Friday, February 5, 2016

Introduction to Marksshorts

This blog contains several short fictional stories that involve the mis-adventures of a group of men and their travels. The Romeos are a bunch of retired science teachers that get entangled with solving crimes. Although they always seem to step in a mud puddle, they emerge smelling like roses or at least petunias.

You can read some of the stories in the following free blog posts. However, you can also help support a writing passion by purchasing collections of these stories in a colorful bound cover in several formats including (paper back, magazine or ebook). These are all available on  http://lulu.com
Type my name in the search bar or click the link below.

https://www.lulu.com/shop/search.ep?keyWords=mark+ryan&type=


Thank you
Mark Ryan

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Adventures of the Romeo Gang - "The Sink Hole"

Adventures of the Romeo Gang
        "The Sink Hole"
© January 2011 by Mark Ryan


Disclaimer: The following short stories are purely fiction. All names, places and events are coincidental and are only used to embellish the story.


It was late August and I was harvesting the last of my garden vegetables. Although I did get a good variety of crops, the harvest was minimal and probably due to my sporadic watering schedule. Since I was away most of the summer at my camp in Littleton, NH, I frequently let the natural rain do the garden watering.

Bent over, I was on my hands and knees pulling out some of the dead tomato plants when a loud voice boomed, “How is it going Marco?” I’m startled easily and jumped while turning my head to see the imagined doom. However it was only Alice from the house next door.

I responded with a friendly quip, “I’ve seen better garden days.” “I think my tomatoes and zucchini got hit with that mildew blight again this year.” “I thought you treated the plants last year with a mix of soapy water and baking soda, said Alice?” “I was away when it first appeared this year and missed catching it early”. Growing a garden is like taking care of a baby, you have to keep a constant watch for all the ailments, like chewing bugs, mildew, animals and just the right amount of water.

However, I did get a few extra baskets of mixed vegetable that I was able to give away. Besides harvesting some crops for my own family, I always grow a few extra rows of crops to give away to friends and to the local Food Pantry. Even in this middle class community there are those in need. With the terrible economy, high unemployment and more home foreclosures, there seems to be no end in sight. Sometimes people have fallen into such a deep hole that it seems impossible to climb out.

I then said, “Not to change the subject, but how is your roof repair coming?” Alice’s slate roof had been leaking in her attic and she had several roofing companies give estimates on making repairs. She then settled on one man who was local but could only do the job on weekends. He was semi-retired but had the best experience record and had good recommendations. Alice replied with exasperation that he would probably start next week. I then asked politely, “If you have a few spare slates, I would like to use them to paint on, with some of my art work.” Alice answered with a smile, “You can have as many as you need.”

Alice lived next door in an old fieldstone house that was built in the early 1800s. Although it had some interior updating, the outside still had the same charming and rustic appearance as in earlier days. Previously, I had painted a sign for Alice that hung on a tree in the front yard that said “Fieldstone Inn”. Although it was primarily built as a summer house for one of Boston’s aristocrats in the 1800s, it later became a Country Inn for passengers traveling the Middlesex Canal. In its heyday, the canal was a busy manmade waterway that stretched 27 miles from the Charles River near Boston, Massachusetts to the Merrimack River near Lowell. It was a marvelous engineering feat for its day and took ten years to complete. The locals called it “The Incredible Ditch”.

Since I wanted to paint on the slates with some colorful landscapes showing the use of the Middlesex Canal and its towboats, I began doing some research on the local canal history and life along its length. As I began looking, the internet turned out to be a great source of info as well as the town library and the local historical societies. Some of my teacher friends also gave me tons of info.

From my research I discovered that the canal, which used to run right through my back yard, was completed in 1803 and was used to bring passengers and goods from Lowell to Boston on floating barges. The canal trip was faster and more tranquil than traveling in a horse drawn wagon using the old dirt roads filled with loose rocks, mud and ruts.

As I closed my eyes, I could imagine seeing the barges as long as 75 feet floating by, loaded with textiles, farm goods and passengers to be transported back a forth along the canal making several stops along the way. In my imagination, I saw some Lowell bound passengers get off the floating barge and walk up my garden path toward the Fieldstone Inn to seek boarding for the night. The old fieldstone house had been in Alice’s family for 200 years and was originally owned by Alice’s great, great grandfather Daniel Eames and his wife Abigail.

I also imagined that Abigail would then cook a great New England meal of wild turkey, with vegetables and corn bread. After dinner, Daniel would play some music on the old harpsichord and entertain the guests until bed time. I could hear the music rising up the stone chimney along with puffs of white smoke from the warm roaring fireplace. Alice still has the old antique harpsichord tucked away in the basement of her fieldstone house.

Although the trip by barge along the Middlesex Canal was faster, it could still take more than a day to complete the journey, depending on the canal traffic and the stops along the way. The barge could only move as fast as the oxen or horses pulling it as they walked along the adjacent towpath, at a speedy pace of three to four miles per hour. At that rate, the trip would take about 9 hours, if it were open water all the way.

However, the canal had to be raised and lowered over several obstacles as it meandered across rivers, swamps and roads. This was accomplished with the construction of 20 locks, 7 aqueducts and 50 bridges. The water for the canal was supplied by the Concord River which was 107 feet above the tide at Boston and 25 feet above the Merrimack River. Some of the wooden locks were over 600 feet in length to accommodate long barges but also logs that were floated by raft attached end to end in bands. The locks were then closed by water tight gates and the water level was raised or lowered. This could take several hours for the entire locking process. Now imagine repeating this same process through 20 locks along the entire canal.

In addition, there were aqueducts, large wooden troughs, built high above the ground to traverse obstacles below. The Shawsheen Aqueduct in Wilmington was built 30 feet above the Shawsheen River where its fieldstone support pillars can still be seen today off Rte. 129 on the Wilmington and Billerica town line.

Along with the floating barges, bands of log rafts harvested in the woods north of Lowell were floated on the canal to supply the timber needed during and after the civil war for building and ship construction near Boston. Such timber was used in Medford, Massachusetts to build over 400 sailing ships which traveled in and out of Boston Harbor.

Besides building ships, Medford was also known for making clay bricks which it sold as a sturdy material for building houses and factories. Bricks were shipped on the canal to Lowell to construct all the mill buildings. Then huge granite blocks were quarried in Chelmsford and shipped on the canal to Boston. The granite blocks were then finished at the State Prison in Charlestown and later used to build the large buildings in Boston like the Bulfinch, at the Mass General Hospital.

The Fieldstone Inn in Wilmington was also a stop for travelers on the Underground Railroad. Evidently, Daniel Eames was an abolitionist who believed in the freedom of all men and women, no matter the color of their skin or religious beliefs. As black slaves escaped the plantations in the southern states, they traveled north in search of freedom and the help of people that were more sympathetic to their cause. Along the way the slaves were given food and shelter before moving on for a safe haven in Canada. During their journey, they stayed in the homes of abolitionists who hid them in underground secret rooms or root cellars. Some slave and their families would stay longer depending on weather conditions and their health. During these stays, the stronger members would help out doing chores around the house and property, ever watchful that traveling bounty hunters would discover them.

One day after Alice’s roof was finished she appeared at my back door in search of a favor. “Marco, how are you at catching bats, she said?” “Do you have a net that I might use to snag one?” “Why, what happened, I said?” Alice explained that she had a bat fly over her head last night while she was reading in bed and was terrified. She then spent the rest of the evening sleeping in the bathroom, with the door closed.

I had some butterfly nets that I bought for the grandkids when they visited and told Alice that I would go take a look and try to capture the flying creature. Armed with two nets, Alice and I searched the house from top to bottom. We looked in all the closets, moved all the hanging clothes and brushed off high shelves but didn’t find any bats. Alice was a collector of family memorabilia and was an avid reader. She had bookcases all over the house filled with all sorts of books and knickknacks.

She also had a dirt floor basement where she kept her washer and dryer as well as an old harpsichord and an assortment of other household clutter. However, the only access to the basement was from a rear door under the porch. There were no interior stairs to the basement so Alice had to go out the first floor porch door and walk around back to enter the basement door under the porch to do her laundry each day.

Not having any luck, Alice called an exterminator who also checked the house and said that the bat might have entered the house while the roof was being repaired or through the open basement door. Once inside, it could have got in the ventilation ducts and moved to different rooms. He also said that since she hasn’t seen it, the bat had probably left the house and so she shouldn’t worry. However, he did leave some baited traps in the basement, air ducts and ceiling spaces just in case they returned.

The next day I was up on my own house roof trying to scrape off some lichen that had grown on the shingles. I was using a bleach solution and wire brush to scrape it off. Up high on the roof, I had a bird’s eye view of the neighborhood. Alice had gone out for the day, as well as most of the other neighbors. Suddenly my eye caught a glimpse of some movement over at Alice’s house. A man had gone under her back porch and entered the basement door which was usually left unlocked.

I climbed down the ladder off my roof and grabbed a hammer for protection and quietly walked over to Alice’s house. I went in the basement door and saw the man touching the keys on the harpsichord. I then yelled at him and said, “What are you doing here?” He was startled and said, “I saw the lady leave and I was looking for a place to keep warm and stay for the night.” I replied, “Why don’t you stay in your own house?” He said, “I don’t have one.”

The man was black and in his late 60s, unshaven, and with worn clothes. I then assumed he was homeless and probably hadn’t eaten today. I said, “Let’s go outside in the light so that we can talk”. After a while I learned that his name was Jim Brown and that he was from Louisiana. He was out of work for the last 15 months and left his family with relatives down south. He had lived in New Orleans but his house was washed away with the flooding that they had there several years ago. The recent oil spilled had made it even worse for unemployment. Consequently, he was traveling north looking for work and maybe a new life and was retracing the path of his grandparents on the Underground Railroad. The path was instilled in his mind from stories that his grandmother told.

I then said, “Why were you hitting the keys on the harpsichord?” He said he used to play the piano in New Orleans and was just curious. But he had also learned about the Fieldstone House in Wilmington, MA from his great grandmother whose great grandmother stayed in the Wilmington house in the late 1800s, as an escaped slave looking for freedom. She told him that the piano had keys on it that opened up a door to a root cellar with food and drink. I said, “What?” He then said, “If he got to Wilmington, he knew he would have a place to stay for a while”.

He then showed me and old Bible that his grandmother had given him and that it would keep him safe, if he read from it daily and followed the Lord’s Word. The Bible also had an old folded note hidden in its pages with some hand written words that he couldn’t figure out. I looked at the note and only saw gibberish. The words were composed of mixed up letters that made no sense to me.

My wife Carlena then came out in the yard and asked what had happened. I told her that the man was lost and was hungry and might she get him a sandwich and some coffee. She said she would be right back. In a few minutes my wife returned with the food and gave it to Jim. He quickly gobbled it down and drank several cups of coffee. He said he hadn’t eaten for several days. A short time later, Alice had returned home. She volunteered one day a week to deliver food to the elderly and needy around town. This was the “Meals-On-Wheels” program where the recipients qualified for assistance who had limited income.

We walked over to Alice and explained what had happened. She was sympathetic but also worried and afraid that someone had entered her house uninvited. Jim said he was terribly sorry for the intrusion but was desperate for help and also drawn to the house from his grandmother’s stories. Jim spoke with such a deep voice that he sounded like a church minister would; filled with honesty and sincerity. He also started to tell Alice about the history of the house and some of its original occupants. Since this information wasn’t public knowledge she began to believe his story and became more comfortable with Jim.

Jim continued to tell Alice some of his grandmother’s stories and a bond of family and friendship began to grow between them. It was like Jim was a long lost family member. Although Alice was still weary about this stranger, she invited him to stay in her camper parked in the back yard until he could find better arrangements. Tomorrow, Alice and I would help Jim look for employment locally and more permanent lodging.

The next day was Saturday and I had volunteered to help pick up some donated food for the local Wilmington Food Pantry. Even in this middle class suburb of Boston there are a lot of people out of work and in need of some help. Although the Food Pantry distributes food twice per month all year long, it also provided Thanksgiving and Christmas food baskets to more that 65 needy families. Just before leaving I went over to Alice’s house and checked in with her and Jim. Jim had just finished helping Alice cleanup around her back yard, racking ups some leaves and picking up yard debris. I then asked Jim if he wanted to take a ride with me and help pick up some of the donated food. This would also give me a chance to talk with Jim some more. He said yes and off we went.

There are drop off boxes located at several of the food markets all around town, so I made them my first stop. People left mostly dry goods like can soups, pasta, crackers, cereal and canned meats. The next stop was the post office. Periodically, a food drive is sponsored where participants can leave bags of dry goods at their outdoor mailboxes to be picked up by the rural mailman.

As we drove around town I said, “Jim, what kind of work did you do when you lived down south?” Jim replied, “I did a variety of jobs, mostly home construction work and carpentry. However, I also worked on a fishing boat out of Biloxi, MS prior to the oil spill and I also played piano part-time at a local tavern”. I said, “What kind of work are you looking for locally?” Jim said, “I would take just about anything now so I could send a few dollars to my family.” “Well, let me ask around town, as we pick up some more food goods”, I said.

Our next stop was at the public library where they just had a food drive, where you could pay off book late fees with donations of can goods. After the library, I decided to drop off all the donations at the Food Pantry located on Chestnut St. at the Old Red School House. I drove the car around back and rang the door bell. Peter Demco opened the door and said, “I thought that you might show up about now.” Peter volunteered each Saturday to manage the donations at the Food Pantry. He would take all the new items and arrange them on shelves in a neat and organized fashion. Patrons who qualified for assistance could then come in twice per month and pick needed items off the shelves to help feed their families.

I then introduced Jim to Peter and said he was helping me out today, but was looking for work. Peter then said, “What kind of work can you do?” Jim said with his loud commanding voice, “Just about anything but mostly carpentry work and house construction.” Peter quickly responded, “With that commanding voice maybe you should be the next pastor at our church. Everyone would certainly sit up and listen.” Jim then smiled and laughed. Peter then said, “Well, I am looking for a few good carpenters for my next construction job. If you can show up Monday morning at 7:00 AM at my office, I will hire you for the day and then see what you can do. Marco can show you how to get to the office.” Jim said, “Thank you sir, I will definitely see you there”. Peter was the owner of the Demco Construction Company in town and had a good reputation for doing quality work as well as being a good employer. Maybe this was Jim’s lucky break?

I then drove back home and told Alice and my wife Carlina about our day’s experience and Jim’s new job. They both congratulated Jim and wished him luck. I then asked Jim if I could borrow the letter he had in his grandmother’s Bible and make a copy so I could show it to a friend who might be able to unravel the mystery. My buddy Joe Balsaro was a member of his local town historical society and quite an expert in local history. Maybe he could make some sense out of the old gibberish writing.

On Tuesday, I had plans to meet the Romeos for lunch. Jim’s employment went well on Monday and Peter had hired him permanently. On Sunday I had sent a copy of Jim’s letter by email over to Joe Balsaro and asked if he could look at it. He said he would be happy to and was always up for a challenge.

The Romeos (Retired Old Men Eating Out) are a group of retired teachers who meet once a month for lunch and camaraderie. We have been friends for years and always enjoy each other’s company. Sometimes we could also be “Grumpy Old Men” when something bothered us. Mostly it was about some sour notes that we probably had read in the morning headlines.

Today we would meet for lunch at Rocco’s Restaurant in Wilmington. It was my choice this month, as we all took turns picking next month’s lunch place. Rocco’s is a family owned business and has been a great local restaurant for over 70 years. The food was always super and the prices reasonable. Eleven Romeos showed up and the owner Chucky seated us at a long table in the downstairs solarium with its curved greenhouse windows. Seated around the table were the four Joes, Peter, Paul, Tim, Ed, Jim, John and me Marco.

The conversation was lively and we all laughed at each other’s jokes. I sat next to Joe Balsaro and asked him about the letter. He took out a copy and laid it down on the table. He then said that a lot of notes written with secret codes were used by the military before and during the civil war and this note was written in one of those codes. The code is called the “Vigenere” cipher, a centuries-old encryption where letters of the alphabet are shifted a set number of places. Consequently, if you shifted the alphabet by four letters an “a” would be a “d” creating words with different letter combinations. Thus the word “ADAM” would be spelled “XAXJ”

Joe tried out different combinations by shifting the letters and found that a shift of three letters gave words that made the most sense. Using this sequence, the note read the following rhyme. “God will guide the hand that wields his sword with words rather than weapons. Sing his hymns up by eight and you will open the hidden gate.”

I looked at Joe and said, “That’s it?” Joe replied, “At least now you know what the letter says. Now you have to use the secret note and relate it to the time and place in which it was written to determine its true meaning”. Still perplexed, I thanked Joe for his help and said that I would have to discuss it further with my friend Jim.

The Romeos continued talking about different topics as the time flashed by during and after lunch. They talked about the poor economy, mass unemployment, and the loss of health care by many and the lack of action by the federal politicians who continued to bicker about partisan politics but never agreeing to anything.

Joe Pignato said that he was on the Board of Directors for the Somerville Homeless Coalition that served hundreds of needy people in Somerville. These were people who have been unemployed for months, lost health insurance or had uninsured catastrophic health problems. The coalition also provided rent for close to 200 families in Somerville, a food pantry and a weekend soup kitchen. He also said that last year, they did a Homeless Census in Boston during the cold winter night of December 2009 and found 3800 homeless people on the streets. Here they slept in a cardboard box, abandoned buildings, and train stations or next to a heat vent in a side alley.

Joe Balsaro said the after church each Sunday, his wife and he volunteered at a local church in Lynn where they have setup a soup kitchen for the homeless. I then comment that we all try to do our part with making donations and volunteering but the problems just seemed to be getting worst. There must be a better way. People need more help so they can get out of this deep hole and provide for themselves.

We also talked about the torrential rain that has soaked the local area. The Shawsheen River down the street from where I lived had overflowed its banks, closing the local Brown Street Bridge. The soaking rain had also raised the water table and flooded basement in many homes north of Boston. I told them about the flooding at my house and the sink hole that opened up in my front yard. Lucky the rain had stopped and we were finally drying out.

After lunch, we all said our good byes until next month. However, I invited Joe Balsaro and a few other Romeos back to my house to see the flooded Shawsheen, the sink hole and also meet my friend Jim. A few minutes later we were all standing in my front yard looking at the sink hole and commenting how large it had gotten over the past week. The four Joes and I were standing on the edge of the hole; Joe Balsaro, Joe Pignato, Joe Laprusso, Joe Loduccio and me, Marco Greico. As five old Italian Farts stood over this gapping hole, it reminded me of an old Mafia Movie.

Looking down into the hole I heard a man’s voice and saw a flicker of light. “There is someone in the hole” I shouted. As I looked closer, I could see a tunnel which went off to the right towards Alice’s house. The hole was too deep for me to jump down into. However, my eye caught some movement out of the hole near some bushes over at the fieldstone house. A man came out of an old dry well there that was hidden by some thick shrubs and quickly went around the corner. I chased after him and saw that it was Jim who turned around and was surprised to see me. I said, “Jim, what the heck were you doing in that hole?”

Jim then replied, “I got off work early today and was curious about some underground tunnels that my grandmother had mentioned in her stories. As I walked around the house, I just happened to see the old drywell hidden in the bushes. I slid off the heavy stone top and saw a ladder leading down. I got a flashlight and was exploring and found some tunnels. However, most of the tunnels were closed off and had collapsed from natural erosion. The tunnels only went off in a few directions but then came to a dead end. I then thought that there might be another way to get into the tunnels. I then heard some voices and came out to see who it was.”

I then replied, “Maybe there is another way. My friend Joe deciphered the old letter that you gave me, so maybe we can all use it to figure out the next move. Let me introduce you and see what we can come up with”. I then introduced Jim to the other old farts and we all laughed. I then said, “Let’s take the letter and look for clues in the basement of the fieldstone house. The letter seems to infer something about music and the old harpsichord there”. At that moment, Alice came out and I continued to make introductions. We then asked Alice if we could look in the basement for some more clues and she nodded and led the way.

We all walked under the back porch and into the dirt floor basement and stood in front of the harpsichord which was built into brick wall. The wall was about 20 feet long and 7 feet tall. Above there was an unfinished beam ceiling. In the middle of the wall was a huge fireplace to provide heat on this floor. There were duplicate fireplaces also located on the two floors above the basement.

Next to the fireplace in the basement was the harpsichord built right into the brick wall. Several antique oil lamps were also built into the wall along its length. A large brass clock with Roman numeral numbers was fixed on the wall above the harpsichord. Two crossed civil war swords composed the hour and minute hands of the clock. The clock time was set for seven and had remained this way for years. Although out of tune, the harpsichord was still functional. It had two keyboards build like steps, one above the other layered front and back. The keys were made of real ebony and ivory. Today’s piano keys are only imitation plastic.

Joe Balsaro said, “Let’s read the old letter again in to context of this basement room and look around to see if it refers to anything”. Jim then read the words. His voice was so deep that it sounded like a command from God as his words echoed off the stone walls. “God will guide the hand that wields his sword with words rather than weapons. Sing his hymns up by eight and you will open the hidden gate.” It seemed like a bolt from the blue, when the idea struck all of us at once. We looked at the harpsichord and the clock with swords and knew that the letter was some how referring to them both.

Jim then sat at the harpsichord and pulled some levers that adjusted the key sounds. The levers were used to move the upper keyboard back and forth so that the sound would be raised or lowered an octave (eight notes on the music scale). He then played a church hymn that his grandmother had taught him. The hymn was “Amazing Grace” and the sound echoed through the house. As Jim played, he shifted the levers back and forth raising and lowering the sound by an octave but nothing happened. At that moment it was like an epiphany. Maybe the clock sword hands also had to be raised to eight. I then pushed the hour hand from seven to eight and a large brick door clicked and swung open.

We all looked at each other in amazement. This was unbelievable but was actually happening. I got a flashlight and pushed open the brick door, so we could see inside. Behind the door was a large room with dirt walls. The walls and ceiling were supported by oak beams. Off the main room there were several tunnels that went off in different directions. There were oil lamps on the walls and a few of the guys lit them with a match for more light. With a few lamps lit, we could see different items neatly piled along the walls on stone shelves. This was like finding a great treasure in an ancient Egyptian Pyramid.

As we looked on the stone shelves we found old books, brass and silver vases and bowls, old canvas paintings rolled up as well as some in wood frames, clothes made of wool and cotton from the 19th century, even some old jewelry with large cameo and broaches. On other shelves there were old bottles of wine and cider and jelly preserves. The tops were all sealed with candle wax. After discovering each new and interesting item, we would tell the person next to us, “look at that”. We were all so excited and enthused about the treasure trove which we had found.

Joe Pignato took a flashlight and was curious about the tunnels that went off the back of the main room. As he explored some of the tunnels, he saw that the side walls contained long shelves and to his surprise some bones. He realized right away that this was a family crypt that he knew about from his relatives in Italy. They also had similar crypts built into their century old houses. Maybe these were the remains of the Eames family who had lived in this house since the early 1800s? At the front of each crypt there was a pile of items. Most crypts also had a tied leather bag which contained memorabilia from the deceased.

Out in the main room, Alice and Jim were looking at the old books that they found. Some were texts from the 1800s and others were diaries written by the Eames family. Jim read the diary of Daniel Eames as Alice read the one from Abigail. Daniel’s diary described items having more to do with his business affairs and running the Inn as well as his dealings with the canal. It turns out that he was a member of the original canal board of trustees called the “Proprietors of the Middlesex Canal”. He also served as their secretary and kept accurate records of their finances, toll charges, and boat names on the canal, items shipped and traveling passengers as well as all the workers along the way that tended the locks.

Abigail’s diary contained more domestic information about the family, the house helpers and visitors (artist, musician, doctor, lawyer, iron worker, farmer, teacher or preacher). She kept records of house guests and their talents or vocations. She also described in detail her surroundings as the seasons changed; the colorful clothes which the visitors wore, and the stories that they told; the look of the canal in spring, summer, autumn and winter.

Besides managing the Inn, the Eames’ also worked acres of productive farm land on their Wilmington Estate. Here they harvested timber, grew fruits and vegetables, and crops of barley, hay and hops. In addition to the Baldwin Apple, Wilmington was also known as the Hops capital of New England. Along with other farm crops, fruits, grains and hops were shipped to the Boston area and beyond. The hops and barley were used by the local breweries and taverns to make beer that was served in all the taverns along the Middlesex Canal and shipped to other ports north and south of Boston.

As Jim read from Daniel’s diary, he noted that Daniel made several trips up and down the canal selling his hops to the local tavern owners. Traveling on the canal from Charlestown to Lowell, passengers might stop along the way at the various taverns for something to eat as well as drink. Some of the taverns were the Bunker Hill Tavern in Charlestown, Gardner Tavern in Winchester, Horn Pond Tavern in Woburn, Gillis Tavern in Wilmington, and the old Middlesex Tavern in Lowell.

Jim also read from Daniel’s diary about the toll collector at Landing No. 4 in Medford who would check your Passport. If you were a passenger your Passport was stamped with the toll to your destination along the canal. Usually the rate was two cents per mile. The fare all the way to Lowell was fifty cents for passengers. If you were shipping goods, the rate was based on tonnage, or board feet or bushel baskets. The rate was six cents per ton per mile. For example, you could ship bushels of course salt at 30 bushels per ton at the rate of six cents per mile.

Abigail’s diary noted that during summer months, passengers would stop at the inn and stay for a few days to enjoy the fresh cool air of the country side and escape the heat of the city. During winter months, the canal water would freeze solid and make a great place to ice skate. Abigail recorded that the college boys from Harvard University would skate from Charlestown to Lowell and back in one day. However, older men tried this and had to stay in Lowell overnight to rest.

Other guests traveling the canal were more secretive. They traveled what was called the Underground Railroad. This wasn’t a real rail road but was the path going north that escaping slaves from the southern plantations traveled on their way to Canada. These men, women and families would travel under the darkness of night by foot, wagon or boat from one hiding place to the next. The black slaves would stay in the homes of abolitionists, those who believed in abolishing slavery.

Daniel and Abigail Eames kept their secret well hidden among town folks since even their neighbors might have the opposite views on slavery. There were also bounty hunters traveling the roads north, looking for escaped slaves. They would be paid large sums of money to return slaves to their owners in the south. Consequently, the abolitionist would build secret underground rooms and root cellars to hide the escaping slaves and give them a temporary place to stay. In Wilmington there were several homes that used to hide slaves. The names of the homes were only known by a selected few. However, in Wilmington there was the Harden Tavern, the Eames Estate and several of the churches.

After a while we were getting tired and decided to get some air outside. Joe Balsaro then said to Alice, “You need to have all the items catalogued and appraised. This is a very valuable discovery.” Alice then said, “Where do you look for an appraiser for historic items like these?” Joe then said, “I will get a few names and some recommendation from the Historical Society. In the meantime, I suggest that you put a lock on the door and install an alarm”. Joe then said, “You should also take some photos of all the items to validate your find before you let anyone else look.” I then said, “If you need help taking the photos, I’m available.” As we all stepped out of the secret room, I made sure that each of us returned the items we found to their appropriate shelves. I then shut the brick wall door behind us and walked everyone outside. Later that day I helped Alice put locks on all the doors and a motion alarm in the basement. Everyone else was sworn to secrecy for the time being.

In a week, Joe Balsaro had given Alice a list of appraiser names and recommendations. Soon after the appraisers came and catalogued each item with names and photos so that they could authenticate their age and proper identification. Several weeks later the appraiser returned and gave Alice the exciting news that the collection was probably worth in the millions and might get even higher prices if sold individually at auction.

Alice was so excited but decided that one of her main goals was to help the needy and homeless in Wilmington and the surrounding areas. She had her lawyer set up a trust foundation to manage the auctions and proceeds. She also donated some of the items to the local Wilmington Historic Society, so that the history of the Eames Treasure could be shared by the local residents.

In addition, Alice also gave Jim a small reward for helping find the treasure. She also paid to have Jim’s family move to Wilmington and helped find them a home. Jim continued to work for Peter Demco and secured full time employment. Jim also thanked Alice for all her help but said that his most treasured reward was the friendship and kindness that she had shown him. With Alice’s help, he could finally climb out of his incredible sink hole.

References:

Middlesex Canal and Taverns
http://www.winchestermass.org/canal.html
Wilmington Hops and the Canal
http://www.massrealty.com/northern-massachusetts/wilmington
Beer Breweries
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beer
Hops in Wilmington
http://www.town.wilmington.ma.us/Pages/WilmingtonMA_WebDocs/hist/
Piano and Harpsichord Keys
http://www.piano-tuners.org/history/compass.html
History of Wilmington
http://www.town.wilmington.ma.us/Pages/WilmingtonMA_WebDocs/hist
Life on the Middlesex Canal
http://books.google.com/books?id=FyWtTqy90kgC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
Civil War Note Deciphered – BG 12-26-10
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2010/12/26/civil_war_note_finally_deciphered/
Wilmington Food Pantry
http://commfund.org/FoodPantry.asp
Working Poor in US
http://www.endhomelessness.org/content/article/detail/3597
Boston Rescue Mission – Homeless Statistics
http://www.brm.org/homeless/default.aspx
Boston Homeless Census (3800 – In 2009)
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/12/07/350_volunteers_take_part_in_homeless_census/
Somerville Homeless Coalition
http://www.somervillehomelesscoalition.org/

Friday, April 23, 2010

Adventures of the Romeo Gang - "Secrets of the Rune Stones"

Adventures of the Romeo Gang
"Secrets of the Rune Stones"
© April 2010 by Mark Ryan








Disclaimer: The following short stories are purely fiction. All names, places and events are coincidental and are only used to embellish the story.


Secrets of the Rune Stones by Mark Ryan
It was May 2010 and the Romeos decided to take the “Downeaster” train to Portland, ME for the day. After, we planned to tour the Portland Historic District along the harbor, have lunch and then return to Boston on the evening train. The Romeos (Retired Old Men Eating Out) are retired school teachers who meet each month for lunch, camaraderie and laughs. Being senior citizens we could also get a discount on the train fare and it is certainly more comfortable than driving in several cars and then parking in the city.

You can get the train in Boston at North Station but it is more convenient to get it in Woburn, MA at the Anderson Transportation Center a few miles north of Boston. You can park your car there for the day at a cost of only $4.00. Besides the train station is right off Rte 93 and you don’t have to worry about all that Boston traffic.

To plan the trip, you can get all the information online, make a reservation and actually buy the round trip ticket in advance. The train trip takes 2 hr and 7 min from Woburn to Portland and with a 50 % senior discount, only costs $21.70 round trip. We would catch the 9:23 AM train in Woburn and then take the return train home from Portland at 7:55 PM that evening.

There were eight Romeos who decided to take the train trip and they were Marco Greico, Jim Terluccio, Joe Pignato, Steve Wise, Joe Laprusso, Joe Loduccio, Ed Descharo and Joe Balsaro. We all met at the Woburn station at 9:00 AM and boarded the train on time. Taking our seats near the window we talked about our plans for the day and watched the landscape go by. Although we passed through several towns and neighborhoods along the way, we also saw some wooded areas and the ocean before arriving in Portland.

To pass the time Joe Laprusso told the group about a project that was being sponsored by the University of Massachusetts and the STEM institute (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). We all worked part-time for STEM as science educators and sometimes participated in some of their field programs. The latest program that Joe talked about was a Polar Expedition to Greenland. The expedition had to do with the IPY (International Polar Year) and the effects of “Global Warming” on the Greenland Glacier. It really sounded exciting but we needed to find out all the details. As Joe filled us in, I looked out the train window and watched the trees flash by, one by one, and dosed off a few times. ?????????????????????

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The fourth (IPY) International Polar Year ran from March 2008 to March 2009. During that year, scientists around the globe were entrenched in the study of climate changes occurring in the north and south poles. Subsequently, these studies have revealed that the polar ice caps are indeed melting and affecting global climate, local weather, ocean currents and the delicate balance of life in many worldwide ecosystems. Even though the 4th IPY is officially over, scientists continue to work on these projects and make new discoveries every day.

Although there are many contributing factors effecting Global Warming, many scientists believe that carbon emissions are a primary cause for the melting of the polar glaciers and has contributed to a rise in ocean levels. Scientists predict that if left unchecked, seacoast cities and towns will soon be lost to the ocean in future years.
Other scientists claim that the world wide climate changes have occurred many times before through out the millennia. They claim these changes are natural and are due to cyclic shifts in weather patterns. Some scientists believe that these patterns have occurred regularly every few hundred years. One theory is that there is an 800 year pattern that has contributed to drastic climate changes over large continents such as the growth and the melting of the Greenland Glacier and Ice Cap around 1000 AD.

Another theory has to do with the wobble of the earth’s axis. It has been calculated that the wobble takes 26, 000 years to complete its full circle. During this period, the earth’s poles tilt closer and then further away from the sun which would lead to dramatic world wide temperature fluctuations.

Lastly, some scientist have blamed the last ice age, which occurred in North America 12,000 years ago, on a giant meteor hitting the earth and spreading ash around the globe. This ash blocked out the sun and lasted for many years, dropping the earth temperature and killing most vegetation and animal life.

The recent increase in extreme natural events like earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, heavy rains and floods and the melting arctic ice has sparked the need for more in-depth study by nations world-wide. Although some of these events have occurred in non populated areas, others have been closer to home and have caused millions of dollars in damage to urban areas and hundreds of thousands of human lives. The earthquakes in Haiti and Tibet and the volcanic eruptions in Iceland and the flooding across the United States are just but a few examples.

Consequently, climate change studies are essential to protecting human life and require all nations to participate. As a result, last year the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Institute from the University of Massachusetts had the opportunity to participate in an arctic expedition to Greenland. In addition, STEM would partner with National Geographic to produce an educational video series about Greenland and its natural environment.

The multi-national expedition would involve 115 scientists from seven countries including China, Russia, Canada, Norway, Finland, Iceland and the United States. It was a short 30 day trip sponsored by the Chinese National Bureau of Oceanography. Scientists would travel on the icebreaker named the “Snow Dragon” and use it as their base and laboratory, anchored off the coast of Greenland.

Although scientists are primarily interested in studying the causes of the global warming problem, world leaders are concerned more with the strategic interests in an ice-free Arctic Ocean. Estimates about when the Arctic Ocean could be ice-free during the summer months vary greatly, from 2013 to 2060. An ice-free arctic would involve strategic concerns about international defense, international shipping routes, and use of untapped mineral and energy resources.

In 2008 the five littoral states bordering the arctic including Canada, Denmark, Norway, Russia, and the United States formed a legal framework for the Arctic and the orderly settlement of possible overlapping claims and jurisdictions. Despite this legal agreement, the evolving situation in the Arctic could potentially lead to disputes and political friction with non-littoral states including China and other European nations. Recently China has taken an active stance in the affairs of Greenland as well as exerting control over world-wide financial markets. This has set off alarms and some panic for all of the arctic nations.

Although Greenland is governed internationally by Denmark, it still has the authority for self government on local issues and has thus granted permission for these arctic research expeditions to take place within its borders. However, all discoveries of natural resources and archeological finds would belong to Greenland/Denmark and any use or licensing of these discoveries would be at Greenland’s discretion.

STEM scientist from the Archeology Department of the University of Massachusetts had previously worked in Greenland on archeological excavations and needed a crew of experienced workers to help on the new project and assist with developing an educational program. The educational program would be used to inform school children and the general public about the Arctic Crisis.

As soon as the STEM office requested volunteers from the university students and employees for the arctic expedition, several of the Romeo Gang jumped at the chance. They were science educators and good data collectors with many years of experience in scientific field studies. In the past they had participated in field projects that took them to the jungles of the Amazon, the desserts of Egypt and the mountains of Peru.

Although the ROMEO Gang (Retired Old Men Eating Out) casually met for lunch each month for camaraderie and laughs, they were also serious about their professions in science education. Fortunately, since they only worked part-time for STEM they could take the time off from their regular duties for this important science expedition. Besides it would be an adventure and fun.

Four Romeos were selected to participate in the STEM expedition. They were Jim Terluccio, Joe Pignato, Joe Laprusso and me, Marco Greico. Other Romeos would work at the UMass campus in Boston and monitor the Arctic group through satellite communication. The Boston Romeos were Ed Descharo, Joe Balsaro, Joe Loduccio and Steve Wise.

In addition to the Romeos, 30 scientists from the United States, including their crews, would participate in the expedition and they would meet in Boston to take a charter flight to Nuuk International Airport, Greenland. Nuuk is located on the south western tip of Greenland.

All of the STEM expedition equipment, including scientific materials, clothing and food were being provided and organized by the University of Massachusetts, Archeology Department. They had handled previous trips and were very efficient with all the details. Once at Nuuk, they would transfer to the Chinese Icebreaker, the “Snow Dragon” for their voyage up the fjords to study the Greenland glacier and its environs.

When they got to Greenland, half of the scientists would collect data from the ice cap in the north and the other half from the permafrost in the south. In geology, the permafrost is the soil that is at or below the freezing point of water for two or more years. Sometimes there is an active living layer on top of the permafrost that is heated by the sun and supports the growth of microscopic plant and animal life. This gives a green hue to the landscape along the rocky coastline.

After all the gear was loaded aboard the icebreaker, we left Nuuk Harbor and traveled up the Arsuk Fjord to our first stop at Narsuaq Harbor. The southern crew would get off here and travel by truck to the excavation sites and the northern crew would continue up the fjord to its end where the glacier spilled into brackish ocean water. Geologically, a fjord is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides, created in a valley carved by glacial activity.

Standing at the ship’s railing on the Snow Dragon, I yelled to Jim, “Look over there at those two big bergs.” “Wow, one is all white filled with air bubbles and the other is clear as glass”, replied Jim. Joe then yelled over the roar of the ship’s engine and the splashing water against the hull, “It’s amazing how huge the icebergs look even though most of it is hidden underwater”. As I looked up, there were sea birds flying overhead searching for fish to eat that might swim near the surface or cast over board by nearby fishing vessels. Jim identified the birds as the Gannet Seabird which can spot fish from a 100 ft. up and dive into the water capturing its meal.

As the icebreaker cut through the water there were large chunks of ice floating all around. Nearer to the sides of the fjord you could see a few polar bears on the ice sheets moving along with the current and then swiftly diving into the icy water in search of food.

Slowly moving into Narsuaq Harbor you could see fishing boats of all sizes, shapes and colors. On land there were colorful buildings with wood and metal siding and larger buildings constructed of brick and cement. There were paved streets and people and cars all enclosed within the village boundaries. However, within a few miles you could see open flat land with grass, farms and grazing sheep. Further in the distance there was the barren icy landscape of the glacial edge.

Although 85% of Greenland is covered with a white glacial snow and ice, most of the edges near the ocean are free of snow exposing jagged rock or flat earth with some green grass, low vegetation and small trees. The southern tip of Greenland had the most vegetation and for this reason early settlers called it “Greenland”.

In fact there are about 56,000 people living on Greenland today in 13 major towns scattered around its edges. Although the primary commerce involves fishing, people hold similar jobs that you would see in many small towns. In addition there are 14 airports, 50 heliports and the US Air Force Base, Thule.

After docking at Narsuaq Harbor, we met our local guide, “Eko” and traveled north in four wheeled drive trucks. In about 10 miles we passed some farm land and then saw some stone huts scattered throughout the landscape near the edge of the glacier. Eko told us that these stone huts were over a thousand years old and had been discovered in previous excavations during the 1990s. In recent years, the receding glacier had exposed more solid earth as it melted and made it easier to find these old dwellings buried and preserved under the glacial sand.

Early archeologists dug through the permafrost and glacial sand that filled the stone houses looking for evidence of ancient civilizations. The sand had filled all the rooms of the stone huts blown in by the relentless wind. Sifting through the sand, they discovered ancient Viking artifacts including an iron knife, weapons, farm tools, soapstone vessels, and even fragments of a loom and woven cloth. Carbon dating later revealed that the huts and artifacts were indeed from around 1000 AD.

We stopped our trucks near one of the previous excavation sites and unloaded some equipment to setup camp. For the next month we would live in tents and cook our meals out in the open. Luckily it was the summer season in Greenland and the temperatures fluctuated from plus 40 degrees Fahrenheit during the day to plus 20 at night. Hopefully our new arctic clothing would keep us warm.

Nearby, one of the technicians setup a communications tent with a satellite dish. This would allow us to keep in touch with the group at Umass Boston. The satellite was connected to a computer and we immediately had a direct video link. Joe Balsaro was on the computer at the Boston end and Jim Terluccio at the Greenland end. Joe said that he had been busy with the others gathering relevant info about the history of Greenland and the previous dig findings which he would send us as a text file to read later. However, he said that there were a few interesting highlights that he could share with us verbally.

He first told us about the archeological findings on a previous dig near our present location.
Joe said, “At this dig there were some skeletal remains found next to a hut thought to be a church. The skeletons were that of two men and a woman. After considerable study, archeologists speculate these skeletons were those of Eric the Red and his wife Thjodhilde and their famous son Leif Ericson. The skeletons are now kept at the Denmark National Museum”.

Jim turned to the rest of us standing there with an astonished look of surprise. Although we knew the previous excavations were important we hadn’t known to what extent. Jim then replied, “Joe that is unbelievable”. “Are they sure about this?” Joe said that DNA evidence and related Carbon dating of the bones and associated artifacts confirm the finding”.

Joe then went on to tell the brief history of how Leif Ericson got to be here on Greenland.
Joe said, “Nordic history tells us that Greenland was discovered by Eric the Red who was the father of Leif Ericson around 1000 AD. As the story goes, Leif’s grandfather Thorwald lived in Norway and belonged to a family of nobility. He was a Viking seafarer and boldly sailed the oceans in an open broad beamed boat powered by 16 oarsmen and one square sail. However, during a fighting contest he accidently killed a man and was forced into exile. During those days, Nordic law declared that if you killed a person you would be punished and exiled from your homeland for three years. Afraid for his family, he fled to Iceland with a group of his friends and his wife and son, Eric the Red”.

“Eric the Red got his name from his red hair and beard and when he grew up learned to be an excellent sailor like his father. On one of his ocean voyages he sailed west from Iceland and discovered a large land mass with green vegetation and called it Greenland. When he returned to Iceland, he described this new green land and encouraged others to follow him there and set up a colony”.

“After a while, Eric the Red got married on Greenland and had three sons, one of whom was the famous Leif Ericson. While Leif was growing up he heard an uncle talk about another land off to the south west from Greenland which was lush with tall trees that grew down to the shore line. When he was old enough, Leif bought his uncle’s ship with maps and descriptions of the new land and set off to find it”.

“After several months of fighting storms and fog in the North Atlantic he finally discovered the land described by his uncle and went ashore to explore. He found the harbors to be teaming with fish and on shore the land grew tall trees and had meadows with vast fields of grape vines. Because of the grapes he called this new land “Vinland”. Thus he is given partial credit for discovering North America before Columbus. He had discovered the shores of North America, Canada, Newfoundland and Labrador. Returning to Greenland he told of his discoveries and encouraged others to follow”.

“As the news spread to Greenland, Iceland and Norway other Vikings followed and traveled to the shores of Vinland setting up colonies from Labrador to Massachusetts. Although they brought with them some farm animals, they also learned to grow native crops and fish and hunt and survive in this new land”.

When Joe had finished the story we were all surprised and also excited to be involved with the present expedition. We even dreamed that we might make additional discoveries and add to the historical findings. Jim then said, “OK Joe that was a great story and sure gives all of us inspiration and honor to be part of this great trip. We are going to sign off for now and get back to you tomorrow morning at 9:00 AM EST and contact you every day at that time. You can upload text messages anytime and we will read them as needed”. At that, we clicked off the satellite link and joined the others for a meeting with the head archeologist.

After setting up camp and the satellite link, the head archeologist Dr. Charles Baker gave us instruction and digging tools and showed us what to look for as we dug around some of the stone huts. It was slow work because you could only remove small amounts of glacial sand or permafrost and then sift it through screening to expose the smallest items and details.

In addition to the excavation, some of the members of each crew was assigned to take weather and climate data. They would also dig soil cores through the permafrost to determine changes over time as the soil layers were built up. The soil would later be analyzed back at the ship and also back home at he university labs. The analysis would look for geologic evidence as well as microscopic plant and animal life. A mini weather station was also set up to record weather conditions such as wind, temperature humidity and air pressure. The weather station would be permanently left at the site and was powered by a nuclear battery to last almost forever. The weather station would send data wirelessly to a synchronous satellite stationed over the North Pole.

The other team sent further north up the Arsuk Fjord would also set up mini weather stations. In addition they would mark the leading edge of the glacier boundaries with GPS coordinates and laser survey equipment. These benchmarks would later be used to track the movement of the glacier over time and determine how fast it was melting and receding north.

Back at the excavation, we began digging around the stone huts and in a short time found new artifacts. Joe Laprusso was first to find a crude scale with chains for weighing goods. The chain was made of Bronze and the pivot made of Iron. This was consistent with the Viking settlement on Greenland, since they lived during the end of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age and used these metals in their daily lives.

The text file left by Joe Balsaro in the recent satellite link further explained the use of metal tools by the early Viking settlers. Joe’s Text File read the following: “The early Celtic civilization in the first century BC learned to make a bronze alloy with copper and ten percent tin which was mined in Britain. The alloy was much superior to regular copper and valued by other civilizations. Over time, the Celts integrated with other Slavic people where their trade and culture was inherited by Viking sailors in Norway. Subsequently, during the next 1000 years the Viking sailors spread and shared much of their knowledge with other civilizations from the region. Consequently, Viking weapons, tools and jewelry show hints of Celtic and Roman origin. In addition, although Christianity spread through northern Europe, Ireland and Norway, some of the Vikings remained loyal to their Celtic Gods and continued their pagan beliefs”.

Additionally, Joe’s text file described another excavation completed in southern Greenland where ancient farms had been found. They were labeled GUS which stood for “Garden Under Sand”. Evidently the farms were buried by the glacier as it moved south after 1400 AD during a dramatic climate change. As more of the dig was uncovered, tools were found that showed that the area was heavily farmed and had large herds of goats and sheep. In fact animal and garden compost from 1400 AD was dug up in the 1990s and released a pungent odor of animal waste that had been buried for close to a 600 years.

However, artifacts can only be found from the time period between 1000 AD and 1400 AD all buried under glacial sand. It is estimated that the Viking population on Greenland was about 5000 during this period. After that it is like the Viking civilization disappeared. Did a fast moving glacier bury the once green pastures? Where did the Vikings go? Were they attacked by invading warriors from the north? There are no mass grave sites that would show battles with invaders. Did they merge with the northern inhabitants? Did they sail off to greener North America because of the climate change?

Back at the current dig site, Marco Greico sifted through the permafrost and found an ancient astrolabe. This was an instrument used by the Vikings to navigate the oceans by using the celestial positions of the sun and stars. The magnetic compass was not discovered until 1200 AD and so the astrolabe was the primary tool for earlier ocean navigation. Scratches on the astrolabe made from bronze showed angles with the Sun and North Star that would give current latitudes associated with Greenland, Iceland, Norway and North America.

After awhile, Joe Pignato hit a solid object at a dig site he was at. He gently picked around it and eventually unearthed a soap stone drinking vessel. It was probably used to hold wine made from grapes found in Vinland (North America) which the Vikings are known to have discovered.

A short distance away, Joe Laprusso discovered a grave site surrounded by smooth stones the size of large melons. These stones had scratches on the surface that looked like ancient writing. As the stones were uncovered and cleaned, you could also make out drawings scratched along the top. Joe immediately realized that he had discovered something important and called out to Dr. Baker to come over and see what he had found.

On close examination of the stones, Dr. Baker said with excitement that they were “Rune Stones”. He further explained that these stones were used by ancient cultures like the Celts and Vikings to describe important events or to mark the grave sites of important people. The symbols scratched on Joe’s “Rune Stones” were from the runic alphabet used by the Celtics. This alphabet had letters called runes which represented a single letter or sound or event. Although the runic alphabet was similar throughout many Celtic civilizations, there were regional differences where the alphabet contained either 16 or 24 letters.

In modern times, Rune stones have been found all over Europe depicting great events in the Celtic History. The stones have also been found in North America along the east coast and are one of the primary pieces of evidence for proving that Viking and Nordic explorers visited the New England area.

Here in North America, they setup small colonies from 1000 AD to 1400 AD even before Columbus and other Puritan settlers. In fact, a Nordic Rune Stone was found in Hampton, NH in 1902 and is believed to be the final resting place of Thorwald Ericson, brother to the famous Viking explorer Leif Ericson.

These early Viking colonies in North America probably merged and melted into the native Indian culture sharing common skills and knowledge. Some evidence of this is found in the writings of early Puritan settlers who describe seeing the local Indians wearing European type clothing, using Celtic armor and breast plates and sailing along inland rivers in canoes with square sails similar to Viking ocean long boats.

Using his knowledge of the Runic Alphabet, Dr Baker interpreted the writing and the scratched pictured on the Runestone that Joe had found. The etched pictogram on the stone showed an old Viking Boat sailing on rough seas and the runic letters loosely translated that the person buried in the shallow grave was the local Celtic priest or “Druid”. Evidently the Druid priest died at sea during a violent storm and was brought to this Viking village for burial. Dr. Baker further said that the Druids were the spiritual leaders of the Celtics and Vikings and believed that the Gods of Nature controlled the fate of man on earth. Thor was the God of Thunder and ruled all other gods.

Since Joe Laprusso had made such a significant find, Dr. Baker asked the other Romeos to assist him with the excavation of the Druid grave site. The site was a shallow grave with small rocks piled on top. Some larger red sand stones were found on each of the four sides of the burial site. Each had a pictogram and some runic writing.

Red sandstone was the major geologic deposit on Greenland and large slabs of it could be found everywhere. Most of the red stone slabs were used to construct the stone huts for living quarters as well as some larger structures for the Christian church. Although Christianity had converted some of the Viking settlers, many of the men still believed in the Druidic religion.

Dr. Baker said that in previous excavations a Christian church was uncovered as well as a Druidic stone temple similar to Stonehenge as he pointed to the temple stones on a distant hillside. The Stonehenge type structure was composed of vertical monolith slabs of the red sandstone topped with horizontal cross pieces. Just as Stonehenge was oriented to the light of the rising and setting sun so was this structure.

Suddenly we heard the howling of wolves in the distance near the Druid temple. As all eyes looked in that direction we saw a pack of wolves. However, in the bright sunlight the wolves’ appearance changed to what looked like a group of men dressed in ancient fur skins and holding long staffs. Some of the men also had weapons and shields and wore helmets with horns and wings protruding from the tops. As a cloud moved over the sun, the appearance of these men changed back to those of the howling wolves and thunder could be heard in the distance.

We all froze in astonishment at this strange sight. Did we actually see a group of ancient Viking Warriors? Did the wolves change to men and then back again? Were these Druid “Shape Shifters” as legend has described? Did the excavation of the burial site that Joe found cause them to appear and try to ward off intruders? Was this Viking settlement sacred ground? Should we continue the excavation? Were we safe here?

In a short time the sun came back out and the illusion of wolves had disappeared. All seemed to be safe again. Dr. Baker tried to calm everyone’s nerves and said we should continue the excavation but with dignity and honor. We would carefully remove each rock and number it. Photographs would be taken and a diagram of the excavation grid would be drawn. This was all done to carefully preserve the burial site and its artifacts. All would be preserved and nothing destroyed. The grave site would be treated with the highest reverence for Viking beliefs and its unique culture. In addition, we also had an excavation permit from the Greenland government and were not violating any local laws. However, the local Inuit people may not care about any permits when it came to sacred ground.

During the remaining 30 day expedition, we found several more artifacts including knives, whetstones, sandstone vessels, bronze and iron tools, weapons, breast plates, helmets, swords and daggers. However, the most important find was a cloth bag of small rune stones each inscribed with a letter of the runic alphabet. This was an invaluable discovery for deciphering inscriptions found on the larger runic grave stones and head stones.

However, Dr. Baker further explained that the bag of rune stones buried with the Druid priest also confirmed their use as a mystical device for determining one’s fate. Legend has described that the Rune Stones were used like ancient Tarot cards to predict the future. It was the most powerful device used by the Druid priest as they revealed the words and desires of their Gods.

Dr. Baker then demonstrated how the stones would be used to tell the future or predict one’s fate. He opened the bag and cast the rune stones on the ground. The stones randomly scattered like rolling dice with some showing a runic letter facing up and others facing down or to the side. Reading only the stones facing up he saw the up facing runic letters. Although the interpretation of the stones required years of practice, Dr. Baker saw the stones for Clouds, Death, Lightning, Volcano, Ships, Sun and Ice.

On seeing the stones, our expedition guide “Eko” cried with agony and fell to his knees. He covered his face and began praying in an ancient language. Eko was a native Inuit from northern Greenland and was familiar with the use of the rune stones by the elders in his village. As a boy the local “Shaman” would use the stones to help guide the village in making choices regarding life’s demands in a harsh environment.

He later explained that the site of three stones together (Ice, Lightning and Death) always predicted doom and that we all needed to be very careful and watch for a local catastrophic event. He then said that the appearance of lights in the night sky would confirm the coming
danger. After dinner that evening we were all struck with what we saw in the clear night sky; a beautiful display of the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis). Was this a sign of future doom, as Eko had predicted? Southern Greenland does have night and day during the summer months, unlike higher latitudes above 80 degrees which are in the land of the “Midnight Sun” (sunlight 24 hours per day).

Although we expected to see the “Shape Shifting” wolves every day, they did not reappear. Perhaps they secretly watched from a distance and learned to trust our pure scientific intensions and knew that we would protect the sanctity of this place; an ancient Viking village preserved in glacial sand so that future civilizations might learn from the artifacts about this great culture.

On the last day of the expedition we loaded all the gear on to the trucks and drove to Narsuaq Harbor, the small fishing village on the coast. Our ship, the Snow Dragon was waiting for us, moored out from the dock. In short order we ferried all our materials out to the ship and set sail south on Arsuk Fjord which would carry us to the open ocean.

However, we would not stop at Nuuk Airport as before. This time, the ship would sail directly to Boston where all the U.S. Scientists would depart. Later the Snow Dragon would dock at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute on Cape Cod and prepare for another expedition with some Marine Biologists back to the Arctic.

As we traveled on board the Snow Dragon from Greenland to Boston, we had the opportunity to meet some of the other scientists and the ship’s crew. They were all friendly and we promised to stay in touch through email and future projects. The more we talked, the more the Chinese scientists realized we shared the same human values and protection of human rights. We were not the villains that the Chinese government planted in the minds of their people.

As we catalogued our archeological finds and showed them to scientist from other countries, a Chinese lab assistant took me aside and said that she was very nervous and uncomfortable about some activities that she saw on the ship while the northern expedition scientists explored the upper part of the Arsuk Fjord.

She then told me what she had seen. Evidently, the ship sailed up and down the Asuuk Fjord very close to the steep glacier walls and at specific distances fired long cylindrical torpedoes into the deep waters. To the casual observer, these torpedoes were just regular data recording buoys.

However, later that night she secretly crept up to the area near the torpedo cannons and got a closer look. The torpedoes had a nuclear symbol painted on the side and a radio antenna sticking out the end. She only imagined that they might be some sort of nuclear bombs that could be detonated by radio signal at sometime in the future. I then told her that I would treat this confidentially and would notify the appropriate authorities as soon as possible.

When we returned to Boston, I immediately contacted my friend Bill Wells at the FBI and told him the story. He said he would take care of it and start an undercover investigation with Homeland Security and without letting the wrong people know. Later, that week the U.S. submarine “John Kennedy” was deployed to the Arsuk Fjord to investigate. Divers from the submarine found several of the torpedoes floating in exactly 50 feet of water, just under the ice shelf. They were not permanently fired into the glacier wall as previously thought but were able to maintain their specific depth and nearness to the steep glacier walls using their internal gyro navigation.

These torpedoes were submersible drones which were radio controlled by an overhead synchronous satellite. In addition, the temperature of the sea water immediately around the
torpedo was at least 10 degrees higher than the adjacent sea water. These radio controlled submersible drones were heating up the water under the glacial ice shelf and consequently melting the glacier. Their mini nuclear reactors provided the heat. Additional investigation revealed that there were at least one hundred of these drones located all around the southern tip of Greenland and within most of its inland fjords. Was this the major cause of the melting glacier? Why would the Chinese want to do such a thing? Did they want control over the ice-free Arctic Ocean and its shipping routes?

As soon as the submersible drones were discovered, a message was relayed to the President Obama in Washington who also relayed the message to the Greenland government. They agreed to work cooperatively and for the present not reveal the situation to the public.

Presently, stumped by the Chinese puzzle, Bill Wells called me back and told me what had happened so far and that they would investigate further. In the meantime, I called the other Romeos together and tried to explain the situation. Maybe we could put all the pieces together like a giant chess game and see what moves are possible. Something doesn’t make sense. Why would the Chinese jeopardize their world position with such a brazen move?

Later that week, the Greenland government received a terrorist threat that demanded the immediate payment of a billion dollars within 12 hours or a nuclear explosion would destroy an undisclosed area of Greenland. They then described their network of submersible drones as proof and knew that the United States would confirm this since they had discovered some of them already. They further identified themselves as a Russian organization and not the Chinese government as previously believed. Although the drones were thought to only create heat with their mini nuclear reactor, they in fact were “Gun-Type” nuclear bombs.

Further investigation confirmed that the Russian organization was really an arm of the the Russian Mafia who had been involved with the theft of large quantities of nuclear materials when the USSR fell apart and the central government dissolved into splinter states. The Russian Mafia was now using terrorist tactics for blackmail and extortion.

The mini drone torpedoes left by the scientists within the Greenland fjords had been disguised as regular data recording devices but were actually small INDs (Improvised Nuclear Devices) made from stolen Russian nuclear materials containing HEU (Highly Enriched Uranium). From the size of the drone torpedoes it was estimated that they contained about 25kg of HEU which was enough to produce a 10 kt explosion like that which occurred on Hiroshima in WWII.

In fact, President Obama had recently signed an agreement at a 47 nation summit to reduce nuclear stock piles of weapons grade nuclear materials world-wide. It was hoped that the summit would encourage all nations to tighten their internal security and prevent the theft of nuclear materials by terrorist organizations, although some were already missing and probably stolen.

The Greenland government decided to wait for the next move by the Russian Mafia. Maybe they were just playing “Russian Roulette” and would not set off a nuclear device. Unfortunately, as the deadline passed, a nuclear explosion occurred at the inland head of the Arsuk Fjord collapsing the glacier edge and breaking off large chunks of the glacier for miles. As a result, the glacial chunks all fell simultaneously into the fjord causing a giant tidal wave rushing out of the narrow fjord passage to the open ocean 10 miles away.

As the tidal wave moved down the fjord toward the ocean it flooded small villages along the banks even though the fjords walls were high and steep. The 40 foot high waves swept over the villages capsizing boats, toppling homes and buildings and drowning hundreds of people. Although Narsuaq Harbor was further down the winding fjord, the wave continued its damage and struck Narsuaq wiping out most of the harbor boats and taking more human life.

Within the first 15 seconds, the nuclear explosion produced a mushroom cloud at the glacial edge vaporizing the ice and water which then traveled several thousands of feet up into the sky. Although the surface winds were calm at present, high altitude prevailing winds would eventually carry the radioactive cloud in a northeast direction. The cloud and plume would travel over the solid glacier immediately killing all living creatures within its path for about a mile from the blast zone. Further death would occur over the next few days, weeks and months as the plume progressed.

As the radioactive plume continued to spread northeast, the fallout from the radioactive dust would coat the landscape. Anything in its path would suffer from radiation burns immediately but the dust would remain for thousands of years. As a result, the arctic food chain on top of the glacier was now contaminated and would be passed along from one animal to the next resulting in radiation poisoning and eventually death.

The U.S. Air Force Base at Thule immediately scrambled its fighter planes to access the situation and ready itself for a continued attack. An evacuation plan was immediately put in to effect to transport all people living in the direction of the radioactive plume out of the area. Planes and helicopter from local airports flew around and ahead of the plume picking up as many passengers as they could and flew them to safer areas in southeast Greenland, Iceland or Labrador.

The U.S Kennedy submarine was already in the area south of Greenland patrolling for more suspicious activity concerned with the drone torpedoes and had picked up radio transmissions around the blast zone. Through satellite triangulation they isolated a radio phone signal directed to a receiver at the head of Arsuk Fjord and the blast zone. The signal originated from a Russian sub just a few miles away to their east.

As they continued to monitor the radio transmissions from the Russian sub they picked up a call made from the sub to the Greenland government with a second ransom demand. The Russian caller claimed responsibility for the nuclear explosion and said that if their demands were not met in the next twelve hours, another explosion would take place. Evidently the Russian sub was able to send a radio signal to anyone of the one hundred submarine torpedo drones placed along the southern fjords. All these sub drones were packed with an IND (Improvised Nuclear Device) and could be triggered by a satellite cell phone call to it’s on board receiver phone number.

The U.S. sub radioed back to Washington what they had found and were given the authority to engage the Russian sub as an active and hostile terrorist. The U.S. sub captain now had two choices. Either he could blow the Russian sub out of the water or incapacitate its radio communications and capture the crew. With no radio communications the Russian sub would not be able to explode the drone torpedoes.

Choosing the latter, the U.S. sub captain sent a high energy magnetic pulse at the Russian sub and fried all its electronic and communication equipment. The Russian sub was now dead in the water. Subsequently, armed personnel from the U.S. sub boarded the Russian sub and arrested all its personnel under international law.

After interrogating the Russian sub crew it was learned that the leaders of the Mafia operation worked out of the Russian Embassy in Boston. Names of the Embassy leaders were given as well as the number and location of all the drone torpedoes along Greenland’s fjords. Records and data were also found in the Russian captain’s quarters to verify the information.

The captain of the U.S sub informed his commanders in Washington and a plan was immediately formed to arrests the Mafia leaders through diplomatic channels. U.S. ships were also deployed to retrieve all the drone torpedoes. Hopefully, the world was now safe from this terrorist plot, at least for the present. ????????????????????????????????

z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z z



The Downeaster pulled into the Portland train station and I woke up startled from a deep sleep. The Romeos looked at me and laughed. Was I dreaming about the Polar Expedition to Greenland? Did we really find Viking artifacts and Rune Stones? For now I think I’ll keep the dream to myself.

We got off the train and took the bus to the Portland Historic District and got off on Market St. It was now almost noon and we were starved. Joe mentioned that he heard about a restaurant called Gritty McDuff’s which had a variety of home brew beers and a great menu. Since it was close by we all agreed and walked over to have lunch.

We sat at a booth in the corner and placed our orders for food and also for beer or ale. The waiter suggested the “Black Fly Stout”, for drinks and for lunch today’s special was “Snake Bite Braised Beef Raviolis”. Since we were here to have a good time and live dangerously, we all ordered stout and the lunch special.

Looking around I noticed other tourists sitting mostly in booths and enjoying the fishermen dĂ©cor and flavor of this rustic tavern. However, some local fisherman sat at the bar and drank Gritty’s home brew ale and were having a good time, teasing each other about their recent catch. Most had tattoos on their arms depicting an ocean life. They could all be Viking decedents since they all looked the part with their weathered faces and husky build.

During the next two hours we drank and ate and told stories while we laughed and joked. After lunch we decided to walk down along the harbor and look at the fishing boats as they unloaded the catch of the day. Later we strolled up some side streets and went in and out of shops.

Most of the shops were for tourists to buy local trinkets and postcards for the family back home but scattered between them were some local places. After buying our share of family gifts we made one last stop at an old antique shop called the “Viking Spar”.

It was really an old place with junk piled on shelves which hadn’t been cleaned or dusted in a while. Most of the items were related to a sailor’s life at sea. It looked like this shop catered to some of the local fishermen. There were some old antique compasses, used ship log books describing an ocean voyage, harpoons for whaling, oars and oar locks, fids for weaving rope or lanyards, fish nets and sail cloth as well as scrimshaw etchings on walrus tusks.

On the back wall were some Viking artifacts. As I looked at them I saw an old astrolabe made of Bronze and Iron, a soap stone drinking cup, bronze breast plates, a helmet with wings and several large rune stones. The runes stones were about one foot across and made from red slate. Each red stone had etched runic letters and pictures of Viking Long Boats, Polar Bears or Icebergs.

I couldn’t believe my eyes. Were these the same artifacts that we found on the Polar Excavation in Greenland or was that just a dream? I turned to Jim Terluccio and said, “Have you seen these items before?” He looked at me curiously and said, “No, but they sure are interesting.”

Since the items didn’t have any prices listed, I went over to the checkout counter to talk with the proprietor. An older man stood behind the counter with red hair and beard and a weathered face. He looked like a real seasoned Viking sailor and spoke with a Slavic accent as he asked what I wanted.

I asked him for the price of the astrolabe, pointing at the back counter. He said those items were just for display and not for sale. However, they were family heirlooms handed down through the generations for many hundreds of years. I then asked if he had any other Viking materials for sale.

He pointed to an old wooden box on the counter and said I could choose some Viking items from inside the box which had been made by some local craftsmen. I looked inside and saw a few smaller red slate stones with etched pictograms and runic letters as well a few old cloth bags filled with small rune stone dice and some other trinkets. Since the other Romeos were anxious to leave, I quickly bought a few items from the box and left the store. Those items are as close as I am going to get to what I saw in my dream.

After walking around some of the other tourist sites we took the bus back to the train station and boarded the 7:55 PM train back toward Boston. Since it was now after 8:00 PM we decided to have something light to eat in the Café Car. Most of us ordered a bowl of Maine clam chowder, a salad or a burger just to quiet our rolling stomachs.

After eating we had some coffee and I took out the bag of rune stone dice and told the guys that I heard “somewhere” that they could predict ones fate or tell the future. The bag also contained a piece of paper listing the runic letters found on the stones and their meaning.

There were 24 dice and I rolled them on the table a few times and kept getting the same set of runic letters as in “my dream” on Greenland. Seven stone dice showed their runic letters face up and the others face down. These new rune stones also predicted a future doom with - Death, Lightning, Ships, Sun, Clouds, Volcano and Ice. Not letting on what I had interpreted, I let the other Romeos look at the sheet of paper and have fun making their own predictions. After a while I put the rune stones away and the conversation moved on to something else.

The train pulled into the Woburn train station and we all got off and said our good byes until the next time. We then got in our respective cars and drove home with the hope of hitting the hay early from a long but “memorable” day.

The next morning I read the newspaper and learned about the volcanic eruption in Iceland and the plume of ash spreading all over Europe. As the days went by, the news described the grounding of all airplanes and the devastation that the toxic dust was causing to people and farm animals in Iceland near the volcano. The volcanic eruptions were sporadic , stopping and then starting a few days later. There seemed to be no end in sight.

Was my dream coming true? "The clouds, the blocked sun, the dust plume, the volcanic explosion, the ice glacier and the grounded airplane ships." Did the rune stones predict the future or cause it? Had I discovered the Secret of the Rune Stones? Was this a curse or a blessing?



Comments Please send to: markryan@comcast.net


Acknowledgements:
I would like to thank my Romeo friends for their colorful backgrounds and giving me the inspiration for my stories.


+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

In Memory of … Mark Patrick

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++


References
Celtic History
http://www.angelfire.com/realm/shades/vikings/celts.htm
Druid History – Earth Mysteries
http://www.britannia.com/wonder/michell2.html
http://www.angelfire.com/realm/shades/demons/druids.htm
Celtic Culture
http://www.joellessacredgrove.com/Celtic/history.html
Leif Ericson
http://www.viking.no/e/people/leif/e-leiv.htm
Native Americans
http://mikenh.wordpress.com/tag/native-americans/
STEM IPY Project - Study Ocean Levels and Glacia Melting and Global Warming
http://www.umassk12.net/ipy/
Old Maps – Towns
http://www.mapstotreasure.com/?gclid=COWGk4CSwKACFdk55Qodkg9WVQ
Artic Expedition – China
http://www.china.org.cn/english/MATERIAL/74022.htm
Arsuk Fjord, Docked at Narsauq (clear ice, icebergs, fishing village)
http://www.svprecipice.com/logbook/August09.php
Greenland Airports -50 Heliports, 14 airports (most west)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Greenland-CIA_WFB_Map.png
Thule USAFB origin 1941
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thule_Air_Base
Greenland Vikings had Celtic Blood DNA
http://pasthorizons.wordpress.com/2010/03/21/greenland-vikings-%E2%80%98had-celtic-blood%E2%80%99/
Greenland Climate Change from 1000-1200 AD Ice Cap Grew
http://www.holloworbs.com/Greenland_vikings.htm
Greenland Farms Under Sand
http://www.expressnews.ualberta.ca/article.cfm?id=776
Greenland Towns – About 13 total
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cities_and_towns_in_Greenland
Greenland – Map and Facts
http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/namerica/gl.htm
Greenland Ice Melting Faster
http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/earth20100216.html
Fate of Greenland Vikings
http://www.archaeology.org/online/features/greenland/
Vikings and Celts – 1st Century
http://www.angelfire.com/realm/shades/vikings/celts.htm
Viking Invasions
http://www.angelfire.com/realm/shades/vikings/vik2.htm
Vikings in N. America
http://www.ensignmessage.com/archives/vikings.html
Vikings in NH
http://www.hampton.lib.nh.us/hampton/history/parks/thorvald/evaspeare.htm
Viking in New England
http://www.skyweb.net/~channy/Viking.html
Settlers in Pemaquid, Maine
http://www.skyweb.net/~channy/Viking.html
Rune Stones in Hampton,NH 1043AD
http://www.hampton.lib.nh.us/hampton/history/vignettes/NHhistoricseacoast.htm
Who Owns Artic Mining
http://byers.typepad.com/arctic/2009/01/an-iron-road-across-the-permafrost.html
China Mining and Oil in the Arctic
http://e360.yale.edu/content/digest.msp?id=2298
China Flags the Antarctic
http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/china-flags-its-antarctic-intent-20100111-m287.html
Ruinstones – Description (3000 world wide)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Runestone
North American Runestones – Spirit Pond Runestone from Maine
http://www.sunnyway.com/runes/americanstones.html
Runes and Their Meaning
http://www.paranormality.com/runes.shtml
Arctic Resources
http://www.mnh.si.edu/arctic/html/resources_faq.html
Stonhenge
http://www.britannia.com/history/h7.html
Ringed Plover – Greenland
http://npweb.npolar.no/english/arter/sandlo
Gannets-Sea Birds
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gannet
Surviving a Nuclear Attack
http://abcnews.go.com/Primetime/Technology/story?id=1130950&page=1
Obama’s Nuclear Summit- Terorist Use of Nukes
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2010/04/14/nuclear_pact_makes_world_more_secure_obama_says/?page=full
Nuclear Theft
http://www.nti.org/e_research/e3_8a.html
Nuclear Explosions
http://www.remm.nlm.gov/nuclearexplosion.htm
Weapons of Mass Destruction Com. Gun Type – 60kg HEU Hiroshima 15kt , Nag 23kt
http://www.nti.org/e_research/cnwm/overview/technical2.asp#top
WMD Commission
http://www.wmdcommission.org/files/No2.pdf

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Adventures of the Romeo Gang - "Pot Luck In Mexico"

Book Purchase
You can purchase my books at http://www.lulu.com/ . They come with a colorful glossy cover in either the magazine version or pocket book version. Select (Buy) then type (Mark Ryan) in the search box. You will then see several of my current books along with other authors with the name (Ryan). My books are under the title "Adventures of the Romeo Gang". One book is a single short story. The other two books are a compilation of ten short stories. Select your choice and follow directions for purchase.


Disclaimer: (The following story is pure fiction. All names, places and events are coincidental and are only used to embellish the story.)

Pot Luck In Mexico
by Mark Ryan © 2010

The NSTA (National Science Teachers Association) National Conventions have always attracted a large crowd from every state in the union as well as from abroad. This year it is being held in San Diego, CA, on Mar 18-24, 2010, with the hope of attracting 40,000 attendees. The event is a stellar attraction for new and old teachers hoping to attend workshops or listen to guest speakers to learn about some new classroom methods and techniques. In addition, educational publishers and vendors show their new products and give away thousands of dollars worth of free materials that teachers can use in their classrooms.

I have tried to attend as many of these conventions as possible over the years for a variety of reasons, the most important of which is to share the excitement of teaching with other practitioners and recharge one’s enthusiasm. The event allows a teacher to gather a new bag of tricks to bring back to school, liven up the classroom and watch students get excited about learning.

The convention usually lasts about a week with the first few days devoted to day long courses and workshops and group meetings. The next few days has a variety of one hour events including short teacher workshops, guest speakers and debates, and smaller group meetings. Scattered over the week there are breakfast and lunch offerings sponsored by national teacher groups and in the evening there are social events and parties with dancing, food and fun. In between all these events you can also visit the local area to see some area attractions like museums, theaters, baseball stadiums, beaches and shopping areas.

This year some of the members of the Romeo group were invited to the NSTA Convention as guest lecturers in their various fields to present a lecture-discussion on new ideas in science education. The ROMEO group, (Retired Old Men Eating Out), is composed of retired science educators who work part-time for the University of Massachusetts and the STEM project (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). Each of the Romeos has an expertise in a scientific field including Nanotechnology, Human Gene Cloning, Bioluminescent Chemistry, Computer Neural Networks and Bioengineering. Although these are cutting edge sciences, the Romeos are able to tailor their lectures so that they are interesting to a wide variety of audiences from doctoral candidates to elementary school children.

Several months before the convention the Romeos gathered for their monthly lunch at a local restaurant in Boston’s North End District and planned to book their NSTA reservations together for the same flight and hotel from Boston to San Diego. Only four of the Romeos planned to attend the convention; Myself - Marco Grieco, Jim Terlucci, Joe Laprusso and Ed DeScharo. As always we booked our own reservations and then got reimbursed from an NSF (National Science Foundation) Educational Grant which only paid for travel and accommodations. We paid all the other costs like meals and sightseeing.
Although I always have a great time with the Romeos, something always goes wrong and I end up with “pot luck”. However, it always turns out good in the end. They say sometimes you fall in a mud puddle and then come up smelling like a rose. Hopefully that will happen on this trip.

Jim had made the reservations for both flight and hotel and we were to be seated together on the plane and would share double rooms at the hotel. The day finally arrived and we boarded the plane. However, they could only sit three of us together so I opted to take another seat which was at the back of the plane. It seems like I always have the “luck”. However, the plane got off on time and we landed safely on American Airlines at the San Diego International Airport. It was Monday, Mar.18th and we took the shuttle to our hotel in downtown San Diego. We were staying at the San Diego Marriott which was about a mile away from Convention Center. I was staying with Jim in a room with double bed and Joe and Ed in another room. The rooms were very nice but my bed was stuck in the corner with a built in bookcase overhead. I just know that I was going to bump my head on the bookcase when I got up in the middle of the night. At my age I seem to visit the bathroom several times a night. “Am I lucky or what?”

After checking in at the hotel we decided to take the bus tour around San Diego and see a few of the attractions. We found a list of the top ten things to do and decided to visit a few of them over the week. Since our lecture-presentations weren’t scheduled until Wednesday, we had two days for sightseeing before spending time at the convention.

Among the ten top sights to see in the city were Balboa Park with its Cultural Museums, San Diego Zoo, Sea World and Tijuana. We got off the bus at Balboa Park and spent the rest of the afternoon visiting all the attractions within this large and beautiful park. We saw the Japanese Garden, The House of Hospitality, The Aerospace Museum, and the Museum of Art.

That evening we were all invited to a complimentary dinner sponsored by the book publisher Prentice Hall at the well known restaurant called Anthony’s Fish Grotto on the Bay. We all ordered something different but I had a house special: Mama Ghio’s Famous Chowder and the Panko Alaskan Cod. The meal was delicious and the conversation was just great. After cocktails we went back to the hotel and turned in early, exhausted from a full day of non-stop activity.

On Tuesday morning we decided to take a day tour to Tijuana and planned to return for dinner at the hotel in San Diego. Since we were traveling out of the country it was necessary for us to bring our passports. Getting into Mexico was the easy part compared to the difficulty you would have with the U.S. Border Authorities if you didn’t have a valid passport on your return crossing.

The tour bus picked us up at our hotel and within a half hour we arrived at the Mexican border. At the gate the Mexican border police walked through the bus and quickly checked our passports and carry-on bags and then let the bus driver pass through the gate to the city. In a few minutes we were in Mexico and turned onto Avenida Revolucion (Revolution Avenue) and the Market District. The bus driver said he would stop here for an hour so that we could walk through the local shops and make some purchases. U.S. Customs limits each person to spend no more than $800 in merchandise which can include one liter of alcohol.

The colorful bazaars contained all sorts of handcrafts and unique jewelry and were truly a shopper’s paradise. Afterwards we toured the Avenue of the Heroes, Tijuana Cultural Center and the oldest Jai Alai Palace in Mexico. At the market square we saw the “Zonkey” which was actually a donkey painted with white and black stripes to look like a zebra. We all gathered around the “Zonkey” to have our picture taken. Of course as luck would have it, I was at the “Butt End”.

We then stopped into a quite restaurant to sample some traditional Mexican food. The four of us were seated at a table in the corner. For appetizers, the waiter brought over some fresh made salsa with tortilla chips for dipping. Just before the waiter took our main order, the local Mexican Police came into the restaurant and approached our table and asked to see our passports. Everything had previously gone so smoothly that we thought it was a joke. “How lucky can I be?”

However, the policemen asked us more abruptly and we quickly took out our passports. He circled the table and grabbed them all, one at a time. He then said that there was some question about there validity and asked us to quietly follow him outside the restaurant so he could quickly clear it up.

When we all got outside, there were four other policemen waiting. The head man introduced himself as Captain Valdez and asked us to please be seated in the police van so that we could go to the American Consulate to validate our identification papers. Not wanting to irritate the local authorities, we got in the van with Captain Valdez and two policemen. The other two policemen got in a car and we drove down the Avenue of Heroes. However, in a short time we were leaving the downtown district and driving out into the country side. When I protested and asked where we were going, Captain Valdez pulled out a gun a said, “You are all under arrest and will be charged with drug smuggling”. “Do I have the luck or what?”

We all looked at each other in horror and couldn’t believe what we had heard. In unison we asked, “On what grounds and where is the evidence”? Captain Valdez then took out several bags of marijuana and cocaine from his pocket and said, “These have been found in your possession”. “How could that be”? I shouted, “You haven’t even searched us”. Captain Valdez then said, “I will certainly search you all later but for now just stop talking or I will have to tie and gag you”. He then handed us each a plastic bag and told us to empty our pockets and drop everything into the bag including our jewelry, cell phone and wallet. Since we were being held hostage at the point of a gun, there was nothing else we could do.

After a few hours we drove off the main highway and down a long dirt road and stopped at a large farm house. There were large green crop fields in the distance, with a dirt airstrip and a small airplane parked next to a barn. We could also see several men with rifles and guns all along the road and in front of the house. A big man with thinning white hair and dressed in a white shirt and tie with pressed pants and shiny shoes approached the van. He must have been the head honcho since Captain Valdez greeted him by saying, “Buenas Tardes Senor Hernandes”. Senor Hernandez replied “Good Afternoon Captain Valdez, I see that you have our guests. Please bring them to the guest quarters”. Maybe my luck was changing, I thought. Senor Hernandez sounds like a nice guy.

However, Captain Valdez then escorted us all to the barn as the guards pushed us in quickly shutting and locking the door behind. We were all now trapped inside. The barn was a big room with ten bunk beds along the left wall with a kitchen and a bathroom at the far end. It was probably used as sleeping quarters for the farm hands. There was a half wall down the center of the barn with some farm tools on the other side. There was also a tractor and some bags of seed and fertilizer on the other side stacked against the right wall.

We realized that we were now truly prisoners but could not figure out why. As we surveyed the barn, you could see some light coming through the uneven barn boards on the wall. Looking out between the boards on the left wall we could see some men with rifles near the main house, the airstrip and a small plane parked on the edge. We also heard other men stationed outside guarding the barn door.

An hour passed and we heard the barn door being unlocked and two men entered who were badly beaten followed by two guards holding guns. The beaten men, who looked like they were farm workers, carried some buckets of food and water to the table in the kitchen and then collapsed on the floor. One of the guards then said that the workers had been caught stealing food and could no longer be trusted and would be locked up and dealt with tomorrow.

The guard also said, “You better eat and get some sleep tonight, for you will have a long walk tomorrow to our camp in the mountains if you survive the night. The American gringos that were here last month tried to fight their way out and we buried them in a ditch in the woods”.

He then said, “If your friends back in the U.S. pay the ransom, we may release you but it all depends on how quick your friends respond. Captain Valdez will be contacting the U.S. Embassy shortly with our demands”. The guards then left and locked the barn door.

Joe quickly went over to the collapsed men who were moaning with pain and bleeding from wounds on their heads and tried to make them comfortable on the floor. I grabbed a sheet from one of the bunk beds and ripped it into small pieces and soaked it with some water to clean their wounds. Joe was more experienced in first aid and dressed the wounds and wrapped them with make shift bandages. In a short time the men regained consciousness and although frightened at first, they then realized we were trying to help.

We then distributed the food and water to ourselves and the wounded men in order that they might regain their strength. After a while one of the men whose name was Jose explained that they were forced into hard labor along with other men from their village to harvest the crops which were now ready for picking. He then said, “The vast green fields you see outside contain thousands of marijuana plants that will be dried and secretly shipped to the U.S. as part of Mexico’s clandestine drug trade.” Jose then continued, “We were beaten because we had worked in the fields all day under the blazing sun and hadn’t eaten since yesterday and tried to steal some food and water from the field wagon”.

He also said, “The owner of the farm, Senor Hernandez is a rich and corrupt politico from the Mexican State government who controls the local police and also works for the Esparansa Drug Cartel”.

I had read in the Boston Globe newspaper that Juan Esparansa was a drug lord who controlled most of the marijuana drug market in Mexico and had more influence on the Mexican government than the elected officials who were also corrupt. In fact the U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had recently visited Guatemala and complained about the rampant drug trade in the U.S. and the drugs coming from Mexico. She further described all the influence that the drug cartel was having on international relations. She also said, “Organized crime has infiltrated all aspects of the Guatemalan state, and now rivals it in terms of power and influence.’’ The drug czar Nelly Bonilla was recently arrested, along with national police chief Baltazar Gomez. They were accused of being the ringleaders of a criminal police gang that stole 1,500 pounds of cocaine.

Jose further described how the drug trade had recently suffered a loss since California had legalized medical marijuana. This legalization allowed California residence or their designees to grow up to 99 plants each for medical purposes. This has spawned the growth of huge marijuana farms in Northern California to grow and supply their customers in the big cities to the south. Consequently, people had switched buying Mexican marijuana for California marijuana. In retaliation, the Mexican drug traffickers have started a turf war in California threatening and forcing marijuana users to buy Mexican. In addition, the Mexican drug lords have begun to capture American tourists and hold them for millions of dollars in ransom money to make up the difference in their lost drug trade.

Jose then said that the small airplane parked near the barn is usually loaded with several bails of dried marijuana and flown across the Mexican border at night so as to avoid being spotted. They then land at hidden airstrips in the back woods of California, New Mexico, Arizona and Texas. They usually leave after 10 PM and then return about 2 AM.

As soon as I heard about the airplane, I knew that it was our only way out. If we didn’t escape tonight, we would be prisoners in the mountains of Mexico tomorrow morning or most likely murdered. However, there was only room for four people on the small Cessna 172 airplane and we would have to leave the farm workers behind. Jose understood and said it would be better for them to escape into the fields and work their way back to their village. They would be safe there with friends.

I then told the rest of our group that I had my pilot’s license and could fly us to safety. I didn’t tell them that I was quite rusty and hadn’t flown for years. However, it should be like riding a bicycle, you never forget the basics. We could probably steal the plane shortly after it returned at 2 AM. However, we would have to add some fuel from the gas cans left along the side of the barn without being seen, since the flight across the border and back would have used up most of the gas in its tanks.

However, we needed a diversion so that the guards wouldn’t hear the plane taking off down the runway with us in it. That meant we would need to have the guards run to the other side of the barn, away from the airplane. I looked around the barn for something to use and saw the fertilizer and thought that with a little luck we could cause a huge fire and an explosion by mixing some motor oil, cleaning fluid, gasoline and fertilizer. I was really counting on my luck to change for the better. Ed would have to help with making the fire since he was the Chemist.

At 10 PM we heard the plane take off and then return at about 2 AM. The pilot got out of the plane and jumped into a small truck and drove away as he waved to the guards. While the plane approached the end of the runway to park, we used the loud engine sound to disguise our work removing a barn board. Jim quietly pried a loose board away from the left side wall big enough for all of us to crawl through. At he same time, Ed piled a few bags of fertilizer against far right wall and soaked them with motor oil and cleaning fluid. He also poured a trail of gasoline from the makeshift fertilizer bomb across the floor to our escape hole on the left side of the barn.

We waited another hour so that the guards might dose off and relax their vigilance. We then all crawled out the escape hole and waited for the precise moment when the guards were out of sight. Jose and his friend quietly crawled through the grass to the adjacent woods and quickly disappeared. Hopefully they will be safe.

Luckily, it was cloudy with no moonlight and very dark. Luck was continuing to turn in our favor. As the three of us, Jim, Joe and me Marco, quietly crawled through the grass to the plane; Ed stayed behind to light the gasoline trail that would travel to the other side of the barn and cause a huge fire. Ed had to wait for our signal first and then light the gasoline trail.

When we got to the plane, I pulled over a ladder and climbed onto the high wing Cessna to fill the plane’s gas tank at the gas cap on top of the wing. I slowly poured the gasoline so as not to make a sound. When it was filled, we all got inside the plane and I scanned all the instruments to refresh my memory on the sequence of things: brake release, ignition switch on, flaps down, adjust throttle to full, and then press start button. We signaled to Ed to start the fire. He lit a match that we had found in the kitchen and ignited the gasoline on the barn floor. The flame shot across the floor to the opposite wall and started burning around the piles of fertilizer and then exploded into a huge fire ball.

The guards ran to the opposite side of the barn away from the plane and began shouting to put out the fire. They dropped their rifles and ran to get some water buckets. At that same moment, Ed ran toward the plane as I pushed the starter button. The engine sputtered and chocked at first. I pushed the button again as I worked the throttle to prime the engine and it eventually started. The plane began to move toward the runway as Ed ran closer to catch us. We held the door open and Ed jumped in. With the throttle full the plane began to increase speed as it moved down the runway.

Some of the guards realized that we were no longer locked in the barn and began firing their rifles at the plane. Luckily we were moving further away and it was too dark for them to aim clearly. The end of the runway was coming up closer and closer as the plane started to lift. I pulled up slightly on the wheel to easy our climb gradually so we wouldn’t stall. However, there were some tall trees in the distance that were directly in our flight path. I pulled up a little more on the wheel but it looked like we were still to close. Just as the plane looked like it might hit the trees I turned the wheel slightly left and we breezed right through the top tree branches clipping off a few leaves. Luck was still with me.

At that moment the guards were still firing their rifles at the plane and a bullet hit the left wing and punctured the gas tank. In a high wing Cessna 172, the gas tank is located on the underside of the wing which runs over the cockpit. I looked out the side window and a stream of gasoline was leaking out from the wing tank. I stayed low a headed north just over the tree line. We were now traveling at about 80 mph and would cross the border soon with any luck. The landscape now changed to rolling hills and dessert sands. It was rough country below and I wouldn’t want to get stuck out in the dessert without water and proper clothing.

After a few more minutes the engine started sputtering. I looked at the gas gauge which now read empty. The bullet hole must have drained the tank dry more quickly than I predicted. We had only been flying about ten minutes and at this speed had only traveled about ten miles north. I looked for a place to land but it was hard seeing with no moon and a low cloud cover. I flew the plane slow and low to the ground. The terrain ahead was flat but I was afraid I might hit a rock or a ditch that might flip the plane. With the speed approaching 50 mph and just a hair above stall speed, I pulled up on the wheel and the plane slowly settled onto the ground bouncing up and down as it hit some small ruts and eventually came to a stop. Our “pot luck” was with us since we hadn’t hit any “pot holes”.

We all sighed with relief that we had escaped and landed without crashing. Our luck was getting better. However, we had no idea where we were. There were no land marks that I was familiar with. While we were flying low, we only crossed two roads but didn’t see any houses or man made structures. The only clue that I had was that the airplane had an old GPS that listed its latitude and longitude. If we could find some aeronautical charts in the plane cockpit, we might be able to figure out our position on the chart with the GPS readings.

The starting GPS coordinates at the Marijuana Farm were N32.25.10 and W116.44.36 and the present landing coordinates were N 32.33.14 and W116.47.12. We found a chart on the plane and approximated that we were about 30 miles southeast of Tijuana and just south of the border. If we kept walking north we might run into a border fence. Hopefully with some luck we might be spotted by U.S. Helicopters or cameras or flying drones patrolling the fence and not by local Mexican Police. We still couldn’t trust the local police in this area of Mexico.

We grabbed a water jug from the plane and started walking north. After a few minutes we heard some movement over a hill and slowly crawled to the top to take a look. There was a small group of about ten people led by a man wearing hiking boots and dressed in an army jacket with a baseball cap. There were men, women and children in the party.

We were tempted to yell for help and join the group but I had second thoughts and told everyone to keep quiet and stay hidden. The group were probably illegal immigrants trying to cross the border. The leader is called a Coyote and extorts money from these poor people in the hope that he will guide them across the border and they will find a better life in the United States. However, many never survive the grueling journey and die along the way from disease, lack of water or accident.

Ed whispered quietly, “Maybe we should just follow them. Evidently the Coyote knows the way to the border”. I agreed and said, “That’s a good idea but let’s stay back out of site and keep watch from a distance”.

The group continued north crossing a stream and then a small meadow, disappearing into a wooded area. We walked carefully around the meadow so as not to be seen and then slipped into the woods listening for foot noise on dry leaves or loose branches. In a short time we heard a young child crying. We crouched down behind some trees and watched as the Coyote was scolding the mother to keep her child quiet or be left behind. The child continued to cry and the Coyote slapped the child hard and told the mother to stay here with her child and he would come back for them later. The group left the mother and child behind and disappeared in the woods ahead. We knew that the Coyote would never return. However, the mother stayed put and tried to quiet the child. In a short time the child stopped crying and the mother continued to walk north hoping to stay quiet and catch up with the group later.

That made it difficult for us now since we might lose sight of the main group and follow the mother and child going in a wrong direction. However, we continued to move north and in a short time we could see a barbed wire fence that had been cut where the Coyote had gone through as well as the mother and child. This must be the border fence between Mexico and the U.S. . . . We knew the group was close because we could hear commotion in the distance.

We quietly went through the fence and in a short distance saw a dirt road and a large truck parked. The immigrants were sitting inside the back of the truck. The Coyote gave the driver something in a bag which was probably money and then they locked the back of the truck with the people inside. God knows how long they will ride in the truck and to what American city they will be dumped. If they survive the truck ride with no air, they will have to find help on the other end. The man got in the truck a drove away. The Coyote walked back in the woods toward us and we hid on the ground behind some trees as he passed.

We remained quiet for several minutes until we were sure that the Coyote was gone. We then got up and walked quickly down the dirt road still heading north. In about a half mile we saw that the truck had been stopped by the American Border Police. The driver was arrested and in handcuffs along with all the immigrants. The police had called for a transport bus to carry the people back to the border and be processed with the Immigration Authorities. They would probably just be driven back to Mexico and a record kept of their illegal border crossing. Unfortunately, they would probably try again soon. Anything is better than the poverty that they face in Mexico, with the hope of a better life and a good job in the U.S.

We called to the police from the safety of the trees and shouted “We are Americans. Don’t shoot. We are coming out.” The police didn’t know if this was a trick and told us to put our hands in the air and quietly come out as they held guns and rifles pointed at us.

After a while we told the police what had happened in Tijuana and at the Marijuana Farm and along the trail with the Coyote. They then said that they believed us but would have to bring us to the border facility and verify our identities. Hopefully this was the end of our long ordeal and that our luck was about to change again, this time hopefully for the good.

They say that Potluck is a community dinner with everyone bringing something to eat and share. However, our “Pot Luck” can only be described as an assortment of good and bad luck which occurred on this “Pot” Shrouded Marijuana Merry-Go-Round in Mexico. Maybe that photo I took in Tijuana on the “Butt End” of the “Zonkey” was an omen.

Comments: (always welcome). Email to markryan82@comcast.net

Acknowledgements:
I would like to thank my Romeo friends for their colorful backgrounds and giving me the inspiration for my stories.

References:
NSTA Conventions
http://nstacommunities.org/blog/
Things to Do In San Diego
http://gocalifornia.about.com/cs/sandiego/a/sdtop10.htm
Death of Joseline – A immigrant along the Arizona Border
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=124046778
Drug Wars in Mexico – 15,000 killings
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=122051789
Legalize Marijuana in Mexico
http://rawstory.com/blog/2009/08/mexico-legalizes-drug-posession/
Clinton Visits South America – Drug War (Big Pharma)
http://www.boston.com/news/world/latinamerica/articles/2010/03/06/clinton_urges_latin_america_to_tackle_drug_corruption/
Day Trip to Tijuana
http://gocalifornia.about.com/od/casdmenu/a/tijuana_day.htm
US Dept State – Info on Travel Outside the US
http://gocalifornia.about.com/gi/o.htm?zi=1/XJ&zTi=1&sdn=gocalifornia&cdn=travel&tm=16&gps=676_293_1436_699&f=20&su=p284.9.336.ip_p531.50.336.ip_&tt=2&bt=1&bts=1&zu=http%3A//travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_970.html