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Hi Everyone! Hope all is well with you and yours!We just got back from a seven-day cruise to Cozumel,
Mexico; Belize City, Belize; Isla de Roátan, Honduras; and Costa Maya, Mexico. Cruises are a great value these days, pretty inexpensive if you avoid all the extras: booze, soda pop, the casino, excursions into town (get your own taxi cab and go on your own adventures for half the cost). We drove to Cape Canaveral with two other couples and departed from there. We stayed in Savannah on the way home to avoid all the tolls. (I am really excited; I talked to a Realtor in Savannah, and she told me that the city is working on building a cruise port.)
The cruise ship was the one-year-old, 130,000-ton Carnival Dream, which is the newest and biggest addition to their fleet. It had 4600 passengers on board and 1500 crew. (They work 10-hour days, 7 days a week for 6 months, then take two months off, and then start all over again.) They have doctors, nurses, and a full-time tailor who goes around letting out shower curtains for people who make too many trips to the buffet table.)
We went to shows at night, but the most exciting thing happened in the dining room one night. It was an Oral Roberts wheel chair healing experience. Two couples in a wedding party got into a yelling match with the people at the adjacent table because they were being so loud and obnoxious. The two men at the head of the tables were yelling at each other, and the maitre d’ had to go over and intervene before they clocked each other. The wife of one of the men, who was in a wheel chair for the whole trip, got so angry she got up out of her chair and walked out of the dining room. The rest of the cruise she was in the chair
again. I never put a lot of stock in Oral’s healing power after he died.
I went up and commented to the maitre d’ that that was the most exciting show I’d ever seen on a cruise ship and he said, “Yeah, we don’t need shows like that.” I then asked him how long he had been cruising and he said 7 years. I asked him if he had ever witnessed a drag out, knock-down, plate-clearing fight in the dining room before and he said, “No, but one time a man jumped overboard, and the ship did an immediate 180-degree turn and tipped over so far that the third-story windows were under water. All the tables were cleared and all the passengers were swept over to the starboard side of the ship. The ship had to make another quick turn to prevent the overboard passenger from getting pulled into the propellers. I decided right then and there that I wasn’t ever going to chase after any golf balls that went outside the putt-putt golf course.
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THE OFFICIAL ARBOR-NOMICS NASHVILLE NEWSLETTER
APPLICATION #6, 2010 • Vol. 2, NO. 14
by Dick Bare
Bare in MindBare in MindBare in Mind
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•Watercoolseasongrassesuntilthenewseedisfirmlyestablished.Thisusuallytakes4-5mowings.Oneinchaweekwilldo.Neverlettheseeddryoutduringthefirsttwoweeks,itwillkillit.Tillupthebarespotsbeforeseedingandthencoverwithpeatmossorfescuestrawtohelpholdinwaterduringhotdrydays.Ifyouusewheatstrawyouwillhavewheatgrowinginthespring,sobettertousepeatmoss.
•Leaveclippingsonthelawn,astheyaddnutrientswhilebreakingdown.
•Donotaddsupplementalfertilizertoourapplicationsonyourwarmseasongrass.Letitgodormantgraduallysoitdoesn’tgetagrowthspurtthatmaygetburnedbyanearlyfreeze.
•Takecareofyourlawnequipment.Besuretodraingasoutoflawnmowersafterthelastmowing.Itneverhurtstobringittothe“LawnMowerDoctor”tohavehimpreparethemachineforspring.Itmight
becheapertobringitduringthewinterwhenit’sslowerversusinthespring.
•FallistheperfecttimetofillinbarepatchesinFescuelawns.Seepointoneonhowtoseedbarespots.
• Ifyoucanswingit,fallisagoodtimetocalloneofusinmanagementabouttreatingyourlawnpreemptivelyforZoysiaPatch,grubsinBermuda,andSpringDeadSpotinBermuda.Wewilldoafreeconsultationandestimatefortheseissues.
Rescue Your Fescue, Bermuda and ZoysiaThereareseveralotherthingsyoucandotokeepyourlawnhealthyduringthefallandwinter,nomatterwhatkindofgrassyouhave:
Leavesthatcoveryourlawncannotonlydamageit,theycanrenderliquidtreatmentsineffective.Rakingistimeconsuming,butit’simportanttoyourlawn’shealth.Ofcourse,youcanalwaysuseablower.
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Turkey Day TriviaManyofyouwillbeamongthemorethan40millionviewerswhowatchtheMacy’sThanksgivingDayParadeontelevisioneachyear.Herearesomelittleknownfactsabouttheparade.
Theveryfirstparade,in1924,didn’thaveballoons.Instead,realliveanimalswereborrowedfromtheCentralParkZoo.Largeballoonsweren’tusedintheparadeuntil1927,andFelixtheCatwasthefirsteverballoon.Theparadeballoonswereinflatedwithairthefirstyear,andheliumhasbeenusedeveryyearsince.Theparadeballoonsrequiremassiveamountsofhelium.Forexample,theJimmyNeutronballoonneeds12,300cubicfeetofheliumtobeproperlyinflated.Bycomparison,a10feetdiameterhot-airballoonneeds475cubicfeetofhelium.
Thefirstyearheliumballoonswereused,theywerereleasedattheendoftheparadeforabigfinish.Theballoonsaccidentallyburst.Forthenextyear,theballoonswereredesignedsothattheywouldloseheliumslowlyandfloatforseveraldays.Addresslabelswereattachedtotheballoons,andtheluckypeoplewhofoundandreturnedtheballoonsreceivedMacy’sgiftcertificatesfor$100oranotherprize.
The1941Macy’sparadeoccurredjustweeksbeforethestartofWorldWarII.ItfeaturedaprominentUncleSamheliumparadeballoon.Whenrubberbecameinshortsupplybecauseofthewar,thefamousUncleSamballoonwasdonatedbyMacy’stosupportthewar.
Hopefully,thesefunfactswillkeepyoufromrememberingthattheaveragenumberofcaloriesapersonconsumesthroughoutthedayonThanksgivingis4500.HappyThanksgiving
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Attention: For Aerated & Overseeded LawnsIfyouhadyourlawnaeratedandoverseeded,itiscrucialthatyouwatereverydayforthefirstthreeweeks.Thiswillhelpthegerminationandestablishmentofthegrassplants.Youwanttokeeptheseededareasmoist.Ifyouwatertoomuch,youmaywashawaytheseed.Afterthefirstthreeweeks,youshouldwateratleast3x/weekuntilthegrassisestablished.
Application #6What we did todayTo your lawn:1) Bermuda, Zoysia and Centipede lawns received a potassium fertilizer to enhance
the root structure so your grass grows stronger and thicker.
2) Fescue lawns received a granular starter fertilizer. This is high in phosphorus, which enhances the germination of seeds that should be applied to Fescue in the fall. Please call us for a quote on aeration and overseeding.
To your trees and shrubs:(if you are a tree and shrub customer)
1) We applied a slow-release fertilizer designed to fertilize your ornamental trees and shrubs over the growing season. This fertilizer works according to soil temperature. It is sprayed on top of the ground. We put a slightly heavier dose on so that leaves, mulch, or burlap will not impede its entry into the root system. However, fertilizer cannot penetrate plastic, so please remove any plastic you may have put down on top of the soil around your trees or shrubs. Use landscape fabric instead.
What you need to do until our next visit1) Take advantage of any allowed watering times put forth by your county.
Optimally, during fall, all lawns should receive about 1” of water each week from rain or irrigation. Tree and shrubs should receive a thorough watering from rain or irrigation once each month so that the water is penetrating the roots, which means the ground should be wet 2”-3” down.
2) When mowing, do not remove more than 1/3 of the grass blades at each cutting. For optimal appearance, Fescue lawns should be mowed every 5-6 days and Bermuda every 4-6 days.
3) Routine trimming will help your shrubs grow better.
ARBOR-NOMICS NASHVILLE, INC.
Helpful Phone Numberswww.arbornomicsnashville.com
Main#: 329-4151 Owner/PresidentDick Bare ............................extension [email protected]: ......................................... 770-815-3879
Vice PresidentDoug Cash .........................extension 1113 [email protected]
Area ManagerJoel Holcomb ....................extension [email protected]: .......................................... 615-336-2114
Customer ServiceWinnie Harmel ..................extension [email protected]
Megan Perry .....................extension [email protected]
Jessica Raczka .................extension [email protected]
Deborah Norton ..............extension [email protected]
Betty Spurlock ....... extension [email protected]
Tiffany Powell ........ extension [email protected]
Pre-PayDon’t forget to take advantage of our pre-pay special. You will be receiving
your pre-pay letter in the mail in November. You can save 5% if you
pre-pay our 2011 service by 12/31/10.
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Anyway, we spent a day at our first stop, Cozumel. We bought the excursion for that because you can’t rent the equipment for snorkeling and scuba diving that easily. We took a catamaran boat to a beautiful spot about 5 miles from the ship. When we dove in we saw a huge school of fish with a giant grouper or something underneath it. It was quite impressive. We spent the rest of the day at the beach, riding down slides and playing on other toys out in the water.
The next day we docked in Belize City, which has a population of about 90,000. We were disappointed, as we had heard there were some beautiful garden spots, but it was more like being in a third world country.
We signed up for a cave tubing expedition and it was great. We rode a bus out to the camp where we donned life jackets and rubber sandals, and we hiked out to the river. On the hike, we saw a large black tarantula with a big orange butt. About a third of the group ran away from it, but the rest stayed back, fixated on watching this beautiful creature walk along the path, then effortlessly up a tree. Our tour guide gently put out his hands to get the spider to crawl into them. I was astounded. Tarantulas can throw specialized hairs (darts) from their abdomen when alarmed, but this one just walked all over our guide like he was a tree. He was larger than our guide’s hand but not the 12 inches
you see in South America. It was incredible—the highlight of my trip.
Next day we landed in Isla de Roátan. We hired a cab for the day and first drove around checking out the highlights of the city. The driver then took us to a private petting zoo, where we could go into large cages and play with monkeys and birds. The best monkeys were
small, maybe a little bigger than a kitten. They were very tame and seemed excited to see us. One ran onto my outstretched arm
and plopped down
with all four limbs hanging over, sort of like cats do. The other monkeys ran all over our friends. They really liked jumping onto people’s heads. That took some getting used to, especially for our wives. The larger monkeys were not as friendly, thank goodness, but were very interesting to see.
The birds ranged from large, talking parrots to the national bird, the scarlet macaw. This is a huge magnificent animal that you ought to look up on the Internet. I wanted to get one of them to sit on my arm, but our guide warned me that it might tear up my skin, as they are so large. He didn’t offer a leather band so I figured they didn’t really want people handling them. He said they could easily sever a finger or nose, but these birds were raised in captivity and were tame. I decided to pass. I need a nose job but not while on vacation.
Next we motored on to a botanical garden called Carambola that was created and run by a very interesting American, Bill Brady. He was stationed in Isla de Roátan in the Peace Corp and loved it. He came back, married a native, and created the 40-acre garden for his students. It is really something to see; things like Bird of Paradise, Chocolate trees, Heliconia, Orchids, Croton, Ginger (which grows in circles), Ti plants, Exora and Parrot flowers growing right out in the open. You only see them in florist shops here. There were iguanas and hermit crabs running around too.
The port where we docked in Honduras was really impressive; they must have spent a fortune on it. It was called Mahogany Bay. You could take a beautiful ride on a chair lift out to a large beach area; you could ride a zip line, or shop in one of the many Hispanic themed stores there.
Our final stop was Costa Maya. It was probably really pretty at some point, but it had been devastated by Hurricane Dean three years ago. There was a huge area behind the beach that was once a mango
grove, but now all the trees are dead from the salt water; there was nothing but huge termite nests scattered around in the tree carcasses.
The beach had little shops that sold pottery and trinkets. There were a smattering of restaurants, but all in all it was depressing. We talked to one man who once had a thriving restaurant but it got wiped out. He told us they don’t have insurance like in the United States, and he was starting over from scratch. He had a
few plastic tables and chairs out on the beach, and he ran back and forth to his house with the meals.
After a trip to Central America you realize we live like kings here. If we live like kings, maybe we should act like good kings: Good kings share their wealth with those less fortunate. It reminds me of what William Blake said, “You never know what is enough until you know what is more than enough.”
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