The Round Tower

At first glance, the Round Tower in the park at Newport in Rhode Island looked like just that, a round tower of stones.
Nothing extraordinary and in fact, I wondered why the bus had stopped here in this park to let us out to look at it.
(We were just starting a tour of sites that included places where the prophet and founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints had lived and worked.)
I gazed at the structure and tried to make sense of it in my mind when a middle-aged, slightly greying man rushed up to us. He was out of breath and clearly excited.
"I'm so glad to see you all here. Let me tell you a few things about this place," he said. "I own the museum across the street and I have studied this tower for years. There's some incredible things to know about this."
He went on to point out the skylights and slit windows that allowed the sunlight and moonlight to come in at very specific angles during the equinox, the solstice and multiple astronomic times in the year.
Also known as the Touro Tower,  the Newport Stone Templar Tower and the Old Stone Mill, many considered it the remains of an old windmill at Truro Park.
It originally consisted of three stories of stone but was used as a munitions storage place during the American Revolution and lost the third story when it was blown up.
We were to hear about the archeoastronomy of the tower from our tour leader but this guy obviously knew tons more about it than our leader did.
His name is James Alan Eagan, he is curator of the museum and the author of several books about what he believes is one of America's oldest and most interesting secrets.
He showed us the patterns and the hidden secrets of the tower which he maintains is a horologium and camera obscura designed by John Dee in colonial America. (The website tells all about him and the tower: http://newporttowermuseum.com)
He explained how the whole thing was actually a standing camera and an astronomer's tool.
His museum was fascinating as well, a cubbyhole full of scientific tidbits that made us feel like we were kids in a candy store.
It's a lesson in never assuming anything is just what it appears to be.


 

This is not goodbye to Donny and Marie

I always wanted to impress my father.
But he had what I considered unrealistic expectations of me and my career.
He kept telling people I would be an award-winning journalist one day when I was just happy to be writing for a weekly at first and then a daily and a better daily.
I am a realist and while I loved writing and felt I was doing well to find good stories, meet my deadlines and handle my interviews with some grace, I knew I wasn't probably going to win a Pulitzer.
After all I had six kids to raise while I was having a career.
I taught myself to use the computer and learned several different programs along the way.
I had basically taught myself all I knew and said thank you every night in my prayers that I hadn't made any fatal errors.
I was paying the bills and enjoying the education. People talked to me and trusted my stories.
But my dad kept saying these things and I always kind of felt I wasn't living up to the hype.
So when I was doing a story on Donny and Marie and the renewal of their show in Las Vegas, I again heard the prediction from him.
Meanwhile I was working with their publicist and arranging a visit to the show.
I've interviewed each of the famous Osmonds over the years, Jay when he wrote a book, Jimmy when he produced a children's book, Merrill when he went on tour, the brothers for Christmas concerts, Donny and Marie for a number of events and gigs.
The last story involved hassling Marie to get some phone time.
I played phone tag with Donny before we connected and I had the story information.
These Osmonds are busy, busy.
(They were always very nice, very professional. Marie was actually just coming on the line when her producer tried to call her away. "I just started talking to her!" she told him and finished the interview, bless her heart.)
I did the story, attended the concert — which was a fine, polished, fun show.
I was happy.
We went twice, in fact.

And later, when my father ran into Donny at some event, Donny didn't blink when my dad said, "My daughter is Sharon Haddock. She's talked to you."
Donny said, "Oh, I know Sharon Haddock!"
I figured that was my prize.