This post is dedicated to my lifelong BFF & her park/ tree/ family- fun loving' dad and mom (whom my kiddos lovingly call Yia Yia & Papou) and to the city in which I grew up.See that gianormously gorgeous tree behind the lovely lady in the hat? Well, that tree is about 200 yrs old. As Papou says in his op-ed to the local paper: "On Feb. 11, the Canton park commissioners gave approval to destroy one of Canton’s city parks, which includes five magnificent oak trees. Four of the oaks measure 11 ft in circumference and are estimated to be 125 yrs old. The fifth oak measures 16 ft 2 inches in circumference and has been estimated to be between 200 - 220 yrs old, making it one of the oldest oak trees in Ohio. A 200 yr old oak means that the tree was in its young life when Thomas Jefferson was president. And if a few years older, it was growing when our Constitution was signed."
That gianormous beauty, and the 4 other mentioned lovelies, are located in a nice family friendly park that offers "free" fun for families in the form of a basketball court, an ample field area to run and play ball, and the dazzling bounty of such old and sublime and stately trees. This park is directly next to an architecturally old yet sound and beautiful brick firehouse (in the hot days of summer, the firefighters frequently chat to fascinated kids that naturally gather in amazment of the awesomely cool firehouse), the park borders on a large retirement home, and also happens to be smack dab in the middle of a quiet middle-class neighborhood.
The problem? The former Mayor (Janet Weir-Creighton (R-lapdog) whom is locally famous for getting a Bush "position" after her mayoral defeat in '08, getting a personal phone call from Karl "I should be a convict for all the crimes" Rove , the rotting whiff of GOP corruption *gasp!* and for posing for a newspaper pix while puckering up & kissing a Bush bobblehead... I knows... I knows... position, pucker, kiss, & Bush bobblehead connote ALL kinds of horrific images... must not vomit... must not vomit) arranged to have these trees axed down before her defeat so a spanking new firehouse and firefighter training facility could be put up.
Now don't get me wrong. I love lives to be saved and cherish fire safety as much as the next Smokey the Bear, but in this ravaged county, which can proudly boast of a massive 10.4% unemployment rate, finding any free, family friendly and lovely spots of brightness and beauty are far and few between, while finding large rundown areas and bazillions of foreclosed/ abandoned homes that could be used for a new firehouse and/or fire training center, are literally everywhere. Not to mention-- can I tell ya again-- that one of these freakin' trees is 200+ yrs old?? That the other 4 are at least 125 yrs old?? Historical preservation anyone??
One would think that when your citizens are and have been economically suffering as much as Cantonians are, that the old mayor (along with her mythical conservative GOP family values) would have wanted to save as much money as possible, foster "free" family entertainment, and preserve as much precious heritage one could. But in Canton, where Repuke rule had an ironfist stranglehold for a looooong time, such virtues are chucked, especially given that the money set aside for this wreckage of natural beauty and old architecture, can only be used for this particular wreckage of natural beauty and old architecture, and nothing else.
Sigh... I fear for these majestic beauties, and for the families who enjoy the park, but maybe the new Mayor, William J. Healy II (D-economically downtrodden), can be convinced to save the gorgeous trees, the family friendly park, and the lovely old brick firehouse? Maybe...
Mayor William J Healy II
P.O. Box 24218
Canton, OH 44701
Phone: (330)438-4307
CANTON CITY COUNCIL
218 Cleveland Ave SW
Canton, OH 44702
Phone: 330)489-3223
Oh my god, those trees are beautiful!
ReplyDeleteHow the hell could anyone give them up for a fire station?!
I believe in public safety as much as the next person, but ya just don't cut down history like that. Put the new station up on some vacant lot, or tear down some old run-down building, but DON"T take down history.
I wonder how much money was deposited in the account of Janet FUCKING BITCH Weir-Creighton...or should that be Cretin....to allow this to be done.
If the people lose the appeal to prevent this travesty, the tree should be used for one last monumental thing, HANG THAT FUCKIN' BITCH BY THE NECK TIL DEAD!
GrandpaEddie: Karmic Justice: Perhaps hang Cretin from the 200+ yr old tree?... hmm... very interesting thought.
ReplyDeleteAnd how anyone could want to destroy such beauty and history (including the beautiful old brick firehouse) when there are empty homes EVERY-EVERY-EVERYwhere is beyond me.
Cretin was a real piece of work, from her racist comments at a city forum, her public temper tantrum-- complete with the F bomb, corruption of lowering rich folks' property values so they could pay lower taxes, and her vomitous Bush lovefest as Capt Clusterfuck's chairwoman in a city that has been d-e-c-i-m-a-t-e-d by those good old fashioned "survival of the richest" GOP values. Just before the Nov election, she had this GIANT billboard of herself put up at one of Canton's major intersections, and some dear brave soul climbed up on that billboard and spray painted silver dollar signs over her eyes and added dripping fangs to her teeth. It was FABULOUS!
GrandpaEddie: Here's a pix of that spray painted Cretin ad: http://www.newsnet5.com/news/14525312/detail.html?subid=10101081
ReplyDeleteIt still makes me lol!
I could make tons of cash selling clocks made from pieces of one of those lower branches.
ReplyDeleteI should open a lot at the swap meet.
Bertha, they're trying to save the tree, not cut it down.
ReplyDeleteWow! Look at that thing. The tree in front of our building just got 'tagged' by some low-life savage, and I don't have any idea how to repair the damage.
ReplyDeleteBertha: Swap meets are great places to meet and greet folks, but the only things I'd like to see these particular trees used for are shade, breezes, and oxygen.
ReplyDeleteAnd by the by.... what a lovely name you have.
Is your surname Butt, per chance?
GrandpaEddie: Pay little attention to Bertha. She merely craves attention... well, that and eggs. Lots and lots of eggs.
Kvatch: Holy Toledo!! Long time no see!!!! I'm sure a good little froggy like yourself could wittle away a few glorious hrs in a tree that size, no?
Tagging a tree..... I'd like to tag them.... around their neck.
But since that would most likely lead to incarceration, here's a suggestion I found on the internetS, lol:
This hopeful solution comes from a grounds maintanence site: (http://grounds-mag.com/mag/grounds_maintenance_researching_maintenance_23/)
"Jim Cortese of Cortese Tree Specialists Inc. (Knoxville, Tenn.) said this about removing paint from tree trunks with his own remedy--noting that he has used this technique with success on several occasions:
1. Take a knife or wire brush or sandpaper and lightly go over the painted or stained area, removing as much stain as possible without cutting into the cambium. This may not get all of the paint, especially that imbedded in deeper crevasses.
2. Put 2 or 3 inches of soil in a bucket (use as much as you need to cover the area) and add water to make a mud poultice. "Paint" this liberally over the tree trunk.
3. Let the mud poultice dry on the bark.
4. Let the mud wash off naturally by rain or rinse it off with a hose. It's not necessary to remove all of it. According to Cortese, "the mud poultice simply stains the trunk a natural color and blends in the vandalized part with the rest of the trunk."
Another page on their site also recommends:
Keep in mind that bark will wear and weather as trees age. Therefore, the graffiti eventually will disappear on its own. However, if you need to be more proactive, you have at least a couple of options.
You could try mechanical removal, such as with wire brushes, mild sandpaper or power washing. This might be a good strategy if the tree has thick bark that could stand to have a layer or two removed without reaching living tissue. However, some trees do not develop the type of bark that would allow this, so it depends on the species.
If mechanical removal isn't possible, you could paint over the graffiti with trunk paint (white latex paint). This is not exactly a subtle way to deal with the problem, and certainly not the solution you're looking for if you want to return the tree to a natural-looking state. However, it is one possibility.
You should avoid chemical removers in this instance. The suppliers with whom I checked all expressed concern that their products-even so-called "non-toxic" graffiti removers-could harm trees."
I saw this letter and wondered if there was relation! I am with you on this. When they cut the historical tree down in N.canton - I petitoned to stop. Although, this did no good. I will send a letter to include my thoughts on this matter.
ReplyDeleteSo, so sad.
How is your BFF doing? I miss her!
Tricia: Given how N. Canton boasts of all of their "N. Canton-Viking-Hoover Company" pride and sense of N. Canton history, ya would have thought that they would have saved that huge tree, but of course, when pushed, history and pride get tossed aside. So write away sister! Write away!
ReplyDeleteAnd BFF has been way busy helping her sis get ready for her May wedding (BFF is the maid of honor) and BFF has had a rough winter in terms of illness. She has been sick plenty (working weekends at the restaurant takes its toll, plus all that exposure to so many people and their germs) but besides that, she is pretty good. All is well with her and her man, and the fam is good, too. Now if we can just make Papou and Yia Yia happy about the trees and firehouse....
I've seen oaks in central CA much older than 200 years, but that was in ranch country in the foothills below the Sierras. They didn't look like that though. That thing is huMUNGous! It's probably better taken care of than the old wild ones we have in the foothills... Still, they are living history among a population of history loving humans, and not just another old tree on a hillside where cows snooze in the shade.
ReplyDeleteYou're right what you said to GrampsEd. Bertha needs attention. She only needs a little attn., but gets none. She'll just dry up and blow away.
bfd
word verification is "lamer"... poetic.
I daresay Bertha is a performance artist and her blog is satire.
ReplyDeleteRudy: Now now... I'm perfectly happy to meet Bertha... she just has very "different" ways of raising cash for all those snowflake babies she is so busy creating in a lab, gestating, and birthing.
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree 100% that the trees are a living history in our state--- a state that became a state in 1803 and a city that became a village in 1815. But history means nothing to the people who want to destroy them.
SheaNC: Bertha just may be a highly trained actress trained in the satirical arts.... either that a complete nutjob... the world may never know...
wow...who would know...such a tragedy...
ReplyDeleteI will try to find time to write...
hope all is well with you.....and your little ones....
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ReplyDeleteH. Rudy Ericson withdraws his last comment. It was about nothing.
ReplyDeleteLooks like they are going through with it. So sad.
ReplyDeleteRudy: ?????
ReplyDeleteTricia: I know. Historical hatin' bastards. Let it be said that beautiful pieces of history will never stand in the way of a wrecking crew in Canton, Ohio..... sigh.... banging head on desk....