In an era before names, the anonymous monster blasted away with wind gusts of 150 mph. The tropical cyclone devastated the Greater Miami area having hit both the Bahamas and later the Gulf Coast. It accrued $100,000,000 in damage, a toll that remains the costliest in American history when adjusted using inflation and wealth normalization, yielding a cost of nearly 165 BILLION dollars in today's currency!

Think of that:  $165,000,000,000! 

Oh my God...That's more money than Jeff Bezos has!  
​

Fast Fact: August 28, 1929 was the height of the 1920’s Bull Market  just before the bottom fell out. The Stock Market would take 40 years — not until the 1960’s — to attain the same level as this day in 1929. Scary huh? 



As you drive through today's packed South Florida communities, think about it.  A storm actually started the 12 year Great Depression.

Not even a Hydrogen Bomb can do that!​

#MiamiHurricane #FloridaHurricane #AtomBomb #NuclearBomb #Hydrogenbomb #Bahamas #GulfCoast #1926 #Landboom #GreatDepression #Category4

​EXIT 15W; I-95N, to  Meadowlands Sports Complex,  Met Life Stadium


Question... how is it that New England  Patriots' Quarterback, Tom Brady has the rival New York Jets to thank for his career?

​Since the inception of the American Football League in the 1960’s , the Jets have clashed in a marquee rivalry with the New England Patriots.  But it was not always such a huge rivalry till the mid 1990’s.  The rivalry began to receive increased media attention in 1997 when a disgruntled Hall of Fame Coach Bill Parcells  quit his head coaching position with the Patriots to join the Jets.  This left New England seeking vengeance on an annual basis.  Fast Fact:  Parcells was born in nearby Englewood, New Jersey and most famously turned the New York Giants into a Super Bowl winning franchise in the 1980's.

​But I digress. Fast forward to 2001. The Patriots star quarterback was Drew Bledsoe. Then just 12 days after 9/11, on September 23, 2001 Jets linebacker Mo Lewis slammed Drew Bledsoe, leaving the New England star with internal bleeding. This provided an opportunity for a young unknown to take over.  That unknown was a gangly hard working backup named Tom Brady.

​Since that game against the Jets, Tom Brady led New England to four Super Bowl titles and arguably had become a dynasty of sorts.  Meanwhile the Jets have struggled in the shadow of not just the Patriots but even their crosstown rivals, the Giants.

The New York Jets was founded in 1959 as the New York Titans, an original member of the American Football League.  The current name was adopted in 1963 when the franchise moved to Shea Stadium in Queens.     
​

Led by the quintessential playboy quarterback, “Broadway Joe” Namath, the Jets advanced to the playoffs for the first time in 1968 and went on to compete in Super Bowl 3.

​There they faced the much favored Baltimore Colts under Hall of Famer Johnny Unitas.   To great surprise, they defeated the Baltimore Colts, becoming the first AFL team to defeat an NFL club in an AFL-NFL World Championship Game.

Since 1968, the Jets have appeared in the playoffs 13 times, and in the AFC Championship Game four times, most recently losing to the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2010. However, the Jets have never returned to the Super Bowl.

On your left is MetLife Stadium. If you are passing it on a Sunday evening in the autumn you can tell which team is playing.  Back in the early aughts, the Jets agreed to enter a 50–50 partnership with their rival, the Giants, to build MetLife agreeing to a 99-year lease.  MetLife Stadium became the first in the history of the NFL to be jointly built by two franchises. It opened in April 2010 and saw the Jets and Giants open the stadium together in a preseason game.

​Except for such so-called “subway series” contests, the stadium is illuminated in different colors depending on which team is hosting a game: blue for the Giants; green for the Jets.   

Will this season be the one in which the Jets win their next Super Bowl?  If the lights glow green, just ask any nearby fan on the Interstate.  The answer is always yes.   
​
Go Gang Green!


#NewYorkJets #GangGreen #BroadwayJoeNamath #SuperBowl #NewYorkGiants #NewYorkTitans #Meadowlands #Englewood #BillParcells #NewEnglandPatriots #TomBrady #DrewBledsoe #MoLewis #NewJersey

Ok Now time for a Road Test. The winner of this Road Test must be over 21 to qualify. That's because the winner gets a free six pack of new Corona Seltzer if you buy 2 six packs of Corona Beer!  That's right.  A Dos para Uno deal. Just claim the deal now by tapping the Deal Radar icon on your smart-phone. Offer is good any time in the next  14 days.     So here now are the  Fast Facts... 

The sport once held the world record for ball speed with a  goatskin covered jai alai ball that traveled at 188 miles per hour, whipped by one José Ramón Areitio. ​

​Speaking of steroids, slightly further northwest is Hard Rock Stadium, which is the home of the Miami Dolphins -- which was once under coach Don Shula,  a football dynasty.

​The Dolphins seem to be always a contender for the Super Bowl.  Ask anybody. In any language. They can tell you  How the Dolphins are doing this year. And how they will do next season. Better. Right? Always better.  Majore!  Siempre Better!

Now for the Road Test. How fast was the record in ball speed for Jail Lai? If you said 188 miles per hour, remember to collect your Corona  "buy 2 get 1 free" deal.

​Now that's even mucho Mejor Right!?


#JoséRamónAreitio #JaiAlai #Hialeah #DonShula #HardRockStadium #HialeahRaceTack #MiamiDolphins #MiamiFlorida

​Hear this right.... HERE!


EXIT 4 I-95s in New Jersey, To Penn’s Landing, PA


Ok Road Crew. At the upcoming Exit, Dunkin' is offering a Flash Deal. It only lasts from 11 am till 12 noon, so if you like free Dunkin’ Donuts, get right to exit. The Dunkin is in a Walmart Supercenter at 1675 S Christopher Columbus Blvd so there is lots of parking.  With a purchase of a large Coffee or 16 ounce beverage you get 2 free donuts.  But the offer is only good for the next hour. Say  "Go to Deal" for directions.

"Speaking of Walmart, the Walton Family — the kids and grand kids of Sam and Helen Walton --  run a charitable foundation that supports a lot of issues in today’s world.  Improving education as well as helping the world’s farmers are but 2 of the Walton Family Foundation’s initiatives. Sometimes education and farming are rolled up into one program.     ​

"Along the Interstate you see a lot of farms and fields.  If not for Roadspoke and the radio, sometimes you might even get bored looking at all the fields.  

Back in the day when kids would get nasty with one another, they might say something like, “You are dumb as dirt!” Well guess what Road Trippers? The dirt in many farmers’ fields is no longer dumb. You might even call it smart soil.

Nowadays, science is getting back to nature and that means getting away from using synthetic fertilizers. Turns out a lot of fertilizers create side effects that are very harmful to the rivers, streams and even the ground itself.  Too much fertilizer is poison and harms plants, animals and humans and the ability of the field to grow healthy crops. So what’s a farmer to do?


According to the Walton Family Foundation, the answer lies in “cover crops”.

The Walton Family Foundation, with money earned from Walmart, has found  such cover crops as winter wheat, cereal rye,  clover or other cold-hardy plants provide a number of ecosystem services.

​According to an article about an Iowa farmer Mitchell Hora written by Amy Saltzman in November 2019’s Environment Magazine, cover soils do multiple good things. Writes Saltzman:


“Cover crops prevent soil erosion by keeping plant ‘roots in the ground’ in cool seasons when corn and soybeans aren’t growing, absorbing nutrients that might otherwise leach into rivers and streams. They also increase organic matter and reduce the need for fertilizer.  And they help hold water, making land less susceptible to flooding and drought.”

With global warming, this last point is especially pertinent. According to the article, “In Iowa, farmer Mitchell Hora uses cover crops to protect against extreme weather. The rains started in early May 2019, a series of near-constant showers across southeastern Iowa that – over the course of the month – totaled 15 inches in all.  But while thousands of farmers across the state and throughout the Midwest endured record rainfalls and heavy flooding that wreaked havoc during planting season, Mitchell Hora’s corn fields weathered the storms just fine.  His secret? Cover crops, which he planted the previous fall.”

Mitchell began planting cover crops four years ago on land his family has been farming for seven generations.  The conservation practice is growing in popularity across Iowa and the Midwest as a way to build soil health and resilience - especially in the fall and winter months when many fields lay fallow. 

By planting winter wheat  and other cold hardy species, not only do the farmers avoid excess use of fertilizer but they reap another crop.  

What’s this all mean to you as you pass these farms and fields? Well for one thing, when kids  argue nowadays, they cannot be so rude to describe dirt as dumb.  In fact it is pretty smart at least if they are using cover crops.


Now what does this all have to do with Dunkin Donuts at the upcoming Walmart?

The connection there is that the Walton Family Foundation also supports shade grown coffee which does not impact the rain forests in which coffee is grown.  Dunkin’ Donuts is also asking its suppliers to balance their harvests with shade grown coffee so that over time more coffee is produced in an environmentally sensitive manner.

So get right to Exit now. 

​Maybe all this talk of ecology has you less inclined to eat the 2 free donuts. But maybe not. Rest assured there is nothing ecologically or physiologically redeeming about donuts. In fact, the two best things about donuts are one, they taste scrumptious. And two, the first two are free!




#covercrops #MitchellHora #AmySaltzman #WaltonFamilyFoundation #IowaFarmers #ExitoftheDay #Extremeweather #Globalwarming #ClimateChange

​EXIT OF THE DAY: Here this …. right HERE!
Exit 160b I-95n in SC To: I-20 W, to Columbia near Florence, South Carolina
 
Hello again Road Crew.  At the upcoming EXIT 160, you can get right to exit and just 1 minute off that Exit you'd get a six pack of GATORADE free with any fill up of fuel for over $20.  The Service Station is 7/Eleven. Remember, just say RoadSpoke sent you... or present the Deal Radar logo on your phone.    

 

Why Gatorade? Well because not far from here is the birthplace of the gentleman who created the Gatorade Shower.  Yup, you heard right. The Guy who dumped a barrel of gatorade on his coach to celebrate a victory was born right here.  And this NFL legend did not get a nickel for creating for Gatorade, a juggernaut in free advertising.  But that is ok. He uses his fame even years after retirement to advocate for other causes that he is passionate about.   

Today, no NFL teams are based in South Carolina.  This does not mean South Carolina has not contributed significant talent to the NFL. ​

In 1978, Harry Carson was ready to quit. That is hard to believe today.  He is considered the greatest Captain and one of the best leaders to ever walk through the doors of any franchise. But when team president John Mara and others talk about the "dark days" of the 1970s - most notably the horror show that was the 1976 season - Carson is quick to offer reminders of how he was fed up. Yet he persevered. And while the Hall of Fame linebacker admits to being "disgruntled", Carson made a pact that he would never give up on the team, on his fans and - most importantly - on himself. ​

​In the early '80's, Carson thrived. He ended up crushing the opposing offense  his entire 13-year career with the BIG BLUE WRECKING CREW. Ten of those seasons he was Captain, including the franchise's first Super Bowl victory in 1986.

Carson retired shortly thereafter in 1988.


Fast Fact: Harry Carson even was one of the first instigators of the The Gatorade Shower. ​ This winning team tradition is now a fixture in all sorts of sports all around the world.  No doubt it is a promotional stunt worth billions of dollars awarded by Harry Carson and fellow Hall of Fame Linebacker Lawrence Taylor to the Gatorade Corporation.   Gatorade ought to  say ... "Thanks Big Blue Wrecking Crew!"

Today the thinking man’s linebacker -- who was 2 time MVP when he played at South Carolina State University  where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Education in 1976 -- has now made a new commitment.  He seeks to broaden awareness for brain injuries in football.  Convinced that his grandkids should NOT play tackle football until high school, Harry Carson joined his wife, other former pro players, and their families to address concussions in a forum which explores what should be done to make the game of Football safer.

Said Carson, “Every parent should be informed. They should be informed as to what risks they are subjecting their kids to. There’s a physical risk that you assume when you play. I think all of us understood the physical risk. But when we played back then…there was no information on the neurological risk.” ​

Harry Carson’s number and jersey has been retired by the New York Giants. Now he has won honorary degrees for his crusade to enlighten people about the risks inherent in contact sports. ​

Since World War 2, companies created by the late Henry Kaiser have been in the forefront of many industries. So today we explore a prominent landmark which drivers can see from Interstate 95 and which — like the COVID-19 Vaccine — is a legacy of an American Immigrant… ​

Off to the left you can see a huge hulking factory. It is a Kaiser Aluminum Plant. The founder of Kaiser Aluminum was an immigrant who rose from very humble beginnings. Born in 1882 to impoverished German immigrants, Henry’s mom was a homemaker and his father was a shoemaker.  Although in time he would become one of America’s wealthiest citizens, he did not forget his origins.


From the high seas to Healthcare, Henry Kaiser pioneered many firsts. An inveterate tinkerer and a stickler for efficiencies, Kaiser became known as the father of modern American shipbuilding. On the west coast, he established the Kaiser Shipyards, which during World War Two built Liberty Ships launching almost one freighter a day. ​

To provide affordable care and economies of scale for his thousands of ship-builders Kaiser took over the local Permanente Hospital in Oakland, California. Therefore, Kaiser Permanente (now Kaiser Permanente Thrive) became the first voluntary group plan in the country to feature group medical practice, prepayment, and comprehensive medical facilities on a large scale. ​

Kaiser's Healthcare became a forerunner to company health plans and pioneered today's HMO's. ​ 

After the war, Kaiser founded Kaiser Aluminum by leasing and later purchasing surplus aluminum facilities in Washington state from the United States government.  Buying huge factories cheap and running them lean made him a wealthy man. ​

With his wealth, he established the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonprofit, non-partisan, charitable organization which focused on health care issues.


While the man, Henry Kaiser, died in 1967, his intrepid legacy lives on in this trail blazing Foundation which is not associated with Kaiser Permanente nor Kaiser Industries. ​

​In fact, the Kaiser Family Foundation operates independently as a think tank; it makes facts and analysis available to policymakers, health care groups, and the media.  A leading authority on many issues, The Foundation echoes its founder’s nature. Both valued independent thinking and innovation. So apart from hulking factories, the Kaiser Family Foundation and Kaiser’s various medical companies continue to be the best legacy in Henry Kaiser's life.


#HenryKaiser #KaiserHealthCare #KaiserShipBuilding #KaiserAluminum #KaiserFamilyFoundation #LibertyShips #WWII #Industrialist #Philanthropist #COVID19VACCINE #FirstCOVID19Vaccines #Coronavirus

Hear this Here!


EXIT OF THE DAY: I-287 Exit 4 To: Hartsdale, New York


Okay Road Crew, since you are driving by Hartsdale New York, you are entitled to something sweet.  So this Flash Deal is only good for next 2 Hours. Buy One get one free!   But First you must answer the Road Test. Yes. Nothing is that easy, right?

Now for the Fast Facts. So listen up.


Fast Fact One:  the next roadspoke was written and submitted to us by Jeanie and Stephen Cho.   Steve and Jeanie are newly weds who live and run a business in Hartsdale. So that is extra sweet. Thanks Mr and Mrs Cho.

Ok so speaking about hot and cold, mix a hot summer day, a broken down truck, and a load of melting ice cream and what do you get?  Answer: an empire!


In upcoming  Hartsdale New York, a  twenty-eight year old Greek immigrant's  truck broke down on Memorial Day Weekend in 1934. He pulled into the parking lot of a pottery store. He was in big trouble since his load was all ice cream and it was melting. So instead of freaking out, he threw open the back and  he started to sell.  In a few minutes he sold his entire load.


He knew he was on to something. Later that year, he developed a secret soft-serve recipe, and concocted the “buy one, get one” promotional tactic. Funny coincidence huh? 

​Two years later, the Greek immigrant incorporated his business and bought the Hartsdale pottery store, which became the first  location of his iconic Ice cream empire. His ice cream featured ice cream cakes and funny whales. And he himself became famous for his rough voice in radio and later in TV ads. He then anglicized his greek name. Who do you think that certain Athanassios Karvelas is better known as? Maybe you will recognize him better by the ice cream shop's name, Carvel!


Founder Tom Carvel was born in in Greece in 1906.

In the 1930's he invented a machine to dispense soft ice cream (which was also known as “frozen custard”). The machine would be the first of some 300 ice-cream related patents, trademarks, and copyrights held by Tom Carvel who incidentally, is also considered to be one of the founding fathers of the franchise system in America. He created characters and wedding cakes from ice cream. He even invented Fudgie the whale.

Talk about turning lemons into lemonade! Or rather turning a broken down truck into a sweet fortune!


Now for the Test.  If you get right to Exit at the Next Exit and bear right  to get you to the nearby Carvel ’s Ice cream and you buy one ice cream, what do you get free?


That’s right! So bear right now and in 2 minutes you will be enjoying a free carvel Ice cream. You will save money.  And guess what? Your valentine will like it too!  And also guess what?  Jeanie and Stephen Cho will like it to, because super guess what? They own the Franchise. and look forward to seeing you at the Carvels in Hartsdale!


Thanks Mr and Mrs Cho… Happy Valentines Day and many more.
   


#Carvel #TomCarvel #Hartsdale #Fudgie #StephenCho #JiniCho

Hear this here....
I-95n Exit 13 in MA To: University Ave, (in Norwood) No Services, and Rt 128​

OK Road Trippers, consider this:  while tech in California tends to come from start ups, in Massachusetts, a lot of innovation is created by long established companies like Raytheon or General Electric or IBM.

The professors and grad students in the universities devote their energies toward a greater understanding of the world around them. The government, particularly the Defense Department and the National Science Foundation, provides the financial support for the academicians to perform the experiments. The firms would then produce the physical manifestations of these ideas for the marketplace.  Think knee replacements, medical devices, and robots. ​

Welcome to Georgia! Now how bout them peaches? I know corny right. But I had to. After all, Georgia is the state of peaches, pecans, peanuts and coke. By that I mean the  soft drink which was invented here in the late eighteen hundreds. ​

Speaking of Kings, everyone brought their crowns, right? It’s time to put them on, because we’re now entering Kings Bay, Georgia. This town’s claim to fame is that it is the home of the Ohio Class  Naval Submarine Base.  These boomers can wipe out most countries in the world in a matter of minutes. So yes, welcome to Georgia, home of peaches, peanuts, and Armageddon! ​

Hear this here!
I-95n at Exit 10  to Fairmont, North Carolina


Ok Road Trippers, time for a Road Test. And no you do NOT win a Drivers License!  But you do win $5 worth of Pepsi or Dorito Products with a fill up of fuel at the upcoming Exit 10 to Fairmont. If you take the Exit bare right to the Extra Mile Chevron and tell em RoadSpoke sent you. So get right to Exit. ​

Now for the Fast Facts.


Can you guess which of the following Fast Facts about the state of North Carolina is false? Three of them are true, and just one is false. Here we go.


1. Krispy Kreme Doughnut was founded here in North Carolina.


2. The first miniature golf course was built here.


3. Coke was invented here.


4. Babe Ruth, as a pro ball player, hit his first home run here.


What do you think? Which is false? Krispy Creme? Mini Golf? Coke? Or Babe Ruth? First I’ll reveal which are true. ​

Which means that if you guessed Coke wasn’t invented here, you’re correct!  But in this case, the lie is not too far from the truth. Because even though Coke wasn’t invented here, Pepsi was!


Pepsi Cola was first introduced as a product called "Brad's Drink" in New Bern, North Carolina, in 1893 by Caleb Bradham, who made it at his drugstore where the drink was sold. It was renamed Pepsi-Cola in 1898. In 1931 at the depth of the Great Depression the Pepsi-Cola Company entered bankruptcy. Eventually Pepsi's assets were purchased by Charles Guth, who was the president of a candy manufacturing company with retail stores that contained soda fountains. He was interested in Pepsi because he wanted to replace Coca-Cola at his stores' fountains after Coke refused to give him a discount on syrup.


Think about it, if Coke had just given that discount way back when, there would be no Pepsi to rival them! ​

And even after Pepsi took off, the Coca Cola company was offered the opportunity to purchase the Pepsi-Cola company not just once but on three separate occasions between 1922 and 1933. But they declined on each occasion and the rivalry has just kept growing.


Time to play another game. I’ll give you four Pepsi slogans from the past sixty years or so. Three will be true and one will be false. Can you guess the false one? Here we go. The first slogan is "Any Weather is Pepsi Weather.” The second slogan is “More Bounce to the Ounce.” Here’s your third option: “Born in the Carolinas.” And finally the fourth option is “If you’re peppy, get Pepsi.”


Are you ready to answer? Do you think it was the slogan that said “born In the Carolinas”? Well you’re wrong, that’s a real Pepsi slogan from 2011! The false slogan was “if you’re peppy, get Pepsi.” ​

Why not get right and take the next exit to Fairmount?  I know I am thirsty, and you are likely too. Let’s get a round of sodas or maybe a soda and some Doritos. And when in Carolina do what the locals do. Make it a Pepsi!


#Pepsi #KrispyKreme #NorthCarolina #BradsDrink #NewBern #BabeRuth #CocaCola ​

​Hear this right…. HERE!
EXIT OF THE DAY:  EXIT 100B  I-95 southbound Maryland Border




"Ok now, At-ten-tion!  Listen up Road Crew. And that means you — the one with the hair. Watching Charli D'Amelio on TikTok... "

Welcome to the Oriole State!  Speaking of Orioles, on September 6, 1995, Baltimore Orioles shortstop Cal Ripken Jr. aka The Iron Man  breaks the record of Yankee great Lou Gehrig aka The Iron Horse for consecutive games played: 2,131.

Cal Ripken, Junior might as well be a god to Marylanders.   He’s played in 19 MLB All Star Games, and he has won two MVP awards. He’s no slacker. Strange coincidence, like that other work horse and legend Lou Gehrig who was born in New York City's  Upper East Side and played for the hometown New York Yankees, Cal was born in Maryland and played his career with the hometown Baltimore Orioles.

Even now in retirement, Cal is not taking it easy.  He’s basically, like, the most charitable man in Maryland and is super active in establishing youth programs in baseball. In fact, you will pass his Cal Ripken, Junior Youth Baseball Camp in 1 minute coming up on the right. Keep your eye out to see Cal’s sports stadium.

​Speaking of local sports, Lacrosse is Maryland's unofficial state sport. Lacrosse was first played by Native Americans and entire villages essentially killed each other with sticks and rocks and used it to settle arguments.

Since that time, nothing has changed. Maryland uses lacrosse to settle many disputes especially between colleges and high schools. In Baltimore, Maryland  everyone loves the professional home teams like the Orioles and the Ravens. But the city splits into 2 vicious camps when local colleges Johns Hopkins University plays cross town rival Loyola University Maryland.

But if you get into an argument you can always settle it by finding common ground. Just say you love Cal Ripken. No one in Maryland argues with that!


Now for the Road Test: who is the sponsor for the Million Dollar Milepost?
If you said 7-Eleven you are correct!

​But to qualify you need to get right to Exit and take part in the RoadSpoke offer by filling up your tank at the upcoming  7-Eleven. You qualify with a purchase of at least $25 in fuel and claiming a free Slurpy or beverage.  And of course you cannot qualify unless you tell them Cal Ripken and RoadSpoke sent you!


Oh Yeah.  And about the Hershey’s or Mars brand candy bar including M&M’s.

"If you Tweet, Snap or post a selfie at the 7-Eleven, show the cashier and you will get a bonus prize. You can choose a regular size candy.    


Just remember, somewhere out there is a Million Dollar Milepost! But like the great Cal Ripken Jr,  you got to play!  Carry on Road Crew. Over and Out!"




#CalRipkenJunior #BaltimoreOrioles #Lacrosse #JohnsHopkins #LoyolaUniversityMaryland #MLBBaseball #LouGehrig #IronHorse #IronMan

"Ok Road Crew, now we play a game called "Name that recording artist."  The winner gets to claim a free month of Pandora app. ​

...having summers off,  beginning in 1953, the family spent summers on Martha's Vineyard. Regardless of his privileged upbringing, our hero suffered from depression so much so that between his prep school and college year, he committed himself to a psychiatric hospital in Massachusetts.  Between the meds and the organized schedule he started to achieve structure which he credits for saving his life and influencing his music.  Still he lived chaotically and despite getting signed by the Beatles Apple Records he wound up becoming addicted to heroin.  However he continued to be productive. He wrote songs, including "Carolina on My Mind”. Paul McCartney and an uncredited George Harrison guest sang on "Carolina on My Mind", whose lyric "holy host of others standing around me" referred to the anonymous Beatle pals.

​Once he recovered, our hero moved to California, and there he produced his second album. Titled "Sweet Baby James", and featuring the participation of Carole King, the album was a  triumph.  Memorably, it included the single "Fire and Rain," a song about experiences in rehab and the suicide of his friend, Suzanne Schnerr.  In 1970, the album and the single reached #3 on the Billboard charts, with Sweet Baby James selling more than 3 million in the United States alone.

​The entire album was received as a folk-rock masterpiece, marking a direction he would take in following years. In following years there were many more triumphs than personal slips including a ten year marriage to singer Carly Simon.  Quick aside: Carly Simon likely appreciated her husband's literary chops because her dad was the founder of Book Publisher "Simon & Schuster."

So now can you name that artist?  You have 3 seconds to guess. Three, two... and one.  

Hear this Here! 
"Exit of the Day" written by *Devereaux Rochester:
Exit 55 I-95n To: North Branford, East Main Street near East Haven


You are coming up on the EXIT for the historical town of Branford. If you head a couple of miles south… ​

​…you could see harbor seals in the Thimble Islands. The Sea Mist Boat Cruises Company runs regular seal viewing tours.

​If you head north and want exercise, exit now, get a mountain bike and pedal up to Massachusetts. You can do that too.  Or even better, why not trade the car for a bicycle and bike down to see the seals in the Thimble Islands? You can do that also.


The Farmington Canal Trail is a former railway trail that will eventually run continuously from downtown New Haven all the way up to Massachusetts. The scenic trail follows the path of the historic New Haven and Northampton RailRoad Company and the Farmington Canal.

In 2004, the first bike lane in the city was added to Orange Street, connecting East Rock Park and the East Rock neighborhood to downtown.  Currently, there is a continuous 14-mile stretch of the trail from downtown New Haven up through Hamden and into Cheshire, making bicycle commuting between New Haven and those suburbs possible. ​

The trail is part of the East Coast Greenway, a proposed 3,000-mile bike path that would link every major city on the East Coast from Maine to Miami. Wow! That’s a lot of exercise. Think how great shape we would be in? ​

On second thought, there is a Highway Service Center upcoming with McDonald’s. ​

Let’s stop for some french fries. ​

Hear this Podcast... here!
​EXIT 5, I-287e in New Jersey, to Livingston and the Caldwells

 "Caldwell is part of "The Caldwells", the group of three Essex County municipalities. These communities are named after the Reverend James Caldwell, an American Patriot during the Revolution.  During early years of the war when the Americans barely had shoes much less ammunition, the pastor is said to have supplied American soldiers pages from hymn books to use as wadding for their musket bullets.  Talk about spreading the word of God!

​Grover Cleveland, the 22nd and 24th President of the United States, was the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms. President Cleveland was born in Caldwell in 1837.

In Caldwell you can even still see President Cleveland's wedding cake. That may be because Grover was at the time the only President to marry in the White House and yet another distinction, his wife Frances still holds the record for being the youngest First Lady ever. Frances married her husband at age 21. Frisky rotund Grover was just shy of his fiftieth birthday. Nevertheless, they wasted no time and went on to have 5 children.

Fast rewind. The fifth of nine children himself, Grover Cleveland's mother was the daughter of a Caldwell bookseller and his father was a Presbyterian minister. The Grover Cleveland birthplace - the church's rectory - is now a museum nearby and is open to the public.  Here you can witness the blessed wedding cake from the 1886 ceremony.

Later Grover headed west to Buffalo, New York where he served as a lawyer, sheriff, and mayor. He then ascended to become the Governor of New York.
For a President, not a lot in Buffalo commemorates Mayor Cleveland’s service except that he is known for having an affinity for all things German — especially German food like sausages and potato pancakes and of course beer. He loved hanging out in German taverns swilling beer. No doubt this enamored him to the large German immigrant population who reliably voted him into office.  No doubt beer itself made him quite large. By modern standards he was obese.

As a Presidential Candidate in 1884, Cleveland was the leader of the pro-business Bourbon Democrats who were known more for what they opposed than what they supported. The Bourbon Democrats opposed high tariffs, Free Silver, inflation, international expansionism, and free subsidies to business, farmers, or even Civil War Veterans.
Almost exactly 100 years later in the 1980’s, President Cleveland became a ROLE MODEL OF RONALD REAGAN’s.  His fiscal conservatism and passion to control federal spending made him an icon for American conservatives then and now.

(33mins. 27 seconds)
​
Grover Cleveland won praise for his honesty and commitment to fiscal restraint. During the so-called  Gilded Age of Robber barons, Grover relentlessly fought political corruption.

​As a reformer in the Democratic Party his prestige was so strong that the like-minded group of the Republican Party, called "Mugwumps" switched sides in the 1884 election to support the Democrat.  The love affair did not last and Cleveland was defeated in his second term by Republican Benjamin Harrison.
​
Then four years later, Cleveland decided to run again and this time he won.   As his second term began, disaster hit the nation when the Panic of 1893 produced a severe financial depression which Cleveland was unable to reverse. It ruined his second Presidency, opening the way for a Republican landslide in 1894 which led to the Republican Presidencies of William McKinley and Teddy Roosevelt.

Yet another Caldwell New Jersey celebrity was Johnny Sylvester. Johnny is best known as the handicapped boy for whom Babe Ruth promised that he would hit a home run in the 1926 World Series.

Little Johnny Sylvester grew up in Caldwell suffering from a blow to his head which impaired his mobility and was deemed by doctors as a mortal affliction. Somewhat remarkably, The Babe’s home run visibly improved Johnny who in fact went on to live  a long and productive life. After attending Princeton University, Johnny Sylvester from Caldwell served as a lieutenant in the navy during World War Two then became a successful businessman.

Unfortunately for Grover Cleveland he did not witness the Babe hitting the home run for his fellow Caldwell native in 1926. Grover Washington died in 1908, but he did not die from eating the wedding cake. He died from a heart attack.

Quick aside, after Grover’s death, his own babe and widow, Frances Cleveland campaigned AGAINST women's right to vote, contending that "women weren't yet intelligent enough to vote”.  She was however young and intelligent enough to marry again, and she lived until after the Second World War dying in 1947.

Post script: Her alma mater of Wells College has a building named for Frances Cleveland.  It houses classes for women’s studies. Indeed. "


#GroverCleveland #FrancesCleveland #BabeRuth #Caldwells #JohnnySylvester #RonaldReagan

Like Dorothy, RBG was temporarily daunted about entering the occupation of law -- which was almost entirely a man's profession. Women lawyers were veritably unheard of before World War 2 much less before World War 1. But thanks to Dorothy Kenyon, that was about to change.   ​

In the Communist baiting McCarthy era, Kenyon was accused of being a communist. This prompted many plain old feminists to support her. Foremost of her supporters was none other than Former First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt. ​

Eleanor drew on Dorothy's words to craft the United Nations Declaration of Universal Rights.  These rights protect women and even men all over the globe. 


Thereafter, she prepared briefs for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and worked for the American Civil Liberties Union.


Later Dorothy would join African American female lawyer, Dr Pauli Murray to advocate for women having the right to serve on Juries. ​

Can you imagine that? People wanted to serve on juries. Wonder if that is something most men or women would willingly roll back now, but in the 1950’s it was quite revolutionary. So much so that then lawyer and future Supreme Court Justice, Ruth Bader Ginsburg cited Dorothy’s work as an inspiration — an Honorary co-author even --  in her successful court fight to allow women equal rights to work under the law. ​

​“I guess I'm’ crazy about the underdog. But I think I'm helping women by my kind of life.” A champion of women, people of color, and anyone who seemed to face a losing cause,  Dorothy worked up to the day she died in 1972 at age 84... as did Ruth Bader Ginsburg —both winners to the end.


Rest in Peace RBG…


#DorothyKenyon #RBG #RuthBaderGinsberg #19thAmendment #Womensrighttovote #SmithCollege #HoraceMann #NYU #PauliMurray