Book Review: Building the Great Society

Building the Great Society: Inside Lyndon Johnson’s White House, by Joshua Zeitz

First of all, let me just say that I did not finish this book.  I tried.  Our library has been opened and closed over and over again due to COVID (and a bit of casual rioting but that’s a different story), and nobody else wanted to read this “masterpiece”, so I kept on trying through three standard checkout periods – nine weeks total…  I couldn’t.  So this review is based on pages 1 to 137, and a little bit of casual skimming beyond that page to see if the narrative would change (it did not).

I wanted to learn more about President Johnson’s self-described War on Poverty, otherwise what became known as The Great Society.  I wanted to learn about this New Deal-esque plan to lift Americans out of poverty by the multi-pronged plan to address inequities in housing, employment, education and nutrition.  I also wanted to learn about the successes and failures of this sweeping legislation and how it has continued to shape politics and people’s lives today, even more than 50 years later.

I didn’t get any of that.  This book – at least the first 137 pages, focused on who Johnson allied with to pass his legislation, who he selected for his implementation team, and the political infighting that was rife, even at the staff level.  I learned which ill-equipped and un-remodeled buildings they were housed in, how they had to scramble to even get pens and phone lines, and how team members who should have had access to information were shut out and marginalized.

If this was interesting, it might have made up for the fact that a third of the way into the book, Zeitz still hadn’t given the reader more than headline scraps of the meat of the Great Society plan, but it wasn’t interesting.  In fact, it just frustrated me.  It reminded me that back then, and still today, politicians seem to have forgotten that we the people have elected them to work together, to find compromise, and to actually SOLVE problems.  Instead Johnson just sounds like a bastard.  And probably an alcoholic.

So if you are interested in learning more about the Great Society, maybe this book gets into it later on, but go ahead and skip the first third…  And if you know of any good books on the Great Society, please let me know.

1 star. 

COVID Diaries: Day 316

Another long long week…  Another weekend!  Except I have a meeting in the morning on my day off because I wasn’t quite able to get to everything I needed to get done.  Sigh…  Cora doesn’t mind; she just likes that I’m home.

The COVID cases here continue to be high, so unfortunately the lockdown continues, even as most other states are lifting theirs.  Our surge started after the new lockdown went into effect, so let’s just think on that for a moment…  I’m tired.  The vaccine rollout is a mess; our county has literally no vaccine at all.

We got about a flake and a half of snow this week before it petered out and the sun came out.  I think I would have preferred a foot of snow!  I mean I work from home anyway, so why not?

The weekend of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day my friend and I went on a little Sunday Funday jaunt nearby.  We found an old ship from 1917 that was scrapped and turned into a breakwater in the 1960s.  The trees growing out of it are pretty tall!  I’ve lived here all my life and had no idea this was close by until I was searching around for fun oddities to go see.

It was a gorgeous sunny day, and we had a great time!  It was so refreshing to have good weather in January! That made lunch outside tolerable, maybe even nice?  The fish and chips certainly lifted my spirits!

We also spent some time exploring a nearby state park that I’ve driven by a million times, but rarely stop at.  We walked the beach and hiked to a view of the Deception Pass Bridge.  What an incredible day!

I started a new puzzle, but haven’t made it very far.  The panorama format makes it look so small, even though it is 750 pieces!

I was thinking on life the other day and came up the idea to pass along some words of wisdom.  I mean, I’ve done a lot of living; it’s nice to think I might have learned something along the way.  Some will be mine, but I might share snippets from others too (attributed of course).  So here you go!

COVID Words of Wisdom:  If you are lucky enough to have a woman who tells you what she needs, make sure you listen and at least try to deliver. If you don’t, she won’t stop needing it, but she will stop needing it from you.

Circus Trip 2018: Birthday Lobster

Day 52, Wednesday, September 5, 2018
Beal’s Lobster Pier, SW Harbor, Maine

When you are alone, holidays can be hard…  So I wasn’t sure what to expect from my road trip birthday.  Did I want to mark it in any way, or just let it slide by unnoticed?

Being in Maine at my birthday was fortuitous.  I had always wanted to try whole lobster, and what better place to experience it for the first time than Maine, where I could have fresh whole Maine lobster right at the source!

I asked around that morning and learned that Beal’s Lobster Pier was recommended as the place to be for Maine lobster.  It was near Acadia National Park, so when I finished my days’ touristing, I headed over to check it out.  I arrived fairly early; if I remember correctly it was just before 5, and it wasn’t too busy yet.  I let the man at the counter know I had never had whole Maine lobster, and he set to work picking out a good one for me.  And the sides, you can’t forget the sides…  Coleslaw, corn on the cob, and cornbread…

After I paid, I wandered out to find a table with my glass of Vinho Verde, and had the most incredible view of the harbor from my seat.  It was a warm evening, and I felt so at peace on the water, seeing the occasional boat come in.

My lobster came with instructions on how to crack and eat it, and I was so grateful!  I made sure to take a photo so I could have it in case one day I needed them.

My meal was amazing!  So fresh, and so simple, and easily one of the best meals I have ever had.  It was delicious, and I felt like it was a birthday dinner done right!

Note: For those of you in the know, this was the day before my actual birthday.  It still counts!

Circus Trip 2018: Acadia NP, Day 1

Day 52, Wednesday, September 5, 2018
Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine

I was so excited to have two days in the park!

I drove in that morning and stopped first at the Visitor’s Center to get the lay of the land.  I watched the movie about the park, got some postcards and of course got my passport stamped!

I decided to spend the day checking out the Park Loop Road, which runs for 27 miles through the park.  I drove to the top of Cadillac Mountain, the highest peak on the east coast of North America.  It is also known as the place that is first in the United States to see the sunrise, although that is only true from October 7 to March 6 of each year.  That makes me feel better about the fact that I did not drag my butt up there in time for the sunrise, but I was there in early September!

Cadillac Mountain was still amazing, even during mid-morning when I was there.  The views are incredible and you can see in so many directions!  The barrier islands are beautiful!  The day that I was there they were doing a raptor count, although the gentle breeze was going in the wrong direction so most of the birds weren’t flying.  It was still interesting to hear them talk about their migration patterns and other raptor statistics!  It was neat to see the Cadillac Mountain granite, formed approximately 420 million years ago.  These are some very old stones!

The Park Loop Road is definitely a must do drive in the park; it takes you through the woodlands, by ponds, wildlife and the coast!  I enjoyed driving the scenic drive and not rushing it.  I stopped at a pond alongside the route and found a cute frog among the lily pads!

 

I found Sand Beach, which is, you guessed it!, a Sand Beach!  Being from Washington, where most beaches are rocky, I can appreciate the novelty of a sand beach.  I spent some time exploring it and wandering by the water.  There were several interesting jellyfish washed up, and some beautiful views!

I also stopped by Thunder Hole, but it wasn’t thundering.  It is a hole in the coastline, where the surf rushes in and apparently provides quite a show as it sprays high in the air!  You have to see it at high tide though, and it wasn’t high tide when I was there.  I was entertained by the two young men at the gift shop making the predictable inappropriate comments about Thunder Hole, but you could tell the cashier was not amused!

There is a trail that goes along the coastline for a while, and I enjoyed checking out the views of the water along the trail.  Even with the crowds, there is something peaceful about being close to the water.

My last official stop was at the Jordan Pond and to see the Jordan Pond House and The Bubbles.  The Bubbles are hills that someone, sometime in history, obviously thought looked like bubbles.  I wasn’t convinced, but it is probably as good a name as any.  When I get back to Acadia I want to hike to the tops of The Bubbles, which have some gorgeous views. That’s the trouble with these beautiful parks; there just isn’t enough time to do everything!  The Jordan Pond House is a restaurant that is famed for its popovers, another spot I will have to check out on a future trip!

 

That evening I had my early birthday dinner – that deserves its own post!

 

COVID Diaries: Day 305

Over 300 days of lockdown.  The downhill slide to a full year.  It’s been almost a whole year since I took more than 2 days of vacation, or went on a real vacation.  They are talking about another whole year of this, and that makes me sad…  While I still don’t mind working from home, it’s the lack of connection that’s one of the hardest parts for me.  And of course, the lack of adventure…

After more horrible rain and wind, the weather finally broke to a few beautiful sunny days, and now we are back to overcast, but at least it wasn’t raining this morning!  We needed to dry out, considering there has been pretty major flooding, downed trees, and power outages around here.  This morning I went for a hike with my girlfriends.  The Chanterelle Trail is about 4.5 miles (sources pin this particular trail at 4.2 miles and 4.8 miles, so I split the difference).  1,000 feet of elevation gain took us up over Lake Whatcom for some pretty incredible views. 

This is a hike that is just outside of town, so it is nice that it only takes about 15 minutes to get there!  It was a wonderful hike, with the exception of that one little bug that flew into my mouth and… ewww…

The rest of my weekend will be devoted to puzzling, reading, and blogging, and hopefully another adventure with a friend tomorrow!  I started a 1500 piece puzzle – this is the largest one I have ever worked on!  I’m enjoying it so far, but I can’t seem to find a couple of edge pieces, and I hope they aren’t missing.  This puzzle was a new-in-box puzzle, so that would be frustrating!  The search continues, but I’m making progress on the innards.  Cora, of course, has been her usual “helpful” self.

Last night I watched Rear Window again, one of my favorite classic Alfred Hitchcock films.  If you haven’t seen it, it is worth checking out!  It had been a while since I had watched it, and it is still just as good.  People used to be so elegant!  I wonder what they would think of us working from home and never changing out of sweatpants!

As you work on Monday, or if you are lucky enough to have the holiday off, please remember that the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. called on all of us to unite, rather than divide.  And that means stop ranting on Facebook and insulting people who don’t believe the same thing you do.  Here are a couple of my favorite MLK Jr. quotes.

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.”
 
“People fail to get along because they fear each other; they fear each other because they don’t know each other; they don’t know each other because they have not communicated with each other.”
 
My love to you all!  Be kind!

Oh What Fun!, Day 9

Day 9 in the Wine Advent Calendar was a Chilean Sauvignon Blanc.  Chile was where I learned to love wine, sampling the local selections when I lived there so long ago.

This Sauvignon Blanc was made from grapes from Chile’s Valle Central (Central Valley) and was crisp and acidic, with flavors of pineapple and nectarine.  It had 12.5% ABV and was a very nice, dry white.  One of my favorites!

Cheers!

Acadia National Park History

Acadia National Park might be called the park that doesn’t know its name.  It was originally designated as Sieur de Monts National Monument on July 8, 1916, then became Lafayette National Park on February 26, 1919 during President Woodrow Wilson’s term of office, and finally became Acadia National Park with a formal name change on January 19, 1929.  In 2019, Acadia had 3,437,286 visitors in its 49,075 acres.

This stunning park takes up about half of Mount Desert Island on the mid-Maine coast, south of the town of Bar Harbor Maine, as well as part of the peninsula and portions of several outlying islands.  Native Americans have lived in the area for at least 12,000 years, including tribes making up the Wabanaki Confederacy, also known as the “People of the Dawnland”; the Maliseet, Mi’kmaq, Passamaquoddy, Abenaki and Penobscot.  The tribes continue to play a significant role in the stewardship of the area today.

In 1613, French missionaries set up the first white colony on Mount Desert Island, but it was destroyed by an armed vessel from the Virginia Colony in what was probably the first act of aggression leading up to the French and Indian wars.  In the 1600s, a fur trading post was also set up, and French, English and Dutch traders all fought for control.  The French ultimately ceded Mount Desert Island to the English in 1713.

The result is a park with a diverse habitat including coastal regions as well as the tallest mountains on the Atlantic Coast (Cadillac Mountain is the highest peak there).  The diversity that exists there means that there is a wide variety of activities to do, including auto-touring, hiking, poking around in the tidepools, bicycling, and in the winter, snowshoeing and cross country skiing.

Cadillac Mountain rises 1,530 feet, and is considered the first place that the sunrise hits on the east coast of the United States.  There are a variety of animals that reside within the park, including black bear, moose, deer, porcupine, beaver, fishers, mink, turtles, otters, bats and many species of birds.

I had the opportunity to visit Acadia for two amazing days in September 2018, including my birthday.  I’ll tell you about my visit next!

 

COVID Diaries: Day 296

Whelp, it’s a new year and nothing is magically better!  I knew that was a long shot, but seriously…

Here in my lockdown life, it goes on.  I started a new puzzle, and continue to read two or three books at a time…  I counted up all the puzzles I did in 2020 – there were eight.  And all the books I read in 2020; 35!  I decided to set my goal at 36 books for 2021.  It isn’t an easy goal, as I do have a tendency to read long, non-fiction books.  I wonder if I can complete nine puzzles…

I made it through my first five day work week in three weeks.  It was brutal!  I went through most of Tuesday thinking surely it must be Thursday already…

The relentless rain has eased up and then started again the last couple of days.  Yesterday evening it was clear, so I went for a walk after work.  My friend Shelley and I walked downtown, checking out what has closed due to the never-ending lockdown.  It’s pretty sad to see all the empty storefronts.  I’m sad that so many businesses, and so many people, have lost everything they have worked so hard for.  Other restaurants have built some pretty elaborate indoor-outdoor setups!  I tell you, the propane companies must be making a fortune right now!

I’m glad it’s the weekend and I have a couple of days to relax!

Happy New Year?

Oh What Fun!, Day 8

My wine for Day 8 was a Merlot from Chile’s Valle Central region.  This is the only international wine region I’ve been to, so I knew I was in for a treat.  Chile was where I learned to love wine, and they have so many good ones for affordable prices!

I don’t drink much Merlot, and I thought this one was relatively soft and fruit forward, despite the bottle description saying it was full bodied.  I tasted black cherry and ripe raspberry, with medium tannins.  It had 13% ABV, and it was delicious!