life
The intelligence of Calvin was something phenomenal, in his rank of
life. He established a method of communicating his wants, and even
some of his sentiments; and he could help himself in many things.
There was a furnace register in a retired room, where he used to go
when he wished to be alone, that he always opened when he desired
more heat; but he never shut it, any more than he shut the door after
himself. He could do almost everything but speak; and you would
declare sometimes that you could see a pathetic longing to do that in
his intelligent face. I have no desire to overdraw his qualities,
but if there was one thing in him more noticeable than another, it
was his fondness for nature. He could content himself for hours at a
low window, looking into the ravine and at the great trees, noting
the smallest stir there; he delighted, above all things, to accompany
me walking about the garden, hearing the birds, getting the smell of
the fresh earth, and rejoicing in the sunshine. He followed me and
gamboled like a dog, rolling over on the turf and exhibiting his
delight in a hundred ways. If I worked, he sat and watched me, or
looked off over the bank, and kept his ear open to the twitter in the
cherry-trees. When it stormed, he was sure to sit at the window,
keenly watching the rain or the snow, glancing up and down at its
falling; and a winter tempest always delighted him. I think he was
genuinely fond of birds, but, so far as I know, he usually confined
himself to one a day; he never killed, as some sportsmen do, for the
sake of killing, but only as civilized people do,–from necessity.
He was intimate with the flying-squirrels who dwell in the
chestnut-trees,–too intimate, for almost every day in the summer he
would bring in one, until he nearly discouraged them. He was, indeed,
a superb hunter, and would have been a devastating one, if his bump of
destructiveness had not been offset by a bump of moderation. There was
very little of the brutality of the lower animals about him; I don”t
think he enjoyed rats for themselves, but he knew his business, and for
the first few months of his residence with us he waged an awful
campaign against the horde, and after that his simple presence was
sufficient to deter them from coming on the premises. Mice amused him,
but he usually considered them too small game to be taken seriously; I
have seen him play for an hour with a mouse, and then let him go with a
royal condescension. In this whole, matter of ‘getting a living,’
Calvin was a great contrast to the rapacity of the age in which he
lived.
?Hail to Chief? Ambience for President in Waiting (New York Times)
With the reporter pools, motorcades and security briefings, Barack Obama?s visit to Hawaii was full of reminders of the 24/7 job he is about to assume.
Resale stores hopping as retailers limp along (Athens Banner-Herald)
Traditional retailers slashed prices leading up to Christmas gift-giving and still reported poor sales across nearly every type of merchandise. But the people who resell Athenians’ cast-off books, clothes and furniture reported better-than-ever business - even this week, when people traditionally give away their old belongings, but don’t shop for more.
Trash bags will replace stickers on Jan. 19 (The Cape Ann Beacon)
Effective Jan. 19, the city is ditching its sticker system. Instead, residents must purchase purple garbage bags with city logos to dispose of their waste. The price of bags will be the same as stickers, $2 apiece.