6/25/2017

Weekly Update 6/25/2017

I had been invited to enter a trivia competition on Monday with Susan and Heidi. I made sure they were aware that I wasn't going to be much help, but they said I could join them anyway. There were only three teams participating this week, so our chances for one of the top three prizes were pretty good. We were in third place heading into the last round. One question was “name eight characters who were in more than 130 episodes of The Office” (I named nine) and another was “name six present or former NFL quarterbacks who have the most touchdown passes” (I named seven). We won! A grand prize of $50! I'm embarrassed to say that when matching names with current cabinet posts, I was at a total loss; i guess sitcoms and football are more what my interests are. Luckily, Heidi and Susan knew more about things that are important than I do!  

Heidi, Susan and me - winners!

Jane and I went to Old Fort Jackson on Wednesday. There's not a lot of walking to do there, but she had never been, so we decided this would be a good adventure for this week. Just as we arrived, a tour was starting for a group of Girl Scouts.  we asked if we could join and were welcomed.  It was being led by the wonderful Coastal Heritage Society guide, Aaron, who I've had the good luck of listening to on several occasions.  His enthusiasm and knowledge are wonderful.  He made this tour particularly interesting, not only with his insights into the history of OFJ, but also with the stories he told of Juliet Gordon Low.  It was wonderful for this group of Scouts, and us.

 

Aaron giving his talk at OFJ

I went out to the Tybee Post Theater for an family movie this week.  I wanted to see Lion, and it's no longer available on Netflix. It was ok, but not great. Driving out to the beach and being inside the cool theater watching a movie is a nice way to spend a hot Savannah afternoon.  This one had a lot of buzz around it, and I think both Nicole Kidman and Dev Patel are wonderful actors.  

My neighbor, June (whom I play Rummikub with every Wednesday), rented the MP clubhouse on Saturday to host a graduation party for her granddaughter, Sarah.  I offered to help set up the party and also to lifeguard if anyone wanted to use the pool.  As a bonus, I was included in the meal.  June was a caterer before she retired, and this was wonderful.  

the party at the club house

6/18/2017

Weekly Update 6/18/2017

The Lunch Bunch tried a new restaurant on Tuesday. Well, actually, not that new. It used to be Uncle Bubba's, and it's not far from MP. I think I may have taken visitors there to eat in the past, but it's been closed for more than a year. It recently re-opened, as Paula Deen's Creekside Restaurant. It is not much different than what it used to be, either in décor or menu. But, as always, I enjoy this group of ladies, so it was nice to get out. And, as we were waiting to be seated, I saw two friends from library book club, and someone else from DH. It was almost like a reunion there, and I felt very popular as I greeted people.

On Wednesday, The Georgia Historical Society hosted a dedication for a marker in front of the First African Baptist Church on Franklin Square. There were a few speakers, and then the marker was unveiled. The marker reads:

First African Baptist Church (FABC) traces its roots to

1773 and the organization of a congregation at nearby

Brampton Plantation by Rev. George Leile. Under the

leadership of Rev. Andrew C. Marshall (3^rd pastor),

the congregation obtained this property. Constructed

of Savannah Grey brick by congregants, both free and

enslaved, the current building was completed in 1859.

Rev. Emanuel K. Love (6^th pastor), an advocate for

African-American education and civil rights, was

instrumental in establishing today's Savannah State

University. Rev. Dr Ralph Mark Gilbert (13^th pastor)

was a prominent leader of the NAACP and the revival

of the Savannah chapter in the 1940s. U.S.

Representative Adam Clayton Powell of Harlem and

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. are among the noteworthy

speakers hosted here. FABC is one of the oldest

continuously operating African-American churches in

North America.

I ordered a small outhouse from eBay to add to my collection for my bathroom. I want to create seasonal “sitters” that I can put in there as I change the decorations in the other parts of the condo I began with Uncle Sam for the upcoming 4^th of July holiday. I visited one of the internet craft sites that I used to use all the time when I searching for craft projects to make with Emily in my past life as babysitter. I found some great (and easy-to-make) stuff there, and I think this will be fun.   

I haven't been to the pool in many weeks, but I did go back on Thursday.  It wasn't that much fun.  But on Friday, I did have a good day.  I wasn't scheduled for DH, so I had a free day. There was a lecture on Georgians in WWI at City Hall, and I enjoyed that.  The lecture was based on a current exhibit at the museum at Georgia Southern University, so now that's on my list of things to try to get to this summer.  After that, I wandered down to River Street.  I wanted to see if the dock at the city Hall Landing had been rebuilt and was again offering the water taxi circuit on the river.  It was, and since that's one of the things I like to do best in Savannah, I rode the shuttle. It was the first time I've ever seen dolphins that far up the Savannah River, and that was really cool to watch them putting on a show for the tourists.  I also got a Wet Willies - white russian, my favorite - and sat for while and people-watched. There's a little hole-in-the-wall pastry shop that was recommended to me by neighbors, so I stopped there on my walk back to the car.  I got a wonderful sandwich on a baguette and a fruit tart that was so-o-o good!  I also stopped at bookseller E Shavers' (my go-to place for local books) and bought a copy of Good Karma, a new book that is has been widely publicized, and while it will never be on any lists of fine literature, it's set in Savannah, and I need a simple read.  It was a good day.  

Saturday was Juneteenth, a day that commemorates the June 19, 1865 announcement of the abolition of slavery in Texas, and more generally the emancipation of slave throughout the Confederate South. Pinpoint, the African-American community on Skidaway Island was celebrating by having special exhibits. I thought it would be interesting, so I went. Not so fast! I had expected to be parking along the street as I believed there would be a lot of people attending this event, but when I pulled in and was one of 3 cars in the entire parking lot, I began to think I'd arrived on the wrong day. There were no special exhibits except for a fact sheet about Juneteenth, and a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation. Not a lot to see. I did wander through the old oyster and crab factory but I've seen that before and was hoping for something a little more.

Sunday, I got up, and as usual, began playing games on my iPad.  After I'd done that for a couple of hours, and I still had the whole day ahead of me, I thought about going downtown. Why not? Parking is free on the weekends, and that's about to change, so I felt I'd take advantage of being cheap while I can.  I went to the American Prohibition Museum in City Market.  It's only been open for a few months, and I've been meaning to go. I was not disappointed.  Although it looks small from the outside, it is large on the inside, and the exhibits are great.  There were costumed interpreters and some holograms that were amazing, but also a lot of brief notes on the walls to read that added to the understanding of the story.  After I came back out, I sat and listened to the music in the open city market area for a while.  It was a nicer way to spend the afternoon rather than seeing if I can beat my own record at freecell.  

6/11/2017

Weekly Update 6/11/2017

I did very little this week. And what I did do, was mostly at BC or DH.

Jane and I took our almost-weekly walk at BC. She had heard some interesting stories about the cemetery, and wanted to walk through. I can do that, plus add a few stories of my own! I was scheduled to give a tour to a special group the next day, and I since I would have to spend more time with them than my usual hour, I wanted to check out a couple of other interesting sites that I don't usually get to include. I enjoyed doing that, and also met a few other tourists who appreciated listening to me when I was telling Jane some of the things I knew. But when the tour on Wednesday showed up, I realized that they did not speak English! They were from Montreal, and their leader had to translate everything I said into French. That was first. Also, since they were late in arriving, all my efforts of the day before in finding interesting things to show them was not useful, as I barely had time to get them back to their bus before the gates closed at 5. Luckily, I'm a wonderful guide and pulled it all off with great aplomb.

On Sunday, I opened, BC, then went back in the afternoon for a normal Second Sunday Tour. And as soon as that was over, I quickly went home to take a shower (I'd been walking around in the high-80s temps and was covered in bug spray – I needed to shower!) and then went to DH. They were having a fund raiser, and I'd been asked to help serve the refreshments. As I was getting dressed, I realized that my white shirt had some black streaks on it and looked awful, and I didn't have another white shirt to wear. I think I got by with a beige colored blouse, and I hoped I looked like “staff”.

jazz in the garden at DH

The rest of the week was spend mostly in front of the tv- watching either the French tennis tournament, or House of Cards. 

6/4/2017

Weekly Update 6/4/2017

It seems as if in long ago days, Memorial Day was a time for getting the garden started or opening a pool .  Now, I am always reminded of the cost of the freedoms I enjoy.  In past years, I've gone to the Memorial Day service at BC. But when I discovered that there would be a similar commemoration at Laurel Grove South cemetery, I decided to try that one instead. Laurel Grove Cemetery was formed about the same time as BC – mid-1850s – but whereas BC was a private place for wealthy families, LG was the public space for some residents who didn't have that much money. Not that there aren't wealthy people buried at LG – Juliet Gordon Low and family, the Davenports (while not wealthy, they were surely prominent), Berriens, the Waving Girl (also, not very rich, but a historic figure in Savannah), Bartows, etc. But there are also burials there in a “strangers” plot, an area for babies, a huge Confederate soldier area (mostly removed from Gettysburg to Savannah – very poignant), and a separate black section. It was in this part of the cemetery where the ceremony was held. It was not as well attended as the ones I've been to at BC, but was wonderful.

Since I installed the sun-blocking curtains in an effort to help with my summertime cooling costs, my plants have suffered, especially Audrey. Add to that the problem of her taking over control of the entire sunroom, and not leaving my room for a chair or other plants, and I decided it was time for her to go. And Tuesday was the day that happened. It was a big chore, and not fun. I had to dismember her, and take her to the dumpster in shifts. I never was able to get the large ceramic pot out, as it's too heavy (how did I get in here?), but that is hidden away in the back bedroom, to be considered another day. It looks different in here, but I'm not sad. It's going to be fake plants for me from now on, and I can depend on them to stay in the same same size and shape as when they joined me. I still have a few real plants, like the impressive Dragon Lady, but now I don't feel as if I'm in a jungle.

I finally got to see the movie Moana. I'd heard great things about it, and wanted to see it for a long time. When it became one of the movie to be shown this summer as a part of the Tybee Post Theaters summer family series, I decided this was my chance. Besides, it was 90° that afternoon, and it was nice to be inside a cool place. After the hard work with Audrey the day before, I did turn my a/c on. I'm hoping that I'll be able to be comfortable, and also that the curtains will help keep the energy costs lower than last summer.

Since I had been invited to a nice lunch at Connie's a couple of weeks ago, I knew I would have to entertain those ladies here. Connie had been asking to come over to sit by the MP pool for a while, so this was the week. I made a pasta salad, and bought some chips and wine. Nothing special, but honestly, I don't think people expect a lot from me. We ate in my condo, and then went to the pool. I enjoyed being with them.

I was scheduled to be a BC on Saturday morning to assist visitors. It wasn't very busy, so I asked my volunteer partner if I could skip out a little early, and she kindly agreed. I went to the Historic Savannah Foundation annual block party. The DH dancers were going to be entertaining with a few dances from the Davenport era, and I wanted to see that. They were great!

I was busy Sunday. I got a phone call early that the person who was supposed to open BC couldn't make it, so I went to do that.  I also had to go back in the afternoon to hand out maps and close up.  As soon as I was done there, I went downtown.  The Savannah Victorian Society offered a walking tour of four squares (Calhoun, Lafayette, Troup and Whitfield).  The walk was led by Hugh Golson, who is one of my favorite guides in Savannah.  He has lived here all his life, was a teacher of history for many years, and knows everything.  It was a fabulous walk.  As soon as that was finished, I went to DH, where they were hosting the annual volunteer appreciation garden party.  I only stayed a few minutes, enough time to say I'd been there, and then went home.  It had been a long day.