WEEKLY
UPDATE 2/17/2013
My laptop was ready to be
picked up on Tuesday, & I was delighted to get it back.
There was nothing wrong with it; he generally just got it
cleaned up & updated. He suggested that I might want to
think about replacing it with something more up-to-date. After
all, it's almost 4 years old. I just don't want think of
transferring all the files, photos, docs etc that are on the
laptop to something else. I'll think about it another day.
I watched The State of the Union. No comment.
Jan was scheduled to arrive Wednesday evening. So, in a stunning turn of events, I cleaned. I rarely do that any more, but thought I'd better make an effort for a special guest. She arrived a little after 8 pm after driving all day from the Gulf Shores of Alabama. It was good to see her again, & we stayed up talking and getting each other caught up. She, of course, had a lot more adventures to tell of than I did
On Thursday, we decided to visit some places that Jan hasn't seen on previous visits to Savannah. We began at Massie Heritage Center. This is where all tours of Savannah should start, as it gives a very informative history of the area as well as a good description of the forming of the unique planned city that is still very much in evidence today. After that, we went to Green-Meldrim House, which is where General Sherman stayed in December 1864 after his march across Georgia which pretty effectively ended the War of Northern Aggression. Several previous attempts to visit that museum had been unsuccessful, so it was wonderful to finally see it. Following that, we went to Temple Congregation Mickve Israel, one of my favorite places in Savannah because its so interesting. Exhausted, we then enjoyed a sit down, relaxed tea at the Gryphon Tea Room. Before we knew it, it was time to head for the Dave Barry lecture that was a part of the Book Fest. Always humorous & entertaining, it was a good talk. We ended the day by watching The Conspirator DVD because the docent at Green Meldrim had told us that some scenes were filmed there. We didn't recognize that house, but it made us want to visit Harper Fowlkes House, where much of the movie was shot.
So Friday, that museum was our first stop. The house was much more interesting than what I'd remembered from my other visit there. As we were wandering back to the car, our bad manners had us peeking through the open door of a townhouse under going renovation. A carpenter was going in carrying some lumber & he invited us to come in and see what they were doing. It was nice to see the inside of a beautiful renovated row house in the historic part of Savannah. My neighbor Suzy was helping to set up an exhibit in an art gallery at one of the SCAD spaces, so we called her to meet us at Leopold's for lunch. Leopold's ice cream parlor has re-named its flavors in honor of the book Fest - for example: Wimpy Kid custard, Dave Barry berry, or Alex Cross chocolate chip. It didn't make the ice cream taste any better (I don't believe that's possible) but it was fun. We then got to see what Suzy was working on. It's difficult to describe - three dimensional art that's made from threads in vivid primary colors. Very interesting. I was tired, so we just slowly walked down to River Street, caught the free river ferry, & went to Rocks Rooftop bar for the view & drinks. That refreshed me enough to go to the James Patterson lecture. He, just like Dave Barry, was interesting & entertaining.
Saturday was the full day Fest. We had to get up early to be at the first talk by 9 am. There were 36 authors speaking, many at the same time but in different places all surrounding historic Telfair Square. So, we needed to pick & choose who to listen to. We listened to some together & split up for some. (Jan went to hear Al Gore while I opted for Isabel Wilkerson in one session; I wanted to hear Karen Thompson Walker because I'd read her book The Age of Miracles - excellent! - while Jan heard Hoda Kotb; we both heard Claire Cook & Bruce Cameron). Each one I heard was excellent. There is also a sales tent, & we each bought several books that were written by participants. Jan got one signed, but I just want to read the ones I bought. While we were there, I got a text message asking if we'd like to join the dining out group that was going out that evening. I used to go out with them one a month, but haven't done that in a while. Well, we agreed to meet them, & we had a very nice dinner with them.
Sunday, we went to church. While touring the Meldrim-Green mansion, which is owned by St John's Episcopal parish, lastThursday we were encouraged by the docent to return for worship services on Sunday. Since Jan wanted to go, and I was up early enough to get ready, we went to services, followed by the reception at the Meldrim-Green. The historic house is not a museum - it is a parish hall that the church owns & uses. We then went to the Uffizi exhibit of the renaissance Italian art. This was my second visit to see the show, but this time I had the audio headset, so it was more interesting. Our final Book Festival lecture was in the afternoon, so we we went back once again the Trustees Theatre to hear Dave Baldacci speak. He talked less about his writing and more about some interesting meetings & occurrences that have happened to him since he's become a best-selling novelist. I'm beginning to think that all authors wish they were Dave Barry and no matter what genre they write in, they talk in humor. But an enjoyable lecture. On the way back to the condo again, we stopped for she crab soup and warm bread.
I watched The State of the Union. No comment.
Jan was scheduled to arrive Wednesday evening. So, in a stunning turn of events, I cleaned. I rarely do that any more, but thought I'd better make an effort for a special guest. She arrived a little after 8 pm after driving all day from the Gulf Shores of Alabama. It was good to see her again, & we stayed up talking and getting each other caught up. She, of course, had a lot more adventures to tell of than I did
On Thursday, we decided to visit some places that Jan hasn't seen on previous visits to Savannah. We began at Massie Heritage Center. This is where all tours of Savannah should start, as it gives a very informative history of the area as well as a good description of the forming of the unique planned city that is still very much in evidence today. After that, we went to Green-Meldrim House, which is where General Sherman stayed in December 1864 after his march across Georgia which pretty effectively ended the War of Northern Aggression. Several previous attempts to visit that museum had been unsuccessful, so it was wonderful to finally see it. Following that, we went to Temple Congregation Mickve Israel, one of my favorite places in Savannah because its so interesting. Exhausted, we then enjoyed a sit down, relaxed tea at the Gryphon Tea Room. Before we knew it, it was time to head for the Dave Barry lecture that was a part of the Book Fest. Always humorous & entertaining, it was a good talk. We ended the day by watching The Conspirator DVD because the docent at Green Meldrim had told us that some scenes were filmed there. We didn't recognize that house, but it made us want to visit Harper Fowlkes House, where much of the movie was shot.
So Friday, that museum was our first stop. The house was much more interesting than what I'd remembered from my other visit there. As we were wandering back to the car, our bad manners had us peeking through the open door of a townhouse under going renovation. A carpenter was going in carrying some lumber & he invited us to come in and see what they were doing. It was nice to see the inside of a beautiful renovated row house in the historic part of Savannah. My neighbor Suzy was helping to set up an exhibit in an art gallery at one of the SCAD spaces, so we called her to meet us at Leopold's for lunch. Leopold's ice cream parlor has re-named its flavors in honor of the book Fest - for example: Wimpy Kid custard, Dave Barry berry, or Alex Cross chocolate chip. It didn't make the ice cream taste any better (I don't believe that's possible) but it was fun. We then got to see what Suzy was working on. It's difficult to describe - three dimensional art that's made from threads in vivid primary colors. Very interesting. I was tired, so we just slowly walked down to River Street, caught the free river ferry, & went to Rocks Rooftop bar for the view & drinks. That refreshed me enough to go to the James Patterson lecture. He, just like Dave Barry, was interesting & entertaining.
Saturday was the full day Fest. We had to get up early to be at the first talk by 9 am. There were 36 authors speaking, many at the same time but in different places all surrounding historic Telfair Square. So, we needed to pick & choose who to listen to. We listened to some together & split up for some. (Jan went to hear Al Gore while I opted for Isabel Wilkerson in one session; I wanted to hear Karen Thompson Walker because I'd read her book The Age of Miracles - excellent! - while Jan heard Hoda Kotb; we both heard Claire Cook & Bruce Cameron). Each one I heard was excellent. There is also a sales tent, & we each bought several books that were written by participants. Jan got one signed, but I just want to read the ones I bought. While we were there, I got a text message asking if we'd like to join the dining out group that was going out that evening. I used to go out with them one a month, but haven't done that in a while. Well, we agreed to meet them, & we had a very nice dinner with them.
Sunday, we went to church. While touring the Meldrim-Green mansion, which is owned by St John's Episcopal parish, lastThursday we were encouraged by the docent to return for worship services on Sunday. Since Jan wanted to go, and I was up early enough to get ready, we went to services, followed by the reception at the Meldrim-Green. The historic house is not a museum - it is a parish hall that the church owns & uses. We then went to the Uffizi exhibit of the renaissance Italian art. This was my second visit to see the show, but this time I had the audio headset, so it was more interesting. Our final Book Festival lecture was in the afternoon, so we we went back once again the Trustees Theatre to hear Dave Baldacci speak. He talked less about his writing and more about some interesting meetings & occurrences that have happened to him since he's become a best-selling novelist. I'm beginning to think that all authors wish they were Dave Barry and no matter what genre they write in, they talk in humor. But an enjoyable lecture. On the way back to the condo again, we stopped for she crab soup and warm bread.
 |
| Bruce Cameron speaking at the Book Fest |
Jan
will be leaving to go back to Alabama tomorrow, so for her
last evening here, we plan to watch the last season 3 episode
of Downton Abbey while sipping wine & eating crackers &
cheese. It has certainly been a different week for me, but
very nice.
 |
| Drinks at Rocks on the Roof |
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