Patti and I hosted a family picnic at our home in Jefferson on the first weekend of July 2018. It was the first weekend after retiring from my career as a marketing manager. The previous Thursday, one of the executives of the company acknowledged me with some comments at an awards ceremony and presented me with a gift. The next day, my last at work, the company hosted a luncheon and again some nice words were spoken and a gift received. After 33 years, my time with the company was over and now my time will be in Jefferson.
The first day of July 2018 was spent golfing at Holden Hills Country Club. As soon as I returned home from the golf course, I had to drive out to Mt. Washington, Mass., (the town - not the mountain in NH) to pick up my brother who was hiking the Appalachian trail. He had decided to cut short his route and needed a ride home.
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| Picnic in new Beach Tent |
The temperatures were so high the next day that all Patti and I did for entertainment was go out to dinner. It was too hot to grill in the backyard or on the deck. But, Tuesday was a great day, as granddaughter Lucy came, as usual, to spend all day with us. The highlight for Lucy was discovering that we had bought a beach tent and installed it on the lower patio. She was thrilled with it and held an immediate picnic for her stuffed animal friends. She also took advantage of the shade and enjoyed a nap in her new playground.
For the next few days, which were oppressively hot, I worked on editing my current book, Worcester's Winter Hill Farm. The book is finished, but I need to select the images and do some editing to overcome some rough spots. On Friday, Patti and I went to one of our favorite local places, Finders Pub for fish and chips. Patti had to work the weekend, which gave me more time to work on editing my other project, which is the cataloging of my Dad's newspaper columns. This is an enormous task as it's two decades of twice-weekly commentaries that he wrote for the Worcester Evening Gazette. It may take at least a year before I can publish this project.
Reading Update: This week I read an autobiography of Frank Capra, The Name Above the Title, which was a fascinating look into the early years and later triumphs of the Director that brought us It's a Wonderful Life, Mr. Deeds goes to Town, Mr. Smith goes to Washington, Lost Horizon, and You Can't Take it With You. But more than the films, it's a view inside who Capra was and what motivated him to be the best - and deserve his name above the title.
UPDATE: Week of July 9-14
Monday, the 9th was a great day. First, we played golf at Holden Hills Country Club and then we visited with friends who had just returned from the mid-west where they had picked up their brand-new, custom motorhome. This unit is 44 feet long, has two bathrooms, and an awning on the side that sets enough canvas that makes me think it could get the bus airborne. We enjoyed some of Jim's famous frozen drinks and caught up on the many adventures they had all year driving across the country. This is the tenth year on the road since Jim and Joyce retired and they seem to be having more fun as each year passes.
Tuesday was Lucy Day, as usual, and just like last week, it's always important to have a surprise ready for Lucy. When it occurs to her, she calls out for a "surprise." It's best to have something ready when this happens, as she often becomes adamant. Today, I had on hand six new books that I had bought and set aside for her next visit. I only showed her three of them, so that I could keep a few in reserve. I stated I had six "new" books, but in reality, they were used books. I visit the local library each week to see what bargains I can find in the basement used bookstore: The Cellar. It's a treasure-trove for me as I can find books for less than two dollars and often less, such as children's books at three for a dollar.
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| Patti Coaches the Pilot |
On July 11, a Wednesday, Patti and I went aboard the paddle-wheeler, Indian Princess, on Lake Webster as part of an outing hosted by the newborn intensive care unit at UMass Memorial Hospital. The physicians in charge of the unit hosted the event, which included a sunset cruise around the lake and "passed" Hors d'oeuvres. It was quite a lot of fun. At one point, the Captain of the ship asked Patti if she wanted to take the helm, which she agreed to immediately. General panic swept the ship as her co-workers learned that Patti had taken over the Pilot House. The call went out to count how many life preservers were on board.
For the next few days, I spent time sorting my film reels to determine how many, if any, of the original footage I took while in the Air Force, was still around. I found a lot of family 8mm movies, but have not found the USAF material yet. I will keep looking. In the meantime, I found the projector and it seems to be working, so I will get ready to preview the footage to see what I still have on hand.
-- Westover Air Show
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| USAF Thunderbirds |
Saturday was a great day. We went to Westover Air Force Base in Chicopee to see the air show. As usual, it was incredibly hot and on the tarmac where the planes were on display, I can't imagine it was less than 100 degrees where we were standing. Fortunately, we found the Budweiser display and it turned out to be the perfect place to watch the show and not pass out from the heat. The USAF Thunderbirds were the last show of the day and they did not disappoint. We have seen them before, along with other aerial display teams, but it was thrilling to see and hear those jets overhead. I'm ready to go to the next one.
Reading Update: This week I read Thomas Cahill's Sailing the Wine-Dark Sea - Why the Greeks Matter. It's a fascinating, intellectual tour of the legacy of the ancient Greeks, and how it still has it's effect on us today. Cahill describes how the Greeks "set the foundation and framework for our intellectual lives. They are responsible for our vocabulary, our logic, and our entire system of categorization." He makes his case well.
UPDATE: Week of July 15-21
-- New Independent Bookstore Opens
On Sunday, I went to Weathersfield, Connecticut to visit "That Book Store," which was having its soft opening. I had read that a new independent bookstore was opening, and I wanted to be there for its first day. It turned out to be a very nice shop and the owner seems really committed to being a resource for the local area. This is why I'm such a fan of independent, local bookstores. The place was immaculate. The stock was still a little low, which is to be expected at the outset, but as the inventory grows, it will take on a much stronger presence. I bought a few books and chatted with the owner a bit to find out what her plans were for the coming year. The formal opening is set for August 3-5 with a ribbon cutting on Thursday. I wish them good luck and plan to visit whenever I'm traveling down near Hartford.
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| Big windows make it bright. |
Lucy visited on Tuesday, so she got to play with a new pal, Pete the Cat, a stuffed animal. The book and the stuffed animal became big hits because she had seen them before elsewhere and said that she wanted a Pete the Cat book. The bonus of a large, stuffed cat, put her over the top. Later, during the day, she asked, "Papa, can I take Pete home with me?" And, of course, I told her that Pete the Cat was hers to keep. She gave Pete a big hug and took off to set up a puppet show with Pete and her Teddy Bear. "They are the same size!" she said.
-- Good Golf Day at Woods of Westminster
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| Stay in Shade |
What makes a good golf day is a birdie. The birdie on the 18th hole, on Thursday, made a visit to the Woods of Westminster the best golf day in weeks. I hadn't played the course for 10 years, and it played much harder than I thought it would. But, that birdie proved I could do a lot with the course. The play, the cart, and the lunch were a reasonable package price and we certainly will add it to the round-robin of courses that we plan to play often.
-- Dining Lakeside
On Friday, we decided to seek out a waterfront spot for lunch. We settled on the 308 Lakeside in East Brookfield. We had been there before, and today looked like a perfect day
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| Patti in Cool Shades at 308 |
I continued working Saturday on the film shorts with the hope of finding the old Air Force footage and right in the middle of previewing some film, the bulb burned out. A quick check on Google showed a new bulb was $49 and would take a week to 10 days to arrive. I had no choice but to order one. On Sunday, I watched the Open and the race at Loudon. When Patti got home we went to the Wong Dynasty for some Lo Mein and Chinese beer.
Reading Update: The more I read about the great writers of mid-20th Century, the more I learned about Ford Madox Ford. So, I finally got time to read his greatest book (he wrote over 80), The Good Soldier. It's not an easy read in this day and age, but definitely worthwhile to understand his time. For those who know me, I generally confine my reading to non-fiction, particularly biographies and memoirs; but, great literature has its place on my bookshelves as well.
UPDATE: Week of July 23-28
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| Arrival at Johnny's in OOB. |
Patti had planned for us to spend a week in Maine, so today was organize, pack, and make plans for our trip. We left in the afternoon and arrived at her brother's home in Old Orchard Beach where we would be guests for the week. The trip up from Jefferson takes about two hours as long as there is no heavy traffic, so it's really a convenient place to vacation. The Old Orchard Beach area has a lot of waterfront dining, great beach bars, amusement parks, and close access to a lot of great golf.
-- A Visit to Maine means Golf
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| Almost broke 90 with 4 pars |
On Tuesday, we golfed at the Biddeford-Saco Golf Course, which is only a mile down the road. In the afternoon, I took some time to visit four of the nearby bookstores, and made some notes for changes to my travel book about rural independent and used bookstores. Naturally, I picked up some great books while browsing. We also golfed the next day as well. Johnny took the day off from his work at the Bath Iron Works to play too. It was another fine day on a great course.
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| Joseph's by the Sea |
-- Dining is Important
Thursday was a great beach day. Patti spent a lot of time soaking up the sun. I spent more time soaking up the music at the Brunswick. We had breakfast at Josephs by the Sea and then dinner at the Fairways Restaurant, a part of the Dunegrass Country Club. On Friday, we played the Dunegrass course and discovered it had changed a lot over the years. They have been making some improvements, but it still has a long way to go to be fully finished. Patti had time on the beach again today.
-- Love a Car Show
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| Classic Road Runner |
Downtown Saco hosted a car show Saturday morning, featuring classic cars, hot rods, specialty cars, and a few rat cars. It was a lot of fun. We had early breakfast at the Golden Rooster Diner, where Patti said my pancakes were the best she had tasted for a while. The service was fast, the prices were fair, and the portions were generous. It was a great week in Maine, and just before we left, Johnny's daughter-in-law, Irina, prepared a late afternoon dinner featuring some of her Russian recipes. We were home by 8 o'clock, arriving just before sunset.
-- Barbeque on Sunday
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| Grill marks are important |
Sunday, July 29, I practiced cooking barbeque chicken on the grill. It came out alright, but I have to work on getting better grill marks on the chicken breasts. It's not easy when you cook skinless chicken. But, I think I can do better next time. In addition to the chicken, Patti made her famous macaroni salad. It's famous because she only knows how to make a batch large enough for a dozen or more people. That's okay for me because I get to eat leftover salad for days later.
Reading Update: I finished Lindbergh Vs. Roosevelt, by James P. Duffy, and it was all that I expected. Duffy was highly critical of the way Roosevelt treated Lindbergh during the lead-up to WW II and it's a shame these two patriots couldn't have found a way to avoid their unnecessary rivalry.
As much as I admired how Roosevelt handled the lead-up to WW II, it always struck me odd that he hated Lindbergh. The book helps clear up how the feud started and why Roosevelt would not relent in his bashing of Lindbergh.
