Seth's Info

It’s a beautiful holiday weekend here in State College, and it certainly feels like summer is just around the corner. We are primarily just “taking it easy”, and I’m feeling quite healthy. Sorrel is continuing to do well and fit right in, although he did manage to knock a glass tray of brownies off the kitchen counter and consume all the brownies (it turns out this is not the first time he managed this trick). High gas prices don’t seem to be deterring holiday travel, as AAA reports that an estimated 31.4 million Americans will be traveling this weekend, a slight increase from last year.

Just east of State College is the small town of Boalsburg, home to the Pennsylvania Military Museum, and a town that proudly proclaims itself as the “Birthplace of Memorial Day”. Boalsburg puts on quite a show during this holiday weekend as it pays tribute to America’s fallen war dead. Interestingly, there are about 2 dozen towns across the eastern US that lay claim to originating Memorial Day, which begs the question of how this now popular holiday came to be what it is. As it turns out, Memorial Day’s roots come from the end of the Civil War (in which over 550,000 Union and Confederate soldiers died in combat or from disease), when grieving families began to honor fallen family members at their grave sites. Naturally, these memorial events began to occur in many different towns and cities, both North and South. Memorial Day was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, and was first observed on 30 May 1868 at Arlington National Cemetery. After WW I, the holiday took on the larger meaning of honoring all fallen American soldiers. In 1966 President Johnson declared Waterloo, NY as the official birthplace of Memorial Day. For a detailed summary of the history of Memorial Day, see here. Regardless of its origins, Memorial Day remains a special time to remember the over 1.7 million Americans who have died from combat and disease during our nation’s existence. I have pleasant memories of the Memorial Day parade and ceremonies in my hometown of Camp Hill, and of playing Taps on my trumpet during the memorial services at the cemetery. We are continuing to see young men and women killed in action, so please take a moment this weekend to remember their collective sacrifice.

Jenny and I are heading down to Philly tomorrow and I’ll be getting my 2nd infusion on Tuesday. I’m hopeful that my side effects will be minimized this time around, I’ll be sure to keep everyone posted on my progress. With any luck I’ll be home by Friday.

Take care, and have a great weekend.

Seth