Tom Doherty - The Bicycle Man

I've talked about our Men's Breakfast here at the Blog from time to time. Today, I'd like to introduce you to one of our breakfast regulars -Tom Doherty. Tom is remarkable and unusual in many ways, and I always enjoy his company. Tom, unlike most of us in rural New Gretna, does not have a car. All of his travelling revolves around his bicycle which he uses along with public service buses and trains. He takes his bike along on the bus or trains to use when he arrives at his destination.

Toms and his bicycle have traveled all over the Pinelands, throughout our tri-state area, and in many parts of the United States. He frequently pedals from New Gretna to Haddonfield where he catches the train into Philadelphia. From the train station in Philly, he pedals to the art museum for their Friday night jazz concert. After the concert, he pedals back to the train station and catches the train to Atlantic City where he boards the bus which drops him and his bycloff at the corner of Rt. 9 and Maple Avenues in downtown New Gretna.

Over the past year or so since I met Tom, I've been fascinated by his stories of his many interesting bicycle trips. He clearly has an inquisitive mind and adventurous spirit which I find delightful.

Recently, while bicycling to catch the train at Haddonfield, Tom was pedaling past the Cranberry bogs outside of Chatsworth. It is cranberry harvest time, and Tom spotted picking activity while pedaling past a bog. Naturally, he had to stop to check it out and video it with his cell phone.

Tom maintains a web site to share his thoughts and experiences with friends. You may visit it by clicking on the link below:

http://web.mac.com/tommy.concepts/iWeb/tommy.concepts/Welcome.html

He posted the cranberry harvest video on his web site a few weeks ago. I thought I would share it with you here at the Blog. You can view it by clicking on the play arrow below. The video is a little grainy but, hey, it was taken by a little cell phone, so I can't complain. It is still interesting, never the less. I think you will agree. It's also timely with Thanksgiving just a few days away when most of us enjoy cranberries in one form or another.

My favorite cranberry dish is a fresh cranberry relish that Jackie makes each Thanksgiving. It sure beats that store bought stuff in a can. It's soooooooooo good that I often eat it for dessert as well as with the meal. It's especially flavorful after it has set for a few days. You may want to give it a try.

FRESH CRANBERRY RELISH

1 Pound of whole cranberries washed and cleared of leaves and/or twigs. (frozen whole cranberries work just as well)

1 Orange unpeeled, washed, and cut in eighths then seeded.

1 apple unpeeled, cored and cut in eights

3/4 cup sugar (1 cup if you like things on the sweeter side)*

*the equivalent of sugar substitute can be used for diabetics.

Combine the fruits together, and using a food processor, alternately process the mix till the consistency is like relish. Place the processed fruit mix into a bowl, add the sugar and stir. Refrigerate. The relish tastes best if it is allowed to sit for at least a day before eating to allow the flavors to meld.

Hope you enjoyed our little bike trip with Tom. We'll continue with the cranberry theme in our Thanksgiving Blog entry as we join Howard Ware, in 1998, working in the Lee Brothers Cranberry bogs, also in Chatsworth.

Pete S

PS- Anyone out in the Blog-O-Sphere that would like to share a favorite Thanksgiving recipe, just drop it in an email and I'll post it on the Blog.