YC Magazine - July 2020

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yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Rainbows and new beginnings A View From The Keyboard

By Pam Henson

Volume 17, Issue 7 YC Magazine is an entertainingly informative monthly magazine distributed throughout York County, South Carolina. © 2020 Pluto Publishing LLC Publisher ..... Pam Henson Design................ SC Biz News Editor ..... Jim Tatum Graphic Designer ..... Wendy Martin For Advertising call Andrea Mounts at 704-817-1346 or email amounts@mecktimes.com All rights reserved. YC Magazine may not be reproduced in part or in whole in any form, format, or media without the permission of YC Magazine. The opinions expressed in YC Magazine are not necessarily the opinions of the publisher or staff of YC Magazine or Pluto Publishing LLC.

Letters to the Editor are welcome. Must include name, phone number, and email address. Email to YCeditorial@scbiznews.com. We are unable to respond to letters without an email address.

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After that February 2004 issue was distributed, I received a call. A lady asked if she could get a copy of the cover photo.

Printing the rainbow shot on photo-quality paper, I met her for coffee at a local breakfast spot, excited to meet one of our readers. We chatted, and she shared with me that her son had passed away. She told me that at his funeral, a rainbow had appeared and that it looked just like the one in our photo. I was especially touched by our extraordinary connection. All because of this magazine.

As I remembered the story, re-finding this issue in the archives, I was curious about rainbows and symbolism throughout history and cultures. I love researching topics online. Some see a rainbow as a new beginning, a spiritual bridge, or a herald to take a leap of faith to do something that has given them hesitation. It can be seen as an angelic sign that we are not alone, or it rep-

C o l u m n i s t s

T

he second issue of YC Magazine, published way back in February 2004, featured a photo of a colorful rainbow over some tall trees in the foreground. Bill and I always took our own cover photos, typically together, and always somewhere in York County. This is York County’s magazine, and we wanted to display nature shots and unique York County vantage points, helping our readers to pause, but also to highlight the beautiful sights and hidden gems all around us.

Sometimes our cover shots were of easily seen yet taken-for-granted objects, such as a nature-reclaimed vintage peach stand or interesting-looking farm equipment near a barn. When pausing to look at various vantage points of our photo subject, we looked for the perfect angle, distance, and lighting. Nature paints a beautiful, living, 3-dimensional canvas that we walk amongst at every moment.

resents hope that something is possible, manifesting the encouragement we may be searching for. Rainbows can represent love and spiritual awakening. Wow! That’s pretty spectacular for this arched arrangement of visible spectrum colors.

We typically see seven colors in a rainbow (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet), though they actually contain upward of one million colors, just not visible to the human eye. Rainbows are created like a prism effect with light (the sun) reflecting and refracting through water droplets in the atmosphere. When it’s one of those odd days where it’s raining but the sun is out, go outside, stand with your back to the sun, and look up. If conditions and your angle above the horizon are just right, you might spot one. It’s meteorological chemistry and physics in action!

Throughout history, as humans have

endeavored to observe natural phenomena to learn and help predict patterns, mythical explanations and tall tales have been plentiful. Some include the Norse’s mythology Bifrost of a rainbow bridge reaching between Earth and the realm of gods, a Navajo tradition as the path of holy spirits, Greek mythology’s Iris as a messenger between gods to humanity, and even an Irish Leprechaun’s pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

Make your own rainbow. Spray a fine mist into the air with your garden hose with the sun at your back. Or, remember the feeling you had in seeing a rainbow and let its inspiration and hope shine through every connection you have with others. Ah, the possibilities of what might just be reflected back! yc

YC Magazine Columnists: Mike Baker ....................................... Photography Beth Covington ................................ Connections Beth Crosby...................................... Wordsmithing Dr. Steve Fields ................................ Nature Angela P. Forbes .............................. Nutrition & Food Safety Todd Harrell .................................... Disc Golf Walter Heinsohn...............................Law Carole Holmberg ............................. Astronomy Grady Johnson................................. Cocktails Tim Jones ........................................ Music Zach Lemhouse ................................ History Dr. Robert Lesslie ............................ Health Stuart Lord....................................... Track Talk Deb Pittman......................................Aging Dr. Bert Platt .................................... Animal Health Pluto ................................................. Furry Philosopher Lauren Paige Powell.........................Dog’s Life

A cove at Lake Wylie on a quiet summer day(Photo/Jan Todd)

Mollie Rose ...................................... Service Nancy Sambets ................................ Photo Gallery Cameron Shook ............................... The Great Outdoors Paul Thompson ................................ Horticulture Stacy Williams ................................. Library Dr. Kevin Wickes ............................. Psychology Chris Fox.......................................... Arts

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yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

CONTENTS column

list

Aging...............................37

Nutrition ........................ 33

Arts..................................14

Photo Gallery.............26-29

Animal Health ............... 40 Astronomy ..................... 22 Cocktails......................... 32 Connections ................... 25 Disc Golf......................... 30 Dog’s Life........................38

Photography ...................18 Pluto-ism ..........................5 Psychology ......................16 Service ............................24 Track Talk ...................... 23

Great Outdoors...............34

Wordsmithing .................31

Health .............................10

Knowledge is POWER. Become powerful TODAY! Read YC Magazine and Power Up!

History ............................. 6 Horticulture ....................12 Law ................................. 21 Library ........................... 36 Moon Phases ...................41 Music.............................. 20 Nature...............................8

If you would like to see a specific topic covered by one of our columnists, email us at YCeditorial@scbiznews.com

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July 2020

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yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Pluto’s Corner

Deep Dog Thoughts

By Pluto

“Handle every situation like a dog. If you can’t eat it or play with it, just hike a leg on it and walk away.” – Author Unknown

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Editor’s note: If you have some pet-related wisdom to share with other readers, please email your submission for consideration to YCeditorial@scbiznews.com.

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yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

History

York County’s Yesteryears

By Zach Lemhouse

The Patriot: William Tavington character analysis

Lt. Col. Banastre Tarleton (Portrait courtesy of the artist Thomas K. Pauley)

L

ast month marked the 20th anniversary of the theatrical release of Columbia Pictures’ film, The Patriot. The Patriot, set in revolutionary South Carolina, tells the story of Benjamin MarPAGE 6

tin (Mel Gibson), a French and Indian War veteran who is haunted by his past. Martin wants nothing more than to live peacefully with his family on his plantation. However, after British Colonel William Tavington

(Jason Isaacs) burns Martin’s home and kills his son, he decides to take up arms against the British and help to turn the tide of the American Revolution in the South.

The Patriot has a very unique and mean-

ingful connection with York County. Some of the movie’s most memorable scenes were filmed on location in York County.

In addition, many York County natives auditioned for roles as extras in the film.

Though The Patriot is a work of historical fiction, many of the characters are based on real historical figures.

The film’s antagonist, William Tavington, is predominantly based on infamous British leader Lt. Col Banastre Tarleton.

Tarleton was born in Liverpool, England on Aug. 21, 1754 to John and Jane Tarleton. He was the third of seven children.

Banastre’s father was a highly successful businessman and owned several plantations in the West Indies. Banastre studied law at Oxford but after his father’s death in 1773, he neglected his studies and turned his attention to the British Army. On April 20, 1775, he seized an opportunity to enlist in the 1st Regiment of Dragoon Guards as a Cornet, the lowest rank of commissioned officer in the British Cavalry. Cornet Tarleton was eager to serve and volunteered to accompany Lord Charles Cornwallis to the Americas on Nov. 4, 1775. Tarleton quickly caught the attention of his superiors and

by July of 1778 he was promoted to Lt. Col. of the newly formed British Legion Dragoons. The British Legion Dragoons was a unique regiment because it combined cavalry and infantry.

Though Tarleton served from the onset of the war, he would not gain the reputation of being a butcher until after the Fall of Charleston in May of 1780. After Charleston fell to the British, there was only one regiment of Continental soldiers left in South Carolina, the 6th Virginia Regiment under the Command of Col. Abraham Buford. Buford and his men had arrived too late to reinforce the Patriot garrison at Charleston. When news of Charleston’s surrender reached Buford, he began retreating northward. Tarleton was dispatched to overtake Buford before he could cross the border into North Carolina. The two armies clashed near the Waxhaw Settlement in present-day Lancaster County, S.C. Once the battle had commenced, Buford realized he stood no chance against Tarleton and his dragoons so he ordered a surrender. The British ignored the flag of truce and continued to slaughter the Patriot troops. Of the 350 continental soldiers, 113 were killed and another 150 were severely wounded. The Battle of the Wax-

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

Col. Abraham Buford (Portrait courtesy of the artist Thomas K. Pauley) haws, which the Patriots called Buford’s Massacre, earned Tarleton a reputation for being a ruthless butcher. Giving “Tarleton’s Quarter” became synonymous with giving no quarter at all.

Despite his reputation for being brutal, there is no indication that Tarleton ever murdered a child or burned a church like his fictional counterpart in The Patriot.

However, one of Tarleton’s captains was accused of similar atrocities. Capt. Christian Huck was born in Germany circa 1748 and immigrated to Philadelphia in 1772.

When the Revolutionary War erupted, Huck was a staunch loyalist. His name appeared in the May 13, 1778 issue of the Pennsylvania Packet newspaper as part of a long list of Loyalists who were “attainted of High Treason.” He was branded as a traitor, stripped of his property, and forced to flee Philadelphia. Huck joined the British Army and, on June 7, 1778, he received a captain’s commission in Emmerick’s Chasseurs, which was commanded by a fellow German immigrant named Andreas Emmerick. The French word Chasseur, meaning “hunter,” is a designation given to units of light infantry or cavalry. Sir Henry Clinton, the Commander-in-Chief of all British forces in North America, disbanded the Chasseurs in 1779. Huck was reas-

signed to command a company of British Legion Dragoons under the command of the Lt. Col. Banastre Tarleton.

On Sunday June 11, 1780 Captain Huck arrived at the Upper Fishing Creek settlement with his dragoons and a detachment of loyalist militia. British intelligence indicated that several rebel leaders were attending a worship service at Rev. John Simpson’s Presbyterian meeting house. As they approached Simpson’s church, Huck and his men stopped at the neighboring home of Jenny Strong. Jenny’s youngest son, William, was 17 and had recently joined the local Patriot militia. It was reported that Huck’s men murdered young William in cold blood. One sensationalized account suggested that William was reading his Bible when the incident occurred.

Huck and his men proceeded on to Simpson’s meeting house but found it was empty. The church and parsonage were burned but, unlike the church burning which occurs in The Patriot, no one was inside.

Of the two historical figures that the fictional William Tavington is based upon, only one died during the Revolution.

Christian Huck was killed at the Battle of Williamson’s Plantation on July 12, 1780.

Tarleton, on the other hand, survived the war and returned home England. The

July 2020

Capt. Christian Huck (Portrait courtesy of the Culture and Heritage Museums of York County) worst injury that he would sustain was the loss of his thumb and index finger after his right hand was pierced by a musket ball at the Battle of New Garden Meeting House on March 15, 1781. After returning to England, Tarleton wrote a history of his experience in the war, entitled Campaigns of 1780 and 1781 in the Southern Provinces of North America. He served in Parliament from 1790-1812 and died in January of 1833 at the age of 79.

When watching or reading historical fiction, it can sometimes be difficult to differentiate fact from fiction. Regardless of one’s personal view of the genre, The Patriot brought international attention to the

oft-forgotten Southern Campaigns of the American Revolution. The release of the film also spurred a resurgence in cultural tourism as cinephiles and history buffs alike traveled to filming locations such as Historic Brattonsville. Movies like The Patriot capture the viewer’s imagination and, in some cases, inspire them to learn more about their past. yc Zach Lemhouse is the resident historian for the Culture and Heritage Museums of York County and the Director of the Southern Revolutionary War Institute. If you have any questions or suggestions for future article topics you can reach Zach at ZacharyLemhouse@gmail.com

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July 2020

Nature The Naturalist’s Journal

By Dr. Steve Fields

“Epoch” changes VI: Extinction and survival

L

ater this year a new exhibit opens at the Museum of York County. “Ice Age Carolina: Exploring Our Pleistocene Past” will feature incredible creatures that once inhabited our region. With the start of 2020, I started a new series that explores the changing Carolina climate and environment in which the Ice Age creatures lived. We have explored various portions of the Pleistocene, including the end of the epoch and the extinction many great beasts.

Although most “megafauna” (animals weighing over 100 pounds) disappeared from the Carolinas at the end of the Ice Ages, many smaller species (and even a few large ones) managed to survive. There were at least 96 species of mammals in South Carolina in the late Pleistocene. By the early Holocene (the epoch of time in

which we currently live), over 30 of those mammal species were gone. So how did so many manage to survive while others faced extinction? The answer to that question is as elusive as the causes of the extinction itself.

Recall from last month’s column that scientists still debate the primary reason for the loss of the Pleistocene megafauna.

Human overkill and climate change are the two most argued causes. There is also the possibility of a comet strike that would have impacted a great portion of southeastern North America.

I suspect that a combination of factors was at work. The climate got warmer at the end of the Pleistocene, and while that would have affected all species, the larger ones may have been hit hardest. Climate change brought habitat change. Cool, ever-

green woodlands became warm, hardwood forests. Northern glaciers melted, causing ocean levels to rise and coastal grasslands to disappear. Large mammals were faced with food shortages. Herbivores died off, and so did their large predators. Humans that were present not only hunted large game, but they also directly competed with the animals for some of the same food sources. Throw in a comet impact on an already delicate and changing ecosystem, and widespread catastrophe would have been the ultimate outcome.

A few of the larger beasts that survived the extinction lived in the Carolinas until a few centuries ago. Explorers in the 1700s recorded in the journals the presence of “buffalo” (bison), elk, “catamounts” (cougars), and wolves. John Lawson also wrote about “tygers” in his 1709 journal, A New

Voyage to Carolina, “I once saw one that was larger than a Panther, and seem’d to be a very bold Creature…It seems to differ from the Tyger of Asia and Africa.” I sincerely doubt that Lawson actually encountered a tiger (which, by the way do not inhabit Africa). However, Lawson did describe his “tiger” as something distinct from the “Catamount,” or cougar. I have often wondered if the cat he described was actually a jaguar. The fossil record validates the presence of the jaguar in South Carolina during the Pleistocene. It is possible they managed to hold a presence here into historical times?

Eventually, the Carolina survivors were forced to move on. The bison, elk, wolves, and large cats were “extirpated” from the region by the mid to late 1800s. This time, there is little doubt that humans were the

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yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Extinction and Survival. This display shows animals known to have lived in South Carolina during the Pleistocene. All are still alive except the saber-toothed cat. Image is from “Way Back When: Ice Age Beasts of Carolina” on exhibit 2012-2013 at the Museum of York County. cause. Large predators were perceived as threats and eliminated, while clearing of the land and large-scale agriculture wiped out habitats. Still, these animals manage to survive in other parts of the country.

It is interesting to note that our modern small mammals, birds, and even reptiles and amphibians did not just “show up” after the Ice Age extinction. Raccoons and opossums were already here, wandering the forests with ground sloths and mastodons. Foxes and deer inhabited the open woodlands with saber-toothed cats and helmeted muskoxen. Northern water snakes and bullfrogs swam the same water courses as giant beavers, capybaras, and tapirs. These are the survivors. Their legacy goes back hundreds of thousands

or even millions of years. They have been witnesses to many “epoch” changes. They inherited a world that the giant mammals left behind. Even so, their survival continues to be challenged today. Even the small beasts are being forces into increasingly smaller ranges.

Humans are witnessing another mass extinction — the second one we have been present to observe — and, this time, there is no doubt that we are responsible. The next “epoch” change may be our own. yc Dr. Steven E. Fields is the curator of natural history for the Culture and Heritage Museums and an adjunct instructor of biology at Winthrop University and York Technical College. You can contact “Dr. Steve” at 803-909-7216 or email stevefields@chmuseums.org.

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July 2020

Health

The Doctor’s Corner

By Robert D. Lesslie, MD, MPH

Lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic

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ecently, the Director of Christian Education at our church asked if I would be willing to write an article for our newsletter, conveying my thoughts on what I have experienced and learned from the current pandemic. I’ve got an opinion about most things, so I told her I’d be happy to.

I began giving this some thought, trying to wrap my head around what I have learned over the past few months. It would need to be something more profound than realizing you need to wash your hands for twenty seconds in order for it to be effective, or that proper technique is to cough and sneeze into your elbow (a boon for dry-cleaners), or that there is a right and a wrong way to wear an N-95 mask. Yes, I learned that fact. A few weeks ago, I was given a new mask to wear — the type that is held in place by attaching to your ears.

Well, with this particular mask, the thin metal strip that molds over your nose is barely noticeable. I spent the first few hours wearing it upside down, wondering why my glasses relentlessly fogged. Finally, a benevolent nurse quietly pointed out my error, and I corrected my mistake. My glasses still fog, so that’s one thing I haven’t yet learned to prevent.

Not very exciting stuff, and I was still struggling with what I needed to write about — until last evening at our Session meeting. One of our elders had the devotional, and he read a passage from one of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s books. If you’re not familiar with him, Bonhoeffer was a remarkable man. Born in Germany, he studied in the United States, then returned to

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Jude Konow

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine Germany in 1931, just a few years before Hitler began his rise to power. He was a minister, and he spoke out early against the Nazis. Dangerous times and a perilous thing to do. Yet he stood firmly for his faith and for the oppressed. Three weeks before the collapse of Germany, Hitler ordered his murder. Bonhoeffer understood the reality of persecution and at the end of his life, the crushing weight of loneliness.

In the passage the elder shared with us, Bonhoeffer was pointing out the importance of Christian fellowship — the vital need for gathering together and worshipping our Lord — seeing each other’s faces.

That was proving to be impossible in Nazi Germany, and the loss of that contact was deeply felt by Bonhoeffer and his friends and fellow believers. He stressed the importance of never taking these opportunities for granted and consciously cherishing the times that we have together. He well knew that it could all change.

We’ve experienced that in our own congregation, and if you attend church, you’ve probably done the same. It’s been too many Sundays that we’ve spent apart, though thankfully able to “virtually” worship together through the technology of YouTube or gathering in our cars and trucks in the church parking lot. This Sunday will mark a turning point, allowing us once again to

July 2020

gather together (socially distanced!) and to worship as one body. It is something we should always cherish.

If you don’t attend church, you’ve experienced the same separateness, the same lack of being in the presence of others.

The natural extension of this line of thinking will lead us to our relationships with friends and family. Before the coronavirus, didn’t we take for granted the ability to meet whenever we wanted with those closest to us? Maybe a drive of a few minutes, or a few hours, but spending time with each other was never an issue of opportunity, only of intention. All that changed with the “lock-down.” Even with the best of intentions, we no longer had the opportunity. It happened quickly, and it can happen again. We need to always remember this pandemic and the harsh lessons it has taught us. And we need to always cherish the times we have together and seek them out.

So, to my Director of Christian Education, I guess I have learned something from the coronavirus, something I hope to long remember. And if you ever see me wearing a mask and notice that it’s upside down, please don’t say anything. yc Dr Lesslie’s Angels in the ER is available at bookstores and on the internet. For more information check out RobertLesslie.com.

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yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Horticulture

Growing York County

By Paul Thompson

Growing and eating squash

Above, a climbing trombone squash plant three weeks from seed with a female flower bud. At left are examples of the flowers squash produce (photos/Paul Thompson)

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Most of us who have a summer vegetable garden are beginning to see some of our first produce from the garden. Among these is our summer squash, primarily zucchini and yellow squash, although I have come to like scalloped or patty pan squash as well. I am also trying two new ones that climb, the Trombone squash(Tromboncino Italian heirloom) and Tatume squash (native to Mexico) this year because of their resistance to squash vine borers and the fact that I can save bed space by growing on a trellis.

Our summer squash are vegetables that are usually a mainstay in home vegetable gardens. They grow like gangbusters in the spring and are usually one of the first vegetables that we harvest when summer arrives. It seems that the only problem with this crop is that it normally produces a large harvest in a short amount of time and, if your household is anything

like mine, the family is sick of squash by mid-summer.

Squash are interesting plants. They are related to melons, pumpkins, cucumbers, and gourds, all of which produce separate male and female flowers on the same plant.

The female flower has a tiny squashlike part at its base below the petals. The male flower contains only the stamens which carry the pollen and just have the flower stalk below the petals Because the male and female flowers are separate, squash and their relatives are dependent on insects, mainly bees, for pollination and consequently fruit formation to occur. Many times, calls come into the office from home gardeners who complain that their squash are loaded with blooms, but no fruit are developing. Usually one of two things are not happening. If it is cloudy, or if insecticides are being misused, the bee activity may be absent, and the fe-

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

(Above) A tatume squash plant five weeks from seed. (Below) Male flower bud on the same plant and a raised bed with yellow squash plants.

male flowers are not being pollinated. The other thing may be that the flowers present are mostly male flowers which, of course, will produce no fruit. If no fruit is being produced, look at these possibilities, and take action. Honeybees are most active on bright sunny days. They actually navigate by using the sun. They are usually the most active from mid- morning to about an hour before sunset. If you have an insect pest that you need to control, first pay attention to the bee activity and do not spray insecticides during these periods. It may be that you might have to be a bee for a while and and pick the male flowers, strip off their petals and use it like a paint brush to apply pollen to the stigma of the female flower.

If the lack of bees is not the problem, then look at the flowers to see if any are female. Many times, squash plants will produce an overabundance of male flowers early in the season. I have often surmised that since male flowers take less of the plants resources to produce, it makes

July 2020

Ingredients:

6 medium yellow squash 1 medium onion – chopped 1 small bell pepper - chopped 2 slices of bread crumbled

½ cup ham or bacon – chopped (I have also substituted crab meat) 2 Tbsp. capers chopped salt & pepper

Directions:

Wash squash and trim stem and bud ends. Put whole squash in a pot and cover with water. Boil squash until just tender. Remove from heat, drain, and let cool. Cut squash in half lengthwise. Using a grapefruit spoon, scoop out the centers of the squash halves leaving one quarter inch of rind. Mix scooped squash and remaining ingredients in a bowl and then stuff the squash rinds with the mixture. Place stuffed squash on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Serve hot.

This recipe may help those of you who the stuffing. They can also be topped with have run out of ideas for squash. Feel free grated cheese. Bon appetit! to add or substitute other ingredients for

sense for the plant to produce them first to attract the bees, so that when the female flowers appear, there will be plenty of bee activity for pollination.

My mother, as well as many mothers, was a good cook. The recipe printed above is one that you should try for stuffed yellow squash; it’s delicious: Since the county extension offices have been closed because of COVID 19 and no in-person educational programs have been being conducted, a lot of online activity of videos, blogs and Facebook pages have been receiving a lot of attention. I

would invite you to check out the Clemson Home and Garden Information Center website to find factsheets, blogs, and videos on gardening topics. You can also sign up for the weekly newsletter that comes out each Friday https://hgic.clemson. edu/. Also check out our Horticulture Team Facebook page at https://www. facebook.com/cuexthorticulture/. Stay safe and happy gardening. yc Paul Thompson is a Horticulture Agent with the Clemson Extension Service. Contact him at (803) 684-9919, ext. 112.

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yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Arts

The Cultural Scene

By Chris Fox

A fond farewell

F

or the past year, Dennissa Young has curated the Arts & Culture section. Sadly, she will be leaving soon to continue her art career in Chicago. She has graciously passed the Arts & Culture torch off to me, but I thought it would be good to hear from her one last time before she leaves.

Chris Fox: Tell us a little about yourself and your art.

Dennissa Young: I am primarily a relational artist. I make video performances, relational sculptures and occasionally emcee. I was born in Las Cruces, NM in 1993 and have been a moving beam of light ever since. After graduating from the School of the Museum of

Fine Arts in Boston, MA, I have lived in Istanbul, Turkey, back to Boston, then here in Rock Hill for the last two years.

I guess I just love a good transition... that’s so not true.

My work speaks openly about radical softness, tender moments and the potential to form relationships. My hope is to be a catalyst. My art creates time and space

for honesty, questioning and vulnerability by curating personal, intimate spaces and inviting others in to participate.

Using video, installation, performance and relational experiences, I create work sourced from my personal spiritual journey but invite the audience to insert themselves into the space of the piece, cultivating connection wherever it can be found Dennissa Young has made a positive impact on York County’s arts scene. Clockwise from above left, Dennissa Young in “Both, And” (phot/Jeremy Arrington) artwork, photo from “Take What You Need” (Photos

by Alexis Howard).

PAGE 14

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Above, Dennissa Young in “It’s For You” (photo/Taylor Jones)and a photo she took while living in Istanbul, Turkey. within the confines of the artistic work or outside of it.

CF: What brought you to Rock Hill?

DY: That’s a great question. I wanted to learn more about arts organizing and be more fully committed to my practice. I heard about Friday Arts Project from some friends and decided that it was a good fit for a while. I visited for a Mardi Gras celebration in 2018 and thought, “DANG, these people love each other and really know how to throw a party.” So that’s what sold me.

CF: What have been some highlights from your time here in Rock Hill?

DY: I have loved being part of the arts community here as well as the larger sphere in Charlotte. Goodyear Arts and W.A.M.A. (We Also Make Art) have been some of my favorite things. I am so grateful for the friendships I have formed here through those groups and from my Friday Arts Project team. Getting to be an organizer and an artist has been huge for me.

Chairs and the People in Them, the first show I did with Friday Arts, was such a cool launching pad into life here. Chris, you wrote stories for a newspaper Sarah Kennedy Irwin designed, we created these little vignettes of chairs and trinkets and people could interact with the chairs that

inspired the artwork in the gallery. I also had the privilege of doing a seminar at Art Party 2018, called What is Performance Art? One of the best gifts Rock Hill gave me was Siobhan O’Loughlin. After Matt Cosper, of XOXO, invited me to host her bathtub performance we continued to deepen our friendship and collaboration. We are currently working on a Zoom immersive theater experience called, Please Don’t Touch (The Artist). I mean, the highlights are endless. What word count are we at?

CF: How have you seen your art/art practice grow or develop in the past two years?

DY: I have become more serious and balanced. Serious in that I am intentionally choosing my art. It keeps me healthy, thinking, and in touch with my own softness. Balanced because I am learning that being a relational artist means continuing to be a relational person and operating out of overflow. I need a lot of outside sources to then come inward to create a piece. I have become more active in giving myself time and space to unfold.

Brandi Voigt Fox reignited my love for zines and bookbinding. That has been huge for me personally, to keep writing and connecting and journaling. Getting to perform at Goodyear Arts was a huge growth point. I have never had a performance piece “tour.” Take What You Need was a piece I made for a W.A.M.A. zine release party. The piece has subsequently grown in structure and stamina. Since its first solo performance, it’s been performed solo in Fort Collins, Colo., and then two incredible artists, Anna Goldstein and Sara Simpson made it better and performed it with me for the Performance Expo I curated as a part of Art Party 2019 and then

again in 2020 for Seeking Arrangements.

I’ve also learned, from Friday Arts Director, Kirk Irwin, that every meeting should begin with a poem. The growth is endless, and I am eternally grateful and will continue to unpack it for a while.

CF: What’s next for you and how can we keep up with you?

DY: I am moving to Chicago to close in the gap with my long-distance partner, Marco Garrett. He is a writer and an amazing artist. I will also be working as an art coach and continuing to work with Arts & Culture. I am excited to take my practice to another city and place and time and space. You can find me on Instagram at @dennissayoung or my website dennissayoung.com. If you are looking for an art coach, or a pal, or a collaborator, please contact me! yc Chris Fox is the Campus Director for Friday Arts Project, an arts non-profit in Rock Hill. He’s a writer and illustrator and you can find him on Instagram @chrisfoxonline PAGE 15

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Psychology

Working Within

By Dr. Kevin Wickes, LPC, NCC, CEAP

“P.O.P. goes the weasel”

“

P.O.P. goes the weasel.” I believe most of us would know the origin of that phrase. What I find interesting is the anticipation (or anxiety) of the weasel popping out of the container. It appears we’re filled with a lot of anxieties in our current world/situation (i.e., COVID-19, George Floyd, unemployment, economy,etc.).

As you probably know, I like acronyms.

They’re relatively easy to remember when you’re trying to convey an idea/concept.

Therefore, P,O.P. stands for Process, Object and Product. You’ve read, “The end, justify the means.” Therefore, with all the chaos/conflict we’re all experiencing, we may wonder how the means are impacting the end. Some are believing “law” to maintain order. Others are believing “I can’t breathe” via protesting to bring to light the injustice of African or Black Americans and other minorities in our country. Some believe COVID-19 is a “hoax,” or the economy needs to open up, or we need to “social distance” to minimize the spread.

Whatever you believe, it is based on our perception (remember the previous article, “The perception will set you free.”).

To continue with the thought of perception (interpretation of the sensation or the environment), I would like to add another element – Process. It is the key “to live” rather than focusing on the Object (such as people, events, relationships, things, and etc.) or the Product (end/result/outcome). Process refers to “how?” Process is the structure we utilize to use the Object to provide us the Product. It’s almost as if you’re asking,“How do you get there?”

Remember, children on long trips/vaca-

tions often ask the question, “Are we there yet?” Like children, we’re anticipating the end or outcome. Whether it is the economy, health, justice, and etc., it’s the Process that gets us there. The journey (Process) is the key rather than the thing (Object) or the end (Product).

I’ve been reading Return to Love by Marianne Williamson and it appears she may have part of the Process on how to live. She believes that “Love is what we were born with. Fear is what we learned here.” Hence, “love requires a different kind of ‘seeing’ that we’re used to – a different kind of knowing or thinking,” and in this case, different processing. Thus, when you’re struggling with challenging mental/psychological struggles, the ability to change the process is the key to changing the Object and, ultimately, changing the Product (the outcome). Here are some of her thoughts from the book: • “What we give to others, we give to ourselves.”

• “Faith isn’t blind, it’s visionary.”

• “Surrender means, by definition, giving up attachment to results.” and “Surrender is a process of emptying the mind,” such as learned societal norms that create the fear.

• “… our greatest tool for changing the world is our capacity to change our mind about the world.”

• “We’re not asking for something outside us to change, but for something inside us to change,” our process ◊ “People who do make us angry, however, are our most important teachers. They indicate the limits

Think about a Process you can change to have a different Product. Using the following table, try to define

to our capacity for forgiveness” and grace. In the same way with love, “People who have the most to teach us are often the ones who reflect back to us the limits to our own capacity to love…” ◊ “We must be the change.” by Gandhi.

Now the application: • The Current State (“Old Process”) The Current State is how things are done today – the Process, Object and Product. Often, P.O.P. is “wired” (family background, conditioned/socialized/trained) from our past (how you were raised). It is the collection of processes, behaviors, tools, etc. that has protected us from anxieties/fears.

The Current State defines who we are today. It may not be working great, but it is familiar and comfortable because we know what to expect. The Current State is known (P.O.P.).

• The Transition State (“practice ‘new’ Process”) The Transition State is messy and disorganized. It is unpredictable and constantly in flux. The Transition State is often emotionally charged—with emotions ranging from despair and anxiety to anger, fear, or relief. During the Transition State, you’ll have more failures (vs being effective); however, the goal is to increase (vs all/none) the effectiveness of the new Process. The Transition State requires us to be dedicated, committed, and disciplined as you learn new ways of processing, while still looking forward to the Product.

each of the three states of change and come up with three adjectives that describe that state.

Description

Adjectives Describing that State

Current:

Transition:

Future:

PAGE 16

The Transition State is challenging but well worth it.

• The Future State (“New Process”) The Future State is where we continue to practice the new Process, allowing P.O.P. to become integrated in who we are, what we are, and what we’re becoming to obtain what we want/need. It is often not fully defined and can shift while we are trudging through the Transition State. The Future State is supposed to be better than the Current State in terms of the Object/Product. The Future State can often be worrisome and may not match due to being unaware (i.e., defense mechanisms such as denial, rationalization, and etc.) of our own genuine selves. There is a chance that we may not be effective in the Future State; hence, the reason you may need someone outside of you (i.e., counselor) to convey what you’re unable to know. You may need to hit the “reset” button and return to step 1 (the Current State). Above all else, the Future State increases the likelihood of an effective life or Object/Product.

(Source: https://blog.prosci.com/ change-is-a-process) One last thought from Ms. Williamson: “We love purely when we release other people to be who they are.” yc Dr. Kevin Wickes, LPC, NCC, CEAP, is a seasoned, licensed, and certified counselor and professor of Integrative Counseling Services, LLC. Contact him at 843-647-1162 or dr.kwickes@gmail.

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July 2020

Photography View Finder

By Mike Baker

Inspiration, unordinary from the ordinary

Looking for new inspiration? Try capturing ordinary objects in unordinary ways. In this case, the photo of an ordinary trash can becomes a study in lighting (Photos/Mike Baker).

W

ith so many of us staying close to home due to the health concerns of past months, it takes only a quick look at the social media feeds of fellow photographers to tell that they are getting bored with photographing their immediate surroundings. I’m being asked for suggestions of interesting places to photograph, and ways to stay inspired to create.

This got me to thinking about how I stay inspired. It’s easy to get inspired when I see a stunning landscape, or I meet a person with an interesting face, or when I witness beautiful, golden light. You should see my reaction when I’m in a stunning landscape PAGE 18

and I meet a person with an interesting face and the person is bathed in beautiful, golden light! It does happen, but what about the days when none of those things happen? How do I stay inspired when it’s not easy?

What I’ve been suggesting to folks is to do what I often do even in “normal” times, start close to home and look for ways to capture the ordinary in an unordinary manner. Those who know me are not surprised when I drive hours to take a unique photo or two and turn around and drive right back home. But they’re also not surprised to see me, time and again, walking

around the streets of York County, camera in hand. I’m fortunate to know many creative photographers, and I find that the best of them photographically revisit locations time and time again. As they revisit locations, they’re looking for those sometime subtle, sometime dramatic changes that come with changing light and atmosphere. From one visit to the next, they’re looking at what has been brought into the scene or removed from the scene. They’re often looking for a unique way to capture what others may see every day but never take notice of.

Take for example the photo of the

gloves. They were in a location that many readers will have walked past repeatedly, the Rock Hill City Hall parking lot. Ambling along with a film camera, I came across this pair of discarded gloves. These gloves were ordinary objects, but they were out of place, they were temporal, they would not be there the next day. I was inspired to capture this scene before it was gone. I wasn’t inspired due to any beauty, but because the scene was offbeat.

This image was made pre-pandemic, but only by a couple of months; I’ve titled this photo “Foreshadowing”.

The photo with the clawfoot fixture

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine shows the base of one of the metal light posts which stand next to the entrance of the Tom S. Getty Art Center in Rock Hill.

Many will have walked past this light fixture countless times. This day, I was playing with a Kodak Brownie film camera that is almost as old as the Getty Center which was built in the 1930’s. I was inspired by the curves of the clawfoot fixture, and by the challenge of using the old camera to capture the scene in a manner different from what I had previously captured. In this instance, I had modified the camera lens to capture only a small sliver of the subject in focus. I was trying a novel approach on a familiar subject.

The location where the picture of the trash can was captured is another well-travelled spot in Rock Hill, the Elizabeth Lane Parking Deck. I love photographing parking decks. The light is ever changing and coming up with a solid composition can be challenging. On this day, I was out with, yet again, another old film camera when I noticed the evening light illuminating the most ordinary of objects, a trash can. Is this a beautiful image?

Nope, it’s not. It’s a trash can. But it wasn’t meant to beautiful. The more appropriate

July 2020

question is, does the image live up to my goal, to capture an ordinary object in an unordinary manner. It was illuminated in this way for only a few minutes, if not for being captured on my film, this moment would have been gone forever.

To close, let’s answer the question we started with. How do I stay inspired when it’s not easy? I stay inspired by going, by doing, by trying, often trying and failing. Sometimes, it’s willing myself out the door. I imagine it’s somewhat like long-distance runners who start running and trudge on until it begins to flow and feel good, the runner’s high. I’ll never know a runner’s high, but I do know what it feels like to have a grin cross my face when I see the unordinary pop up on an LCD screen or appear in a negative.

The memory of that grin helps carry me through those creative dry spells that we can suffer while finding the ordinary but working to capture the extraordinary. yc Mike Baker is an awarding-winning photographer whose work has been published by national and regional publications. Mike is an Artist in Residence at the Arts Council of York County and a member of NPS (Nikon Professional Services). Mike can be reached at mike@mbakerphotographic.com.

Upper right: The clawfoot base of a metal light fixture at the Tom S. Getty Arts Center in Rock Hill, shot with an old Brownie camera. Below, ordinary items in an unusual place.

PAGE 19

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Music

Tuning In To York County

By Tim Jones

Before they were famous: Country music edition Received an offer to play baseball for the Philadelphia Phillies, but was drafted by the U.S. Army.

From Lancaster, SC, sang and played bass with Arthur Smith’s Crackerjacks.

Dropped out of high school to support family, worked as sales clerk and soda jerk at Gaunt’s Drug Store in Winchester, VA. ANSWERS A) George Strait B) Emmylou Harris C) Merle Haggard D) Waylon Jennings E) Tommy Faile F) Charley Pride G) Toby Keith H) Reba McEntire I) Randy Travis J) Jimmie Rodgers K) Patsy Cline L) Naomi Judd M) Darius Rucker N) Conway Twitty O) Kelly Clarkson P) Willie Nelson Q) Kellie Pickler R) Tammy Wynette S) Faith Hill T) John Prine

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H

ere’s a list of occupations held at one time by someone who later became a famous country music star. There is also a list of the artists who worked those jobs. Match the occupations to the star. Correct match-ups at the end.

Played bass in Buddy Holly’s band, The Crickets.

Licensed beautician. Kept license current in case the country music thing didn’t work out.

Worked as a nurse and a model.

Sold encyclopedias door to door.

Worked at grandmother’s bar.

Worked as a car hop on skates at Sonic Drive-in in Albemarle, NC Played professional baseball for the Memphis Red Sox and Birmingham Barons.

Served in the U.S. Army, then worked as a mail delivery person.

Worked as a server in various coffeehouses in Greenwich Village, NY. Worked on his family’s ranch in Texas.

Lead singer for rock band, Hootie and the Blowfish Prisoner at San Quentin State Prison.

Worked at McDonald’s. “Fries, burgers, cash register- did it all!”

Vacuum cleaner salesperson and telemarketer.

Cook at Country Music USA in Charlotte, NC. Worked for the railroad, first as a water boy, then as a brakeman.

“Helped Daddy turn the bulls into steers” on the family ranch in Oklahoma.

ANSWER KEY D, R, L, P, G, Q, F, T, B, K, A, M, C, S, O, I, J, H, N, E. yc Tim Jones is owner of Woody’s Music in Rock Hill and co-owner of Woody’s Music in Tega Cay. Tim grew up in Sharon and was a Green Dragon at the old York High School.

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yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Law Navigating The Law

By Walter Heinsohn

Until murder doth we part

U

nder the common law, husbands and wives were not permitted to testify in court for the other in civil cases. The thinking was that spouses were too biased to be reliable witness. Imagine this scenario: You are the only witness to your spouse getting run over by a horse and buggy. You couldn’t testify as to who was driving, how fast they were going or how much pain your spouse is suffering.

You were simply disqualified from testifying. You couldn’t “take the stand.”

Modern rules do not bar spouses from testifying but leave it to the “trier of fact,” that is, the judge or jury, as to how much weight to give to the spouses’ testimony.

It is up to the judge or jury to determine if the spouse’s testimony is credible. Most trial lawyers hesitate to put a spouse on the stand and that is because of the cross-examination the spouse will face. The questions will be like this: “You love your husband, don’t you?” “You don’t want your husband to lose this case and have to pay out a lot of money do you?” “You would be willing to say almost anything to keep that from happening wouldn’t you?” And

then in closing this argument will be made: “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, we all listened to Mrs. Spouse testify and we are sympathetic. But she herself admitted she will say almost anything to keep her husband from losing this case. So you have to discount everything she said if not disregard it entirely.”

The same rule was also applied in criminal cases. Spouses could not testify on behalf of the other. You could not take the stand and say, “My husband was not in Clover at the time of the robbery. He was at home with me in York listening to the Al Jolson Show on the radio.” Then there were situations where the spouse would come to the police and say, “My husband told me he was the one that robbed the store in Clover.” The police would have loved to put the wife on the stand to testify, but she couldn’t. The idea behind the rule was that the marital relationship is one that society deems worthy of protecting and to make one spouse testify against the other would be too disruptive.

Most states’ laws still protect one spouse from testifying as to the confidential state-

ments made by the other spouse. These are called “privileged communications.” In those states, if prosecutors really need the spouse’s testimony, they will have to prove that the communication was not private, that others were present when the spouse said, “I robbed the store.” South Carolina follows a slightly different rule. It will protect a spouse from testifying as to confidential communications made by the other spouse, but the privilege has to be claimed by the spouse who is testifying. That is, the accused cannot stand up and object by saying, “She can’t testify, she’s my wife.” It is up to the wife to claim the privilege and say, “I am not going to testify as to what my husband told me.” The court will respect that. She will not be compelled to testify by the contempt power of the court. That is, the judge cannot put her in jail until she’s ready to testify.

There was a South Carolina case where the wife, Angela Copeland, was accused of murdering Floyd Davis. A neighbor of Davis told police he saw a car pull up to the victim’s house in the early evening, the driver and Davis spoke, and then the

car drove off. The neighbor thought the car may have belonged to Copeland. Thinking they may have a possible suspect, the police tracked down Copeland and questioned her. She claimed she was nowhere near the scene of the murder but was in Tennessee at the time. The police then spoke to the husband and learned where the car was. Police examined the car and found evidence that indicated it was used in the crime.

It was necessary for the prosecution to establish at trial that the police had probable cause to arrest Copeland by what they discovered in the car. Thus, it was necessary for the police to establish how they found the car. But, Copeland’s husband claimed the privilege and refused to testify. The court ruled that the police could not testify as to the content of the statements made by the husband but it was permissible for the police to say, “As a result of our conversations with Mr. Copeland we discovered the location of the car.” The court ruled “The testimony did not reveal the actual content of Mr. Copeland’s statement to the police nor did it disclose marital communications.” Perhaps Mr. Copeland thought he was somehow being noble to his wife by not testifying, but he was too late. Perhaps Mr. Copeland thought he was somehow being noble to his wife by not testifying, but he was too late. The damage was done. Angela Copeland is serving the 21st year of her life sentence for murder. yc Walter Heinsohn is a lawyer who has served the area since 1985. You can reach him at 803-366-5181.

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yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Astronomy

Looking Up

By Carole Holmberg

Jupiter and Saturn shine side-by-side in 2020

Mark Stanford, Sr. took these pictures of Jupiter and Saturn with his telescope in Rock Hill, SC in 2019.

I

f you look in the late-night sky in July, you will notice dazzlingly bright Jupiter. As the largest planet, it usually outshines Mars, even though Mars is much closer to us. Which direction to look depends on when you go outside. In York County, it rises in the eastern sky at 9:25 p.m. on July 1, and continues shining throughout the night, slowly moving, along with the stars, towards the west. On July 31, it rises at 7:13 p.m., which means that it is already in the eastern sky before dark and it doesn’t set until the next morning at 5:11 a.m.

Jupiter reaches opposition on July 14.

Opposition of a planet means that the Sun, Earth, and the planet line up with Earth in the middle of the line, or at least are at their closest to doing so. The only planets that can be in opposition are those that orbit farther from the Sun than we do: Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. When a planet is in opposition, it is at its closest to Earth, or perigee. The closest distance of each planet to Earth changes slightly each year as planets do not orbit the Sun in perfect circles. Jupiter will be only 365 million PAGE 22

miles away from Earth at its opposition this year.

The next planet from the Sun, Saturn, orbits at a distance of almost twice that of Jupiter. For 2020, Saturn lies close to Jupiter in the sky as viewed from Earth, even though in reality the two planets remain quite far apart. Saturn reaches opposition just after its neighbor, on July 20 when it is visible all night long. Viewed from York County, on July 1 Saturn rises at 9:47 p.m.

On July 31 Saturn rises 7:41 p.m, so it can already be found in the sky by dark, and it doesn’t set until 5:48 am the next morning.

Because Saturn is not as large as Jupiter and because it lies further away, it will not be nearly as bright. Still, opposition is when a planet is closest to us, and therefore shines at its brightest. Once you find Jupiter, dimmer Saturn will be a hand’s width to its left, or east.

The farther a planet is from the Sun, the less gravitational force it feels, and the more slowly it orbits our star. While one orbit, or revolution, of Earth is 365 days long, one year on Jupiter is 12 of our Earth years and one year on Saturn is 29 Earth

years long. Not only does an exterior planet have a longer distance to orbit, but because there is less gravitational attraction between it and the Sun, it orbital speed is less.

As Earth passes a planet such as Jupiter or Saturn, which it does when they are in opposition, it looks to us like it is moving backwards compared to the background stars. Pretend that you are cruising on the highway and you pass an old beater car, chugging at its best. As you fly by, it seems to you as though the other car is moving backwards in relationship to the landscape. It’s the same with the exterior planets. As we pass one of them in our orbit, for a time it appears to be going backwards against the stars. This is called retrograde motion. Ancient people didn’t understand how a planet would suddenly stop and move backwards for a few months. Once they figured out that planets orbited the Sun and not Earth, it all started to make sense. This year, both planets began their apparent backwards motion in May, and both end their retrograde motion in September.

Even though the two planets are at their closest and brightest in July, Jupiter continues to appear to overtake Saturn, and the two will appear at their closest to each other in December, in what is being termed a “Great Conjunction.” Such an apparent meeting of Jupiter and Saturn happens only once every 20 years. This December’s meeting of Jupiter and Saturn will be their closest since 1623.

There’s a third bright planet in the mix this year, Mars. Look for bright orangish Mars to the east of both Jupiter and Saturn. It appears off to the left, not nearly as close as Jupiter and Saturn are to each other. Mars is on its way to its own opposition in October. All three planets brighten and grow larger in apparent size on the way to their respective oppositions. yc Carole Holmberg is the Planetarium Manager at the Museum of York County. She gives planetarium shows each Tuesday – Saturday at 3:30 p.m., with additional shows on Saturdays and school holidays. Ms. Holmberg can be reached at CHolmberg@chmuseums.org.

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Track Talk

The Local Racing Scene

By Stuart Lord

The fallout from the pandemic

B

y now, we’re all pretty aware what the pandemic has done to this country, and around the world. Real or a political agenda, the results have been devastating. Major companies like Hertz have filed for bankruptcy. Of course, they may have been in trouble before, so the current state of the country may or may not be tied into this bankruptcy. But, we’re here to talk racing and its effects.

For the most part, hundreds upon hundreds of racetracks across the country are just small businesses, unlike, say, tracks like Daytona, Indy and others. Small tracks, from dirt to asphalt are more or less a seasonal business, dependent on location, weather, population, etc. While the weekly shows help keep them afloat, each track tries to run a few major shows each season, booking in professional traveling organizations to give the tracks bottom line a boost for the off-season.

Local tracks, for the most part, are owned by one person, who in turn, rents it out to a promoter. The promoter in turn books in events and weekly shows to pay the bills. The past couple of years have not been kind to these promoters. Weather can be the biggest problem facing these

people. If rain is expected, or even just talked about, that can spell disaster for a racing show. In 2019, more major tours and local shows were canceled because it rained or faced the threat of rain all day long.

The owners of these tracks have contracts with promoters to rent on a yearly basis. There is no such thing as paying only when you run, or only paying when it’s nice out. The risk these promoters take can break the bank quickly. If you follow the sport, tracks go out of business because they either lose money and can’t afford to continue, or in many instances, are forced out of business because new developments are built near existing tracks and the new neighbors don’t like the noise, but that’s a story for another day.

When I wrote this, the country was shut down, and by the time it is published, we could still be shut down or have restrictions on all small businesses. We’re not talking the big box stores, the ABC stores, etc. Nope, it’s the small businesses that have been hurt, with many completely shutting down, never to reopen.

Racetracks fall under those restrictions.

There are no numbers yet on how many

have closed, but I’m sure at some point we’ll find out. Think how many other businesses will be affected. The food distributors who supply everything you eat at a track. What about the tire companies that manufacture and sell those racing tires? They sell them to dealers who sell to the racers. Look at the parts suppliers, the speed shops, all those who get the parts out to those racers. And, don’t forget, they had to be built. You will hardly find any foreign parts here; they’re built right here in the USA. Now look at the people who work at these tracks. For many, it’s an extra income they need to survive, to buy food for the family.

Here’s something else many don’t think about. When teams prepare for the season, they seek out sponsors. The program they present to a potential sponsor will list the dates they will run, the tracks they will visit, the promotions they will do away from the track. If a team can’t fill those promises, could sponsors leave?

I’ve seen it done in the past.

Local racers don’t receive thousands upon thousands. It might be a couple of tires each race, maybe a barrel of fuel,

maybe the sponsor pays for the pit passes, but whatever it is, if those things that keep a racer on the track are lost, that’s a car that can’t race. The trickle-down effect, if it happens to a lot of cars, can be devastating to not only the teams, but also to the track where they race.

I realize, at this point, the last thing on many minds are racetracks. I bring this up because racing has been a part of my life for over 50 years. And for millions of fans, this is their entertainment. For many, it could be baseball, football, golf — they are all shut down or just beginning to restart.

By the time you read this, hopefully, life has returned to being somewhat normal.

People can return to work, businesses will be making money, and racing will be in full swing. When tracks do reopen and fans are allowed in, support them, because without you, the fans, they will close. And when you say, “why did that track close?” it will be because there was no support for that particular track.

I hope everyone reading this is okay, and these trying times will pass. yc Stu Lord is a former NASCAR track manager, writer and talk show host living in York. His email address is relichunting@gmail.com.

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yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Service A Helping Hand for the Community

By Mollie Rose

UWYC announces 2020-2021 grant recipients

U

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nited Way of York County, S.C. is proud to announce funding to 22 community partners providing critical services in York County. Our commitment to helping families on the path to financial stability is more important than ever. We know that even in stable times, a single, unexpected expense can send a family into a devastating financial situation from which it is difficult to recover.

This community investment was made possible by the generosity of individuals, businesses, and foundations who contributed to UWYC during the campaign for 2019-2020. The United Way staff and board would like to thank the generous donors for helping to ensure our local non-profits can thrive in our community.

Annually, a committee of local volunteers allocates general and donor-directed campaign funds to community agencies and organizations that apply for program funding. This allocation cycle offered two grants for agencies to apply for funding: Traditional Grant and Financial Stability Grant.

Agencies that applied for the Traditional Grant support a variety of services throughout York County including senior meal support, advocacy for victims of domestic violence, youth education, and resources for the homeless population to name a few. After announcing the transition to an issue-focused United Way, we committed to fund programs under the Traditional Grant for three years, with the last cycle ending in 2020. UWYC has been impressed and delighted to witness the impact of these agencies over the years. Each agency serves a critical purpose and remains an integral part of the York County community. This year, UWYC awarded Traditional Grant funds to Safe Passage, York County Council on Aging, RideAbility Therapeutic Riding Center, The Palmetto School, The Haven, and Serenity Club of York County.

This is the first year UWYC has offered a Financial Stability Grant. Over the course of three years, UWYC has transformed into an issue-focused United Way. By adopting one critical issue to address in York County, we can focus,

not only United Way’s efforts, but the whole community’s efforts to accomplish a shared goal. This Bold Goal is to help 3,000 York County families achieve financial stability by 2030.

The programs requesting funds through the Financial Stability grant were overwhelmingly strong. The selected partners demonstrated key indicators United Way is looking to address in the fight for financial stability. Addressing the need for financial literacy and workforce development are the root causes the UWYC staff and board believe will make the most impact on families.

UWYC awarded Financial Stability Grant funds to Clover Area Assistance Center, Habitat for Humanity, Boys and Girls Club, A Father’s Way, Alston Wilkes Society, Adult Enrichment Center, Children’s Attention Home, Upper Palmetto YMCA, Oakland Day School, Rock Hill Schools Education Foundation, York School District One, Catawba Regional COG, and Rock Hill Economic Development Corporation. UWYC is confident the programs submitted by these organizations will move the needle in moving working families toward financial stability.

Understanding the Bold Goal can only be achieved as a community, we are excited to create partnerships through grants, committees, financial stability task forces, referral programs, and more.

Our efforts must go beyond funding. We must come together as a community to tackle poverty from all angles.

UWYC’s mission is to help 3,000 York County families achieve financial stability by 2030. Through our leadership in the area of Financial Stability, we are leading the charge in combating the cycle of poverty, providing an alternative to government assistance, and addressing the stigma around getting help. We do this by partnering with nonprofit and faith-based organizations, local government, and businesses to collectively build a better York County. yc Mollie Rose is the Marketing and Communications Director for United Way of York County, SC. Contact her at mrose@unitedwayofyc.org.

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Connections Helping Hands

Elections happened, in spite of pandemic

A

s I’m sitting at my work desk, the day after our primary elections, I am totally exhausted, my entire body aches, and I want to sleep for the next week and a half. The amount of work that goes into ensuring a smooth election on a regular day is difficult to comprehend. The amount of work layered on top of that thanks to Covid is insane, but we did it.

Your local elections office is staffed by six full time and one part time staff members. We were in the midst of taking time about in the office to help us socially distance ourselves from each other in somewhat tight quarters when the decision was made that the S.C. Primaries must go on.

It called for all hands on deck, plus adding temporary workers, to help prepare for the election.

We knew it would be difficult. We worried about ourselves and our own families as we opened our doors to the voters with this virus spreading around us. But our faithful temporaries came in and worked right along beside us, helping us get this election off the ground. The calls started for absentee by mail and voters began coming into the office to vote absentee in person. We were in full swing.

It wasn’t all puppy dogs and rainbows,

though. We knew our poll worker staff was reduced to less than 50% and our precinct leadership was down over 33%. We knew there were challenges ahead but we pressed on. There wasn’t any other choice. I want to stop for a moment to thank first, our returning workers, who stepped out of their comfort zone to train online so I wouldn’t be face-to-face with so many people. Those who came to in person training and practiced social distancing. The new workers who jumped in, trained, showed up to work with enthusiasm and made this election happen on many levels. And the new clerks who stepped into their leadership role for the first time, in the middle of a pandemic, and did a fantastic job. We were amazed and awed at the York County Government, SC National Guard, city of York, and our local school districts, and others for sending employees our way. Without all these folks, York County would have been in a very difficult position on Election Day. And despite the Covid virus, health concerns, and fewer workers, we saw a surprising 17% turnout, as compared to the 2016 primaries with 10.6%.

Not knowing what November holds for us, I’d like to ask for a few favors before we go into the voting booths in a few

months. One, if you are able-bodied and interested in seeing a presidential election up-close and personal, come join us as a certified election worker. Email me at work and send us your name, birthday, address, email, and phone # and you’ll receive the training information this fall. My work email is beth.covington@yorkcountygov.com.

Second, learn your districts, who your elected officials are, and what’s on your ballot before you come to vote. You will feel much more confident when casting your ballot when you aren’t caught off guard by something you didn’t know would be on it. To find your districts, visit scvotes. com and check your voter registration. (https://bit.ly/3cUnIXQ) Fill in the blanks and either jot the district info down or print it out. Now, to learn who are currently serving in those districts, go to www. yorkcountygov.com and go to Departments, Voter Registration and Elections, Elected Officials. (https://bit.ly/2AXtYRz) Match the district numbers with your people! To find a sample ballot (closer to November; we haven’t had filing for nonpartisan offices yet) visit www.scvotes.org and click on Get My Sample Ballot. (https:// bit.ly/2Yrfgud) Fill in the blanks and check

By Beth Covington

out your sample ballot. Print it so you can do your research! Take it with you to the polls so you know who you want to vote for without trying to remember everyone.

Third, before you post on social media, call and verify what is going on. Do some legwork and actively listen. Practice kindness. Tell these people working incredibly long hours and stressful days that you appreciate them willing to risk their own health in order to provide democracy to all voters. Be an example to your children for respectfully asking questions, listening to learn instead of to argue, responsibly using social media, and being smart, educated, proactive voters prepared on election day. Things like this will come back to them over and over in life.

I hope you’ve found something helpful in this article as we quickly approach the presidential election on Tuesday, Nov. 3. I expect to see you there! Be sure to #ShareYourSticker on the Elections’ Office Facebook page www.facebook.com/VREofYC Thank you! #YoCoVotes. yc Beth Covington is a life-long York County resident with a passion for nice people and ranch dressing.

Contact her at beth.covington@gmail.com.

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July 2020

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

Photo Gallery York County Scrapbook Prepared by Nancy Sambets, Director of Archives

Old cookbooks

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ublished in 1796, “American Cookery” by Amelia Simmons was the first cookbook to be published in the United States by an American. It has 47 pages of recipes utilizing English cooking methods with American ingredients such as cornmeal and reveals the variety of foods enjoyed by Colonial Americans, their cooking habits, and tastes. Much like community cookbooks today which focus on home cooking, regional ingredients and family recipes. Here are a few recipes from local churches and organizations that may be familiar to your taste buds. yc

Nancy Sambets is the Director of Archives at the Historical Center of York County in York.

She has a master’s degree in museum studies from the University of South Carolina and has been employed as an archivist with the Culture & Heritage Museums since 2001. Her contact information is nsambets@chmuseums.org or 803818-6766.

Title page of “American Cookery” published in 1796. Much like today, there are a variety of recipes for the same dish. On page 25 there are 6 different recipes for making rice pudding. Courtesy of the Library of Congress.

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yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

“What’s Cookin’ in Bethany” compiled by Bethany A.R.P. Young Peoples Christian Union was published in 1979.

Courtesy of the Historical Center of York County, S.C.

“Favorite Recipes” by Clover Opti-Mrs Club was published in 1975. Founded in 1919, Optimist International admitted women to the membership in 1987.

Courtesy of the Historical Center of York County, S.C.

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July 2020

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

“Clover Cooks Then and Now” compiled by the Clover Woman’s Club was published in 1985.

The Clover Women’s Club was organized in 1950 and sponsors many civic projects. Courtesy of the Historical Center of York County, S.C.

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yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

“Bowling Green Cuisine” published by Bowling Green Presbyterian Church is undated. Lena Adams (1908-1998) and Pearl Flanagan (18991990) are buried at Bowling Green Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Clover, SC. Courtesy of the Historical Center of York County, S.C.

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yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Disc Golf

Turn And Fade

By Todd Harrell

Toddler son just isn’t that into disc golf

M

y three-and-a half year old son isn’t that into disc golf … And it’s starting to worry me a little.

You might be thinking, “Big deal – he’s three. Get over it.” And you’re probably right. But to be honest, I thought his interest would be further along by now.

In the beginning

Now, I wasn’t one of those disc golf fanatics that suited up their newborn in disc golf-themed onesies or planted a disc in his hands while he nodded off to sleep, but I did regularly expose him as an infant to discs, throwing said discs, and disc golf baskets. Back then, I had little expectation.

And it didn’t bother me that he treated discs with the same fleeting interest he had for most of his toys.

Now at three and a half, he’ll throw a few discs when I encourage him to do so, but that’s as far as his interest goes - before he quickly moves on to more favorable things like mud or the water hose. This is, of course, natural, and my wife smiles at my frustration and says

to be patient, but I feel I’m running out of time.

The Fear

Disc golf and sports in general have given me so much pleasure over the years.

However, I fear despite whatever I do to make disc golf or other sports seem fun, my son will never see it that way. I shudder at the thought of having to drag my kid out of the house to play a round of disc golf. Granted, there are many years ahead of me before I may face that scenario, but it’s something I’ve thought about.

My Dad

I never got to play a full disc golf round with my dad. By the time I really got into disc golf, I was a full-grown man and my once super athletic dad was limited in his mobility due to his ailing knees. Throwing some shots in a field was as far as we got, which was great, but nothing like trying to edge out your dad on the last hole of a round.

That’s not to say I lacked for sporting opportunities with my dad. Every main-

stream sport I know - baseball, basketball, football, and soccer - I learned from my dad. And we spent many sports related hours together, be it practicing, watching, or talking about the games we loved.

Still, I wish I could’ve played disc golf with my dad in his prime. I see co-workers who are able to do that now and I want to tell them, “Man you’re really lucky, you get to play disc golf with your dad.”

That’s all I really want with my son – just to enjoy disc golf together.

The Chicken Wing

When my son does throw a disc, for some reason he throws a Chicken Wing.

No, I’m not talking about the greasy poultry variety. I’m talking about the unconventional disc throwing style (may or may not resemble the bird’s limb).

Instead of throwing a disc backhand like most are familiar with, his natural inclination is to throw it using the opposite motion of your arm and wrist. For an advanced player, it’s an inefficient style at best, but for a tiny boy it’s complete mal-

function. When he doesn’t throw it backwards, it goes two feet.

How about a fig newton?

I feel, if I can get him to throw a normal backhand, he’ll be able to get more distance, and therefore be more impressed with himself and want to play more. But he won’t budge with the Chicken Wing.

The only way I can get him to throw backhand is if I bribe him with fig newtons. But the fig newtons are only good for a couple throws and then he’s gone - back to the dirt and poking things in the ground.

Got all the tools

If there is one house in Rock Hill where a boy could learn disc golf, mine is it. I’ve got dozens of discs and a full-size practice basket in the backyard. What’s more, I even bought a mini 3-foot tall basket.

I admit I partly bought that for me, but I also bought it in hopes that a disc golf basket his size might interest him. However, the most use he’s gotten out of the contraption is tangling his toys in the chains or stuffing my shoes in the basket.

So, I back off and wait for when he’s ready.

I know that too much pressure will spoil any activity for the boy. But when will he be ready? Will he ever be ready?

Competitive sports just may not be his thing

It’s probably premature, but I’ve started to prepare myself for the possibility of him not being a sports guy. He may be into theater, or plants, or robotics, which are all fine. However, I have limited wisdom and interest in those fields. If sports do fall by the wayside, I have pledged to swallow that bitter pill and support him in whatever interests he chooses, even if it ends up being competitive video-gaming.

He likes to run

Cartoon/Nora Carothers

PAGE 30

One thing I’ve noticed about my son is that he seems to be a pretty decent runner for a three-and-a-half-year-old. And what’s better, he seems to like it, too. Even though there’s no disc in his hand, I cherish the sight of a smile forming on his face as he tears around the front yard with me.

So even if he doesn’t end up liking disc golf (though I won’t be giving up on him anytime soon), we’ll still have our games of chase, and anything else involving mud.

I don’t think he’ll ever lose interest in that. yc

Todd Harrell plays disc golf, among other things.

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Wordsmithing

Articulate Creativity

By Beth Crosby

Struggling to write? Dip into your creativity

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riting is a pleasure not everyone enjoys. Some people feel passionate about writing any time of the day and can write whenever they sit still or have a pen and paper or screen and keyboard.

Some write because we want to share information. People ask for insight, and we are delighted to share our knowledge and experience.

A while back, I posted this picture of a house in the woods on social media and asked, “If you could write anywhere, where would you choose?” Most people said at the beach or in nature.

Have you had the time or opportunity to write during quarantine? Have you been able to go to the beach, the forest, or to simply envision your happy place?

Have you lost your spark, your fire, your passion? Do you feel as if your mind is devoid of meaningful thought? Can you not absorb another word?

Interact with others

My creativity nearly shriveled and died in the past month. I realized that in being away from people, I was also missing the creativity of being with others, hearing conversations, and seeing the art at The LOOM Coworking Space in Fort Mill.

I missed the painted alley behind Knowledge Perk when I drove by for curbside service.

Facebook and Zoom live sessions didn’t provide the full immersion of being with someone. I didn’t see my friend’s colorful shoes. The interruptions because people didn’t mute themselves or raise their hands made me feel irritated because I perceive that as rude. Then I stepped back and realized everyone doesn’t have my experience or perspective.

I have a unique life, story, perspective, and expertise. They do too. That’s what makes us different. The uniqueness we each have is what adds creativity and opportunity to our lives.

Celebrate your uniqueness

Each of us has important perspectives.

What are yours?

If you’re curious, observe others. What can you learn?

I was reared to believe perfection is a laudable goal. I struggle to overcome this, and my neighbor helped me understand what I lost in focusing on perfection instead of the joy of being with others.

She threw a party, even though she

had a full-time job and a young child. She cleaned up the house so horizontal surfaces and seating were available, but she and her husband focused on good food, a selection of drinks, and having fun.

She will never know (until I send her a copy of this column) how much she impacted my life. Her way was so much more fun than mine. I laughed more than I had in days. Her friends were fun, and I have seen them since.

Perfection steals your voice. Seek progress in writing regularly over perfection.

Your friends don’t care if you wear makeup. If you’re upset, they visit and support you, even if you haven’t showered.

They appreciate you for you. They probably don’t notice your dusty house or dirty dishes unless it’s out of character and causes worry about your well-being.

Writing is the same way. Talk out your thoughts on paper. Say what your real

voice wants to say. You have a unique idea, message, and voice. Share it. You can clean up your writing later. If your writing voice is southern fiction, you don’t want your work to be a stilted academic tome. Your readers don’t want to read that.

They signed up to read your work, based on your creativity and experiences. They want to hear from you. Your continued attention to writing, sharing what’s important, and keeping a journal and list of prompts helps you get your message out of your system and onto paper. Write when the task is difficult, and tell a story different from anyone else’s.

Exercise creativity

While you’re cooped up, enjoy creative outlets. Try painting, gardening, or watching home decorating shows. Try your hand at carpentry, just be sure you don’t damage your writing fingers!

Your creativity gives you a voice. Making an effort to be creative and participating in writing, painting, and other self-expression keeps your voice alive. Don’t let perfection or boredom stifle your voice.

Take out a pen or your keyboard, and record your thoughts, ideas, or character descriptions.

Now is your time!

Join me on FaceBook for a private group called The Writers Circle. We meet on Wednesdays for a writing tip and on Thursdays for critiques. If you would like to participate, I welcome you to join us!

(Note, this is a group and not a page.) yc Beth Crosby is a freelance editor and writing coach. She works with individuals, publishers, and businesses. Contact her at Beth@EditorBeth. com.

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yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Cocktails

Open Source Mixology

By Grady Johnson

The History of Rum Part I rum ration. Oh and by the way, since they are on patrol between the Spice Islands, go ahead and throw in any sugar, cinnamon or whatever else they had on board to make it taste good so everybody will willingly drink the stuff. Admiral Vernon has been somewhat vilified in British naval history as the man who watered down the rum tot and started the tradition’s long decline to its final ban in 1970. But it seems to me like he invented a damn fine cocktail.

The sailors called it grog.

Cheers!

yc

Grady Johnson is an award-winning competitive mixologist based in South Carolina.

Recipe:

Admiral Vernon’s Orders 2 oz. Pussar’s or Smith and Cross Navy Strength rum 3 oz. grapefruit juice 1 oz. Jack Rudy grenadine syrup 1/2 oz. B.G. Reynolds’cinnamon syrup 1 tbsp Cynar 2 dashes Angostura bitters Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake vigorously and decant into ice filled rocks glass or ice filled ceramic tiki mug (the ones shaped like a barrel or skull are perfect).

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A shameful beginning

ugar cane is brutal to harvest, and even harder to squeeze the juice out of. Because of that, solid sugar was an unbelievable luxury - right up there with frankincense and those other wise guy spices. But it really never made it as a preferred source of alcohol. So, in the mid-fifteenth century, when the Europeans began to exploit their newly conquered New World, one of the first crops they started growing with slave labor was sugar cane. Well before that time, the distillation processes were in place, so all it took was somebody to decide to ferment the by-product of sugar manufacturing, molasses, decide it was too gross to profitably sell as a wine-like drink, and distill it to concentrate the alcohol into the spirit we know as rum. The shame we bear is the wealth sugar created was built upon the backs of enslaved Africans.

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Join the Navy and see the world

Fast-forward a couple of centuries, and you have colonial rum firmly established as a trade commodity, scourge of proper society and the defacto Yo Ho Ho pirate fuel. Raw rum in those days was crude, high in alcohol content, vile tasting and burned like hell fire to swallow. In other words, perfect for life as a sailor in the British Navy. You couldn’t pay your crew at sea, so some Navy genius had the idea to reward the crew with a daily dose of alcohol. By the late seventeenth century, wine was out and rum was on board. So every day, around noon, you got a half pint of rum. It was a very British event -the crew properly assembled and turned out, drums beating, flags waving and each man’s portion carefully measured. Occasionally, someone would cry foul, accuse a mate of dilution and the Rum Bosun would be compelled to “proof” the high

alcohol content by mixing it with gunpowder on the deck and igniting it so all could see the puff of smoke. So think about thisyou drank a half pint of 151 rum every day!

Then you climbed in the rigging, loaded cannons and did all sorts of dangerous heave-ho stuff, in heavy seas on pitching decks. Where do I sign up?

Garnish with a lime wheel and cinnamon stick

Want to get Noticed?

You can’t make up a story this good

So around the middle of the 1700’s along comes Admiral Edward Vernon who observes lots of British sailors falling out of the rigging, puts two and two together and figures he’d better water that rum down a little or he won’t have much of a navy left. Coincidentally, along with a drunken navy is his observation that his crew stays healthy on long voyages when they are compelled to eat a daily ration of citrus fruit - which they hate, because it’s sour.

So what does he do? He encourages them to squeeze the juice into the watered down

Advertise in YC Magazine!

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yc Nutrition & Food Safety

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Your Food, Your Kitchen, And You

By Angela P. Forbes, MS, RDN, LD

Somewhere down in the Pawpaw patch

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hen I was growing up in South Carolina, we kids played outdoors most days. The weather didn’t matter; I was all about being outside - running, biking, swimming, climbing trees and exploring. I’ve always enjoyed the woods and creating trails and forts, as we called them. I absolutely loved the treehouse in the Swiss Family Robinson movies; it was (almost) my favorite Disney World attraction. Our forts were a far cry from the Swiss Family Robinson treehouse, but our imaginings took us a long way.

While exploring, I loved picking/eating wild fruit. My family always had a big garden, so I was accustomed to having melons, green beans, corn, etc. in one form or another pretty much year ‘round. But there was something kind of neat about eating fruit in the woods. We picked blackberries, plums, black cherries, peaches, muscadines, ate the nectar from honey suckle and chewed on sour weeds. I guess we imagined surviving off the native vegetation like the Robinson family.

A native fruit I (don’t think I’ve ever) heard about is the pawpaw. Apparently, pawpaw is the largest edible fruit native to the U.S., including the Carolinas. Making It Grow included a segment about pawpaw trees on the May 12, 2020 show (link below). Viewing it, I was surprised I’ve never seen the pawpaw tree or fruit. Surely, I would have climbed a tree like that to get to that fruit!

Harvest is from mid-August into October. The fruit grows in clusters of 2-12 pawpaw. Each individual fruit grows 3-6 inches long, looks like a kidney bean and can weigh 5-16 ounces. The inside texture is like rich, creamy custard. Simply slice the fruit in half and scoop the flesh out of the skin like it’s a cup. The taste is described as a combination of banana, mango, pineapple.

Pawpaw are a good source of potassium, vitamin C (about 1/3 as an orange), and several amino acids. The protein in pawpaw contains all essential amino acids. Pawpaw contains significant amounts of calcium, zinc, phosphorous, niacin, and riboflavin.

Pawpaw is difficult to sell in retail establishments due to short shelf life. It may be

found at local farmers markets and roadside stands. You may get lucky and find pawpaw in wooded areas and along creek beds locally. Just keep your eyes open! If you do get your hands on a pawpaw, rumor has it the ice cream is fantastic!

https://www.facebook.com/makingitgrow/videos/10156109232023427 https://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/ pawpaw/ Kentucky State University – www.pawpaw.kysu.edu. yc

Pawpaw Ice Cream

Angela P. Forbes, MS, RDN, LD, is the Regional Food Safety and Nutrition Agent at the Clemson University - Cooperative Extension Service offices in York. She strives to bring practical and useful information that is researched-based to the citizens of South Carolina. You can reach her at 803-385-6181.

1 qt. cold milk 6 eggs ½ tsp. salt

1½ c. sugar 1 c. pureed pawpaw pulp, or more to taste juice of 1 lemon

1 qt. heavy cream 2 Tbsp. vanilla

Scald 3 c. of the milk in the top of a double boiler. Beat eggs well; add salt, sugar, and the remaining cup of milk. Stir egg mixture slowly into the hot milk and cook over a small amount of simmering hot water, stirring constantly, until mixture just coats a clean metal spoon. To prevent curdling, do not have the water boiling vigorously, and take care not to overcook.

Stop cooking as soon as the custard coats the spoon and remove from heat at once.

Cool pan of custard in another pan containing cold water, then chill thoroughly in refrigerator.

Combine pawpaw puree with the lemon

juice and add to the chilled custard along with the cream and vanilla. Pour mixture into a chilled 1-gallon ice cream freezer canister and fit dasher into place. Freeze and ripen according to directions accompanying ice cream freezer, or as follows: Fill the freezer tub around the canister with finely cracked ice and salt, using 1part ice cream salt to 8 parts of ice, or about 1 qt. of salt for a gallon-sized ice cream freezer. Fill the freezer half full of ice before adding the first layer of salt, then alternate layers of ice and salt until the tub is filled. Freeze until the ice cream stiffens (about 20 minutes with an

electric ice cream freezer). Then repack the freezer tub with ice or remove the ice cream and place it in an ice cream mold and let the ice cream ripen for several hours before serving.

To repack the freezer, remove the dasher, plug up the hole in the lid of the ice cream canister, drain out the saltwater through the hole in the side of the ice cream freezer, and add fresh ice and salt to fill the freezer tub. Put cracked ice, but no salt, over the top of the canister, too.

Cover the whole freezer with blankets or newspapers and let it stand in a cool place for several hours.

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yc The Great Outdoors July 2020

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

Go Play Outside

By Cameron Shook

Camping with kids

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ome people are scared of camping.

They don’t like the idea of being out in the woods at night, being uncomfortable, constantly feeling filthy, and functioning as a moving food source for mosquitos/bears/opposums. Everyone has a sense of fear when it comes to camping with kids. All of the previous concerns get magnified, both out of a sense of keeping children safe and for preserving the last functioning bits of your mind. Having children already does a doozy on your critical functions, but having uncomfortable children confined in close quarters for long periods of time has been shown to physically eat away brain matter. With all that said, camping with kids is fun! It makes even boring trips that you’ve done a dozen times new and exciting again. We recently just finished our first weekend camping trip with a teething eight-month-old, and here’s what we learned.

Be prepared to bail early and easily.

First and foremost, keep expectations realistic, and don’t overextend yourself. Our first camping trip was at Kings Mountain State Park for several reasons: we had electricity for a box fan to keep ourselves cool at night (this was in mid-May), if things went sideways we could pack up and be home in less than 2 hours, we had nice bathroom and shower facilities, and there was a list of things we could do simply walking from the campground. If the weather turned bad, I would have had zero hesitation in packing up and heading home. In fact, he started getting uncomfortable late in the afternoon of the second day, so we packed up and headed home instead of toughing it out another night. A great trip stayed great; trying to force it further would have made a great trip very mediocre. I’m a firm believer that bad experiences will turn off newbies from trying something ever again, so keep good things good.

Everything is harder.

If possible, bring extra people: friends, family, other crazy people that want to try camping with children, etc. After nearly a decade of camping with just me and the wife, it was weird to suddenly have half your manpower for setting up camp, cooking, etc gone because someone has to PAGE 34

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

watch or entertain the baby. While over time that will get better, many hands make light work and until the kids are willing contributors to camp, it’s great to have extra people.

Cooking can also be more difficult, but my advice is the same for camping with children as it was when I was camping without any; making cooking easy and delicious. Pie irons are pretty fast and simple, with a variety of hot sandwiches, pizzas, and desserts you can make. Foil meals (kielbasa mixed with potatoes, onions, bell peppers, etc) where you simply drop them over coals of a fire can be prepped at home and ready to eat 20 minutes after placing them over the fire. Some people delight in preparing elegant camping meals that require a lot of time and effort not only in the making, but also in the cleaning up; I am not that person. Hot dogs cooked over coals make me just as happy as a 4 course dutch oven meal.

SO. MUCH. STUFF.

Packing equipment suddenly becomes longer, and more voluminous, than you ever thought humanly possible. In the past, I could fit a four day luxury basecamp setup in the trunk of our Corolla; for this weekend trip, I could barely stuff it in a minivan with the rear seats folded down.

While the amount of stuff will be hard to whittle down, keeping it organized makes a world of difference. I’m a fan of the Rubbermaid method, where you have a large Rubbermaid (with a fancy label of “Camp

Kitchen” scrawled in sharpie on the outside) with smaller containers of all your supplies neatly sorted into smaller bins.

Long ago we dedicated an entire dollar store trip to filling those bins with plates, cookware, soap, etc so that we don’t forget anything; it’s always packed and ready to go. If you don’t camp enough to justify that, make a list three weeks before your departure date. Pack it a week before your departure date. And probably around two days before you leave, you’ll remember what you forgot. There are a lot of premade camping check lists floating around (this one by REI is fairly comprehensive) so use those as a starting point.

A few things that I’ve always found helpful (and I don’t always see on lists) are box fans, puzzle mats, good chairs, and quality gear in general.

Box fans not only cool you down but function as white noise machines to help drown out the noises of a busy campground and keep your kiddos asleep and less afraid of nightly noises. Heck, they help me sleep better, so I use them all the time.

Since our kid is crawling and trying to walk on his own, and gets very upset when not allowed to, we bring foam puzzle mats and line the bottom of the tent with them.

It gives him room to crawl and play and as an added benefit gives a bit of insulation in cooler weather.

On the same level as your tent, sleeping pad/bag, etc is your chair. Nearly 20 years ago, my family had a eureka moment that good camping is “all about the chair” (we

July 2020

still need to finish that book) and it’s true.

If you have an uncomfortable chair or are trying to sit an entire weekend on a log or a picnic table, you’re going to be miserable.

And no, those little backpacking tripods don’t count, unless you’re backpacking.

Good gear is always worth the price if you use it enough. If you camp for three days, take the cost of a decent hotel room and buy yourself an equivalent value in gear. Our sleeping setup, while not cheap, meant that whatever the weather, I knew we would be comfortable, dry, and sleeping well - at least, as well as you can with a teething eight-month-old.

Liberty, and the pursuit of happiness

What if you have kids, not an eightmonth-old, who want to run and play and scream and be active? Well, camping is probably the best thing possible for them.

Most state parks have a playground, and if your kids aren’t afraid of a little cold water there is no better sleep you can give them than letting them splash in a mountain stream or lake all day. Let them ride bikes around the campground circle, go gather firewood from the forest, build log bridges over creeks; anything and everything to wear them out so they fall asleep eating their post-dinner s’more.

While out having fun, the same rules apply to every person in the group: drink lots of water, don’t skip meals, don’t forget sunscreen. Bonking and sunburn have ruined more trips than I care to mention without children - with kids it’s a full blown disaster. If you get sunburned, the ensuing crabbiness will convince your kids that you hate camping and they won’t want to go again. If they get sunburned, they won’t sleep and that’s all they’ll remember of the experience.

Just Go

Much like parenting, every child and every family are different. You might find that your kids love to sit nicely in their chairs

yc

and stare at the fire all day. Or, you’ll have children who pretend they’re werewolves and like to howl at the moon every night.

So, take this advice as a starting point and go out and figure out what works best for you and your family. yc Cameron Shook is an avid outdoors enthusiast who has more outdoor experience than most people twice his age. Cameron is also an avid photographer whose images have been seen in YC Magazine for several years. You can contact Cameron through camshuck@gmail.com. You can locate other columns and comments by Cam at www.shookscamphere.com or follow him on Instagram @shookscamphere.

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Select products are Buy 1 Get Second one 50% off • We accept most insurances • Fast Response

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Part of YOUR COMMUNITY! PAGE 35

yc

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Your Library

Check It Out

By Stacy Williams

Keep reading, York County!

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here is still time to log reading minutes for the Summer Learning Challenge. Help us reach our 2020 goal of reading 5 million minutes! Participants have until Friday, July 31 to log their hours.

Just log in to your Beanstack account by visiting yclibrary.org/slc. Did you know that you can also track your reading this summer with the new Beanstack Tracker app? Free downloads are available in Google Play for Android devices and the App Store for iOS devices. After downloading the app, please be sure to search for “York County Library” and login in using your Beanstack account information. If you have registered with Beanstack during one of our previous reading challenges, you do not need to register again.

For each age group that participates and completes goals and activities, incentives are awarded (while supplies last). Everyone earns a prize for the first 10 hours of reading logged. Prizes will be available for pickup as a part of our curbside service. Please call ahead to your local library branch to arrange pickup for prizes.

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Thank you for participating in this year’s first virtual summer learning challenge.

We hope that reading throughout the summer will continue into the school year with each family household.

Virtual Summer Performances

Things are a little different this summer! We miss seeing our patrons at the Library during summer performances. For the safety of patrons and staff, this year’s summer programs and performances are online at facebook.com/yorkcountylibrary. For more information, visit events. yclibrary.org. July Summer Performances: Jester Jim Comedy Show (July 1-5)Juggling fire and spinning iPads is just the start! Jester Jim packs this live broadcast with tricks, balancing, and laughs that will leave you wanting more.

Dreamer’s Carnival (July 6-12) - Tune in for a one-of-a-kind magic show filled with stories, origami, and Kamishbai (Japanese picture board storytelling).

Porkchop Productions: Goldilocks (July 14-16) - Ever wonder what happened to Goldilocks after she left the home of the three bears?

Soap Bubble Circus: Interactive Magic (July 20-24) - A oneof-a-kind bubble show mixing comedy and music.

Professor Whizzpop: Kids Magician (July 27-31) – Experience a fantastic

menagerie of magical creatures: unicorns, dragons, and bookworms.

The Friends of the York County Library generously fund and sponsor the Summer Learning Challenge each year. Through membership dues, book sales, and special fundraising activities, the Friends of the Library have provided over $40,000 each year to summer programs, to encourage and promote literacy for children, teens, and adults.

New Digital Service Added

Kanopy is the latest resource available in YCL’s online Virtual Library.

With Kanopy, stream thousands of documentaries, movies, and educational videos, all for free! Watch content from Criterion, PBS, Great Courses, Kino Lorber, and more on your TV, desktop, and mobile devices. Get started today! Visit yclibrary/virtual-library. A valid YCL card and email are required. Monthly borrows are limited to 5 credits.

Summer Skills Camp

Keep learning every day! Brainfuse HelpNow, is easy, intuitive and engaging eLearning for all ages and levels. Have fun learning activities and lessons to help avoid the summer slide. Visit the Summer Skills Camp for fun learning activities on the HelpNow homepage. http://main.yorkh. sc.brainfuse.com/authenticate.asp

YCL Reopening Plan: Phase 2 and Phase 3

For the health and safety of patrons and staff, all YCL locations will remain closed to the public until further notice. York County Library began Phase 2 of its reopening plan on Monday, June 8. Limited services such as curbside pickup and telephone assistance is now available. Anyone with a York County Library card can check out materials they have placed on hold (books, audiobooks, DVDs, ILLs, and HotSpots). If you received a temporary eCard, please call your local YCL branch to have your eCard converted into a regular Library card.

Patrons can place book holds using the online catalog (https://sclends.lib.sc.us/ eg/opac/home) or can call their local li-

brary branch for help. Notifications will be sent when the item placed on hold is ready for pickup. ‘Make & Take’ activities will also be available for pickup during Phase 2. Please hold all Book Club Kits and Kinder Kits until further notice. Outside book drops will continue to remain open, and all items will be properly quarantined. If patrons have reader’s advisory, reference, genealogy, summer learning signup, technical assistance, or general questions, they can call the main number at any YCL location.

Curbside Pick-Up & Phone Service Hours: Fort Mill & Rock Hill: 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Monday - Friday; 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. Saturday Clover, Lake Wylie, & York: 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, & Friday A date to reopen buildings to the public is still to be determined. Our goal for Phase 3 will be to provide access for patrons to browse the collection and use computers, in compliance with social distancing guidelines. For further information, visit yclibrary.org or follow the YCL Facebook page at facebook.com/yorkcountylibrary.

Thank You, York County!

Thank you for your patronage, continued support, and patience. Even though we have had to close our doors, we are still working to provide you with the best service possible. With a Library card, York County residents have access to online reference resources, homework help, learning courses, and a Virtual Library. We will continue to make updates to our services, to better serve our community. If you have questions or need to contact us while we are closed, please visit online at yclibrary. org/contact-us. yc Stacy Williams is the Marketing Manager of the York County Library. She may be contacted by email at stacy.williams@yclibrary.org. York County Libraries are located in Fort Mill, Clover, York, Lake Wylie and Rock Hill.

yc Aging

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

Successfully Senior

By Deb Pittman

Planning for retirement

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ecause there are often unexpected expenses people face in retirement, planning is essential. Following are surprising expenses people may not consider when planning for retirement.

Healthcare costs

Eligible beneficiaries have Medicare in retirement, so no problem here, right?

Not exactly. If you retire early, you will need to buy your own health care coverage for a few years. Unless you qualify because of a disability, Medicare is not available until you are 65. There are both premiums and cost-sharing associated with Medicare. These costs can add up for people on fixed incomes.

Next, Medicare doesn’t mean totally free health care. Most people do not pay the premium for Medicare Part A — that is your hospitalization coverage — but there is a $1,408 deductible as well as some possible co-insurance costs. Medicare Part B, which covers outpatient care, has a standard $144.60 premium and a $198 deductible, after which you pay a share of doctor, outpatient therapy and medical equipment costs.

If you choose original Medicare --Parts A and B-- and want help filling in the gaps, you may want to buy a Medicare Supplement also known as Medigap insurance.

You may also need Part D, if you lack creditable drug coverage, which also has additional premiums and costs.

If instead of original Medicare, you to go with a Medicare Advantage plan, also known as Medicare Part C, you will still be responsible for paying the Part B premium.

Most advantage plans bundle all your original Medicare services with drug coverage and other things such as dental, hearing or vision care. Those additional services usually come at an additional cost.

Living independently is everyone’s choice. No one likes to think they might not be able to care for themselves.

Long-term care is the largest expense not covered by Medicare. You will spend an average of $3,628 a month to live in an assisted living facility or $7,698 a month for a private nursing home room. Unless you had the foresight to purchase a long-term care insurance policy — not cheap in and of itself — you will need to cover that cost of care yourself.

Home renovations

Between long-term care costing so much and seniors’ active lifestyles, it is not surprising that AARP found 90 percent of those age 65 and older want to stay in their homes throughout retirement. Known as aging in place, this practice brings its own set of costs.

Doorways may need to be widened, a bedroom brought to the main floor and the bathroom renovated to accommodate the limited mobility that often comes with advanced age. AARP also recommends installing nonslip flooring, an accessible entryway without steps and lever door handles.

Social security and other income

If your budget is tight even after claiming Social Security, you may want to keep working or take a part-time job. However, if you have started claiming those retirement benefits early, your outside income could end up taking a bite out of your benefit checks. Until you reach your full retirement age (FRA), which is around 66 for most folks, the government limits how much extra money you can make without consequences.

Needy adult children

Parents are risking their retirement savings to help support adult children, according to a recent survey. Adult children may need your money to pay their rent, student loans, phone bills or any of dozens of other possible expenses. How likely are you to support your adult children financially? A poll conducted by www.bankrate. com/personal-finance/financial-independence-survey-april-2019/ found 74 percent of parents said they had helped their adult children with money for bills or other spending expenses.

A long life

In 1950, the average lifespan in the U.S. was only 68.2 years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

That’s significantly better than the 47-year average lifespan people had in 1900, but still not enough to give most people much time in retirement.

It’s a different story nowadays. Babies born in 2020 should live to an average age of 78 years. Meanwhile, a 75-year-old in 2015 could reasonably expect to make it another 12 years to 87, by the government’s estimates.

A long life means extended opportunities to enjoy friends, family and hobbies, but it also compounds all the expenses detailed above. Most notably, it gives inflation more time to eat away at the value of retirement savings and means more years covering health care expenses.

There is no way to eliminate most of these expenses in retirement, but there is no reason to get blindsided. Work these costs into your financial plan so you will be ready for whatever may come.

July 2 - Green Pond UMC, 983 Bethel St., Clover July 6 - Zion Baptist Church, 5376 McConnell’s Hwy (322) Rock Hill July 10 - Unity Presbyterian Church, 303 Tom Hall St., Fort Mill July 17 - Sharon UMC Church, 3001 Shannon St., Sharon, tentative July 24 - Ebenezer Baptist Church, 290 S. Herlong Ave., Rock Hill yc More information about aging and issues important to senior citizens is available at www. aging.sc.gov or by calling Deb Pittman at 803-329-9670

Aging & Disability Resource Center • • •

Family Caregiver Support Program Long Term Care Options Medicare Counseling Extra Help Programs

• • •

Medication Management Fraud Prevention Information, Referral & Assistance

Inflation

This isn’t something you can pencil into your budget as a line item, but inflation can’t be ignored. It is tempting to do so, though, since the U.S. has spent the past decade in a low-inflation environment and the next few years should not be much different.

Rising inflation has the potential to erode your money’s purchasing power and push up the cost of everything you buy — from food to rent to travel.

Chester, Lancaster, Union, York Counties (803) 329-9670 1-800-662-8330 www.Catawba-Aging.com 2051 Ebenezer Road, Rock Hill, SC 29732

PAGE 37

yc

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

A Dog’s Life

Pawprints On Our Heart

By Lauren Paige Powell

Understanding a dog’s body language

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ome 4.7 million dog bites occur in the United States every year and almost 800,000 of those require medical attention. Forty two percent of the human victims are age 14 or under. Dogs become aggressive for several reasons, including pain, hunger, fear, dominance, genetics, territoriality and learned behavior. Thankfully, dogs are also social creatures and excellent communicators. Biting is also a last resort for most dogs. They typically go out of their way to communicate their intentions well before they attempt to bite.

Understanding dogs’ communication and body language will not only keep you safe but will minimize the number of dogs euthanized because they are labeled a bite risk. If your dog ever growls, never punish

him for that; it’s their warning sign that something is wrong. It is a dog’s way of letting you know they are uncomfortable with the situation. If you punish them for that growl, next time they will skip the growl and go for the direct bite. When your dog growls, be patient, kindly stop what you are doing, or remove the dog from the situation.

I’ll begin by clearing up the misconception of a wagging tail. I hear so many people say, “He is wagging his tail so you can go pet him” or “she was wagging her tail when she bit my neighbor.” Although a wagging tail can be a sign of a friendly dog, the type of tail wag is the key. Dogs communicate mostly by the way they hold their tail. A friendly tail wag is a floppy tail, which is

also accompanied by relaxed ears, opened or slightly squinty eyes, and a more relaxed body posture. Most friendly barks are a high-pitched, puppy-sounding bark. Some dogs just bark out of excitement. Also, look for a “play bow,” which is a sign of a very friendly dog who literally just wants to play and comes in peace. Some people see a dog running around barking and play bowing as a sign of aggression, which is never true.

Dogs primarily communicate through body language. Let’s say a dog makes direct eye contact with you, his ears are standing up, his chest is puffed out and his body is stiff. Even though the tail is stiffly wagging, or held high and slowly waving, this particular dog is telling you not to come any closer. Doing so could escalate into

a bite. To be safe, always avoid direct eye contact, but keep the dog in sight. Slowly back away, don’t yell, don’t run, and try to remain calm. Hopefully, the dog will lose interest and walk away.

If you don’t understand when a dog is communicating fear, that may also lead to aggressive behaviors. For example, suppose you’re walking down the street and you come across a dog leashed to a fence.

The dog has her tail tucked under her body. Her eyes are squinted, she avoids looking at you directly and her body is held low to the ground. As you approach her, she tries to escape, but she can’t - because she is tethered. Instead, she starts to bark and growl at you. You continue to approach her to give her the attention Depositphotos.com

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yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

you think she needs. Of course, you reach out to pet her in a friendly gesture and she bites you. Whose fault was it? She gave you all the warning signs and had no way to escape. Unfortunately, there was a miscommunication.

A few other key points to always remember, always ask the dog’s owner if you may approach and pet their dog, no matter what. Never walk towards a dog. Always let the dog come to you - on their terms. When the dog does come to you, avert your eyes, keep your body loose and relaxed. Smile and slowly blink your eyelids; this will signal to the dog that you are not a threat.

Turn your body so that you are not facing the dog (45 degrees) and let the dog sniff you, not your hand. Fearful dogs often mistake the open palm as a threat, especially when your hand is thrust towards them.

Never pet e strange dog on top of its head.

If you care about the dog’s feelings instead of what you want, then revisit petting and allow the dog to sniff, which is very enjoyable for them. If you plan to spend some time around this dog, then allow them to get acquainted without petting. Then when they push against you, you may gently rub only the part of the dog that is pressed against you. This behavior from you will build trust with the dog.

When young children are introduced to dogs, the adults need to maintain control by holding the child’s hand and teaching the child that dogs are not toys and not to be treated roughly, or petted, until the

July 2020

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Depositphotos.com

dog gets to know them. Parents also need to know which dogs are safe to pet. I recommend allowing your child to pet only the backside of a dog and not the end with the teeth.

Dogs are not humans and they do not understand why we do the things we do to them. Unless you are certain a dog is enjoying our behavior, then don’t do it. yc

Lauren Paige Powell is a Canine Behavioral Specialist and the owner/operator of Gallop and Growl. For more information visit www.GallopAndGrowl.com.

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yc Animal Health July 2020

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

Living With Animals

By Bert Platt, DVM

The “Big One”

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L CA

S ANIMAL H ROLINA OSP ITA L,L LC

CE

hen I submitted last month’s column to our editor, Jim, I told him that I truly hoped that this month I wouldn’t be writing about COVID19. Little did I know at the time how much not about COVID this column would be! As I begin tonight, I am in my bed at Piedmont Medical Center, awaiting cardiac bypass surgery scheduled for tomorrow morning. So, other than reporting that I indeed tested negative for COVID when admitted, we’ll talk about my past two days and how they have impacted all of my days to come.

I have been working hard to prepare for our family’s annual spring fishing trip to the Florida Keys. Mowing the pasture, installing an automatic driveway gate, tending to the garden and the chickens, and prepping the truck and the boat have made the last month of “lockdown” busier than usual. Because of an indefinite travel quarantine in the Keys, our trip wasn’t even a sure thing until just last week, so all of my preparation time has been very compressed.

On Sunday evening, during my daily walk with Nancy, I began to feel some odd tingling sensations in my hands, arms, and upper chest. I was tired, but I had no actual pain. Within 20 minutes the sensations ended, and the next 48 hours were normal.

Tuesday night after another busy, active day, the tingling returned, along with a profound sleepiness. When I went to bed, early by my standards, I felt a “catch” in my back. The discomfort itself was not se-

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vere but it was very unusual and gave me a sense of “unwellness” that was concerning.

Because I could not come up with a reasonable explanation for my symptoms, I agreed with my wife and son that a trip to the local ER was appropriate, just to know for sure that all was OK. All was not. Although no severe damage had been done to my heart, the diagnostic tests showed that I was indeed having a heart attack! My heart enzymes continued to rise and my discomfort persisted. Treatment was started to lessen the stress on the heart, and I was admitted to Piedmont.

After being transferred upstairs, a Cardiac Catheterization procedure was done yesterday. It turns out that I have 90% blockage in my Left Anterior Descending coronary artery. (This is commonly known as the “widowmaker,” because for some people, the first sign of trouble with occlusion of this artery is sudden death from heart attack.) Another artery has 65% blockage. Both blockages are too close to where the arteries branch to allow stints to be placed, so to protect my heart from a catastrophic blockage I will have Bypass surgery in the morning.

Interestingly, our animal patients do not develop coronary artery disease, and so do not have heart attacks. Many other types of heart disease do occur in pets, but not heart attacks.

I will purposely write the ending of this article after I get back home next week, because some of the final details and specifics of my story are not yet known. But I will write tonight about some things I do know, because the most important things that I know are totally unrelated to the outcome of my surgery.

1. I know that God is in control. It doesn’t matter that I often think I know what is best; God has me in His hand, and nothing can change that.

2. I know that all of us should be very aware of what is normal and not normal for our bodies. My medical knowledge has sometimes caused me to not seek out medical care when I knew the probable causes of my symptoms.

But this time, because I knew what was normal for me and what was not, I was able to recognize that I needed to get professional help. One of my big

points of emphasis since beginning to write these articles in YC Magazine is the importance of having a close relationship between your veterinarian and your pet, so that subtle changes can be more easily noticed. There is nothing wrong with a certain level of self-help, but it is always wrong to ignore obvious symptoms that should prompt a healthcare visit.

3. I now know with even more certainty that there is no such thing as a typical heart attack symptom. I had often heard about crushing chest pain, pressure, shortness of breath, and irregular pulse being associated with a heart attack, but I had none of those signs. Don’t assume that every cough is lung cancer or that every shoulder pain is always caused by a heart problem, but at the same time do not ignore symptoms. It’s your (or your pets’) doctors’ job to find out what is causing your symptoms, and the better they know you, the more accurately they can interpret them.

Contact your healthcare provider’s office to get their recommendations on how to investigate symptoms you don’t understand.

4. I’ve always known it, but the last 48 hours have been a wonderful reminder of how much my family loves each other. We have wonderful fun and happy times together, and when the tough times come, we hold each other even closer. I know that not all families have been as blessed as we have in this area, and I am very thankful that we have each other to lean on right now.

What a busy week this has been! I have survived my surgery and hospitalization and went home on the fourth day post-op.

My appetite is back. I am being a good patient at home by rising carefully and beginning to regain some strength. I am taking care of my body as it heals, and I am looking forward to completing the first stages of recovery.

Please let me share a few random observations and tell you what else I know is true: I received excellent medical care at PMC. My problem was diagnosed quickly

and treated in the best manner possible.

When awakening from the surgery I was in a great deal of pain, but as the chest tubes were removed the next day the pain has been very manageable. Since coming home from the hospital three days ago, occasional Tylenol alone has been enough to control the discomfort, and, so far, I am still quite tired, but am moving and feeling great.

The hospital is a great place to get care, but a terrible place to get rest. With so many monitors and checks and beeps and lights and extraneous conversations that go on 24/7, I could not sleep at all. When a patient already hurts or is uncomfortable and all that separates them from the hallway is a thin fabric curtain, it is impossible to rest. As a healthcare professional, I get it; vital signs and blood draws and X-rays and other interventions have to be intense in a situation such as mine. But the unruly patient neighbors that the nursing staff had to deal with and the few staff members who seemed oblivious to simple ways to lower the volume of their activities made it difficult to rest.

I do feel for the nursing team. They constantly walk a fine line between encouraging and berating patients into doing the things they must do to get better. My eternal gratitude to those staff members who seemed to tune right in on the best ways to provide me comfort.

But all of that is past. I feel well, I have been reminded of my blessings, and with my faith and trust in God, I’m ready to move forward. yc Bert Platt has lived and practiced veterinary medicine in York County for four decades, seeing many changes and advances in pet medical care during that time. The love and relationships between pets and families have remained constant, though, and he is still passionate about the many new ways that veterinarians can help make those relationships the best they can be. Bert’s monthly Animal Health column will address a variety of medical and animal welfare issues, focusing on how those issues impact and enhance the lives of animals and people. Bert and his wife, Nancy, enjoy their time together traveling and are active in their church and community. They are blessed to be surrounded by four generations of family who also call York County home. Questions or comments can be sent to Bert at bertplatt@me.com.

yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine

July 2020

July 2020

FULL MOON 12:44 a.m., July 5 LAST QUARTER 7:31 a.m., July 12 NEW MOON 1:33 p.m., July 20 FIRST QUARTER 8:33 a.m., July 27

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July 2020

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yc magazine... York County’s Entertainingly Informative Magazine