A Family Gathering in New Jersey 5 '08

The end of the May we flew to New Jersey a family get-together.

 

Delaney, Laura, and Macie

 We stayed with Bruce's daughter Laura  and her husband Kenyatta so that we could visit with them and the grandchildren Delaney and Macie

CC playing with Macie

Bruce and Kenyatta walking with Delaney

.Bruce’s cousin, Richie had brought his family to nearby Atlantic City for a week long holiday so we were able to see them as well. Bruce and Richie played golf on Saturday morning while Laura, Cousin Carol,  and I took Macie, , Delaney, and  Carol’s son Jake to  a local park.   

Jake and the Dino

 Jake loved the dinosaur rocker,  while Delaney preferred Clifford and the big red slide.

Delaney riding Clifford

  Both of them loved the big yellow bus and each other.

Jake and Delaney and the Big Yellow Bus

Delaney on the slide

Kenyatta’s mother is an artist. On Sunday she invited to an art show which was being held at an art school. 

 It was a lot of fun.  The event had been well thought out . 

 There a wide variety of painting and fine art crafts for sale, while musicians and choral groups performed throughout the day. 

 And there were plenty of benches and shady spots to sit and enjoy the scene.

Collectors Cafe 5/21/08

  The collectors Cafe in North Myrtle beach holds a reception for their artists once a quarter.

Bruce in entry gallery

The place is always packed with lovers of contepporatry art 

(The free appetizers are bad either)

 

Bruce purchased several  small originals to add to the collection in our music room

The "Shag" 5 '08

“The Shag” is the official dance of South Carolina.  It originated in the 60s at the height of the beach music craze, and it is still popular with all ages throughout the South.  There are lots of “Shag Dance Street Festivals in the warmer months, and all of the winter holiday parties feature a “Shag Band.” Bruce and I signed up for lessons.  It is basically a simple six step routine with lots of turns thrown in for show.   You wouldn’t believe how fast the locals warm up to us when we tell them we are learning to “Shag”.   It’s better than saying you golf; after all, golf is  played everywhere, but The Shag is a Southern dance and if you are learning it - it must mean you are sincere about wanting to be a part of this community.

     Bruce is much better at the dance than I am   I have no sense of rhythm, but find it worth the effort to practice just because it opens so many doors for us.  Anyway I don’t need to be great as most of the fancy foot work is done by the male.

RVing in Cheraw State Park, SC 5 '08

One of the reasons we moved to the east coast was to be able to explore a different part of the world.  We started with South Carolina.  A couple of weeks ago we drove our RV to Cherwah State Park SC.  Cherway is the sister city to our local Georgetown.  During the Civil Way all the local residents believed that Sherwin was going to burn Georgetown, so before he arrived they sent all their land deeds (dating back to land grants from King George of England) and other vital documents to Cherwah for safe keeping.  Sherwin (and some heavy rains that made the coastal pain impassable) fooled them.  He went inland to burn Columbia, then turned north and headed straight to Cherwah where he burned all of both towns’ records.   It’s hard to believe that Cherwah was the site of such devastation.  There are still four hundred year old churches, and beautiful antebellum mansions.  There is a sense of having slipped through a rift in time when one goes there.  Other than a yarn mill and a Pepsi bottling plant there is not a lot of work.  Most of the country side is taken up by State or Federal Parks which are surrounded by small family farms. The area is very pretty and very Southern.

Evening draws upon the lake

It was pretty much a last minute decision to go RV camping for three days in Cherwah State Park, SC. The park is only 130 miles Northwest of our home so, after booking our reservation online, it was a short and easy drive to get there. Most South Carolina State Parks are manicured and tame... quite different from the wilderness parks we were accustomed to in the Western United States. Cherwah combines the best of both worlds. The Park is situated on 7000 acres of wooded rolling hills with a large lake and a creek cutting through the center of the park The park's management has taken advantage of this natural barrier to create several different environments. It is designed to provide something for everyone.

The Southern side of the park is reserved for raw nature lovers. It has miles and miles of hiking trails , several small-boat launches, a separate site (for 20 ) tent campers, a horse camp with separate bridal trails, and a RV camp with 18 full hookup sites. When we arrived, only 4 of the RV sites were in use (and one of those was the resident campground host).

We set up camp right at the lake's edge. Bruce immediately had to try his hand fishing. To my relief he didn't catch anything. (I am not fond of fresh water fish) was much happier about his using his boy scout skills to grill chicken.

On Monday we took advantage of the amenities of the northern side of the park. That half has been cultivated for more civilized group activities.

 It has fully outfitted cabins, a group picnic area, a swimming beach, boardwalk nature trails along the lake, and a well maintained 18 hole championship golf course Many of the holes are both in very scenic locations, and near environmentally sensitive habitats. The State has chosen to use the park to help educate the public about environmental issues, and has done a great job of showing how man and nature can co-exist with a little planning and care.

Southern Side of the Lake

A board walk trail across a water-lily and lotus  pond section of the lake.

Pitcher plant

 The trail continues through fresh water bogs where you can see carnivorous plants like the Pitcher plants

above and below

Pitcher Plants will all red bracts

Pitcher plant with red green  bracts

Bruce has decided that he wants to try playing the golf course again, and I certainly want to kayak the lake, so we most definitely will return to this gem.

Swan lake for Mothers Day 5 '08

Last weekend we celebrated Mothers Day by going to see Swan Lake in Sumter SC. It is one of the prettiest city parks I have ever visited. The lake is a flower and bird lover's paradise. The beautiful black waters of Swan Lake form the setting for the spectacular Iris Gardens. The lake is dotted with colorful islands, and wildlife is abundant. It is the only public park in the United States to feature all eight swan species, Swan Lake-Iris Gardens is also home to some of the nation's most intensive plantings of Japanese iris, which bloom yearly in mid to late May and last until the beginning of June. The garden also boasts many other flowers including colorful camellias, azaleas, day lilies, and Japanese magnolias.  

Swan Lake-Iris Gardens began in 1927 when Hamilton Carr Bland, a local businessman was developing the 30 acres of swamp into a private fishing camp. At the same time he was landscaping the grounds of his home with Japanese iris. The iris failed miserably in the home garden, and Bland ordered his gardener to dig up the bulbs and dump them at the swamp. The following spring, they burst into bloom. The accidental garden, referred to by Southern Living magazine a "lovely mistake," has since been developed into one of the finest botanical gardens in the United States

Australian Black Swan

The magnificent swans were brought in from all over the world; representing Australia, North America, South America, Europe and Asia were originally imported by Mr. Bland in the late 1920's.  You might find it interesting that the Australian Black swans have been in residence the longest, and some of the birds living in the garden at present are their descendents.  They were definitely my favorites. Visitors are permitted to feed the swans. The swans are quite tame and friendly and will come right up to you looking for a hand out; so do the Canada geese, mallards, egrets, herons and anhinga which also call the gardens home.

 

Canada Goose

Tri color Heron

family of Pied

Hogsbill turtle

A Low Country Birthday Celebration 4 '08

Bruce was so happy he could talk me into playing golf

April 30th was Bruce's birthday. Our friends, Jim and Becky Sullivan surprised Bruce with a lunch of home-made pizza, followed by 18 holes of golf . It was a perfect birthday gift. Bruce has wanted me to play golf with him ever since we arrived. 

Friend, Jim Sullivan

Our friends, Jim and Becky joined us

Becky Sullivan

 I have to say, Par three courses are a lot quicker and more relaxed than the crowded pro  championship courses.

Even I had a grin on my face while I was playing

Since I had never so much as held a club, we decided to play at a nearby executive course in Myrtle Beach. To my surprise, I could not only hit the ball, I was able to drive it in the direction I intended it to go. It was probably little more than beginners luck, but Bruce was overjoyed. We all had such a good time that he thinks I should be playing with him all the time.

Impressionist Exhibit at the National Art Gallery 4 '08

CC in front of a Plein Air  Demonstration

The National Museum of Art was running a major exhibition of  the French Impressionist

BJ posing by / as VanGogh

We spent several hours soaking in the beauty of artworks that we had only seen in  art  history books

CC in front of a Monet

Home Improvements: Murals on the stair risers 4 '08

BJ standing by  the original stairs

I was in a curio shop a couple of weeks ago when I noticed some hand painted pagoda murals on the risers of their stairs.  How cute!  I could do that, I thought.  It would really enhance our barren stairwell.

Two of the three designs

So I set to work designing a set of low country beach theme designs drawn to the size of the stair riser..  I came up with three designs  which when reversed gave me a set of  six full size patterns.

Hand rail and finial

   Stretching out on my belly I began with the top most riser. I put the pattern on the stair and began to copy the sketch by hand onto the riser above it using burnt sienna acrylic paint and glazing compound.  Working my way down the stairs, it took me a full week  to hand paint every other riser.

  Finished stair well

Then  Bruce added a  natural oak hand rail  and a fancy Southern pineapple finial capon to the stair post  to polish it off.  We are thrilled with the results . So is everyone else.  We get nothing but compliments about it.