Medina - Akron - June 2011

Last Thursday evening was Ladies Night on the Square in Medina and Nancy invited me to drive over with her to take in the sights and have a little late dinner.  Medina truly is a charming small town with lovely shops lining the square and people wandering in and out.  The square was crammed full of things for kids to do - ring tossing, coloring contests, and other games. 

Most of the shops and restaurants lining the square were open for business and were enticing guests in their doors by serving up little munchies and wine for the adults.  We often ponder over how these little places manage to stay afloat in today's harsh economic climate. Many shops sell cutsie little decorative items that are very adorable to look at in shops, but seldom practical or appropriate for our homes.  There are times when I consider setting up little displays similar to the shops, but then I stop and think - hey, someone has to clean all that stuff - and the idea pops right smack out of my head. 

We strolled through the Potomac Bead Shop where beads hung in rainbows of colors on walls of two floors where ladies were busy working projects for Ladies Night.  We also stopped in the Medina Gem Company where they had some of the most stunning jewelry on display I've seeen in a while.  Nancy and I were both attracted to a glorious necklace that priced out at a little over $2,300.  I was embarassed to ask if they would sell me earring backs (14K gold of course), but the proprietor was most accomodating and happily sold me four clasps.  She was as nice to me as if I had purchased the $2300 necklace - what a lovely woman. 

Since dinner was the main objective of the evening, we asked for recommendations from shop keepers and were directed a little bit out of town to Thyme the Restaurant, located just beyond the main square on North Court Street.  This isn't really walkable from the square, but it's well worth the drive north to find this little gem. 

The 65-seat spot features what Chef John Kolar calls “contemporary cuisine with worldly influences”.  We didn't have difficulty in deciding to choose a table on the charming front patio but we did have some problems in choosing our dinner.  The menu is full of wonderful items such as Pan Roasted Thyme Chicken, Lobster Newburgh Fettuccini and Chipotle Cream Steamed Mussels.  We were both intrigued by the Grilled Chicken Mac 'n Cheese (although neither of us ended up ordering it).  I settled on the Warm Asparagus salad and a small Italian pizza - both delicious paired up with the Malbac wine I ordered.  I'm not sure what Nancy ordered but it must have been good because when I stole a glance at her plate it was completely clean. 
 
Although it had threatened rain all evening, we'd spent the entire time walking the square under sunny skies.  It only begin raining during our dinner and we moved to a table away from the edge of the patio, but it really was a lovely setting and a terrific meal.  A perfect summer evening. 

DUCKY DAY
Saturday morning was Canal Day at the Cascade Locks Park, "Akron's Urban Park".  Set over at the new Schumacher Cascade Mills site, which is located on North Street across from the Mustill Store, there were a few dozen craft vendors set up and several tents with things for the kids to do.  Today was the Park's annual springtime fund raiser and their 4th Duck Derby. 

CLPA has a unique partnership with Metro Parks, Serving Summit County and the City of Akron allowing them to promote the historical value of the park while also encouraging residents of Summit County and beyond to get out and about and enjoy nature. Their stated mission is to preserve, protect and promote Cascade Locks Park along locks 10-16 of the Ohio & Erie Canal.

I've been volunteering for these annual events for many years, as early as the second picnic back in 2002.  They've morphed a bit from ice cream socials to barbecues, and now into Duck races in the canal.  This little park association is truly a grass roots organization and the people are like a family.  I've enjoyed being a peripheral part of them for so long and look forward to staying involved for many years to come.

CHICAGO!
Saturday night I went to Chicago!  No,  not the town, the stage play.  Saturday was the first of our ladies summer season at Porthouse Theater and the show was Chicago!  We had a lovely evening for our regular picnic and performance.  This year there are 11 in our group (we seem to add one or two each summer).  We all brought along some food to share and some wine.  We have tables reserved in the pavilion (in case of rain) and we set up in there. 
 
This week we had shrimp, meatball sandwiches, sushi, waldorf salad, ginger cookies, rice krispie treats, melon in proscuitto, pasta salad, little meatballs, orange fluffy salad and 4 or 5 bottles of wine.  Yee goodness, we ate well!  Conversation flowed nicely as did the wine - and I'm not intimating one had anything to do with the other. 
 
What I like about this group is our diversity.  Although we're all about the same age (40's - 60's), we come from many backgrounds and everyone has something to contribute to the conversations. 
 

This is our 5th summer at Porthouse enjoying picnics prior to the show and this seems to have caught on to many others in the audience.  The first couple of years we did not reserve spaces and yet had no difficulties finding tables on the grounds.  Each summer there seems to be more and more tables set up, each with a brightly colored umbrella for their patrons to use.  This summer there is even a new pavilion for additional seating - and they're all filled! 
 
I think this is a fantastic way to stretch a simple theater experience into a full evening of enjoyment.  That being said, our next performance in July will find us over at Sarah's Vineyard prior to the show.  As much fun as it is to prepare our own picnic, it's just as much fun to let someone else do the pampering! 
 
This week the show was phenomanal!  Directed by Terri Kent with choreography by Mary Ann Black, the production was lively and well done in the space allowed.  The music was wonderful under the direction of Jonathan Swoboda.  There is a terrific full review by blogger and local critic Roy Berko here.  My personal opinion is that Dylan Ratell who played Mary Sunshine stole each scene he was in - yes, WOW!  Also, although I thought Ms. Black's portrayal of Roxie was spot on, she felt miscast in the part that seemed to require a younger actor. 
 
I'm looking forward to our next performance which will be The Sunshine Boys.  Anyone out there who hasn't had a Porthouse experience yet needs to get out and get there!

Mansfield and Columbus - June 2011

Saturday and a good portion of Sunday found this Old Biddy and a buddy down in Columbus once again.  After our trip last spring to the Short North, it's been on my to-do list to get back down to the Worthington area for a weekend.

This is where we ate this week.

Nancy and I set out Saturday morning bright and early with the thought of stopping in Mansfield for breakfast.  We did this last time and had a charming time at the Coney Island Diner.  Thinking we were duplicating our stop, we came upon the town square in Mansfield and promptly found Coney Island Inn Diner across the square with parking directly in front.  Once through the front door we realized we were in a different place but stuck around anyway for a pretty good breakfast and some nice conversation.  



This is where we ate last time in
Mansfield. How many Coney Islands
can one little town have?

It's hard to imagine a town the size of Mansfield having two distinct diners with nearly identical names, but that must be part of the quirkiness of smaller towns.  I had corned beef hash at both locations and will give two thumbs up to the first meal at the Coney Island Diner.  However, the Coney Island Inn Diner was a bit friendlier so I'd suggest tossing a coin if you are trying to choose between the two.  My next trip down will be to spend the entire day in the Mansfield area.  I really want to see the reformatory and get out to the gardens at the Kingwood Center.  Maybe yet this summer.......



Vendors lined up along High Street

 WORTHINGTON BOUND
Once we got back on the road we headed directly to Worthington which is a northern suburb of Columbus.  Founded in 1803, Worthington was one of the first planned communities in the midwest. 

We came upon the center of town during their Memorial Day weekend celebration and there were vendors lining the main street selling things ranging from jewelry to plants to farm produce.  One stand was selling maple syrup products and I picked up a small package of maple sugar (which is for a specific recipe I saw that looked really terrific.....wonder where that was?)  We parked at the northern end of town and wandered the streets and shops, stopping for a break at a local coffee shop where we found a table out on the sidewalk and watched the locals stroll by. 

Cupcakes at the Blue Frost!

High Street is the main drag through town and shops and pubs line this central part of town known as Old Worthington.  Consignment shops, dress shops, pubs, coffee houses, a wine shop and several little nick-nack shops were all open for the busy day. 

There were lots of fun things to see and, for today, this appeared to be the place to be seen if you were a local.  Nancy found a fantastic little dresser in one of the shops that she was fascinated with and I was taken by the Irish Chocolate Guiness Cupcake I found at the Blue Frost cupcake shop.

OFF THE BEATEN PATH
A couple hours later, we headed back to the car and took a drive through the community.  I had found mention of Rush Creek Village on the internet and we wound our way through it ooohing and awing over the houses.  Rush Creek Village is a community in which each house is uniquely designed for the lifestyle of the homeowner, but also fits into an architecturally integrated pattern, inspired by the organic architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright.

The quilt pictured here was likely the
largest of the group at about 3ft x 4ft. 

A LITTLE ART INFUSION
After our tour of the Village, we headed a bit north to the McConnell Arts Center to view the newly installed Basted Vision exhibit.  According to the website, "Basted Vision is the latest in an ever growing body of work by Off Our Blocks, an informal group of fiber artists who are basted together through a shared interest in the creation of art quilts".   They were lovely and quite unique.  Vibrant colors on most, some subdued and softer. 

After the Art Center we headed to our hotel for a quick refresh and then were back on the road again, this time going south on High Street seeking somewhere to settle in for a drink and a chance to do some more people watching.  We landed at Mad Mex mexican restaurant on High Street in the South Campus neighborhood where we snagged a table outside and ordered a lovely, cool sangria to sip on. 

The crowds were mostly college students who had stayed in town for the holiday weekend and the atmosphere was laid back....really laid back.  Service was slow as they were shorthanded, but it was fine since we had nowhere to be until our dinner reservations at 7:30.  We ordered a late lunch of their Picadippa (3 of their dips with chips) and a plate of fish tacos.  I'm becoming quite a fan of fish tacos and these were delicious.  Grilled talapia in a crispy, freshly fried tortilla. One of the dips was an unusual item made with pumpkin seeds, garlic and peppers in hummus that was very tasty and might be worth trying at home sometime.

Where are all the PEOPLE???

With our leisurely lunch over, we headed back to the Worthington area and a quick shopping stop at Worthington Square.  This older shopping center is absolutely beautiful and I was shocked that we were the only two in the entire complex on a Saturday afternoon.  With stores like Talbots, Chico's, Black and White and Jos A Banks, this seemed like it ought to be a hopping place but I think a bowling ball tossed down the center court wouldn't have disturbed anything. 

DINNER ON GRANDVIEW
We had dinner reservations at Spagio's on Grandview Avenue.  The on-line menu looked very intriguing and we assumed from the description that this would be a bit of an upscale restaurant.  We arrived a little bit early to find people strolling up and down Grandview.  Lots of people.  Families with their kids.  Families with their dogs.  Lots and lots of people and cars cruising up and down looking for a parking space. 

It might be a testament to my clean living and sunny disposition that we found a parking spot directly in front of Spagio's.  OK - probably it was only due to sheer luck, but still, I pulled in front of the valet guy who said "ma'am, feel free to pull up into the next spot and it's free for the evening".  Wow.  I was totally anticipating paying $4 for valet but hey, free is ALWAYS better. 

Spagio's - our table was straight
up front by the big windows.

Spagio's is a bit of a strange place.  They've managed to mix together white table cloths, hammocks hanging from the ceiling, fine art and oddball posters into one location.  The service was very good, the menu a little out of the ordinary as a mixture of pacific rim and European, and our seats directly in front of the main windows were perfect for watching the multitudes wander by. 

My meal began with a Roasted Red Beet Napoleon appetizer- layers of sliced beets and whipped goat cheese served with candied walnuts, arugula, and an herb vinaigrette.  Really very yum!  The sweetness of the beets with the tartness of the salad is a perfect combo - no wonder these are classic pairings.

My entree decision was between the Bacon-Wrapped Berkshire Pork Tenderloin - with roasted smashed red skin potatoes, collard greens, and a jalapeño buerre blanc sauce or the Grilled Chicken and Spinach-Filled Ravioli - served with Parisian carrots, sugar snap peas, tomatoes, creamy pesto sauce, all topped with shaved Parmesan Reggiano.  The pasta won.  And it was very good.  It took Nancy and I a little while to define the little round orange balls in our pasta as carrots.  I have no idea how they managed to get carrot balls created but it was a unique (at least for us) addition to the plates and a little whimsy while we chased them around the plate with a fork. 

AT THE HOP!
Once dinner was over and we wandered back outside, we discovered that we had stumbled into the monthly Grandview Hop.  According to their web site, "the Grandview Hop is a celebration of all of the best that Grandview has to offer. Come check out the unique mix of food, drinks, shopping, live music, art, and fun along Grandview Avenue between 1st and 5th Avenues. The Grandview Hops will be held the last Saturday of the month from April through November from 5 to 9pm". 

Seated at the front windows of Spagio's on Third, we were definitely in the center of it all.  Across the street was a live band.  Up and down the street were vendors selling jewelry, handmade soaps and oils and many other things.  Once we got outside we decided to join the parade.  Up the street we discovered a newly renovated movie theater showing the new Johnny Depp Pirates movie.  Nancy is a big movie goer, but I am not.  However it's really hard to pass up a chance to see Johnny Depp on a big screen, so it we went in for the 9:30 showing. 

I had a nice chat with Jennifer (who, along with her husband David, are owners of the Grandview), about their renovations and plans for the future.  Since I hadn't been there before I had no concept of how far they'd come, but the place was clean, modern and comfortable.  Oddly enough, even with the hundreds of people that had packed the streets earlier, there were exactly four people in the theater for the movie.  What surprised me even more was that when the movie was over around midnight, the lobby was filled with people.  Jennifer explained that they were getting ready to host a free midnight movie (The Terror with Boris Karloff) and people flocked in for that sort of thing.  Frankly if I hadn't already been exhausted, I might have asked if we could have stayed for that too.

The patio at Le Chatelaine in
Old Worthington

A LAZY SUNDAY

Sunday morning was actually the main reason we were in Worthington for the weekend.  We had looked forward to having an al fresco breakfast at Le Chatelaine French Bakery  and were not at all disappointed.  We'd stopped here on a whim last year and were so happy to have found this that we made a point to return.  This is a gem of a place with a beautiful dining room inside (imagine sitting in front of a cozy stone-faced wood fire in the winter in their main dining area) and ample seating outside for warmer weather. 

La Chatelaine opens its doors on Sundays at 8am to offer fresh baked croissants, beignets or bread and its variety of coffees, teas or juices. You can also choose eggs with roasted potatoes and bacon or sausages, or specialty omelettes, as well as quiches and fresh fruits. Just inside the front door is a pastry case filled with these tempting treats - apple turnovers, croissants, boules, baguettes, Napoleons and cute little chocolate mice.  You have to stop and stare at the beautiful tarts lining the next case but a little further on is the breakfast buffet. 

This morning I chose a tender spinach quiche and fresh fruit pour ma petit dejeuner.  Tender, flaky crust with eggs cooked just so - fantastique!  We settled in on the patio with all the others who were enjoying their morning papers and cafe and felt very "French" smack in the middle of Ohio.



Millersburg courthouse as seen from
front window of a shop across
the street.



HEADING HOME THE HARD WAY

We had tentatively put the Barbecue Festival in Columbus proper on our schedule for Sunday but the temperature was already well into the 80's and sunny by 10am and Nancy nor I are very well suited to the heat.  A quick consultation and we decided to simply head home but to take the "scenic route" rather than the interstate.  We headed out of town on Route 62 and wound our way up through Millersburg right around lunchtime.

Parlor of the Millersburg Hotel

Amish country is a big destination and I've been many, many times, however I think this was my first stop in Millersburg.  Much like Wooster, there is a charming downtown area with a beautiful old courthouse, a few antique shops and a restaurant or two.  We strolled down the main street and wandered through the open shops and decided to have lunch at the

If you get the impression after reading this entry that we managed to eat our way through the weekend - you'd be accurate in your assessment.  However, I'm proud to say that I still managed to loose an additional 2 pounds so I must be doing something right. 

Weekends like this are always fun and relaxing.  Getting away from worry about family or house projects is good therapy but I think it might be time to stay close to home for a few weeks to clear away some of the things that need done.  Two fun projects in the immediate future - insulation installation in the upstairs sewing room and getting the garden planted out in Springfield.  Oh boy - can't wait.

Akron and Kent - Theater Season - February 2011

Winter time is no less entertaining than summer when it comes to theater and concerts in the Akron area. Sometimes they cost a bit more since the venues are inside rather than in the great outdoors, but trust me, there are no end to the options to keep me running hither and yon over the snow covered roads.

Sixth floor theater at Greystone - new
home to the Actor's Summit Theater

Last week I took in my first play at the new home of the Actor’s Summit Theater on the sixth floor of Greystone in downtown Akron. Friends and I went for a ride in “Becky’s New Car”. This new play, commissioned just two years ago, takes place in Seattle where Becky lives and works for a local auto dealer. Although happily married, Becky accidentally becomes entangled with a recently widowed, well-to-do gentleman who gets the mistaken impression that Becky is also widowed. The confusion goes from there and Becky takes us on a sometimes amusing, but still thought-provoking journey as she finds her way through this dilemma, at times with a little help from the audience. Telling you more would be giving away the plotline and frankly I think you should see this yourself.

As always, Actor’s Summit puts on a nice show and the new location adds a touch of ambiance to the performance compared to their last location.  

After our matinee performance on Sunday, dinner was served in the third floor Garden Room. I’m used to eating lunch here on Tuesdays, so having an opportunity to try out their prix fixe menu for dinner was too good to pass up. For $25 (all inclusive, except alcohol) we had our choice of four entrées. Between the six of us we tried them all and declared all main courses delicious. Although the vegetable sides seemed under seasoned and most likely directly from a can, the rest of the meals were quite good.

GREASE is the Word!

SLIDING ON OVER TO KENT STATE THEATER

Wednesday evening completed my third in a ticket series for the season at Kent State Theater with a performance of Grease. The Kent State Theater department does a terrific job and this was no exception.  The students were energetic and most carried off the singing and dancing terrifically.  My toes tapped along to songs like "Greased Lightning", "Summer Love" and "Hopelessly Devoted to You" and I could hardly keep my hands still during the rendition of "We GoTogether" when they started with Ramala Ding Dong, Boogity Boogity, Boogity.  What fun!

Hand jive baby!

Although the live band was a bit loud and at times we had difficulties hearing the lead singers over the music, in general it was a very delightful performance.  Only having ever seen Grease in its big screen version, the stage production was an adjustment.  With limited scenery and no fancy gimmicks like car races in the waterways, the stage crew still did very well and after a while I stopped drawing comparisons to the movie version. 

I'm already looking forward to seeing some of these kids in the summer productions out at Porthouse. 

WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE STARLIGHT BALLROOM?

BIG BANDS

This past Sunday a friend and I attended a show at the Stage Door at EJ Thomas Hall. First, let me say this is a pretty cool venue for small shows. We're sitting directly on the stage and the performers are sitting basically at the edge of the stage with their backs to what would normally be the seated audience. This makes for a cozy atmosphere and I've now been there a couple of times for some great music. Sunday the University Jazz Ensemble lead by Jack Schantz served up some terrific ballroom big band sounds complete with a dance floor where couples twirled and swayed around the room.



Oh, and did I mention that my favorite piano dude played also, Joe Augustine. Smooth!
These kids are pretty talented and they did a terrific job of letting me close my eyes and picture movie scenes of Tommy Dorsey, Artie Shaw and Duke Ellington lording over ballroom floors with names like The Starlight and The Rainbow Room. I think that this setting would make a fantastic fund-raiser event and I'm going to see if I can find a way to make that happen.


One reason I like this idea so much is that I can picture it happening at Greystone. The Summit County CVB took over management of this venue recently and have re-opened the bar area weeknights from 5-9pm. The bar there is so lovely - all dark panelling and lush carpets - add that to the ballroom area that seats a couple of hundred with a stage up front and I think we have the makings of a 1940's era ballroom. Add a couple of "cigarette girls", someone taking photos of all the lovely couples in their finest atire and how cool would that all be?


WICKED....Again!
My cousins and I headed up to Cleveland to see Wicked. Joyce was a first time attendee and although the rest of us have seen it at least once before, I have to admit that I'd forgotten much of the storyline. As before, the performers are top notch (although I wasn't too enamored of the guy that played the love interest, something was lacking in his enthusiasm) and it's always a pleasure to see talented people earning a living doing what they obviously love to do.

This time I listened more closely to the music and lyrics and, of course, each time to you see something like this you take away a bit more of the more subtle humor of the show. Bravo to all of them, they did a terrific job!

HOLIDAY FESTIVITIES
The first holiday party of the season was at my friend Georjette's on Saturday night. What a crowd! She has a beautiful large home that is perfect for entertaining and she really does up a party! Lots of great food, plenty to drink and people everywhere. It was good to catch up with the gals from the OOAKPR Tea we worked on last June - they're lots of laughs. Sometimes you find that we worked so hard putting the event on that we didn't have much time to enjoy ourselves - when we meet again outside of the planning arena it's good to just be able to laugh and joke around.

Here's the little party favor most of us gals got to take home with us. Bitch Grenache South Australia. I'm not sure who had more fun with this - GT for handing them out or us for being on the receiving end? How cute!

YAPPY HOUR, COACH HOUSE and BASKET CASE

YAPPINESS!
What a hoot! My dear friend Georjette, working with the General Manager at the local Barley House, put together a monthly fund raiser for One of a Kind Pets. Every 2nd Thursday of the month Barley House will offer a Yappy Hour where 15% of all proceeds will be donated to One of a Kind Pets!

Cathy, Georjette and I attended the kick off Yappy Hour last Thursday to see how the place was. This is obviously a college kid hangout with a few local after-hour business folk sprinkled in. With a huge bar and big screen TV’s on the walls, it’s a pretty typical bar. We ordered Cosmopolitans (to Georjette’s exacting instructions) that had both Cathy and Georjette happy. We ordered a plate of BBQ sliders, an order of the pita nachos, and a spinach artichoke dip and they were all excellent!

If you’re in the neighborhood any 2nd Thursdays, please please please stop by – the animals will benefit and you’ll have a fun time.

DEATH TRAP!
Thursday night I attended the first play of the season at Coach House Theater for a performance of Death Trap. This is such a cutie-pie theater, the people are all so friendly and the performance was both funny and surprising. The storyline takes twists and turns with people getting strangled and shot and you just never know for sure who’s trying to kill whom. After 2 glasses of wine at Yappy Hour I was so sleepy I might have dozed off except there were gun shots going off every few minutes and people falling to their "deaths" right in front of me. Nancy said she was tempted to get up and help the characters since we were so close to the action in the front row. Maybe next time we'll get seats a little further away.

The next performance will be “You Can't Take It With You” which is an old screwball comedy written back in the 30’s. The troup will get a chance to sing and dance for this one so it will be interesting to see them pull it off on this tiny little stage, I'm definately looking forward to it.

LONGABERGER BASKETS
I took a bus trip to visit the Homestead of Longaberger Baskets on Saturday. I guess everyone’s heard of these baskets and seen them at some point - they sell through home parties and in stores all over the place. I’ve never had any interest in them (too expensive for my pocketbook) but when the chance came to join some co-workers on this trip I said yes just for the experience and to spend some time with the gals.

The ladies that organized the trip have done this for several years and had us planned out perfectly. We left early in the morning from Wadsworth and got to the Homestead around 10:30 where we joined at least another 20 busloads of (mostly) women. We spent a couple of hours shopping in the clearance store and I was totally overwhelmed. People were shopping with long lists of baskets that they were looking for accessories for and circling the best bargains searching out deals. The oversized shopping carts where piled high with boxes and baskets.

Although I cannot understand why anyone might pay over $100 for a basket (nor really why anyone would have the nerve to charge that much), I’ll admit they have a pretty nice organization there and they turn out some very lovely baskets. They built up a large industry that seems to support the entire little town of Dresden and they are all very proud of the work they do there.

For the cost of my $140 ticket I received one free 9” square basket, a free casserole dish, the bus ride down and back, breakfast, lunch and dinner. Overall it was quite a bargain - although the bus ride itself was a little excruciating. At the Homestead there are many little shops carrying things like Boyd’s Bears, jewelry, clothing, furniture, kitchen accessories and home decorating items. The grounds are really very nice with gazebos, manicured lawns and gigantic baskets holding 3 foot wide apples. It would be easy to pack a picnic lunch or dinner and eat on the grounds during a shopping trip, although there is a snack bar on the grounds and a restaurant in Dresden that is famous for it’s chicken dinners.

We had a little difficulty with the bus and it managed to stall every few minutes. The two hour ride home took nearly 3 hours but we did get back safely and spirits were high even with the threat of having to walk home hanging over our heads.

It turned out to be a lovely trip and I'm really glad I went. I think it's worth going back again...maybe this time NOT in a bus!

Akron Ohio Summer Nights Under the Stars - July 2009

Do you remember the Beach Boys song about having "fun fun fun 'till her daddy takes the t-bird away"? Well, sometimes I think one of these days someone's gonna take my keys from me and put a stop to all this running around having fun. And maybe someday someone will...once I'm older and grayer, of course. Meanwhile, it was a flurry of activity for the past couple of weekends and my poor car (Robert) didn't see much of the inside of his garage.

The Fourth of July was actually fairly quiet except for a very pleasant evening out at Blossom Music Center under the stars. The Blossom Festival Orchestra played wonderfully and had all our toes tapping to some marching music for the most part. Yes...marching music as in the John Phillip Sussa's marches. And, of course, the standard 1812 Overture with cannon. And fireworks. The place was packed, as usual for the holiday but the crowd disbursed easily after the fireworks and the normally expected exit mess was completely avoided. Kudo's for the venue if they've actually done something proactive to move traffic along so well this year. 

Hey, anyone out there like Mustard Seed Market? A couple of Saturdays ago they celebrated Bluesberry Festival with everything blueberry all over the store and some pretty darned good blues played by a local band out front. This is a great way to eat your way through a food store...blueberry smoothies, blueberry salsa, blueberry muffins, blueberry drinks, blueberry ambrosia...YUM! 

My food buddy Bev was with me and we managed to snag quite a bit to eat...which was a great thing since we were then headed over to our favorite wine shop (Western Reserve Wines http://www.westernreservewines.com/) to work our way through their July 12 under $12. This is a great way to sample a lot of wines all at once to determine your own likes and dislikes. For $5 you can't hardly beat it. For those of you that know me, it would come as no surprise that the white wines are generally not my favorites. So far I've found one that I really like and have purchased several bottles for my wine stash. And normally I run across one or two reds that I like. However this month Kathi outdid herself on the selections and I found 4 that I REALLY liked. The malbecs and tempranillo's really stood out this week. The Laurel Glen Terra Rosa Malbec with a touch of tempranillo was yummy good. They describe it as "robust, mouth-filling and teeth-staining" and oooo they are right on the money! The Dominio De Eguren Codice tempranillo was also luscious. Great stuff to drink alone (by that I mean no food, not no companion) or would stand up to some spicy foods. I'm still partial to my Trumpeter Malbec but these two are right up there for my unsophisticated palate. 

 So not being one to think this made for a full day.....that evening was also Porthouse Theater night with the other lovely ladies....and Grant! And having a slight wine buzz is not a bad way to kick the evening off. These theater nights are one of my favorite ways to spend an evening. We all bring a little food to share, a couple bottles of wine and set up for a picnic before the show. This weekend we saw The Odd Couple...which is still a classic play. I remember seeing this when I was just a little biddy out in Ravenna at the original Carousel Theater and even way back then I thought it was funny. 

 Overall, this was great way to spend a day with friends out and about. So a big ol' bronx cheer to those of you sitting around the house thinking there's nothing to do!