Mmmm, cupcake!

Marie and Xander are enjoying their extended winter visit to California. Here's a fun photo courtesy of Eyvonne.

Birch Street Web reaches a milestone (sort of)

The Birch Street Web today passed the 5,000 visitor mark. Hooray!

So what does that mean exactly? Well... not much, but it's a cool number anyway.

Back on Nov. 23, 2008, we started using a service called Site Meter to measure usage of this web site. It counts each visit to the site and records certain information like how many pages the visitors look at and what links they follow. It shows where they logged in from (or, really, where the internet address they're using is registered, which is not always their actual location).

In the 14 months since the count began, members of our extended family have stopped by the Birch Street Web more than 5,000 times. (We have no idea how many visits there were in the 20 months before that.) Some check in several times a day, others only occasionally, but each visit is greatly appreciated.

Here's a Site Meter chart of visits in the past year. It's great to see participation is generally increasing.


Our 5,000th visit was recorded at 7:02 p.m. EST/4:02 PST today (Jan. 23, 2010) from an internet connection registered to Comcast in Belmont, Calif. Maybe you know who you are. If so, please let us know by leaving a comment on this post. You'll win... um... the honor of knowing you pushed us to a nice big round number!

Thanks for visiting - and remember to keep in touch!

Remember Haiti ribbons to be worn at SAG awards

Marie writes: Regal Ribbons are going to be at the Screen Actor's Guild awards on Saturday.

We sent them our "Haiti will not be forsaken" ribbon in royal blue with red imprint.

The awards will be televised on both TNT and TBS.

Just thought the Birch Street gang would like to know ;)

Previous stories:
Our California family members create 3,500 Haiti-awareness ribbons for Golden Globes

Remember Haiti ribbons appear at Golden Globes

Visit to Vegas and Valley

Liz is heading back to school at RPI in Troy after visiting her parents in Las Vegas, where she toured both man-made sights and natural wonders.

Below (snagged from Liz's Facebook page) are a couple of views of Death Valley, a few hours' drive from Vegas in California.

Christopher & Stephanie watch NHL action, get player autograph

Cathy writes:
Last weekend the kids and I went to a Columbus Blue Jackets hockey game since it was Scout Day. The Blue Jackets played the Chicago Blackhawks.


Chicago Blackhawks' Cristobal Huet, right, makes a save in front of Columbus Blue Jackets' R.J. Umberger during the third period of their Jan. 16 game at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus. (AP Photo - more here)

The Blackhawks took the lead in the first period and Columbus came from behind during the second period. Unfortunately for the home team it wasn't enough. The division-leading Blackhawks ended up the winners with a score of 6-5.



After the game we were among a small group of lucky fans that got to meet one of the players. We were escorted to the press room where we waited for about a half hour. Then forward R.J. Umberger (seen in the action photo at top) came to greet us and sign autographs.

That was a nice treat after a tough loss.

Turtle update: 500 helped by LMC

Nanette updates us on the sea turtle "cold stun" emergency:

"It's been turtles, turtles and more turtle here. The statewide count for cold-stunned turtles reached over 4,500! The LMC (Loggerhead Marinelife Center) released about 500 and have about 23 remaining patients. Things are beginning to return to a normalcy after 7 straight days of 14-17 hour days."

See previous story:
Loggerhead Marinelife Center cares for 'cold-stunned' turtles

Florida update: Courtney busy with studies and work

Courtney is a full-time student at Florida Atlantic University, and now also has a full-time job as a legal secretary with the Palm Beach County Police Benevolent Association.

Her mom, Nanette, says it's "a tough schedule but she's thrilled. This is the job she wanted."

This photo of Courtney appears on the PBCPBA's web site's staff page.

Brennan playing key role in Saratoga HS basketball success

Brennan is in the midst of basketball season on Saratoga Springs High School, and scored 14 points as his team defeated Burnt Hills 56-51 last week (Jan. 13). The opposing coach was quoted in The Saratogian saying "the guy who came up big" against them was Brennan.

In another article the newspaper said "it’s been the emerging play" of Brennan and another senior "that has Saratoga riding high" with a 7-2 record in their Suburban Council league.

Here is a photo from the Saratogian of Brennan making a shot in the Jan. 13 game. (The newspaper sells its sports photos, hence the big watermark.)

The photo at the top of this post is from a Dec. 22 game.

Click the images to see them in larger size at the Saratogian website.

Can't stop the dance: Shanna resumes lessons

Shanna writes:
I have recently starting taking dance classes again at Broadway Dance Center in Times Square, NYC.

My New Year's resolution is to get back into dance on a regular basis, and I am well on my way. I have already taken one class this month and am hoping to take another in the next week or two.

So far, I just plan on taking hip-hop classes, but a return to my ballet and jazz routes may be in the future. Class has been a lot of fun and I am loving every second of it.

Remember Haiti ribbons appear at Golden Globes (Updated 1/18)

The ribbons produced by our California family members are showing up on celebrities at tonight's Golden Globes award show.

Here's Paul McCartney, announcing the award for animated features, wearing the ribbon on his left lapel. (We don't know what those other button things are.)

Below, Sandra Bullock arrives with her husband, Jesse James, sporting the ribbon.

The photo at left was on USA Today's "Lifeline Live" entertainment website, along with this blurb:

Note the little yellow and red ribbon on House star Lisa Edelstein's handbag.

"We're all wearing these Remember Haiti ribbons," Edelstein told E!. "It's to remind ourselves what's going on."

She mentioned George Clooney's Friday telethon and some other Haiti fundraising activities. "Everyone is doing their best," she said.

---

Update 1/18:
The ribbons were mentioned in many news accounts about the Golden Globes. For example, second paragraph of a Reuters story on fashions at the event: "Many stars, like Nicole Kidman, pinned ribbons of yellow, blue and red to their dresses and tuxedos in a show of support for victims of the massive earthquake that rocked the Caribbean nation last week."

From an AP story: "Stars such as Penelope Cruz, Ricky Gervais, Jon Hamm, Adrian Grenier and Lisa Edelstein were eager to show off their red-and-yellow ribbons pinned to their purses and lapels that were to remind each other as well as TV viewers of the plight being suffered by Haiti's earthquake victims."

Before presenting the first award of the night, Nicole Kidman said: "I just want to say on a serious note a lot of people are wearing ribbons tonight in support of the people of Haiti, and you can go to NBC.com to make your personal contribution."

A site called "Popeater.com" put together a collage of pictures of the ribbons on various celebrities.

And Tish spotted this write-up and photo display on Stylelist.com.

Our California family members create 3,500 Haiti-awareness ribbons for Golden Globes

The producers of tonight's Golden Globes telecast wanted thousands of "awareness ribbons" for participants to wear as a reminder of the suffering in Haiti. They called on Regal Ribbons -- and all of our West Coast family joined in the amazing team effort that produced 3,500 special ribbons in a day and a half.

Marie -- who just happened to be in Morgan Hill for a visit -- tells the amazing story:

"We got an email from Dick Clark Productions at 5:35 p.m. on Thursday asking us if we could get them 2,000 Haiti Disaster awareness ribbons in red, blue and yellow for the Golden Globes on Sunday. We sent them a prototype picture (the photo above) and told them to get back to us by 10 p.m. if they'd like us to make them. At 9:56 p.m. they got back to us saying they wanted them, and could we make that 2,500?

"We knew we'd need all hands on deck and then some, so I called Genevieve and asked her if she would like to come back down Friday to help out. It had to have been a bizarre phone call - I was light on details and in a big hurry - but she agreed anyway.

"By 11 p.m. Dick Clark Productions had asked for yet another thousand ribbons and Mom, Eyvonne, and I were cutting and hand-sewing ribbon to get a jump on the production. Mom and I stayed up very late and got up very early to keep things moving until reinforcements arrived.


"And boy did they ever. In the morning Eyvonne and her mom, Jayne, brought equipment, including two sewing machines, cutting mats, rotary cutters, pins, and thread. They devised a system for sewing the three layers of ribbon together quickly and beautifully. (Eyvonne had to go to work but came back at 5 and worked the rest of the night.)

"Genevieve arrived at 9 a.m. and took over the job of putting pins in the sewn ribbons and bagging them by the 100s. She kept the official count and checked the stitching and placement on the ribbons before she bagged them up.

"Dan cut hundreds of ribbon segments and ran errands all day long after working a full morning at Peet's Coffee. Ozzie woke up ungodly early (for him) and cut ribbon for hour upon hour.

"We explained to Xander that we were working to make ribbons to help the "kids who don't have toys", the catchall I use to help explain things when we're donating his old toys or clothes. Xander really does feel for those kids, and he was so cooperative about staying away from all the sharp stuff and generally being agreeable while we were all busy. He also got a few play-date breaks over at Eyvonne's house with Eyvonne's parents, who are his buddies.

"At around 6-ish we all took a break for dinner, then we got back to work. John came down to help out and we blasted through the last few hundred ribbons incredibly fast. By midnight on Friday we were finished with all 2,500 of the first batch of ribbon.
(Here Genevieve and Jon model the finished product.)

"In the morning mom printed the "extra" thousand ribbons and Dan, Eyvonne, Mom, Ozzie, Os and I all cut and pinned those in a few hours because they were much simpler (just one ribbon looped and pinned). A courier came to pick them up at 3 p.m. and they were off to the Golden Globes and an undisclosed after-party.

"It's possible that the ribbons we assembled together will be seen all over the place on Sunday, and we're all hoping that they help, somehow. It felt good to do something, however small.

"It was a lot of work, but we all had so much fun together. This morning I had a few sore spots on my hands and feet from all the work; I had a bruise on my right thumb where the loop of a pair of scissors had sat for hours, and my thumbs and fingers were dimpled from pushing in straight pins. I also noticed a soreness in my chest.

"It wasn't long before I realized it was because I had spent so much of Friday laughing."

See all the photos in this slideshow:

(If you can't see the slideshow on this page, click here.)

Loggerhead Marinelife Center cares for 'cold-stunned' turtles

Nanette and her staff at the Loggerhead Marinelife Center in Juno Beach, Fla., have been extremely busy in recent days caring for sea turtles stricken by recent cold weather.

“Cold-stunned” sea turtles awaiting blood work and X-rays in the veterinary hospital at Loggerhead Marinelife Center. Photo from TCPalm.com.

TCPalm.com, a Florida news website, reported Monday there had been 400 sea turtle strandings statewide and that the Loggerhead Marinelife Center was caring for more than a dozen. By the next day, WPTV-TV reported 33 turtles suffering "cold stun" had been taken in by the center.

"The number of stranded turtles we are seeing as a result of the cold weather is unprecedented," Nanette, the center's executive director, told TCPalm.com. "We are making every effort to do our part in this state-wide emergency, and we are very appreciative for the continued volunteer and financial support during this challenging situation".

"What happens is they become paralyzed and immobilized and float to the surface," Nanette told WPTV. "They're susceptible to disease and parasites. We have a few turtles that have pneumonia now."

On Friday, WFOR-TV reported that while the weather was warming up, sickened turtles were still being taken in from off the coast and from lagoons and rivers. The station quoted Nanette saying, "We've already exhausted our year's hospital budget in just the first two weeks of January."

This AP-TV video shows the work being done at the Loggerhead center, and an interview with its hospital coordinator.



Local CBS-12 News also reported on the Loggerhead Marinelife Center's work with the stricken turtles. (An ad precedes the video.)

Post-holiday visit to California

Xander and his mom are visiting in California this week. Here he is with his "tia," Eyvonne.

The trip gives Marie and Xander a chance for a bit of celebration with family and friends they missed over the holidays.

Brian meanwhile is home studying hard in the NJ Transit locomotive engineer training program.

Update 1/12: Here's a fun photo of Xander and his uncle Dan out shopping.

Wired to keep the beat

Lorraine has joined the pacemaker club, of which her husband Dan has been a member for several years.

After a fainting spell landed her at St. John's Riverside Hospital, an EKG detected an arrhythmia that may have been the cause. A pacemaker was the recommended solution.

Lorraine received the new accessory on Friday and was happily back home Friday night.

Warm thoughts from sunny Charleston

Tish writes:
We have just returned from a week in Charleston. I'm sending along a sunny palmetto palm tree photo to help us all escape this cold, snowy winter.

Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Thanks, Tish - A nice contrast to the chilly pictures below!

Mary and the polar bears take a chilly dip

On New Year's Day, Mary was one of more than 900 daring souls who plunged into Lake George during the annual Polar Bear Swim at Shepard Park. Mary, who is a coach for the YMCA of Saratoga's Sting Rays swim team, is shown above standing next to another member of the Y swim coaching staff. The photo appeared in The Saratogian, along with this story about the event. Below is a view of the polar bear herd charging into the water.

Photos from The Saratogian

Snowy New Year's at Deep Creek Lake

Cathy, Christopher and Stephanie spent New Year's at Deep Creek Lake in western Maryland. And - big surprise - it snowed! Thanks to Cathy for sending along these chilling photos.

Happy new year - and decade

Webmaster Dan says: I hope everyone on our family web has had a good holiday season, and wish you all a great 2010.

The past year saw big changes like Genevieve and John's wedding; Marie, Brian and Xander's move to New Jersey; and Doug and Lisa's move to Nevada. Becky graduated from high school and started at RIT; in California, Dan was awarded his associates' degree with top honors and continued his studies at San Jose State; Shanna began studying for her masters. Ted made a cross-country trek and Christine performed with her high school marching band at Disney World. Those are just a few of the highlights captured here on Birch Street Web.

There was sadness too, as we lost a dear family member, Anamarie, a little more than a year after the passing of her brother, Austin. May they both rest in peace.

Whatever's ahead in 2010, I hope you'll continue using the Birch Street Web as a way to keep in touch with other members of our extended family. Visit often - send in your news, photos, links and anything else you'd like to share - add your comments to our posts - and enjoy!