4/3/2016

Weekly Update 4/3/2016

This was a sad week for me, as Dave and Lisa left to return to Wales. On Monday, Kay (with only minimal help from me) planned a very nice gathering at Churchill's for them. Friends were invited to say good by and have a drink. It was a nice way for us all to be together to wish them well. Because Dave and Lisa were giving Donna their big tv instead of taking it with them to Wales, I was invited to her condo Tuesday for pizza while the others struggled to hook up the tv and I sat there like a bump on a log. And that was the last I saw of them. They left Wednesday. I have had several emails and text messages, so I haven't been forgotten yet. I miss them terribly. Our little group of besties is diminished and the worse for their departure. 

at Churchill's with Kay, Lisa and Dave

  Sometimes this cheap, poorly built condo drives me crazy. Another one of my kitchen cupboards had that plastic thing that is on the hinge break off. It's supposed to keep the door shut. I've had most of the others break off, too, and I can't stand when the doors are open. So I had to make an early morning visit to the Ace Hardware Store on Thursday. Amazingly, I didn't have to call a handy man to fix it for me, but I'm sure I didn't do a good job. I'm have not been, am not now, nor ever will be, adept at using a screwdriver and hammer. But, hey, it closes now.

I spent a lot of the week feeling sorry for myself and missing Dave & Lisa, but by Friday, I needed to get back to it. I went to DH and The 90. Driving into the city, I noticed that the traffic was very heavy, and I didn't know what was going on. But I figured it out as I got downtown and the streets were loaded with pedestrians, all with Home and Garden Tour maps. DH was crowded, and it seemed even more so because it was “authorized” as a rest(room) stop on the H&GT. I even had a group of five on my last tour who just wandered in, joined my group, and said they thought it was free. No, it's not, so I asked them to purchase tickets. I really needed The 90 after that. Kay was there for a short time, too, because I think she was feeling a little lonely, too.

Saturday I was up incredibly early - before 8 am - because BC participates in the Tour. Tickets are sold as part of the Tour for people to ride a trolley from downtown Savannah to the cemetery, and then have a tour there with a person explaining some of the flora in the cemetery, as well as a few costumed interpreters telling stories of the people buried there - Mrs. Henry Roots Jackson, Johnny Mercer, and Dr Richard Arnold. The weather forecast had called for rain, and, although it was threatening, luckily there were no showers. I had to be downtown to board a trolley and then accompany the group on the 15 minute ride and tell a little of the background of BC. I started by asking is there was anyone on the trolley who was Savannah, and not one was! People apparently come from all over - one from UK -

for this four-day Home and Garden Tour! (There were two couples on the tour that had been on my DH tour the day before, and I heard them say that they wanted to be on my trolley because I was so good - that's always nice to hear). After we were finished at the cemetery, I rode back with them because my car was parked downtown. But then I went home and took a nap. 

my group at Henry Roots Jackson's monument (Mrs. Jackson in black widow's clothing)

  

In the late afternoon, I went back to the Ships of the Sea Museum to volunteer at one of the Music Fest events. The SMF is a three-week long event that brings a lot of varied music to the city, with ongoing concerts that showcase all types of great music. It is hugely popular. This concert was Blues in the Garden, and featured two groups - The North Mississippi Allstars and Charlie Musselwhite. They gave two concerts, and I was to volunteer for both, so it made a long day. I helped to set up and then monitor the crowd for such serious infractions as picture-taking, standing in the wrong place, or smoking. I don't like being a policeman, so I may not do this again. But the music was great, especially Charlie Musselwhite, who is one of the first white musicians to take up the study of urban blues in the revival of the 1960's. He's not a youngster, but he plays a mean harmonic as well as sings mournful tunes. The other group was ok, but I preferred the traditional blues. 

North Mississippi Allstars performing in the SOTS Museum garden

Charlie Musselwhite signing autographs

Sunday, Donna and I had tickets to a fund-raiser for the Savannah Stage Company, which is a group that is trying to offer Savannah a professional theater productions. It was at the wonderful Gingerbread House, which I had seen often from the outside, but never been in. This was for a cause I can support, and it wasn't that expensive. So, we went. The theme was The Wizard of Oz because that will be the performance in July. It was rather hard to hear inside because the band was loud. The food was good. I didn't win the item I'd bid on for the silent auction, or the 50/50 raffle, but that was ok. It was an entertaining evening out. 

the gingerbread House