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how sweet it was

It's Wednesday morning and it's already been a very busy week. Monday night, I had a big event to manage at work. It went off without a hitch and everyone associated with it were pleased. Last night Greg and I joined our friends David and Marc at Blossom Music Center to see James Taylor in concert. David is a big fan, and Marc won the tickets plus VIP passes. And trust me, VIP status makes concerts much more enjoyable. We had close parking, special lounge and restrooms with no lines. The concert was great. J.T. put on a wonderful show and had a lot of energy for a fella his age. He's got a great voice.

Tonight we have David Giffels speaking at the Library. He just published a book about his renovation of a house in Highland Square. It's one of those book I couldn't put down, once I started it. It's rare that I can start and finish a book in one weekend. Funny, touching and wonderful.

a memorable weekend

Enjoyed an unexpected four-day weekend. Friday was the bonus day. Our clothes dryer has been on the fritz lately, making a horrifyingly loud metal on metal screeching noise. The repairman arrived late that morning and took the machine apart. Our dryer requires a pricey new ball bearing. And of course, he didn't have one with him, it needs to be ordered. The good news, we can still use the dryer until the part arrives this Friday. The bad news, the screeching is even worse. Our new laundry plan is to throw the wet clothes in the dryer, start it, and then leave the house for a couple of hours.

Saturday we spent the day in amish country with our friends Tom, Brett, Al and Keith. Al and Keith were in town from Chicago for the weekend. We began the afternoon at the Simply Smuckers Store in Orville. It was my first visit there. Was a cute store. Greg and I picked up some apple butter and ice cream toppings. Next it was off to Lehman's in Kidron. What a large store. We picked up a new cast iron skillet there. Lunch was next at one of the areas big amish-style restaurants. The portions were quite large, and we left uncomfortably full. More shopping at an area market then off to the Breitenbach Winery. I tasted a very sweet Riesling wine. It was quite nice.

On Sunday morning Greg and I had breakfast at Wally Waffle with Megan and Michele. It was omelets for everyone! Afterwards Greg and i did a little shopping. Sunday night was a big Memorial Day party & picnic at Tom and Brett's. We had a great time playing corn hole and socializing with everyone. Brett makes a great cherry martini. I'm afraid that I may have enjoyed too many of them.

Monday was for resting up. We watched quite a few episodes from the Gilmore Girls Season 2. Spent some time at Borders reading magazines. And of course, spent some quality time with the Wii. I bowled a new personal best of 238!

Wii likey

Greg's been saving his money for some time. Today he spent it, on a Wii. It's the best thing since our iPhone. We've bowled, golfed and played MarioKart tonight. I've never really been into video games, but the Wii is so easy to use.

a sweet saturday

Today Greg and I travelled to Hudson for lunch. Greg starts work in Hudson on Monday. He's so relieved to put that long commute to his previous job behind him. We had lunch at Hattie's Cafe then walked down the street to Main Street Cupcakes. According to their web site, they are Ohio's first cupcake only bake shop serving a delicious variety of gourmet cupcakes. We purchased six different flavors to take home. That, of course, means we each picked three. That's them up in the picture. Let me take you on a tour. There in the front is Vanilla Berry, going clockwise, next we have Pink Lemonade, Classic Chocolate, Wedding Day White, Cookies n Cream, and finally, Lemon Drop. So far we have shared and tasted the Wedding Day White and Lemon Drop. Both were delicious. I'm just saying, now that Greg will be working down the street in Hudson, he doesn't need to bring me home flowers, a box of cupcakes would be just fine.
Also today we rented Cloverfield and 27 Dresses. I'll let you guess which I hated and which I liked. Shouldn't be too hard to figure that one out.

mr. derr goes to washington

Here are a few pictures from yesterday's dizzying trip to Washington D.C. with the City of Akron Holocaust Writing and Arts Contest winners.