I am in my mid-70’s now and pretty accepting of my failures and limitations. Roger Angell wrote about the moment he realized he would not be a pro ballplayer. It was the interpretation of a dream he had in which he saw his name on one of the monuments at Yankee Stadium. Something like that.
And I was today years old when I learned the composer Richard Strauss, who was born on this date in 1864, said “I may not be a first-rate composer, but I am a first-class second-rate composer.” Who knew the guy had a sense of humor (assuming he was being funny)?
We are in the Best Western near Poughkeepsie NY for two nights, celebrating our 42 years of wedded bliss. Here’s how the stay began:
“The total comes to $196.”
“I think I paid in advance.”
“No. You held the reservation, but payment is due now.”
“But I used a $50 gift card.”
(Woman tinkers with computer.)
“Okay, the amount due is $146.)
(We tinker with our phone.)
“Here’s the email we received. It says ‘Amount due at check-in: $0.00.’”
(Woman hands us keycards.)
“You’ll be in Room 103.”
Upon arriving at Room 103, we find the door propped open and the bed unmade. We retutn to the front desk.
“Excuse me, 103 is not made up.”
Woman leaves to check with housekeeping.
“May I have the keys I gave you?”
“Sure.”
Hands us new cards.
“You’ll be in Room 107.”
Room 107 is fine. But from painful experience I check to see if the TV works. The remote is like a dead fish in my hands. I press everything on it that I can press but it ain’t gonna swim no mo’. I return with it to the woman at the desk.
“Hi. Me again. Do you have new batteries for the remote? It’s not working.”
(Woman installs new batteries.)
“Thanks!”
The remote sprang back to life and swam happily upstream. Despite the above, all is well and we had a great first day here, with two brilliant highlights.
First, a great walk across the Hudson twice: Once on the Walkway eastward, and then back on the pedestrian path on the Mid-Hudson bridge. A total loop of 3.6 miles with a great stop at the train station for a cold drink: water for my bride and Diet Dr. Pepp for yours truly. Both bridges were beautiful to walk over. The Mid-Hudson offers a feature called “Bridge Music.” At various stops you can press a button to select “music” made by the composer banging on, or doing what-not to, parts of the bridge. Very nice!
“Joseph Bertolozzi’s public art project Bridge Music is a unique sound-art installation featuring the Mid-Hudson Bridge as the instrument itself.”
So that was the walk back across the HHR. Our adventure started crossing it on the Walkway, a gorgeous 1.25 mile arc over the river.
The second highlight of our day was dinner at a terrific local dive called Tavern 23. An overflowing dumpster greets you in the parking lot, if you can even find the place, reassuring you that you will not be paying even a penny for atmosphere. Inside it’s loud, and we found an open table in the corner, next to a boisterous group of 60-year-olds celebrating one of them retiring. They were not having dinner. They were enjoying beer after beer and had left two of their giant plate of wings uneaten, prompting me to consider seriously and droolingly asking if I could have one. (I didn’t.)
I had read good things about the tacos so we ordered three fish tacos and a burger, with a side of red cabbage slaw in lieu of fries. Excellent! Especially the tacos. One sits near me as I write, safely boxed in our room fridge. As is my practice, I asked if I could sample two of their ales, the “Kold One,” a kolsch brewed right in the area – we passed by the brewery on the way; and the “House Ale,” an IPA from nearby East Fishkill. Both were good and I went for the former. Since the “samples” she brought me were so generous I could barely finish the thing itself.
And get this! — it was “Flippin’ Wednesday.” Before totaling up our check, the waitress explained that she would flip a coin and if we guessed correctly, dinner would be free. Are you shi**ing me!!?? We each went once, for our separate items — but missed each time. D’oh! Great place — Tavern 23, seek it out if you’re nearby. Mention Owl Chatter and they’ll seat you behind the rest rooms.
Phil snapped this shot of the party-ers before joining them and passing out.
We walked around downtown Poughkeepsie before dinner and ran into this big statue of a nurse, aptly titled “The Nurse.” I sent a photo of it to Caitlin and we had this exchange, started by Caity:
“She looks mean.”
“Yeah, but for your own good.”
“Yes, of course.”
You have no doubt heard by now of the Knicks’ incredible comeback from 29 points down to go up 3-1 in games in the NBA Finals. Historic. But as the wise man said, “It ain’t over till it’s over,” so let’s just drape a big kinehora over it and wait for Game 5. What most of you may not be aware of is the other comeback that occurred, viz., the Gnats blew a 9-1 lead (!) and lost to the Jints out in SF 11-10. Are you kidding me? They still took the series 2-1, including their own come-from-behind gem on Monday, but sheesh.
After a breakfast of plasticky eggs and a rubbery sausage link in the hotel, Thursday kicked off with a beautiful visit to Vassar College. OMG, what an incredible campus. I sent a shot of this tree to Owl Chatter friend Kit, an alum.
Her reply:
“I often walked past those beautiful trees on my way to the Library. I think that walk made me a better student.”
The art museum is world class and blew us away. Works of all the biggies are there, beautifully organized and exhibited. Pabs Picasso, Hank Matisse, Granny Moso, and on and on. This one caught my eye. It’s by Charles Courtney Curran, new to me, which means nothing.
It was hot, so we shot back to the room for lunch and a brief rest period before catching The Sheep Detectives, which we loved! Hugh Jackman just gets better and better, IMO. You know you’re getting (or, in my case, staying), soft, when a movie starring sheep who can talk and who solve a murder leaves you weeping.
Here’s Molly Gordon. Was she the killer?
After a Starbucks break we went over to catch the Hudson Valley Renegades-Jersey Shore Blue Claws game. Quite the seesaw: The Gades took a 4-2 lead on a grand salami, but ended up losing 8-7 with the tying run on base. Ouch! Dinner at the park was good: Sausage with onions and peppers for me and a C-Burger for Linda.
Takeaways: Loved the 80-year-old (it seemed) “bat boy” for the Gades. Every time he had to bend over to pick up a bat, he grabbed his back. Also couldn’t get over how the seventh-inning stretch went. Nobody got up! We were reminded about it for the bottom of the seventh, and the requisite “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” was played, but maybe ten people got off their tuchases for it (out of 2,501 in attendance). What gives, Hudson Valley?
Only negative: $10 charge for parking. At a minor league park? Puh-leeze.
Rex created a bit of a hoo-ha in connection with the clue for PORTLANDOREGON in today’s puzzle. It was clued via “Home of the world’s largest independently owned bookstore (spanning an entire city block.” The store is Powell’s, which we visited many years ago when out there for Linda’s nephew’s bar mitzvah. Yeah, it’s big. That nephew, BTW, just became a first-time dad! Mazel tov Jamey and Sivan. Here’s Adina Naomi.
Anyway, so Rex posted this photo and caption:
“My Tuesday mug, but maybe I’ll break it out today in honor of the puzzle … oh who am I kidding, I will not do that, the mug schedule is the mug schedule and it changes for no one!”
It’s a gorgeous mug and the concept of a “mug schedule” hit home for some. I don’t have a schedule, but I do have a group of several from which I choose each day and the choice matters to me. Others noted they also have schedules. I like the idea. Here are some responses:
JJK: My husband and I are the opposite, we use the same mugs every morning and even pack them for trips (a little extreme perhaps).
Carola: Rex, I join you in having a mug schedule. I especially look forward to Sundays when I get to use my mug from the Lake Superior Railroad Museum.
Here are three I have not broken in yet.
At 5A today, the clue was “Exhibiting a green face, stereotypically.” I got it right away: SEASICK. But Rex and a lot of folks took the green to relate to envy and tried ENVIOUS or JEALOUS first. This led egs to comment aptly:
“A lot of solvers had trouble getting SEASICK. Seems like an odd complaint.”
Good to be home with the owls again! Thanks for stopping by. See you tomorrow.
The Wellington Files 