Last night we inaugurated our new backyard with a potluck for our church group, the Voyagers. We discovered that if we use the inside dining room table, as well as the outdoor tables, we could seat 32 people. Hal grilled carne asada and pollo for tacos, people brought fabulous appetizers and salads, and a few desserts, and we had ourselves a great time.
The school year is officially over now. Last night Pat and I held a joint recital for our private students and a few of our school district students. In our informal concert, we had an ensemble piece with 2 violins, a viola, cello, bass and piano, some cello solos, some violin solos, and a sax solo, which made for some musical diversity. Pat and I ended the show with a violin/cello duet.
Since I will be playing violin for one of the programs for our city-wide book read, I thought I should read The Soloist by Steve Lopez now instead of in the fall. We should have great conversations in October about this book from the way music can enter lives to mental illness and homelessness. I learned things about all these that I did not know before. I have yet to see the movie, but will probably see it when it comes out on DVD.
We've had lots of activity in the cottage this week, and when I went in last night, I found that the cabinets are being made. Yay!
I finished the 10th book in The Number One Ladies' Detective Agency series. Pure delight, as with the others. Now I know there is going to be an 11th because of what happens in the end of this one!
Last night in book club we discussed Joyce Carol Oates' Wild Nights! Stories About the Last Days of Poe, Dickinson, Twain, James, and Hemingway. Oates reaches into the dark side of the human psyche and imagines the end of the lives of these American writers. While I was prepared for something creepy with Poe, I wasn't so much for the other writers and found out things about them that I hadn't known before.
The Elementary Strings Program went out with a bang last night. This picture shows the Beginning Strings as we performed the Can Can - our finale. The Elementary Orchestra played some difficult pieces well, and I think we all appreciated that the concert was less than an hour. 
After our trip to Italy, I put this movie in my Netflix queue. It certainly exudes the grand old Hollywood style with Charlton Heston and Rex Harrison, but I particularly enjoyed learning the story behind the painting of the Sistine Chapel. I also loved seeing the shots of Rome and Florence, and interior shots of the chapel (and if it wasn't really the chapel, it was a great recreation of it).
Book Club this Sunday features David Sedaris' When You Are Engulfed in Flames. The only other Sedaris I am familiar with is the Santaland Diaries which I heard on CD. I'm not exactly sure how the book discussion will go - maybe people will read some of their favorite funny passages?
I saw this poster tacked to a pole while I was on my morning walk. After yesterday's post, I thought it pretty funny! Click on the photo for a larger view.
Last year on Mother's Day, we were in Chicago, and Claire was with us in the middle of her journey back to Claremont from Goucher (along with her friend, Kelsey). It was a most memorable day of church, chocolate fondue and experimental theater.
The drywall is almost complete! The kitchen feels more like a real room now. Although we had wanted a tankless water heater, the gas line out to the cottage was not wide enough, and it was too much to replace it, so we are putting in a regular water heater. Our contractor got it from another job where they are replacing theirs for a bigger one and sold us this 30-gallon one for less than half price.
At 7:30 a.m. Saturday, this Wolfinbarger truck came down our driveway and dumped a rather large load of mulch. Many hours and wheelbarrow loads later, we are now declaring our backyard landscaping job Complete! I have added pictures to my Picasa site for viewing. Now I am anxious for summer vacation and time to spend enjoying our new living space.
