My goodness, things have been busy lately. So many fun, awesome things to catch up on... First of all, our last East Hampton Writers Guild meeting was one of my favorites so far. Our writing exercise was a treasure hunt in the Bevin House library...
Each writer found an object (or oddity, as I refer to them on the tours), and wrote a short piece inspired by it, then we went around the table and shared our object & what we wrote. Since I'd already written my object poem a month earlier, I took the time to write this instead:
As I sit here surrounded by women writing,
I feel a sisterhood I didn't know I'd been aching for.
To think, that each of us is filled with words--
to see our thoughts rise into the ether
and swirl and mix and collide...
To think how we have traveled many roads
to find each other here,
in this specific time and place,
to hold our words and our hearts in our palms
and to say to one another--
here is my truth, what is yours?
That weekend we hosted some Bevin Family Reunion guests, and they could not have been a kinder, more fun group to have around. I especially loved interacting with the kids, who were some of the best-behaved and sweetest children I've ever met.
Sunday after church I met up with my fella and we went to check out a place called East Rock, which had beautiful trails and an awesome view of New Haven.
The next day I finally got to visit my friend Carolyn and have lunch at her cute little cottage. It was just as charming as I expected, and we had such a lovely visit. Her house has the exact vibe I always wanted for my own place some day...
And her "office" is an amazing gallery of highlights from her career on Broadway, including pictures of her with people like Katharine Hepburn, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Kelly Bishop... nbd.
She was also in a show called Dear World, which starred Angela freaking Lansbury. I only found this out because there was a fabulous chair in her sunroom, and when I complimented her on it she said, "Oh, thank you. That belonged to Angela Lansbury at one time..." WHAT....
Carolyn made us some lovely omelettes and we had a nice long talk about life, love, and everything under the sun. Then at her recommendation I drove to a nearby place called Lyman's Orchard, which I can't believe I'd never been to... There's a large market & restaurant selling all kinds of local produce & fun concoctions, and a sweet little picnic area by a pond. And then the orchards are spread out over a few acres of hilltops, and quite pretty. Apparently they have some you-pick options, and I'm hoping to go back for strawberries & later Asian pears... mmmm....
Tuesday I was up crazy early, so I went for a misty morning hike at Wadsworth Falls, my favorite local waterfall...
Wednesday after work I went out to a place called "Jacob's Park Beach," just because of my nephew, mostly. I had a lovely reading and relaxing for a bit.
Then on the way home, another discovery! I passed a park I'd often seen before, but never stopped at--Machimoodus. It is now my favorite park so far, and I've been there about 5 times in the past week. The air was sweet, the paths are varied, the views are breathtaking, and there are surprises around every bend. Just when I think I've already discovered all the best local spots...
I know, it's a lot of nature pics. My brother would say, "Megan, it's just rocks and trees..." But I can't help it, I'm obsessed.
That night I met up with two friends from my writer's group. I had this delicious pina colada, (a little eccentric, considering it was kind of chilly, but who cares?) and lots of fun girl talk.
Thursday I went on my weekly walk with my lovely friend Erin. Our walk & talks have become one of the highlights of my week, and I always enjoy our time together. In fact, Thursday I apparently just couldn't get enough of her, because that night my fella & I met Erin & her husband at "Open-Mic-Night" at the Farm on Carter Hill. I'd passed the place many times, and had been wanting to stop in and check it out, and this was the perfect excuse...
I thought of my parents a lot that night, because this is exactly the kind of "set up" we've always talked about wanting to own as a family some day--the beautiful landscape, the historic buildings, the vintage/retro/old-timey feel... it's right up their alley.
Saturday we had an event at the inn, which Dean thankfully handled, because I had plans to go with my friend Carolyn (the Broadway Baby) to a play in Hartford. It was called "Lessons From Aloes," by Athol Fugard, and it was about the affect of apartheid in South Africa on 3 very different characters. Kind of heavy stuff, but I enjoyed it, and I especially enjoyed going with Carolyn :)
The event that day was a really random pool party, followed by an equally random music video shoot the next day. I know nothing about it except that this very special item was featured:
Later I went to Meriden to visit my fella, and we went for a lovely walk through this park along the river...
His name is Adam, he's a systems administrator in East Hartford. He's from western Mass, he's Polish, he's 6'4" with a beard, and an all-around great guy. We're spending a lot of time together these days, so he'll probably crop up in here from time to time :)
The next day I took another trip to Machimoodus, taking a beautiful new trail...
Went to lunch with Erin at this charming place in Marlborough, super yummy...
And later we went for another hike at Machimoodus, because I'm obsessed. This time we went through the part of the park that used to be a vacation resort called Sunrise. Pretty cool spot with lots of potential... :)
In other news, I am loving the new flowers blooming here at the Bevin House, and always think of my mom and grandmothers, who love nature and beautiful things.
Working feverishly on my memoir, which is taking some fun & surprising turns...
I'm currently reading:
mostly because of the pretty cover, but also because "Practical Magic...."
Lots of new plans in the works and I'm very excited :) But for now, I leave you with this quote:
"Now I remembered that the real world was wide,
and that a varied field of hopes and fears,
of sensations and excitements
awaited those who had the courage
to go forth into its' expanse."
