Waxing Nostalgic

I promise you, this post has nothing whatsoever to do with Gavin DeGraw, so bear with me when I mention his name in the first sentence.

The other day Gavin posted on his Twitter page, "Woke up in Chicago.  Time to find something to do." 

I've been to Chicago once, about eight years ago when Joe an I took a weekend trip there to visit his college roommate and to do some sightseeing.  (I know we took pictures, but I can't find them.  We didn't have a digital camera at the time, so there are none on our computer; and I've sorted through hundreds of old photos these last few days without finding a single one from that weekend.)   We visited the Art Institute (where I was particularly impressed with the famous Seurat painting that inspired the musical Sunday in the Park with George.  It's huge.), Da Bean, the famous shiny sculpture shaped like a lima bean (whose official name is "Cloud Gate," but who calls it that?), went shopping on Michigan Avenue (didn't buy much; man, are those places expensive), rode to the top of the Sears Tower, stopped in for a quick prayer at Holy Name Cathedral, and even rode by Oprah's studio to see if we could get in (we couldn't).  Chicago is also known for its numerous blues clubs, and there is one in particular that we visited, Buddy Guy's Legends, that's owned by one of Joe's favorite blues artists.  I don't remember who was playing that night; I don't think it was anyone well known, but I do remember that they played a great rendition of "Sweet Home Chicago."  Anyway, when I saw Gavin's tweet I remembered that place and just for fun I tweeted him the link.  (Yeah, right; AS IF Gavin DeGraw, on a night off from touring, would decide to go there just because I suggested it!  I would be surprised if Gavin hasn't been there already; heck, he's probably played that gig and even met Buddy Guy himself.)

Since I've been waxing nostalgic lately about concerts and how much fun it is to go to them, I couldn't help but remember the time when Joe and I had a rare opportunity to see Buddy Guy perform for us, along with perhaps a hundred other people, if it was even that many.  We had only recently started dating, and were in that phase of our relationship when he lived in Maryland and I lived in Southwestern Virginia and we were taking turns visiting each other every other weekend.  There is a little town in Giles County, Virginia, in the mountains, called Newport.  (Some people confuse it with the city of Newport News.  There are no similarities between the two, believe me.)  One weekend in the summer, there was a music festival there--I'm pretty sure it was called the Newport Blues Festival, although much smaller than the more-famous one with the same name in Newport, Rhode Island.  There were a number of local bands scheduled to play, and the headline event of the day--the very last act of the evening, the main attraction--was none other than Buddy Guy.  There was no way Joe was going to miss that one.  We showed up with our blanket and our cooler of beer and soda and snacks, and lounged around enjoying the music for most of the day.  We realized that most of the festival-goers were there to see one particular local band that was fairly popular at the time--I don't even remember the name, but they weren't too bad--and that the majority of the crowd had either never heard of Buddy Guy or could have cared less about him.  By the time Buddy came out to play, almost everyone had left.

My parents gave us this print from a local artist named Walt Hughes called "Full Moon Newport" shortly after we moved into our house.  They remembered what a good time we had at the music festival there. 

I think I can honestly say, out of all the concerts I've been to, that may have been the best show I've ever attended.  (Maybe even better than Gavin's, and that's saying a lot.)  Since there were so few people in attendance, we were able to get very close to the stage and Buddy didn't seem the least bit sorry that only a small number of us had stuck around to see him.  He put on a fantastic show, and it was obvious that he was truly enjoying himself and was happy to perform for such a small intimate crowd.  I don't think it mattered to him whether there were ten people or then thousand; he made sure it would be a wonderful evening for everyone.  Since then, Buddy has appeared several times at Wolf Trap (the same place I saw the almost-best show ever), but Joe has been reluctant to go because he knows he'll be disappointed.  There will never be another chance to see Buddy Guy in such an intimate setting, and he's afraid he wouldn't enjoy it as much as he did when we saw him 20 years ago.  Frankly I can't blame him.

This past weekend we had a chance to catch up with Joe's friend Paul, the one who lives in Chicago, when he was in Washington, DC for a cousin's wedding.  We spent a good part of Saturday with him and his wife, and got to meet their two adorable kids.  It was great to see them again, and we vowed that SOON we would come to the Windy City to visit, and bring the boys.  Even fifteen-year-old Larry commented on how much fun it was to spend time with them.  In the meantime we'll look forward to a visit to the Navy Pier or the Museum of Science and Industry (Curly would love that one) or the Alder Planetarium; and I know Joe will want to take in a Cubs game.  

I found this video of Buddy Guy from 1992, right around the time we saw him.  It brought back a wonderful memory and made me smile.  Watch and enjoy!

Get Thee To Newport (in 7 takes)

Earlier today I accidentally published the unfinished version of this post. Here's the new and improved one, hopefully complete. Enjoy!

On Columbus Day Weekend, my husband and I decided to take some time away from the kids, and we chose Newport, Rhode Island as our destination. The town is amazing, and the weather was perfect. For this week's 7 Quick Takes post I'll share some of the incredible things we encountered on that trip.

1. Beauty

2. Boats

Pete Townsend owns this sailboat.



We took a tour around Newport Harbor in a vessel like this one. Being a morning cruise, they gave us complimentary mimosas.

Since I helped hoist the jib, they gave me an extra mimosa.

Maybe next time we'll take a boat like this,

...or maybe sail on a pirate ship.

3. Food

There is so much to eat in Newport that you can't walk outside without smelling something delicious. From the amazing breakfasts we ate prepared by Christine, the proprietor of the inn where we stayed, to the lobster rolls, countless varieties of burgers, all kinds of seafood, even chocolate and pastry--believe me, we didn't go hungry. At the Italian Festival that was happening in the little park near where we stayed, we couldn't resist sampling some of the fare.

We even stayed to listen to the cheesy lounge act providing the entertainment for the event; and according to my half-Italian husband, they were just like the ones he'd seen at every confirmation party and wedding he attended growing up in New Jersey and Pennsylvania in the 1960s and 1970s.

4. Remarkable Trees

Have you been following Ginny's Remarkable Trees of Virginia series? She and her children have been reading a book of the same title which features specific trees in Virginia that are particularly unique. Most are very old and very big. As part of their homeschool program, Ginny and her kids have been visiting these trees, and learning about that type of tree and the history of its location. When they visited one at James Madison's Montpelier in Orange County, for example, they toured the mansion and learned about about early American life. Anyway, when I saw some of the trees below, I thought somebody ought to write a book about the remarkable trees of Newport.

This was actually four trees growing close together.


Under the four trees would be a fun place for kids to play. Someone built a fort here--a lot like the ones our kids like to make.

I admit I did a double-take when I saw these topiaries.

The leaves were just starting to change in Newport. This tree had a head start.

5. Remarkable Churches

We went to Mass at St. Mary's Church, where John F. and Jackie Kennedy were married.

It's beautiful on the inside, and this picture unfortunately doesn't capture it very well.

Trinity Episcopal. I loved its traditional New England-style steeple.



The Unitarian Church near our bed-and-breakfast had a lovely carillon that played hymns on Sunday morning.

6. Remarkable (and unremarkable) Oddities

Our bed-and-breakfast was across from Touro Park where there is a tower that some believe might have once been a windmill. No one really knows excactly how old it is or what it's for, though; some even think it might be some astronomical Stonehenge-y type of thing.

(See Wikipedia for more.)

We got a kick out of this sculpture near the wharf.

Nancy Pelosi or Cruella DeVil?

(After I snapped a couple of photos Hubby scolded me for taking pictures in an art gallery. But here's a link to this artist's website; his caricature art is very good. I hope this makes up for my impulsive behavior.)

Did you know the guy who brought us tomatoes lived in a modest house in Newport, Rhode Island? I was immensely excited to learn this fact, and even though my husband makes fun of me for taking pictures of signs, I HAD to share this with you.

7). Remarkable Houses

(As a rule I don't post pictures with people in them, and I hope the anonymous folks in this picture don't mind if I make an exception just this once. I took this when we toured The Breakers, a summer house owned by the Vanderbilt family. I couldn't find any photos online that I liked better than this one.)

This was owned by the Bouvier family, the parents of the future Jackie Kennedy Onassis.

The Bouviers built this as a guest house and then realized their main house was so big there was plenty of room for guests. Jackie and her friends used this as a playhouse instead. Somehow I think it's more fun to make your own out of chairs and blankets and refrigerator boxes.

The story goes that a hundred years ago or so, a fellow built this on a rock in the middle of Newport Harbor for when he needed a break from his wife, who was afraid of water. Seriously.

Not the biggest or fanciest house in town, but this bed-and-breakfast was the perfect place for us to stay. Christine the innkeeper is the hostess with the mostest.

(Check out Jen Fulwiler--the 7 Quick Takes hostess with the mostest--for her latest post. I'll just say this: I am thankful we don't have scorpions in Virginia.)

Seven Quick Takes, New York Style!

This year's Christmas present from my in-laws was a family weekend in New York City and tickets to see Blue Man Group. I've decided to use the Seven Quick Takes meme (hosted by Jennifer at Conversion Diary) to give you a rundown on the fun we had in the Big Apple.

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In my last post, I told you about how the kids were sick the day we left, and how we became part of a crowd of Marchers for Life in a service area along the highway. We reached our hotel on Friday night at around 10:30 pm--way past the kids' bedtime (a side note--we believe in letting kids watch DVDs on long trips. Some of my fellow bloggers may balk at this, but let me tell you, it makes for a much easier trip. For the record, we watched "UP" and "Rattatouille.") Our hotel room in Secaucus, NJ, had a view similar to this one,

except we couldn't see the river. It was nice to wake up in the morning and look out at the WAY COOLEST city in North America.

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We opted to drive into the city, and frankly I was surprised at how easy it is to find parking in Manhattan. There are parking garages on practically every block. Some of them even have valet parking, which makes it that much easier. (I left the driving to my husband; that's another story.) We spent a big part of Saturday at the American Museum of Natural History. For several hours we wandered through the exhibits (five floors of them), took in a planetarium show, and resisted the temptation to buy junky souveniers at the gift shops.

one of the many dinosaur skeletons on display

I'm always saddened by the fate of the once-abundant passenger pigeon. Seems folks took them for granted and recklessly killed them off until suddenly there were none left.

We liked this display--it reminded us of the monkey in the movie "Night at the Museum;" after all, this was where it took place. Some of the museum exhibits we saw were featured in the movie; others (like the wax figure of Teddy Roosevelt) were made up.

Is it just me, or should this say "the Sandhill Crane...is by far the more widespread and more common?" Isn't "commoner" a noun, like "riff-raff?"

My mother says that Helen Keller wrote once that if she were granted the gift of sight for one day, she would visit this museum so she could look at all the dioramas. If you can't see the world in one day, she reasoned, at least she could get an idea of what the world's marvels looked like.

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Next we headed over to the Empire State Building. Here is Moe's painting of it that he made the previous weekend... ...when we got to it, we couldn't see the top. Oh, there it is!

We were on the observation deck just as the sun was setting. It wasn't nearly as cold and windy up there as we thought it would be.

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My father-in-law, who grew up in and lived in New Jersey for many years, decided to wait for us in the Starbucks across the street from the Empire State Building. He has been to the top many times, and he decided to sit this one out. When we reached the bottom and arrived at the coffee shop, to my surprise he had bought this mug just for me:

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After dinner at Jack Dempsey's Pub, it was time to drive down to Greenwich Villiage for the Blue Man Group show. The venue was a small, intimate theater; nothing like the Vegas- or Broadway-style mega auditorium I imagined it would be. We couldn't take pictures or videos at the show, of course, but here's a taste of what we were treated to. (Sorry I don't have the video posted directly to this blog; the only way I know how to do it is to put the video up first, and write the rest of the blog post around it. Forgot to do that this time.)

If you ever have a chance to see a Blue Man Group performance, it's a real treat. Larry, Curly, and Moe decided that if the Three Stooges were aliens, they'd be Blue Men.

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Sunday morning Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral was magnificent. We attended the 10:15 Mass, which seemed to be one of the most popular. When my husband and I came here two years ago, we had a flight to catch Sunday morning, and went to the 8 am Mass, which had no music or singing. This time the cathedral was filled with pipe organ music and the voices of the amazing choir (which sounded like one probably had to audition for); there was inscense, and the Gloria, Pater Noster, and Credo were all sung in Latin. This photo does St. Patrick's absolutely no justice. I opted to bring my old 5 megapixel pocket camera instead of my other one, which takes better pictures but is a little clunky.

St. Anthony of Padua's statue and side altar

The beautiful side altar of Our Lady of Czestochowa

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After Mass, it was across the street to Rockefeller Plaza, and a visit to the Nintendo World store. Larry informed us it was the only one of its kind in the Western Hemisphere. The other Nintendo World, he says, is in Japan. Then it was lunch at the famous Stage Deli, a walk through Times Square, and finally it was time to retreive our car from the parking garage and make the long trek home.
The only negative aspect of the trip was that my mother-in-law wasn't with us. Poor thing, she was sick at home while we were on the town. It was a fantastic weekend, but it would have been even better if Grandma were with us. We'll just have to plan another trip; next time, we'll treat them!