Liz Writes Life 8-26-2020

 August 26, 2020

Liz Writes Life

Dreaded puncture vine is growing. All it takes is a good thunderstorm in July or August to get it going. Last year, I started getting rid of the pokey plants by cutting them out of the ground and “carefully” putting them in a black trash bag I was dragging with me. I remember my hand quickly got tired of the cutting/digging in the hard, dry dirt, so I decided to use a sprayer with herbicide. That is what I am doing this year -- spraying the plants. I try to do a gallon each morning and should have most of it conquered by the end of this week. Yay!

It is the end of August and I wish it was also the last of the dog days of summer. Ha, ha, the weather predictions are not showing much change in the weather, which is hot! The smoke certainly creates a gloominess that makes the heat of the day seem to drag-on especially when it takes a while for the temps to cool in the evening.

Several weeks ago, Barb Turner, from Montague, called me to ask about purchasing some dill. I was happy to give her as much as she needed. No, I didn’t sell it. In our conversation, she told me of a recent scam. She was called by a man, who told her she had won the Publishers Clearing House millions. Barb was cautious and started asking questions, especially when she was asked if she had a bank account for the money to be sent. When asked, the man gave her his phone number and after having a relative check on-line about Publisher’s Clearing House, Barb called him back. He actually answered and she told him he was a scammer.

I checked the company on-line and it states that their big winners are notified by mail or the PCH Prize patrol actually showing up at your doorstep like it shows on the television commercials. It does not notify big winners by telephone, email or bulk mail.

There is another scam involving Publisher’s Clearing House. In this one, you are mailed a check and told it is a partial prize. You are then asked to cash it and send a portion back to claim the full prize award. Do not do this! This is a fake check. Publishers Clearing House does not ask for money to claim a prize.

Thanks Barb for the heads-up. We certainly need to be careful.

I touted my flowers last week, but some are feeling the effects of a long summer. The red bee balm look bedraggled as do half of the hollyhocks. On a bright note, the seven lemon yellow cosmos are finally blooming.

Surprisingly, the tomatoes started turning red in early August. After giving them better fertilizer this year, the plants are large and hardy with lots of green tomatoes. Good thing I am about done canning dill pickles, cuz it will soon be time to do tomatoes.

Voting

There has been quite a bit of discussion on the 19^th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which was ratified by 36 states on August 18, 1920. Then on August 26, 1920, the amendment was certified. Women could vote! For decades, many women had worked, organized, been jailed and demanded the right to vote. Wyoming was the first state in 1869 to officially allow women the privilege of voting. Tennessee was the 36^th state that provided the number necessary to secure adoption of the amendment.

So, on Nov. 2, 1920, women voted in the U.S. Presidential election. Republican U.S. Senator Warren G. Harding won over Democratic Ohio Governor, James M. Cox.

As I was reading (on-line) about the 19^th Amendment, I also read about other issues in the United States and realized that our country had many ongoing battles within its borders – much like today. The difference is we now learn about them much faster. You see, it was on August 20, 1920 that the first commercial radio station began operation. That was in Detroit, Michigan. Oh, the advances in media technology in 100 years!

Here are a few other facts from 1920, some fun and some not-so-fun.

On January 6^th, the trade of Babe Ruth from the Boston Red Sox to the New York Yankees was made public.

On January 7^th, the New York State Assembly refused to seat five duly elected Socialist assemblymen.

On January 17^th, prohibition of alcohol in the United States began after the 18^th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution had been certified.

On January 19^th, the American Civil Liberties Union was founded.

On January 30^th, a professional wrestling match between Joe Stecher and Earl Caddock at Madison Square Garden was filmed and is the oldest surviving movie of a pro-wrestling match.

On Feb. 14^th, the League of Women Voters was founded in Chicago.

On March 19^th, the U.S. Congress refused to ratify the Treaty of Versailles.

On March 28^th, the 1920 Palm Sunday tornado outbreak hit the Great Lakes region and the Deep South states causing much damage.

In June, the U.S. Post Office ruled that children could not be sent via parcel post.

On July 29^th, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation began construction of the Link River Dam as part of the Klamath Reclamation Project.

On Aug. 20^th, the National Football League was founded.

On Sept. 16^th, the Wall Street bombing using a horse and wagon left in front of the J.P. Morgan building killed 38 people and injured 400.

In September, Westinghouse began selling the first domestic radio sets in stores. Cost for a radio was a whopping $10.

Oh, the relevancy and irony in these issues 100 years later!

Liz Bowen began writing ranch and farm news, published in newspapers, in 1976. She is a native of Siskiyou County and lives near Callahan. Columns from the past can be found at: lizwriteslife.blogspot.com. Call her at 530-467-3515.

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