"Doors Open Jamestown", As Frigid Temperatures Creep Back In

7:15

Unfortunately, I awoke around 6:00, hot from the down comforter, and could not get back to sleep. Walking downstairs was eerie, as large shadows, from our leafless trees, stretched out on the white lawn, caused by a full moon in the west sky.  Around 6:30, the first fishermen appeared, as well as a couple of snow mobiles, sliding by Long Point, out early for some reason.

I started yesterday morning by going to classical yoga at 9:00, too early for a Saturday because it forces me to rush the leisure of my morning:  10:00 is the perfect time, for me.  A good class, a couple of guys, a total of 12, which makes Chris, our teacher, feel good.  I look forward more and more to his savasana,  as he does not rush it.  I returned home around 10:30, pulled out the bread dough I put together Friday, turned on the oven to 500º, put in the dutch oven, waited for it to get hot, and dropped in the dough.  It baked for close to 45 minutes, to an internal temperature of 205º, which seems to be just right.  And while the bread was baking, I drove off to the Transfer Station, now manned by a new company and crew.  I wonder what happened to the regulars, if North Harmony found a better deal. Anyways, it seems strange not to see the same two or three guys who have manned the truck for years. Change...don't like it.

Before lunch, we decided to cross country ski, to get in a workout since we were going to Jamestown, early afternoon.  It was the first time this year for Evie on skis and she did well, loved it, as we went as far at Wells Bay, then back.  For lunch, I had minestrone soup (we made a huge pot of it), sardines, and toast, and watched some basketball.

Cross Country Skiing On A Overcast Morning

Around 2:15, we went to Doors Open Jamestown, a day when all the various tourists attractions, the museums, train station, Robert Jackson Center, are open and free to the public. Friends we met on a hike recommended.  We started at the St. Susan Center, which is the local food pantry and feeds a couple hundred people a day.  We wanted to see how it worked, what it looked like though we felt uncomfortable walking in and looking around, as at least fifty people were there enjoying a meal.  All looked as though they needed it.  We then walked around other parts of this huge abandoned factory, now useful, housing not only St. Susan but Helping Hands, a religious organization with the goal of serving the needs of the poor, especially the young.  They have turned this empty factory space into a cafe, a couple of archery ranges, a pool room, a laser tag room, and a bike and skate board track. A very friendly young leader took us around and showed us all the facilities, how it served mostly the teenagers in the Jamestown area, though the archery range was for adults as well, and the Gateway sponsored archery leagues. The walls of much of the area are covered with murals, done by local teens, delinquents really, arrested for graffiti but were given the walls as an outlet for their art, with amazing results. Lots of intercity themes, as well as religious themes and mantras, like Jesus Saves and the likes. The indoor archery range was amazing, a huge room with rubber or stuffed animals, tigers, lions, deer, etc, set at various distances with numbers on them, signifying the degree of difficulty. After shooting, an archer adds up the numbers on the animals he's hit and gets a score.  We spent about a half hour touring the place.

Archery Range,  Gateway Center

Murals by Local Teens

Skate Park at Center

God and Archery

Biker Into The Air

Typical Wall in Gateway Center

Another Mural By Graffiti Artists

After the Gateway, we drove over to the Fenton Historic Center, the home of Rueben Eaton Fenton, industrialist, banker, and Governor of New York in the 1860's.  It's basically a home which attempts to give you a view of what Fenton's house, especially each room, would have looked like back in the late 19th century.  At this time, many of the rooms had a Christmas theme, showing how the family might have decorated the house during the holiday season.  We spent about forty five minutes, enjoying some of the exhibits that did not seem to fit in the theme, like a case displaying weapons from W.W. I, another of toys from the early part of the century, as well as Civil War paraphernalia and musical instruments.

Fenton Museum Accordion, Part of Jamestown Band, 1920's

Accordion, Made In Cleveland, Polka Capital of US

 We ended our visit with a beer at the Brazil Craft Beer and Wine Lounge on 4th.  Evie ordered a hard pear cider from Belgium, which she loved, and I had a imitation of a Czech Pilsener Urquell, from Colorado, which was quite good.  We struck up a conversation with a couple of guys from Jamestown, talked about their upcoming travel plans, to visit Prague, Budapest, and Vienna.  And we also liked the new bartender, a young women from Jamestown, who was friendly and knowledgeable about various beers.  Evie was excited about the beer flights, an invitation to taste four different  8 ounce beers for 12 bucks, 10 on Tuesdays.  The fun of this place is really beer tasting, reading the descriptions and trying to find one you might like.

A Flight of Beers

We got home around 5:30 and Evie got busy putting together a vegetarian stir fry, with the rice leftover from last nights dinner, with spinach, garlic, ginger, soy, and other vegetables.  She also put together a salmon salad, a dish which is becoming one of my favorites.   Once everything was done, we sat down to enjoy a glass of wine and our favorite cheese, Castello, a combination of blue cheese and and brie. We were happy to see Bill Maher's Real Time was back, so we watched it for an hour, with guests James Carville and his wife, Mary Matalin, both political operatives but from different parties who have been happily married for twenty years.  It was a good way to end a fun day.