It's a good thing I was super productive on the weekend because I woke up at 3:37 Monday morning and couldn't get back to sleep. It was my last day before leaving and so was busy with the final year-end work and I mailed a big box of yarn to Dottie on the way home. After Monday Night Knitting, I started packing but with no urgency because I'd have Tuesday morning to finish up.
I didn't need to leave for the airport until 10:00, which meant I could relax in the morning. The insurance adjuster finally called at 9:30 so I had info on moving forward with repairs before leaving. Nice. The flight was uneventful and I arrived on time. All good.
Besides my reunion, I had a few other things on my Rhode Island list. We tackled Vanity Fair on Wednesday morning and I scored new undies, new bras and a sleep shirt, all of which will go on my cruise. Checked that off. After a quick salad at Panera, we hit The Christmas Tree Shop - another must do in RI. We then headed home for the only supper I'd be having at home. We had swordfish (eating seafood - check!) and then we watched After Life on Netflix. What a fabulous show! If you haven't watched it, you should.
We were up early on Thursday to walk at Rocky Point before it started raining. My new sneakers were perfect and we got some steps in before heading to the movies while it rained. We saw Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Excellent movie so I recommend that to.
Then I was off to the East Side to meet old friends from Brown's Urban Environment Lab (UEL), where I had a community garden plot for years before moving to Nebraska. We were meeting at a Thai restaurant then going back to Debbie and Paul's for dessert. It was wonderful to catch up with old friends. My only disappointment was not getting to see their garden, which is a patch of heaven in the city. We went out as soon as we got there but a skunk was sauntering down the path so we made a beeline inside. We backed up and so did he. We were lucky to not get sprayed. We sat inside, eating pie and chatting for a long time. There are no friends like old friends. P.S. Paul is the brother of my friend Susan's brother-in-law, who I met last month in Oregon. Small world.
Friday was the first reunion event - a reunion of the girl scouts before the unofficial pre-reunion in the bar. But before that, it was our beach day. I went downstairs at 8:00 and Carolyn said we needed to leave by 8:30 so I went right back upstairs to get dressed in my bathing suit, ate a bowl of cereal and took a cup of coffee to go. We were out the door at 8:15. As usual, we put our stuff down and started walking. East Matunuck is perfect for walking, with the channel on one side and rocks and houses on the other. We got 6000 steps in before sitting down. Normally I would swim but there was funky, brown seaweed in the water so I didn't. Despite that, it was a perfect day at the beach. When we left, I got Carolyn to agree to Aunt Carries but we just got take out and ate clamcakes and onion rings in the car. Yum! She even took the scenic route home along Route 1A. Nice. I took a shower when we got home and got dressed for the pre-reunion reunion.
I had made zero plans to see anyone but called Cornelia when we got home, realizing that she'd probably be heading to Boston to spend the weekend with her boyfriend. I caught her just as she was leaving so she stopped by for a few minutes. Better 45 minutes than nothing. It was great to see her, as always.
It was wonderful to see my old girl scouts again! Six of us were meeting for dinner before the event and we shared pictures and two of us brought our sashes. It was wonderful to catch up because these were my peeps all during high school. I had forgotten how much I loved them all and enjoyed every minute of seeing them. I was less keen on the event in the bar but it ended up being fun seeing people from high school, most of whom I hadn't thought of in 40 years. We were outside on the patio when the skies opened up and being the furthers out, I was soaking wet by the time I got in. I stayed for a bit longer but begged off to go home to a warm shower. It had been a fun night.
Carolyn and I were up early and walking at Rocky Point first thing on Saturday, after which we had a nice breakfast at The Beach Cafe in Oakland Beach. Then we hit Job Lot (last must shop on the list) and headed home. I had requested lunch and a study session with Janice (one of the girl scouts and my best friend in high school and college) because I needed to look at our yearbook. It had been pretty easy to recognize the women but the men were nearly impossible. Many of them had been small and not fully mature at the end of high school so were unrecognizable after 40 years. Normally I go to the Crow's Nest with my aunt but she was sick so couldn't come. Janice's boat is docked right across the street so her husband, Chris, joined us for lunch then we sat on the boat for a bit before heading home to get dressed for the reunion. John, who was a year behind me was my plus 1, came to Carolyn's beforehand and we hung out a bit before driving to the reunion. We were taking separate cars so he could go right back to his parents' in Newport instead of driving me back in the opposite direction. Matt was away for the weekend so I had his car.
The reunion was fun. There were lots more people there than had gone on Friday so I got to see more people and having studied our yearbook, I could actually remember them. Ha! John and I chatted with our friend Craig and his wife but then we split up. I ended up out on the patio with my girl scouts again, where we had even more fun because Beth, who hadn't come Friday, was there too. I had a single glass of wine before switching to water and never passed up any of the passed hors d'oevres. There was a delicious cake brought by one of the teachers. I was there until almost midnight - the end of the event. It was a great experience and I'm glad I went.
Sunday was my last day and I'd informed Carolyn earlier that it was a day of rest so I would not be getting up early to walk. We had a leisurely morning and then headed to Providence. Carolyn had planned a fun day for us. We started at Bucktown, which is a fun little restaurant in the middle of a neighborhood. We had chicken fingers, collard greens, mac and cheese - all their southern specialties. The chicken was too hot for my liking but everything else was delish. From there we walked down the block to Tricyle Ice Cream, where we shared a gourmet ice cream sandwich that was nothing special. Then we went downtown to one of my favorite stores - Craftland - then walked the brand new pedestrian bridge across the Providence River. So we still got plenty of steps, just not first thing in the morning. We both had blisters from not wearing walking shoes so happily went home. John came over later and we ate spinach pies from Don's Pizza, which are one of my faves. It was nice to get a bit more time with John. I went up to pack because I'd be leaving first thing on Monday.
The trip had gone by in a flash. I had had to fly mid-week to mid-week so missed out on the 2nd weekend. Even so, my flight cost more than my flight next month to England. Seriously. As rushed as it was, it was still a great trip.
Sunday was my last day and I'd informed Carolyn earlier that it was a day of rest so I would not be getting up early to walk. We had a leisurely morning and then headed to Providence. Carolyn had planned a fun day for us. We started at Bucktown, which is a fun little restaurant in the middle of a neighborhood. We had chicken fingers, collard greens, mac and cheese - all their southern specialties. The chicken was too hot for my liking but everything else was delish. From there we walked down the block to Tricyle Ice Cream, where we shared a gourmet ice cream sandwich that was nothing special. Then we went downtown to one of my favorite stores - Craftland - then walked the brand new pedestrian bridge across the Providence River. So we still got plenty of steps, just not first thing in the morning. We both had blisters from not wearing walking shoes so happily went home. John came over later and we ate spinach pies from Don's Pizza, which are one of my faves. It was nice to get a bit more time with John. I went up to pack because I'd be leaving first thing on Monday.
The trip had gone by in a flash. I had had to fly mid-week to mid-week so missed out on the 2nd weekend. Even so, my flight cost more than my flight next month to England. Seriously. As rushed as it was, it was still a great trip.
No comments:
Post a Comment