20 March, 2016            L’Chaim!

This post is a placeholder – come back tomorrow for a more complete post. Please! 

Ev and I had dinner last night at Perly’s (“It’s Yiddish for delicious!”) at 111 East Grace Street in Richmond. We’ve eaten many meals there since it opened, and each meal is better than the one before, and the first one was fantastic! Last night at the table across from us was a young couple with a daughter who was around three and a son who was eight months old. All four were as lovely and well-mannered as you could ever hope to meet in a restaurant, or anywhere else. The mother told Evelyn the little girl wanted to know her name, and they exchanged pleasantries. Evelyn told the girl that she was an older sister too, and it’s a big job. The girl told Evelyn she’d taught her brother to do something for the first time today – drink out of a straw! She told the story with pride and modesty in equal measure; she is really going places.

I could not have been more charmed. I was getting up early the next morning (this morning) to take one of my nieces to the mountains for the Highland Maple Festival in Monterey, Virginia. I was thinking about that, and about our dinner, and about our unanticipated dining companions, and I started singing To Life from Fiddler on the Roof. In my head of course, not out loud. But this morning before dawn when i was driving away I put it on in my car and thought about it all day.

But = I’ve been gone for a lot of hours and I’m going to toss up a quick post and do a more complete version tomorrow.

The best thing about the Maple Festival is the people – every time. Pecan Yummies are also superb, and Wren and I got our pictures taken with the Yum Master herself. And the picture was taken by – it was stitched on his apron – The Yum Monster! Everybody in that business has great job titles.

Wren, me, Yum Master:

Me, Wren, and the Yum Master, photo credit to the Yum Monster. Highland Maple Festival, 2016

In my left hand I’m holding a book – check this out:

Curious George Makes Maple Syrup – how could anything be any more fun?

Our old friend Nathan made us a new custom spurtle! Check this out – alongside the one he made last year:

Small, old, well used spurtle, and brand new, yet-to-be-used spurtle. Made this morning! While I watched!

More tomorrow (lots more)  – but now I have to go to bed! L’chaim!

All best,

Jay