Hoppin' at Hopkins..

Not... 

So with the help of medication I seem to be getting able to move around more without gasping.. we’ll see

So anyway, with the time sort of on my hands, a few random notes about recent “stuff” 

Cheese Please:

Before our sojourn up here,  got a very thoughtful gift from a dear friend, in the form of a hockey puck

Which, when explored further turned out to be a lovely cheese wheel of Beekman 1802 Blaack Cheese (“Blaak is an Italian-style semi-hard cheese made from a 60:40 mix of goat and cow milk giving the cheese a mild but distinctive flavor”)

Look Here

Which is a good description, except we detected a little mor bite and sharper flavor than alluded to above

Which made a lovely cheese to accompany the Whitley’s Mixed Nuts, our new cocktail favorite.

As I’ve often said, cheese may be the most perfect food..   A great friend..with impeccable taste

Boat Parade:

As long time pax dwellers might know, a traditional part of the “Christmas Walk” on the Solomon’s Island is the “Boat Parade” wherein local boat owners decorate their vessels with holiday themes, not unlike maybe the Rose Parade.  It varies with weather and schedules, but upwards of a dozen boats are not uncommon.  We used to assemble at the Dry Dock to view the procession, but  have fallen off for a few years.  So, I took a shot out of the windows in the digs, and you can get the feel maybe, even though the image is nowhere near frame worthy.

Madrigal Dinners

We attended  the Madrigal dinners at Historic St. Mary’s City for the Nth year.  We went on the first evening which traditionally is populated by board members and the 1634 Society.  There was a paucity of both. While I know that some loyal readers are associated with “the City”, I do have to be truthful in my reports.  I thought that although enjoyable, this session was not quite up to some in years past.  Of course due to my health issues I did not attempt to climb the stairs in the State House to get to the little bits and bites and some wine.  On that night there were fewer than normal tables, making the “All Hail! Wassail!” ritual a little less robust.  The food was good as usual

(taken before Fried Oysters were served)

The seasonal music from St. Maries Musica was very entertaining, but we did miss the vocal talents of the Ping Group (from St. Mary’s College/Larry Vote).  Of course as always it’s a great way to kick off the holiday season.  If you haven’t been, go next year.

Hopkins

Well, it’s been almost a week that I’ve been here, medical progress is being made, but still no firm diagnosis (of the source or type of Pulmonary Fibrosis) .  I get to meet a lot of nice people on the staff, and the doctors seem compassionate and interested in making me “better”.   It is just taking a while   At one point tomorrow (Tuesday) was a goal, but I suspect that is fading…  I do have a nice view from the window of the original Johns Hopkins

But I would gladly trade that for the view of “my clock” and the dancers at home..

Where I could be in something else besides scruffies to

DFD