On the Road to Recovery

Late last August, our friend Paul Asselin suffered a massive stroke. No one expected a 44 year-old guy in average health would suddenly be stricken with suck a life-changing event. The doctors discovered a genetic pee-disposition to strokes caused by a blood clot releasing from the heart.

Paul's family held a benefit for him on Saturday night to raise money in an effort to defray some of Paul's medical costs. We went down with our friends Steve and Helen and saw many of our friends from camp who also came to support Paul. Almost 8 months after the stroke, Paul is recovering each day. He has limited movement on the right side of his body, but he can walk. Talking is much more difficult.

We enjoyed seeing him and giving our good wishes for his continued recovery. We got a photo at the event with Paul -- he's looking great!

The local newspapers ran a couple of articles on Paul. I've included them below.

We are looking forward to seeing Paul at camp at least one weekend this summer!

A beautiful day

After a fun-filled day at camp on Saturday, Mike and I were ready for an off-grounds excursion on Sunday. We decided to hit the Ledges and made a late start. We arrived at the beach around 1, did a round of hellos to old friends and hung out. It was great. The weather was perfect, there were a good number of people (but not too many), and we got some sun.

Near the end of the day, my competitive darling must have decided he could top my blister. As we were traversing some rocks, his foot went down wrong and his broke one of his toes (ouch!). On the way to our towels, he stubbed a toe on the other foot. The poor guy was spewing blood.

Fortunately, he is doing ok. He's wrapped his toes and is soldiering along. It kind of messed up wearing his 5 finger shoes though -- the toe wouldn't go in its slot!

Happy Trails

Friday marked the first day of our long-overdue vacation. We decided we needed an active day, so we hiked from the Lee/Beckett town line to Upper Goose Pond on the Appalachian trail. The terrain was pretty aggressive (it was a major workout, steep hiking) and the path was well-trodden.

The day was beautiful and we enjoyed a nice picnic while we admired the view at the pond. The hike out was no less challenging. We were really happy to have the great workout!




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I did have one little foible during the day, which is a little embarrassing. My some rash of poor judgment I decided to wear a pair of Tevas I haven't put on in three years. I felt a large blister on my right foot about a mile and a half into the hike. Knowing there was nothing I could do, I kept going. Mike, my ever-present man scout had an extra pair of socks that I wore out. It made the hiking bearable.

I am on the mend with plenty more activity to come for the week. I'll keep you posted with more tales!

Where's the fire?

Here in the Ghetto, my friends...























And my sweetie









- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

The End of the Camp Season... And Things are Moving Along

We closed up our campsite last Saturday. We were a little leisurely about it this year, working off and on Friday and finishing up by noon on Saturday. We did things a little different this year. Many of the clothes and towels stayed at camp this winter, neatly tucked away in space bags inside of totes. We also left all the plastic cups, cutlery, and plates behind. Dirty laundry (every piece of fabric out an in use, including all bedding) came home along with some things we'll use over the winter.

The way things usually go is that we get home and unload. I do some laundry. After about three weeks the camp stuff gets moved to the areas where it belongs (but not put away). About a month after that I finally get around to storing stuff away. If you are doing the math, that would be around Thanksgiving.

This year I am way ahead (woo hoo!). I had all the laundry done by Sunday. I unpacked the non-perishable food on Sunday and wiped down and tossed old items on every shelf in the pantry and cabinet with food before putting the camp stuff in. Yesterday morning I moved things from the big stack to their appropriate spots, thus freeing up the mud room for vacuuming. Today I not only organized and moved stuff into the attic, I also cleaned up stuff on our landing that had been there since last Fall and created a big pile of trash. Whew!

The camp stuff is now all put away, the landing is organized, and the big guest room is emptied of unnecessary detritus. And the day is still young... I hope to get our queen bed back into the big guest room (it was at Mike's mom's house for the past 2 years) and get the bed all made up this weekend.

Tonight I plan to run a couple of errands, then head home to do the floors (or, rather, have our Scooba do the floors), wash the guest room sheets, and switch out my summer clothes/shoes for winter ones.

It sure is a nice feeling to get things done!

Have a happy day

Another Successful Spaghetto

This past Sunday marked the 26th Spaghetto at camp. Todd, Carolyn, Steve, and Sherry were this year's organizers. It was their first year (after Bob and Carla left at the end of last season) and they did a great job.

Festivities began in the 8 o'clock hour, per the usual routine. Sauce and pasta pots were washed and coated with soap (on the outside to make cleaning easier), the salad tent was erected, the line was staked out, and sauce was poured in the pots. The salad prep team assembled by 11 am and began slicing and dicing the vast array of salad toppings. The first band member arrived before 1, and the rest were there and playing before 2 pm. Volunteers made their toast shortly after 2 pm, then serving began.

301 people, 1 hour 45 minutes, and many smiles later, the meal was complete. Mike took the group photo and we enjoyed the waning hours of the afternoon. Steve and Helen joined the festivities, which made the occasion all the more special. We had a late dinner, went to the fire, to the dance, and then crashed. What a day!

You really should join us if you haven't been to Spaghetto. It is a fun time filled with laughter, friendship, and good times.

Ready, Set, Go!

This is a shot of our fridge on Thursday. I crammed everything (not frozen, canned, or boxed) onto the biggest shelf. By the time you see this blog post the food will be packed into one or more coolers and Mike and I will be headed to camp.

Aside from the yogurt, eggs, cheese, whipping cream, and veggies you can see peeking out are fresh fruits, meat, creme fraiche and more. We better be hungry! In addition to the meal for Sunday afternoon (Spaghetto) and Monday morning (worker's breakfast) being taken care of, we are have prime rib at the clubhouse Saturday. So why is there so much food? Dunno. Mike wasn't there to police me. I got food for company (you haven't seen the frozen food :) ) and for just in case.

It'll get eaten. Really.

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words...

We went to camp last weekend. The weather was gray, which was appropriate to the mood with Senator Kennedy's funeral. I looked outside during the Mass and knew I had to capture these scenes.

 

 

I thought the fog that was rolling off the mountains while the windmill turned was beautiful.

A Great Time in Newport (RI)

Mike and I started off last weekend with a trip to the Sole Proprietor for dinner (lobster salad sandwich -- extra yum!), then we headed out to camp. We ended up driving through a deluge in spots and arrived to a quiet campground. We watched the first few innings of the horrible Yankees vs. Red Sox game (Red Sox lost 20-11), then just hung out.

By Saturday morning we had decided that since the rain was set into the Berkshires and it was sunny at home, we'd beat feet back. Steve and Helen had mentioned a trip to Newport Saturday afternoon and were still willing to have us along. We all wanted to see the big waves from Hurricane Bill, about 100 miles east of the coast.

The four of us headed out around 3 pm. We stopped at Beavertail State Park in Jamestown to look at the waves. The surf was pretty impressive.

I like these pictures of Mike, so had to include them!

Helen and I also took the time to explore the lighthouse museum. It was a really neat place, complete with a fourth-order Fresnel lens that was replaced by a rotating beacon in 1991.

Next, we headed over to the Brenton Point State Park in Newport. The waves were crashing like crazy there, but that didn't prevent the kite fliers from enjoying the breeze. At that point we realized the memory in Mike's camera was not fully inserted while we were at Beavertail. The only photos we got were the ones above. He righted the memory and got some more shots of Brenton Point.

We were hungry for dinner at that point and decided to head to downtown Newport. Busker's Irish Pub had available seats and turned out to be a great place for dinner. Mike and I got the Shepherd's Pie, while Steve got Chicken Marsala and Helen got the Garlic Herb Chicken. We gave four thumbs up!

We rounded out the night by walking around the downtown and stopping for gelato at Cold Fusion. It gave us the energy for the ride back home. Hmm, ok, I slept on the ride back home... But it gave me energy to stay up with Mike until 3 am after we got home!!!

Fun Weekend

Please don't let the lack of posts let you think something is amiss in our little world. We've been having a good time, and that has kept me from having time for blogging!

We took Friday as a vacation day and headed to camp for a long weekend.  We got up Friday morning ready for an adventure. I starting with an attempt to make Aebelskivers, a Norweigan treat, for breakfast. The experiment ended up being a messy flop, but we had fun all the same. I tried two batches before giving up and make a giant pancake for two with the remaining batter.

Next, we headed off for a hike to Rounds Mountain.



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We used to make the hike, top to bottom, in one and a half hours. We knew the path would be overgrown, but gave it a shot.

We greatly underestimated the degree of over-growth. The path was barely passable. It was covered with weeds and briar coated plants that reached out and snagged us.  It took us about 40 minutes to cut a trail 1/2 mile long. Mike used this feet instead of the clearly needed machete or scythe that we did not bring. He was covered with cuts and blood and we were both drenched in sweat when we decided to turn around and bail.

We got back to camp only to realize we'd both being cut to ribbons. Even though I trailed Mike, my fragile skin looked worse for the wear. Below is a photo showing part of the damage. It was taken 24 hours after the hike.

That part of my legs didn't actually look too bad... Luckily, a few soaks later and I am looking much better.

Our next adventure was a trip to Bob's to find out the extent of damage to our trailer. We noticed a wet carpet in the bedroom. They investigated and found that a trim piece had dried out caulking that was letting water wash into the insulation below the trailer. It all has to be replaced, as well as removing and replacing some caulking around the outside. Fortunately the damage was caught very early on. We were lucky.

We headed back to camp and ended up having happy hour with friends. The time was happy and fun until Mike was trying to staple a tablecloth to a table using a staple gun and stapled his thumb instead. Ouch! He didn't even blink, he just pulled the 1/2" staple out of his thumb. He was really hurting on the inside. Fortunately, the healing process seems to be going smoothly. No swelling, no discoloration, no temperature. The site is very sensitive when he hits it wrong and his outer thumb is partially numb. He may or may not go to the doctor (boys).

We hung out at the fire and had a nice evening Friday night, then off to bed! Saturday was the Ghetto event, a pig roast. We needed to rest up. The event ended up being a lot of fun. There was a corn hole championship with a $50 first prize. Food was good and socializing was great.

We came home Sunday in time to have lunch, go for ice cream, cut the grass, wash the cars, and wax the Accord before dinner. Whew! What a weekend!

We hope you had fun, too! Smiles!

Wonderful Weekend -- and We're Only 1/2 Way Through!

We have had a truly wonderful weekend. The best part? It is only Sunday morning!

Michael had Friday off and I left work an hour early. We went out to dinner with Pat at Wildwood Steakhouse in Marlborough. Dinner was excellent. As we sat there eating, a giant -- and I mean, giant, cake went by us. It was probably 12" in diameter and 5 layers high. We were shocked. We asked the waitress about it, and she told us, "Oh, that is our chocolate cake. We cut it into 5 pieces and serve it." What?! Pat and I agreed, we had to share a piece of this cake.

Isn't that just amazing? We each had about 15% of the piece and took the rest home.

After our wonderful dinner, we went back to Pat's house and put up her new Christmas tree. It is very pretty. We decorated it together, then headed home.

Yesterday was especially fun because it was mostly spur of the moment. Michael, Pat, and I went down to the Reed & Barton factory in Taunton for a big sale. It was amazing. There were all kinds of deals to be had and the shoppers were very serious. I look forward to going again!

We went to the Erskine Open House in Paxton next. Pat got to see the Scottish Highland cows and the new sheep. Louise's glass shop was going full tilt, and everything was lovely. We were thrilled to see Alison (with her dogs Kaylee and Flash) and Rick and Vicky, too. It was a nice mini-get together of camp friends. I think Michael's mom enjoyed meeting everyone and getting into the Christmas spirit.

We stopped at a nusery on the way home and picked up our Christmas tree. We'll put it up today. Then we finally headed back to Northborough. We took Pat home, but we didn't go home yet.... Oh, no.

It was now time for us to run errands. A stop at BJs garnered some needed supplies. Then we refortified at West Side Grill. While there, Mike and I stragtegized our remaining tasks. We wanted to go to the adult superstore, Target, and Lowes. Mike creatively put it this way: "Toys for Tarts, Toys for Tots, and Toys for Mice." See what I mean? His powers of language and observation crack me up every time ;)

We finally made it home at 8:30 pm and began a nice evening of relaxing.

I hope your weekend is as fun as ous has been! Smiles -- and Merry Pre-Christmas!

End of the Season

Yesterday marked our end of the season at camp. The official closing date is Columbus Day (one week from today), however, we want to be home to get things done around the house next weekend.

We had a nice season at camp. Things always vary from year to year, which keeps us on our toes. A few people are leaving camp this year, and a few new people are coming. Next season we'll be learning names and personalities. We'll be going back to a spic and span trailer, which is so nice.

We got home early enough to do 7 loads of laundry (5 for camp, 2 still in process) and to mow the lawn. We had a lovely coq au vin for dinner (unplanned and very adapted from this recipe). We watched the Red Sox play. And play. And play. They kept playing after we went to bed at 11:30. The game lasted 5 1/2 hours for them to lose in the 12th inning. You know what we'll be doing tonight :)

Have a happy day!

Cincinnati Chili

Whole Foods is sponsoring a Budget Recipe Challenge where they:

challenged our favorite food bloggers to develop a budget-conscious (under $4 per serving) weeknight meal recipe that doesn't sacrifice good taste.

They've narrowed the recipes down to 6 finalists that include

• Wonton Noodle Soup
• Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchiladas
• Miso Burger Pilaf with Lemon-Ginger Tofu (the thought tofu makes me want to gag, though)
• Cincinnati Chili
• Farro with Butternut Squash, Hazelnuts, and Swiss Chard
• Chicken Marsala with Brussels Sprouts and Capellini Aglio e Olio 

I am telling you about this for two reasons. One, the Cincinnati Chili recipe is written by the author of Coconut & Lime, a blog I read frequently. The recipe sounds fabulous and I am thinking of making it this weekend for the End of Season Potluck at camp. Two, "by posting a comment on one of these recipes, you'll be entered into a drawing for a $500 Whole Foods Market gift card! (Ten runners-up will receive $25 gift cards.)"

Seems like a no-brainer, hop over to check out the recipes and get a chance at $500. At Whole Foods that'll get you a small load (they are a little pricey, after all!).

Toodles!

Memento for Bob and Carla

Here's the plaque Steve made:

Cool, huh?

Another Great Labor Day Weekend

We enjoyed ourselves over our relaxing and fun 4 day weekend. The weather could not have been more perfect, we enjoyed spending time together after Mike's travels and spending time with friends. Of course, there was also Spaghetto.

We took Friday off and slept in -- a little -- before heading out to camp. The drive was nice and the weather was pretty good. We enjoyed a nice scallop casserole for dinner, then Steve and Helen came over to join us for Flawless. We thought it was good.

We kept getting caught up in things on Saturday (mainly socializing), but finally made it down to Bob's Camper to pay a bill. We were talking to Barbara while we were there and asked her about the movie signs we saw. There were several around New Lebanon that had "TW" on them (as I may have mentioned before, the movie signs always look the same). It turns out the movie is Taking Woodstock (see here for the movie info and here for the book). Filming has been a boon to the town, as the crew is staying at local hotels and apartments, eating out at local restaurants, and renting a large facility for production purposes. It is on our list to see next year. We returned to camp and had a lovely dinner with Randy, Ali, Steve and Helen on Saturday night. It was unplanned and a lot of fun.

Sunday was the 26th Spaghetto. The weather was beautiful (in the high 70s) and we had a great turn out. Bob and Carla are turning over the event planning and organization to Todd, Carolyn, Steve, and Sherry for future years. The four of them were learning the ropes Sunday morning and look forward to next year. Steve (of  Helen) made a very nice commemorative sign for Bob and Carla to acknowledge their years of hard work. Hopefully I can add a photo of it tonight. After a long day of work at Spaghetto, we had a long night of play. We finally made it to bed around 3 am. There were still at least 35 people at the fire when we left. Every seat was taken. I have no idea how long everyone else was up.

We started the day yesterday with the traditional workers' breakfast, then spent some time at the pool. We didn't get home until 4 pm, which is pretty late for us. Mattie was happy to see us and regaled us with tales that occured during our absence.

Now we are back at work in the real world, counting down the remaining week days and looking forward to next weekend.

Smiles!

Morning Thoughts: Butterfly Chairs and Strange Coincidences

I was thinking about seating this morning. I think I want another comfy chair for the trailer. I like to have plently of seating when we have people over, and hate resorting to the dining room chairs. Mike and I discussed it, and he advocated for something that could be folded up and stored away. Good thinking. Later on in the morning I had an epiphany as I drove to work: what about a butterfly chair?!

Do you remember them, from the 70s, then again in the 90s? I had one that went from apartment to apartment with me in college. I found a nicer, updated version at Bed Bath and Beyond for $50.

And a less fancy version for $40.

 

Hmmm... Food for thought. Those 20% coupons sure will come in handy...

After I shook myself out of my reverie I glanced at the rear quarter panel of the vehicle in the next lane. I have to mention, the sun was directly in my eyes for most of the drive, so I was concentrating on driving (and having flashbacks, apparently). I instantly recognized it. I looked closer, this time at the driver's door, and sure enough, it was my neighbor. He and his wife own Apple D'OR Tree, Inc out of Southborough, MA. The company logo is pretty distinct.

They do a lot of work in Framingham and in the city of Boston. We see Santos truck several times a month during our commutes to and from work. I guess it wouldn't be so strange, except that we always see him 20 or 35 miles away from where we both live. It is a small world!

So, no big news or excitement here. The morning has been one of random thoughts.

Have a Happy Day!

Hard Work, Yard Work...

What a beautiful weekend we had! The weather was perfect...  Do you hear me sighing with happiness?!

We got a good bit of work done on our yard. We were embarassed to discover thousands of weeds all about, and have started to pull them. We turned our backs for a few minutes, and there they were!

Actually, the reality is that one of the trade-offs of going to camp is that our house suffers. We do our best to keep up, but this year, our best hasn't cut it. At least we are trying to make it right now!

The plan is to pull weeds a few nights a week and get things looking marvelous again. We CAN do it!

Have a happy day!

Oh, Deer!

I am home today, enjoying another day off. Well, I guess the enjoying part is questionable, since I just spent an hour cutting our grass. We have to do another pass Sunday (it is really long!).

The deer have been actively eating our plants this summer. The hosta flowers are gone before we see them, as well as hosta leaves and just about anything they can get their mouths around. The latest in their food fest are my beautiful hyacinth. This one is -- was -- the red one

and this one the pink one.

The deer had quite a food orgy with my prettys. They still have green, so I still have hope. I am moving them inside for safe keeping and recovery.

We are off to camp for the weekend. What are your plans?

Have fun!

Happy Birthday, Steve!

Friday was Steve's birthday.

As you may realize by now, I usually do birthday posts after the big day, unless we've given our gifts before the birthday. So, my wishes online seem belated, even though they are pretty much on time in person. Glad I explained myself!

We began the quest for the perfect gift by asking ourselves the question we ask for each of our friends: "What would _______ like for their birthday?" Steve opened a store on Etsy in May to sell jewelry he makes, vintage jewelry, and other specialized items. Check out some of his items below.



Getting a store set up from scratch can be a big deal. It is done in stages, as each store owner has time. We wanted to help Steve customize his store front, so we made him a banner (the actual banner is larger, but has been downsized to fit this blog)

and an avatar.

Store owners usually include goodies with their shipments. We thought it would be fun to get him some Mini Cards from Moo so he can include samples of his other work, along with his contact info.

Aren't they pretty?

Of course, every gift needs a card (not that boys care too much about that). This one, from Miller Manor Designs, suits him well. What man doesn't love his tools?!

Happy Birthday, Steve!

Smiles!

Tornadoes Game

I went to a Worcester Tornadoes game last night with Steve, Helen, Bob and Judy. We had a great time!

I didn't mention I was getting ready to take a picture when I started shooting with my phone (oops!)



I'm glad Steve and Helen are good sports.

Bob and Judy were willing, too :)



We even got a gift :) A booblehead of Kevin Shea (local sportscaster) that looks amazingly like Michael! Helen gave me one of theirs so we can give Connor and Fiona their own Uncle Michael bobble head. Thanks, Helen!



The game was going well when we left in the bottom of the ninth. I believe the Tornadoes won 5-4. It was a fun night!

Have a happy day!