And sometimes you don’t…
so maybe just some random items for your Friday’s and future planning consideration..
To do:
There are several interesting lectures coming up that
history minded folk might want to see, or listen to.
This Sunday (the 9th), Dr. Edward Papenfuse,
Maryland State Archivist, will be speaking at the Barns at Sotterley as part of
the Boeing Lecture series. His topic
will be “The War of 1812 at Sotterley and
Southern Maryland”. He is a very
approachable and engaging speaker, and it would be worth your time to
attend. Starts at 3pm, and there is no
cost. MFO and I will be there. (yes, Redskins fans, this might cut short your
viewing of the game, but I fear by then they will be buried by the Saints and you
probably are better off leaving)
Then on Monday (the 10th) Silas Hurry (Curator of
collections at Historic St. Mary’s City) is going to present “Saints Cast in Brass and Molded in Clay,
Roman Catholic Religious Artifacts from Historic St. Mary’s City”. Not sure if he is bringing any samples with
him. He always makes a good speech and
has a great sense of humor. The talk
will be at St. Francis Xavier’s Church Hall, starting at 7pm. (yes, sports fans, it DOES conflict with
Monday Night Football – get over it).
Don’t believe there is any fee, and this lecture is the first of four in
the church’s 350th anniversary series.
A little further on, Dr. Julia King (Professor of
Anthropology and Museum Studies chair of St. Mary’s College) will be speaking
on “A Place Now Known Unto Them:” The
Archaeology of Anglo-Native Relations, 1634-1711, which will explore
the complex relationship of native Americans and the early colonists of
Maryland. She has done extensive
archeology work in Calvert county at important sites. The talk will be on September 14th
(yes party fans, this IS a Friday night, get over it). Starts at 7p.m. in the Visitor Center at
Historic St. Mary’s City, and is free to the public, and you.
And just one more, on the evening before Dr. King’s lecture,
the 13th, a Thursday, John Laurence Busch will present
his book “Steam Coffin” in the Calvert Marine Museum’s auditorium at
7:00 p.m. Busch presents the steamship as a watershed invention transforming
the way humans perceived the world.
Sounds very interesting. This
also is free, but I can only imagine that his book will be available for
purchase..
And if you’re looking for something to do other than sit in
a chair and learn neat stuff, tomorrow (Saturday the 8th) is
Historic St. Mary’s City's annual Woodland Indian Discovery Day at the city. Lots to do for young and old (well, maybe
mature): you can learn to shoot a bow and arrow, throw an atlatl, step a
traditional dance, and make a rattle to keep the beat. Experiment with
making tools from rocks and learn which familiar plants were used for food,
tools, and building material. I think there
will be dancing by the Yaocomaco Native American troupe. For all this you do need to buy a ticket
($10/$6) which will help support programs at the City. And, if you wander out to the 1667 Chapel,
you just might see the bottom feeder..
Lastly, don’t forget tonight is First Friday in Leonardtown
with the usual stuff to do.
I don’t like to harp on this (but I will anyway), look at the
wonderful opportunities to learn and do stuff here in our little end of
Southern Maryland. Don’t let anybody
tell you there’s nothing to do here.
It’s right in front of you!!
Literary note:
I am currently reading a fascinating book called “the Table
Comes First” by Adam Gopnik. It’s hard
to characterize, but it sort of talks about the historical interaction of food
to humans, the philosophy of appetite on the soul, and other deep stuff. He is quite opinionated There have been a couple of quotes that I sort
of like, for instance when he talks about a modern French meal, he says that a
dinner without wine and concluding coffee is “….impossible to imagine. Dinner
with water is dinner for Prisoners.”
He is fond of quoting Brillat-Savarin and Grimod from the 18th
century who were kind of the fathers of modern food writing in post Revolution
France. Grimod says “the three things to avoid at the table are: “a little wine
which I bought from the grocer”; a dinner ‘just among a few friends’; and
‘amateur musicians’. Sounds like I guy I
would like. Anyway, it is interesting
(if not always easy) reading.
Food notes:
I have noticed on my almost daily trip to Starbucks that the
parking lot of the new paragon of “Suthin’ hospitality” the Cracker Barrel is
full most every morning.. Build them and
they will come. Sigh
On a higher plane, although the Feeder has yet to visit, I
am hearing very good things about the new little place to eat in the Blue Heron
Inn on the Solomons. It’s behind the
Lotus Café (ditto good things) I think.
Limited hours.
And back on a lower plane, one of my little news feeds had a
story about restaurants cracking down on employees drinking on or after the
job. In my experience the staff enjoys
a glass of wine or something at the conclusion of service. Almost a tradition. Anyway, as a result of a successful million dollar
lawsuit against among others, the sommelier of Husk, a nationally recognized
restaurant in Charleston, more and more restaurateurs are now forbidding
employees from drinking on the premises.
Ever. Some restaurants have
implemented a policy that employees can’t even go into the bar unless they’re on
shift. Applies 24/7. Tough times.. Although come to think about it, I couldn't drink on my job either. Boeing somehow frowned on that..
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