: Real Science, Great Nutrition, and Good Health

Let's face it. Many of us who qualify for the moniker Geek (or Geekette) tend to spend a lot of time seated in front of a computer. We also tend to eat and drink items that are convenient and tasty which usually is a synonym for 'unhealthy.'

People like us are always looking for a clever or unique way to solve a problem. So if fitness is the problem, we approach it as a hackable goal. When a book proposes to lead us to fitness in such a manner, especially with the credibility of being part of the O'Reilly family, we have to check it out.

Great Lakes Geek Book Review of Fitness for Geeks

Peruvian Procession

In Lima, Peru there is a highly venerated mural of the Lord of the Miracles (Señor de los Milagros de Nazarenas). Just as Italians (and others) celebrate The Feast of the Assumption with parades and festivals, the people of Peru celebrate The Lord of the Miracles. It is the main Catholic celebration in Peru and boasts one of the largest processions in the world.


Here in Cleveland this tradition is carried out at Iglesia La Sagrada Familia Catholic Church on Detroit Ave. About 1000 took part in the 18th annual event on Sunday October 7.

Pictures and video from the Lord of the Miracles Procession

Alzheimer's Disease - Stage 6

It seems like everyone I know has been affected by Alzheimer's Disease in some way.  For us, it's been with my Aunt Pam who is now in stage 6 of 7 of the disease.

It's frustrating and scary and sad.  This is one disease that may be harder on the family and caregivers than the patient.

My cousin (Pam's daughter) Laura wrote a powerful essay on dealing with her Mom now that she is in Stage 6.  It's really something.

2 new Milan Jacovich mysteries

I have been a fan of the Milan Jacovich (MY-lan YOCK-o-vich) series by author Les Roberts since book one.  I just completed the latest two novels, the 15th and 16th in the series.

The Cleveland Creep is the 15th book featuring Cleveland's own private eye Milan Jacovich. The Jacovich series oozes Cleveland - from the Slovenian hero's penchant for Stroh's beer to the numerous references to Cleveland neighborhoods, people and institutions.

One of the things I really like about the series is that Jacovich isn't somehow preserved in a time capsule where he, or the world, never change. He is aging and his work as a PI is affected by that. It is also the reason that I recommend that people start reading the series from the beginning, a book titled Pepper Pike. But if you are not so inclined, rest assured that The Cleveland Creep stands alone.

Whiskey Island is the 16th book in the Milan Jacovich series and the subject is ripped right out of the Cleveland headlines. County corruption has been in the news for the last several years in Cleveland and Cuyahoga County as dozens of officials (a County Commissioner, County Auditor, judges and so on) have been indicted, tried and sentenced. Whiskey Island begins with a city councilman requesting Milan and his new sidekick K.O. to help find who is trying to kill him. But it evolves into more than that as murder becomes part of the mix.

Part of the fun of the book is seeing if the characters in the book have any obvious connection to the real-life corrupt officials.

Again, I recommend starting with book 1 and going through the entire series but if you want just pick up either of these books and you will be hooked.

My review of The Cleveland Creep

My review of Whiskey Island

Dr. Maria Pujana profile

Official ClevelandWomen.Com profile of Dr. Maria Pujana. 

Born in Madrid, raised in Colombia, now giving back in Cleveland.


 

Smoke 'em if you... BOOM!

While on the frigate USS De Wert during Navy Week, I noticed this No Smoking sign in a reasonable location - on the Grenade Locker!  Makes sense to me.

War of 1812 Navigation

Master Chief Jeff Ryan of the US Coast Guard demonstrated some of the navigational gear used during the War of 1812 including an Octant and Traverse Board.  You needed to know trigonometry to sail these ships.

He also explained the roots of the expressions Deep Six and Mark Twain.  From Navy Week 2012 in Cleveland.

More from the War of 1812

Battle of Lake Erie in War of 1812

The War of 1812 has particular significance to the Great Lakes region. It was one of the three principle theaters of the war between the US and Britain.

On Lake Erie, American commander Captain Oliver Hazard Perry fought the Battle of Lake Erie on September 10, 1813. His decisive victory ensured American control of the lake, improved American morale after a series of defeats, and compelled the British to fall back from Detroit. This paved the way for General Harrison to launch another invasion of Upper Canada, which culminated in the U.S. victory at the Battle of the Thames on October 5, 1813, in which Tecumseh was killed.

Tecumseh's death effectively ended the North American indigenous alliance with the British in the Detroit region. American control of Lake Erie meant the British could no longer provide essential military supplies to their aboriginal allies, who therefore dropped out of the war. The Americans controlled the area during the conflict.

Some great War of 1812 memorabilia and gear at Navy Week in Cleveland.

Steve Roberts of Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial showed a 32lb carronade cannon that is a replica of the one used by Oliver Hazard Perry in the Battle of Lake Erie in the War of 1812.  A surprise flyover from the Blue Angels also took place during the video.

More from the War of 1812 Bicentennial at Navy Week in Cleveland.

Navy Week - Frigate USS De Wert

I had a blast climbing around on the frigate USS De Wert (FFG 45) at Navy Week in Cleveland.

Pictures of the frigate and a few others

Navy Week Cleveland

From August 27-September 4, 2012 six ships of the U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard and Royal Canadian Navy participated in Cleveland Navy Week and the Commemoration of the Bicentennial of the War of 1812 and The Star-Spangled Banner.

Free and open to the public.

There are other public events such as performances by the U.S. Navy Band, U.S. Navy Divers, U.S. Navy Blue Angels and the Leapfrogs, the Navy’s parachute demonstration team.

I had a blast climbing around on the USS De Wert (FFG 45).  I took a lot of picture and posted them at Navy Week Cleveland ships. 

One World Day Garden Song

Ever since I first heard Bob Crawford and Pat Hoynes do their special version of Inch by Inch in the Cultural Gardens a few years ago I thought it would make a great theme song for One World Day.

They added some lyrics and performed it yesterday in the Irish Garden at the 65th annual One World Day.  It was terrific!  Will have lots of pics and video soon but here's the Garden Song video.

Packing for college - then and now.

Amy Kenneley's grandson is heading off to college and it triggered her own memories of the big move from the early 1950's.  So she made some comparisons.

Worth reading

A true saint

I wasn't familiar with the story of St. Maximilian Mary Kolbe until I heard it today, his feast day.

Wikipedia and other places have a lot of interesting facts about the Polish man but the part that grabbed me is that during the Second World War, he provided shelter to refugees from Poland, including 2,000 Jews whom he hid from Nazi persecution in his friary.


On 17 February 1941, he was arrested by the German Gestapo and imprisoned in the Pawiak prison. On 28 May, he was transferred to Auschwitz as prisoner #16670.

At the end of July 1941, three prisoners disappeared from the camp, prompting the deputy camp commander to pick 10 men to be starved to death in an underground bunker in order to deter further escape attempts.

When one of the selected men, Franciszek Gajowniczek, cried out, "My wife! My children!", Kolbe volunteered to take his place.

In the starvation cell, he celebrated Mass each day and sang hymns with the prisoners.
He led the other condemned men in song and prayer and encouraged them by telling them they would soon be with Mary in Heaven. Each time the guards checked on him, he was standing or kneeling in the middle of the cell and looking calmly at those who entered.

After two weeks of dehydration and starvation, only Kolbe remained alive. The guards wanted the bunker emptied and they gave Kolbe a lethal injection of carbolic acid.

He was canonized a saint in 1982 by Pope John Paul II and the man he saved by taking his place was present at the ceremony.  Wow.

Liszt Concert in Hungarian Garden

The beautiful Hungarian Cultural Garden was the stage for the annual Liszt Concert in the Garden.

The performers were under the direction of Vera Holczer, founder and director of the Aurora School of Music. Vera was born in Budapest and began her piano studies at age 9. Her advanced studies are from the Cleveland Institute of Music and she regularly performs on WCLV 104.9 FM. 

Photos and videos of the people and concert performances

Ohio's Celtic and International Fall Fest - Free tickets

This Labor Day weekend Ohio's Celtic and International Fall Fest will feature some of the very best in Celtic music including some exciting new musical groups some making their first visit to the greater Cleveland area.

It's an event for the whole family with a children's stage with lots of activities and shows for the children.
New this year is the ClevelandPeople.Com International Pavilion.

Groups representing about 20 different cultures will perform. While we love the Irish and Celtic music, dances, bands and food that are the core of Ohio's Celtic and International Fall Fest, our region is made up of over 100 different ethnic groups. The ClevelandPeople.Com International Pavilion will feature music, performances, food and shopping from many different cultural groups.

Learn more and enter to win free tickets

Puerto Rican Parade

The annual Puerto Rican Parade and Latino Festival was held in Cleveland the weekend of August 3-5, 2012.

The event is put on by the Julia de Burgos Cultural Arts Center. The Center is dedicated to preserving and sharing the Puerto Rican and Caribbean traditions through the teaching and practice of the visual, performing, & literary arts.

2012 marks the 44th celebration of the Puerto Rican Parade in the City of Cleveland. The Parade & festivities are a great historical tradition that has united Clevelanders and Northeast Ohioans for decades.

4 pages of photos and a video of the parade highlights.

Windows 8 RTM

The Windows Blog announced that Windows 8 has reached the RTM milestone.

 

People will be able get Windows 8 starting on October 26th either by upgrading for $39.99 or on a new PC or device. And if you buy an eligible Windows 7 PC today, you will be able to purchase an upgrade to Windows 8 Pro for $14.99 (U.S.) through the Windows Upgrade Offer.

However, there are a number of programs that provides various audiences early access to the Windows 8 RTM code to help prepare for Windows 8 as it enters the marketplace this fall:

• August 15th: Developers will be able to download the final version of Windows 8 via your MSDN subscriptions.
• August 15th: IT professionals testing Windows 8 in organizations will be able to access the final version of Windows 8 through your TechNet subscriptions.
• August 16th: Customers with existing Microsoft Software Assurance for Windows will be able to download Windows 8 Enterprise edition through the Volume License Service Center (VLSC), allowing you to test, pilot and begin adopting Windows 8 Enterprise within your organization.
• August 16th: Microsoft Partner Network members will have access to Windows 8.
• August 20th: Microsoft Action Pack Providers (MAPS) receive access to Windows 8.
• September 1st: Volume License customers without Software Assurance will be able to purchase Windows 8 through Microsoft Volume License Resellers.

Father of Gymnastics

As we celebrate the 2012 London Olympics US women's gymnastics gold medal, here's a bit of trivia.

In the German Cultural Garden in Cleveland there is a bust of Friedrich Jahn.

In 1811, gymnast Friedrich Ludwig Jahn organized the first gymnastic clubs, or "Turn Vereine," as they are known in Germany. Friedrich Jahn was (and still is) known as "Father Jahn" for having fathered the many athletic clubs and for being like a father to so many young men.
 

He is known as the Father of Gymnastics

Cleveland's 216th Birthday Party

Cleveland, the 216, turned 216 years old on Sunday July 22nd. Ohio Homecoming organized a birthday bash that attracted thousands to Nautica in the Flats for a party.
 

4 pages of photos and videos of the attendees, performers, fashion show and more

Chinese at Cleveland's 216th Birthday

The Cleveland Chinese community was well-represented at Cleveland's 216th birthday party.  

They performed a traditional musical piece on the guzheng (Chinese zither) and a group of youngsters performed several dances including the popular Happy Drum Dance.   

See the Cleveland Chinese community at the 216 birthday event.

Asian Indians at Cleveland Birthday

The Cleveland Asian-Indian community was well-represented at Cleveland's 216th birthday party.  

They had a booth for both FICA and India Festival USA, performed a traditional Karagattam Dance and a Bollywood Dance and participated in the fashion show.  

Asian Indians at Cleveland Birthday party

Cleveland Peruvians at birthday bash

The Cleveland Peruvian community was well-represented at Cleveland's 216th birthday party.  

They had a booth, performed a traditional Lando Dance and participated in the fashion show.  

Photos and videos of the Peruvians

Lithuanians at Cleveland 216th Birthday

The Cleveland Lithuanian community was well-represented at Cleveland's 216th birthday party.  

Besides singing upbeat polkas, they participated in the fashion show.

See photos and videos of the Lithuanians at Cleveland's birthday

Cleveland Lebanese at 216 Birthday Bash

The Cleveland Lebanese community was well-represented at Cleveland's 216th birthday party.

CAMEO - the Cleveland Area Middle East Organization - had a booth and the band Ajyal performed a traditional Lebanese Dabke dance.

See photos and videos of the Lebanese at Cleveland's Birthday bash.

London Calling - Summer Olympics

I love the Summer Olympics.  I have always felt that the track and field competitors -especially the decathletes - are the best  athletes in the world.  And there is usually no politics in track and field.  If you cross the finish line faster than everyone else, for example, you win.

Swimming is like that too.  We are fortunate to have an Olympic Gold Medal swimmer here in Cleveland.  Diana Munz won a Gold and Silver in Sydney and a Bronze Medal in Athens four years later.

Diana gave us the inside scoop on the swimming competition during the 2008 Beijing Olympics and now she is doing it again for London.  You can see her predictions and insights on the 2012 Olympic swimmers here where she talks about Missy Franklin, Dara Torres, Michael Phelps, Janet Evans and more.

 You can watch Diana do commentary on NBC as well.

Year of the Dragon Public Art

2012 is the Year of the Dragon on the Chinese calendar. To celebrate, St. Clair Superior Development Corporation filled our community with a collection of public art pieces in honor of the Year of the Dragon!

Local artists applied their talent & creativity to the fiberglass dragon sculptures to create an assortment of unique pieces of public art. The Dragons have been placed outside local business establishments in Cleveland, and will be auctioned in September.

Each artist was challenged and inspired by cultural influences, their personal history, and their own interpretation of the dragon as an object of art.

This is the 7th year of the project with prior art honoring the Year of the Rabbit, Ox, Rat, Pig, Dog and Tiger.

Browse photos of all the Dragons and then vote for your favorites.

Happy 216th to the 216

Cleveland - aka the 216 - celebrated its 216th birthday on Sunday.  216 for the 216.

There will be a lot of videos and photos from the bash at ClevelandPeople.Com soon but this short video showing about 40 Clevelanders wishing the city a Happy Birthday represents the diversity that makes the city so special.

Cleveland GiveCamp

I was very impressed with the quantity and quality of volunteers at Cleveland GiveCamp when I stopped by on Saturday.

GiveCamp is a national event that connects technology talent with the needs of local non-profits. In one weekend, developers, designers, database administrators, and other technology professionals work around the clock to tackle the wish lists of non-profits and create web and software solutions. More than 30 cities across the country host this event and that number continues to grow each year.

And Cleveland's has become the largest!  In 2011, Cleveland organized its second event and boasted more than 175 volunteers who contributed over $500,000 of development work.  It's even bigger in 2012.

Check out more info, photos and videos from the Cleveland GiveCamp

How Hot has it Been?

• The birds have to use potholders to pull the worms out of the ground.



• The trees are whistling for the dogs.




• The best parking place is determined by shade instead of distance



• Hot water comes from both taps.



• You can make sun tea instantly.




• You learn that a seat belt buckle makes a pretty good branding iron.



• The temperature drops below 90 F and you feel a little chilly.




• You discover that in July it only takes two fingers to steer your car.



• You discover that you can get sunburned through your car window.




• You realize that asphalt has a liquid stage.



• The potatoes cook underground, so all you have to do is pull one out and add butter.




• The cows are giving evaporated milk.



• Farmers are feeding their chickens crushed ice to keep them from laying boiled eggs.




• The Baptists are starting to baptize by sprinkling, the Methodists are using wet-wipes, the Presbyterians are giving rain checks, and the Catholics are praying for the wine to turn back into water!

Digital BookMobile

I have always been fortunate to live near a physical library. But many, especially in rural areas, have had to rely on Bookmobiles to deliver books.

 Now that we have digital content, Internet delivery capability and great software from Cleveland's own OverDrive, Inc. people can download all kinds of digital content 24x7 from any Internet connection to almost any device.

 The OverDrive Bookmobile travels the continent showing people what they can do and how easy it is.

 I caught up with the BookMobile at Shaker Heights Public Library and took a quick tour.

 It turns out that I was friends with and played football with the father (Pat) of the BookMobile guide, Dan Conochan. A looooong time ago.

 

St Casimir Church reopening

It was inspirational to see over 1000 people at the reopening Mass at St Casimir Church in Cleveland.

We have lots of photos and videos to be posted soon but here is a quick video on the processional into the Church from outside.

Slovenian Statehood Day in Cleveland

On June 25, 1991 Slovenia declared independence from Yugoslavia. To celebrate the 21 years of Slovenian Statehood, a special event was held in the Rotunda of Cleveland City Hall with dignitaries, music and food. Consul General of the Republic of Slovenia Mr. Jure Žmauc and Mrs. Janja Žmauc hosted the event.

Pics and video of the ceremonies

Pics of the people who attended

St. Casimir - Last Vigil

Sometimes miracles do happen.

The last Mass held at St. Casimir Church in Cleveland was held on November 8, 2009. 

Starting the following Sunday, parishioners and supporters met outside the locked church to pray. 

On Sunday July 8, 2012 the 139th and final street service was held.  St Casimir Church will reopen on Sunday July 15, 2012.

The St Casimir group was the first to meet outside the church and never missed a week despite Cleveland's dramatic weather.  They inspired 4 other church communities (St. Emeric, St. Patrick, St. Wendelin and St. James) to begin meeting in the street the following summer.

Now their prayers have been answered and St Casimir Church will reopen with a Mass at 11:30AM on July 15th.  The loyal group which was exiled outside for so long will be able to enter their beloved church again.

Many believe this to be a miracle delivered to them by the Blessed Virgin as Our Lady of Czestochowa.

Photos and Videos of the Last Vigil

Will you lose Internet access Monday?

GreatLakesGeek.com visitors are already aware of the impending shutdown of Internet access to systems infected with the DNS Changer malware.

The ring behind the DNS Changer virus, discovered in 2007, was shut down last year by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Estonian police and other law enforcement agencies.

About 69,000 computers in the US are infected. Symantec posted, "If your computer is still using DNS entries that are pointing to the FBI servers on July 9, you will lose TOTAL access to the Internet. No connecting to the office from home, no updating Facebook, nothing until the DNS settings are fixed."

Make it easy on your less technically astute friends and family and have then check their system here.

Higgs Boson

Yeah, it really is a big deal.


Even the mainstream press has been reporting that Scientists at CERN announced that they are 99.99% sure that they've found a new sub-atomic particle, and that it is likely to be the elusive Higgs boson. Layman have referred to it as the "God Particle" but scientists generally don't like that name.

Here is a good video explaining the theoretical particle.

Cleveland and Marines Rock

Every day during Marine Week Cleveland the Quantico Marine Band performed at Public Square.

They also performed some of their rock repertoire at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. It was surreal to see the very clean cut guys jamming on rock classics in front of the Grateful Dead sign at the Rock Hall.

Quantico Marine Band at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

More from Marine Week Cleveland

Besides the Vietnam Memorial Wall and the 400+ flags at Voinovich Park, Marine Week had a lot of other cool stuff.

For example, there was a mini-exhibit from the National Museum of the Marine Corps

There was also all kinds of vehicles, equipment and technology on display - some hands-on.   Marine technology in Cleveland.

We posted 7 pages of pictures and videos from Marine Week Cleveland  in the Veterans section of ClevelandSeniors.Com

TRS80 Model 100 Portable Computer

Way back in 1983 the Great Lakes Geek got his first portable computer. It had a great form factor, nice keyboard and useful ports.

The LCD screen was only 8 lines and 40 characters across but that seemed plenty for the text-based BASIC programs you ran on the unit.

Maybe the best part of the ahead-of-its-time unit was the built-in 300 bps (yes 300 bps) modem. It made the Model 100 a favorite of journalists who could type about 10 pages of text into the unit and then plug into a phone line and upload their columns to the main office. 300 bps sounds excrutiatingly slow but when you just transferred ASCII character and plain text, it was surprisingly useful. The Geek spent a lot of time on the old Cleveland Freenet with that device.

The Great Lakes Geek recently uncovered his old Model 100 and shot this video of it. Ah, memories.

Hungarian meat

Ever wonder about some of the strange sounding meats in the ethnic butcher shop? Blood Sausage, Head Cheese, Klobasa - what exactly are they? And what makes Hungarian pigs, Mangalitsa Pigs, so unique? 


Tom Ratoni-Nagy was one of the judges in the annual Hungarian Goulash (Gulyas) Cook-Off and he explained some of the meats in this video.

Bratislava Mayor in Cleveland

Cleveland Ohio and Bratislava Slovakia are sister cities.  Bratislava Mayor Milan Ftacnik visited Cleveland last week and besides seeing the statue of General Milan R. Stefanik, he toured the Slovak Cultural Garden and spoke at a CCWA event.

 He was accompanied by the U.S. Ambassador to Slovakia Theodore Sedgwick.

 Cleveland Slovak George Terbrack showed the Slovak Cultural Garden in Cleveland Ohio to Bratislava Mayor Milan Ftacnik.  The Garden has busts of Slovak poet Ján Kollár and Stefan Furdek.  Mayor Milan Ftacnik helped plant a larch tree in the Garden.

Mayor Ftacnik in Slovak Garden

US Ambassador to Slovakia Theodore Sedgwick and Bratislava Mayor Milan Ftacnik spoke about some of the highlights of the relationship between the US and Slovakia at a Cleveland Council on World Affairs (CCWA) meeting. 

Mayor and Ambassador at CCWA

General Milan R. Stefanik

If you take a wrong turn on MLK behind the Art and Natural History Museums, you will see a little island in all the traffic at MLK and Jeptha.  The island is small and barely has room to host the large statue of General Milan R. Stefanik.

General Milan R. Stefanik is a Slovak hero who died young and was memorialized with the statue in Cleveland in 1922.

As the surrounding real estate gets more crowded (and valuable) plans are to move the statue, hopefully to the Slovak Cultural Garden.

Bratislava, Slovakia  Mayor Milan Ftacnik visited the statue on June 16, 2012.  He had some interesting words to say in this short video we shot in front of the statue of the General.

Photos, video and more from the General Milan R. Stefanik statue

Juneteenth in Cleveland

Juneteenth was celebrated in the African American Cultural Garden in Cleveland on Sunday June 17, 2012.

President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862, with an effective date of January 1, 1863 but in parts of the South, slavery continued. Juneteenth commemorates June 18 and 19, 1865. June 18 is the day Union General Gordon Granger and 2,000 federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to take possession of the state and enforce the emancipation of its slaves.

Juneteenth has been mostly a Southern event but it has been spreading in recent years.

 Juneteenth in Cleveland - photos and videos

400+ Flags at Marine Week

It is also very inspiring to walk through the 400+ US Flags at Marine Week in Cleveland.  In the front there are a few special flags - POW/MIA, etc.

With the wind coming off Lake Erie, the flags are all flying, not hanging, so it's very powerful.

Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall

The largest replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall is on display at the Marine Week celebration in Cleveland's Voinovich Park.  It is an emotional experience to walk past name after name after name after name... of young people who lost their lives.


It was especially moving to see a memento left in front of one name of a West Tech high school graduate who lost his life.  So many and so young.

Drumline!

Terrific drumline drum competition between Glenville and CMSD HS students at last week's African-American Festival in Cleveland.

Turn your speakers up, click the icon to make it full screen and have a blast!

Drum competition pics and video.

These kids are great!

Over 450 people attended the Cleveland International Hall of Fame inductions.  There are 6 pages of photos of attendees here. 

Who do you recognize?