NYC Briefly

Scott and I with grandsons Uzi and Daniel

Michal sandwiched in between Uzi and myself in a selfie

We wish we were able to stay longer visiting our oldest son and family in NYC. We had to sandwich 3 nights between doctor visits. They live in the upper east side and with some rearranging have room for us to stay. Driving into NYC and parking is a chore so we took Amtrak down from Rutland. There is one departure every day 11:06 AM that gets into Penn Station at 4:30 PM. The one return trip leaves at 2:19 PM and arrives around 7:30 PM.  It's $95 to NYC and $69 back. That's a lot cheaper than driving and parking. There is some pretty scenery, especially along the Hudson river too. 

Josh and Cookie

Josh and Michal have 5 children ranging in age from 23 to 13. All but one were there and the missing one, Maya, had visited us the week before. Three of the five are in medical school and the other two in high school.  Hopefully a few of them will come up for Thanksgiving 

Daniel making his famous chocolate
chip cookies!

We mostly hung around the house and visited but we did have a couple of outings - walking around Central Park, lunch at a great restaurant and a visit to the Metropolitan Museum. We wandered through a number of galleries with Uzi and Daniel and then Scott and I saw the Costume Institute Exhibit, everything from the macabre to the gorgeous.. 

Michal and several of the kids love to cook so we made some delicious meals. Michal specializes in Sephardic cuisine taught her by her mother.  I generally sous chef her but I also had fun with she and Shira making puff pastry Danish.  

Shira and I make blueberry cheese danish

. 

Lunch outdoors at the Cafe D'Alsace and it was amazing.

The view over the pond at the Central Park near us. As you can see one of our days we had lovely weather - warmer than Vemont. 

A Weekend in Gloucester!

Good Harbor beach is always packed in good weather but restricted parking keeps it reasonable.

I took this photo of the beach off the internet so you could see how big the area is. This is at low tide

A bridge crosses an inlet to the marches at the 
far end of the beach from Gail's home. 

We spent a wonderful long weekend at our friend Gail's second home in Gloucester, MA in early September and the weather was perfect. I met Gail's husband Harvey back in 1969 and we were close friends until he passed a few year's ago. White Shutters was his parent's second home and I've been going there for over 50 years. It is at the far private end of Good Harbor Beach and overlooks Salt Island, which is connected to the beach by a sand bar that appears briefly at low tide. We always enjoyed going out there to explore. Our kids grew up with Gail and Harvey's two children, Leslie & Colin and Colin is my godson. 

Brian, Pat, Scott, Gail and Carole out on the front porch.

Other old friends, Pat and Brian, were visiting from California and came up for the day. And another old friend Carole, who lives full time nearby came to visit as well. We had some lovely times together talking, walking and dining. Besides Good Harbor beach, Long Beach is also just a short walk away. We visited both but the water is too cold for my taste (now, it wasn't when I was young!). 

Scott and I also enjoyed an afternoon out at Rockport at the end of the Cape Ann peninsula. This has a fine protected harbor and some more great beaches, although smaller. We came several times in our sailboat, Scott Free. Originally the home of the Agawam tribe, it was first explored by Europeans by Samuel de Champlain in 1605. Like Gloucester it was a fishing port but now it's an artist and tourist center. Gloucester still has a big commercial fishing industry. We enjoyed the views of the beaches and water - and the really fine galleries and shops. 

Long Beach has a boardwalk along the whole length
and a line of charming cottages facing the beach. 
Pat and Gail having a stroll. 

Behind the main street in Rockport are parks and
small harbors and beaches

Most of the houses have small but lovely gardens

A jetty allowed us to look down along a rocky
stretch lined with homes & shops

There are several enclosed secure harbors

Gracious homes and typical New England churches
still remain downtown. 

One of the beaches near the end of the downtown.

The shops also had delightful flower boxes and pots.

It's Fall Already?

 

The Youngstrom's Annual Garden Party - group shot. It includes Scott's brother Brent, his wife Wilma and their daughter Wandi (over on the left middle row). 

The Gareden Party table set with a side
dish pot luck. Our 
hosts made turkey, lamb and salmon,

Heather and Phyllis, our neighbor and friend,

This summer went by so fast and now it's September. I feel though that the fall doesn't really begin until after Labor Day so here's a scattering of pictures and stories to fill you in on what's been happening since my last post which mostly covered through July. 

Scott, Rowan, Will and James - dinner at our RV
during the Birthday Party weekend.  We 
stayed at a KOA in Northampton. 

Scott's cousins Eric and Lisa with Aunt Muriel at
Lisa's Birthday Party at their home in Amherst, MA 

Yosi, Lisa's partner doing a "Saturday Night 
Fever" dance. He kept this elaborate party a
secret from Lisa until the last minute!

Sean, Kolya, Rowan and Morgen at our RV

Lisa, Sean and Rowan

On the positive side the highlights would be the Blueberry Festival at Pierce's, the Northeast Organic Farming Assoc cookout at Evening Song Farm here in Shrewsbury,  the Youngstrom's Annual Garden Party, "Rent" at the Weston Theater, a Dinner Party at David & Silvana's, Scott's cousin Lisa's 65th Birthday Party, the Champlain Chamber Music festival, the Shrewsbury Library Haystack Dinner & Dance, and a Lobster Fest.  Plus Scott's brother Brent came up from N.J. with his wife Wilma and daughter Wandi for a week. Scott's cousin Lisa joined us for 3 days as well. 

Heather at Pierce's Store. She does 2 four
shifts a week as a volunteer.

Bone Builders is a national exercise program for Seniors, run by volunteers. Scott and I go twice a week at our Meeting House. It's a one hour workout with weights. 

The cast of Fiddler on the Roof posing outside the Opera North tent on the Connecticut River. We are long time subscribers to their 3 shows every summer. It's held at the Blow Me Down Farm, a National Park Service Historical Park. It's the former home of the Cornish Colony.  Opera North presents 2 operas and one musical

We also go north to the Champlain Chamber Music festival in Shelburne, VT. Here's the view over Lake Champlain to NY from the venue. 

On the negative side in brief, I had a third melanoma removed, which got infected, and continued problems with bursitis, but HEY that's getting off lightly at my age. And of course our usual preoccupations - Pierce's store, the library, Bone Builders, Book Clubs, Bridge Club, Rutland Garden Club, the Farmer's Food Center, my garden, and politics (especially for Scott).  And Scott and I belong to The Mint, a Rutland Maker Space that houses artists, craftspeople, start-up companies etc. It is totally volunteer run after losing their staff when grant money ran out (under current administration). 

The Mint - One small corner of the huge facility

The main entrance with distinctive mural

Heather's small 8 x 8 studio at the Mint. She's working on a 
painting for Rowan's room, one of two featuring Sean & Will's
favorite characters from books and film. 

Tanglewood Through the Years

2026 - Looking from the shed out to the lawn. Believe it or not this is just for the morning rehearsal. It's much more crowded for the main concerts. And in the hot weather, everyone tries for spots under the trees.

2026 - Our view from our inside seats for the rehearsal - full Tanglewood Choir and Orchestra for Beethoven's Nineth Symphony.  

This the earliest photo I found. That's Debbie D'Arpa on the left, then baby Jenny, Kathy Herald (my old roommate) Marty and Russ Wolf, myself and 2 year old James. 

Tanglewood is the summer home of the Boston Symphony since 1937. It's located in Lenox, MA in the Berkshires and also has 3 music schools on the spacious grounds, It also hosts the Festival of Contemporary Music, jazz and popular artists, concerts and frequent appearances by James Taylor, John Williams and the Boston Pops. During the season the Symphony performs 7 to 8 weekends. Each weekend there are two evening concerts, a Saturday morning rehearsal, and a Sunday 2 PM final concert.

1984 - Sandy Francour, David Wood and Pam 
Gilpatrick

Pam, Russ, Doug & Susan Youmans, Scott and in 
front David & Leslie Silverstein and Debbie.

Zoë, Jenny and James

I've been attending weekends there since 1971. The first years I went with friends and either stayed in B&Bs or camped. That continued with Scott until we had children. Then we rented a cottage nearby for a week. The Wolfs, David Wood and Silversteins always joined us and later Dick & Debbie, and Doug & Susan.  

Russ & Marty, Tim, Julie, Sandy, Doug and Tom

1987 - Heather, James, Scott and Jenny

Before kids, we often went to several concerts but after their arrival it was the Sunday afternoon performance. We'd come early and set up on the lawn at the back, where the kids could roam around. And we could mostly keep them quiet during the concert itself. As you can see from the photos, we got dressed up as befitting the setting. And the lunches were pretty elaborate too! 

1988 Sandy came to all the early ones, until she moved to California. Here with Susan, Tom and in the foreground Julie, Jenny and Sean.

The kids got dressed up for this occasion and didn't even complain.

Latter when the kids were older we moved closer to the stage and didn't have to discipline them. I love this photo of James, lounging!

1990, Sandy, and behind her and to the left,
Lesa and Bob DeFeyter. Molly and Marty.

James, Marty and Molly

 

They loved going and later, even some of the music. We continued doing this every summer until at least 1992. I can't find photos after that (although it may be that the enormous numbers of digital camera photos overwhelm my search). I'm sure we went after that but no photos. That is until more recently when they've started again. I found some in 2014 and 2021. 

1991 One of my favorite photos of Scott and I and Sean

1991 - Heather, David's niece and husband, Sean & James, Lesa & Bob and David

1992 Pat Bagnell, Scott, Heather and David

2014 - It was an adult trip this time with Dick & Debbie - great picnic and then we sat inside!

Just a few years ago in 2021 we spent a weekend with Sean & Will. It was a real feast as we did evening concerts Friday and Saturday . Then on Sunday we went to Jacob's Pillow. Our most recent visit was August 22nd when Scott and I attended the Saturday morning rehearsal of Beethoven's Nineth Symphony. Amazing! And we sat inside. Photos from this year are at the beginning of the post.

1921 - It was a very hot day and we managed to find a shaded spot for our picnic and then sat inside for the concert. 

2021 - Posing at the end of the lawn where we used to set up camp! We went to two concerts there that weekend as you can see from the different outfits!

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