Nancy and I go back to college. We ran in the same circle of friends, were both involved in the theatre, and were both from Connecticut. Naturally, we became friends. Like most friends from early on in life, we kind of lost touch over the years. Fortunately we reconnected a couple of years ago, and last year when we came through town we got together for a visit.
Her husband, David, is also from her hometown and went to college with us, but he got there right as I was transitioning back from one college to another, and I don't remember him as part of the group I was running with at the time. Turns out he's a pretty cool guy. We bonded over Rush, and he showed me Rush's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction speech. Blah, blah, blah.
Nancy and David have two kids - one of whom is about Iain's age, and the other is Kate's age. When we got together last year it was if they were all long-lost friends! I think we were at Nancy's house for about 5 minutes before all the kids disappeared, leaving the adults in their wake.
When we visited last year, Nancy and David were just getting ready to move from Avon to Hartford. This year part of our "reconnecting" was finding out where they currently live.
Turns out they live in a gorgeous 1916 house about a block away from Elizabeth Park. It has two pantries (although they are going to remodel one away), a carriage entrance (where the door into the house is actually at carriage height, and opens into their dining room), and three full floors. The third floor was originally the servants quarters, and they're talking about turning it into a rental unit. (Although Nancy joked that after the kids go off to school, she and David could live there and rent the rest of the house!) Oak woodwork everywhere, except the third floor - pine. It's on a beautiful tree-lined street, and there was virtually no "city noise" as we enjoyed their backyard hospitality. So, I'm very jealous of their house.
It was great seeing them again. The kids went off to watch "The Lego Movie" and the adults gabbed in the backyard until it was too dark to see each other! We talked a lot of theatre, and Nancy suggested that we get tickets to Cleveland Playhouse, as they are a LORT theatre (as is Nancy's employer - Goodspeed Opera House) which produces their own productions - rather than a "touring" theatre like Playhouse Square, which brings in the touring companies. She has a good point - support the local community - and we'll have to see what they're doing this year.
Like last year, the evening wound down with us watching the DVR'd recording of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremonies. This year we watched Peter Gabriel (am-ah-zing!!), Linda Ronstadt and Cat Stevens. We didn't make it to Nirvana or the E Street Band as it was getting late.
When we were driving home last year I realized that, although it had been probably 20 years since we had last seen each other, it felt like we had always been together and it was just our weekly get-together at Nancy's house. Consequently, no one had thought to take a picture. This year, I remembered. Pictures were taken. However, my phone's camera flash was set to "auto" and for some reason decided that there was plenty of light inside Nancy's house and didn't need to go off. So, I ended up with the stereotypical "crappy cell phone photos" of the evening. Oh well, there's always next year.
Her husband, David, is also from her hometown and went to college with us, but he got there right as I was transitioning back from one college to another, and I don't remember him as part of the group I was running with at the time. Turns out he's a pretty cool guy. We bonded over Rush, and he showed me Rush's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction speech. Blah, blah, blah.
Nancy and David have two kids - one of whom is about Iain's age, and the other is Kate's age. When we got together last year it was if they were all long-lost friends! I think we were at Nancy's house for about 5 minutes before all the kids disappeared, leaving the adults in their wake.
When we visited last year, Nancy and David were just getting ready to move from Avon to Hartford. This year part of our "reconnecting" was finding out where they currently live.
Turns out they live in a gorgeous 1916 house about a block away from Elizabeth Park. It has two pantries (although they are going to remodel one away), a carriage entrance (where the door into the house is actually at carriage height, and opens into their dining room), and three full floors. The third floor was originally the servants quarters, and they're talking about turning it into a rental unit. (Although Nancy joked that after the kids go off to school, she and David could live there and rent the rest of the house!) Oak woodwork everywhere, except the third floor - pine. It's on a beautiful tree-lined street, and there was virtually no "city noise" as we enjoyed their backyard hospitality. So, I'm very jealous of their house.
It was great seeing them again. The kids went off to watch "The Lego Movie" and the adults gabbed in the backyard until it was too dark to see each other! We talked a lot of theatre, and Nancy suggested that we get tickets to Cleveland Playhouse, as they are a LORT theatre (as is Nancy's employer - Goodspeed Opera House) which produces their own productions - rather than a "touring" theatre like Playhouse Square, which brings in the touring companies. She has a good point - support the local community - and we'll have to see what they're doing this year.
Like last year, the evening wound down with us watching the DVR'd recording of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremonies. This year we watched Peter Gabriel (am-ah-zing!!), Linda Ronstadt and Cat Stevens. We didn't make it to Nirvana or the E Street Band as it was getting late.
When we were driving home last year I realized that, although it had been probably 20 years since we had last seen each other, it felt like we had always been together and it was just our weekly get-together at Nancy's house. Consequently, no one had thought to take a picture. This year, I remembered. Pictures were taken. However, my phone's camera flash was set to "auto" and for some reason decided that there was plenty of light inside Nancy's house and didn't need to go off. So, I ended up with the stereotypical "crappy cell phone photos" of the evening. Oh well, there's always next year.
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| The best photo of the bunch. At full size, it looks like I've played with the artistic filters too much! |
