The birth certificate of eden ahbez, also known as George Alexander Aberle and George McGrew, reveals a few tidbits about this unique American’s early life.

George Alexander Aberle was born on April 15, 1908 to George Philip Aberle (bookbinder) and Mary Ann Mason Aberle of 263 Nassau Street in Brooklyn, New York. Eden’s father is listed as born in New York, while his mother’s birthplace is England. Mary Ann Aberle is 34, while George Aberle is 37.

At the top of the birth certificate, the name of George Alexander Aberle is crossed out and Eden Ahbe is written in, in block letters. (No, there is no ‘Z’.) It looks like the name change was approved by the court on November 17, 1943, and approved by the Commissioner of Health on March 8, 1951.

In researching the origins of eden ahbez, I looked up his dad George Philip Aberle in the 1910 US Census. The Aberle family is found living in the Brooklyn Ward 11, Kings, New York. The older Mr. Aberle lists his father and mother as being born in Germany. Eden’s mom is named Margaret (she is listed as Annie in other census reports) and the children living in the house are: Elizabeth C. (age 16), Grace G. (age 13), Walter P. (age 11), Irene L. (age 9), William L. (age 8), Edna M. (age 6), Lester P. (age 4), Anna M. (age 3), Adatha B. (age 2), and then there is George A. Aberle, age 2. On seeing the two kids the same age one wonders if George and Adatha were twins, though perhaps they were just born in the same year?

Perhaps the most significant detail here is that the young George Alexander Aberle is the tenth child to be born to his mother. Maybe George goes to Kansas to be raised by the McGrew family because there are too many kids for the parents to care for?

And what caused George Alexander Aberle to formally change his name to Eden Ahbez? Was there a psychological disconnect from his biological family of origin, or was ahbez merely practicing the fine art of reinventing himself? Was George inspired to choose the name 'eden' from his sister named Edna?

One wonders…

High-Heeled Shoes Are Bad For You!

Have high-heeled shoes gone too far? A friend posted a picture of the high-heeled shoe that is a Teva collaboration with Grey Ant and it has cogitated in my mind ever since. Why? It’s the fetishism of high heels that bugs me, sorry Grey Ant, but yeah, you bug me.

Love Tevas, Hate Heels
I love my Teva Sandals. I wear them all summer long, proud to sport a Teva Tan when my feet are bare. So when I saw the stiletto heel with the Teva name I think part of me went insane, temporarily of course. I mean, am I supposed to hike in stilettos? Is this good for my feet? Are stilettos a secret rock and terrain climbing tool that I didn’t know about? While Teva might call it “a shot of adrenaline for the outdoor market”, I found it nauseating on so many levels.

In the advertising and promotion of the new product, there are pictures of women rock climbing and doing yard work in their stiletto Grey Ant sandal, as if it is safer and more comfy to hoof it whilst balanced on four to five inches of pointiness. Is this a conceptual shoe? As in, we are not supposed to really climb rocks and haul wheelbarrows in our high heels, it’s just an idea? And conversely, can you imagine a male construction worker wearing high-heeled, steel-toe boots? Conceptually, someone needs to design this and make a music video of male construction workers with jack hammers wearing stiletto-heeled work boots. Why? To show how absurd it is…

Why High Heels?
What is the purpose of the high heel? The high heel is exclusively for aesthetic benefit, as in, some of society has decided that women look better in high heels. The high heel makes us look taller and accentuates our legs and feet. A former boyfriend once told me, “Flats are for lesbians or women who have given up.” Really. And this is from a man who owned one pair of non-descript shoes.

My other stiletto, high-heeled beef is with pornography. The trend in the last ten years is for women in porno films to be on their backs in ridiculous high heeled shoes. I guess this is at least the proper use for the skyscraper high heel as the chick doesn’t have to walk in them. Though really, Fergie of the Black Eyed Peas is proof that women can dance in the absurdly high heeled shoe. Though, I do worry for her feet, don’t you?

High Heels Hurt
I think my bottom line is this. High heels hurt women and show how easily swayed we are by advertising and the popular media. Additionally, the designers of these high heels are men. I think that if men want to design painful shoes, they should have to wear them. And I mean you: Jimmy Choo, Manolo Blahnick, and Grant Krajecki. I would love to see these shoe designers strut their stuff in the shoes they create and sell for similarly ridiculous prices.

So while some people look at women in super high heeled shoes think: sexy, others of us think: fashion slave and podiatrist supporter.

(Men: consider my design for the manly man construction boot. They make you look taller and studies have shown that taller men are paid more than short men. Just an idea guys...)

Why Live in West Virginia?

Probably, many of my friends and family ask the same thing. Why choose to live in an economically depressed, second world country? Why live someplace where unemployment, domestic abuse, and alcoholism is so prevalent? Isn't West Virginia just full of toothless, cousin marrying, illiterates who live on welfare?

City Traffic
I used to live in Kensington, the drug badlands of Philadelphia. I had a reverse commute from the city to the 'burbs of Devon, a 45-minute to 1 hour commute each way depending on the traffic and the accidents. During my time on the Schuykyl Expressway I experienced people road raging. I saw some very violent and dramatic traffic accidents. Car fires were quite commonplace and no big deal. Even though the alleged speed limit on the Schuykyl was 55 mph, we all did 75, or more, no big deal.

One late night I had to change a tire in the sleet in my good work clothes, pulled over onto a half shoulder, while hundred of cars zipped by at top speeds. Another night I passed a car that was speeding on the wrong side of the Schuykyl, a road divided by the lovely Jersey barriers. That night scared me almost more than any driving experience I have had.

WV Traffic
In West Virginia I work from home and have no commute. When I lived in the city I filled up my gas tank once a week. In WV, I fill up maybe once a month. There are almost no traffic jams, few accidents, and not a lot of road rage. When I do drive, I am not in a constant hurry. If the light turns green and the person in front of me takes a few seconds to realize it, I am not honking my horn out of frustration. (That f-er just cost me 3 seconds!) People here actually stop to let people make left turns in front of them on Randolph Avenue in Elkins, WV. When I first moved here this irked me no end. I mean, I am being personally inconvenienced by several seconds so they can help out a complete stranger make a turn on a busy street. The nerve.

The biggest traffic liabilities here are the plentiful deer and the uninsured drivers. These two factors keep West Virginia car insurance as pricey as many high car theft 'hoods in urban areas.

Many of our West Virginia roads are actually a pleasure to drive. Motorcyclists stream here in the warmer weather months to drive our curvy and well-maintained mountain roads. There's not a lot of road clutter - billboards, strip malls, or even street lights - to interfere in the pleasure of driving a mountain road surrounded by trees, woods, and more trees.

If stress can take years off of your life I figure my life expectancy has increased while living in West Virginia.