12/31/2017

Weekly Update 12/31/2017

The holidays are over – at last! I always seem to struggle, but this year I have been more content than I have in many many years. I didn’t try to do so much, and what I did do were things that I really wanted to do. I made it much nicer. But now the decorations are all back in the closet again, and my routine will be more normal. I’m glad to say another holiday is in the past.

I went out to try to find a few Christmas items on sale after the big day, but didn’t have a lot of luck. I wanted to find an Ugly Sweater, but they were all so ugly, I just couldn’t even get enough enthusiasm for them to pay $5. I had some good luck at Hobby Lobby, however, and got some new things to put out next year. I’ve had most of the things that I put out now ever since I moved here, and I need some updating. I got this:

I went to a meeting about creating a city for the Islands. Now we are in Unincorporated Chatham County, and the fear is that the City of Savannah will annex us and we will have to pay taxes for all the crime, government, and services that we don’t get because the City is so needy. Now, we only pay county taxes, but if the City were to annex us, we’d have to pay city taxes. So, with all the SUVs, BMWs and Mercedes Benz in the parking lot at this meeting, I can see where the Islanders wouldn't want to have to share with people who drive old Fords and Toyotas. I felt alone in my feelings of not being threatened (and the City has made no noise about annexation), and the fear is real. I should not even go to meetings such as this, as they only upset me.

It’s been cold here, but not as cold as back in NYS. I’ve tried to get back into a regular walking and eating better routine, but it’s not easy. I did get out a couple of times to walk – at the Y, and Daffin, and downtown. 

Allen in Siberia, or Albany

This was my last Sunday to be at Coach’s. I thought they might beat the Dolphins, but I had little hopes for the playoffs. And when The Ravens were leading with less than a minute to go, I knew the season was over. But wait! Thanks to the Cincinnati Bengals, I’ve got a Happy New Year! Or maybe thanks to my new lucky socks!

oh, I'm going to miss these!

12/24/2017

Weekly Update 12/24/2017

I was invited to dinner at a friend’s house, Helen, on Monday. She lives across the street from Connie & Jim in the historic district, and I met her through Connie. Her home is lovely – a house that was built by a free woman of color about 1850. And the dinner was wonderful! Linguini with meat sauce. I dreamed about that pasta for several nights!

Tuesday was the Lunch Bunch holiday ugly sweater luncheon at The 90. Because they no longer serve lunch there, they opened just for our group, and chef Jim outdid himself with a buffet of so many wonderful dishes. I didn’t see any ugly sweaters, but I did see many very nice outfits.

a few ugly sweaters at the 90

a wonderful buffet

There were errands to run and cookies to deliver on Wednesday. As I was out, I decided to go to Lenscrafters and buy new glasses. The bifocals I got last year are a disappointment to me, and I just can’t get used to them. I decided I’d rather have just distance glasses, and use the Dollar Store magnifiers for reading. But when I got there, they didn’t have the frames I’d liked last year and couldn’t order then because they were not suited for bifocals. No one came to offer me any help, so I just left. I guess I’ll just get by with these for another year, and then get my eyes checked and order new glasses later.

So by Thursday, I was completely finished with all the holiday things I needed to do. I went downtown in the evening to see It’s a Wonderful Life at the Lucas, but when I got there, it had been canceled. I was disappointed, but it really didn’t matter much, as I own the DVD, and I can watch at home with the closed captions on.

I went out for a short drive in my neighborhood to see some of the lights. Again, I am in awe of people who do this much work and pay so much money for these amazing displays. I really prefer the tasteful, classy décor of the town homes in the historic area much more than the McMansions.

in my neighborhood

on Jones Street

I wish everyone the merriest of Christmases, and all good things in 2018!  

12/17/2017

Weekly Update 12/17/2017

How’s this for a Small World? I went out for a walk at the Y Monday, after having taken most of last week off because of the cold, wet weather. As I’m making my way around the path, I see this jogger. I recognize the shirt, so I stop him. I say to him “I know that shirt! I HAVE that shirt!” It was a Wegmans 5K Run shirt from the 1990s! (Has it really been 20 years since I could jog 5 miles?) He asked if I was from Rochester, and we got to talking. He lived in Charlotte! He worked for the City School district! He moved to Savannah to get away from the snow! He still likes the Buffalo Bills! We talked about the Lilac 10K, the Shamrock 5 mile, and the Corporate Challenge! It was like running into an old friend. I don’t know if I’ll see him again, but that was an interesting walk.

On Monday evening, I went to DH for a lecture on colonial Cooking. It’s pretty strange that I would be interested in listening to this, since I rarely cook anything that can’t be done in the microwave. It was interesting to see how the kitchens looked, and to imagine how hot it would be, and to think about all the work that would go into the daily meals. By the time I left, I was starving.

Wednesday was a busy day. I helped to make fruit baskets for City employees as gifts from the Bonaventure Historical Society. Some staff are very helpful to us with our mission to promote the history, educate the public, and preserve select sites in the cemetery, and this is our way to say “thank you”. As a bonus, there were too many apples and oranges, so I got some very nice looking free fruit.  

  

After that, I went to the post office to do all the things I needed to do there: send packages, buy stamps, etc. But then that chore was finished – I just needed to do the Christmas cards, and I got that all done later in the week. I continued on to Lake Mayer in Bacon Park to meet Jane for a walk. There is a lot of Canadian geese in the park, and, just like in the North, you need to be careful where you step.   

I met Connie at The 90 on Thursday evening. She wanted to show me her photos of their visit to Dave and Lisa in Wales, and I wanted to hear the stories. They had a wonderful time! And I was back at The 90 on Friday after giving my tours at DH, which is completely normal. Most of the ladies in our group always get the same drink (Martha, the bartender, brings a chardonnay to our table as soon as Kay walks in because that’s what Kay always gets), but I like to change things up a little, depending on how I feel that day. This week, I had a grasshopper, a little green mint drink for the holidays. It was great!

Saturday, I had to go downtown to get some tickets at the Savannah Theater box office for upcoming shows. Since I was going there anyway, I decided to walk around Forsyth Park. There is a Farmers Market every Saturday, but I’ve never been, since I don’t want fresh vegies, and I don’t go downtown on Saturday mornings. But I was already there. I got some fresh brussel sprouts and had them for dinner. They were very good, but I could easily pass up all of the other stuff for sale.

Some of the games went the way I wanted them to on Sunday, and others did not. But since the Bills won, that’s all I really care about. I was at Coach’s for most of the game, but then had to leave to close the visitor center at BC. And then I went to a party at Barbara’s condo. It was fun, and there was a lot to eat. She had a white elephant gift exchange. We each wrapped up something that we had that we really didn’t want any more, and that was our gift exchange! I got a nice holiday candle holder and a calico ceramic bear. It was a little different, and rather interesting. Of course, with all the eggnog I had, it didn’t take much to amuse me.  

12/10/2017

Weekly Update 12/10/2017

The week started off busy with a walk at the Y, a book club meeting at the library, and a concert. I was only able to walk twice this week because it’s been too rainy and cold (and that is a great excuse to sit inside and read!). Book club hosted a visit from a local author. I had read both her books, but quite a while ago, and they weren’t memorable, so I was rather lost. But I enjoyed listening to her speak. The Savannah Voice group gave a wonderful concert at the Westin. They are the group that performed the opera and DH a few weeks ago. The singing was delightful!  

the wonderful singers of the Savannah Voice group

I went out to run errands on Tuesday afternoon. As I was out driving down Skidaway Road on my way back home, it occurred to me that Auspicious Bakery would be open. I have heard so many wonderful things about this place, but it’s only open on Sunday mornings starting a 6 am (never gonna happen) and Tuesday afternoons beginning at 2 pm. The timing was right, so I stopped. OMG! They specialize in breads, but also have crackers, croissants, focaccia bread, cookies, brownies, and lots of early great stuff. I got a loaf of pepperoni bread (which was still warm when I got home!) and a chocolate raspberry croissant. Not cheap, but worth the cost. 

the display case at the bakery

Barbara and I went out for a late breakfast to Clary’s one morning. She had never been there, and I haven’t been in a long time. It was a breakfast place downtown that is well known to readers of The Book, as some characters were found to frequent this place. The omelet was good.

The 90 hosts a holiday party on a Friday in December for the people who are “regulars” at the bar. I consider myself to be a regular, because I’m there almost every Friday night all year. It includes a buffet of hot and cold appetizers, and is usually very good. This year, because chef Jim is in Wales visiting Dave and Lisa, the food wasn't as creative or tasty. But I was able to get a lot down.

Connie, Lisa, Dave and Jim in Wales

I tried to begin doing Christmas cards. When I looked for my file, it’s gone. Don’t know where it went, but I can’t find it. I have no idea who I sent cards to last year, who I received cards from, or the addresses of some people that I only communicate with only once a year. I may just scrap the whole thing this year, or try to begin again. I’ll decided when I'm no longer as angry about being so stupid that I lose entire documents.

I didn’t go to Coach’s on Sunday, because I was doing a tour at BC. I would have loved to be there, not only because they won, but because the weather was AWFUL. It was a great reminder of why I wanted to move south. I saw some pictures online, and it made me warm just looking at them.

12/3/2017

Weekly Update 12/3/2017

Although much of what I did this week was at DH, I did do a few other interesting things.

I addition to my regular walk-in tours on Friday afternoon, I did three Holly Jolly Trolley evening tours at DH. The museum is decorated with some of the end of year holiday items that may have been typical in Savannah in the 1820s. DH has partnered with Old Town Trolley to offer abbreviated tours and docents explain some of the traditions every evening between Thanksgiving and New Years. I did three this week. And also, the DH volunteer and Friends holiday party was in the garden on Friday after the museum closed. So many people brought such wonderful treats!

a trolley with a string of colored lights, and a Santa driver

Dottie and Jamie getting the treats ready in the DH kitchen

Monday, I attended the dedication and unveiling of a Historic Maker to Malcolm Maclean. He was the mayor in Savannah in the early 1960s, when much of the South was experiencing racial unrest. Because of the way he brought people together, Savannah was spared much of the destruction that many cities endured at this time (Rochester had race riots in 1964, but not Savannah). The Georgia Historical Society erects markers to important people, places and events, and periodically, I attend the unveiling. It’s always interesting, I always learn something, and I always enjoy it.

getting ready to reveal the marker

On Tuesday, it was raining, but I met Connie and Jane to take the water taxi to the Westin to see the awesome display of gingerbread houses. I had parked far from River Street to save myself some parking meter fees, and I’d hoped the rain would stop before I had to waddle back to the car. It didn't, and I was soaked by the time I got home again, But the gingerbread was worth it. It seems as if the displays are getting smaller each year, but no less impressive. Most are created by professional pastry chefs, but a few are made by groups and organizations – Girl Scouts, youth groups, etc. I am always reminded of the tradition of making houses with the girls every year for a long time, something that I always enjoyed.  

Saturday evening, I went to the Nutcracker ballet. This is also another thing I used to do in my past life that I enjoyed, but I haven’t been to see a production in many years. It was at the grand Lucas Theater, and staged by the local ballet company, and included many very little beginner ballerinas, which were adorable. And when it was over, as we were all exiting the theater, it was snowing! Well, not really – there were snow making machines over the marquee and big, beautiful flakes were floating down. It’s a lot better to have a lovely snowfall when it’s almost 70° than it is to have it accumulate and know that this is the first of many, many inches that will fall this winter.  

can you see the snow?

I decorated the condo a bit again this year. I’ve done more in past years, but this year I concentrated on only the inside of my home. Since Audrey is no longer with me, I had to find another plant to string with lights, and I think the one I chose works just fine. My toilet paper roll creations for my bathroom are a Santa, and a reindeer. My nutcracker collection is in the kitchen again, and it was nice to remember each and every one as I took them out of boxes and set them out. The new one this year is right in the center – a Celtic warrior from my visit to Wales. 

my little "tree"

my newest nutcracker 

I have quite a few

toilet paper rolls make great crafts! especially in the bathroom

inside my front door

Many of the things I do at this time of year are reflections of things I've done before, and that I have such fond memories of. Not all my Christmas memories are happy; in fact, most are not. But I still try to re-capture some of the past that I did enjoy. And I've got a few new things that I like to do in Savannah that I did not do before. For example, one tradition that I’m indulging in now is to re-read A Redbird Christmas. It is my favorite Christmas book, and I’m reading it again.

UGA won, the Bills lost. About what was expected.  

 

11/26/2017

Weekly Update 11/26/2017

This exasperation with trying to get music onto some portable device so that I can listen to my tunes while walks continues. The MP3 I got at Walmart last week was a waste. I ordered an iPod exactly like the 2 I have that don’t work any more from eBay. I thought that I could just load my tunes and I wouldn’t meed a charger or any of that stuff since I already had it all from the other iPods. Nope. I couldn’t get iTunes to recognize it, and after spending a half a day trying, I took it to my geeks. Because the old iPods are so old, iTunes doesn't support them, and ‘m never going to get my tunes loaded. More money down the drain. I actually thought about buying a new iPod for $200, but just to listen to music? I don’t need a place to play games, or another camera – I JUST WANT MUSIC. The Geek suggested that I could load some of my iTunes playlists to the phone, but I was running out of memory when I was in UK and taking photos, so I didn’t think that was an answer. Perhaps there is none.

But wait! I have become increasingly frustrated with Facebook, to the point that I deleted my profile. So, if I'm not going to use that, I can delete the app and free up a lot of space. And that’s what I did. Perhaps I won’t have to give up on my walking routine just yet.

I did walk at the Y a few times this week. And I saw this lovely white heron by the pond. Leaves in Georgia are no match for Western New York, that’s for sure, but we do get a few colors. This lovely, big white bird, sitting in a tree with green, gold and red leaves, reflected in the still pond waters was amazing.

In case anyone was worried about me not having enough to eat on Thanksgiving, rest at ease. Not only did I have a feast on Thursday at The 90, But I was also invited to Barbara’s condo on Wednesday evening for a pre-turkey dinner turkey dinner. After all the Lean Cuisine I’ve been having lately, real food tasted very good. But it will be hard for me to get back to my regimen.  

Barbara with her turkey

A full plate

at The 90

Chef Jim

After I got home, I watched some really bad NFL games, relaxed with pumpkin spirits, and kept smiling at the picture Allen sent. 

this stuff is GOOD

Allen van Field

Saturday, I started out really early to drive to Kay’s house, and from there, she drove us to Fernandina Breach on Amelia Island. Dave and Lisa were visiting her dad and stepmom in Florida, and we arranged to meet for 24 hours half way between here and there. We both arrived at the hotel at the same time, and it was so good to see them! We went into downtown Amelia Island to do some eating, drinking and shopping. The small town is full of antique shops, art galleries, restaurants and boutiques of every kind. We ate at a very good Mexican restaurant, and later stopped at The Palace Saloon. Built in 1878, and converted to a saloon in 1903 for the sailors who arrived at Fernandina Docks from all over the world. It survived prohibition by selling special wines and 3% near beer, and is known as Florida’s oldest continuing service bar. And you can smoke in there! I didn’t think there was any place in America where you could sit, drink some suds, and enjoy a Marlboro, but here it is! After we drove around the town for a some time, we went back to the hotel where we enjoyed a lively game of Scattergories. Then, we walked to the restaurant across the street from the hotel, and had more to eat and drink. It was just grand to be with these great friends!  

Mexican for lunch

tin ceiling, brass foot rail, mirrored bar - it's all so cool

a swinging bar stool at the last stop of the evening

We had breakfast at the hotel in the morning, then Kay, Lisa and I walked on the beach and collected seashells until time to check out. We were all reluctant to say good by, so we visited a State Park nearby, the Kingsley Plantation. Located on Fort George Island, Zephaniah Kingsley purchased the plantation in 1814 when the area was still Spanish territory. Because his wife was African, when the United States gained the territory in 1821, the civil liberties of free blacks were lost, and the Kingsley family moved to Haiti by 1837. The plantation manor house and ruins of many of the slave cabins remain. The last person to live on the property, Willie Browne, died in 1970, donated the land to The Nature Conservancy before his death, and the National Park Service acquired in it 1990. It was interesting to walk around and imagine what it must have looked like when it was huge cotton plantation. Then, we all said sad goodbyes and parted ways. Driving back to Savannah, I kept “watching” the game on my phone NFL app. Finally, we have a victory! 

Kingsley Plantation manor house

the ruins of the slave houses