Marjorie's Baking and Artistry

Marjorie’s Baking and Art Exploits

           This blog is focused on travel: my trip journals & accompanying photos. So how does Marjorie’s baking fit in? Well, it’s my blog, so I guess I can do whatever I want. Here I'll offer examples of Marjorie's beautiful (and tasty!) baking and other artistic efforts.

Baking

             Marjorie’s baking has entailed a considerable variety of themes, occasions & events, & holidays; and her yummy concoctions have been created for family, friends & neighbors, and friends of friends. Plus she prides herself, and rightly so, on creations that both look beautiful and taste good. I can’t show the “taste good” part here, but the photos that follow surely indicate how beautiful they are. The photos are organized into 3 sections: 1) weddings, 2) birthdays, and 3) other occasions & holidays.

Weddings: 

Outings With My Boys

Watching Over the Boys

January 2019 

          A couple of years ago our Queens family took a winter break to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic. This year Matt & Anthea are off to Grand Paladium on Montego Bay in Jamaica . . . but sans William & Miles. So the grandparents are called into action. In my gerontology teaching I’ve referred to grandparents as the “family national guard;” this doesn’t qualify as an “emergency,” but we’re happy to answer the call and to add to our enjoyable Christmas time with the boys. And now that they are older (13 and 11), they’re relatively low-maintenance. Matt has also added a few perks for us: use of their garage parking spot and a free week of HULU so I can watch football.

          M & A fly out Friday 1/4 after William & Miles have gone to school. We drive down during the day to be home when they get back from school. Greeted by their rescue cat, Roxy; well, not exactly greeted ˗ she’s watching over us in a favorite perch atop high shelves in the master bedroom. But after being a bit standoffish when she joined the family, Roxy is quite affectionate with us now. 

We admire the boys’ “new” rooms now that the adjoining studio apartment has been purchased to create a 3 bed-2 bath space. Lunch at Vanilla Café across the street. Miles comes home first, walking as usual from his school at 74^th St. & 54^th Ave. (he’s a 6^th-grader at IS 230: a “Magnet School of Civics in the Community”) to their 87^th St & Roosevelt building. He and Marjorie head out to take the subway to his dance class at the 92^nd St. Y in Manhattan’s East Side. 

 I stroll thru the Jackson Heights neighborhood, finding photo ops of many Christmas decorations still up, including (later) the brightly lit front of their building (the answer here to the traditional “When Should Christmas decorations be taken down?” is clearly “Not yet!”). 

William returns via a short subway ride from his Academy of American Studies high school in Long Island City. He proudly shows me the computer he build from components we helped fund for Christmas. Very impressive! We all enjoy dinner when Marjorie & Miles get back.

          Saturday is our busy day, and a rather wet one; but warm, well into the 40s. Miles and I head out first to the 92^nd St. Y for another dance class followed by rehearsal for a production of “Annie Junior;” dancer/singer Miles plays Rooster, Miss Hannigan’s evil brother. Miles is greeted by friends who are prepping for the same exam he will take next week (see below). 

Having some 4+ hours, I head off in very light rain toward Central Park after peeking in at Miles’ tap class. The rain becomes heavier as I reach the reservoir, tho there are still many walkers & joggers out, including strollers with rain covers. Opting for more indoor pursuits, I head down to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which I haven’t been to in quite a while. 

A bit of a wait in line to get in, and busy inside, but I have an enjoyable couple of hours wandering and taking photo samples of the wonderful variety: Asian, African, European, American, Egyptian, etc.; ancient to modern; paintings, sculptures, period rooms. So much to see! 

 

One highlight is the traditional Christmas tree with 18^th-century Neapolitan Nativity scene. 

The rain has let up when I leave to walk back to the Y. I’m again able to peek into the “Annie” rehearsal.

          When rehearsal ends, and after rescuing shoes Miles left in his previous class space, we head off in very light rain to rendezvous with Marjorie and William at Asphalt Green, a sports facility several blocks away where William plays soccer. It’s indoor season, today working on drills to enhance their skills. We’re particularly impressed with William’s nimble footwork! 

Afterward we head to “Dig Inn,” an informal spot where bowls are filled from buffet choices; not “fine dining,” but plenty hearty. A stop for treats at Vanilla Café on the way home, followed by a spirited game of UNO.

          Sunday is a quieter day. Marjorie heads out for 10:00 Mass at Blessed Sacrament, 93^rd & 35^th. The 3 Kings (it’s Día de los Reyes) come down the aisle in all their finery. A very lengthy homily, all in Spanish, and the service lasts longer than 1½ hours (not at all like our “1-2-3” Fr. Walsh, with his usually 3 key points and 45-minute Masses). The homily is met with applause from the congregation (it would be unkind to wonder: because it’s over?), then Marjorie wonders why many people don’t take communion. She returns excited about a big Nativity “city” set up along the outside of the church. We all have leftovers from last night’s bowls for lunch. 

          Marjorie goes out again to see “Book of Mormon” at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre near Times Square. 

I do a bit of nearby grocery shopping before the boys and I go for a walk on a nice sunny PM, making our way to the impressive Nativity tableau at the church. Back home, William and I help Miles set up a sample test for the Hunter College Campus Schools exam he’ll take next week as part of applying to go to a school for gifted students. Logistics prove a bit frustrating, and we don’t realize until the next day that Matt had left some additional information (including the answer key) that would have helped; oh well, Miles could at least see what the questions are like. 

After Marjorie returns, dinner at a nearby place for fried chicken & fish.

          Monday brings a beautiful sunrise over the 7 Train from our window. As Matt assured us, “both boys are good about getting themselves to school.” We walk to school with Miles so we can attend an honors ceremony he’s part of. Too early for that, so coffee and pastries at a nice convenience store recommended by the friendly crossing guard. Back to school for the awarding of honor roll certificates in the assembly hall. Miles has made the higher Principal’s Honor Roll: a 95+ average plus meeting other criteria. He seems (and should be!) very pleased. But ever the iconoclast (or just forgetful), Miles is in gray when everyone else is wearing a blue shirt. And a reminder of the vagaries of school life: a mid-ceremony PA announcement of a “throw-up in Room 102.” The end of the ceremony becomes a mosh pit of parents coming up to take photos. 

We head back home to hang out the rest of the day. Miles has a chorus rehearsal tonight, but we had already conferred with Matt and decided it would be difficult for us to find our way out to the Long Island location in rush hour traffic. And based on a troublesome forecast of “wintry mix” tomorrow, I decide to head back to Albany tonight rather than tomorrow (when I wouldn’t really be needed anyway). An easy ride out of the city and up the Thruway, home about 9pm.

          Marjorie oversees things on Tuesday. She’s able to get together for lunch with childhood friend and sculptor Nene. Matt and Anthea return from Jamaica on time at about 7:30pm. They had a fine time and come back with gifts: Jamaican coffee, jerk seasoning, and a colorful beach bag. On Wednesday Marjorie returns to Albany via train, arriving about 2pm.

Outings With My Boys

August-September 2015

          It’s not unusual for Grandma & Grandpa to be called into action to watch over (& have fun with) grandsons William (age 10) & Miles (8). Our son Matt has a busy musician’s schedule, juggling responsibilities as Percussion Department Coordinator at Julliard with a performance schedule ranging from gigs with percussion ensemble Talujon to regular stints in the pit of a Broadway show. Daughter-in-law Anthea is also plenty busy as Executive Director of the Metropolitan Youth Orchestras. So we weren’t surprised to have the boys coming to stay with us for a week in mid-August. But a different twist this time: Grandpa will be flying solo for several days when Grandma goes to Wisconsin for her 50^th HS reunion.

Pittsburgh and Fallingwater

Pittsburgh & Western PA

June 1999

Hmmm, is Pittsburgh Midwest?  Close enough to add in here.  This is actually my Mom’s account, but I will present it here (w/ my editing) in her memory  ̶  I’m sure she would be excited that we’re coauthors and her writing appears in a blog!  Her very detailed trip diaries (including the cost of meals, lodging, etc.) have inspired the trip journals written by my brother and me.

Cemeteries

CEMETERIES 

          Though this blog focuses on journals & photos of trips, I’ve noted that 3 venues stand out for offering photo ops. Previous posts have highlighted samples of “Gardens” & “Religious Sites.” Here I’ll present photos from some of the atmospheric cemeteries we’ve encountered on our travels. As with the gardens, churches, & mosques, I can’t always pinpoint where a photo was taken, but will indicate some of the sites. 

Local cemeteries:

My favorite & most frequent venue is nearby Albany Rural Cemetery, a beautiful & evocative place in every season: winter, 

Religious Sites

Religious Sites 

          As I noted in my "Gardens" post, some venues offer photo ops that cut across trips. In particular, churches & other religious sites offer a variety of exterior looks & museum-quality interiors. Here's a sampling of some favorites. I won't try to label every site, but I'll group them regionally (accurately, I hope). More details can generally be found in the travel journals in other posts. 

Local sites

As I did in the "Gardens" post, I'll begin with a familiar local venue: St. Pius X in Loudonville, where I sing in the choir. Beautifully decorated for Christmas