This True Story Reveals The Meeting That Gave THE SENTINEL Its Name and Why It Got That Name

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Yes, you’ve heard part of this story. In fact, you probably think you know this story. Or, do you only think you know this story?

Bits and pieces have appeared throughout the years. Some of these have been true, others mere rumors meant to delight and excite the mind of the reader.

But this – this column – will for the first time reveal what really happened that dark winter night in January of 1989. Here it is, for the first time ever told by the one who was there at that meeting.

First, here’s the part that’s true. You already know this part. Or you may not. Here it is.

The Honeoye Falls Weekly Times began publishing during the era of hometown newspapers in 1882. “Independently Devoted to the Best Interests of Honeoye Falls and Vicinity” and running a dense seven columns over four pages, it was published and edited by William O’Brien and Wilson A. Gillette.

The fledging media entrepreneurs admitted in their inaugural op-ed (Thursday, August 31, 1882): “This is the first number of the Honeoye Falls Weekly Times. As to whether it is a readable paper for a first issue, remains for our readers to decide.”

The Rochester Democrat & Chronicle offered a less than charitable opinion of the effort. Its edition of Friday, September 8, 1882 bluntly stated: “Honeoye Falls has four newspapers Continue Reading “This True Story Reveals The Meeting That Gave THE SENTINEL Its Name and Why It Got That Name”

Banzai!

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[This Commentary originally intended to appear in the March 22, 1990 issue of The Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel.]

 

CarosaCommentaryNewLogo_259Banzai!” shouted Joey as he thrust headfirst straight down the side of the mountain.

Banzai!” yelled Ricky shooting through the narrow gap of eerie outcroppings of ragged rock before gliding into a white abyss of sheer ice. His monoski barely touched the gritty granular snow which provided the only hope for braking his fall.

Banzai!” echoed Ken, a tequila primed fireplug of non-stop energy and exuberance, following his comrades off the 11,000 foot peak at nearly ninety miles an hour.Continue Reading “Banzai!

Thoughts on the BIG Meeting

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[This Commentary originally appeared in the November 9, 1989 issue of The Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel.]

CarosaCommentaryNewLogo_259Everyone suffers the experience of entering into a tough situation. Poets often use war as the hyperbole of a demanding duty. Many of us have the blessed fortune not to have lived through the experience of combat, but stay forever grateful to those brave enough and principled enough to have entered into the fray. The inner feelings of those veterans can never truly be captured. Often, though, we assume only the real dread brought by battle can infuse humbling thoughts or put things into ultimate perspective.

Perhaps that is true, but there remain in our lives events which force our confrontation with formidable foes. While the risk of sudden demise rarely exists, the emotional burden of a quickly paced observation-decision-action cycle endures. We find fields of Continue Reading “Thoughts on the BIG Meeting”

Twentieth Century Lorelei

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[This Commentary originally appeared in the June 22, 1989 issue of The Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel.]

CarosaCommentaryNewLogo_259Manhattan beckons, a modern day siren. It summons the untested and ambitious. Dreamers flock to the Mecca of Tin Pan Alley, Broadway, Madison Avenue and Wall Street. Yet, only the most alert explorer can prevent the straggly rocks of reality from dashing his high hopes.

Of course, the sweet love song drowns the most rational into a luscious lull. Unlike Hollywood, which seduces the naïve children and renders them soulless, the City dulls even the sparky young with pleasant serenity.

Manhattan calls for me. I guess it always has.

Some say Paris truly represents the romantic world of the twentieth century. Indeed, Gertrude Stein and her Lost Generation virtually proclaimed it such. Ironically, though, Continue Reading “Twentieth Century Lorelei”

Ties, Spots and Murphy’s Law

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[This Commentary originally appeared in the June 8, 1989 issue of The Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel.]

CarosaCommentaryNewLogo_259Curse the foppish Duke whose vanity prevented him for enduring soiled shirts! His inability to control his sloppy eating habits has forever vexed modern day men. The nobleman’s pride forces a vestigial tradition upon us from which we have no escape.

I don’t know who it was – maybe the Earl of Sandwich’s brother-in-law – but the surreal waters of the Age of Discovery caused some crazy English lord to stuff a napkin under his collar. I suppose royalty exhibited a rather lavish behavior back then. Naturally, that particular napkin must have been manufactured from some ostentatiously colored silk rather than the modest white which today we have become accustomed to.

Unfortunately, in the Renaissance spirit of one-upmanship, a single unique event led to Continue Reading “Ties, Spots and Murphy’s Law”

Mendon’s Secret

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[This Commentary originally appeared in the May 25, 1989 issue of The Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel.]

CarosaCommentaryNewLogo_259I live in Mendon. I don’t live in Pittsford. I think that says a lot. Pittsford is a very nice town, but it is not Mendon.

A few years ago, I began searching Monroe County for a home suitable for my needs. I looked at a few houses in Pittsford, but something just wasn’t right for me. I didn’t know what it was then (and I still don’t). My quest for living space continued until I saw Mendon. “Wow, what a nice place,” I thought. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but I knew Mendon was the right location.

I’ve had some time now to settle in and meet other people like myself. Mendon denizens really don’t talk about their community the way a high school cheerleader might enthusiastically root, root, root for the home team, but you can catch a certain Continue Reading “Mendon’s Secret”

The Difference Between Wright and Rose

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[This Commentary originally appeared as Rose vs. Wright in the May 18, 1989 issue of The Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel.]

CarosaCommentaryNewLogo_259I spent my formative years growing up in Buffalo, home of the original Buffalo Bisons and an upstart American Football League team. By the end of the 60’s, football had taken hold of the city. The Bisons, who had been a farm club for the Cincinnati Reds, were on their way out. Naturally, then, I became a football fan prior to becoming a baseball fan.

The first baseball game I remember watching – the 1970 World Series – featured the Baltimore Orioles against the Cincinnati Reds. Without a favorite, I put my Continue Reading “The Difference Between Wright and Rose”

Day 29 – December 12, 2009 (Sat): Find Followers on Your New Timeline

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Start of Day Twitter Stats: Follow: 165 Followers: 160 Listed: 10

Missed yesterday? Go here to read what happened on Day 28 – December 11, 2009 (Fri): Create a Second Timeline

twitter_power_joel_comm_150Here we sit with less than 48 hours to go in this experiment. We (my daughters and I) started a new timeline – @MightyMovie, a classic movie quote Twitter account meant to direct followers to my daughter’s classic movie teen review site. Cesidia takes care of the reviews and Catarina takes care of the quotes. I did this most of the day with my daughters. The going was slow at first, but I think I created a monster in Catarina.

And then @mikegastin asks me something that takes me back to my newspaper days:

@ChrisCarosa Did you break the @chrisbrogan story?

Continue Reading “Day 29 – December 12, 2009 (Sat): Find Followers on Your New Timeline”

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