Welp, July was mostly ‘chill’ which means I was not traveling. Then I had two trips in a span of less than a month. So I went from staying-at-home-getting-stuff-done mode to I’m-exhausted-from-traveling-too-much mode. But hey, that’s how I roll, right? So let’s go!
The first half of July saw some scrapping, breakfast with friends at an awesome biscuit place, making lotion bars and doing a lot of research on Japan for our upcoming trip. On the 18th I flew to Buffalo, NY, to spend the rest of the month with family. That night, I went to the Canalside festival with my aunt, which is a weekly night of food and music near the Erie Canal, so a really pretty setting near the water.
I saw James, a British band I have loved since the early 1990s. I have seen them probably 5 times now and they just blow me away every time, from my first at a festival in southern England to my home town. They bring back amazing memories and remind me just how influential music has been in my life.
The next day my parents came to get me on route back home from a vacation they just had in PA, and two days later we did a winery tour. They live about an hour from the Finger Lakes which are known for their excellent wines and plenty of wineries, so we picked a new lake we hadn’t been to before, Seneca, and went to almost ten wineries on a humid, hot Sunday.
Of course we tasted too much and bought too much, but that’s to be expected. One winery in particular had a medieval theme, can’t remember why, but it lent itself to some photo opportunities!
And we stopped midday for some charcuterie and cheese at Fox Run Vineyards who have this gorgeous metal gate.
I didn’t get to see my sister, brother-in-law or nephews this time around because they were out of town, but mom and I still got to drive down to Lancaster, PA, for the Creating Keepsakes Convention. This is still the best scrapbooking show and the best one that CK does around the country. What’s even better is that on our drive down there are TONS of independent scrapbooking stores! So we stopped at around 4 or so and of course got a few goodies here and there. Many of them are owned by Amish families, so it was just so beautiful to drive these narrow country streets surrounded by family farms of lush corn, rustic barns and lots of farm stands. I’m this [ ] close to going off the grid and becoming Amish!
Anyway, the convention was excellent as always, but was not without a mishap here and there.
I took five classes that I really enjoyed, and I am pleased to say that I did not spend “that much”–which means much less than I’ve spent the past few years. Yay!
I also got to meet another of my scrapbooking idols–Totally Tiffany! She has the BEST organization and storage products designed just for scrapbooking supplies. She’s rarely at any of these conventions so it was a treat to chat with her–before it began! Friday morning, mom and I were ordering coffee at a café en route to the convention center when Tiffany and one of her employees were right behind us in line! Then of course during the show we got photos with her!
Also during my stay in New York I got to visit two sets of friends and attend a relative’s bridal shower, which allowed me to visit with aunts and cousins that I haven’t seen in YEARS. I remember my cousins as little babies and now they’re in college. (I, on the other hand, haven’t aged a bit. 😉
Anyhoo…here’s a parting shot from the Rochester airport. You may think yeah, it’s a smaller city so their airport is super tiny and not that interesting…and yet this exhibit from the Video Game Hall of Fame, part of the Toy Hall of Fame, part of the Strong Museum of Play that is in Rochester and is SO fun to go to, makes this the BEST airport in the world. Hands down.
August
OK, moving on to August, I transitioned from one month to another with THREE concerts in FIVE days. First, on August 1st, it was Weird Al Yankovic, who played the most beautiful venue in the world, Red Rocks, with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra. I went with my friend Lisa and her son Jacob and we had tons of fun. This shot is from one of his more recent songs, “White and Nerdy” which is really fun and catchy.
Next was Our Lady Peace, Bush and Live, three bands I’ve loved since the mid-90s and it was an excellent show all around. I’ve seen Our Lady Peace several times since then, but not Bush or Live, and they were all excellent! Lastly, to swing the pendulum in the completely opposite direction, we saw Skold play for maybe 40 people in the bar area of a music venue. He used to be a guitar player for Marilyn Manson if that helps place his genre. Excellent, but short, show.
My second trip in a month was to VA/PA for the wedding of a dear friend, fellow Penn Stater and member of the Beaver Sisters (Beaver Hall is the dorm we lived in) who we call Weiner. Myself and Sistah Lisa flew into DC and stayed with friends Steph and Juan in Virginia, then us gals drove up to Pennsylvania, picking up another Beaver Sister, Dana, along the way. We spent the day in State College, PA, the Penn State town where it all began, and where Dana’s parents live. We dropped our stuff at their house and booked it to the winery within walking distance from their house. There we chilled with a bottle of wine and a beautiful summer afternoon.
Then we went into town to dine, buy PSU gear and visit Beaver Hall.
The following day was our dear Beaver Sister Weiner‘s wedding. She looked amazing and it was a lovely ceremony.
We then enjoyed the afternoon with food, drink, dancing and lots of music. The couple’s first dance was adorable, especially when their little girl joined in.
And of course we had to take group Beaver photos with both our newlywed Sistah and the newly inducted Beaver Brother, Chris!
Alas, the party was over and Steph, Lisa and I drove back to VA. I then stayed with Steph and Juan a couple more days and was able to accomplish two things I had never been able to do during my 5 years living in Virginia.
1. Go to the park right near Ronald Reagan National Airport and watch the planes land right over your head. I mean RIGHT over your head.
Want to see it in action?
SO AWESOME! We were there talking and watching planes for over an hour.
2. We went to a Washington Nationals baseball game! The team was just forming when I moved away in 2005 so I had never been. It’s a beautiful stadium and Steph, Juan and I had a nice night out half-watching baseball (who really watches that anyway?), having yummy stadium food and enjoying the Presidents. Yes.
But Roosevelt and Washington ran away from me before I could snap photos, boo! I did catch this great video of Jefferson and Roosevelt dancing to “Take On Me” though. Priceless.
And here’s a selfie!
Okay okay, my last two events of the month were an amazing magic show by Penn and Teller and a screening of “Caddyshack” and then a Q&A session with none other than the Chevy Chase! How cool is that!? It was my first time seeing “Caddyshack” in its entirety.
Here’s a snippet from Penn and Teller. I still have no idea how they do magic.
