berkshires and back

Last weekend, we went to the Berkshires for the second of two summer weekends there.

We started the celebrations on Thursday night close to home at a play called "Born Yesterday." It was political and funny and a little preachy but mostly great fun. Written in the 50s and set in Washington, D.C., it concerned a ruthless "junk man," the politicians he was trying to buy, and his girlfriend, who was dumb and liked it that way, but became smarter (or at least better educated) over the course of the play. Certainly thought- and laugh- provoking, a good staging, and a great set.

In the Berkshires, we stayed at our other favorite B&B, a private home nestled up against 120 square miles of protected forest, with a beautiful view in the other direction. The man who runs it, Richard, prepares breakfasts from his own organic garden and has another business leading llama hikes. When we arrived, we sat down with him on his couches and caught up for a while, then he took us around back to introduce us to his chickens who were about to be made into frozen chicken parts. They were fat and waddled. I did not fall in love. But I do love his cat, Quinn, who was feral when she first arrived and has since become quite social.

Friday night, we went to Tanglewood and saw Joshua Bell perform a Saint Saens piece (which was very familiar, but I can't possibly hum it today). We also heard Pictures at an Exhibition (Mussorksgy, orchestrated by Ravel), a piece I listened to many times in my misspent youth, as interpreted by ELP.

Saturday, we saw All's Well that Ends Well, a play I was sure I'd seen a thousand times, but it turns out this was my first viewing. I loved it but wanted to slap the protagonist, Bertram, who was a spoiled and ungrateful brat who could not bring himself to love the woman who loved him until he thought she'd died. Of course, she had only staged her own death, so everyone lived happily ever after, which is, I guess, what made the whole thing a comedy. The acting, directing, and staging were terrific, though, and I'm so glad we picked it as our Saturday night activity.

On Sunday, we asked Richard if he was leading a llama hike that day. Alas, he was not, but he harnessed up some llamas anyways, handed us the leashes, suggested a route through the woods, and sent us on our way. We had a nice walk despite the incredibly high humidity, and the llamas (Picasso, Jack, and Tanner) seemed to have a good time too. Then off to Tanglewood to see Yo Yo Ma with his incredibly competent backup band. The pieces performed were unfamiliar and fine, but not as great as the Friday night concert. YYM, however, was terrific.

There was one amazing part where he was playing very quietly but in a shimmery way, foreshadowing something loud and crashing. Something outside the shed caught my eye -- the wind had picked up. Just as the music climaxed, the heavens opened up and it poured, this on a day when I had never seen so many people on the lawn, nor so many cars in the parking lot. All was well by the time intermission rolled around, and most people were still on the lawn having a very pleasant, if soggier, afternoon.

Monday night, we thought we were going to have a quiet catch-up evening, but mid-day, a friend we hadn't seen for a while emailed me, saying he was travelling from Connecticut to Nova Scotia and might he stop in. Was he coming for dinner? That would be lovely. Was he planning to spend the night? Well, he was hoping to. It all worked out well -- it was great to see him, he fit in well with our schedule, and he was a good guest all around.

Then work was crazed for both of us this week as we work toward two very tough deadlines. I think we'll be fine, but things have been extra intense with sleeping not so great. Back in real life, I met a friend for dinner Wednesday night. She came home with me and the three of us chatted into the night. By Thursday, I was too pooped to cook dinner or do much of anything, and I was grateful to have Friday off from work.

On Friday, I screwed up my courage to make a few phone calls (still battling that demon) and contacted our wood guy to order two cords, thinking we'd get a delivery right before September started. After a little confusion (apparently, he has a deadbeat customer with a similar name), he offered to bring the first part of the delivery on Friday night.

He brought the second part yesterday, and Robert and I stacked as much as we could, pending the delivery of a few more pallets. I also did my own version of the Olympics, tossing logs to get them closer to the wood pile, requiring less carrying when we're ready to resume stacking. Surprisingly, I'm not at all sore today, though I deserve to be.

Then we switched gears and prepped dinner for a guest whom we'd invited several weeks ago. We had a good meal, if I do say so myself, and spent a lovely, inspiring, and engaging evening together. Today, I've attended to a few things, planned and shopped for a couple of meals, while Robert has been off at a board meeting.

And it all starts again tomorrow. For the time being, I'm enjoying some quiet down-time (which helps me enjoy the up- social time), hanging out with cats, reading, and generally resting.