An original

"You've gotta be original, because if you're like someone else, what do they need you for?" Bernadette Peters


Tomorrow, I'm off to Cape Cod for a daytrip. I'll tell you all about it in a few days.

Mad Tea Party

It's Time!!! Don't be late for this very important date!



Time for the Mad Hatter Tea Party hosted by Vanessa at A Fanciful Twist. This is my first Mad Hatter Tea.



The Cheshire Cat will be there.



He's brought a date too. She is never late for a meal.



There will be boatloads of tea.



And some will be very showy!



We'll eat dessert first, an unbirthday cake.



More tea.



And sweet little sandwiches.



After tea, perhaps a game of croquet.



You can attend other parties by clicking here.

Open House at Corinthian Hall

Last night I attended an open house at Corinthian Hall in Melrose.



The building was renovated and will now serve as an elegant function hall.



A harpist and a violinist took center stage and provided lovely background music.



Delicious hors d'oeuvres were served by the waitstaff.



A wall of mirrors behind the bar. I love that wall color.



Costumed ladies greeted and said goodbye to everyone. You can visit the Corinthian Hall website here.

Boston Love Song

Boston Love Song from Claude von Roesgen on Vimeo.

My sister's friend Dan Margarita penned A Boston Love Song and put it to music. Another friend, Debbie Angelosanto, stars in the video with Dan.

Enjoy!

Father's Day

I hope you all had a nice Father's Day. Here's my Dad when he was in the Navy.



We had a nice day, my dad, my sister and I. My sister bought us breakfast. We went to our usual spot Frannie's. Then my dad watched the US Open on television, my sister visited my mom, and I did a little grocery shopping and prepared for dinner. I was hosting Father's Day at my condo.



We had greek salad, baked haddock, roasted potatoes, and broccolini with garlic.




And for dessert, we had strawberry shortcake with whipped cream. There were a few presents too. And both my sister and I tried to find what we call mushy Father's Day cards but there were none to be had. My dad usually gives us mushy cards so we wanted to reciprocate. I like mushy cards don't you? They let you say the things you want to say but sometimes you just can't. Especially if you're not the mushy type. I am not the mushy type and either is my sister.

It was great spending time together today.

My Place by the Sea in Rockport

If you read my last post, you know that I went to Rockport on Tuesday to celebrate my birthday. I had dinner with my friend Debbi and we dined at Brackett's Oceanview. Then on Thursday night, I went back to Rockport with my sister and our friends Mary and Don.



Mary and Don have been married for 30 years so Sheila and I took them out to celebrate. Mary wanted to go to Rockport. We decided to go to My Place by the Sea which is a restaurant located at the tip of Bearskin Neck. It is as close to the ocean as you can get.

This is my dinner, Lobster Quesadillas. It's actually an appetizer but I ate it as a dinner. Well, I split it with my sister and she split her dinner with me.



She had the panko crusted cod. So did Don. Both dishes were delicious.



Mary went with the Roasted Salmon. We had the best bread, you really didn't need butter, it was that good. But the butter was an herb butter so we ate it.



Here's a shot of my sister with a cool iron grate in the background.



The inside of the restaurant as seen from our table. The decor was clean and simple and really lovely. The curtains were made of linen and tied up with raffia. Neutral colors were used throughout. What color do you really need when you gave the big blue ocean right outside your window? The striped awning you see is outside on the patio.




Mary and Don clinked their dessert spoons to celebrate 30 years of marriage. We split a dessert of warm apple crunch with cinnamon ice cream and a caramel drizzle. Yum!



The deck was not used because it was windy and a bit cool out. It had rained earlier in the day. We thought the night might be a washout but we were wrong.




Before we headed out, I just had to take a photo of this fun hat display.



Sometime, I would love to return and dine on this patio. It is so pretty when it is illuminated at night.



As you can see, the sun was trying to come out. Would I get the pinky sky I was hoping for?



This is Jodi, out for her evening walk. We met her outside the restaurant.




Look the sky is getting pink!




We looked in the window at Helmut's Streudel shop. Closed again! Are they ever open? We wanted to take home a box of streudel.




The Motif No 1 was looking good as always.




So was the harbor.




The sunset was beautiful, the cloudiness had cleared and we took a few shots of the gorgeous scene and then we headed home. We had a wonderful evening that felt more like a mini vacation.

A Birthday in Rockport

A quick post today. It's my birthday and tonight I went to one of my favorite places, Rockport. I wanted to take the day off from work but I couldn't. So my friend Debbi and I went for dinner. This is the view from our table.



My favorite streudel shop was closed again. With no hours posted, it's hard to figure out when they're open. This shop was open and it was very cute. It had a nice mix of old and new items.



There wasn't much light so it was difficult to take crisp photos. I don't care. The night was beautiful. A tad cool by the water but that was fine with me.



The sky had just a hint of pink in it.



The sunsets are always gorgeous in Rockport.



Waterfront dining. This restaurant is in the best spot.



You can see the famous Motif No. 1 in the distance.





Ships in the harbor.



Same ship but I moved half an inch.



And again. I do like the view from this wharf.



Illuminated ice cream shop.



Harbor scene.



Another Harbor scene. Again moving a half inch. Do you ever do that with your shots?





Looking for pink sky.



Hardly any here.



I found more pink here.




And it looks like I found a new friend too! Isn't he cute?