"Shanandoah..."

Go ahead, I dare you to not have that song in your head as you read this.
West Virginia was lovely and we celebrated our departure, and our anniversary, by hiking up to the top of the Seneca Rocks, 1000 feet from the valley floor, about three miles round trip. And then it was down the mountains into Virginia and a relaxing BnB in Staunton (pronounced as if the 'u" wasn't there). Staunton is home to the American Shakespeare Company, performing in a replica of the Blackfriars Theatre, Shakespeare's indoor theatre in London. The small company performed a rousing production of "The Merry Wives of Windsor", one of the comedies that I have not seen. Very funny - almost the invention of sitcoms, with trickery, puns, and jokes, including a "stand-up" dialog where a teacher and a student dscover that some Latin declensions sound absolutely vulgar in English. "Horum est" indeed!
Staunton is also close to the southern end of Shanandoah National Park and its Skyline Drive. Choosing to enter the park 1/3 of the way up the drive, we discovered that Sundays are "no fee" days. We also discovered that, contrary to the website, the lodges on the drive had rooms available. So we were able to get a fabulous room at Skylands, overlooking the western side of the mountain. Which enabled us to explore a little more of the park: Dark Hollow Falls, a short but steep walk of about 1.5 miles round trip. It was tough to ignore the little voice in the back of our heads whispering, as we descended toward the falls, "you have to walk this back up...you have to walk this back UP..." But we made it. Enough to allow us to walk up (you get to walk down after!) to Stony Man Point, another mile or so to a rugged cliff, supposedly on the "forehead" of a face-like outcropping, just in time to watch the sun set into the mists over the western Appalachians. Walking back in the dusk, a few deer and their fawns took a moment out of their evening meal to watch us go by. We returned to Skylands and sat on the porch once again, watching as the stars above and streetlights far below began to twinkle on.

"Country Roads....West Virginia!"

We flipped a coin from Harrisburg...north or south. I think maybe we saw an ad for West Virginia or something, because south won. And we are glad it did. A cyber-search led us to a little "town" (unincorporated) called "Cabins". Probably because there are about 100 cabins and cottages to rent. We chose Harmon's North Fork cabins, located along the Potomac River (the north fork of it, clever name, no?). The cabins are about 15 years old or less and are literally located along the river. Each cabin has a jacuzzi in the bedroom, air-conditioning (needed these 85-95 degree days), and a full kitchen. Front porch with a view of the river and a swing. Comfortable. Gorgeous. And not right on top of the neighboring cabins (some of which have hot tubs if you want to pay a little extra).
In addition, there are a lot of things to see if you get bored sitting on that porch or wading/swimming in the Potomac. (So Washington threw a dllar across the Potomac? We swam across! Well, walked. It's a fairly narrow and shallow river out this way.) Hike up a trail to a 900 foot high outcropping of sandstone to see the river and surrounding farmlands. Drive an 8 mile road up to "Dolly Sod", an Allegheny plateau, 3500 feet above sea level, where another 8-mile road takes you along the top of the world. Stop and walk through Bear Rocks where bare rocks mark a path through blueberries, mountain laurel, and scappy "one-sided" pines holding on for dear life against the wind and the rocky soil. Drive the 16 mile road through Smoke Hole canyon. Seneca Rocks. Seneca Cave, the largest in WV. Spruce Knob, the highest point(4800 feet). Or just relax in the jacuzzi with a bottle of local wine, cheese, and fruit after a fun day of driving, hiking, or sightseeing. Sound like a commercial? Sorry. It's just a great place to spend a few days and one to which we would return.

Baseball, slots, and flat tires

Lots of things to keep one busy in Harrisburg. Thursday night, after dinner, we took a stroll to City Island, down a few blocks from the hotel and across the steel Walnut Street bridge, closed to vehicular traffic since 1972. A sign announced a ballgame tonight! Harrisburg has an AA team affiliated with the Washington Nationals called, appropriately enough, the Senators. So we bought a reserved seat for $8 and went on to "root, root, root for the home team". But, like their namesake senators, they just couldn't get it together. We left after the 7th inning stretch with the score at 5-1, in favor of the Binghamtown Mets, affiliated with...well, you can figure it out.
And then there's the car. After getting some articles from our car, the valet staff discovered that one of my tires was almost flat. By the time they reached me, it was completely flat. So the valet (Russ) and I (and another employee who was on his day off but passing by) took off the spare and changed the tire - the first time I've had to do that with the Honda in nearly 8 years. Then off to Firestone to get it fixed. Nope, can't fix it, slow leak, need a brand new one. Oh well, maybe I'll get to the Capitol tomorrow. But while they were fixing, I took a nice walk in the sunshine along the Susquehanna, learning the history of the town through roadside markers (it's their "Susquecentennial" - that's what they're calling it - 150 years since John Harris established the town) and getting some exercise - a little more than a mile round trip from Firestone.
And a side note to our travel: on the way to Harrisburg along I-78, we stopped for a brief sojourn in Bethlehem, PA, and the new Sands casino, built to resemble an old steel plant. We dropped their welcome package pretty quickly, even though it was penny slots, but I managed to make back my own investment (plus $15) with the "Hee-Haw" slots. Of course, then I spent the winnings on lunch at the Irish pub. Oh well, at least it's closer than Atlantic City.

What's there to do in Harrisburg??

Summer of 2009 was the first one in over 20 years that we did not go to the AATE convention. Patty decided that, after years of her traipsing arond towns while I went to theatre workshops, it was my turn to explore while she learned about dolls - specifically Madame Alexanders. So here we are in beautiful downtown Harrisburg, PA. Now a lot of people said to me "Harrisburg? What can you do in Harrisburg?" But our philosophy is "no matter where you go, there you are..." so there must be something! It is the state capital, after all.
And, true to form, there are a number of things unique to Harrisburg - not the least of which is its Capitol - one of the few that does not have a gold dome, but rather a multicolored mosaic. And the Pennsylvania State Museum, just down the street, is also quite interesting in its presentation of natural and cultural history of the state. Do you know the difference between a pond and a lake? A lake, through succession, becomes a pond when it is smaller and shallower, though it did not specify a particular depth. A hill, on the other hand, becomes a mountain when it is over 1000 feet tall. Some fabulous displays on animal life in PA and one of the nicest collections of transportation vehicles since the Ford Museum in Michigan.
And still to come: City Island, in the middle of the Susquehanna River; the Harris Mansion (founder of the town) and seeing "Harry Potter" in IMAX.
And you thought there was nothing to do in Harrisburg.

One of the best concerts ever

Happy Birthday, Pete Seeger. For those too young to know him, you probably know his songs - "Turn, Turn, Turn", "Where Have All The Flowers Gone?", "Wimoweh", "We Shall Overcome" or his versions of others, especially those by Woody Guthrie like "This Land is your Land". He turns 90 this month and a few friends got together to pay tribute - with a few thousand fans in the audience. It was a fundraiser really for his Clearwater sloop, an educational ship that trolls the waters of the Hudson River urging environmental concerns. The packed Garden was happy to donate, myself included (thanks to friend and former clleague Jim Sauer). And what a lineup! I didn't recognize every name, but the fact that all of them felt touched in some way by his music, his activism, his life was astounding. After an brief appearance by Native American narrators, John Mellencamp led it off, followed by appearances by actor Tim Robbins (he sang later, too, with his son) and the NY Labor Chorus. One performer said he was glad we were singing under this president and not the former - several very liberal opinions were expressed, not the least of which was Billy Bragg singing part the "The Internationale". Ani DiFranco, Bruce Cockburn, Tom Paxton, Eric Wesberg, Dar Williams, Bernice and Toshi Regon, the blues man Taj Mahal, Steve Earle, Emmy Lou Harris, Kate and Anna MacGarrigle with their children, including Rufus Wainwright, Teddy Thompson, Joan Baez, Bela Fleck, a poetry reading by actress Ruby Dee, and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, and that was just before intermission! Afterwards, we heard from TV producer Norman Lear, Tom Chapin with Oscar the Grouch (singing, appropriately "Garbage, Garbage" - Carol Spinney came out with Oscar later), Kris Kristofferson (who amazingly sang the old camp song "There's a Hole in the Bucket..." with Ani DiFranco), the Irish singer Tommy Sands, Richie Havens, Jay Ungar and Molly Mason (who will be in Chatham later this month), Arlo Guthrie, Del McCoury, John Hall (from the group Orleans), Ben Harper, Pete's sister Peggy who read from her journals, Rambling Jack Elliot, Roger McGuinn (of the Byrds), Dave Matthews, Bruce Springsteen (who did an amazing version of "The Ghost of Tom Joad" with Tom Morello, and, of course, Pete Seeger, whose voice was never the greatest and is showing his age, but his banjo picking and his enthusiastic gait strutting on and off stage several times sure didn't look 90. And I'm sure I missed a few.
Those who left after the finale of "This Land" missed Pete's grandson Tao Rodriguez-Seeger leading the entire cast and garden in "Bring 'Em Home" and "This Little Light of Mine", two others popularized by Pete. And he introduced us to the family - his older (!) brother John (95 - good genes in that family), Peggy, and his grandchildren.
I'm not a big fan of arena shows - but this show was filled by true fans of Pete and these artists - they were respectful of those they didn't know that well (very few catcalls of "Bruuuuce" at inappropriate times) and they were fanatic about those they did. And the artists were amazing too - no egos demanding more time or "headlining". It was truly one of the best concerts ever.

Where does the time go?

Wow - I really thought retirement meant relaxing - nothing to do but read, write blogs. Hmm. I have certainly managed to keep busy. Some travel. In January, we went to Disney World and stayed at our "home" in Sarasota Springs Resort. I directed a production of Neil Simon's "Fools" that ran in March in Westfield. I helped build the set and hang the lights for Cranford's "Peter Pan" that opened May 1st. And did a little work around the house. And garden.
We've also seen several concerts and shows. We're new fans of Two River Theatre in Red Bank, watching their fabulous productions of "Mary's Wedding" and "Melissa Arctic". And we're getting set for new travels coming up in August. Hmm. Good thing I'm retired.

My retirement year - October

For the past 37 years, autumn meant "back to school". If we managed to see its famed foliage, it was a quick weekend trip to the Poconos, or High Point, or Sunrise Mountain's overlook at Stokes. But now, it occurred to us, that we could travel at this fabulous fall time of year. Though we had not yet closed on the house, we decided to try to relax a little by heading north to Nova Scotia, to see our friends Scott and Stef who had moved there. Wow - a non-summer visit! So off we went. Two days up - with a stop in Maine. Maine, with its beautiful shades of red, yellow, set against the evergreen pines. Through New Brunswick (Canada, not NJ), and into the maritime province of Nova Scotia. Scott and Stef live in Pictou, the birthplace of "New Scotland", on the north coast, with a view of Prince Edward Island. A short walk from their house to the shore, looking back from the bay at the changing foliage lining the bay. Restful. Then back toward NJ, with another brief stop in Maine (free of charge thanks to Choice points!) Interstate travel made New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York fly by, but beautiful nonetheless.