Something’s burning

One thing about this area: we’ll probably never have to worry about wildfires engulfing our homes and leveling our communities. Nope, odds are we’ll never have to go through what the people in California are going through (and seem to go through every few years).

We don’t have devastating floods, tornados, or hurricanes, either. And there aren’t any real earthquakes to speak of. It wouldn’t surprise me if someone’s house ever went down the side of a hill in a mudslide – but that, also, never seems to happen around here.

Sure, we get some snow. But for all the harm it does, think about the benefits: sledding, snowmobiling, skiing, snowballs, snowmen, snowforts and snowangels (not to mention something pretty to look at on Christmas). Yeah, that’s not much. But it’s better than the recreational opportunities you’ll find in a firestorm.

People complain about the rain. But yet again, our grass is green, the crops grow and, importantly, neither of those readily burn. It seems like we have a pretty clean and abundant water supply, too. Especially compared to some places I’ve been, where the stuff from the tap looks and tastes like its source could be an old tire. I’m not really sure how much our rain has anything to do with our drinking water, but I bet it’s pretty important.

I’ll admit the sun likes to hide more than it probably should. A few brighter days would be nice. But we can make the most of the sunny days we get, which is better than not making the most of the ones you get nearly everyday, like some people do in places where they are blessed with “better” weather.

What are some of the real challenges people say they face in Chenango County? Our taxes are too high; there aren’t many jobs; the jobs we do have don’t pay well; many of our people are poor; we have more dollar stores than grocery stores; a lot of us are obese; our elected officials don’t do enough to solve our problems; not enough of us vote; we don’t like to volunteer; our young people won’t stay; a lot of teenagers would rather play video games and be on the Internet than go outside; teen pregnancy is up; drug and alcohol use is on the rise; our farmers are going broke; people throw their garbage out along the road; and there are always shopping carts strewn everywhere.

The good news: if Chenango County gets wiped out, it probably won’t be by a natural disaster. Nope, when it comes to Mother Nature, we have it pretty good.

It’s ourselves we can’t get under control.