More of the Best of 2010!

Church

We'll continue our look back at 2010 with some "Best of..." posts today, but first I want to remind you of what you missed if didn't get a chance to read yesterday's entries about my hometown and some other of 2010's best and most popular posts, including a very emotional and powerful post on the anniversary of 9/11. Sit back with a hot cup of coffee and enjoy a recap of what you, the reader, determined to be our most popular posts of 2010.

• The Rio Grande Starts Here - I was kind of surprised when I looked at the blog archives and noticed that this was our most- read Colorado Chronicles post of the year, but it was. 
• Caught - This was, without a doubt, my personal favorite post of the year. It's about "going to church" with a fishin' pole at a pond way up in the Rockies. A place where God and I have a Father-Son talk amongst the majestic Rocky Mountain peaks, the brilliant sunshine and of course, a fishin' hole. To me, that's "church". Can I get an amen from the readership?
• Tomah Joseph - Another personal favorite and you guys liked it, too. Tomah Joseph was an Indian who lived in the early 20th Century near where my wife grew up in Eastport. He was an amazing man with an amazing life story. When you click over to the story, be sure to click the links embedded within the story. it really is a great read.

The three posts I listed up there ^^^, are well worth the time to take a look at... not because of my legendary literary skills ( I just made that part up...), but because the subject matter is something that you won't find anywhere but where I found it or right here on Three States Plus One. Thanks for making these posts easy choices to be in the "Best of 2010". You done good.

Black Friday; 3 Posts for the Price of One While Supply Lasts !

I hope and trust that you all had a fantastic Thanksgiving Day, football not withstanding. We had a great one here at The Shoe Box. Heather spent the vast majority of two days preparing an honest to goodness feast for the four of us. We had turkey, stuffing, homemade rolls, cranberry sauce, sweet corn on the cob, mashed potatoes, marinated carrots, gravy, apple pie, pumpkin cookies with chocolate chips, homemade banana bread and damn, I'm still full. Thank you, Heather for all the hard work and love that you put into our Turkey Day Dinner. it was fantastic!

We just finished putting up the Christmas tree and all the attendant bric a brac that goes throughout the house. It looks very festive. Oh!!! I almost forgot, we got our first snow of the season overnight and this morning! We got only an inch or so, but it still looks nice and wintry outside, almost Christmas -y.

I am looking forward to spending the rest of the Holiday Weekend with my family, so I am going to present an encore of some of my favorite posts from the past few months. Aaaaaannnnnnddddd awaaaaayyyyy we go!!!

• Texas Tidbits: the Greatest of the Greatest Generation - this is an outstanding post on one of the most decorated and celebrated heroes in the history of our country - Admiral Chester W. Nimitz.
• Maine Minutiae: Tomah Joseph - Legendary American - here I pay tribute to an amazing Native American. It's a reall good story.
• Colorado Chronicles: The Rio Grande Starts Here - when I first posted this back in early August, it was one of the most viewed posts since the beginning of this blog. It's still in the Top 5 or 6.

Have fun eating leftovers and watching some outstanding football games this weekend. If anything blog-worthy comes up, I'll hop on here and do my usual brilliant reportage and commentary. Adios, y'all!

Maine Minutiae : Tomah Joseph - Legendary American

"It has been said that art is the signature of a civilization. Like all signatures, it is unique and personal and binding. When a civilization vanishes, it is art that leaves an indelible imprint to tell the story of a people's existence and their eventual demise. Such is the story of Tomah Joseph, a Passamaquoddy Indian artist who lived in eastern Maine during the mid- to late 19th and early 20th centuries. Like so many other stories of Native Americans, his is one in which cultural survival and economic necessity are inextricably and tragically linked." - Yankee Magazine, May/June 2007. This quote is about an extraordinary man named Tomah Joseph, a Passamaquoddy man who during his seventy-seven years on Earth touched the lives of countless people, including a future President of the United States. Tomah Joseph was true to his Native Heritage throughout his life, keeping Passamaquoddy traditions forever alive through his amazing artwork and intricate craftsmanship on all things Native as well as the passing of Passamaquoddy oral history for untold generations after him to cherish for eternity. I urge you read the information at the links above to get a glimmer of the life and legacy that is Tomah Joseph, legendary American.