Hello Family Bloggers!

Sister Peggy here checking in with a few pictures from 2369 Doran Road and the old Decker Homestead. In the photo at the left is me at about two months of age taking a full belly pounding from brother Bernie (13 months old) with brother Joe (3 1/2 years old) in the supporting role. In the back ground is our trusty, old dog, Socks. Unfortunately there's no audio but I'm sure Joe is saying, "What the heck! She hasn't burped yet!?"

:circa 1960





Can you can guess who the folks are in the photo to the left? You might be surprised who these players are. Start from left to right, first row we have Peggy, Andrew Bernie; 2nd row left to right we have "Mountain" (Martin) Grandpa Bayer, Mom, Dad and the fellow on the far right is Slim, Strap-Slappy Pickins (a.k.a Joe-boy).

: circa June 1968

Student Teaching!!!

Hey Everyone!
I finally figured out how to get on this blog.

I am currently living at home with Mom and Dad while student teaching and taking a teaching seminar class once a week at Alfred University. Tomorrow, I end my first placement at HF-L. Monday, October 28th I will be starting my second placement at Bloomfield Elementary. The kids are great here at HF-L! I am in charge of a photography class, 3 studio art classes and a sculpture class. Im soooo proud of everyone's ecomplishments! Both the studio and sculpture kids have really done an amazing job on thier projects which I:

-Brainstormed myself
-Wrote a 5-6 page lesson plan
-Taught
-Facilitated/helped along the way
-Graded
-Displayed the artwork.

When going into college, in never thought I would really love being a teacher, I just wanted to do it for something concrete to pay my loans back with. However, from the first week up until now, I realize I do like teaching a lot and it has been a good choice to take this road. I can definitely see myself in my own classroom someday. The question is...High School or Elementary? I'll see what I think after this next placement. I graduate in December with a Major in Art and Design, a Minor in Education and will be certified to teach art K-12 in the state of NY!
On the weekends I am working at an Italian Resturaunt. I love the people I work with and now that the school year has started, the money has been good.

I'll give you the update on Elementary Teaching when I am at Bloomfield!

Cummings Nature Center, Naples NY (Ranger School Woodsman's Team)

Brain gets a workout with the Ranger School Woodsman's Team at the Cummins Nature Center in Naples, N.Y.

Nothing like a little bit of log cutting and pulp tossing to get the heart pumping.

Dear Family,

A unique event took place over the weekend that my brother Larry and I were fortunate to attend.

It all started with a call from an old friend of mine Saturday morning. Jim Trott once played in a bluegrass band I came to know and was an unofficial roadie for, ‘The Hogs Back Ridge Band’ (or Hogs for short). Jim was so excited on the phone that his voice was trembling as he prepared me for the news to follow.

Jim explained that through his daughter (via face book) someone had inquired as to the name "Trott" and asked if she knew Jim Trott. The people called Jim old friends connected and he in turn learned of a bluegrass gathering that was to be in Lima, on Doran Road. Jim was blown away when he realized the event was on the former Decker farm and called me first thing Saturday morning. He had spent the previous night pickin’ and singing with these friends and was heading back again that afternoon to play some more. Another one of the former Hogs band members was there as well and had recorded a CD with the family in recent years.

I had called Jim earlier in the summer asking him if he would like to attend a bluegrass festival I knew of in Ovid, NY. Mary's cousin, John Denniston, is the mandolin player for the host band (Seneca County Bluegrass) that has the festival on one of the members’ farm for the past couple of summers. I never heard back from Jim regarding the invitation but he had one better for me. It turns out that cousin John was also in the loop of acquaintances and had been to the gathering on Friday night as well....small world.

The extended host family once lived in the Wayland area and used to come out to see the Hogs play whenever they were in the area. Now after 30+ years they had developed into a family of pickers and singers themselves; Dad on guitar, Mom on stand-up bass, sisters on mandolin and banjo. Stacy and Jamie are now grown woman with young families of their own. Jamie and her husband Dan are now the proud owners of the large home built in the center of the former Decker farm in Lima. They have been on Doran Road now for three years and this was their 3rd such party in October.

I told Jim that I was going to be out at our Lima property that afternoon and would stop in to see him and the rest of the bluegrass pickers. After an afternoon of projects in the woods, I changed into an extra set of clean jeans and a T-shirt and drove down the long driveway to the house.

Was I surprised to see the rows of cars parked in the front lawn and a dozen or so campers around the property! There were guests and friends from near and far as well as several Canadians in town for the weekend. In the side yard was a 20’x 40’ tent set up with an adjoining 10’x 30’ food tent. There were rows of lawn chairs set up facing one corner of the large tent that had a carpet laid down for the pickin’ area.

Slowly I moved about the crowd and soon met up with my buddy, Jim. We met up with the former Hogs banjo player, Tom Carle and I was then introduced to the homeowners (Jamie and Dan) and their extended family. There was a break in the music to celebrate the 40th wedding anniversary of Jamie's parents, Jim & Bonnie Smoot, before the music started-up again. I wandered around the grounds to take a look at the old (Decker) family swimming hole located behind the house.

The night sky was fading and the cool evening air was settling in as a full moon rose above the Decker woods to the east. I found it striking that a once barren, god forsaken clay knoll at the center of our old farm was now the new center of a full blown bluegrass festival. I was overcome with a range of emotion looking back on all the history and ironic collision of events that led me to be there at this moment in time. Considering all that was taking place in my life at the present and the past history of this place it was a heavy moment for me to say the least. I made a call to brother Larry and urged him to drive on over and share the evening with me.

In time Larry arrived as did several of the surrounding neighbors to enjoy the sights and sounds of the night. It was a fun time that has now slipped away into memories that will last for some, a life time.

Joe D.