Saturday, May 7, 2022 Happy Anniversary to J & V

Johnny had made an appointment at 11 am to preview Rago's auction items in Lambertville, New Jersey. It was about a half hour drive from our hotel. He had said last night that we would leave about 9. I stayed up until midnight watching a PBS special on Pope Francis. I forgot to set my alarm and woke up at 8 :15! I figured I had plenty of time then Johnny called and said "no rush but we are heading downstairs!" So I threw everything into my carry on bag and headed down. I didn't want anything from the hotel breakfast because we were going to eat breakfast before the auction preview. 

I asked  J & V if they had seen the terrible political commercials on TV - Republicans showcasing their  guns in their political ads. One guy - Mike McCormick? - even had his mother in his ad saying she was the best shot in the family - vote for her son! I believe in the right to have a gun - but certainly not assault weapons and certainly not numerous guns. I have cousins who hunt - they need guns for that. That's no problem but making political ads showcasing your prowess at shooting and showcasing your assault weapon! That's a problem. I went to a firing range once - my friend was going out with a federal police officer, and he took us to the range down near Greenough Boulevard. I don't know what kind of gun I held, but it was heavy and cold - and I was surprised at the power in it when I fired at the target. I have been afraid of guns ever since. These political ads scared me too.

As we drove out of the hotel, it was raining and windy. We passed a car covered with pink dogwood blossoms - the ground was carpeted in pink blossoms - talk about yellow brick road - this road was pink! I was worrying about my tulips which had just bloomed before we left!

We drove through Titusville - a cute little village with houses sandwiched between the Delaware River and the Delaware and Raritan Canal. Some of the houses were built back in 1870-1890 - the gilded age. There was so much green - trees, shrubs, grasses - and the flowers were so colorful. We drove along the Delaware River and the canal - there seemed to be miles of walking paths. I was looking at the trees - their branches stretching upwards like arms - some trees were bent - perhaps from the effort of keeping their arms outstretched.

We saw a one lane wooden bridge so of course we had to cross it - it led to a small parking area and the entrance to someone's mansion! We turned around and headed on. We passed through Dilly's Corner then over a bridge to Stockton - another cute village. We drove through New Hope over the river to Lambertville - both have so many enchanting houses, shops, restaurants. There are row houses and single homes. We love this area - especially this time of year. We found the same parking space we had last night!! We walked around the corner to the luncheonette for breakfast - it was still raining and cold. We waited a few minutes for a table - only every other one was being used because of covid but no one wore masks. 

After breakfast we drove to Rago's auction house - we were able to go in early to preview the auction items. I know Rago's from PBS' Antique Road Show. I was able to recognize a mirror by Wharton Esherick by its uneven sides - none were the same length - we had just been to his museum yesterday. I saw a couple of pieces by George Nakashima - there were more but I am not familiar enough with him to pick them all out.  Suzanne Perrault, who is married to gallery owner David Rago, was there making coffee for a man also there to preview items. She was telling him that they are finally going to Italy next month if all goes well. 

We headed down to the other storeroom a few minutes away - it was really raining now. Johnny recognized a lot of the pieces and the artists. I am amazed at how much these pieces are worth - thousands of dollars! And some look like ordinary tables and chairs! As Johnny said you are buying pieces of art.

From Rago's we drove a short distance to George Nakashima's studio. He was a Japanese-American woodworker, architect, and a leader of the Arts and Crafts Movement. He was interned during WWII but was sponsored to move to New Hope, Pennsylvania where he set up his studio. Johnny and Vickie have been interested in his work for years. Johnny tried to book a tour with George Nakashima's daughter Mira who is also a woodworker and who runs his studio - she does tour on the first Saturday of the month. The tour was booked up, but Johnny persisted saying that he had several pieces of both George's and Mira's and that it was his 50th wedding anniversary and he wanted to stop by the shop. George's grandson told Johnny to arrive about 12:15 on Saturday when the gift shop would be open after the tour. Mira was just finishing up with the tour when we arrived. We kind of hung in the background until Mira had signed the tour group's books. Johnny then approached her  - she seemed surprised when she learned we had come from Cape Cod - she was also surprised when Johnny was describing the pieces he had bought of hers and her father's. Mira is a small little lady - it is hard to imagine her working with a huge slab of wood! She was very generous with her time - J & V bought a few small pieces - Mira signed one congratulating them on their 50th anniversary. J & V were delighted!

Above and below from George Nakashima's studio.

This was the end of our trip except to stop by Judy and John's further north in New Jersey - they own a house in Bourne beside J&V.  John and Judy had just bought a new house - it was fabulous - so much light! Judy had fixed a lunch for us which was so kind of her - what hospitality! We had a lovely visit but finally had to hit the road - it was a 5 hour drive home. 

The rain had stopped by the time we left - so it was easier driving for Johnny. We were on route 95 when it got dark. There is something about looking out at the lights in the dark that I enjoy. Sometimes in the rural or wooded areas where you can see a couple of lights in the distance - this reminds me of driving in Ireland in the dark - the lights away on the hillsides.

We made it home about 10:15 - I was home in bed shortly thereafter watching the local 11 pm news then Saturday Night Live with Benedict Cumberbatch! Another interesting jaunt completed!!

Friday, May 6, 2022 Auction Previews and a Museum

We hit the road Friday morning at 8:45 am - a light breakfast was served at the hotel - I had a taste of the scrambled eggs but then settled for a Chobani yogurt. We were heading to Market Street in Philadelphia to an auction preview and stopped at Dunkin Donuts for coffee. Unlike the beautiful day we had yesterday, today was cool, dark, damp, and dreary - but colorful pansies greeted us at DD to brighten up the day.

There was a light mist as we arrived at the auction preview site, but parking was going to be an issue - I don't think there is any parking in Philadelphia!! Johnny drove around several blocks until we weren't quite sure where we were - the GPS brought us back to Market Street - Johnny went to try a parking lot across the street, but it was a private lot. I spied what looked like a parking space across from the gallery - but we didn't hold our breaths - there were all kinds of signs above the space. Johnny checked it out, paid the meter, and we ran across the street to the gallery. 

Johnny had an appointment at 10, but the guy wasn't there yet. They let us check out the auction items. Johnny and Vickie are into modern and/or mid century antiques which are not really my style - but the more I travel with them, the more I can recognize some pieces but not always the creator. The art work is definitely not my style. Johnny always surprises me with how much he knows about woodwork, sculpture,  paintings, etc And how much he knows about the artists. There was one large room of items for the upcoming auctions. We made our way around the room - I did appreciate some of the furniture - tables, chairs, desks, bureaus - not your average colonial or mission style - but I do like the look and feel of some of the pieces - the hard, cold, smooth wood - the varying colors of chocolate/brown. I am beginning to recognize some of George Nakashima's works - butterfly joints and live edges. Johnny and Vickie love George Nakashima's works - Johnny said that they started buying pieces years ago, but now his pieces are worth thousands and thousands of dollars and out of their reach! Below is an example of his work - the butterflies are the light colored wood holding the 2 pieces together. The live edge is more visible on the top side - it is not straight - it is natural. My son Dan had a live edge table made for their kitchen.

https://www.1stdibs.com/furniture/tables/tables/large-george-nakashima-free-edge-conoid-dining-table-american-black-walnut/id-f_26566122/?utm_content=condensed&allowUniversalLink=no&gclsrc=aw.ds&gclid=Cj0KCQjw1N2TBhCOARIsAGVHQc6uNmPjwtQfqqEo95zBuXZ7VGZmWDGFj80RSVLEyOBzBJ-QyUP5MBoaAs8JEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

The rain had picked up by the time we left the gallery. Johnny and Vickie wanted to drive through Philadelphia's old city where there were art galleries and restaurants - on first Fridays they used to have open studios, music - I think they said the streets were closed so people could wonder through the galleries. J & V had been several times some years ago. But shocker! A lot of the area has been razed! Whole blocks have been torn down! And new cookie cutter boxy apartment or condo buildings are being built. The older buildings that had character are being destroyed, and these ugly new buildings that I have also seen on the west coast and along the east coast are springing up. Johnny said that he "didn't recognize anything because everything is gone." I don't know that area but surely some of those older buildings could have been rehabbed. Such a sin! It is like the suburban developments that are being built - huge houses that all look the same with large manicured lawns. A loss of character, a loss of history.

Philadelphia transportation building 

I did like all the street art - there were numerous murals painted on walls - all kinds of topics. Too bad it was raining - it would have been interesting to walk through some of the neighborhoods. There was a gorgeous mural that the city had paid for depicting the history of immigration. There were even murals under the underpasses.

The rain was heavier when we were leaving Philadelphia. We passed all kinds of bridges - there are the Schuylkill and Delaware rivers I think. 

We had an appointment at a museum at 1 pm - it was about 11 now - so we had plenty of time to grab a bite to eat. Johnny decided to head out to the museum which was a half hour drive and eat there. Wrong!! We hit the worst traffic I have seen in ages. Every highway coming and going was bumper to bumper - it was everywhere - we could see roads blocked when we came to cloverleafs. We did notice that with the rain everything was in full bloom - there were sporadic lilac bushes along the highway. The sign ahead of us said Pennsylvania Turnpike 6 miles will take 25 minutes. Johnny does not have much patience when he is driving so he pulled off at some exit after we had sat in traffic for 20 minutes or so.  We followed the back roads to the museum - it was dark, foggy and very wet.

Taking the back roads was a good decision - it was amazing the transformation from horrendous traffic to rural landscapes! There were beautiful colorful flowers and trees. Pennsylvania has yellow covers on its recycling barrels. We passed through Valley Forge National Park - it was quiet, green and peaceful. Despite the traffic we had hit, we arrived at the museum early. The rain was still heavy - this wouldn't have been a problem except that I had left my rain jacket and new Manatee Park baseball cap at O'Dowd's Pub in Roundstone, Connemara.  And I hadn't brought my raincoat - when I checked the weather before we left, I thought it said it was going to be dry and warm - I had brought 2 short sleeve T shirts and one turtleneck. I was wearing the turtleneck and an old sweat shirt. We decided to drive to King of Prussia for breakfast. Then we headed back to the museum.

The bridge to the building where we were meeting for a tour.

We were at the Wharton Esherick Museum in Malvern, Pennsylvania. I guess J & V had been by here a few weeks ago and tried to get into a tour but they were booked up. So here we are today. I had no clue who this man was. The docent took us on a tour of the living quarters. Esherick was a bohemian - he had a distinct style - there is not a straight line - angles are askew - almost everything is made of wood - and everything is made by him. 

The curved staircase in the upper left leads up to the bedroom - I did not go up there - the steps looked very narrow. Vickie went up and said the steps weren't bad - she liked the bedroom best so now I wish I had seen it. There is a workshop downstairs - there is a railing around it - a couple of large wood sculptures are sticking up from it.

Esherick did not waste anything - in the kitchen there are 2 ceiling lights which aren't in the picture above - one lamp shade is an old piece of raw hide - the other is an old trash can lid - he recycled whatever he could. Even the kitchen sink and toilet were made from wood!

It's too bad that it was raining - we didn't tour the grounds. But the whole tour was very interesting.

Above is the living quarters where we visited. Below is where we met the docent.

I think we left the museum about 2:30. Johnny took back roads, and we meandered toward New Hope, Pennsylvania and Lambertville, New Jersey - they are connected by a bridge. They both have such cute shops and restaurants - but it was really raining now. We had passed some lovely rural areas along the way. It was about 4:30 when Vickie suggested that we eat in Lambertville since it was so crowded last night that we might have trouble getting into a restaurant closer to the hotel. They like Giuseppe's Ristorante in Lambertville so we went there. It sells pizza and Italian dishes. Johnny and I had chicken parm, and Vickie had chicken Alfredo. J & V picked up some desserts, but I still had Smartfood back at the hotel. Johnny was tired from driving in heavy rain and the traffic in Philadelphia so we called it an early night when we got back to the hotel. 

We are going to Rago's auction preview in the morning and then to George Nakashima's studio at noon. We are stopping at Johnny's neighbors for a short visit before heading back to the Cape. 

Thursday, May 5, 2022 Nice day for a drive to New Jersey!

My brother and sister-in-law are Johnny and Vickie Manning for those who don't know them. When I was traveling east to Ireland and Europe, they were traveling all over the United States.  I have been on a few trips with them since I retired - Johnny does the driving no matter how long the day is - he says he gets too  nervous when someone else is driving. I know that feeling when I am in the passenger seat in Ireland. I am perfectly happy to look at the sights and sites and leave the driving to him!

Johnny texted me the other day to say they were driving to Philadelphia - was I interested - it would probably be two overnights. I am still trying to pay off my last two trips to Ireland, but I immediately said yes!!

I was at their house in Bourne this morning at 9 am. It is a bit different this time - usually their son Jason would come to the house to mind their dog King.  But sadly King died a few weeks ago - he had been suffering from kidney cancer. So he is at peace now, but it is still sad when he is not there to greet me or not there expecting me to be scratching and rubbing his back. Johnny and Vickie are free to travel whenever they want now. So we jumped into the car and headed out.

One thing I enjoy about traveling with them is that Johnny likes to avoid the highways and take back roads when he can. Today we headed out I 195 toward Providence. I do like this highway - I love passing by New Bedford, Fall River, Providence, New Haven - first because we are driving along their harbors and there is so much to see. Secondly because I can't help but wondering what life was like when all the mills were up and running. I know in Lowell and Lawrence the mill girls at first were farmers' daughters - their lives were very regulated to preserve their morals. When they began to strike - like the Bread and Roses Strike about 1912 in Lawrence, the owners replaced them with immigrants who were glad for the jobs. I suppose New Bedford, Fall River and the others might have been the same. The noise from so many mills must have been deafening. I have heard a few mills clacking at the Boot Mills in Lowell, and that was pretty loud - I can't imagine what hundreds would sound like! I have also visiting the boarding house in Lowell where mill girls would have lived - they must have had boarding houses in these other mill towns. I took a tour of one of Lowell's canal - are there canals in these other towns? I need to take a trip to New Bedford or Fall River and see if there is a tour of the city.

It was a beautiful day for a drive - it was 61 degrees when I left my house - it got up to 70 when we were in New Jersey. The sun was shining for most of the day - I think it was late afternoon before it got cloudy. The trees were just starting to bud or were in early bloom as we drove along route 195. There was a little bit of color in some of the trees like Japanese maples.

The view was disturbed only in Providence when we passed a pick up truck with the picture of an assault rifle in the back window - with the words "Come and take it" printed across it. The truck also had a bumper sticker "Stop Elizabeth Warren" on the back. Politics are everywhere. We also slowed down for a while then passed a couple of police cruisers - the police were out on the shoulder of the road - one was searching with a police dog - we don't know for what but traffic picked up as soon as we passed them. 

We passed a few farms - crops were just starting to poke through the ground. There was more green than the winter browns that Beth and I saw on the way to Florida the end of January.  We also passed the food trucks on a road along side of 195. I have always wanted to stop and check them out  - I say that each time I pass them! There must have been 10 or 12 food trucks. And they are always busy!

There are all kinds of billboards along routes 195 and 95 - ads for cannabis, ambulance chasing lawyers, breast reductions, and worse - but it is interesting and sort of let's you know what kind of neighborhood you are driving through.

I don't mind some highway driving - especially when I can look down at or over at gardens, houses, even shopping malls. I noticed the foliage was getting greener around Bridgeport - trees were in full bloom. We got off the highway to drive some back ways through Connecticut. The daffodils were way past their prime but colorful tulips were standing tall. Forsythia was already turned green but lilacs were just blooming. There are some beautiful houses and grounds in Connecticut! The dogwoods were blooming; landscapers were starting spring clean ups. There are loads of stones along these back roads - so many stone walls - it reminds me of Revolutionary times when the Minutemen in Lexington, Concord, and Arlington were firing on the British behind walls like these. And parts of Connecticut paint their fire hydrants yellow!! The drive was a nice diversion. 

We stopped at Westport Auctions - Johnny was picking up some things he had bought online. I have been here several times before with Johnny and Vickie - I recognized the exit and the turns. We were taking some back roads - it was a nice day so why not? We drove through a part of Norwalk - lots of building going on there including Merritt Apartments or condos. We crossed the Merritt Parkway 3 times before we finally got on it. There were lots of dandelions along the side of the roads and the highway mediums. We drove through Bedford in Westchester County - there was some gorgeous architecture there!

We got to the Mount Cisco auction house about 1:45. Then we got back on the Merritt parkway over Mario's bridge/the old Tappan Zee bridge. I love to look up the Hudson River as we drive over this bridge - there were sail boats out today! There were also three long black objects in the river on the western side of the bridge- I wished I had binoculars - I wonder if they were fish farms? And there are so many houses built up on the cliffs over the river - I wonder if their view is obstructed by all the trees.

We continued south on 287 - parts of this are very boring - there are tall barriers along the highway so that you can't see anything - when there are no barriers, there are woods. I was happy when we finally pulled off onto 87 south - there was a horse farm as soon as we turned onto 87!

At some point we were on route 519 - the smell of freshly mown hay reminded me of the smell of hayfields in Sneem after they were cut - or when we would be in those fields turning over the hay to dry it. There were folks out mowing the grass - mostly on rider mowers - some pushing a gas lawn mower. We stopped at a no name gas station in Holland, New Jersey - gas was $4.19/gallon compared to brand name stations at $4.49.

We drove through Frenchtown, New Jersey - I was drooling over the architecture and all the cute gift shops. Route 29 South runs along a river - the Delaware River maybe? - there is a lovely river walk that follows a good distance along it. One newer house was built on stilts - because of flooding? We passed by Prallsville Historic Mill District - originally built in the 1700s! We reached Lamberville about 4:30. We passed Rago auction house - I think we are going there tomorrow afternoon to preview an auction. Lambertville has such great architecture! Cute row house with adjoining porches, gingerbread houses, Queen Ann style - so many different styles!! We passed Lambert Living History Farm - I just checked out their website - sheep shearing has been rescheduled to next weekend because of rain tomorrow and Saturday!! How disappointing!!

We passed another long river walk but I never saw any place to park. We arrived at Element Hotel in West Trenton about 5. I have a lovely room to myself including a walk in shower. We checked in and then headed out to eat - we had stopped at Dunkin Donuts in RI or Conn and hadn't eaten since. We drove to route 1 and found a plaza with several restaurants. They seemed busy especially anything Mexican  because of Cinco de Mayo. We ate at Seasons 22 or 52.  I had scallops with risotto and asparagus - delicious!!

Johnny decided to drive to downtown Princetom after we ate - the days are getting longer! When Beth and I were driving to Florida, it was dark by 4:30 - by 5 as we got further south. I had never been to Princeton - knew nothing about it - but found it very interesting. Parts of the college reminded me of Oxford in England. My sisters, Patty and Joanne, and I had driven there in our Inspector Morse quest. Princeton had the same stone archways leading into a large quadrangle. I took the pictures below through the car window - Princeton was packed with people so we just made a few passes through it.

Many of the houses in Princeton reminded me of Tory Row/Brattle Street outside of Harvard Square. This is a poor example - another attempt out of the window as we drove past.

There were so many large churches in Princeton!! I wonder how many people to these churches on a regular basis? And so much different architecture! And so many people!! There is also a canal that passes through some part of the city with a canal walk. We saw more golf courses - none of the courses we passed today had golf carts or caddies  - people were carrying their golf clubs! Is this something new?

We passed by Clarke's farm where the battle of Princeton was fought during the Revolutionary War. I guess part of the battle also took place where Princeton College now stands.

We headed to a market near the hotel for some snacks. We passed luxury apartments - they had the West Trenton airport on one side and New Jersey Correctional Facility across the street. Doesn't sound too luxurious to me!!

Tomorrow we need to be on the road by 8:45. There is a light breakfast in the lobby in the morning. We plan to grab something there and then head to an auction in Philadelphia - we have to be there by 10 am.

So goodnight!