Monday, October 02, 2017

Things That Make Me Happy



I really enjoyed my trip to DC where we saw a terrific play set in Detroit (THE SKELETON CREW), went to a marvelous sculpture museum and garden in Maryland, saw a great exhibit of photographs of Marlene Dietrich at the Portrait Gallery (as well as portraits of the presidents)  and a great movie COLUMBUS. It was nice to see our friends there and also enjoy a visit with my brother, about to become a grandfather in two weeks. Another Nase will enter the world.



We had lovely weather although very hot. And some great meals. A much needed getaway for us. And thanks to Todd for helping out yet again.

WHAT ABOUT YOU?

17 comments:

Anonymous said...

So glad you enjoyed your trip!

George said...

We went to the Shaw Festival in Canada and saw some excellent plays.

Our weather has returned to Normal so the air is crisp and full of falling leaves.

And the surprising Buffalo Bills are all alone in First Place in the AFC East after shocking the Atlanta Falcons (and all Bills fans) with an upset win!

pattinase (abbott) said...

Go, Bills!

Jeff Meyerson said...

Jackie couldn't help but chuckle (sorry) about you going to D.C. a month after us, with the (understandable) expectation that you'd have cooler, more temperate weather. Instead, we lucked out with 80 degrees in August and you had the sweltering heat. Glad you had fun.

Goegeous weather here, for the most part, though 87 at the end of September is high. Mostly I read some good books this week - THE WESTERN STAR by Craig Johnson, BEWARE OF GOD: Stories by Shalom Auslander, and the excellent MORNINGSTAR: GROWING UP WITH BOOKS by Ann Hood. She is 8 years younger than us, but I found so much to identify with in this one. Highly recommended.

Also catching up on Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Acorn (which we had to delete and switch to getting it through Amazon, whereupon our problems with it cleared up.) So far I have not seen a single new network television show that interests me, period.

Looking forward to Niagara Falls and Bouchercon in Toronto next week. See you there!

pattinase (abbott) said...

I also just read MORNINGSTAR and liked it. Yes, see you there.

Steve Oerkfitz said...

The great weather here in SE Michigan. Usually means a mild winter.
Just read a great novel by Thomas Mullen called Lightning Men a sequel to last years Darktown about the first black police officers in postwar ww2 Atlanta.
Detroit Lions 3-1. Should be 4-0. Baseball season is over for Detroit thank god. Just about anyone of worth was traded away. They were painful to watch.
And a new season of Curb Your Enthusiasm. Hard to believe show started 15 years ago and the last season was 6 years ago.
.

pattinase (abbott) said...

Been listening to ORIGINS online, a sort of history of CURB. So far, it should be better than it is. The actors are not always the best people to interview. They mostly compliment David and each other.
The Tigers gave up midway through and acted accordingly. Verlander was lucky to get out.
I think the Lions may actually be a good team.

Jerry House said...

Glad your had a great trip. Did you get to sample some decent crabcakes while there? I'm fully convinced that we need more Nases in this world and I hope he or she grows up in a kinder and less divisive world.

We got a note from Kitty's Aunt Charlotte and Uncle Don (Kitty's last remaining uncle), as well as a newspaper clipping about their 70th anniversary. Don's 91 and Charlotte is closing in on 90; both remain active. For many years Don has knitted blankets and throws for everyone in his very large family; they are treasured, well-loved, and well-used. It's nice to see good people still very much in love.

We had a visitor climb up out of the bathroom sink -- a small lizard about an inch and a half long, pale pink, and with bulbous eyes. Kitty screamed and told me to get rid of it but not to kill it or hurt it. You know that old ad "Is it live or Memorex?" Kitty's scream was like that, only louder. The lizard moved fast and jumped back down the drain before I could catch it. It reappeared a couple of days later and I was able to scoop it up and place it outdoors. Closest I've come to big game hunting.

Grandson Mark now ranks among the top 7% of some two thousand high school runners in Florida.

Enjoyed binge watching both HINTERLAND and SHETLAND. Great television.

Our neighbor Raymond is always looking for something to do and has taken to mowing and trimming our lawn without letting us know until after the fact. He does the same with a couple of our other neighbors. Although he doesn't want us to, we'll have to think of something nice to do for him in return.

Have a great time at Bouchercon later this month!

pattinase (abbott) said...

Some friends were celebrating their 185 birthday while we were there. He is 95 and she 90. What a cool idea. Yes, we did have crabcakes and they were excellent as expected. Jerry, you should write your memoir. I think you have a lovely writing style and find such interesting things to say.
I wish you were coming. Maybe we can meet up in Florida this winter.

Gerard Saylor said...

Boy #1's mountain bike race was just up the road at Trek Bicycle headquarters in Waterloo, WI. It's nice to have a quick drive. He also played in the weekend homecoming parade and halftime band performances.

Boy #2 was invited to play tuba in the conference honors band. This is rare because he just started sixth grade. But, no other tuba players were nominated and his band teacher believes he "could potentially play some of these parts along with the strongest 7th and 8th graders in the area, and at least keep up." That was neat news.

One staff member accepted a job at another place. Sad to have her leave but very happy for her getting a big pay raise and full-time hours.

pattinase (abbott) said...

Kids today seem to take part in so many activities. Great that they have both music and sports to take them through those troublesome teen years. Glad to hear they are still hiring librarians too.

Rick Robinson said...

Sigh. I'm happy you're going to Bouchercon, and I'm sure you'll see many friends and perhaps make some new ones there. I wish I could go, but it's not an option for me. I know there's a rotation, but it seems like they are always in the East or Midwest any more.

I'm happy we got a couple of rainy days after well over 100 dry days. Soon it will be time to get out in the garden and start Fall pruning and clean-up. The trees aren't turning yet, but we haven't had a frost.

I've had a bad chest cold, but it's clearing up, thank goodness. Oh, to lay down to sleep without that awful wheezing!

Barbara is doing fine, enjoying her work-out classes at 24-Hour Fitness (Pilates, Zumba, Barre class, etc.) 5 days a week.

I'm happy we have a good Farmer's Market here each Saturday with fresh-from-the-fields produce. Plus it's nice to walk around there and we often see friends.

pattinase (abbott) said...

We have a nice farmer's market too. A chest cold already. I need to get my flu shot.

Jeff Meyerson said...

Rick, I must admit that you're right. Cleveland, Albany, Raleigh, New Orleans, Toronto, Sarasota, Dallas one after the other? They are getting more and different cities, which is good, but even though we don't go to the ones out west, other people should have that opportunity. The only one we've been to west of St. Louis was in Vegas in 2003.

Sacramento in 2020, but I doubt we'll be there, though as of now we are supposed to be visiting my brother in Portland before then, so we can meet up with you then.

pattinase (abbott) said...

Yes, let's all meet in Portland. I have always wanted to visit.

Gerard Saylor said...

I consider myself very fortunate to attend Bouchercon in St. Louis in 2011. Not sure when I can ever go again. I mostly wandered around on my own but did get to chat with some neat people and got started on some neat books and series.

Powell River Books said...

What an interesting way to look back at your life, through beloved books. - Margy