TeamReedBlog.2020

When a death trap of a rental car and a lap full of dog vomit doesn't derail your vacation, you know you've had a good one. Team Reed will count 2024 as yet another epic trip to Vacationland. It started with a couple days in the Old Port where the Captain and I braved the single digits to shop, sample and sip before meeting the rest of the elder Reed clan at DiMillo's and then the Portland Symphony Orchestra. We picked Ali up on Sunday and traveled north to Jen and Peter's temporary digs on Oak Pond. We'd rented a Jeep Gladiator because we'd recently ended up with a truck as our rental car and Jeff liked driving it. We learned the hard way that this pickup-like vehicle is not meant for cold weather.  We were on the interstate, about a third of the way into the trip when we experienced the " Jeep Death Wobble " which feels like you're driving down a rutted, gravel road at top speed. The jarring will shake your teeth loose, and when it comes out of ...

We knew our time with Alison's full-time attention was going to end on Thanksgiving Day when we were to meet her boyfriend, Beau, and his family. It's one of those things that you look forward to and dread at the same time.  What if we didn't gel? What if they hate us? What if they serve alligator instead of turkey? What if we say something that sends the whole thing off-kilter? I shouldn't have fretted. Beau and his family were terrific. The meal was great, and the only gator we saw was in a ditch along the way. (I've been very disappointed in my trips to Florida, which have been markedly un-gator infested.) We liked them so much we decided to spend the next day with them, too. Jeff had offhandedly mentioned that he'd like to go to the Kennedy Space Center one day, and Ali and Beau quickly secured tickets for all of us, including his parents, Deb and Tim, and brother, Gavin. We set out in time to get gas and coffee, planning to meet them there. What we didn...

 We're off to a great Thanksgiving holiday start and what may be a great tradition: vacation BEFORE the big meal. Part 1 of the #ThanksgivinginFExtravaganza began with a flight to Orlando and a 2.5 hour drive straight to Tampa on Friday. We had just enough time to pop in for a delightful and informative time at the Dali museum where I, for one, learned a lot more about the mustachioed artist than I had known before. Perhaps the most fun fact was that he was such a gifted artist in school - and there was plenty of evidence to show he could draw/paint startlingly realistic imagery - that he declared there was nothing his teachers could teach him. He was promptly expelled. The fantastical stuff he's known for responds to his rejection of the realities of war and authority figures. Super cool stop. We had dinner at a great place with our friend/advisor Joe Hudson. Read more about that in the food section below. Downtown Tampa was hopping Saturday evening, in part because of a pro h...

I'm still kind of in awe of these dahlias, which refuse to stop budding even though their cold-weather cousins are sitting right there, screaming that their time in the sun is waning and it's time for them to shove over for autumnal decor.  I don't know why the mums are so convinced they're right: They're within the shadow of monster canna lilies, which also refuse to acknowledge the change in season regardless of how many brittle, cinnamon-colored oak leaves kiss them as they drift to the ground. I'm not complaining. I love the duality as I often find myself on the border of things. I spent a good portion of the weekend scooping up magnolia leaves that had filled my driveway. We get a lot of enjoyment out of that tree, which technically belongs to my neighbor, Lois. It's a gorgeous canopy over our driveway and back stoop table. It's next to magical in the spring and summer. I keep threatening to thread it with outside lights, and the Captain keeps remin...

I love it that Halloween has spread itself out to encompass most of the month. It was always sad to me that you spent so much time on a costume as a kid or for your kid for a one-time use. And in Indiana, so often, the costume was covered up by a winter coat and you had to dodge ice and snow on the way to snag a tiny chocolate bar. I have long complained about having to visit the miserly George Croft, who my parents made us visit because he and my dad were friendly political enemies. In lieu of candy, he would cackle as he gave us Republican candidate literature, buttons and fans and tell us to give them to Dad. Sometimes he'd throw in a penny for a trouble. A penny! Seriously. Man, I hated that guy. Fast-forward to Halloween parties well in advance of the 31st, mall events and parties everywhere. I got to go to the Indianapolis ZooBoo with Annie, Elayna and Nathan last week and it was super fun. The only inch of the place I didn't go was the snake house - ick - but they covere...

Our street and neighborhood has been infested with oversized skeletons, spiders and their webs, even a coven of witches. It's super fun, and a reflection of the spirit of this neighborhood. (See what I did there? :) ) Jeff flinches every time I look out into our yard with a thoughtful expression. We've (I've) decorated, but with Alison a grown-up girl living away, it's less Halloween and more fall-ish. In part because I'm lazy and don't want to have to rush out to de-Halloween as soon as it's over. Fall is a welcome season despite its proximity to winter, whose only virtue is you can decorate for  Christmas the day after Thanksgiving. Yes, I'm a stickler. Christmas does burst out here, but only the day after Thanksgiving. This year, it'll be a bit after that as we'll be in Orlando for that holiday.  Our social calendar is rapidly filling up with fun with friends, annual must-do events like the Broad Ripple Kiwanis Pumpkin Smash and the Ronald Mc...

I've often lauded our small neighborhood for its charm, friendliness and proximity to a bunch of fun and necessary things. I have a love-hate relationship with the trees which are great until they dump their spent leaves knee-deep in the yard if I don't keep up with them. We also have a great and low-key neighborhood association, whose twin focus on snow removal and fun activities, makes it the best neighborhood association in the city, if not the world. Lat Thursday night, for example, they brought The Chauffeurs , an instrumental, jazz-funk band, and food trucks to our tiny park. The Captain and I used to be regulars at these monthly summer events, but softball and other things crowded it out. This week, though, we took a bottle of wine, a couple chairs and a credit card and settled in. What struck me most was how many kids were there. Tall kids. Short kids. Kids who climbed on rocks. They were everywhere, and I realized that I'm not one of those parents anymore who bring...