Finger Lakes Day 3

I slept decently despite the rocks on the ground and even though no alarm was set I was up by six thirty. Since the rest of my family was sleeping, I had the pleasure of reading alone for a while listening to nothing but the wind in the trees and the birds singing their morning songs. It was so unbelievably pleasant. A little before eight o’clock, I woke up G3 and Kati. For breakfast, I made egg sandwiches and G3 used our new Jetboil to boil water for coffee and hot chocolate.

G3 is thrilled to be out of school and on the road because it means time to read books of his choice and not what teachers tell him to read. He is picking up where he left off last summer with his Stephen King obsession. He’s been wanting to read It since forever and that’s what he decided to kick off the summer with. He’s about a hundred pages in and completely enjoying it. I love listening to him talk about it and analyze it, especially when he connects it others works of horror and discusses how he thinks it influenced one of his favorite television series—Stranger Things.

This morning we are heading to the Women’s Rights National Historic Site, which was the site of the Seneca Falls Convention in July of 1848. I was really excited about this visit, and surprisingly, Kati was too. We were probably way too enthusiastic because we spent far more money than we should have at the gift shop. Obviously, women’s rights is important to us, so we felt the need to get ourselves sweatshirts and a Christmas ornament. I’ve been wanting a new cap for a while now so I splurged—something I rarely do—and got one for myself. G3’s attitude underscored the reason why museums like this are important. He refused to watch the film. Usually, he is almost as excited by history as I am, but today he acted bored. Worse than bored. His demeanor indicated that the women’s fight for equality was irrelevant. While walking around the exhibits, he randomly picked out morsels of information to argue why men dominated and why it was completely acceptable. Even when I presented him with evidence as to how women are just as capable as men, he argued they were just exceptions. How did I, a woman who has defied female stereotypes much of my life and acted as I pleased regardless of convention, raise a boy with such views?

Anyway, Lucretia Mott met Elizabeth Cady Stanton met in England in 1840 at the World Anti-Slavery Convention. Women were not embraced at the convention, in fact their presence caused such a stir they were eventually segregated and forced to sit in the back where they were prohibited from participating. Women were deemed only fit to observe. This enraged both Stanton and Mott and laid the foundation for the Seneca Falls Convention. Both women were fed up with society’s view of women and what their role and place should be. They set out to change it and though they didn’t live long enough to reap the rewards of their work, we owe a great deal to them and the other early women who fought to have a place at the table. (Despite what many people think, Susan B. Anthony was not at the Seneca Falls convention. She and Stanton met later.)

In July of 1848, the Seneca Falls Convention met the Wesleyan Methodist Chapel. Their Stanton introduced the Declaration of Sentiments, which was modeled on the Declaration of Independence, and it claimed, “We hold these truths to be self evident that all men and women are created equal.” It also declared that women were tired of male tyranny over them the same way the colonists were tired of King George’s tyranny over them. The Declaration went on to point out the discriminations women faced in society. Unlike men, women could not vote, own property, attend college, or work professionally. This forced them to depend on men and put them at a serious disadvantage.

When women married—and for many women marriage was the only thing standing between them and poverty—they were expected to submit entirely to their husbands. If they worked they needed to turn their wages over to their fathers or husbands. Colleges were not open to them because men considered them to be inferior. The Seneca Convention gave women the opportunity to demonstrate they could be eloquent and powerful speakers, just like men

Sixty-eight women and thirty two men signed the Declaration of Sentiments, pledging to hold more conventions and to petition governments for the right to vote for women. Unfortunately, most women present at the convention did not sign the Declaration because they feared their husbands would not approve. That only highlights the document’s importance and why it was necessary for women to fight for equality. Most of society—including women—did not support what the Declaration stated, which demonstrates how powerful brainwashing—intentional or not—can be.

The early women fighting for equality in New York were inspired by the local native tribes whose societies were far more equal in terms of gender. The tribes were matrilineal and women dressed not to look pretty for their male counterparts, but in attire that was both comfortable and practical. Violence against women was not tolerated and women were entitled to have their own personal property. In both spiritual ceremonies and political affairs, women had a voice.

Men and the media—which was dominated exclusively by men—shared a negative view of the Seneca Falls Convention. Ironically though, it was their discontent that helped spread the news about it around the country.

From the Finger Lakes we drove up to the Great Lakes, or rather a Great Lake. Chimney Bluffs State Park sits on Lake Ontario. It is known for the pointed sand formations that jut out of the earth. When we arrived I wanted to hike. The Chimney Bluffs trail is only two and a half miles out and back, but neither son nor spouse were up for accompanying me. Kati wanted to rest and G3 wanted to read, so I hiked alone. It was an easy hike, more of a walk, on relatively flat ground with little elevation gain, but the little bit of exercise felt good. The views of the bluffs were pretty, though not exactly breathtaking.

After the hike, I met up with G3 and Kati for a much needed swim. It was our first swim of the summer and it was doubly refreshing considering we haven’t showered since Monday morning. I have always loved to swim and the Great Lakes make me happy.

On the way back to our campsite, we stopped at Buttonwood Grove for a wine tasting. The winery overlooks Cayuga Lake, but it wasn’t as scenic as the vineyard we visited yesterday. The wine was okay, but nothing that wowed us.

The mysterious orange tent is still here with no sign of life. No car. No people. But thankfully still no smell that might indicate a rotting corpse. When we pulled into our site this evening we noticed an infestation of small orange tents scattered over multiple sites. The rules of the park indicate that there should be no more than two tents per site. They are clearly in violation of the rules. According to the park ranger, they are a group of college kids from Cornell who were bussed here. So even though they are in violation of the rules, they have no way of leaving. But one would think Cornell kids would be smart enough to have read the rules stating that only two tents are permitted. What concerns me the most is the volume of alcohol they have. A pickup truck pulled in with cases of hard seltzer and beer filling the truckbed along with multiple bottles of tequila. No one brings that much alcohol unless they want to get drunk and when large crowds get drunk they get rowdy. Quiet hours start at ten. How much you want to bet that I won’t be getting any sleep tonight and that we will be calling the local ranger repeatedly?

So the group noticed us chatting with ranger and decided to send delegates to sweet talk us. The first guy, JJ, introduced himself and asked us what our concern was. We said we just wanted to be sure they would be quiet come ten o’clock. He assured us he would be. He then told us at least five times that he was a MBA student at Cornell. Kati essentially said, I a have an MBA from NYU, I’m not impressed. Armand came over next and said he reserved an extra campsite incase the group overwhelmed a family. He said we could move there. I said it was his responsibility to follow the rules. The fact that he offered the site meant he had no intention of doing as he should. He then said he was aware of the rules. I pointed out that was a lie since they had more than two tents per site, which I explained was surprising considering he went to Cornell, which I assumed incorrectly meant he could read. Furthermore, I said I was appalled that he thought I should be inconvenienced and move because he suggested it. The nerve. That was when he started to back away saying he felt attacked. He came to make peace and I was being unreasonable. HA! Such a man-baby. He goes to Cornell, but can’t handle a woman standing up to him. Oh the irony, starting the day at the Women’s Rights Historic Site and ending it with a man who thought he had the right to order me around. Take note, some men still haven’t gotten the memo that women refuse to be pushed around, sweet talked, and controlled. But while we’ve made great progress since 1848, we still have not achieved complete equality and our rights continue to be threatened.