Glass insulators have been around since 1840 when the first telegraph lines were strung across America. They were non-threaded, and had wings or “ram’s horns” that some collectors today call “Mickey Mouse ears.” Another type from that era was the “glass block” design. They were square-ish. Soon […]
She rested gently in his soft, young hand
In awe, he stared, at a smallness so grand.
What have we done? In earnest he pleaded.
They forgot, she whispered, how much we are needed.
But I don’t understand, he stuttered through tears.
You’re not to blame, she said, it’s been going on for years.
How can […]
As the days have gotten longer and music flows off Britt Hill, I know summer is definitely upon us. Around here, the natural surroundings of our historic town cast our summers with an almost magical quality.
While […]
Everyone wants to get the highest price possible when selling their home, and many people believe their home is worth more than it actually may be. After all, homeowners have emotions attached to their home and, as a result, often think their home is worth more than prospective […]
I enjoy reading Paul Becker’s column. Our mayor is bedrock small town life. Some will respectfully disagree with his views on city business but none can argue the irreducible wisdom gleaned from the better part of a century living the dream called America.
Paul will continue to defend the next […]
Southern Oregon, as well as most of the nation, is experiencing a record-low inventory of homes for sale. Matched with strong demand, prices are being driven up. One would think that all properties on the market are faring well, but it always goes back to supply and demand—and not […]
Independence Day is at hand. Congratulations and Happy Birthday America. It’s been quite a ride for 241 years. When the Continental Congress formalized the Declaration of Independence with the signature of John Hancock, they took a step so bold and daring and went where no others had […]
However one refers to the Civil War—the “War to Preserve the Union,” “War of the Rebellion,” “War to make Men Free,” “Freedom War,” or the “War Between the States”—it preserved the United States as one, indivisible, nation.
In an 1889 study, performed by Union soldiers William Fox and Thomas Livermore, it was reported that approximately 620,000 […]
Well into the 20th Century, the Fourth of July was a bigger U.S. holiday than Christmas. Long before Congress declared July 4th an official holiday in 1870, John Adams had written to his wife Abigail shortly after the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 that the occasion “ought to […]
Comic books once were considered kid stuff. No one over sixteen admitted to reading them, let alone dared to dream of watching his or her favorite superheroes on the big screen. A theatrical serial starring Kirk Alyn as Superman arrived in the 1940s, but it was sequestered in kids’ matinees. […]
Anger can be an instinctual response to protect ourselves, like a dog’s growling and barking response. It can push us to take action to change what doesn’t feel good, help us to set boundaries, and if handled with care, can even be a healthy way of letting-off steam and frustration. But […]
I have a thinking problem. They say that admitting that you have a problem is half the battle, but I’m not so sure. I’m in pretty deep. I’m not talking about normal, what’s-for-dinner sort of thinking, although I have plenty of that. I’m talking about furrowed brow cogitating, bordering on the […]
It’s often said that we are slaves to fashion. Such was the case with the mesh envelope bag and the elegant, beaded handbag. These handbags, so loved by the 1920’s Flappers, were quite fashionable until well into the 1950s. Even now, these vintage handbags are carried as evening accessories by […]
Pollinator protection does not have to be relinquished in exchange for managing mosquitoes. The impact of mosquito spraying on pollinators is long-lasting. Studies show wild bee populations are even more susceptible to pesticide exposure than honey bees due to biological and habitat differences.
Fortunately, here in Oregon, we don’t have to […]
And those whose blossoms curl obliquely back,
Ribbed on the sides with a bright scarlet streak,
Shalt of daylily the fair name receive,
If one whose summer’s day the beauties live…
-Rene Rapin (1621-1687)
It’s true that the beautiful daylily (Hemerocallis) lasts but one summer’s day, prompting Bishop Joseph Hall to once criticize the flower […]
Summer is finally here so we can start enjoying our lawns and the outdoor living-areas where we’ve been investing our resources, creativity and personal style. And no one is happier about that than me. If you already have a patio, deck or outdoor area, I encourage you to get out […]
Many households in rural areas of Oregon obtain their water from a well. The question that always comes up in real estate transactions is how much water does the well produce and how much do you need?
The amount of water needed will yield various results, though some websites […]
I just left the title company where our clients picked up a $61,000 check—the proceeds from selling their house. What makes this such a great story is how young and financially smart this couple has been. I first met this twenty-something couple, two and a half years ago when […]
Last month, we ran a film called Saturday’s Children at Old City Hall. It’s a story about people living in tenements… people like my own family.
In buildings like this, there were no elevators, so the higher the floor on which you lived, the cheaper the rent.
Ours was […]
Welcome to Hanley Farm! Up to and including the month of December, the farm hosts a new event every month!
We began our season April 29 & 30 with the annual Heritage Plant Sale. Hundreds of visitors attended, many lining up before the gates opened, to have the opportunity to choose from over 50 varieties of […]
Saloons and the spirits who linger there will be a recurring theme in Historic Jacksonville’s “Haunted History Walking Tours” this summer. Therefore, stories of beer, whiskey, and early Jacksonville saloons seem an appropriate subject for our June “Pioneer Profiles.”
Gold rush Jacksonville reputedly had as many as 36 saloons when “entrepreneurs” as […]
The time has come. As you might know, the existing benches on Britt Hill provide seating for 662 and were installed in 1987. Today, they are in a state of severe deterioration due to weather and time, including eleven benches that had to be repaired and held together with […]
I had just started my interview with Lou Mayersky, my June “Sensational Seniors” candidate, when he had me look at several tall fir trees outside his dining room. “You know,” started, “too many people want to improve their view by cutting trees down. That is a terrible waste of the beauty […]
Shakespeare, we believe, was thinking of us, your humble critics, when he wrote these prophetic lines: “Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer’s lease hath all too short a date.”
With May hard upon us, and the submission deadline for this June column nigh, Will’s rough winds […]
“Eclectic” is the word that I used to describe the 2017 Britt Line-up at our April 6th Season Announcement party, where we had a record-breaking crowd of over 250 upper-level members, Business Partners, and press come together to celebrate the launch of another spectacular Britt season. We revealed many […]
The glory of gardening: hands in the dirt,
head in the sun, heart with nature.
To nurture a garden is to feed not just the body,
but the soul.
~ Alfred Austin
Gardening…I think it might mean something different to every person. To some it means hard work, to […]
If you hold a pencil in your hand for a few minutes, it will not have much of an impact on your arm. If you hold it for hours… your hand, your wrist, and your shoulder start to hurt and over time this little pencil feels like heavy concrete and can […]
For 15 years now we’ve lived in the same, sweet house, and for 15 years I’ve been walking our dogs along the same street. Yesterday as I leashed my companions I grumbled aloud how tired I was of walking this street every single day, twice a day. As we slowly made […]
Although some ignore the time-treasured brooch in favor of something trendier, the cameo has always been a fashion statement. (A brooch is defined as “an ornament fastened to clothing with a hinged pin and catch.) By “always,” I mean at least as far back as the Hellenistic period in the […]
They’ve been around for more than 100 million years. They’re most active at 80°F and unable to function below 50°F. They can sense the lactic acid and carbon dioxide from an animal’s breath up to 100 feet away. The females beat their wings 500 times per second producing a piercing […]
Are you going to Scarborough Fair?
Parsley, sage, rosemary & thyme
Remember me to one who lives there
She once was a true love of mine.
~ 19th century English ballad
Simon and Garfunkel did not write “Scarborough Fair,” although the folksy musical duo’s 1966 version of the song is most well known today. […]
Buying a home involves many steps and the type of financing you choose is one of the most important. Just as homes come in a variety of architectural styles and prices, so do the ways you can finance them. While it’s easy to tell if you prefer a […]
The North was losing the war to keep the Union. Robert E. Lee, a southern aristocrat, originally asked to lead the Union, chose the side of his beloved Virginia even though his personal belief was slavery to be a moral and political evil. Lee was a […]
We just got back from a week-long real estate conference in Las Vegas. We hadn’t been there in a while and I was quickly reminded of what man has built in the Nevada desert. It’s a strange combination of fantasy hotels, 5-Star restaurants or buffets, carnival rides, gambling, world-class […]
I’ve always wanted to “play” Walter Winchell in one of my columns. Walter would jump from topic to topic in almost every other sentence. So… with the forbearance of my publisher, here goes.
Greetings Mr. and Ms. Jacksonville wherever you are, in your home or in one of […]
If you have trouble getting your child to help with household chores, try asking them to imagine what it would have been like to be raised on a farm, let’s say during the late 1800s or early 1900s. With no modern plumbing system, how was water transported from the nearest creek? With no mechanized method […]
Adapted by Carolyn Kingsnorth from “A Lasting Impression: The Art and Life of Regina Dorland Robinson” by Dawna Curler, with the permission of the Southern Oregon Historical Society and the author.
For most of her brief life, Regina Dorland Robinson worked steadily toward one goal: to become an accomplished and successful artist. […]
Halfway through last winter, we began to feel antsy. We’d hike the Woodlands trail above the Britt Festival grounds—and pause to look longingly through the fence. We’d drive up Oregon Street—and inexplicably detour past the Britt Pavilion just to… just to…
Like we said: antsy.
Patience, it’s been noted, is not simply […]
In 2012, a college friend of mine from over 50 years ago co-authored a book on how men can achieve true friendship and set the tone in the introduction by penning, “Whereas women very naturally share themselves with friends through acceptance and self-revealing conversations, men shy away from intimacy.” For this […]
Jacksonville Mayor Paul Becker’s transition from New York City to our small village is a story of finding one’s place in the world and is replete with the usual ups and downs, triumphs, defeats, sadness and elation. Paul was born in 1929 on the upper West Side of New York City. […]
The power of intention is a phenomenon that has been scientifically measured in many studies, like the one Dr. Masaru Emoto did with water. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAvzsjcBtx8.)
This particular study took water samples infused with spoken and written intentions like peace, love, truth, etc. The frozen water revealed beautiful, symmetrical […]
We’ve been having an interesting adventure these past few weeks. Having sold our ginormous SUV, we are hunting for a second car. Brand new is not an option, so we’re hunting for a used something. The problem is, all the cars we really like are new, or close to it. In […]
The earliest known door keys were large wooden shafts designed to lift a pin tumbler lock that held a crossbar across a door. The shaft, or key, would push the beam in or out of position from the door frame. This crude Egyptian design was replaced by a Roman invention […]
For licensed massage therapist and clinical aromatherapist, Laura Jarrell, using a multi-disciplinary approach with her clients is standard practice.
In practice since 1989, Laura notes that, “Recently, the use of essential oils has exploded in popularity and for good reason—they are wonderful gifts from nature, capable of treating both physical complaints and mental-emotional distress.”
Essential oils are […]
We pull them, mow them, dig them, stomp them, spray them, shout at them, and lament how they are a nuisance in our lives.
Dandelions.
An underappreciated and underutilized plant in our society, the dandelion in the Asteraceae (aster or sunflower) family, is one of the most nutrient-packed foods on earth and […]
The use of technology in everyday life has sky rocketed. We have our “smart” house, “smart” phone, so how about our “smart” landscape? Even though technology impacts us all differently, we probably all agree that the use of technology to help make our life simpler and save us time is […]
My heart is smit
With love so strong
I must declare,
But have no tongue.
Come to my aid, Thou Tulip Red,
Go and declare
My love instead.
~ Mandy Kirby, A Victorian Flower Dictionary, 2011
Before beginning to write about tulips, I checked my own plants to find small, green fingertips—fledgling flowers—still nestled cozily within the protective […]
Editor’s Note: After learning about a proposed restaurant meals tax, (which the City Council has since axed) Michael served-up his thoughts on the matter…just in case the topic comes up again.
Once upon a time there was a community of neighborly animals living deep in the northwest Woods, far removed […]
We just posted four articles to our blog, (expertprops.com/blog) from major publications—all focused on Southern Oregon. One article has Ashland listed, and another has Jacksonville listed, as the top towns in the US to visit. The other two both talk about our wine industry—one noting the awards we received […]
As a seller, nothing is more frustrating than having your property sit on the market without selling while other homes around yours proudly display a “Sold” sign! Here are several reasons homes don’t sell, and how to go about addressing this issue.
Price—Pricing your home properly from the start […]