April Arrives!

 3/29/22

This week started off with a Monday night event - The Sebastian Maniscalco show that was our New Years Eve plan but was postponed due to Omicron. I whipped up a lasagna and salad for dinner before the show and we carpooled to downtown Albany from my house (because I live closest.) We found a parking  spot (free) in a garage about 6 blocks away from the arena - perfect for us, except it was about 15 frigid degrees out! We walked fast and got seats at the very top of the arena. About 15 minutes before the show, it was clear that many seats were unsold, so we relocated ourselves to a much better vantage point - yeah!

                          Great show!

Lots of choices for better seats in the top tier.

We laughed for the better part of 2 hrs as both Sebastian and the opening comic were hilarious. I'd recommend his Netflix specials if comedy is your thing.

3/30/22

Today I took a small adventure over to Bennington, Vermont. There were some antique stores I wanted to poke about in. I ended up visiting 3, two more were closed, along with a couple of gift shops just to remind myself that I really dislike gift shops. I was tempted by a chalkware rooster but didn't buy, and found a dealer who was interested in the old cameras I was gifted many years ago. I've been trying to figure out what to do with them, and an antique shop feels right. Perhaps I'll organize an outing here with the gals once the weather turns.


                          Bennington Monument - A little sightseeing along the way.

       One of the Bennington cats.

                          A gift store I regretted entering as soon as I got inside.

                          A nicer gift store, but nothing for me.

3/31/22

Biking in March finally happened. Yesterday evening when I checked the weather it showed a change in the approaching storm - it was not to arrive until 2 pm and temperatures would be in the upper 50's! I let a few of my mates know my plan and 3 of us met at Fox Preserve on the Mohawk Hudson Bike Trail at 10 am to ride and hike a bit. Mostly cloudy skies, but it was nice to be on the trail which was full of bald eagles - well, at least 3 of them. After we biked 14 miles, we hiked the Fox Preserve (2.5 miles) just to stretch our legs. It was a muddy affair, but most trails are this time of year. It is called mud season for a reason.

I made it through the winter with at least one 10+ mile bike ride per month. Now I feel I can consider my challenge essentially assured. I will surely be biking multiple times a week now as the weather warms. It really is possible to bike ride all year in upstate NY.

   Neither Susan nor AmyJean saw fit to tell me my helmet was crooked!

    Twin Bridges from river's edge with ice remnants!

    The idled Lock 7.

Admiring the tugs and the view.

4/1/22

Dinner with Janice, George, Dale, Dan, and Tim at the Hills house. Another lasagna, but this one was much fancier than mine with roasted red peppers and other delights. I made dessert - Chocolate Guinness cake. It is a favorite and it didn't disappoint as I added a bit of Bailey's Irish Cream to the icing which elevated it to star bake status. I left the uneaten half with Dale as she'll be able to share it with her soon to arrive family.



Another week that started with nothing much planned but seemed to fill up as the time passed. I'm really enjoying the ebb and flow of activity / productiveness / relaxation. I can hardly believe I'm into my 3rd year of retirement and I'm still working on just the right balance. Luckily, there seems to be no time frame to getting it right. And I'm sure "right" will be a constantly changing concept.


4/2/22 "Il Dolce Far Niente" The sweetness of doing nothing.

I lounged in bed til 9 am; drank coffee til 11 am; then the garden til 4 pm. It didn't quite reach 50 degrees F, but the fire and activity kept me warm. I really didn't do nothing. I raked leaves, I tidied up the lavender, built an outdoor fire, drank wine... a very happy Saturday. Now I'm off for a 4 mile walk because the sun shines past 7:30 pm these days!

                
                         Early 'Peeping Tom' daffodils.
    
 So happy to see the bees.




Comments

  1. MargaretApril 8, 2022 at 12:00 AM

    I love lasagna (mostly my mother's) and your dessert sounds wonderful. The bee photos are excellent.

    ReplyDelete

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