Simply a post of pictures taken at night at Williamsburg. Some were taken after a rain storm, others during the ghost tour, still others while Don and I were strolling alone.
As Uncle Tom says, you can't take a bad picture in Williamsburg.
Saturday, September 10, 2022
Williamsburg
I did create a small post about it, but not the full post the trip deserved. Here goes the random flow of thoughts.
Due to being a donor at Williamsburg, Aunt Debra was able to secure tickets for a small conversation with Martha Washington. Much to our pleasure, Martha's husband, Col. George Washington, was able to join us. It was charming seeing how young and awkward he was as a newlywed. They could only answer questions pertaining to their lives as newlyweds -- how he felt about parenting her children, his role as head of the plantation, her role in running the plantation, how they met, etc. He could not talk about the Revolutionary War or being president.
It was fun walking around the not at all crowded streets and recognizing people --
both ones we are related to and reenactors. I was a little saddened that the streets were so quiet. The only time we faced a crowd was ordered a sandwich at the Cheese Shop and at Aroma's (both on Duke of Gloucester Street). I attribute those waits to the shops being shorthanded.
On Friday Don and I visited the three archaeological sites -- Custis Square, the Baptist Church, and the Bray School. I love archaeology. I can speak this language. A week earlier a Revolutionary battle grave was found in New Jersey, and I had gone on a virtual talk about it -- side conversation topics about how cool it is that they can tell the age of a person from the skull, or that they were a smoker, or all sorts of other clues I would not notice.
After dinner with my parents and Chris at Food for Thought, we took a ghost tour with The Original Ghosts of Williamsburg. Our guide, Hannah, is a Rowan student from Virginia. As Hayden is looking into colleges, with Rowan on his short list of options, it was good for him to connect with a real student (who is also a tour guide).
The tour was fun, but I spent much of it making sure our sub-group stayed together and less time hearing the stories. Throughout the weekend as we passed groups on tours, we heard snippets of the same stories, so I suspect all of the companies are pretty similar. For some reason I thought the official Williamsburg tour was stationary (they start at the theater) and not a walking tour and I wanted a walking tour. I was proven wrong, but that did not diminish the experience.
On Saturday Don and I heard an organ concert on the William and Mary campus. This historic organ has many less keys and stops than we are used to on more
modern organs. The organist was excellent. He invited a kid to come upstairs and blow air into it to keep it playing -- not as easy as it seems based on how much longer the lag between blows took place as the organist played. This put us at the bakery at the appointed hour to pick up our cupcakes for the party.
After dropping off the cupcakes and changing, we joined the family as they were finishing lunch and heard our first reenactor for the trip -- a married couple both in real life and in their performance. They talked about being slaves on the same plantation -- falling in love, jumping the broom, living separately when the master loaned her out to a different farm in retaliation for something he had done. It was powerful. In the end, he asked
how many people believe in slave reparations. I wish I could say I raised my hand in agreement, but his question made me think -- is it deserved? how would it be implemented? how much? proof needed? how "black" do you have to be? There are no easy solutions, as shown by the government waiving $10,000 of federal student loans, and giving everyone below a certain income level stimulus funds during the pandemic.
Afterwards Don and I went on the Freedom's Paradox tour with a guide who so reminded me for Ashley's 8th grade homeroom teacher, Miss Shields. It was a combination of physical looks and the fire in their eyes when they talk about history. She talked about slavery in new ways, and told us on Sundays they have Native Americans sharing their history. She also told us about the Williamsburg ap -- which has a feature showing you where different historical figures are at any given point. We could have used this when Peter Pan was entertaining fans in Fantasyland, then
again, it would have diminished the fun of stumbling upon Peter Pan playing hide and seek or chasing pirates. After our talk, I tried to use the ap to find George Wythe (the only person not "occupied"). Alas, I think he buried his GPS tracker in the grounds near the Presbyterian church behind the Gaol because he was no where to be found. Instead I heard an impromptu play with members of the audience selected to argue about slavery with a Redcoat trying to encourage them to side with the British and fight. I also stopped in the millinery and pharmacy.
On Sunday we went to church at Bruton Parish Episcopal Church. After lunch we ended our historic time listening to a Native American talking about the lives of his ancestors in the late 18th century. As we are very familiar with the lives of the Lenape pre-colonization (thanks to Ashley's passion with Churchville Nature Century), I found his talk fascinating. There were many different sub groups because they ruled with 100% agreement of the members (from the age they understood). Those not agreeing, would leave and form a new subgroup with the members who agreed with them. A democracy was a foreign concept to them, just as allowing everyone to have a say was a foreign concept to the 18th century white men. The Native Americans of the time dressed as the white men, and lived among them. When whites tried to take them to be slaves, they simply left and returned to their group. The whites did form schools where Native American boys were sent to be "educated." One such school was on the grounds of the College of William and Mary. They forced them to assimilate.
Soon enough it was time to drive back to New Jersey.
I want to Ride My Bicycle (with Don)
Thanks to this blog, I know five years ago Don fulfilled a dream and bought a tandem bicycle. This is a great way for me to keep track of when things happened in our lives.
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The drive up felt as if we encountered every driver leaving work early on a holiday weekend excited about enjoying the finally perfect summer weather, which is ironic because we thought by going to Tarrytown, NY we would avoid that kind of traffic -- after all we were going nowhere near the Jersey Shore. I suppose there are other places to vacation.
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Don steers. I sit in the back. I do pedal. I am also in charge of the bell to alertpeople we are about the pass them. With this ride, I also enjoyed taking pictures. The new bridge is stunning. It added a wide 3.6 mile bike / pedestrian lane (3.1 miles over water, the rest over land). Based on how much car traffic we encountered, we expected to have a lot of sightseers on the bridge, too. We did see a couple of Orthodox Jewish families riding their bicycles, but mostly we saw individuals going for a training run / ride.
After crossing the Hudson River we locked up the tandem and walked around Tarrytown, also known as Sleepy Hollow. The gift shops had plenty of merchandise with "I lost my head at Sleepy Hollow," but mostly it is a charming town with a walkable Main Street and a vibrant community. I went in a few thrift stores (mindful that any purchases would have to go on me).
The sun set behind the mountains behind where we parked our car. It was a pretty ride back.
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A couple of days later we took the tandem out again, this time closer to home. We parked at Washington Crossing State Park (NJ) and rode the tandem to the Scudders Falls Bridge to Washington Crossing State Park (PA) and back again. It is a 7 mile circuit, but since we did not cross the bridge, it was a 12 mile route.
Earlier this year, after much anticipation in the cycling community, the new Scudders Falls Bridge opened with a bike / pedestrian lane. It also added a toll for drivers using I-95 to cross into Pennsylvania (there are no tolls to enter New Jersey using any of the bridges or tunnels, there seems to be a subliminal message). There was talk of adding a toll for people to ride their bicycles or walk across the bridge. I wonder how they would have handled the fare for a tandem or for someone with a bike trailer. Fortunately they opted out of charging a toll.
Again, I took pictures while Don steered. This time I added in selfies. Due to the lack of rain, and an attempt to redirect some of the water, the canal was very dry. I was surprised to see an egret and some turtles. As with the other ride, we did not see a lot of activity even though the weather was perfect. It was ours to enjoy at our own pace.
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| The NJ side |
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| Crossing into PA |
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| The path is red on the PA side |
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| Must duck beneath some of the bridges. Don suggested a murder mystery plot where the person in the front does not warn the person in the back and they smack their head on the underpass. Hmm.. he might have an idea here. |
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| Back to the Scudders Falls Bridge |
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| Pretty day for cycling |
I should note when Don does this ride he starts from home, but I'm not up for that much cycling. I think I need a better seat as that is the part that hurts me the most after (and during) a ride.
Covid Booster Shot #5
Last weekend the CDC approved a booster shot which includes protection against the Omicron variant. Omicron B.1 was first detected in November 2021. Ten months later Omicron B.4 and B.5 have become the dominant variants. This booster protects against the original strain and Omicron B.4 and B.5. To me, it is a no brainer decision. I'm actually surprised when people tell me they are not sure if they are going to get it.
I'm going to lay out some of my thoughts:
1) I have avoided Covid thus far and want to continue doing so.
2) I know people who have recently caught Covid after years of being careful. I have not been careful.
3) I was talking to a woman whose 93-year old mother caught Covid and landed in the hospital for six days with it. A friend's father caught Covid in the hospital and soon died from complications. I do not want to be responsible for someone else getting it and possibly dying.
4) It is covered by insurance (no money out of my pocket).
5) We could time when we would potentially be sick from side effects.
As for the side effects, Don slept most of the next day. I still went for a walk with a friend and book club, but my arm was sore and I had a headache (Tylenol helped with both of those symptoms). It did wear me out. This was my first time having a Moderna booster (the other four shots were with Pfizer). Don has a stronger reaction to Moderna than to Pfizer (his first two shots were with Moderna, then two with Pfizer, now this).
Who knew the debate between Pfizer vs. Moderna would rival the Coke vs. Pepsi or Stella Artois vs. Jupiler debates?
Monday, September 5, 2022
Birthday Celebration
Two years ago we drove into New York City and walked around on my birthday. We were still very much stuck in a pandemic. I wanted to see New York to be able to remember what it was like when everything shut down. I decided what I wanted was lunch at a nice restaurant. As we were walking around the Meatpacking District we saw a restaurant overflowing with outdoor dining -- at the time, New York City had not reopened indoor dining, the vaccine was still a few months away. We stumbled upon Pastis, a restaurant overflowing with outdoor dining. Unfortunately, they did not have any openings. I turned to the hostess and said "but, it's my birthday" and gave a sad face. She asked me to wait 15 minutes to see if there was a no-show.
Fortunately there was.
While there, I stepped inside to use the Ladies Room. I immediately felt transformed back to Paris. I wanted to return and dine inside. Last year, we did just that after we went to the Van Gogh exhibit. Unfortunately by going later in the day they were out of quiche, so I had to find something else to savor. It truly was not hard.
We made reservations to visit The Morgan Library & Museum after lunch. The weather was perfect so we walked along the High Line and took our time. We arrived 20 minutes early. I'm not convinced we had to make a reservation, but they are strongly encouraged. They let us in early. It was not crowded.
I first learned about the Morgan Library while reading The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict, an historical fiction novel based on J. Pierpont Morgan's librarian (Bella de Costa Greene) who acquired most of his treasures in the early 20th century. She was passing for white and lived in fear of being found out. On a tiny plaque inside a temporary exhibit, it said JP Morgan knew her father (who was a black activist), and likely knew she was black.
The museum had a couple of other exhibits taking place. One was about building the library: Building the Bookman's Paradise. Another was on the 100th anniversary of James Joyce's Ulysses. As part of this exhibit, they have a record of him reading his book (must be excerpts, or reading something else) -- a book on record long before audio books caught on. There was a link to listen to part of it on your own device.
The other exhibit was on Ray Johnson's photography. Of note, there were a couple of pictures we identified as from downtown Princeton. Don was attracted to his photo booth art -- reminded us of a subplot in Amelie. He photographed "real life" near his home in Long Island, NY. Between 1992-1994 he used 137 disposable cameras to capture images. He committed suicide in 1995 leaving behind hundreds of envelopes with developed film in them.
Another Broadway Ticket Win!
In 2016 Lin-Manuel and Hamilton made famous a tradition started by Jonathon Larson's Rent: offering last minute tickets at a reasonable price so those who couldn't afford Broadway ticket prices could still enjoy the show. With Rent, it became a cultural phenomenon for "RENT-head" fans to get in line super early to purchase a $20 rush ticket that day to see the show.
From Wikipedia:
RENT-heads[edit]
Rent gathered a following of fans who refer to themselves as "RENT-heads." The name originally referred to people who would camp out at the Nederlander Theater for hours in advance for the discounted $20 rush tickets to each show, though it generally refers to anyone who is obsessed with the show.[28] These discounted tickets were for seats in the first two rows of the theater reserved for sale by lottery two hours prior to each show.[28][29] Other Broadway shows have followed Rent's example and now also offer cheaper tickets in efforts to make Broadway theater accessible to people who would otherwise be unable to afford the ticket prices.
With Hamilton there were two options: the $10 lottery, and standing in line for rush / cancellation line tickets. In the beginning people would camp out for DAYS to get rush tickets. They finally had to put a stop to that, and set times of day when people could stand in line. The first time we tried for the lottery, Don won the tickets. Other times we stood in line for the rush tickets -- but never overnight.
Now that Broadway has reopened, we have been seeing more shows. In order to fund this habit, we are buying them via Rush tickets (both in-person and online), and the show's lottery. We have scored tickets to see Music Man (with Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster), Mrs. Doubtfire, Plaza Suite, and most recently Beetlejuice (with Alex Brightman). I have had a few losses, but more wins than losses, perhaps because there are a lot of people not ready to return to, as the Hamilton lyric goes, "the greatest city in the world."
What is frustrating is each show has its own set of rules. For Plaza Suite I learned at 2 pm I won tickets to the 7 pm show. I had one hour to purchase the ticket, then high tail it the train station. The adrenaline rush was awesome. I went by myself and floated to the theater. For Beetlejuice, we learned at 3 pm the night before the 8 pm show. We were already planning to be in NYC to celebrate my birthday with brunch at Pastis and touring the Morgan Library, so all we had to do was find things to do in New York, eat dinner, and see a show.
Living only 90 minutes from Broadway, this adds to the excitement. Since Broadway reopened, I have seen: Pass Over, Six, Harry Potter, Music Man, Mrs. Doubtfire, Paradise Square, Into the Woods, Plaza Suite, and Beetlejuice, with ticket prices ranging from $40 to $99. Paradise Square was my favorite -- see it if you ever have the opportunity. It had the total package: unknown story rooted in history, incredible dancing, moveable sets, powerful songs, and detailed costumes. It is a shame it closed so early.
A couple of notes on Beetlejuice:
* The audience was really into the show! Some came dressed as Beetlejuice--wearing black and white striped outfits. Many hooted and laughed. I feel the lead, Alex Brightman, fed off of the energy. I read in the movie Michael Keaton adlibbed 90% of his lines. I wonder what percentage Alex Brightman adlibs on a regular night. The move the crowd responded, the funnier he became.
* I don't know how they did the set. In the early scenes the giant house was decorated as boring middle class Americana (which I do like), then it transformed to a sleek modern like, then to the funhouse Beetlejuice black and white style. This is a show that would be even more fun to watch from back stage. There were sets other than the house, including the attic and outdoors.
* The second act seemed long. Felt like it could use more work to make it snappier. Maybe it needed more Alex Brightman.
The show is high energy and lots and lots of fun. I just don't know how it would work without the lead. It is as hard to imagine as a remake of Aladdin without Robin Williams. Sure it can happen, but you need just the right person to carry it.
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