Maria Santangelo

More than 100 Villagers beat the heat and took advantage of 15 tuition-free classes offered at Pine Run in July. One Villager, Marie Wagner, enthusiastically immersed herself in every class!

With its easy mix of imaginative and practical material presented by professional teachers and Village Volunteers, the 2nd Annual Summer Session of Pine Run University is without a doubt a winning passage in the calendar of happenings on campus.

The following comments convey delight in the array of classes as well as reward in the discovery of knowledge and talent among neighbors and associates:

“My wife and I were amazed at the diversity of topics provided. In a great week of learning, our minds were stimulated with information about health, weather, energy conservation, plant care, and bird navigation. In different classes, we learned facts about the country of Australia and how the Mormon Library can be used to research genealogy of a family name. We even had chance to attempt Ceili Dance, a popular form of folk dancing in Ireland.”
— Walter & Kathleen Augustine, Fringetree Court

“I was so pleased to see the arrangements the attendees made in my Ikebana Class – they were excellent! Everyone received two branches and three flowers to create an arrangement following a form of Japanese flower art. Ceil helped me gather the materials from local shops to be sure we had enough on hand for the day. I learned Sogetsu Ikebana in England and it took me five years of weekly lessons and independent projects to earn a teaching certificate. Just like living at Pine Run, Ikebana can satisfy a natural urge to interact with flowers.”
— Sylvia Roman, Larch Cluster

“The Memory Class was very good because the professor talked about foods that help our brains operate! She also gave us helpful hints on how to remember things like names, dates, and other information crowding our mental rolodex.”
— Ruth Gilronan, Euonymus Cluster

“I registered for three classes and ended up attending two. The class that sticks in my mind was presented by a powerful duo – Judy Brackenrig and Tracy Mullarkey. I’ve never been to Australia, but I was amazed at the level of work and talent these ladies invested in entertaining and educating us about the land down under. The whole experience complemented interesting reading and discussion of a novel about Australia, The Light Between Oceans, in our Book Club at Pine Run.”
— Alice Sowers, Dogwood Cluster

Wow! Isn’t this exciting? We’ve waited all winter for this, getting out there amidst the greenery and the blossoms of the spring; it really gets the adrenaline going!

First thing in May – May 3, to be exact – the Greenthumb Society will be holding their annual Spring Garden Sale. It will be outside, just next to the greenhouse, adjoining the Mail Room. We will have a good selection of hanging baskets, geraniums, flats of annuals and vegetables, and – for the first time this year – a selection of a few varieties of perennials which we know to be dependable; to whet your appetite, so to speak!

One word of caution: As we’ve mentioned before, there is a problem this year with impatiens being felled by something called “downy mildew.” It’s a fungus disease rampant in the soils of the northeast, which includes us! So DO NOT plant impatiens in the garden, or you’ll be in trouble. They will be OK in hanging baskets, window boxes, and planters provided that garden soil is not used in the planting medium. Incidentally, the New Guinea variety of impatiens is not susceptible to this disease.

In making up planters and larger hanging baskets this year, don’t overlook coleus and spider plants to achieve a sense of interest with the coloration. In reviewing some garden magazines, I’ve seen some striking pictures of planters and baskets replete with assortments of coleus in differing leaf sizes and colorations. In the greenhouse, we have been propagating several coleus varieties over the winter which we hope will strike your fancy.

— Bob Jack

Bridge players earn master points when they play and win. There are names for the various levels of master points that you have won. Even non-bridge players have heard of a Life Master. This level is enough of a challenge for people to feel pleased when they attain it. You need 500 points to be a Life Master. It takes a few years for most people to reach this level. Then there are higher levels like bronze, silver, gold, etc., etc. The highest level is Grand Master; for that you need 10,000 points and a National Title.

The world of top level bridge is something only the real addicts want to know about. There is a lot of money in the game. Not that we play for money, but professional bridge players will teach less experienced players how to play better for a price that depends on how good the professional is. People pay a pro not just to get better, but also to help them win points so they can get to the next level. Most people  think of bridge as two people playing together against other pairs, but there is a form of the game where people play on a team of four. This is the most popular form of duplicate at the higher levels.

The U.S. usually makes a good showing at the World Championships. They have an open team, a women’s team, and a senior team. Only one woman has ever played for the U.S. on the open team – Helen Sobel. There are invariably six players on a team. This allows for four people to play while two people rest. To play for two weeks, which is how long the World Championships last, for up to ten hours a day is very demanding, so although you can manage with a four-man team, it rarely happens. The good players have to stay physically fit, as well.

This is where the serious money begins. People like Carolyn Lynch, whose husband Peter ran the Magellan Fund for Fidelity and made a lot of money, pays for a whole team. The gossip says as much as $0.5m per person for a signing-on bonus for the very top players. Then you have to pay the team to play for four weeks of the year when the big tournaments are on and pick up all the expenses. Bonuses are given if you win a tournament or make the U.S. team. I did an approximation once, and you don’t see much change out of $0.5m each year.

Jimmy Cayne is a very good bridge player who was hired by a financial firm to teach the Chairman to play bridge better. They played at work. The story goes that is what they were doing when the financial world turned upside down in 2008. After a phone call telling them the bad news, they kept on playing Bridge.

In a similar vein, I was playing at a tournament during the time period when the IRA were setting off bombs in England. The fire alarm started to go off. Nobody moved. We kept right on playing. After ten minutes, the manager of the hotel where we were playing came in and said, “Ladies and gentlemen: There is a fire in the hotel. Will you please go outside?” We went. Clearly, under pressure bridge players can sometimes be sensible!

— Jane Ball