Now that I’m physically ill, it appears that I’m also going mental to boot. This past week has given me a whole new appreciation for American healthcare as I have spent 5 out of the last 7 days at Mary Washington Hospital. Last night I was a guest in their ER and I will return on Monday morning for yet another surgery. All that said, what do you think I did today? Yep, I called Mary Washington Hospital in an effort to conduct some research.

Why? Well for the last week or so I have noticed a very peculiar logo plastered on everything in that hospital from security badges to water cups. It is the Mary Washington Hospital logo (or Medicorp Health System crest) and it adorns every door, every sign, and every vehicle on that campus. Being an historian and former graphic designer, this symbol caught my eye and it has been driving me nuts ever since. It looks so familiar, but I can't seem to identify its origin. The style obviously has a very colonial-feel to it. Is it taken from a Washington-family crest? Perhaps it’s an apple symbolizing the nearby Ferry Farm? I see an eagle and a crown. Whatever it is, I can’t seem to find an explanation for it so I left a message over at MWH’s Public Affairs office. What a weird voicemail that must have been? They better get back to me too as I can see myself blabbering about it endlessly to the poor nurses in recovery. I will let you know what they say, if anything.

UPDATE 12/12: Thanks to our friend Tom Byers who solved this riddle and enabled me to sleep tonight. It appears that the MWH logo is based the coat of arms that George Washington used to identify his family. The crest was originally used in the twelfth century, when one of Washington's ancestors took possession of Washington Old Hall, then in County Durham, in North East England. More Here

Now that I know this, I am even more impressed with the historical accuracy and consideration that was used in the creation of this logo. Perhaps MWH’s PA office can offer more information on the designer. I will let you know. Thanks again Tom. This turned out to be a useful post after all.

Image courtesy of the Sons of Liberty Chapter, SAR

Well friends, you could say that I have gone from the highest-of-highs to the lowest-of-lows as my battle with Kidney Disease has taken a turn for the worse. Two weeks ago I was on stage at the Carnegie-Carnegie and this week I’m on my back enjoying the hospitality of Mary Washington’s surgical wing. Without getting into the ugly details, I am in the midst of two kidney-operations and will be spending the anniversary of the Battle of Fredericksburg in a hospital bed. This was certainly not in my plan as I have been working towards the release of our DVD with an audio interview coming up on This Mighty Scourge and another chat tentatively scheduled for Virginia Neighbors magazine. That said, what else is a sick writer to do but write? I certainly don’t trust me to conduct any serious work, but I do plan to selfishly occupy myself at the keyboard and offer up some relative insights as my condition permits. Stay tuned for what will likely be some highly un-educational ranting about something historical. Here's a useless, but "highly" entertaining post courtesy of the History Channel: GW and the boys liked get their smoke on.

This 2-part video was shot from the audience at the Pittsburgh, PA premiere of "The Angel of Marye's Heights" (Nov. 27, 2010). The video quality isn't very good, but the audio is clear and worth sharing. I have a good quality DVD of the entire event, but I am still working on getting it converted and posted online. Enjoy.

My friends at Patriots of the American Revolution sent me a sneak peek at my next feature on Black Loyalists. This article will be running in the Jan/Feb 2011 issue. This is my fourth feature for PAR and I have several new ones planned for the coming year. What better reason do you need to get a subscription to THE leading publication on the War for Independence? Visit PAR’s website for more information.

I wanted to post a quick update on our friend and guest blogger Michael Kahn. Michael is the historian working tirelessly to have a monument erected commemorating the soldiers and officers of the First Rhode Island Regiment. Last week Michael received a generous donation from IBM and a bronze Good Citizenship Medal from his local chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution. Michael told me that the SAR also gave the award to another board trustee, Monica Doherity, for her contributions to this project. Monica is also the editor of the book “The Nasty Affair at Pines Bridge,” which is only available through the Yorktown Historical Society. Read Michael's Guest Post

In an email to me Michael added, “We just finished a working site plan that would give us an idea how many paving stones we would need to assist us with fund raising--specifically, personalized paving stones. Our town planner, John Tegeder, completed this task to assist us with obtaining the necessary permits to place the monument on New York City Dept. of Environmental Protection property. I have already enlisted the help of two groups of public school students that would assist in the maintenance of the monument/property as part of their community service requirements.”

This is a perfect example of how ordinary people can work together to preserve our extraordinary heritage for future generations. Most of our most notable monuments came from grass roots movements like this. I will keep you updated on this worthy endeavor as it progresses. Well done Michael!