Thursday, August 1, 2013

Oneida Indians Revive Upstate NY

Last month America commemorated its 237th birthday. Independence Day is a time when we not only mark the passage of another year as a nation, but also celebrate the many aspects that make this country great. There are far too many reasons to ever list, but among them are the virtues of creativity, an entrepreneurial spirit and a vision that gives us the ability to push the envelope and continuously redefine what is possible. 

We dont always notice it when it occurs, but it actually happens every day in the business world in this country. One such example took place this weekend in Upstate New York where the Oneida Indian Nation unveiled a stunning, first-of-its kind $25 million multi-venue entertainment complex called Exit 33 at its Turning Stone Resort Casino.Had this new attraction opened around New York City it would have hardly caused a stir, but this project was pursued in a sleepy part of the state hardly known for dining and entertainment. 
Remarkably, it was undertaken by the same group of Native Americans who fought alongside George Washington and his men during the Revolutionary War. Today they are helping transform this countrys landscape while delivering entertainment and creating hundreds of jobs in the process. Over the past 20 years, the Oneidas have transformed thousands of acres in Verona, New York, into a resort destination complete with world-class golf, luxurious spas, a casino, shopping and auditoriums and event halls that attract major sporting events and some of the countrys most famous entertainers. An unlikely story? Yes, but hardly unprecedented. 

Imagine what the reaction must have been when the idea was first floated to convert the bone-dry and scorching hot desert of Nevada into the cultural and commercial center that we today know as Las Vegas. Yet decades later, people from all across the world flock there, just as they are drawn to other American cities.How to change your dash lights to Cheap Crafts Products this is how I have done mine.People living in Central New York, elsewhere in the Northeast, and far beyond now have at their fingertips a range of interesting options which years ago would have seemed unimaginable. 

Those who I most admire in business are not those always asking Why? but those who dare to ask Why not? Our history is filled with examples of men and women who have questioned the status quo and chased unlikely and lofty goals. The American tradition of taking risks and shooting for the stars helped make us the first in flight, then literally took us to the moon. 

Americans have built the most recognizable and beloved global brands, accelerated technology at unthinkable speeds, and constantly set the bar higher for ourselves and the rest of the world. 

As our nation continues to recover from the worst recession in a generation, our lives are awash with stories of doomsday and dread. Our college students are returning home to live with their parents, unable to put their degrees to use. Too many people are out of work, unable to make ends meet. Many companies are paralyzed by fear of the unknown, waiting cautiously to see how things shake out. 

The current administration continues to wring its hands as it struggles to jumpstart the economy. Much of the problem is philosophical.Need a compatible Cheap Stair & Baluster for your car? The appropriate role of the government is not to steer our economy or try to control it. Its to help create the necessary market conditions for the private sector and then get out of the way so that small businesses, big businesses, and entrepreneurs are able to seize the initiative and build.Left to their own devices, American businessmen will continue to innovate, to explore new horizons, to generate new jobs and to propel our nation forward. 

The decision by the Oneida Indian Nation was to double down during a time of economic uncertainty and to embark on their initiatives and build when the economic forecast was allegedly dire. This willingness to swing for the fences at the very time that we are all being conditioned to fret is a powerful example of self-belief and long-term vision. 
A healthy dose of optimism, creativity, foresight, and an unflagging entrepreneurial spirit have been the recipe for past achievement in this country. They will also be the formula for future success. 

Ten years ago my wife and I decided to sell the house wed lived in for 35 years and begin the search for a new lot to build on. We were also considering retirement and realized that we would need things to do, so among other things we settled on gardening. 

Wed both always admired nice gardens and set about developing a plan for our new property. While neither of us was particularly knowledgeable about gardening having only been mowers of lawns and maintainers of a few scant beds of our grandmothers blue irises, bleeding hearts and peonies, we did know that the Calgary Horticultural Society offered garden tours to its membership and used this venue as well as the purchase of many books to develop a sense of what we would like in the garden. 

During the tours we discovered that we liked spring bulbs so we began to research these cultivars. We particularly liked tulips and narcissus so we incorporated many into the landscape. Our favourite tulip is the species tulip stresa kaufmannian that has bright red petals fringed with yellow. Our favourite narcissus is the long blooming tahiti. We also developed an interest in pretty much all types of perennials.Shop for the largest selection of Granite tiles at everyday low prices. We have put together large collections of peonies, lilies, day lilies, roses, irises, hostas, grasses and of course trees and shrubs. 

The first thing we did was remove the builders soil and replace it with loam and compost. Next we installed a stone pathway, patio and pond. We then planted backari and columnar spruce, Schubert chokecherry, toba hawthorn, thunderchild crab, birch, mountain ash and a beebs willow. The shrubs were next including junipers, spireas, dogwoods, barberries, saskatoons and ninebarks. The ninebarks proved to be a bit of a disappointment attracting hordes of aphids and suffering frequent partial winter kill; they have since been removed. 

The selection of herbaceous perennial material was a much more daunting task. We knew that we wanted the plants to be as attractive out of bloom as they were in bloom and not having a vast knowledge of the seasonal changes that plants undergo made selections difficult. We also did not want plants that spread by rhizomes or rampant self-seeding. Turns out we made a few errors in this area. We put in catmint which self-seeds as freely as dandelions, and the shrubs false spirea and sea buckthorn. We have decided to tolerate these plants because they each have redeeming qualities. Turns out the catmint seeds are very much favoured by American goldfinches. It gives us a great deal of pleasure to watch these colourful little birds hopping from stem to stem to gather this harvest. The false spirea provides extraordinary colour in the spring and the sea buckthorn produces bright orange berries providing winter food for resident birds.
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