Babies on parade.

Tonight I had every intention of folding laundry while watching Vanity Fair. I woke up this morning and my first thought was, "Yay, I can come home tonight and watch Vanity Fair while folding the laundry!" (It is truly sad when one's very first thought of the day involves laundry.) But you know what's coming - I didn't actually do either of these things. Work got in the way. So I came home, watered our newly planted window boxes and weeded front gardens (yes, photos will come soon!), went to the gym, and then sat in front of this computer for a couple of hours working on a project. I'm now calling it quits with the project for tonight, and since it's too late for a movie I am trying to sneak in a blog post (because this is something else I've been meaning to do for a long time).

What's on my mind tonight? A whole lot of things. Lots and lots of things. The sunburn I have on my right leg, the cat who is acting disturbingly strange these days and who is going to the vet on Saturday morning just in case, the appointment I have tomorrow with my homeopathic doctor, the projects I have over the next six months at work, the oven of a bedroom that awaits me tonight, the varicose vein on my left leg that sometimes itches, the book I'm reading about New Orleans and my desire to go back to that city... There's a lot on my mind. But I should post about something for which I have pictures, because blog posts need pictures.

So in that case, here's a recap of what Doug and I did a couple of weekends ago. Actually, on Father's Day. We attended the baptism of my cousin Amy and her husband Mike's baby boy, Sean. Talk about a good baby! I've seen all of my nieces, nephew, and cousin's children baptized and not one of them was as good as Sean. I did not hear a peep out of him the whole time. He even smiled while I was holding him! (I confess that Doug was on the other end of the camera making his high-pitched sounds and funny faces that babies seem to adore, but still, even after Doug moved Sean still was a happy baby - and note the bib he's wearing here!)

Sean was baptized at a congregational church, and they did something at the baptism that I've never seen before - they paraded the newly baptized babies around the church to "meet" the congregation. Here's Sean on parade: At first I was skeptical of this - just pour the water on the baby, renounce Satan, and be done with it - but this was a little twist, something a little more sociable and engaging than the traditional Catholic christening that I'm used to, and by the end of the laps around the church I was pretty into the whole thing. The older people waved at the baby, some people grabbed onto his foot and congratulated him as he moved by... it just seemed to be a nice way to meet people. This cold-hearted, otherwise-cynical person may have had her mind opened just a little bit that morning, and it wasn't the church band that did it, either.

There's so much for my mind to get used to these days, because it's been opened to soccer, too. This World Cup fever has hit even me. It's hard not to get excited when watching soccer. It's really the only sport that I can stomach on TV (because the games are only 90 minutes! And plus it's fun to watch all the players fall down and be dramatic. I swear, there's not a more dramatic sport than soccer.), and it reminds me so much of the Olympics. My current favorite is Spain, now that the U.S., England, Germany, Australia, and South Africa are on their way home. And in honor of the World Cup I made special cupcakes for Sean's baptism. Can you tell what they are? I asked my mother what she thought they were and she said, "A Nintendo DS?" Okay, that one threw me a little, but my niece, Maddy, guessed right away that they were supposed to be soccer balls. I'll have to get a little better at the decorating next time, but the good thing to know is that these cupcakes, baked lovingly from scratch, mind you, tasted delicious even if they were barely recognizable (a Nintendo DS? Really?).

New Orleans Dreaming

Tonight I tried out my new yoga video, Jillian Michaels Yoga Meltdown. Holy yoga mat, Batman - this thing kicked my butt. Which is good, because when I was in New Orleans I got very, very used to eating nothing but fattening, fried foods, and now I have to slowly get myself back into the land of the healthy.

Look at this: This was my dinner my first night in New Orleans. It's a muffaletta from Cochon Butcher, a sandwich shop close to my hotel that specializes in - yes, you guessed it - meats. You don't get many vegetables in New Orleans. And in the few convenience stores that I went into (are there even any actual grocery stores in the city? I found none, but then again, I was confined to a limited radius.) I saw no vegetables and only the sickliest looking fruits I have seen in quite some time. My meals consisted of meat, fried stuff, carbohydrates, fat, and sugar. Probably some salt, too. Now I know why Louisiana is the eighth most obese state in the nation, but look at how much I care about that as I get ready to eat my Johnny's Po'Boys lunch.

But, in addition to learning that there is a limit to how much meat, fried or otherwise, that I can consume in a 72 hour period, I also learned during my time in New Orleans that I liked it there. I liked it there quite a lot. And so did Doug. Bourbon Street was a people-watching dream, and seeing the Mississippi River for the first time was pretty exciting, too. I spent a cool (literally, thank goodness - the heat index during our stay was 100+) couple of hours inside the National World War II Museum, taking a look at the really moving artifacts of the war, such as this diary written on D-Day by an American soldier involved in the beach invasions, and Doug spent some of his time exploring the scenery New Orleans is known for, like the Saint Louis Cemetery and the sculpture garden and, unfortunately, the 9th Ward, which is still much like it was directly after Hurricane Katrina. (I cannot help but wonder if the BP oil spill will create more devastation for the area than Katrina has, and after spending only three and a half days there I cannot wish any harder for some sort of miraculous solution to the problems caused by this spill; even though New Orleans is clearly a resilient city, it deserves so much more than being hit by these catastrophic events.)

So. Food and sites. What else to New Orleans? Music, stray cats, new friends, and, of course, the SLA pre-conference sessions. Thank you, SLA, for bringing us to New Orleans this year. New Orleans gave me and Doug a lot to think about, a lot of reading material, and a lot of appreciation for life. Naturally, in true Doug-and-Rosanne fashion, we're plotting our return (semi-permanent maybe? The idea did cross our minds...) with the hopes of seeing more of what you have to offer, but Doug requests a visit when it's a little cooler. But I don't, actually. Because heat and humidity seem to me to be just as synonymous with NOLA as Mardi Gras beads and jazz, so maybe the summer's the best time to be there after all. Sign me up to go back as soon as possible, please, because my brow was definitely less furrowed while I was there (maybe that's why it's called the Big Easy?).

Back from the beyond.

Well, now I'll be. How long has it been since my last post? Whoa. This just might be a record for me. Sixteen days! I haven't communicated my life experiences to the world for sixteen days! And just what is my excuse for not posting to my blog for sixteen days? Life. Life is my excuse. There's been a lot of life going on during these past three weeks, and it's been wearing me out.

For example, my sister and my nieces came up to visit a few weekends ago and we went to... American Girl! This visit was not as intense as the last couple of visits we've made to that store (Remember the one when Maria got her ears pierced, and so did the doll? That one was epic.), but it was quite the day nonetheless. Maria was delighted to be there, of course - she got herself the 2010 Girl of the Year doll, Lanie Holland. Maria was so excited that she was downright scary. Maddy also got a little into the American Girl fever. Her original intent was to get Pepper, the American Girl pet husky, but Pepper was all sold out. Actually, many things were all sold out that day. In this down economy, we need to spend out hard-earned money at the American Girl store. Get things moving again. We ordered Pepper and he'll be coming in about six weeks, once he's weaned and whelped from his factory, but in the meantime Maddy has as new doll to play with - Kaya, the historical NezPerce American Girl. I actually like Kaya's story, though Josefina Montoya, the historical New Mexican American Girl, is my personal favorite. I think it's her oven and food that push her over the top for me, or her weaving loom and extra wrap. But a fine day at American Girl, one that certainly pleased my sister and her daughters.

And then my mom got a cat. Doug and I had seen the most adorable pair of long-haired torties at the S.P.I.N. shelter inside Pet World. We wanted to take her there to show her Stella and Bella and have her give them a loving home, but she ended up bonding with the cat below Stella and Bella, a cat named Liza. And once you bond with a cat you can't let it stay at the shelter, so Liza came home with us that day to begin her new life in Connecticut with my mom, dad, brother, and Tyrone. Liza is a big girl of eight, and she purrs and purrs and purrs. She's got a very sweet disposition and she really likes my mom. Her name is now Martha, and she's a bit timid around Tyrone, but she'll come around. She has spent much of her time on the upstairs floor of my mother's house, but she does venture down at least a couple of times a day to rub up against my mother's leg and get some loving in. She'll soon be downstairs all the time, I can tell - she's too much of a mush to be away from people that long. She just needs to realize that Tyrone isn't much of a threat (at least to cats. Now, people on the other hand...).

And then what else? New Orleans. I went to New Orleans for a long weekend to attend the Special Library Association 2010 annual conference in New Orleans, except that I wasn't there for the actual conference, just a few of the pre-conference sessions. The conference was worth it - I took a few ideas away from a couple of the sessions I attended, one on copyright management and the other on contract management - but I really, really enjoyed my time in New Orleans and wished I could have been there without a conference to attend. Doug actually surprised me by joining me for one night - he dropped me off at the airport early on Friday morning and we were casually mentioning that he should check out how much a flight to NOLA would be. The next thing I know I'm in Atlanta, waiting for my transfer to New Orleans, and I read an email from him that says he booked a flight for after work and would be in New Orleans around midnight! I was surprised, but also not so surprised. Doug's not one to pass up a chance to travel. Our time in New Orleans was packed with activity, and it definitely deserves its own post, so I'll leave you with only a little taste of what we experienced there - just enough to whet the appetite and leave you wanting more. That's exactly how we felt about our short time there - just enough to get us hooked, and now we can't wait to go back.Oh, and P.S. - I updated my picture a day series, in case you want to check it out.

Taking a trip to Western(er) Mass.

This past weekend was Memorial Day Weekend, one of my most favorite weekends of the year (ranks right up there with Labor Day Weekend). Doug and I always seem to do something fun on Memorial Day Weekend (and yes, it deserves to be capitalized). One year we went down to Newport and visited some of the mansions on a day that was picture perfect - blue skies, warm sun, a light ocean breeze. Last year my family came up to visit - we went into the city, took a tour of Charlestown, hiked up the Bunker Hill Monument, and had the first official Perrino Family Band concert, among other things. And this year Doug and I had an impromptu cookout with friends (but didn't take photos! Gah!), went to the Wrentham outlets for the first time (and will likely never go back, because we don't like crowds and would never stand in line to get into one of the stores, like all those nutty people outside of the Coach store), and took a day trip to the Berkshires. I can safely say that we'll go back there.

I love that Doug and I explored our state, and I love that we consider it our state. I was remarking to Doug while we were driving (and driving, and driving...) clear across Massachusetts on Saturday that Massachusetts finally feels like home to me. I can go to Connecticut and visit my parents' house, or my sister's house, or Doug's parents' house, and I don't feel at home. The scenery is familiar, but it is not comforting in the way that it's comforting (and, more accurately, comfortable) to get off of our exit on the highway and pass the familiar landmarks as we approach our little street and pull into the driveway of our little house. Given this emotional connection, it's ironic that whenever I visit a cool place like the Berkshires, with its mountains, green spaces, and picturesque Main Streets and general stores, I want to move there. Leave our home and our town and move. I wanted to move to the Berkshires when I was there on Saturday. But maybe you can see why.

We experienced so little of what the area has to offer, but we also did so much. We visited Arrowhead, Herman Melville's Pittsfield home during much of his writing life. Doug enjoyed his time there, rediscovering his enthusiasm for Moby Dick (which he's been "reading" for a year now), and I had a good time, too, enjoying all the whale references. Melville spent all of, what, two years as a "whaler" and somehow whales and Melville have become synonymous. Fittingly, Melville's writing studio in Arrowhead features the room as it would have looked when he wrote Moby Dick, and as much as I find that book to be a chore to try to read (which is why I've never made it past the first page), I found being in his studio to be somewhat energizing. Moby Dick is a classic, after all.

And so is Norman Rockwell a classic, a classic of Americana, and we also visited his museum. What a great museum. Just like the Portland Museum of Art, the collection here is not overwhelming so you can visit the whole place in about two hours. There were some very famous paintings on display, such as Freedom From Want and The Problem We All Live With, and a fascinating exhibit on the photography behind Rockwell's works - how he would photograph his scenes before making a charcoal or painted representation. Rockwell's last studio is also on the museum's grounds, and what lovely grounds they are. Here's a photo of Doug and I standing near Rockwell's studio: I could definitely get used to that view.

And I could also get used to the quiet, little downtowns throughout the Berkshires, like Rockwell's Stockbridge. In Stockbridge is the historic Red Lion Inn, a wonderful old inn reminiscent of the Publick House. The food is really fine here, though; the menu moves away from the traditional turkey and yankee pot roast to things like pan-seared scallops with a dollop of caviar and a salad made of local greens and goat cheese with toasted almonds and mandarin oranges. So good! We'd go back in a flash.

The problem is that getting back home from the Berkshires is a bit of a trek. Almost three hours. Which shouldn't be that bad, but after a long and tiring day it's not something that either Doug or I really wanted to do. So next time we go there it will be for an overnight, and we'll do more than a couple of museums and driving across the New York state line (Because why not? It's right there. Literally.). Maybe we'll catch a performance at Tanglewood. Or maybe we will just drive around and enjoy the greenery. Just being there with the trees and fresh air was nice, and we don't need much more than that.

The start of a new tradition.

A few months ago I was reading an article in Yankee Magazine about a daughter who decided to take her mother away on a mother-daughter weekend, and I instantly thought that my mother, my sister, and I should do one of those, too. My mother was turning 65 in March, my sister is turning 40 in June, and I turned 30 last year. In addition to these milestones to celebrate, we are all busy doing our own things in life (my sister with three young children, numerous pets, and semesters spent in nursing school, me with a very busy job, and my mother with a job, a house, a dog, and gandchildren), so we could use a weekend away to unwind, relax, and spend some time together. So I told them that we were going away, to find a weekend that would work with their schedules, and that was that. Our weekend was planned, and we all looked forward to it. That weekend has come and gone now. Our mother-daughters weekend was last weekend, and I think it will be a new tradition for us. And someday maybe my nieces will join us, too. We had a great time in Portland, Maine, doing nothing but what we wanted to do, and it was nice to reconnect over meals, shopping, and taking in the local culture. It was nice to treat my mother and sister to the hotel, too - this may have been the first time that we went away together, just the three of us, since I have been gainfully employed. It felt nice to give back, and it was the least I could do for them - I can't wait to do it again!

What do I remember most of the weekend? Well, quite a few things, but what stands out is the food. What great food we ate! Our lunch at The Farmer's Table was a vegetarian's dream (not a vegetarian restaurant, but we got soups and salads made with the freshest local vegetables - my mother's and sister's soup even had fiddleheads in it), and our dinner at Old Port Sea Grill was a fisherman's (and foodie’s) delight. I actually got fish there. Looks good, doesn't it? One of these days I'm going to move past whitefish, but for now, bring on the cod! And bring on the breakfast, please. I absolutely love breakfast foods, and the breakfast that we had at the Portland Regency restaurant was really outstanding. My sister got bananas foster french toast on an actual baguette, my mother got apple walnut pancakes almost as big as her plate, and I opted for the Belgian waffle. You can't go wrong with a Belgian waffle, and this one was very good.

But we didn't just eat while we were in Portland (though we could have. So much good food! I may have forgotten to mention that.). We went to the Victoria Mansion, a really great Italianate mansion built during the Civil War (pre-dating the Newport mansion craze of the Gilded Age, but a house that is very worthy of being among The Breakers or the Marble House), and we also went to the Portland Museum of Art. I admired the N.C. Wyeth exhibit and the sculpture gallery (so did my sister) and had a wonderful time in the McLellan House, attached to the Portland Museum of Art. I'm a big fan of colonial architecture, and this pre-Revolutionary house did not disappoint. Look at the staircase! Not too bad for little Portland, Maine.

And, of course, we just enjoyed hanging out in the city, because Portland's a cool place. There is this neat wall of graffiti and numerous streets with little shops and things to look at. Things to look at like the Lobsterman. You can't go to Portland without paying a visit to the Lobsterman.

It was a good weekend, indeed. On the way back I said to my mother and sister that we should do this every year, or at least every other year. We don't get a whole lot of time to be together, and to be together without distractions. I think it was good for us to get away, and I think we all enjoyed ourselves. I know I did. Thank you, ma soeur, for these great wine glasses by which we can remember our trip and thank you, Valet Man, for taking a photo of me, my mom, and my sister, right before we left for home. What a nice way to remember the trip - I'll have to have that one framed for us. (And if you want more photos of the trip, see here. And don't forget to check out a new picture of the day upload here. My camera's been busy these days!)

Listing again.

There is really no easier blog post to write than a list. And since I'm looking for the easy way out today, I'll post another of my lists. My list of positives. There are so many these days.

Let's start with...

* The new fence. It's great. It's new and sturdy and secure and it doesn't have any gates that I have to worry about flapping in the breeze or driving into as I back out of the driveway. All the posts are intact, and there is no rotting.

Old Fence:

New Fence:

The installation of this sparkly new fence was a hoot and a half. The two guys who came and put the fence in were something out of a cross between Hee-Haw and All in the Family. But even that's not a good description. They were just wacky, and vulgar, and loud, and... wait! Like The Odd Couple. Except one would have been this hard-living, hard-drinking, shrivel-y ex-con, and one would have been the bumbling side-kick. But they got the job done, and the fence is in, and now Doug and I have to paint it. That will certainly be a post unto itself.

Moving on to...

* Flowers. How about this poppy? The weather has been so nice for the past four days... warm, but not too humid, slow breezes, sunny... and the few flowers that we have left in our garden have been flourishing. This giant, red poppy blossomed the other day and I can't get over it's size and beauty. Who knew that we had a poppy in our garden. I'd like more of these, please.

* Friends. I had an excellent, excellent conversation with a very dear friend (I was going to say old friend, but she's not old - the friendship is, though). I have known Tamera since, what, first grade? Kindergarten? I have no idea, even, it's been that long. We were pretty much inseparable all throughout grade school, and through middle school, but because of various circumstances, most of which you can probably attribute to me, we went our different ways. Maybe five or so years ago we started to get back in touch. This was huge. Huge! And last night we talked for an hour and a half. And I realized so many things during that conversation, and from that conversation. Like I am sometimes a judgmental cad, and sometimes I am too quick to take life and those in it at face value. This is all good stuff - really - because lightbulb moments are crucial for personal development. The light went off last night.

* Mobile technology. I will now admit to getting used to my iPhone, and finding value in its convenience. My mother and sister and I went to Portland, Maine, this past weekend (more on that to come), and my little iPhone was so helpful to have. We found the Portland LL Bean Outlet because of it, made reservations at a busy restaurant because of it, and synchronized our summer calendars because of it. Thank you, Apple. For once I appreciate your innovation.

There's more, of course, but it's time to move on for today. Stay tuned for more on our weekend away in Portland... and what a fun weekend it was, too.

Happy places.

Let's give my list of positives for this week a theme - places that make me feel good, and that allow positivity to enter into my life.

* Brimfield. We've been going here for the past three years or so, or twice a year even in some years. We go to Brimfield for the antiques and the oddities, like the guitar that Doug's ogling here, or the card catalog turned into an electrician's parts holder that I'm eyeing here: We were there this past Saturday, and while we didn't come home with anything much this time (old postcards of wildlife, which will have to be the subject of another post because I love old postcards and want to do them justice), I still loved being out in the open, being in the fields, and being around all of this junk with stories attached... It just makes my step a little lighter.

* Boston Common & Boston Public Garden. These public spaces in Boston are always so full of great things to look at. People playing sports, people walking through to get to somewhere else in the city, homeless people sleeping on benches, kids playing on the playground, families hanging out on blankets having a picnic, people getting married, people having their photos taken, people feeding the squirrels and the geese, tourists looking at the statues. Being in these places makes me feel like I'm part of something big, like I'm part of the world. We spent some time in the Common and Garden with my good friend from high school, her wife, and their son this past weekend. We had a picnic - can't remember the last time I had a picnic, but what fun! - and played a little soccer before walking around a little and then heading home. Little Ely is an explorer, that one - very curious, and very independent. Here he is exploring the world from a park bench and here he is enjoying our soccer game from his mommy's back. He had little interest in the game when we tried to have him kick the ball, but perked right up when he was in that carrier. He's another positive force in life, mine and that of everyone who knows him, I'm sure. He's such a happy boy.

* Washington D.C. Doug and I recently visited our fine capital city, and we loved it there. We felt part of the world there, part of world events and part of something bigger than ourselves. Maybe one would get dragged down by daily routines in D.C. just like one does here, but I wouldn't mind finding out for myself, living there for a bit and seeing how I would like it. Because vacationing there was great, and we were very sorry to leave.

* Maine. I really haven't spent all that much time in Maine and have only seen a very small part of the rather large northern state, but the time I have spent there has been really very enjoyable. Doug and I like to go to Ogunquit in the summer and we were engaged there. We have friends in Portland and we visit them whenever we can. We vacationed in Liberty last summer and will do so again this year. Life seems peaceful in Maine, and I feel open to possibilities when I'm there. This is a good thing.

* My bed. My bed is a place, after all, and it's a place that I like to be. I like to sleep in my bed, but I also like to read in my bed and watch TV from my bed. I like to fold laundry on my bed while I watch TV, and I like to rub Doug's back when he's laying on the bed after a long day at work. Plus, we got the hardest mattress Gardner Mattress had to offer, which does wonders for my back. I can relax when I'm in my bed, and I often wake up feeling energized and ready to go. Ready to be positive about my day. I thank my bed for this. Thank you, bed. Maybe I'll go visit you right now.