New York, New York

View of Chinatown

Last stop on the summer road trip was New York. It is great to be able to combine a family visit with some culture and fun! Thanks to the 'rents for putting us up, and treating us to dinners out and theater seats! Highlights of the trip included cake tasting with DD as well as a whirlwind trip to Chinatown and the Metropolitan Museum.

There was a rumor afloat that showing one's Docent Badge could get one into museums for free. We tested this out and found it to be TRUE! Plus, the docent's guests can also enter for free, although each museum has different guidelines as to how many guests: MoMA allows one free guest, the Met allows up to 4 free, the Cooper-Hewitt let in 2 guests. This is great news and should be shared with all docents! Quite a cost savings, as MoMA is now up to $20 entrance fee, and most other museums heading into double digits as well.

The best way to see the Metropolitan Museum is in short, targeted strikes. We went on Friday evening, when it stays open until 9pm and there are drinks on the roof. We saw the new Greek and Roman Galleries and the temporary exhibit on the Clark Brothers' Collections. We also ate in the small cafe (which has been moved since the opening of the new galleries). The food and service were quite good, although not cheap. But it is in a nice area near European Decorative Arts with a bank of windows that looks onto green space. The restaurant stays open until 10 pm so you don't feel rushed.

There are weird flowers outside of the Cooper Hewitt Museum and Richard Sera sculptures at the Museum of Modern Art and that pretty much concluded the culture for this trip.


We also were in NY for Harry Potter weekend, and I was able to read
about half of the book before I left for home. Thanks to DM and DD for that!

I have to report the demise of my beloved Casio Exilim camera, as DH took it on his fishing trip and accidentally let it go swimming......Vacation pics will be up on the Flickr site soon. Any suggestions for a new, waterproof camera?

Summer School For Docents

The Road Show is still on the road, and behind in the posts!

From July 9 to July 15 I was part of a group of docents from all over the country that came to the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, MA to learn more about how to talk about art. We were taught primarily by Michael Cassin, the Curator of Education for the Clark, an energetic (to put it mildly!) teacher whose love of the arts drives his passion for teaching. The Clark has a treasure trove of Impressionist art, as well as American, Medieval and European art, and collections of decorative arts and English silver (and a few sculptures!)

We also had other excellent tour guides as we took in contemporary art at MassMoCA, a new exhibit on Gerald and Sara Murphy at the Williams College Museum of Art , and several tours of art on view at the Clark. I loved the area as this view of the hill behind the Clark is typical. Lots of Berkshire Mountains around, too!
We stayed on the Williams College campus in Dodd House, which was adequate, but not heavy on amenities.


We also enjoyed 2 nights of the Williamstown Theater Festival, seeing "The Front Page" and "Villa America", both with recognizable actors from TV and movies, notably Nate Coddry from Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, Matt Bomer from Traveler, Richard Kind from Spin City.

I worked pretty hard during the docent classes: we looked at a lot of paintings and objects from all genres, and had to do group exercises and presentations. I hope I can practice what I learned and improve my "gallery talks." It was great getting to know some more docents-hopefully we can visit each other's museums and get some wonderful tours from each other!
This is a photo of Michael teaching-we spent almost as much time in the classroom as touring. The Berkshire Eagle did a story about us. I did not get in the photos or the article!

With a day or two on either end of this trip to visit with friends and family in the Northampton area, it was a great week!

Camp Reunion

The Road Show has been on the road!
If you ever went to camp, you will know how nostalgic you can get for those summer days by the lake. If you never went to camp, you will think people are slightly crazy....The radio show This American Life did an episode about camp that was rebroadcast recently. You can check it out here


Anyway, my camp (Camp Northland for Girls) was in northern Minnesota outside of Ely, the gateway to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. It was on the North Arm of Lake Burntside. It was started in the late '40s by a couple of teachers, and was run by them and their son until 1980. The property was subsequently bought by the YMCA of St. Paul, MN and added to their existing family camp. So, over the years, we Camp Northland girls have returned at various times to relive our childhoods. We have slept in the original cabins, used the outhouses and saunas, swam in the lake and taken out canoes and sailboats.

Thanks to the internet, we have found over 75 people who attended camp as campers and /or counselors and this reunion (6/30/07-7/7/07) proved to draw the most people to date.

The YMCA has expanded their property and built some nice log cabins with amenities about a mile from the original camp. As we are all getting older and need more creature comforts, we opted for the nicer digs. We could still do all our old camp activities and some new ones, too.

I really enjoyed the chance to connect with childhood friends, both from camp and my elementary school years. It was as much fun to find out what these people are doing now as to remember activities and canoe trips with them.

Many people brought their Memory Books and we spent hours looking at all the kids over the years and trying to remember everyone in our cabins. We shared secrets that had never been told (kids who snuck over to the boys' camp down the lake, took food from the kitchens, things like that) and learned lots about the history of the camp and what led to its closing.





Of course, I had great new experiences this trip. I got to go sailing, which I really liked but never did much as a camper. I canoed and hiked and got 2 tours of the bigger part of Lake Burntside. I was in a car that ran out of gas and a boat that almost ran out of gas.













I reconnected with the people and the lake and the woods.



And now for a camp song!

Tall girls, short girls, fat and thin,
Whatcha gonna do when the heat sets in?
Nothin' to do, nothin' to say,
That's the time to pack your bags and go away:
Come to Camp Northland where the breezes blow,
Come to Camp Northland where you swim and row;
Answer the ever luring call:
Camp Northland girls, the best of all!
Boom dadi yada, Some Girls!

Where in the world is Amy Sandiego?: Camp Wood, Texas

Where in the world is Amy Sandiego?: Camp Wood, Texas

Midnight at the Nueces

Had a fun kayak/fishing weekend with friends on the Nueces River near Camp Wood, Texas. I got to try out my new kayak, "La Chalupa", a Wilderness Tarpon 10.





"La Chalupa" is one of the cards in the game of Loteria-usually depicted as a young lady in a canoe full of flowers. DH got me the decal Very cute. The boat is easy to paddle. We did a very nice 3-mile stretch of the Nueces with small rapids and ripples. Just about my speed. The group went back in the afternoon and did the same stretch again, while I watched from the bank. My wrist was tired, although it is coming back well. Of course, I fell into the water getting into my boat right at the beginning, not a good sign, but I stayed in after that.

Of course, we were playing farkle at midnight (and beyond)-a popular dice game. Sunday DH and I did some fly fishing. I caught 0 and lost 2 flies. DH caught a monster bass and tiny perch. A relaxing and fun weekend.

What I'm Reading-Spring 2007

The Last Tuesday Book Club is finishing up its third year! Thanks to all those who have been faithful members and readers! Also thanks to the sometimes-readers and occasional attendees. The more opinions the merrier!~
Beyond the LTBC I've read some interesting books: Beach Road by James Patterson-murder mystery, fairly entertaining, but nothing great. Really enjoyed The Gates of the Alamo by Stephen Harrington. Anyone in Texas and especially South Texas who thinks they know all about it will learn something new about the siege of the Alamo. It's very readable and has great characters. Also liked Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See-a tale of Chinese women and their tribulations. Didn't like White Ghost Girls by Alice Greenway as much-it's written as a haunting memoir but it's a downer of a book.
One book we had put on the LTBC list but I think we're removing is Wicked by Gregory Maguire. It's the imagined life of the Wicked Witch of the West-from birth to death. It's all about the politics and religion of Oz and all its weird inhabitants before Dorothy Gale from Kansas arrives. It's not a happy-go-lucky story at all-after all, we all know what happens to the WWW at the end....but if you want to know one person's idea of how the WWW got to that end, this is a richly imagined tale. I have also read his Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, and his writing definitely takes you to faraway times and places.
While I was laid up with the broken wrist, I read my first Carl Hiassen book:Skinny Dip. Can't wait to read another one. Why wait? I just bought 2 Donna Leon ppbs that I haven't read before--will report when completed.
Happy reading!

Wrist Revealed

10 weeks after surgery the bones are almost healed. New x-rays taken and this shows the truly gruesome nature of the plate. Is that screw supposed to be sticking out of the bone????
I've really benefited from therapy. I have about all the flexion back and just need to rebuild strength. It won't ever match the right wrist in terms of flexibility, I fear.

The scar is healing nicely, as I've really been working on it every day. Massage with lotion for 10 min. at a time, several times a day. The thin red line.

Still have to be careful with carrying weighty objects. I can lift the big laundry detergent jug but can't carry it.
Thanks for all the cards and letters!
Waving bye with the left hand!

New Museum 2

Here is a photo of some of the docents looking at one of the larger contemporary pieces at the Blanton This was commissioned by the Blanton, but I didn't catch title or artist.

New Museum

The SAMA Docents went on a field trip this week. They took a bus to Austin and saw the new Blanton Museum on the UT campus. It is a great building-stunningly high ceilings and large exhibit spaces. They have a wonderful collection of contemporary art (much of donated by the late James Michener and his wife)-huge pieces and several installations. They also have a huge print collection and European Art. We had a docent-led tour of the museum, and they let us in for free, which was great. If you want to see a lot of modern and contemporary art in one place, this is it. We spent about 2 hrs. there and then got back on the bus to go to lunch.

We were headed for the Capitol Grill, and we drove for about 10 minutes. It turns out the Capitol Grill is in the basement of the Capitol Building-there's no street level entrance. You have to go into the Capitol building and then find the elevators to the basement. We had been driving around looking for the street entrance.... The bus parked across the lawn from the building and we got out and trooped over to the entrance. At that moment, a huge thunderstorm broke right over our heads... We made it safely to the building and walked the rather intimidating halls to the rotunda and found the elevators. Nice cafeteria, with many food stations. Pleasant lunch and good company.

Broken Wrist Heals

Thanks to the ortho surgeon, I now have this wonderful plate in my wrist.
This photo is looking from the back of the hand down onto the plate. I have a nice scar on the inside of the wrist. The screws are holding the broken bits of bone away from the wrist. Therapy starts tomorrow.

Knitting Projects

Even with the wrist problem, I've finished two projects in the last month.
First up is the tasseled scarf, knitted with 1 strand of boucle yarn, and 2 strands of "Incredible" ribbon yarn held together. Knitted on size 50 needles.





Then I did a lap robe/afghan with 4 strands of yarn held together. Also on the size 50 needles. It measured about 34" by 54" before the fringe. The large needles are easy to hold and the projects go quickly.

The Broken Wrist

Jan. 19, 2007. It had been a great day! Skiing, massage, facial, nice dinner out with nice people and dancing. It was the walk home that was the mistake. Just a small slip on a little hill, better negotiated on skis than on foot, as it turned out. I was helped up by several people (who were too slow to stop the fall) and we continued back to the condo. The wrist hurt but I hadn’t heard any crunching of bones, so I thought it was probably a bad sprain. After removing the sleeve of my jacket we saw that the wrist was off-kilter and extremely swollen--DH said “We have to go to the emergency room-don’t even finish taking off your coat.”

Ever taken a taxi to the emergency room? On a Friday night in a ski town? My advice would be to call 911 and take the ambulance. They probably show up sooner, have trained personnel in the vehicle, and don’t charge as much (I’m not really sure about that last part, but I am about the first two parts.)

At any rate, after stating that my pain was “8” on a scale from 1 to 10, I had x-rays and the bad news: Broken distal radius (that means at the lower end of the bone) with angular displacement of the wrist. Wait for the orthopedic surgeon to arrive to set it. After several different IV drugs and more x-rays, I awoke to a splint/cast from elbow to fingers. The take-home prize was a sling. But supposedly straight bones. They sent me home with the vicodin, too.

Spent the rest of the vacation skiing the couch instead of the slopes. Luckily I had brought the size 50 knitting needles and was able to start on a scarf. And I had picked up 2 books in the Houston Airport on the way.

Fast forward through the limitations of only having one hand for all tasks, and not being able to drive for 10 days, to the Jan. 30 orthopod visit. More x-rays and the bad news: compression of the bones inward, surgery needed. Please come tomorrow afternoon and don’t eat anything after midnight tonight.

Went to the surgery center on Jan. 31. Got there around 2 pm. Went into operating room at 3:50. Had to wait for the arm to go numb-very weird feeling being able to see your arm but have no control over it. Woke up at 4:35 and was in recovery. Was able to eat and drink by 5:15 and was home by 6:00 pm. Anesthetic on arm wore off at 6:30 and had a bad 30 min. until Nurse DH came home with the meds. But got the pain under control by midnight. (after about 1300 mg. of vicodin-just not all at once…)

Feb.6 saw me in the Orthopod’s office again for stitch removal (only one long stitch to hold the glued skin in place) and casting. I have good use of fingers, less use of thumb. Cast to remain on for 2 weeks. No lifting allowed, but driving is ok. Bruising was almost gone (did I mention that the whole inside of my palm all the way to my elbow was a most horrible purplish-black?)

You can see in the photo that the cast is made of a mesh material that looks like an ace bandage-it comes in a roll and is soaked in water, wound around the arm, and then dries hard. I chose a darker purple than shows in the photo. I have started to decorate it with a silver Sharpie. I have to put a bag on it before bathing, as I didn't get the Gore-tex-lined option.

Will update as the cast comes off in 2 weeks.
Tread carefully!

Just for the Record

This is an update to the previous post. I did receive my refund check from Spirit Incentives just before the holidays. It came in the time they said. So that episode is over. I hope I learned my lesson.

Spirit Incentives Breaks My Spirit

Be Prepared-this is long. But it is not a rant.

DH and I went on a time share tour last spring. We didn’t buy a time share, but “won” two certificates for free travel. I was really excited-one certificate was for travel to a choice of hotels in exotic places. The certificates are good for one year. The one that caught my eye was “Royal Lahaina Hotel, Kaanapali, Maui, Hawaii.” I read the directions, even the fine print. I sent in the certificate with chosen dates for possible travel.

About 2 months later I got a letter that said “Your first chosen travel date is unavailable, should we continue with your 2nd chosen date?” I returned the card “Yes”. About 2 months later I get the same card. I chose 2 more dates. Second letter comes back the same-“should we proceed with your next date?” I return the “yes” reply.

Then in November I get a letter that says I need to pay $140 in taxes. I’m excited. I call up the Customer Service line (NOT a toll-free number). “Are you processing my Jan. 9 travel date?” I ask. They reply, “Yes, your next date is Jan. 9 and when we have your taxes we will have a reservation agent call you to finalize reservations.” I’m starting to research airfares to Maui; I look on my calendar and think about what I’ll have to rearrange to make this trip.

Then I call the customer service no. back a week later to see if they received my $$. They had, and they gave me the toll-free “reservations” number. I call and they have my info and they “start looking at availability” and I’m on hold for many minutes. Finally they come back and say they have “No availability for that date.” What?? I got the taxes letter! I called and they said they were preparing to confirm that date. “Well, if you had sent in the $$ for the taxes earlier, you would have gotten your date.” HUH? How could I have sent the $$ in earlier if I just got the letter 2 weeks ago? “Do you want me to check availability for your next date?” Yes, please. I’m on hold for many more minutes. “No availability for that date either.” What??? How can that be?

After several calls to the reservations number and the customer service number and much arguing, it turns out that there is NO availability for Maui for ANY possible travel date from January to April. “We only get limited no. of rooms.” None. And none of the other places listed for travel had any availability either, except for perhaps Jamaica.

There is NOTHING in the information packet that says taxes must be paid BEFORE a reservation can be processed, although it does say that taxes are the responsibility of the traveler. But taxes apparently have to be paid before a reservation is processed. When I point that out about the lack of info in the packet, they have no answer, but no apology and no way to give me what I want. They won’t extend the length of my certificate, even though I didn’t get a letter about taxes until 7 months after I sent in the first reservation request.

I cancelled my certificate and requested a refund. Haven’t seen it yet.
If you Google “Spirit Incentives” you will be directed to websites where people have a lot of bad things to say about this company. Their company website doesn’t have any content, except info as to how companies can buy their travel packages as incentives.

When the time share company called us, we told them that their incentive plan was a rip-off and reflected badly on the time share company for having it.

DH told me this was a rip-off and I thought I could follow the rules and get the benefit. But it didn’t work like that.

Oh well, older and wiser. Be warned.

What I'm Reading-Fall

Ok-it’s been several months since a book update. The Last Tuesday Book Club has read The Devil Wears Prada, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe,and Memoirs of a Geisha, all great books, each in its own way. It helped that the movies have come out and we could also discuss similarities and differences.
We also read Places Left Unfinished at the Time of Creation, a lyrical memoir by John Philip Santos. This book was chosen by our city to read collectively over the summer and I really enjoyed it.

Upcoming for the LTBC is The Lincoln Lawyer by Michael Connelly (murder mystery), and The Alchemist by Paul Coelho. Our group is certainly eclectic!

In addition, I just finished The Other Rebecca by Maureen Freely, an updated retelling of Rebecca, with a few extra twists. A couple of plane trips were eased by reading March by Gwendolyn Brooks, an imagination of what Mr. March was doing during the Civil War while his family had their story told in Little Women. I raced through The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan-a young adult book that has Greek gods and goddesses hovering over America and causing trouble. I’d read the sequel: it has a well-drawn modern protagonist with plenty of problems.

I enjoyed Blood From a Stone by Donna Leon. I’ve really enjoyed the Detective Brunelli series set in Venice. I know I’ve missed a few books in the series, because they only became available in the U.S. a couple of years ago and our stores don’t stock all of them. And, also set in Venice, I read City of Falling Angels by John Berendt (writer of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil). This is non-fiction, about the fire at the Fenice Opera House and all sorts of the interesting Venetians and expats that make up Venetian society.

I think that about covers it for now! Happy reading!

The Kittens

DS brought home 2 kittens. A female named "Cake" and a male named "Damnit".They are brown and gray striped. They are kinda cute, even if they knock over the trash and eat anything they find. They will chase paper balls and bring them back for more.

They just cost me $530.

Of course they needed spaying and neutering. They needed pre-op blood tests. They needed rabies shots and distemper shots. Cake had worms and ear mites, so she got meds for that. They have post-op meds. They needed city licenses.

They've rebounded from the surgery pretty well, except they keep trying to jump up on the counters and they can't quite make it...

Are they worth it? The jury's still out.

Houseboat Adventure Report

I survived the houseboat adventure! Most of my fears did not materialize: I didn't get bored or tired of the people, didn't see one rat (although we made sure they couldn't get on board via anchor ropes), was happy to see the CO testers in every room. No one tried to get in touch with me and couldn't, although when we passed places where there was cell service, I did try to call out and leave messages. I could have used one more book, and did some knitting but not all that much. I could have exercised more and did overindulge in food and drink when presented the opportunity... It was really fun and the people were great. I loved being on the boat and seeing this amazing part of the country. It's like traveling in an RV, but you get to be on the water and there's no trailer park at the end of the day, just a sandy beach to call your own.
Above is my photo of Rainbow Bridge. We took a boat into a side canyon and then hiked back to the bridge formation. It was early in the morning and we had the place to ourselves. It was quite beautiful. We also saw Anasazi ruins and cliff paintings, famous historical sites, and lots of rock formations.
I would definitely do this trip again!

Houseboat Adventure Preparations

The bags are about packed. How to fit everything in in reasonable room? And not have any liquids or gels in the carry-ons? (There goes the Visine, moisturizer, lipgloss, Purell, mouthwash, toothpaste, facial moisturizer and perfume usually in my carry-on.) DH has a rolling duffel-not too large. He is carrying a fishing pole tube. I have a 24" suitcase. That's ok. Then we have the carry-on stuff. Pack of tortillas. 2 lbs of coffee. Small binocs. book. knitting. magazine. carry-on meds. camera. headphones and cds/dvds.camera equipment, phone chargers, notebook computer.(not a small one), plugs for that. I may do a small rollaboard and the computer bag....
Here is what I'm worried about on the boat:
1. I'll get bored.
2. I'll get tired of the people.
3. I won't get enough exercise.
4. I will eat and drink too much (that could be 2, but this is a long list)
5. I will need to get in touch with the outside world and won't be able to.
6. Someone from the outside world will need to get in touch with me and won't be able to.
7. Carbon Monoxide poisoning. (People have died on houseboats because of this.)
8. Sunburn
9. Two fat books won't be enough.
10.Rats climbing up the anchor ropes.
11.I will not be able to quit worrying about home.

I hope it will be fun.

Houseboat Adventure

We're getting ready to take a houseboat trip on Lake Powell. We launch from Page, AZ and motor north. I'm a little nervous about being on a houseboat for 7 days. With 2 other couples. All the things I won't be able to do: morning walks, checking email,checking in with my exercise coach. We have to bring everything with us, because they don't plan on stopping at any marinas along the way. No cell service after the first hour. At least it's an easy trip in the way of clothes: all casual and swimwear. We bought water shoes that can also take easy hikes. DH is loading up with fishing gear, I'm loading up with books, knitting, journals. I'm bringing the yoga videos and Farkel dice. And the telescoping marshmallow forks. The scenery should be beautiful in a Grand Canyon/Red Rocks way, and they've promised me Rainbow Bridge. I know DH relaxes extremely well, but I don't know about the rest of us....Will update after the trip!

It's all on the internet....

I've been planning a trip to Las Vegas for the last week. All on the internet. Sure, we've been able to book airline tickets online for several years, and hotels, too. But I'm amazed every day at how much in online. I've already printed out the tickets to the new Cirque de Soleil show. Unheard of not too long ago....

Thanks to my brother's girlfriend, I found a travel website www.groople.com that has deals for groups. And they replied promptly to my email questions and were easy to reach on the phone. I booked 5 hotel rooms for our family reunion at a good hotel for a great price, with different arrival dates, all very easily.

Other interesting things I've found online:
Need telescoping marshamallow roasting forks? Type that into Google and you can get www.rollaroaster.com, the perfect gift for the outdoor enthusiast.

Membership to the Lower East Side Tenement Museum (www.tenement.org) saved me $$ and got me a personal reservation agent when I needed to book a tour for 8 people.

Of course, maps and directions are easy to find online, but with my AAA membership I downloaded a triptik for a road trip to Dallas.

I've ordered bon voyage gifts for friends taking cruises that were in their staterooms on departure.

I remember when companies first started putting their website addresses in their TV, radio and print ads. That seemed weird. Who would actually go to a website for more advertising?
Now, the TV, radio, newspapers all have reduced content in their media, and you have to "go to our website for more on this subject."

And the whole blog explosion....
It's all on the internet. For real.