Empathy List Archives

F

fred@tug44.org

Thu, May 6, 2021 3:20 PM

To all!

This morning I was greeted with around 30+ emails, some directly, and some
via this list. So many familiar names and so many great folks.

Yes, I am still in Fort Edward on the Champlain Canal, just above Lock 7.
And I still have Tug 44. :)

And I also still have Mary Ellen too. She is what got me thru my cancer
troubles.

We are engaged now, she's wearing The Rock on her finger. No date set but
we are both smiling. She lives just 2 blocks away so we are together every
day.

She has an amazing house, around 250 years old, built before electricity,
indoor kitchens and indoor bathrooms, even plumbing had not yet been
invented. So yeah, it's a bit of a maintenance nightmare but still an
absolutely lovely house. There is a a historic marker in the front yard,
"The Jane McCrea House".

In 1777 the british were invading from Canada and were encamped nearby.
Jane was a Jersey girl visiting here, her brother was the leader of the
local militia. When the British Army arrived all the settlers clustered in
the Village for safety. But jane and the old lady that owned the house
went up the hill to try to meet up with Jane's fiance, a British officer.
They encountered Indians and ran home and hid in the basement. The Indians
followed and captured them and took them up the hill. Jane was killed and
scalped and the scalp turned in to the Brits for the bounty. The old lady
was ransomned back.

The death of Jane became a political football, all the american generals
and politicians wrote to the newspapers about the Brits claiming to be here
for our protection, while still offering a bounty on scalps. So many
locals got angry they all joined the militia, and defeated the British at
Saratoga.

This story was later taken by James Fenimore Cooper and used to write his
book The Last Of The Mohicans, which later became a movie. Yes, it began
right here, in Mary Ellen's basement. Cool huh? :)

When I moved to Fort Edward 13 years ago, Mary Ellen and her then husband
Bob Russo were the first folks I met. They invited me to join them for
lunch, and that became a regular Friday event. Bob and Mel and I became
fast friends. Bob was elderly and his health was declining. 4 years later
he passed away but Mary Ellen and I continued our Friday lunches. And a
year or so after that, we became an item. And around 3 years ago we became
engaged.

Mary Ellen is an excellent fisherman, see her photo here:

    http://tug44.org/mary%20ellen%20and%20fish.jpg

Because of my awful physical weakness caused by my cancer, I was not able
to take the boat out the past few years, so we stayed on land and worked on
wildlife photography. I got rather good at it, we have over 13,000
followers on our wildlife page Fort Edward Wildlife Magazine, where we
publish every weekday:

https://www.facebook.com/Fort-Edward-Wildlife-Magazine-1618836295043310

Come join us there, it's a good way to stay in touch. Mel is quite the
wildlife scientist as well as being my Super-Spotter. With many bird
species such as Herons, y can't tell if they are male or female. But Mel
has explained that if they have dirty feet, they are obviously male. After
all, no self-respecting female would pose for photos with dirty feet. And
there ya have it. :)

She is getting anxious to to be out on the Canal, so we will definitely be
out there this summer once again. :)

Maybe they List could be kept for a little longer!

Hope to see you all in person soon. :)

Best wishes,

Fred and Mary Ellen.

Tug 44

To all! This morning I was greeted with around 30+ emails, some directly, and some via this list. So many familiar names and so many great folks. Yes, I am still in Fort Edward on the Champlain Canal, just above Lock 7. And I still have Tug 44. :) And I also still have Mary Ellen too. She is what got me thru my cancer troubles. We are engaged now, she's wearing The Rock on her finger. No date set but we are both smiling. She lives just 2 blocks away so we are together every day. She has an amazing house, around 250 years old, built before electricity, indoor kitchens and indoor bathrooms, even plumbing had not yet been invented. So yeah, it's a bit of a maintenance nightmare but still an absolutely lovely house. There is a a historic marker in the front yard, "The Jane McCrea House". In 1777 the british were invading from Canada and were encamped nearby. Jane was a Jersey girl visiting here, her brother was the leader of the local militia. When the British Army arrived all the settlers clustered in the Village for safety. But jane and the old lady that owned the house went up the hill to try to meet up with Jane's fiance, a British officer. They encountered Indians and ran home and hid in the basement. The Indians followed and captured them and took them up the hill. Jane was killed and scalped and the scalp turned in to the Brits for the bounty. The old lady was ransomned back. The death of Jane became a political football, all the american generals and politicians wrote to the newspapers about the Brits claiming to be here for our protection, while still offering a bounty on scalps. So many locals got angry they all joined the militia, and defeated the British at Saratoga. This story was later taken by James Fenimore Cooper and used to write his book The Last Of The Mohicans, which later became a movie. Yes, it began right here, in Mary Ellen's basement. Cool huh? :) When I moved to Fort Edward 13 years ago, Mary Ellen and her then husband Bob Russo were the first folks I met. They invited me to join them for lunch, and that became a regular Friday event. Bob and Mel and I became fast friends. Bob was elderly and his health was declining. 4 years later he passed away but Mary Ellen and I continued our Friday lunches. And a year or so after that, we became an item. And around 3 years ago we became engaged. Mary Ellen is an excellent fisherman, see her photo here: http://tug44.org/mary%20ellen%20and%20fish.jpg Because of my awful physical weakness caused by my cancer, I was not able to take the boat out the past few years, so we stayed on land and worked on wildlife photography. I got rather good at it, we have over 13,000 followers on our wildlife page Fort Edward Wildlife Magazine, where we publish every weekday: https://www.facebook.com/Fort-Edward-Wildlife-Magazine-1618836295043310 Come join us there, it's a good way to stay in touch. Mel is quite the wildlife scientist as well as being my Super-Spotter. With many bird species such as Herons, y can't tell if they are male or female. But Mel has explained that if they have dirty feet, they are obviously male. After all, no self-respecting female would pose for photos with dirty feet. And there ya have it. :) She is getting anxious to to be out on the Canal, so we will definitely be out there this summer once again. :) Maybe they List could be kept for a little longer! Hope to see you all in person soon. :) Best wishes, Fred and Mary Ellen. Tug 44

GK

Graeme Kerr

Thu, May 6, 2021 10:49 PM

Hi Fred,

Greetings from New Zealand.

Well done for beating your cancer! And thanks for sharing that wonderful story!

Happy boating!

Regards,

Graeme Kerr

Sent from my iPad

On 7/05/2021, at 3:20 AM, fred@tug44.org wrote: