Florida 2025

 

Florida

March 2025

 

            A 4^th “snowbird” adventure, with repeats of enjoyable 2022 & 2023 visits to Sarasota with friends Deb & Chris and Naples with Marjorie’s cousin Jim & wife Susan. Our winter hasn’t been too hard. Snow’s been cleared by very diligent Josh, working for Matt’s high school friend John. A busy end of February and beginning of March. “Warmth of Winter” fundraiser for Colonie Senior Service Centers. “Mardi Gras” celebration at St. Pius X. “The Garbologists” play at nearby Curtain Call Theater. Albany Pro Musica’s concert “Considering Matthew Shepard,” a very moving “choral drama” about the young gay man murdered in Wyoming in 1998. Russ singing with Mendelssohn Club at CSSC’s Beltrone Living Center, and the previous night friend Dennis singing there with the South Colonie Dance Band. Marjorie has started her annual fundraising for “Relay for Life” and selling tickets for Mendelssohn Club’s Spring Concert. And exciting news: she’s been accepted to be an “Artist in Residence” for a week in July at Wiawaka Center for Women, a retreat on the shore of Lake George. She also displays her work & classes at CSSC’s celebration of International Women’s Day.

As usual March is teasing, sometimes seems like Spring but then Winter comes back. So a break is welcome, especially when it includes warmer temps (we hope) with friends & family. There is a sure sign of Spring: Guptill’s Ice Cream opens Saturday!

Christmas Markets Along the Danube

 

Christmas on the Danube

December 2024

 

            We do love a Viking River Cruise: 6 in Europe, plus 1 on the Mississippi. Marjorie disrupted the pattern of togetherness when she and her sister Mary took a Christmas Markets cruise along the Rhine in 2012. She showed no feelings of guilt about leaving me behind [tho full disclosure: I traveled with my brother Doug to South America in 2013 and on a “Midnight Sun” Viking Ocean Cruise in 2018] but is quite happy to do a similar cruise with me, this time along the Danube. We’ve cruised on both the Rhine & Danube in summer, the latter covering much of the territory on this cruise, but expect different looks at Christmastime.

The 2nd-longest river (1700 miles) in Europe, after the Volga, the Danube originates in Germany, passes thru or borders Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova, and Ukraine. European Christmas markets have a long history, dating to a “December market” in Vienna in 1296. In the 14^th C craftsmen set up stalls under the name "Saint Nicholas market" to sell little Christmas gifts for children. This evolved into Weihnachtsmarkt (Christmas market) or Christkindlmarkt (Christ child market). Many towns usher in Advent with market openings.

Brighton HS 60th Reunion

 

Brighton High School Reunion

October 2024

 

            In June I get an e-mail from Martha Presberg Supnik [Note: From now on I’ll use “high school names” for ease & better recognition.] about a 60^th (!!) reunion for our BHS class of 1965, to be combined with the surrounding classes of ’64 & ’66. I’ve made 2 reunions (1985 & 2002) but missed the 50^th due to other travels, so I’m very pleased to have another chance to catch up with classmates. I do wonder how many are still around and able. Martha and a reunion committee put a lot of effort into locating people; it appears that about 35 will attend. A couple of options for lodging are available, and a nice schedule of activities. We’re asked to send a “selfie” and short bio to be combined in a reunion yearbook. It will be interesting to see the lives that classmates have lived. Marjorie will join me. She’s something of a reunion junkie: every 5 years since 1970 except 2020 (due to COVID) for her Portage WI high school; I attended and enjoyed their gatherings in 2000 & 2010.

            We kick off our weekend early with a “cocktail party” fundraiser at St. Pius X for orphanages in the Dominican Republic and other sites. Surprisingly, I still remember how to tie a tie. On the way over I learn the secret of Marjorie’s personality, as reported by fellow Virgo Malcolm Gladwell: “demanding, critical, and picky.” Forget I said that! The fundraiser is a nice affair: a program on the history and current programming of the orphanages, tasty food stations from various local restaurants, wine tasting.

            More than a week of summery 70s notwithstanding, Fall is moving along. We’ve enjoyed traveling around: most of a week in the Finger Lakes, other local scenic drives. Some frosty mornings. Halloween next week. Scariest of all, the election, rated a “toss-up,” in 10 days. Hopefully we can avoid political discussions during the reunion.

Fall in the Finger Lakes

 

Finger Lakes Redux

October 2024

 

            Another Fall outing to the Fingers Lakes wine country, retracing some of our travels in 2013. [An article in the Sunday Times-Union says travel is “anti-aging therapy.”] Joined this time by 2 favorite travel companions from our Wisconsin days, Kay & Diane, the latter now coming out from Santa Fe. They arrive just a day after I return from a golf outing in southern Utah. I’m loaded up with Wine Trail maps. We thought of getting an arrangement to be driven around, but those are quite expensive. So I will be the “designated driver.”

            We have a couple of days before the Finger Lakes excursion. I catch up with lawn mowing and work on the journal & photos from Utah. Marjorie & I enjoy what seems an especially comforting 8am Mass Sunday with Fr. Daniel & Deacon Marty. Later I take photos of a well-attended Blessing of Animals outside the Church. Marjorie takes Diane & Kay to the lovely Sand Lake Merchant shop where some of her creations are sold. Then to the Hagaman art show, where she sold 3 pieces and received a 3^rd-place ribbon. On Monday Diane & Kay get tours of Pruyn House, a historical/cultural site for which Marjorie is on the Board of Trustees, and Beverwyck, where we are on the waiting list to move to “senior housing.”

Golfing in Southern Utah

 

Still Crazy II

September-October 2024

 

In 2021 Jeff, apartment-mate & friend at UWisconsin grad school who married Marjorie’s sister (and led to my meeting Marjorie, but that’s a longer story), invited me to join a golfing group of alumni from his Racine WI high school. The group, which dubbed themselves “Still Crazy,” gathers periodically to play in various sites around the country. Pinehurst NC, something of a golfing mecca, was the choice for 2021. I had a wonderful time, sharing golf on special courses designed by the likes of Jack Nicklaus & Pete Dye with a very congenial group of guys. By way of thanks, I made a photo calendar from our Pinehurst adventures for organizer Bob; he tells me he still uses it with adjustments for the current year. I was set to join them again at some fabulous courses in southern Utah in 2022 but had to cancel when I contracted COVID. I planned to try again in 2023 when the group was scheduled in Georgia, but backed out from worries about how spinal stenosis issues in my back would handle concentrated golf over 3-4 days. Still Crazy e-mails rolled around again in Spring 2024, this time touting accommodations & golf in Southern California. After dithering for a while about my back, I decided to give it a shot, so to speak. Another fabulous job arranging the details: Bob Schroeder handles lodging and courses, Tim Paulson the money. As usual, Bob says, ”your Trip Charge covers everything once you land: car rental, everyone-under-one-roof accommodations, meals, munchies, medicinal liquids, green fees, event entry fees, a dozen golf balls, team hats, a variety of sure-to-be-treasured swag items... and four STILL CRAZY days of smiles, stories and sport.” I use my United Airline credit card miles for flights to & from LAX.

Everything looked great: beautiful lodging, interesting courses. Then . . . an email from Bob: “Shocking Developments” aka “Shit Happens.” About 3 weeks before the scheduled trip our lodgings are cancelled as part of a Chapter 11 Reorganization Bankruptcy! Does Bob give up? No, indeed! In only a few days he somehow manages to arrange another fabulous itinerary on the same dates for our consideration near St. George in southern Utah. This will make up for my missing Utah 2 years ago. Enough others in the group are “in” for the new arrangements. I cancel my original flights with a refund of the United miles to use for new flights to Utah. A choice of flying into St. George UT (30 minutes from lodging but 2 layovers on the way) or Las Vegas (2 hours away, but only 1 layover). I opt for fewer layovers. Coincidentally, a new COVID variant is spiking. I get a shot of an updated vaccine. Here’s hoping all’s well that ends well!

St. George was founded part of a “cotton mission” in 1861 under direction of a Latter Day Saint apostle, named after another LDS apostle. In the early 1950s, St. George was hit by fallout from above-ground nuclear testing NW of Las Vegas, with marked increases in cancer. Population 95,000, elevation about 3000’. It’s in part of the Mojave Desert; we can expect temps of 90-100. But hey, it’s dry heat, right? I remember the beauty of St. George and its surroundings from our trip thru Utah & Nevada in 1997. Bob sent a link to videos of the courses in this area. Fabulous scenery, courses winding thru red-rock canyons ready to capture wayward shots (I’ll pack lots of balls!). Golf Week Magazine has called the Red Rock Golf Trail here "The most exciting collection of spectacular golf courses anywhere on earth." Will my game be worthy?

Michigan 2024

 

Michigan

August 2024

 

Grandson Miles is doing a repeat 6-week camp at Interlochen Center for the Arts, but with a twist: he will return to Interlochen for his senior year of high school, as Anthea had done. We’ll repeat our trip out to see him and also visit with Russ’ brother Doug and sister-in-law Ann in Midland. Daughter-in-law Anthea will drive from Queens to join us; son Matt is otherwise occupied performing at the Tahoe Classical Festival. We’re sorry that Anthea’s parents, Pamela & Brian, also can’t join us this year.

 Thursday-Friday, 8/1-2: “Frogs and Balloons”

An uber reserved at 4am for our 6:15 flight to Chicago, but silly Marjorie made it for the wrong date! Change of plans, we drive and park at the airport. Airport’s all discombobulated by construction, both parking & terminal. Interesting art along a corridor. 

DC Open Embassies and More

 

DC Embassy Open Houses, Flowers, and Museums

May 2024

 

A year ago friend Diane, Executive Director of Colonie Senior Service Centers, where I’m on the Board of Directors and Marjorie has given & taken art classes and other activities, told us about spring open houses in embassies in Washington. It sounded lovely, so I started looking into options for this year, then learned Diane is organizing a group tour (initially for 10, grew to 23). She’s arranging flights & hotel. We signed right up. Diane has a planning meeting 3 weeks beforehand with various tips and a list of 51 embassies then set to be open.

These open houses are part of Passport DC, a month-long “journey around the world.”  Celebrated annually in May, International Cultural Awareness Month in Washington, Passport DC is 31 days of programming by embassies and other cultural institutions. DC is home to more than 175 embassies, the 2^nd-highest in one city in the world. [No, we won’t try to see them all!] During Around the World Embassy Tour, embassies from multiple non-European Union countries will host open houses on May 4 for visitors to learn about cultures & and traditions thru food, fashion, arts & music, etc. Passport DC also features a Flower Mart & International Floral Exhibit at the National Cathedral. On following weekends EU & then Asian embassies will host visitors. These are all free events open to the public.

Spring is pretty much in full swing around Albany, tulips up in Washington Park, trees & azaleas blooming on the UAlbany campus. It’ll be interesting to see what Washington looks like. The National Cherry Blossom Festival in DC ended April 14^th, but maybe some will still be blooming. Temps in DC have been 80s, even 90s, so we’ll pack light. We neaten up the house some for son Matt’s visit over the weekend, here to pack up grandson William at the end of his sophomore semester at Siena. Marjorie leaves Matt a “to-do list,” mostly in the garden; Matt’s become quite the gardener around their building in Queens.