My 50th Wells College Reunion

 What a fabulous experience, going back to Wells for my 50th reunion. It was very special reconnecting with so many classmates that I had lost track of and seeing again the classmates that I had kept in touch with. I was struck by what interesting and productive lives everyone had led. What a remarkable collection of life stories!

And it was so stimulating to hear what a strong, positive force the Wells experience had been on our lives. Our years at Wells were powerfully formative years.

What a splendid place to study and learn and to prepare ourselves for the real world! What a splendid setting in which to forge and nurture friendships with other women and with our professors!

THE BEAUTIFUL WELLS CAMPUS

I was struck by the great beauty of the campus. I knew that it was beautiful but I don't think I really appreciated it as fully as I should have.

The lake, oh, the lake! Lake Cayuga, a jewel in upstate New York. The most beautiful of the Finger Lakes.

Canoeing on the lake.

A view of the lake from the front of Main Building

ROOMING AGAIN IN WELD

The Class of 1963, the Golden Class this year, was housed in Weld. I lived in this dorm my sophomore and junior years. Ah, the memories!

RECEPTION AT PRESIDENT RYERSON'S HOME

A reception at Taylor House, the residence of President Ryerson

DINNER AT THE AURORA INN

Dinner at the Aurora Inn: Chris, Anne, and Linda

President Ryerson and Chris at the same table

THE PARADE

The Wells Fargo stagecoach ready to lead the Parade of Classes

         The Class of 1963 in the parade staging area



     The proud class of 1963 marches to MacMillan

THE GALA DINNER

                                                                       Linda and Chris


                               Chris and Anne

PH

                                                 Pettibone House, where I lived my senior year

LOOKING AHEAD TO 2018

I am already looking forward to our 55th reunion. I will try to keep in touch better from now on with my Wells friends.

DCDC Outing with Mary

Mary and I met at the National Museum of the American Indian for lunch. Jodi was supposed to join us but we were unable to hook up because we had a cell phone glitch. (I'll not go into detail but I was responsible for the snafu.)


I always have the wild rice and water cress salad. Today I also ordered a piece of fry bread and some squash.

 Mary is sporting her new T-shirt which reads:  

Homeland Security: Fighting terrorism since 1492 in Arizona.

Pinch alert! I got a kick out of this warning when I took my tray to the tray return area.

 We then went to the Freer Gallery to see the Peacock Room. Something new was initiated last month (i.e. April 2013). The museum has decided to open the shutters in the Peacock Room from noon to 5 pm on the third Thursday of every month. One can certainly appreciate the deep, dark colors of the room more fully with the natural light from outside illuminating the walls.

"Harmony in Blue and Gold: The Peacock Room" is considered Whistler's masterpiece. Whistler redecorated Frederick Leyland's dining room in London in 1876-77. 

Whistler "painted the paneled room in a rich and unified palette of brilliant blue-greens with over-glazing and metallic gold leaf." It is considered "a high example of the Anglo-Japanese style." (source: wikipedia)


In 1904 the American industrialist Charles Lang Freer bought the entire room from Leyland's heirs and transported it to his mansion in Detroit. Freer used the room to display the more than 250 ceramics he had collected in Egypt, Iran, Japan, China, and Korea.

When Freer died in 1917, the room was installed in the Smithsonian's Freer Gallery in Washington, DC.

 
                   Mary talking to the docent

Congratulations, Oksana!

 

 
Our dear friend Oksana has just earned her Master's degree in Library Science. Sue hosted a fantastic celebration at her beautiful home. It was a magical evening, one to remember!

 The Group: George, Sue, Ivan, Christine, Oksana, Larissa, and Ginny (photo by Dal)

 The Grad

 

The Perfect Hostess

Larissa

Ivan

 Dal

 George and Oksana

 

 Oksana and Ginny

 Dal, George, and Sue

Mother's Day

 My wonderful husband planned a very nice day for me today. After going to church, where every mother was given a lovely pink carnation, we headed to McLean to have lunch at my favorite Italian restaurant, Assaggi Osteria. As usual, we dined well.

I began with bruschetta: whole wheat crostini with soft goat cheese and julienne of artichokes - delicious!

                                                 Andrea, of course, chose calamari.

        Andrea also chose croquette with potato and sausage.

We both ordered pasta for our main course.  I had gnocchi with broccoli.

             I chose semifreddo gianduia with berries for dessert.

After our superb meal, we headed into DC. (I think that everyone knows that I love going into DC.)

We went in search of the Dante statue in Meridian Hill Park and discovered an enchanting new place!

We found Dante - 

and a very vibrant park scene!

 Drums and drums and drums!

We also found two more statues.

                                     Joan of Arc

A gift from the Women of France to the Women of America



                                And Serenity.

Thanks to Andrea for the gift of a very happy day. Tu sei grande! Tu sei il mio salvagente!

Art and Soul

Cousin Debbie and I met for dinner at Art and Soul, a new restaurant in the Liaison Hotel on Capitol Hill. We enjoyed the food and the ambiance - and the fun catching-up conversation.

Debbie