We're in red

Guess you'll just have to take my word for it - we're in there somewhere. 

Verizon Corporate Classic - taken: July 18, 2013 (one of the hottest days of the summer)

Zac Brown Band on July 19th

Lucky for us Carolyn couldn't use her tickets to see the Zac Brown Band so Don and I took them. We cruised down the Parkway to the PNC Arts Center, and found a great spot on the lawn under a clear night sky. It was a perfect way to spend my summer birthday.

Don checking out the crowd, waiting for Zac

Zac Brown Band on stage way down there and on the screens

We weren't exactly Zac Brown Band fans, in fact we didn't know any of their songs, but apparently they are quite popular and the thousands of people all around us knew every word! :)  It was a really fun evening and now I'll have to download a little Zac Brown. "Wishing I was knee deep in the water somewhere ..."

Verizon Classic in 100 degree heat

Carolyn signed up for the Verizon Classic 5k corporate run in Morristown on Thursday night, along with Don and Tommy. Tommy couldn't make it so I tagged along. Since the weather was stinking hot on race day, the race was reduced to 2.2 miles and it was downgraded to no longer a race but a come-out-and-do-whatever. I walked it with my friend, Denise (Carolyn's internship manager), while Don, Carolyn and Denise's boyfriend, Jim, ran it. We were all sweating bullets before we even started and were soaked when we finished!

As part of the Verizon team we got running tees and swag bags with another t-shirt and a few other things. There were 5000 participants raising money for the Jersey Battered Women's Center. The route was through the streets of Morristown, which blocked off many homes. Many people came out of their homes to cheer on the racers and had their garden hoses set up to spray out onto the street over the runners. I have never participated in a run before and found it amazing how kind and supportive everyone was ... even to us walkers. It was a fun evening.

Helicopter delay

About six months ago along the windy route that I used to take to work, a large area was cleared, leveled, gravel was spread, and fences of hay bales erected. The purpose was a mystery to everyone. It turns out that it is a staging area for building and dismantling huge hydro towers. The towers lie in parts in these giant holding areas and then a helicopter transports the pieces to the location where they are assembled and stand for however long these things last.

Every time the helicopter appears to do its work, traffic is stopped both ways. It is a minor inconvenience because we get to watch this cool feat of helicopter skill. And some of us grab our cameras:

Coming in to the staging area

Rising after picking up a load

And off it goes with whatever to wherever. 

Mulch delivery

"Wow, this sure beats my indoor litter box."

Orchid paradise in the Bronx

Recently I attended the NY Botanical Gardens featuring the Orchid Show. I took many, many photos of these amazing fake-looking flowers - so many varieties, colors, features. Just one jaw-dropping beauty after another.

 

After the orchid exhibit we walked around the expansive grounds taking in all the in-season flora. Standing downwind from the peonies and lilacs was amazing. Then a stroll through the azaleas was like being back in Maryland in the spring - anywhere not overrun by deer like our neighborhood where azaleas are picked clean of buds before you can say "deer spray" (which doesn't work).

One swan couple per lake please

Lake Kinnelon

Yesterday as I was walking by the lake, these two beauties landed on the water with so much water-slapping noise I thought a small motorboat was putting by. I was surprised that these two graceful birds could make such an ungraceful landing. I mentioned this to friends who said that apparently there are three swan couples on our lake this spring and that the couple I saw were probably making enough noise to mark their territory.

Meeting Crosby & Nash

Just got our photos from our concert evening with C&N on March 16th.

David Crosby, me, Graham Nash, Don

A fun evening.

Crosby & Nash, Don & Cathy

On Friday we went to a fundraiser featuring a concert by Crosby & Nash. We were invited as part of someone else's table and it was wonderful - meet & greet with photo with C&N, delicious dinner, then great seats for the concert. There was also a post-concert party but we couldn't all stay. 

Don & I at the dinner before the concert

Graham Nash, David Crosby, & Crosby's son on keyboards
Two beautifully harmonizing 70-year-olds!

They did a few old CSN/CSNY songs, like Teach Your Children and Our House, and told a few stories. The event was sponsored by The Peak, my fav radio station, so I got to meet one of the owner/DJs, Jimmy Fink, and scored a t-shirt! If we ever get our photo with the boys, I'll scan and post. It was a very enjoyable evening.

2 Hours in NYC

Don and I try to pick a different neighborhood every time we plan a walking day in NYC. Last Saturday it was the Lower East Side. After 2-1/2 hours of driving in, inching along Canal Street, and looking for parking, we finally found 2-hour street parking.

The first thing we did, of course, was eat. Was found a great little corner restaurant called Sauce. It was a delicious lunch - salad and lasagna for me.

After, we hit the streets! One of reasons for choosing the Lower East Side was that I had heard the Tenement Museum was worth visiting. Of course, we didn't plan ahead and all the tours were booked. There is one tour of the actual tenement that houses the museum, and a walking tour of the neighborhood,which was home to almost every immigrant group that entered NYC during the hey day of immigration. We were able to sit in on a 20-minute video presentation that was really well done, giving us a good introduction to the neighborhood, an appreciation for the hardships of arriving in NYC then, and an appreciation for the community and its contributions to NYC life.

With about 30 minutes left on our parking ticket, we then walked east to Clinton St, then up to Houston where we turned west and found Katz Deli, which had a line up out the door and down the street about a half block! Across from the deli was a gelato store ... impossible to pass up. So we spent our last 10 minutes savoring gelato before we dashed back to our car just in time: 2 hours on the dot.

Tenement Museum - Orchard St.

Dark cherry & chocolate combo

We decided to drive by the World Trade Center to see what we could see. Not surprisingly, you can't get very close by car. They are making progress on the Freedom Tower, which we first saw taking shape from our cruise ship in August as we sailed down the Hudson R. Another time, again we will plan ahead, we will sign up for tickets to see the 9-11 Memorial.

The Freedom Tower through our windshield

After winding our way through lower Manhattan, and catching a glimpse of the WTC area, we headed home via the Lincoln Tunnel. We got home about 1-1/2 after leaving our parking spot. With 3-1/2 hours of driving for 2 hours of neighborhood touring, it was still a worthwhile adventure.

The High Line

This past Saturday, 9-11-2010, Don and I went into NYC to walk The High Line. It is a re-purposed and renovated raised railway line that has not been in use for several years. It is now a raised walkway that runs for a few blocks along 10th Ave. to the meat packing district. It is beautiful!

The walkway has been designed with grasses, trees, flowers, and an eclectic array of art that appeals to all senses, including an exhibit of bell sounds from various parts of New York. A different bells rings every 60 seconds. It is a very short journey but if you stop to enjoy the views and exhibits, it can be quite an adventure. There are plans to extend the walkway north along the rest of the raised railway line. 

Me amongst the grasses high above the roadway.

View from the High Line - statements to the world

This is Washington Square near NYU. We then walked north to Union Square, then
Madison Square Park, then back down through the Flat Iron district.

It helped that the weather was perfect! We did not go near Ground Zero where the official memorial ceremonies were being held and many protests. Still so sad. 

Another funny card

One more card.  I also got a chuckle out of this one from Marian.


Sorry kids!

Goodbye to a "bad piano player"

This obit is the most colorful one I've ever read. Whoever wrote it, perhaps Philip himself, left very little to the imagination. This guy enjoyed sex and lots of it "well into his eighties". If only more obits were as forthcoming, I think the obits could become a must-read section, perhaps reprinted annually in books for bedtime reading.

I mean no disrespect to this man. I think this is quite enlightening and obviously meant to be read as it was in the Toronto papers.

My dad sent this to me.  I'll assume the word "insouciant" caught his eye (highlighted by my dad) and he thought to send it to me, since I blogged on this wonderful word last month.

One other note ... did Philip here have enough names?  Could it be that this "intellectual dragonfly" took his partners' names with his "insouciant attitude" and flitting around in bad fashions?

If you have the time, take a moment to read this.  You will not be disappointed. If you click on it, it should enlarge so that its easier to read.  Really, have you ever read an obit like this?!

Yikes!

You would never catch me doing this! Our daring painter, Joe Hammel:

  

Barbie goes fishing

I love this story, found in a recent issue of The Week magazine:

Parents night at Phi Kappa Tau

A few weekends ago we went to Bryan's frat for an evening with the brothers. It started with a buffet dinner prepared by their cook, Gary, and was followed by activities.

First: a mother/son Newlywed-like game. The moms were asked questions about their sons while their son's were in another room, then they were brought in, asked the same questions, and answers were compared. Then the moms went elsewhere while the sons were asked questions about their moms. It was really hilarious and fun.

Second: a father/son pool tournament - pool being a big part of frat living (up there with studying, I'm sure). Bryan and Don won the tournament for about 2 seconds ... then the white ball dropped in behind the black. Drat!

So the Gills fared not too badly with a 2nd place in both activities. 

The boys did a great job putting on this event. We enjoyed seeing the boys we already knew from visits to our home, and meeting others. We also got to meet many of the parents, one who was kind enough to be the official photographer and followed up with us afterwards.

Bryan is finished school in just a few weeks - May 7th. Its hard to believe that his sophomore year is already coming to an end. 

Friends reunion weekend

Friends from London, Ontario came to visit us last weekend.  Friends we hadn't seen or talked to for 16 years!  We don't know why we didn't contact each other during all those years, especially when just prior to that we had met several times with London and Toronto visits and always had a great time.  

Then I guess kids came along for both of us, we moved - twice - and we just lost touch. Back in January of this year Arnie saw the obituary for Don's mom in the paper and decided to attend her funeral.  We were so touched that he came and so happy to be back in touch.  

We had fun making up for lost time this weekend!  In many ways it felt like it was just yesterday that we were all childless and camping at Turkey Point on Lake Erie, Don and Arnie had hair, and Mary Lou and I wore bikinis.  How times change.  :)

Canadian, Please

Cute video!  I found this in my alumni eNewsletter:

Andrew Gunadie, BA'08 (MIT)
Producer, Editor, Composer
Andrew Gunadie is a graduate from Western's collaborative MIT program with Fanshawe College.
He is a new media and web 2.0 enthusiast who contributed to Western's best student experience through CAISA Fashion Show and as a student ambassador with the Faculty of Information and Media Studies. In addition to his role as an independent producer on YouTube, Andrew has experience with a number of different production agencies and Rogers Cable Television. Andrew is known for his co-producer role of "Canadian, Please" garnering over one million hits on YouTube.

Check it out:  "Canadian, Please"

NYSE Tour

On New Year's Eve we won a door prize at a party that included a tour of the New York Stock Exchange and lunch at Bobby Van's Steakhouse in the Wall St. area. We decided to enjoy our prize one Friday in January.

The visitor's gallery is now closed and the public can no longer enter the NYSE unescorted. We had taken our kids to the visitor's gallery in 1997, and I had been a long time ago with my parents. Now that the NYSE is virtually paperless it is a less exciting scene to behold. The trades occur electronically and the number of staff on the floor is down by over 75% from what it was pre-electronic trading. Still it was very exciting for us.

We had to wait outside the building for our escorts. Across the street facing the NYSE were pairs of SWAT guys very seriously scanning the streets. No vehicles are permitted in this area. The good guys at Dru-Stock got us signed in and gave us a great tour. We're wearing two different visitor badges (above). They told us about the history of the rooms, introduced us to the different areas for different types of trading and services, demonstrated their hand-held trading/communication devices, and walked us by the on-site media offices, like CNN's, where we saw reporters preparing to go on air.

Lunch was delicious and a wonderful finish to a fascinating day. A great door prize!

PSU canning weekend

This weekend 10 wonderful kids stayed with us for their PSU fundraising weekend. Most are from NJ and PA, one is from MD, and one is from Cleveland, Ohio. There were 8 guys from the same Frat as Bryan and 2 girls who are in nursing.

As canning weekends go, apparently it wasn't the most successful in terms of collecting donations. They seemed to be competing with the Salvation Army and the weather. About mid-afternoon on Saturday it started to lightly snow, then just dumped down on us for the next several hours. It was still relatively mild so the snow fell in huge fluffy flakes. Pretty to watch; not so pretty to drive in.

Chilling and napping in the family room after fundraising: Rush, Bryan, Brian, Nick, Andrew, Mike & Kyle.

Breakfast group: Brian, Mike, Julie, Nick, Rush, Nicole.

They're all back to school for the last week of classes, followed by a week of exams. Then, home to their families for the holidays.