Splendid Weekend Bits

The weekend was fabulous from start to finish.

It poured all day on Friday and we had dinner reservations at a new place some 20 miles away.  While I was at work, Mr. Weston called and said, "Cancel our reservations.  I will stop at Frigo's on my way home and then we can watch a movie."

Sounded splendid to me.  I really did not want to dress up to go out in a downpour.  Besides, Frigo's is a magic word in our house.  Very, very fine Italian food.  Mr. Weston arrived with an abundance of delicacies for the weekend that made cooking unnecessary.

Mr. Joe Frigo is always
a delight when I visit.

On Saturday there was an a plethora of town events:

• Fall Festival at the First Church
• Farm Museum Welcome Day
• Historical Society Open House
• Library Book Sale

I rode on this stage coach at the Farm Museum.

It was marvelous. Dear Doc and Ben, the gentle giant and immensely pettable horses, pulled us all around town.  I had not been in coach since Dodge City when I was a child and could not imagine traveling hundreds of miles today in this way.


At the church fall festival, I found this old book which was only a dollar.  The appeal was not in the book but the fact that somebody once stuffed it with news clippings from the 1930s.  I could not resist.

The Historical Society Open House is run by these lovely people and others.

The perfect lady with the cane was in the Red Cross and served all across Europe during World War II.  Her stories are frightening and amazing.  Again, this year, I tried on the beautiful military coats from that era in the collection - still not a moth hole in them.  If only clothing today was of the same quality.

Since my farmer introduced me to scrapbooks, I have been enchanted by them.  The ones in the Historical Society collection are numerous and contain articles such as, "Mrs. Jots and Her Mister Traveled to Marrakesh."  Perhaps more to come on these scrapbooks.  They deserve further investigation...

Saturday night, as a member of the Development Committee, I helped to host a pre-event meet and greet at a local theatre for donors. 

Lovely.  I met a woman polo player who amazed me with her stories and urged me to take up riding again.  We will see.  I still remember Jasper stomping on my foot when I was trying to put the bit in his mouth...

As the weekend ends, I am pulling out the movie, "Mrs. Miniver".  Tomorrow I have to fly off for the week to one of my least favorite places where client consultants walk about with checklists about performance then submit reports - never nice.  Mrs. Miniver - especially when she takes the gun from the German soldier in her kitchen - always makes my fears seem silly.

 

Practical Paper Dolls

 

I want the jacket.
But, good grief, is that a girdle!!

 

The gloves, please.

All courtesy of:

 

Writers and Are You Famous?

I spent the weekend in the Berkshires at Wordfest.  It is a biennial gathering of writers at the Mount.   This year the roster of participants  was amazing.

I went specifically to hear:

Francine du Plessix Gray

Read "Them:  A Memoir of Parents" to know why she talked about her family's history with "Vogue", and her escape from the Nazis.


Then,

John Berendt
"Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil"

And I thought I collected eccentrics - he is the master.  He is currently conducting research for a book on New Orleans.  We will have to stay tuned.


I also heard Adam Gopnik, Roxanna Robinson, Matthew Pearl, Suketu Mehta and others.  A fabulous event!


Meanwhile, Edith Wharton was a woman after my own heart

Dog cookies at the dining table

One of the dog beds

At one of the presentations, there was a group of twittering folks behind me.  One woman eventually approached.  Apparently, they could not decide if I was:

Laura Linney, or

Laura Dern

This was absoulutly mortifying and the disappointment I caused when I said I was niether was awful.

Then after the John Berendt talk, an official from the Mount itself chased me up the drive to ask if I was:

Elizabeth Gilbert
author of
"Eat, Pray, Love"

This time a bit annoyed and had the creeps.  Why do people ask such things?  Yet, that night, Mr. Weston and I had a hysterical laugh over G&Ts via cell phone.  He was at home, while I was still in the Berkshires.
















 

A Moonglow Birthday, Criterium, and New Boots

The weekend started with a birthday party for my niece.  It has been previously mentioned in this blog that her birthday is September 11.  In the ensuing years since that terrible day, we have worked really hard to make it special for her.

On Friday after work, friends and family assembled at my house for the celebration.  All were bearing gifts and an abundance of produce from the garden.  The cornucopia included tomatoes, eggplant, garlic, cucumbers, peppers, fresh herbs, sweet corn - it is miraculously still out here - and more.  We all worked together to prepare a simple and fresh meal. 

Later, when the lights were turned out and the candled cake brought in, Mr. Weston played  "Happy Birthday" with great fanfare and chords on the piano.  He then proceeded to play other tunes - including my favorite, "It Had to be Moonglow."  The house rang with joy, music, and laughter.

The next day, we zoomed up to Portsmouth, New Hampshire to stay with friends.  They very kindly treated us to dinner at the delectable Black Trumpet.  This restaurant is now, a new favorite.

On Sunday, we cheered our friend on as he participated in the Portsmouth Criterium.  Bravo, B.D.!  You were fantastic!

Later, we drove across the bridge of the Piscataqua to Kittery, Maine where there are outlets.  

Recently, while field/woods walking my right boot has necessitated a plastic bag lining.  After several years, it is cracked and I really have not been up for purchasing another pair - just yet - since the plastic bag still made the boot useful.

In Kittery, we turned into the first plaza where one was able to bellow out "Eureka!"  Barbour had a plethora of appropriate field walking boots on sale for half the outlet price.  Boots were to be found for a mere $26!  After Mr. Weston and I selected ours, out came the cell phones to call family and friends to see if they needed/wanted any.  Based on the availability of sizes, we came away with several pairs.

Old boots meet new in the back hall.
Dog leashes also hung here.

Old boot - still useful.

The only downer - I was on the second floor of Orvis trying out the dog beds when Mr. Weston came up the stairs and reminded me that Puppy Weston already had 5 beds and did not need another one.  Did I ever mention on this blog that she is not spoiled? 

This one was quite comfy.

All and all, a splendid weekend.

And for a Friday Evening Before Friends and Family Arrive...

Definitely.

Thanks, Steve.

The Bailey's Hot Fudge Sundae

Last night I went out with a friend to a movie and afterwards we decided to get hot fudge sundaes.  I had not had one in years and it was sublime.

Oddly, we both remembered being taken to Bailey's in Boston for hot fudge sundaes when we were children.  Bailey's sundaes were magnificent decadence.

My first was when I was on a shopping trip with my mother and aunt.  At lunch time we went into Bailey's.  They ordered some boring sandwiches.  I was allowed to order a hot fudge sundae. When it arrived at the table, I could not believe my eyes.

Contrary to the traditional, pokey sundae that was served in a neat glass pedestal vessel, this was served in a stainless steel silver vessel on a stainless steel silver plate.  What's more - there was so much hot fudge sauce that it overflowed luxuriously to pool on the plate.  One was able to consume spoonfuls of just the hot fudge. 

Sadly, Bailey's has closed - I do not know when - but I did find the hot fudge recipe.