A 'Like Wow' Morning (Soup and Song Benefit For St. Susan's Center)

Enjoying Soup and Song To Benefit the St. Susan Center 

6:30

Woke around 6:15, just as the sun was rising out our front door, over Long Point---a pristine morning, cloudless skies, a bit of a chill in the air, 59º, a perfect day ahead.  Where was this weekend when our families were here?  Fickle Chautauqua.

Fun With Granny

Tubing

Like today, yesterday was one of the nicest days on the lake this summer and the lake, as a result, was filled with pleasure boats, jet skis, sailboats and bass boats, everyone out to enjoy the sun and water after a couple of weeks of thunderstorms.  We had Marisa with us for the day, so she kept us, especially Evie busy, with card games, swimming, and kayaking.  I, of course, packed the car with trash and was off, happily, to the Transfer Station, for another humdinger of a trash day, the last 'big day' I assume until next summer.  I then came home, picked up Marisa around 10:00 and we were off to Ashville, to return books to the library, to Lakewood to get a frozen hot chocolate for Marisa at Ryder's Cup Coffee, then on to Wegman's to shop, where she had never been.  She weighed my veggies, picked out the bagels, and we were out of there in 15 minutes, as she checked the list twice to make sure we did not forget anything (we did get fat free cream of chicken soup, not regular, alas). While we were shopping, Evie made a ricotta pie and cut the lawn, no relaxing there. We were home by noon, and Marisa immediately wanted to got swimming, so she, Evie, and the next door neighbors grandkids swam for at least an hour, doing jumps off the dock into rings, playing on the floats, enjoying the warm afternoon in the sun.

Human Ring Toss

Marisa and Isabelle Hold A Protus...Yuk

I watched the PGA on and off during the afternoon, read some, sun bathed until 4:00.  Marisa and Evie both took timeouts from the water, to relax, watch a show on their iPad, or relax.  Around 4:00, we went for a long kayak paddle, through the reeds, down to Sandy Bottom and back.  It was too much for Marisa, as it was very warm, so when we finished, she vowed to 'never kayak again,' a half truth.

Ready To Kayak

Paddling Through Reeds To Sandy Bottom

Around 6:30, Evie quickly made a couple of flat bread pizzas, cut them up, and we grabbed drinks, and took a boat cruise over to Bemus, hoping a slip would be open.  It was, so we tied up the boat and went to St. Susan Center's Soup and Song fest Benefit at the Bemus Park.  The center feeds thousands of people each week in Jamestown.  It's an amazing group, and has been in existence, feeding people in need for close to thirty years.  We had our choice of about twenty soups, donated by local restaurants.  And for ten dollars, we got our choice of three soups, bread or croutons, and a drink. We sampled various soups, from a seafood or corn chowders, to chicken tortilla soup, wild rice and mushroom to potato.  While we ate our soups, we listened to Dan Vogen, a local guitar player,  sing music from the 70's and 80's.  I would say over a hundred were in attendance, mostly locals from Jamestown, few if anyone from the Chautauqua Institution.

Ready For A Cruise To Bemus Point

Menu At St. Susan Benefit

We stayed for an hour, then boated home around 7:45.  We watched another kids movie with Marisa, The Baby Sitters Club, and we both sat through the whole film...what discipline.  Marisa seemed to like it enough to stick with it.  We then went out on the porch as Bemus was having a massive firework display, with Evie taking photos of the best of the works.  We then put Marisa to bed around 10:00, swaddled her in covers,  then turned on a fan.

Bemus Fire Works

Today, we hope to boat to the Chautauqua Institution around 10:30, to hear the choir, do some walking and hit the Bookstore.  Beth should arrive back from her workshop around 5:00 and we have a special throwback dinner for her.  I will reveal what it is tomorrow because it's a surprise.