Welcome everybody. Thank you for coming out today. My name is Hillary Bassett. I'm the executive director of Greater Portland Landmarks, and I'd like to welcome all of you. As you know, Greater Portland Landmarks mission is to preserve and revitalize Greater Portland's remarkable legacy of historic buildings, neighborhoods, landscapes, and parks. And we have had a very busy year this year. As you can see all over Greater Portland, there's so much construction and so much activity going on. And certainly in the area of historic preservation, we've been reviewing many, many projects, not only in Portland, but in South Portland and also in Westbrook. Before we start, I'd like to remind you of a couple of programs coming up that you might be interested in. The first is on Wednesday, April 26th, Julie Larry, who is our director of advocacy at Landmarks, will be giving a talk about the American Dream by Mail Kit Houses in Greater Portland. And that program is co-sponsored with the USM History Department and Tempo Arts and will be at the Talbot Lecture Hall at Luther Bonney Auditorium. On Saturday, May 6th, preservation in action is a chance for you to meet the experts to answer your questions about fixing up your old house. We'll have expert tradespeople there and other folks who can fill you in on how to research your house, how to fix your windows, what to invest in in your house if you're planning to buy one or to sell one. And of course we'll have the inimitable Herb Adams will be talking about the Mechanics Hall, which is where this program will be held on May 6th. And then on Saturday, May 27th, the Portland Observatory opens for the season. And every day is a new and amazing day at the top of the observatory, so I invite you to join us there. Now I also want to mention as you came in, you may have seen we had a book, Greater Portland Landmarks published a book on the park system in Portland called Bold Vision. We still have copies and we'd love for you to have one, so there is one at the table if you want to take advantage today, but be in touch with us if you'd like to have a copy of that book. And then also I'd like to take an opportunity to thank several individuals and organizations for making this lecture possible tonight. The Portland Public Library has been our wonderful co-sponsor of these lectures. Ocean Gate Realty is our sponsor and I think Ed Gardner is here in our audience. CTN Channel 5 has been filming these for viewing on community TV. And I'd also like to thank our landmark staff members, Alessa Wiley and Julie Larry, who are here tonight for their help in putting all these programs together. Now this is the last in our series of four lectures called The Evolving Landscape yesterday, today, and tomorrow. And we're very pleased today to have Dennis Collins with us, who's the Horticultural Curator at Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Dennis started out as a professional landscaper and then joined the staff at Mount Auburn as an arborist, where he worked for five years in that role. And then for the past 22 years, he's been a horticultural curator there and asked him, what does that mean? Do you just count all the plants? And he goes, no, it's really a role that involves many, many different talents. He calls himself a jack of all trades. But it also involves strategic planning for the landscape, figuring out what to do about the landscape. And every year he describes it every year is different. Some years are wild and crazy. Last year apparently was one of those wild and crazy years. And this one, Dennis is having a chance to not have something so intense with grants and projects to be working to improve and make one of the most beautiful cemeteries that's only two hours away. Keep it to its high level of beauty for all of us to enjoy. So I'd like to welcome Dennis Collins. Hello, everyone. Can you hear me in the back? Is that good? Okay. It's an honor to be here. And thank you all for coming. I've enjoyed meeting many of you today and reconnecting with a few who I've met before. And I keep saying this, it's been a constant theme of mine today. Portland is only two hours away. I have no excuse for going many, many years between visits. And I had the pleasure of visiting Evergreen Cemetery today. And even the Eastern Cemetery, is that what we call it? Yeah. Both, you know, I should have been visiting 20 years ago. And so I'm glad I did it. And thank you for inviting me. It's been fun thinking about how I might use this time. And I have a tendency to maybe try to go off on too many tangent. So if with any luck, I will stick to the script. On the other hand, if you have questions, you may you may instigate a detour of some sort. I am going to try to finish in time to allow for questions. But I understand the library wants us to be done by around seven. So I will do that. And in order to compromise between my tendency of trying to fit too much in and and try to be efficient, I plan to go through some slides quickly. Only because there's so many interesting plants to talk about. I couldn't leave some of them out. So bear with me. I will I will pause long enough to say something or at least let you read the name of the plant. In some of the photographs, I have put the name of the plant that is featured so that if you're interested, you can make a note of it. In others, there are too many plants in the picture. So I didn't. We can we can talk if you throw up your hands. I will stop and address that. This isn't really necessary. But if we're taking the big picture and we want to ask a couple of questions, it does set the table for thinking broadly. Why does it matter, especially not not so much what is work culture, but a friend of mine, Peter Del Tredici offered a definition once which I've never forgotten. You know, he didn't elaborate on it and I should have asked him to, but he didn't. On the other hand, it does kind of explain what we do. What we do as gardeners, what we have done as a species for, I don't know, you know, thousands of years. This is, I guess, the the Aztecs. You're an art historian. Can you confirm that? People have been moving plants around ever since we discovered agriculture and what what we can do collectively with plants. And we've been learning ever since we have been moving in horticulture, very large trees sometimes these Japanese maples. I went too fast there. They came from the courtyard of the Boston Public Library. They had been planted by the Garden Club of the Back Bay and brought through the front doors at the time. And there was no way to get them out. We did some fundraising and hired a crane and took the four of them out. All four made it. Here they are in the landscape. And the point is moving plants around is just a sort of clever way of talking about horticulture. There's a lot to it. It's an art and a science. I hope to touch on both aspects tonight. And but more importantly, I'd like to talk about why it matters. Many years ago, I was at a conference in Chicago, and there was a presentation by a couple of professors from the University of Illinois at Urbana. The possibilities that horticulture can improve the quality of lives is something that we don't often talk about. When we talk about why it matters, but it's not just about building pleasant gardens to spend our leisure time. I believe horticulture can make a significant impact on our lives. We may not notice it always, but this conference that I went to these researchers at the University of Illinois actually showed by studying people in housing projects that either had vegetation or had no vegetation. Looking at the data proved very conclusively that even a little bit of plant material in the place where you live makes you a respect the place a little better. And it turns out do better in other areas of your life. They tested kids in their school performance. They tested crime rates, domestic violence, etc. And it proved very conclusively that landscape and horticulture make a difference. We are not we're not cut out for living in a concrete world. We I believe we need plants. We need vegetation. Think about this. What does this make you feel like? This is simply a house I visited once in a posh neighborhood in Washington DC. But I mean, we don't need to go too deep. But you feel welcome. You feel somewhat encouraged. You don't feel that here. Urban blight is a real problem in our world today. If you had to experience that. And now I understand this is Portland, not Boston, not Los Angeles. But you're going to need some therapeutic help after commuting if you're one of these cards. We I believe are hardwired to respond to the natural environment, which has plants as the dominant feature. Yeah, I know we came out of the oceans, perhaps. But we we have it in our brains, I think, to respond to this. This is a Meadow friend of mine, Larry Wiener, who's a noted expert on on meadow construction out of Philadelphia. It's one of his projects. You know, this feels to me like that garden in Washington DC. In a way, it feels welcoming. It feels it feels natural. I I don't recoil. I don't feel despair. Now I know if I had my dog running through there, she would be covered with ticks and I would despair. But anyway, anyway, so plants, plants can play an important role in our lives on many different levels and in different scales. They, you know, a garden does not have to be of say, longwood gardens in Philadelphia to to have an inspirational effect on us. In fact, our own gardens can accomplish that. If we explore and the deeper we get into horticulture, and the more plants we discover, and learn how to use effectively in combinations, I think the more inspiration we can get from it on a close up scale or on a landscape sale. This is the native Magnolia. And this is to remind me that it's the most normal thing in the world is for kids to show us how that works, how this human nature connection really works. The inquisitiveness of kids is one of the things that keeps me going. It keeps me hopeful for horticulture and, you know, for another day, make a note how horticulture can save the world. So the question tonight really is, are cemeteries appropriate places for delivering the goods? And I, I think it's, I think it's useful to make a very slight distinction here between gardens and parks. Parks tend to have other functions that we go there to run or walk or play Frisbee or football or something. Gardens we tend to visit and experience plants. And I'm talking here about public gardens specifically, but our own gardens are the same way, even if we do barbecue and so forth. But gardens tend to focus our attention more on plants than parks do. So I think that cemeteries, if there is a role to play, it would be more akin to what botanic gardens and other public gardens offer than, than simply public parks. The putting stone, that is sort of about the same size. Yeah, I forgot it was so big. And here's the thing. When I came to Mount Arbor and I thought that the cemetery aspect of the place, the monumentation was more of a hindrance than a benefit. I have since come to realize that not only are the monuments important, but the combination of the art of sculpture and the art of horticulture are completely appropriate fit together. And you know, you can draw attention to both the monument, the sculpture, or the planting at the same time. And if we're doing a good job, then you won't really notice that there are two different art forms involved. But I'm hoping that the end result is sort of a synergy that, that, that feeds both and, and works together. This is a center taff of Nathaniel Bowditch who was an instrumental person in celestial navigation. This is a monument celebrating the end of slavery after the Civil War, the Sphinx carved by Martin Milmore. The unique things about cemeteries, of course, besides the monument include history. And in Mount Auburn's case, we have a very long history. And we have people visiting with people who come with different mindsets grief, certainly, and melancholy and sadness. But casual visitors come to people, you know, who want to walk who want to see nature because they're surrounded by an urban dense urban environment. And they come and they often start to think about mortality and the ephemeral nature of life and nature, which they normally wouldn't do just going to the mall or to the movie theater. It's, it's sometimes a very moving thing when people talk about how, how much they enjoyed or appreciated a visit to Mount Auburn. And I need to say that having an existing legacy of horticulture makes my job a whole lot easier. And I can appreciate what it must be like to start from from scratch to build that legacy. But we were founded in 1831 by the horticulture society in Massachusetts. And we've had generations of horticulturists involved. It makes it so much easier to build on something like that than to create it. So in 1825, they began discussing this novel idea. At the time, cemeteries were not pleasant places in Boston. They were dangerous and dark and grim and unsanitary. And the notion of taking it out of the city and into the country, even though Cambridge was only about six miles away, was was radical. And people needed to kind of get over that initial change, having their loved ones, their family members so far away from where they were. Nevertheless, Jacob Bigelow and a few other folks got the thing started. And even though the horticulture society and Mount Auburn split, technically their formal relationship after just a few years, they have maintained Mount Auburn has maintained the purposes and the goals and the vision of those founders way back when. The basic premise was that horticulture can change the way people feel about death. That's simple. Whether it's true or not, is for all of us to decide on all the generations before us who have been to Mount Auburn. By the way, some of the earliest art that depicts the landscape is probably not entirely accurate. I have often looked at some of the etchings and I think, you know what, I don't think it ever looked like this. You know, and this one, this one hangs in the president's office. I swear every plant in the painting looks like cryptomaria. Do you folks know that one? The Japanese cedar. Even the low ground cover around the perfectly sculpted pond looks like cryptomaria too. We know that artists take liberties and that's fine. What we do know is that Mount Auburn was the first of many, many cemeteries around the country to be open to the public. And that within 50 years, the public had enough of a taste that it was demanding more. And the public parks movement began, I think, just at the end of the Civil War, partly because people had the ability to experience places like this and like Mount Hope and a few others, the ones in Philadelphia and New York and Cincinnati, Evergreen in 1854. Long before, Central Park, Prospect Park, Arnold Arboretum, these all came later. And so regardless of, you know, we're not trying to steal the glory for all these gardens. But in a way, we had a significant role in horticulture almost 200 years ago. Today, we are still open to the public and some of the features, some of the attractions of the site are still there today. It was chosen by the way, the front gate here, the Egyptian style gate, still welcomes people. You drive in, of course, and it's, you know, paved roads. It has been updated. But there are still moments where you can experience in the landscape some of the sense of timelessness. This is a photo of what we call Consecration Dell, where remnants of the early rural cemetery landscape are still persisting. You can see the, you know, literal passing of time on features like monuments, entries, these two probably were installed at the same time. The sugar maple was nearby. Eventually it started crowding the marble. But, you know, the the draw of history is sometimes one of the primary drivers behind people's interest in horticulture and cemeteries. History and stories. You know, without the stories, it would not be half as interesting. But when you get to experience the lives of people, you know, something about their careers or their, this one is Longfellow, or, you know, the things that mattered the most to them, the sculpture of a dog, a family dog, for instance, or, you know, the record of their achievements as a physician or, or a civil war captain or a senator or a Supreme Court justice. So stories are important. And the built structures, the infrastructure, the, the hardscape of the landscape is important for horticulture. And what we're doing today at Mount Arman is capitalizing on a really intelligent choice that was made first to choose that site. It had a lot of interesting topography. It had three, three large ponds in a vernal pool. Yeah, they could have picked a bigger one, 175 acres, you know, we're, we're tight to keep accommodating people who want to be interred at Mount Arman. But we're taking advantage of a lot of the, the built structures. This is a green roof on top of the hillside tomb. We were talking today at Evergreen about the fact that many of the older vaulted ceilings in, in side hill tombs are, are perhaps questionable of their, and their strength and integrity. We've had brick ceilings collapse and cave in when mowing equipment ran across them. So we began removing tariff on the tops of these buildings. And in this case, it's a ground cover planting of lamea astrum. But we've used a number of other things as well. This is a butterfly garden around one of the ponds. We, we have multiple roles to play because our visitors come with multiple needs. We, we have a very large metropolitan urban population, four and a half million people. And you can see in the picture, although the trees do continue a bit, it's pretty abrupt when the built landscape starts to dominate. And our role as an urban green space is a fairly new one. A century ago, this wasn't relevant. The whole world was greenscape in a way. But we have others who come to watch birds, to study plants, to study history, to exercise people come to walk. We don't yet allow dog walkers or bicycles, which I know a lot of places do. And I guess it was it's a legacy that was trying to discourage recreation and encourage more of a contemplative experience. Though there was a 5k run in there about five years ago, our president runs in the Boston Marathon every year. He tried it. There were a few people who squawked, but in general it went okay. The landscape was designed, it was, it was not designed in the, in the typical Olmstead fashion, like Central Park and so many other places where there was no original planting plan. Instead, we recognize the genius was using topography to show off plants to their best advantage. They chose the site. They laid out the roads in the past. And, and then it was up to every generation of horticulturists after that to take advantage of it. But the intent, the design intent was simply to emphasize beauty and tranquility, to provide comfort and inspiration. Now, whether we succeeded or not, I guess you will have to judge. We like to think that, that we are succeeding. And yet my, my job forces me to see all of the things that we haven't done. I'm the, I'm not urban, the biggest critic. And all I can focus on is what's wrong with the landscape. That's why if you come and visit, you'll be doing me a great service because it's when I'm with visitors that I get to remember why it was that I fell in love with this place 27 years ago. First, strictly horticultural sense, we try to follow the, the guidance of many, many successful landscape designers in history. Not just the Olm says, but, but all of the garden, the famous landscape architects, the garden writers and people who have called attention to why certain things look good to us, why, why this landscape is particularly compelling or attractive.  But we do anyway. And, and I, I learned long ago that, that it was not just a cliche to say, you never know a plant until you've killed it three times. It's true. But it's worth doing. It's worth doing. We are entered an interesting transition at a time when the public's appreciation of different types of landscape is evolving. And we are embracing, for example, a nearly 100, 100 percent organic approach to landscape maintenance, and also trying to do things like remove a lot of turf. The turf maintenance operations have been traditionally one of the biggest responsibilities and burdens, frankly, of Mount Auburn. And we recognize that our ecological sustainability would benefit from having less of it. So to the extent that we can do that and still provide an interesting landscape using, in this case, a palette of native woodland plants, the Christmas fern, and hookra, I believe, and a couple of the things that I can't quite see. The extent to which we can do this, I think is going to make a huge difference 20 years from now, when Mount Auburn's landscape maintenance has changed from turf dominant to gardening and horticulture dominant. We are also recognizing that climate is changing. And we have a sort of basic benchmark now for any new planting. Can it withstand a four month drought? We've had two in the last two years. I don't know that this year is going to be the same, but they do seem to be coming with more regularity and they're longer. Did Portland also get the same drought last summer? Yeah, it was really, really long. And the effects are going to show up this year. At the same time, everyone keeps saying, well, we need to start planting things that are from south, from zone six and zone seven. And yes, we are doing that. And then we sort of lose them in a winter when the temperatures dropped to minus 11, which they did last year. But we have to keep trying. And we're lucky. A lot of gardens have a very strict policy about honoring the original planting plan. And once something dies, the same thing goes back in. We are very lucky because we can respond in time to things like Dutch Elm disease or hemlock woolly adelgid, which both had significant impacts on our landscape. And it forced us to find alternatives. And of course, the droughts and the increasing temperatures and so forth. So what can we do? We can feature the plants. That's almost the easy part. But providing an example isn't all there is to it. We need to involve the public, especially over the course of the year, we want about our to look good 12 12 months all seasons. You know, but if you come in January, it just won't be the same. Come in May, as I told you earlier, April is nice too. So providing a place to feature the plants, as I was saying, is the easy part in a way. And if you make those plantings accessible to the public, if you can get them inspired or get them interested enough to want to learn what what is that plant what, and happens to be growing at the base of this nice tribute to an abolitionists at the end of the Civil War. All the more that that you know that they can remember. I mentioned earlier how important stories are. People people find a plant and it happens to be next to a monument with an interesting story about someone's life. They're going to remember the plant and probably the story too. By getting the public on board seems to me the most significant thing that we can do now going forward. I keep flipping through these slides quickly. But here's a good clue on that. A friend of mine took. There are moments if you walk through the landscape, it doesn't all look like this, but there are moments when you pause and say, oh my God, this is this is really, really cool.  I've always enjoyed that that particular combination. So the public getting through the landscape is the first challenge. If you build it, what's the expression? If you build it, they'll come. All right, so we've already built it and we want people to come. But we also have to manage the site. And we do this at Mount Arborne in a way that is like, I suppose, most botanic gardens. There are very few cemeteries that have a position like mine. A curator is something, you know, is foreign to most cemeteries. But in the botanic garden world, curators manage the collections. We use a database that's standard state of the art for botanic gardens. And we track a lot of plants in the landscape, roughly 18,000 different plants or masses of plants. And with a lot of diversity, trying to get more and more, we have display labels so that the public can learn the names of plants, or in some cases, how old something is, where it comes from, what part of the world. We have curious things as well as sort of standard run of the mill bread bud. This one or the white form of the bread bud, a cultivar called Alba. We have tree paintings. This one is older than I am, even though it's about three feet tall. Been around for a long, long time. Most, you know, people would walk by it and never give it a second thought. But when you teach them, when you explain this thing is about 75 years old, people are going to stop and think, wait, something going on here. It's those moments when someone is experiencing horticulture and responding to it. If you can capture that, if you can engage them, whether it is through plant labels or maps that are given out, or increasingly, a lot of public programming that we do, classes and lectures about different types of plants, and a lot of topics, natural as well as historical and cultural. It works to get people lined up as supporters. And without supporters, any public garden is going to fail at reaching its full potential. But with supporters, anything is possible. I mentioned earlier that sometimes we had used central monuments in places where we didn't want a lot of new monuments to kind of clutter the landscape, for lack of a better word. And when we do, we provide, in this case, it's a sculpture by an artist named Richard Dukas. And when we do, we have another way of commemorating names and dates and things. It's a low wall that you can't see. It's sort of behind the grasses, the Heconocloa grass here. But we have basically run out of room in a landscape that is limited to 175 acres. So we have to find ways, preserving what we have, and also providing opportunities to continue accommodating people. I know I'm going fast. You're trying to read the names, aren't you? Globe master. There's a Miss Canthus with that Heconocloa grass, and it makes a nice combination in September.  Ecologists loved it. But you know what? We're finding that we have ways of using plants like this. This one is covering a tomb built into the side of a hill, a small hill, used to have to run mowers across the top of it. It looks perfectly nice, especially with the grass allowed to grow a little tall there. Our master plan in 1993 identified lots of ways that we can move forward providing stewardship for an historic landscape, not just preserving but exploring through innovation ways of improving the landscape, not just keeping it. That's the interesting part for me. Yes, we have a Victorian zone where we're trying to see if we can execute the style without committing to the ridiculous amount of labor that's required. We are not against using cultivars, modern versions of the plant palette that was in play in the late 1800s. If something can resist drought or disease or insect problems, but still represent what that species had to offer, then we will try it. We've got the early rustic landscape of the consecration dell that I mentioned. We've got preservation of structures, fences included. We've got a couple of dozen of these left. A lot of them were taken down in the 1940s during the war. Part of the scrap iron initiative. When we do restore or repaint or do some repairs on fences, we almost always make sure that we follow up by not putting grass back in the center of it. Mowing invites equipment, damage to monuments and structures. It looks good if you can provide some color and some different textures in the landscape. This particular one is a geranium and this one is a ladies mantle. I like it. Here we've got the Canadian ginger with maiden hair for a nice combination. Back to the people. We do Arbor Day events. We get school groups to come through. We offer tours throughout the spring, really throughout the whole year, though in the spring, there seems to be a lot more. School groups and the general public, a range of topics. In a way, it doesn't matter what you use to get people to come in. But once they come, if they can accidentally discover that something about this place really resonates, we've accomplished our job. As I mentioned earlier, young people especially. By the way, nobody is going into a career in horticulture these days. We're having a hard time attracting the next generation of horticulturists. There was a time when all the students wanted to study golf course management because that's where the money was. Now, everyone's gone into organic farming and nobody is paying horticulture any attention. Suddenly, we can't feel, you know, we have positions that are entry level positions that we can't feel from one ear to the next. But nevertheless, the public and Mount Arbor have had a pretty good run in the last 20 years. Partly, it's an effort. It's a concerted effort to provide print materials, a website, audio tours, which in the beginning were the cassettes that you stick in your car, cassette player. Now you put them on your phone and you download an app. We're exploring ways to do plant labeling using the same phone app technology. We're getting there. It's hard to keep up with technology. But we have, fortunately, we have younger staff than me who are guiding those efforts. But you have to. This is the way to engage the public. We also, like Evergreen Cemetery, have a very small section where a community garden was built. This is on land that had been used as our dump for 100 years. Then we leased out most of that land to Mount Arbor Hospital, which is down the road, and they built a parking lot on it. But we also had a community garden built, too. We have events, believe it or not, we have weddings as well as funerals. We had the governor attending the dedication of a restoration of the Robert Gould Shaw Memorial, which was about six years ago, I think. We have a decent amount of good publicity. This particular one is about our membership in a national germplasm conservation program. In this case, it's for the genus Quercus Oaks. Mount Arbor had joined with 15 other Botanic Gardens in Arboretta and conserving as many possible species of oak as possible. It was good publicity. We get bad publicity, too. We had a major turkey population problem. We had two dozen at the worst height of it, and one in particular was really aggressive. My wife had a yellow mini that she drove in there one day, and this one turkey attacked it. But the worst was he attacked one of our gardeners and caused a lot of damage. And so we called the state officers and they came and euthanized the turkey.  I don't remember what the words were, but they say any publicity is good, but that's not true. We also got a certification accreditation, I should say, as an arboretum through a new program, the Morton Arboretum, organized a few years ago. We are known as a birding destination. If you are a birder, you might have heard that you should go to Mount Arbor, even if it is two hours away.  But Mount Arbor has been a significant place for birding for a long time, which has been frankly a catalyst for us to get serious about going to Mount Arbor. We have been very organic about dealing with changing the landscape in ways that are more conducive to habitat. In this case, an aquatic shelf, a biofiltration of stormwater. We have pipes that take all the water that comes in through the roads, down into catch basins and through pipes, ultimately ending up in the ponds. And this biofiltration system allows vegetation to do some cleaning of the water before it actually goes into the pond. And we have residents like the Blue Heron who really enjoy that because they can sit there all day and wait for lunch to swim by. We have a woodland restoration in the DEL caused by a Norway Maple problem, a completely out-of-control problem. It took us 20 years. We are finally just about at the end of that. It has a vernal pool around it. And this is where we have limited ourselves to a strictly native New England woodland plant species pallet. That's the longest sentence I've ever tried to say in one time. We restored paths that successfully controlled rainwater that ran down some very steep slopes. We had planted I don't even know how many, thousands of trees and shrubs and ground covers together. Each year taking another section in a step-by-step way. And the DEL is one of the most popular places for the bird watchers to go. And we have resident and migratory species, the warblers in particular. But the owl, the great horned owls, I have to say, are rock stars at Mount Arbor. When they had babies. They had babies five years ago and the crowds were so big we had to rope off a buffer of 100 foot diameter to keep people away. There were webcams running day and night and anyway. I know I'm going fast here but if you want time for questions you have to put up with that. We built a wildflower meadow at the base of Washington Tower which overlooks the city. If you come to visit you have to climb up their stairs to the top with an observation deck. To the extent that we can use the naturalistic potential of turf grass and sedges in the landscape. We think it's a win-win. It looks historically appropriate. It reduces the amount of mowing and our carbon footprint which is important to us. And there are opportunities to do a lot more than just have grass. The meadow effect of mixing wildflowers with these grasses I think has great potential. Frankly, 20 years from now this is commonplace at Mount Arbor. I will be really happy. We learned that this one is from Longwood Gardens in Philadelphia. There's now a fescue sod. Most sod has been bluegrass which is fine if you want to have a lawn that you have to irrigate a lot and fertilize. But fescus came along because golf courses needed turf on the rough, non-fairway sections where they wanted it to grow tall. We get lawn naturalistic meadow-like turf grass without having to worry about weed management during the first few years. We do a lot of composting on site. We produce about 150 cubic yards in a year. We recycle a lot of material though we leave most of the leaves out on the grounds in place. We chop them with mowers. We brew a little compost tea. We've got a brewer with about 150 gallon capacity. We use this little homemade device to actually apply the tea. We used to collect rainwater off the old greenhouses. Now we have new ones. These were just four years ago. Part of the project was to bury this it looks like a submarine but it's an underground rainwater cistern. We moved our nursery because of that project and our nursery, look if you have a nursery it's never going to be big enough but we are using it and we fill it every year to the brim. Part of it is growing a lot of conifers to replace hemlocks. When the Adelgid problem first hit we had something like 390 Canadian hemlocks. It was way too many for us to maintain and so we're trying to diversify. We're actively testing a lot of different especially spurs and spruce. With some luck, we've been doing this for 10 years and the oldest ones have finally matured enough to go out on the grounds a couple of years ago. The problem is you can't find most of these out in the nursery so you have to grow them from seed and get them from your other gardens around the world. Right, 5 minutes. I maybe should just stop it right here and see if any of you have questions. This one slide I think I put in because near that meadow at the tower we're trying to see if some unconventional non-traditional plants in the horticulture trade can perform the same role where instead of a book-end planting of views you've got, if I went back you could see Rosa Virginiana on one side and a little blue stem cultivar called the blues on the other. We have woodland gardens for interment cremation only. We have commemoration in a way that is less conspicuous in the landscape. We have used stone walls to engrave names. This one was built for that purpose. There's another one in the distance, a big granite wall, more formal looking but nevertheless it's on our perimeter and it's so much better than adding 200 monuments and it works on a lot of levels. So let me stop it there and see if you have any questions from me. I apologize that I came close to finishing. Just a few slides left but I've talked enough. Go ahead. You must have a lot of volunteers to maintain this if you wanted to step. So volunteers, excellent question. We do get a lot of volunteers but they have so far been mostly serving as docents, working in the visitor center and at the greenhouse.  We haven't yet got them out on the grounds. I know a lot of gardens that do use volunteers effectively out there. We have a semi-paranoid approach to liability. It's changing but there was a lot of resistance 20 years ago and I think the time is coming back when we can maybe push a little harder and get that to happen. But you do need to have dedicated staff to supervise volunteers and you need more vehicles and equipment than we presently have to get them to move around the grounds. Yep. What type of material was there when they developed the cemetery? Ah, so the topography was such it was hilly enough that it had not been clear cut the way most of metropolitan Boston had been. Cambridge and Watertown were mostly fields of agriculture. The site where Mount Arboniz straddles both of those towns and because it was hilly, it was harder to get logs out. So they left it. What we think is left today from pre-1831. A couple of dozen oaks, the Native Oaks, the whites, the red, the black, the scarlet. We know this because occasionally in a hurricane we lose one of these and we can count the rings and so forth. They're so well adapted to Boston that if you have droughts, they laugh it off. They've never asked anything of us. They are so well adapted to the site that we really have to do nothing. Although we are now recognizing that we can't take them for granted, we've removed turf from the base around them. We don't want mowers to bump the trunks and so we're doing something. But for the 170 years before that, we were doing nothing. How do you deal with stumps when you take down stumps? We have a stump grinder now. We didn't always. Before 20 years ago, we simply flush cut and let the thing rot in place. We didn't have to replant something in the same spot. If we needed a tree in the area, we could go 5 to 10 feet away and find a suitable location. We do have a grinder now and yet even that isn't up to the task of a really big tree.  We do have our own aerial lift truck. We have chippers and we have this grinder. But sometimes, especially after a storm, a hurricane and so forth, we need to get help from outside. So they may come and grind a very large stump. If we need somehow, need that space to be available sooner than the truck would rot. Geese. Yes. Geese It got pretty bad. We had a section where the monumentation restriction was such that all monuments had to be flush to the ground. It was a lawn cemetery section. And the geese were, it was around one of the ponds and the geese were pooping all over the place. We got a dog. It was a black lab trained up here in Maine. Doesn't catch the geese, but it harasses them to the point where they say look, let's just get out of the Charles River. There's plenty of grass. It's half a mile away. And so we had a dog. And the dog was taken home at night by one of our staff. Then we got a second dog, same trainer breeder. And then when that dog passed away, we didn't get another dog. But the geese really didn't come back. But we learned that it worked. And when the turkey problem emerged, we found that a specialist who has a couple of border collies was willing to come in twice a day. Never catches the turkeys, but harasses them enough that they're not feeling so comfortable. And sure enough, where we had maybe upwards of 30 turkeys running around, there's only a couple you'll see now. Well, yes and no. We don't want to obscure the views of the ponds by creating a barrier of vegetation. And I know that the logic is if you prevent them from being able to walk up, they're kind of lazy. They could fly, but they like to walk into the water and out of the water. The geese. But we, in general, thought make them uncomfortable. And they're happy down at the Charles River. They have everything they want. People throw them food, the breadcrumbs, etc. way in the back. Mowing, other mechanized sort of things. Do you have a schedule for that so that you can become on a day where there is... Oh, mowing? No, no. There should be days when you can walk through Mount Arbon and not listen to the din of equipment in the distance. But certain times of the year, you can walk for 100 acres and not hear much. The mowing slows down a lot in the summer. We don't do irrigation. We don't fertilize grass. We do mow a lot in the spring and then again in the fall. But I know we still... You know what, if we could let the turf grow naturally, which, you know, we had an experiment 15 years ago, it almost worked. We had people complain that they understood what we were trying to do, but could we mow their particular family lot in the middle? A square in this meadow, it looked ridiculous. Especially when two or three asked for that. So we canceled it. We're going to restart it. We've already started trying. We're using not just grasses, but sedges as well.  Would you consider a schedule? Yeah, it's going to be quieter for sure. Yeah. Thank you so much.


Hey friends today I am so excited because we are gonna be staying at the Disney Treehouse Villas at Saratoga Springs It has been a dream of mine to always stay here and today it's happening And I'm so excited to give you guys the grand tour and my overall experience at the resort. So Let's go do this Here is our tree house for the night Take a look at that. Isn't it amazing three bedrooms three bedrooms? I feel so happy to be here. Like I said, it was a dream to stay here. I got myself a welcoming red balloon We are in tree house 7020 and I think we're just gonna go upstairs I'm gonna give you a grand tour and then come back down and show you all of the resort amenities. I Feel so blessed staying here Like I said, this is a dream come true for me and just walking up these steps when I first got here I was like kind of all giggly and butterfly-ish and wait You see like the patio and the deck that they have before we even get into our tree house They have an outdoor deck that is amazing We just came up these stairs here and this is the deck and it's got some nice patio Furniture and look at all of the wilderness around us. I can hear birds chirping. It's very very quiet over here Like it's so quiet. I absolutely love it a peaceful retreat. I say I Remember the first time that I found out Disney World has like treehouse hotels And I was like wow wouldn't it be so cool to stay there one day? And I never thought in a million years that I'd be able to do this So like I said, I am so grateful and it's beyond my expectation and I don't know I'm just I'm just so happy. I'm just really really happy. I Think we might as well go inside. I'm gonna give you a tour of the treehouse itself Like I said three bedrooms. Isn't that insane? Oops There we go Wait to see this Listen to the music Just a quick rundown of the treehouse itself, that's the front door We come on in and we have a dining room table and these chairs are so heavy I love it though. And then we got some chairs a couch That's definitely a pull-out and then another fancy chair there these bar stools the whole kitchen area Like this is humongous. I absolutely am like kind of mesmerized If you recall I stayed at the Polynesian bungalows on Christmas Eve And I feel like the treehouse villa is bigger and it definitely can sleep a lot more people I previously said three bedrooms plus the sleeper sofa And I'm pretty sure that chair is a sleeper chair, but they also have bunk beds bunk beds I say How cool is that? I mean, it's just gonna be me staying here tonight But I might actually want to stay at the top bunk, you know, look at the view.  That's another amazing thing. It's kind of like the cabins at Fort Wilderness I can get used to this. This is really awesome. Oh, there's a little night light. Hold on Whoo and then in the bunk bed room, they have a crib a basket and some clothes hangers I like the crib is very fancy. What is this?  You got goofy Pluto Mickey on them. I like it Now I want to move along to the next room. It's right on the other side of here And I think this one shares the bathroom with the master bedroom I think there's only one bathroom. We'll find out though, but I love this one, too This one's just got a like a regular queen size bed. I love it The view is so nice. Like I said, you just get to look out your window and just see wilderness So private over here. So secluded. You don't even see another treehouse And holy moly, I thought this was another closet, but it's an actual washer and dryer Believe imagine hope and dream. That's a really pretty painting in the room as well And then I'm gonna come over here and well, that's just a mirror, but I think this is the bathroom.  So there's two bathrooms. What? I Love it. This is so homey. Oh, wow, and it's a tub. I believe Wow Everything above this treehouse building is amazing to me from the little tiny fixtures to the art on the walls It is all amazing Look as we head back out to the kitchen. They even had the lock Like that's the lock for the bathroom door. How cool is that and then we come back out to the kitchen They have the island and it's got a dishwasher or toaster. Look at the cabinets all wood cabinets And then a full stove a full microwave. We got a freezer and a fridge Fully stocked The fact that the kitchen is a full kitchen you can cook dinners here and have dinner at the table But there is something way cooler outside because you get your own private grill You can cook out here. So you know what we're doing later We're gonna have a Disney cookout and I'm so excited for that like I've always dreamt of cooking out at Disney I always wanted to stay at the cabins because I know you can get a grill there But I had no idea that you have your own grills at the trios villa. So now I was like what? Because it is like a three-bedroom Hotel room it does come with a vacuum and even an ironing board and I have to say the closet space in here is pretty impressive I want to show you the master bedroom though because this is the biggest room. I've seen yet It's got its own desk and TV. Look at how high the ceilings are in here They go all the way up The bed is amazing a nice headboard. I can't wait to wake up with this view Like I just think this is amazing and the best thing is the bathroom. I was like, are you kidding me? Look at this Unbelievable, right? You got a jacuzzi tub over there and then a stand-up shower I'm gonna go in here because we can go in here. Look at this. So it's kind of like a stand-up shower jacuzzi room I've never seen a bathroom like this. Look how fancy that faucet is Really really cool stain glass kind of like a tree too Very nice touch Now I'm gonna take you for a walk around the premise a little bit. They have their own pool over here So you have your own access. You don't have to go to the regular resort This is a part of Saratoga Springs, but it has its own entrance and has its own pool You park at the treehouse itself So like you ever like stay at a resort and you have to walk back to your car You literally just walked down the steps ahead like going to your car I wouldn't even take buses, but they do have buses here just in case you don't have a car and yeah Just give you a grand tour of the whole entire loop kind of reminds me a fort wilderness a little bit And you'll see why before we go walking around though I am gonna have to grab two important things a map and a beer Look at this isn't it so cool. I can't get over and here's the grill Once we get down here, I'll give you a closer look I just like walking down the steps right there your own private grill and a little balloon Hey friend So we're gonna actually have a little cookout tonight I'm gonna make myself a steak maybe and it's gonna be delicious Let's take a look at the map a little bit So when you check in they have to give you this kind of Direction to get here because this is the check-in area And then it tells you have to drive all the way out to the exit And then that's when you come over to the treehouse main entrance which is over here I am staying right there. We have a private pool over here to bus stops And then this is the rest of Saratoga Springs. They don't have any sit-down restaurants at the moment They do have a quick service, but like I said, we're gonna be cooking out later anyway And that's probably way better And we're gonna put our mask on because we are gonna be walking around some common areas including the pool area But I want to show you the coolest thing I think I've noticed so far and it's kind of sad because they're not Utilizing it at the moment, but if they were I would be so amazed Obviously you see this is our room number 7020. This is our treehouse right across the way There's a pathway to a boat dock now This used to be one of the resort boat launches, but they're not doing those boat Resort launches anymore. So now it's just kind of sitting over here But can you imagine just walking out of your room and then catching the boat like that's amazing, right? At one time, that's how it was. Hopefully the boats come back soon. But man, I would be so happy a Little sign here saying you never know what you'll find in the wetland.  We got butterflies bats Alligators Robins very very cool. I love it here. Look right. There's the water like it's amazing I wish that we can actually do this. This is the sassel gula river I believe I might be wrong on the name of that But this boat used to go all the way to Disney Springs over to Port Orleans in French Quarter that's not open now. It's one of the best boat rides on property. I have to say I Miss the boat rides here because that was something free that you could do You know, you didn't have to have a day ticket You can just show up and ride the boats all around Walt Disney World some boats still run, but they're direct Boat routes. So if you're staying at like for instance the Grand Floridian the boat from the Grand Floridian Go straight to the Magic Kingdom. It doesn't go to the other resorts like it used to and I miss it I miss it a lot Look how peaceful it is.  The pool is over here. So these treehouse villas would be really awesome 7058 real quick access to the pool. Look at this walkway though I'm so happy to be here. Like I am like almost giddy You guys see what I'm talking about though. It reminds me of For wilderness so much. I love it. It's like beyond expectation These are the bus stops to actually go to the park. They got little soda machine sanitizer. I Really like it and then in here you get a little telephone with the directory emergency Massage and health club front desk You can also walk to Saratoga Springs right there is the pathway We'll probably explore that a little bit later on but the pool is up here. So I want to check that out right now Here is the pool area and it's not like the biggest pool, but it is like a private pool. Oh They have like a little tiny fountain here with frogs This is really really awesome I like it. I like the fact that nobody's here. It's so secluded.  You got to be kidding me That is amazing While we have some daylight and before we go back to the house I am going to actually take a walk because on the way in I'm pretty sure I seen Port Orleans and as you guys know Port Orleans is closed It hasn't reopened since the pandemic and I would love to be able to see it I don't know if it's possible, but we'll explore a little bit Walking through here. You can see some of the tree houses are really in the woods there. Look at that one back there Our journeys took us all the way out here to the front entrance of the Treehouse Villas right across from us is the Lake Bonavista Golf course and right over there is Port Orleans. So we're gonna see if we can get a little sneak peek Wow, this is so beautiful I've actually played this course a couple of times with Josh and Taylor and I was fairly new to golf before But now I'm getting a hang of it. I think I do pretty well for myself I don't know. They think I'm still below amateur rank, but I have fun. That's all that matters Look at how beautiful it is over here it's just about a five-minute walk from the Treehouse itself and they have a little sign right there and This is the the boats. So where you've seen the boat dock before This one is telling you to go left to Port Orleans and right beyond that riverbank is Port Orleans French Quarter This is the first time I've been able to see it since over a year ago To me I think it is really awesome just to be able to see Port Orleans, especially French Quarter because that was one of my favorite resorts and like literally Treehouse Villas Port Orleans right next to each other. I had no idea Another thing that's really cool to point out some of the Treehouse Villas have a handicap ramp So you can actually take your ECV or wheelchair and just drive right up and it's really nice Look at this. This goes up to one of the more accessible rooms and they have stairs as well But I think that's amazing Now I'm back at my Treehouse and tomorrow I think we're gonna walk over to the check-in area and have breakfast at the quick service I think it'd be nice to see what the walk is like and then maybe take the bus From the check-in area back over here to the Treehouse Villas and now I think we're gonna start cooking up our food on the grill Do a little Disney Grillin. I ordered some groceries from an online delivery services You can use Instacart or through Publix. I think these came from Winn Dixie and we got S'mores for later on tonight. I'm so excited. Then we got some hot dogs And we got some matches and also some peppers and onions I like that that we got mild and then also a pepper and onion flavored sausage. There were two for seven So that's a good deal. I ended up getting a lot of food. I don't know why I got this much food But I'm excited for S'mores. I am Super proud of Disney because you would expect to have a clean clean grill so that you can do your grilling because usually when you see grills like this, they're a little bit dirty and It's clean like they literally clean it and I think that's amazing because any place I've ever stayed at other than Disney that had an outdoor grilling area. It's always dirty But this one I feel like I can just throw it on there and start I Got my charcoal's all ready to go. I do suggest if you have a preference These are instant light ones So if you do have a preference do your own shopping before you come here Don't order through the Instacart or the Publix delivery Because you're gonna get whatever they can give you and I got these ones, but it'll do it'll work So let's see a little bit there a little bit of there a little bit of there. Oh, yeah spread the love Yep, I have been wanting to cook out for such a long time. This is amazing.  We're gonna start setting up our peppers and onions We got our peppers and onions on there a little bit of butter.  I Forgot to order salt and pepper which is a shame because I definitely would have like to put a little seasoning on the peppers and onions But now the sausages Very very nice. We'll set them right there things are looking good or they're looking hot Little bit of the secret sauce if you know what I mean. Oh Yeah, mix the peppers and onions around a little bit. They're getting real good sausages are ready for their quarter turn here Now that we got a nice little char on the peppers and onions. I'm gonna fold these bad boys right up Just like that and right down here. Oh Yeah That's the way The Sun is starting to set and I'm just having a great time grilling on the grill I switched up to a land shark got a little fancy today and I do look land shark, but lights just convenient You know, I do love mud light though Now we're gonna grill up our buns. Oh, yeah, get some butter right on there Now we're gonna turn our sausages. Look at those bad boys. Oh This is gonna be much too good. I'm so excited Look at those coals under there Things are really starting to look good and the peppers and onions are probably perfect in there I love once I unwrap them a little bit I constantly turn them around a little bit because you know, you want an even cook But once you like open up that tin foil, it's just gonna be such an amazing smell Another cool amenity is they have plates and silverware and all the utensils you need All inside the Treehouse Villas So we're not gonna be in any paper plates or plastic plates, even though I feel like that's more outdoorsy The buns are nice and toasted so we can transfer over some sausages get them all in there Even though these buns seem like a little bit too big, but you know, beggars can't be choosers We'll set them over there. Then we're gonna pull out our peppers and onions. Oh Yeah, this is what I was talking about before I'm gonna try to do this one-handed. Oh look at those. That's the way Yeah, I can sell them. That's good. That is what I'm talking about Right on there. I Changed out of my clothes cleaned up a little bit You definitely don't want to leave a mess because that's one thing you have to be careful with cooking out in the woods Is you know, you know wildlife and stuff like that So we cleaned up our area there. I am joined up with a friend That's why I had so much food you guys were probably thinking wow is he gonna eat all that food But I do actually have some friends hanging out and yeah now we're just gonna enjoy sausage and peppers and hot dogs On the balcony at the Treehouse Finnish product looks perfect and I like how they have little Treehouse chairs. Oh Man, this is too good. I Think I did pretty good. Got a nice little crunchy bread Look at that. Oh, yeah, the peppers and onions are perfect. The sausage is on point now to dig in That is just so so good. I am housing it. I love it my own cooking. Yeah, who would have known? Now that we're all finished with dinner, which was fantastic. It was so fun just grilling out here Like I have been wanting to grill for such a long time I know I said that before but I've really been wanting to do it and doing at Disney. It's amazing So I think we'll watch the sunset I mean, this is beautiful and I asked if we can hang out on the dock and they said yeah You can go down there as long as it says no trespassing or it says do not enter and Technically it doesn't say any of that so we'll go hang out there watch the sunset and then come back make some S'mores because that's like an essential thing and just enjoy the night. I Figured it would be a really good spot to watch the sunset from here. It looks like it's beautiful. Oh Yeah This is gonna be very very nice Look at that. Isn't it just so beautiful? I know you can't see it too well But just hanging out here and just watching the sunset. I Absolutely love it. This is peaceful and beautiful and at one time the boats used to run right through here It would pick you up and take you to Disney Springs or to Port Orleans French quarter I really really do miss this boat ride. It was such a relaxing stroll around Walt Disney World Resort You might say that the true life adventures began with a little deer named Bambi Walt Disney had purchased some film of a fawn in its natural state for his animators to study for their Bambi animation But Walt saw something else and one thing has always led to another here and Bambi was no exception The wildlife scenes in this research Yielded an unexpected dividend an idea for a new motion picture series. We called the true life adventure Now that we're back in the treehouse before we have s'mores I think I'm gonna go hang out by the pool Maybe stick my feet in the jacuzzi one of the things I've really not explored when I ever came to the resorts Where stayed here was the pools because I was always busy either going to the parks or just showing you guys around But I also like how this one is kind of like a private pool. So I like it a little more. So we're gonna check it out I like how they have these little night lights on the deck here. Wow It's so beautiful at night here So magical, this is gonna be great The pathways are well lit too So you don't have to worry about kind of walking around in the dark and the pool is only just like like one pathway over. Oh Yeah, I like it. This is a really really nice pool very quiet very relaxing I think it's four feet ten inches not too shabby. That's the highest Yeah, that's the highest it goes four feet ten inches and I just like how it's so quiet over here Nobody's here. It's like a private pool Stick my feet in a little bit Nice, I like it That was a good swim. I actually really really enjoyed this pool the hot tub is a little bit busy But I do plan on actually sitting in there for a little bit once it clears out, but this is nice. This is so cool I love the pool, but you know what? I love more.  It's completely dark out. I like how the lights Like don't shine in at all like you're high enough that all the lights that are on the street there You don't see any of it Like you can see right out this window and it's just trees up there and the reflection inside, but nothing else Now we got to grab our s'more kit I didn't know what to order because they didn't have like s'more sticks I was just gonna use a twig, but I got these bamboo skewers because I seen they were on the the shopping app and I think that'll work that'll do I Can't believe the coals from when we cooked out are still hot But we don't want to add any more coals on there. So I'm gonna switch to wood. Oh There we go. I had a little pine cone in there and that's working pretty well It's not it's setting off a good smell though. I do like it It's so nice. I came out of the pool. I didn't even dry. We're actually drying off from the fire And it's just it's really relaxing. I got my little skewer ready to stick a little marshal on there Perfect There we go This is good, I love it That's what I'm talking about Perfect just the way I like it. I'm going in here. I got it all combined There is literally a bat right above us It's kind of scary, but there he is. I don't know what to do at this point What do we do?  I Thought it was gonna slide down, but it didn't happen There we go Well the fire eventually died out and I brought everything back inside So maybe I'll just hang out watch some must-do Disney and just relax I love this setup right here. Like this is really nice. It's a good good spot. Very cozy Also a big hidden Mickey right here, and I like it. That's really nifty I'm not too sure where to sit though because everywhere looks comfortable All right, this is good and it's important to have comfy seating arrangements Especially after a long day at the parks. I can chill out here. I like this one Okay, this is good too Definitely very relaxing and clear space, but I guarantee that chair is gonna be my favorite. I already know This is the one the silver tuna Now I think it's time to go to bed and then we're gonna wake up tomorrow and continue our day We're gonna head on over to Saratoga Springs We're gonna get some breakfast over there and just continue our adventures But yeah, I need to get some rest and I'm excited because it's so much fun So I checked in here at four o'clock and this whole video has been basically from four to ten So six hours. I feel like I've been here for weeks. That's how like that's how homey and inviting it is I feel like I've stayed here for years. Anyways, it's time to go to bed. We'll see you in the morning.  Wow. I love waking up to this.  I said it last night before I went to bed, but you know what I did forget No French vanilla creamer Oh, yeah, yeah, I remember I was telling you guys before that the kitchen is like fully stocked I mean look at all those coffee mugs those glasses down here we have pots pans strainers fancy silverware I pointed out the wine glasses plates Everything I mean, you know, I had I brought my own stuff to grill out with but I didn't even need to Like they had all of it ready here. It just blows my mind. I was like wow Whoo Scott So we're gonna use the fancy cups Perfect, not a big fan. Oh this stuff though. I Think I'll take my coffee and sit on the deck. It's so beautiful outside today. I'm excited. It's gonna be a fun day Oh, yeah, this is a good idea So peaceful out here. I love it Once we get all coffeeed up, we're gonna head on over to Saratoga Springs and get some breakfast I see they have a bounty platter. So maybe some breakfast potatoes some Mickey waffles bacon Sausage the works, you know, but I'm loving my coffee out here. This is great Such a relaxed atmosphere. I can't tell you right now Which one I like better? I think you know the Polynesian bungalows probably the best so far because It's kind of like just waking up and seeing that castle like waking up and having coffee on the back porch of the Bungalow was probably my greatest memory. I mean tonight was great. Like I loved I mean last night was great I loved cooking out. I loved having s'mores and staying in the woods But yeah, can't beat the Polynesian bungalow Now it's time.  I just like walking through here, especially in the morning I wish I woke up and did like a sunrise video But there's no way I could do any sunrises because we're surrounded by trees So there's no flat land. So I wouldn't be able to catch anything. I Was gonna walk on over to Saratoga Springs But I think I'll drive over because all we're gonna do is pick up breakfast and then bring it back here I really like just hanging out in there So I think I would want to spend more time inside the tree house before I have to check out Why does Disney make you check out at 11 a.m. Why can't we stay till like 8 p.m? That would be much better. I Think I told you guys before about the exit in French quarter and there it is over there Now we are over in the main check-in area I love all of the different statues and carriages they have here They used to do horse carriage rides here, but I don't think they're doing that anymore But isn't that beautiful? The music It's very very classy here. I like it a lot The quick service is the artisan point and that's inside the carriage house. So we'll walk through there Oh, I got my Disneyland mask on Kind of reminds me of the boardwalk a little bit in here like with the decor and the artwork I mean, I know that it's off of Saratoga Springs in New York And the reason that it exists now is because Eisner's wife used to love to vacation at Saratoga Springs. So he decided to make a little DVC place And of course if being Saratoga Springs, they have artwork from all the horses of Disney buck bull's-eye the snow white horse Cinderella horse Mulan's Sampson from Sleeping Beauty and then even Philippe Beauty and the Beast Beautiful in here and elegant like I said gives me a lot of The boardwalk box maybe because of the carousels, you know, I mean that kind of just goes hands-in-hand with the boardwalk in here And here is the artist palette. This is the quick service. I Place my mobile order I'm just gonna wait for them to let me know when it's available And I'm excited because I got a little bit of Mickey waffles a little bit of bacon a little bit of sausage a little bit of breakfast potatoes all the works While we wait, I want to show you guys the turf club area now This is where the sit-down restaurant used to be and they kind of have like a lounge over here in a pool table I like it a lot over here. Oh, no, the pool table is gone It's kind of just like an extended dining area for the quick service Really want to eat here I never have and I've come here to like check in for golf and I always said I'm coming back and getting the prime rib but Looks like it's not open menus are here though We can take a look seeing what they had to offer back in the day. Yeah, right there. They're ranchers reserve prime rib That's what I wanted to come back and get Looks like even though the restaurant isn't open You can still get things from the lounge menu like tempura fried shrimp tacos the turf burger house made cheese pizza and house cut french fries. So that's good to know Oh, yeah, look at that. We got the coffee the orange juice the mickey waffles the bacon the sausage the potatoes all the works Now we got to head back over to the treehouse villas. Look how nice it is here. Isn't it amazing? I love it Now we're back at the treehouse and I want to sit at the bar and I was thinking I think I want to eat on the fancy plates You know, I know they package everything to go But uh, I got those fancy dishes might as well use them I guess first thing first not bacon perfect and then the sausage Daddy would you like some sausage? Perfect now all we need is the syrup. We got a little one packet of syrup Well, it's only two mickey waffles and then some oj That is a good breakfast. I like it I definitely think we could have used another thing of syrup But I want to get it all on there. I like syrup on the potatoes too. Anybody else like that I don't know why I think one time the uh syrup just ran into potatoes and I ate it that way and I was like Wow, that tastes good. So now I just kind of always put the syrup all over the plate Mickey ears first always Take a little mickey ear and then a little potato. Oh, I need to shake up my own juice Okay, mickey ears first and the salt our potato. I don't care what you say You can't duplicate mickey waffles. You can't I mean you can buy the iron You can buy the exact batter, but it never tastes the same outside of disney is something special I'd love to eating breakfast here at the counter or at the like kitchen island. It's really really nice I could spend a lot of time here. So like if I vacationed I would want to stay at one of these villas like this Just so you can have the full kitchen and stuff like that especially like I said with a big family And the washroom dryer. That's a big big deal big big deal And now that breakfast is done. I think we are done here today. I had so much fun staying here It really was such a magical experience and I'm so grateful that I can make these videos Thank you to the osium family They're the ones that actually gave me this day here so that I can make a video and you know bring you guys some entertainment And also maybe help you plan a visit if you come and want to stay at the treehouse villas I know I'm not very informal and I can't really you know go over details with like certain things But I want to like share my experience and how I enjoyed it That's like the most important thing always a positive outlook on things because I make the best of what you got always You know what I mean? If it's in the parks, if it's at a resort I try to have the best time Always so I hope you enjoyed the video. I enjoyed making it. We'll see you next time Bye


What's up everybody Jason here for Jasper's case breaks.com. We're giving away five opera than spots in this 1819 Pinnany status hanger one-pack break Random teams number three And again guys the way that works is we'll randomize the customer names and teams distribute the hits out of the hanger box We're the little one-packer and then I remember another in common ship then at the end of the break We're randomized customer names again that originally bought in and Customers in the top five out of the 30 one through five get a spot each in a 1718 full case of opulence We believe is a $300 spot on the pane of fraction of the price at $54.99 number four is on the website though It's already down to 20 left, but they do number four and five to unlock opulence And that's it. We had seven spots straight up. We sold two. We had another filler four and five will be the last ones right there guys So good luck. Let's do the break first. Let's roll We got ourselves a three-to-one four times four times one two three and four Roy down a breath four four one two three All right guys think what you got guys this is member 1819 so Foul put ties it So we're dolls mavericks robber uncle a lot of Hawks with Trey young so look at Donchich My report doing a Denver Nuggets 1819 is a pretty good class as well guys Remember no trades. They'll stick to what you got Let you quickly see all your teams right there A Pedersen is very beautiful Very very I Know some big connects fans. I would love that Actually have to hit them up. I don't even think they know we have it Have it on the website So yeah, these are all base cards here So no veteran base to be shipping and then you got some of the color cards coming up at a Kyrie Irving top status Got Zach Levine you got Mitchell Robinson rookie credentials We got Wendell Carter, Jr. Kevin Knox met to Mitchell Robinson Grayson Allen and Aaron Holiday So these will all be All right Switch scenes now again Dice roll here customer names number top five get into the break or this is break number three guys Let's roll and it's Nate guys just two times. There you go two times. Good luck everybody one Two Just two times guys just two times Joe Joshua Roy Sarah and Robert Ronkel There you go. I think that's five different customers There you go Congratulations guys you guys are in from break number three another one is on the website guys get to do four and five And that'll unlock the break itself. Appreciate it guys


The number of people traveling 80 kilometers or more from home for Thanksgiving is expected to reach 55.4 million this week, a slight increase over last year. However, there are some steps travelers can take to improve the experience. Most travelers, more than 49 million, are expected to drive to their Thanksgiving destinations. Traffic is anticipated to peak on Wednesday, the day before the holiday. The worst time to be on the road will be between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. that day, according to Inricks, a provider of transportation data and insights. Not only will traffic jams slow you down, they can result in crashes caused by distracted drivers, said Megan Jones, senior actuary at Arity, a company that analyzes mobility data. However, speeding also increases around the holiday, she said, with the greatest rate of high-speed driving, over 129 kilometers per hour, on the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Travelers should be thoughtful about their own behavior and alert to those around them, she said. Before Thanksgiving and then the Sunday after Thanksgiving when people are returning home. Yeah, the general advice, on any given day of the Thanksgiving holiday, if you can leave very early in the morning you're better off, of course. We know with flight delays and things like that, if there's a way to book that earliest flight, that's always the best bet and always download. A couple of bits of relief for road trip travelers are that gas prices are lower than this time last year and many states significantly lower. So there is going to be a bit of relief when you fill up at the pump. And if you're renting a car this year, you can expect to pay about 20% less than this time last year because there was a spike in prices during 2022 owing to the pandemic-related shortage of rental cars.


Rochester, Larry Stevens. Rochester, I knew we were winning, but this is ridiculous. What did he make you so on? Can't leave now. I'm about to engage the enemy. Now, watch. The enemy fleet is over here. Now I swing my carriers around like this and bring my destroyers over to this side and encircle them. There you are, Rochester. Now, if you were the enemy and I had you surrounded like that, what would you do? I'd pull out the Brassca Navy as serious business. I'm proud of my appointment. In fact, I'm sorry I didn't stay with it when I was in the service 24 years ago. Yes, sir. Military life is a life for me. And those promotions, now Rochester, help me take my fleet out of the bathtub. Oh, oh, say, boss. I meant to tell you Ms. Livingston called. Oh, yes, yes. I better get ready.  You're listening to poison. Say, I just happen to think of something. I promise to take my girl, Gladys the Bisco, to. I'll pick her up on the way to Ms. Livingston. I hope Gladys and Mary are ready when I pick them up. Gladys the Bisco. I've been going with her now for nine years. Yeah, I'm da-dum, da-dink, bum, bum, bum. Oh, hello there, children. Hello, Mr. Hello. You know who I am, don't you, children? I'm Jack Denny. Yes, we know. You tell us every time you see us.  Talking about you. Really? Yeah, they thought we were asleep. How long, children? He looks a lot older than 36, doesn't he? Did you say something, Sonny? No, no, goodbye. Goodbye. Ya-da-dum, da-dink, bum, da-dum, da-dum. See, they're cute kids. But that little boy looks a lot older than seven. Hello, Don. Where are you going? I'm on my way down to the express office, Jack, to pick up a set of encyclopedias. A set of encyclopedia? Yeah, I've just got to tell you, Jack. I sent in two questions to a quiz program. Boy, did I stump those experts. Well, so long, Don. So long, Jack. See, I like Don Wilson and his slide commercials. The way he tricks me into keeping my job. Really, man. Ya-da-dum, da-dink, bum, da-dum, da-dum, da-dum, da-dum, da-dum, da-dum, da-dum, da-dum. Phew. I better sing slower. I can't walk that fast. Ya-da-dum, da-dink, bum, da-dum, da-dum. Oh, darn it, I meant to call Larry Stevens before I left the house and find out what he was going to sing on the program this evening. When I talked to Phil, he told me about the arrangement. I remember he said they were going to use a harp and four violins. I remember he said that, too. See, that's going to be kind of nice. With the harp and the background and the violins playing the soft melody. Yep, that ought to be a beautiful number. In my dreams, that someone was always you. I never thought we'd meet someday, but not...  Well, I was just going over to your house to thank you for those stories you gave me. Oh, you mean how I found Mary Livingston? Mm-hmm, and how you found Rochester. Well, I'm glad you liked it. You know, those first two articles were very successful. And now my editor is interested in knowing how you found Phil Harris. Phil Harris? That's right. Well, well, OK. Walk along with me, Mr. Kearns, and I'll give you the whole story. You see, it was 10 years ago that I first met Phil Harris. I remember the day well because it was Mary's birthday, and I wanted to show her a nice time. So I got all dressed up and went over to her house and let her make dinner for me. The meal was delicious. I remember we had a thick sirloin steak, mothered and onions, and stripped with bacon. Yes, sir. That was 10 years ago. It is a terrific meal. Well, thank you, Jack. The steak is so tender and so easy to cut. It just melts in your mouth. Jack, put on your glasses. You're eating the butter. Well, anyway, Mary, it was sweet of you to invite me over to your apartment for dinner. And wait till you see the bottle of champagne I brought you for a birthday present. You know, you've heard of those famous and port of champagnes like Bintage Premier and Chateau Calais. Yeah? Well, this is a new brand. Saban. Mary, I was just thinking. Here it is, 1935.  It's been over three years. Yeah. Say, Mary, what would you do if I gave you a little raise? I'd quit my job at the May Company. Don't worry, Mary. You just stick with me. In another two or three years, you won't have to work at the May Company. Except maybe Saturdays. The day will come. Well, let's not talk about that, Jack. The evening is young, and it's my birthday. So let's do something. Well, I was going to suggest something. What? Well, first, let's go over and sit on the sofa. Uh-huh. Then we'll snuggle up close to each other. Uh-huh. Then we'll turn the lights down low. Uh-huh. Then we'll tell ghost stories. How about it? Well, Mama warned me about everything but this. Why don't we go out somewhere? Let's go to the coconut grove. Well, maybe. Hey, wait a minute, Mary. I've got an idea. There's a nightclub way downtown on North Figaroa Street, and there's a new band playing there. Let's see, what's the name of that band again? Oh, yes, Phil Harris and his syncopated serenaders from the Solid South. I've never heard of him.  And I'd like to go here, Mary, because you know I need a new orchestra for my program. All right, let's go. OK, now let's see. Where's that nightclub now? Oh, yes, on Figaroa, about six miles east of the La Brea Tar Pits. Come on, Mary. Here it is, Mary. This is the place. Holy smoke, what a nightclub. This is an awful joint. Well, Mary, you can't tell anything about it from the outside. Yeah, but look at the name of it, the Ruiz Club. So what? Ruiz fell backwards as sewer. All right, what's the difference? And look, Jack, you have to go down these stairs. Yeah. OK, let's go down. Watch your step, Mary. Johnny, father, I'll get the bends here. Bottom, Jack, here's the door. Some people dance on that bear grub. They probably sprinkle water on it to make it slippery. And it helps keep the dust down too, you know. Let's find a table. Maybe that man will get his one. Oh, yes, sir. Pardon me, are you a waiter? Well, what do you think I am with this napkin over my arm, a clothesline? Sorry, but you're dressed too nice to be working in a joint like this, you know. Oh, you mean these striped pants in this Prince Albert coat? Well, you see, I wear these clothes on my other job. Other job? Yes, I'm an undertaker's assistant. Oh. It was my idea to put the candles on the table. And now would you like me to find a table and lay you out?  Yes, yes, please. Come on, Mary. Here we are. Now, what would you like to eat? Nothing, thanks. We just came in to hear the band here. Well, you might as well order something. There's a minimum charge of $0.35. $0.35? Well, I'll have a chicken sandwich and a combination salad. And I'll have a steak sandwich and French fried potatoes. Anything to drink? No. You might as well. You've got $0.15 to go. Bring us coffee. Imagine that waiter, an undertaker's assistant. Jack, look, the show's about to start. Good, I'm anxious to hear this guy, Phil Harris. Hi, you folks, and a good, good evening to each and every one of yous.  Are you glad to see me? Sir, thank you, thank you. And we have a very lovely crowd here tonight. Hey, Mary, he's got a nice personality, you know? We'll see. And speaking of crowd folks, the funny thing happened to me on the way to the club tonight. The panhandler stopped me and said, pardon me, mister, can you let me have $1,000.05 for a cup of coffee?  What do you want $1,000 for?  He says to me, well, I got to pay my income tax, don't I? No, lady, don't explain it to him. If you don't get it, just let him suffer, let him lay it. Don't wake him up. Hey, Mary, Mary, did you get it? I got it all over me. Why, this guy's good. Here's another one, folks. This will embalm you. Embalm you. Did somebody call for me?  So I told him it was a birthmark. And he said a birthmark. And I said, yeah, I got it in the wrong birth. It's just natural, would be just natural. This guy is terrific. No, really, he'd be great on the radio. He's got something new, something different. Oh, you say that every time you see a man with hair. Oh, you just don't know clan. Now, folks, for the high spot of the show, I'm going to sing a song I wrote myself in titles. That's what I like about the song. And that's just a report, you know that, man? Won't you come with me to Alabama? Let's go see my dear old mammy. She's frying eggs and brawlin' hammy. That's what I like about the song. Hey, now there you can't make no steaky where those dirtmen never shakey ought to taste a layer cakey. That's what I like about the song. Oh, I got a higher. She's got baked ribs and candied yams, oh, sugar cured Virginia ham. Way down south in Alabama. And that's what I like about the song. Hot corn, bread, and black eyed peas. You can eat as much as you please. Don't be sniffing fingers. That's what I like about the song. Don't take one. Have two there, dark brown and chocolate two. Suits me, they must suit you, because that's what I like about the song. Here it is, now, folks. That concludes our first floor show. But don't go away. There'll be another sensational show in five minutes. I don't care what you say. That guy, Harris, would be great on my program. I want to get him over here. Hey, waiter, waiter, will you please bring the orchestra leader over to my table? I'm sorry. He doesn't come with a 35-cent difference. Never mind the wisecracks. Bring him over here. All right, all right. I don't know, Mary. This guy, Harris, has a great person now. Cigarettes? I can raise her blade. Oh, miss, give me a pack of cigarettes, please. Yes, sir, what kind? Oh, by the way, miss, what's that you've got on your tray there, tied up in pink ribbon? That's a lock of Mr. Harris' hair, 20 cents. Well, I don't want it. You bet, and we don't share them again till the first of them up. No, thanks just the same. Hey, Mary, she's kind of cute. Oh, you fall for it. Wait a minute, wait a minute. Here comes Phil Harris.  Tell him what a good boss I am and how swell it is to work on the radio. And above all, what a wonderful guy I am personally, you know? Oh, but Jack, I... Here he comes. Hey, I understand one of you characters want to see me. Well, yes, yes, sit down. This is Miss Livingston. Hiya, sweet. And my name is Jack Benny. Look, bud, I ain't got much time. What'd you want to see me about? Well, I wanted to talk to you about a job. A job? Yeah. Well, look, fella, I know things are tough, but I can't use you. I don't... No, no, I don't mean that.  Well, I don't know. You see, I... Oh, but he's a wonderful man to work for. He's the nicest boss I ever had. He's just a ginger peachy boss. So pleasant, so generous. Mary, you're overdoing it.  Now, Mr. Harris. Just call me Curly. Oh. Till the first of the month. Oh, yes, the cigarette girl told me. Now, Mr. Harris, radio is a different type of work. You read music, of course. Huh? Music? No, it's a arrangement. What's that on your music rack? Termites that joins lousy with them. Harris, how could you be so young and bright when it's so dark down here? You see, Mary, this guy is terrific. Oh, look, I'm only kidding. I've been studying music since I was a baby. Why, when I was six years old, my parents used to take me to the concerts at Carnegie Hall. A six-year-old kid interested in Carnegie Hall? Well, they told me it was a burlesque show. A burlesque show? Yeah, I used to whistle when they took the cover off of the bass fiddle. Mary, this guy's got a terrific sense of humor. He'll probably be able to write my dags for me. I'll fiddle if he can just write.  So if you'll meet me Sunday morning, you'll... Wait, excuse me a minute. The second floor show's about to start, and I got to introduce the singer. Oh, I'll wait till you're through. You know, Mary, I think this fella's a... Hey, Jack, look who's going to sing, the cigarette girl. Oh, yes. Hey, she's cute, you know? And now, folks, I want to introduce our singer, the sweetest little lady this side of Pismo Beach, Miss Trixie Laverne, who will sing, I'm a Helen Collie, baby. I can't you hear me calling when the rain is falling. The sun is shining. Why should I be home a- Sucker for sentimental songs. Say, that girl's singer you've got isn't bad. That Trixie Laverne. Well, look, that's just her stage name. Her real name is Gladys Tabisco. Gladys Tabisco, eh? Say, that's a pretty name, too. You know, I kind of like that, babe. Oh, come on, Jack, let's get out of here. Why, Mary, you're jealous. Oh, fine. Hey, Harris, don't forget Sunday. I'll be there. So long, Jackson. Did you hear that, Mary? He called me Jackson. No one ever called me that before. All right, folks, here's the brand-new number I wrote myself called. That's what I like, come out to town. Come with me to Alabama. Let's go see my dear old mammy. She's frying eggs and boiling ham. That's what I like. Mr. Kerns is how I met Phil Harris. Well, that really is a story. And I must say, Mr. Kerns, that Phil has been very fortunate in being associated with a great star like myself, a man who's been on the radio for so many years and who, every year, almost wins the Academy. Oh, pardon me, Mr. Butler.