Farewell Concert on the Town Common

    

Color guard at the beginning

A concert on our picturesque town common in Grafton has been a Fourth of July tradition for 33 years.  Yesterday, all day, citizens placed their lawn chairs on the site around the white bandstand that dates from 1935 when the town center was used for the movie “Ah Wilderness”.  By 7:30 when the concert began, there was hardly any room left for children to play and do cartwheels.

For the past eight years the U.S. Air Force Band of Liberty from Hanscom Air Force Base has performed the annual concert, sponsored by the Grafton Lions Club.  It’s the perfect American small town celebration--men dressed in antique military uniforms firing the  cannons, scaring the children and pets who have gathered.  Traditionally the 1812 Overture has been the climax of the evening, with plenty of cannon fire.

                                                                                    Waiting for the Start

Since we have friends and relatives from as far away as Greece and Nicaragua gathering here to celebrate the baptism of granddaughter Amalia on Sunday, we made sure to  secure  places at last night’s concert so they could see a real American Fourth. It was bittersweet, because this was the farewell of the band, which has been performing for military and civilian audiences throughout the Northeast for over a quarter century.

                                                      The Air Force Band of Liberty

As the Grafton paper explained, budget cuts have affected the band and after this year, they will be disbanded and relocated to Langley Air Force Base in Virginia, where they will be incorporated into the musical program there.

                                                                                     The  Bandstand

Last night the Common was filled to overflowing and the cannons started booming right at the start with The Star Spangled Banner.  After musical selections that were classical, patriotic, and even “Alexander’s Ragtime Band”, and heartfelt comments from the band's leader, the evening ended with The Stars and Stripes Forever as most of the audience stood to honor friends and loved ones who have served in the military.

                               Even the cannons didn't wake up granddaughter Amalía.  Grafton Inn in the background.

As lawn chairs were gathered and the crowd dispersed  I heard  some of the younger people thanking elderly vets for their service to our country.

A vet listening

Even pets paid attention

It was a moving tribute to our military and to a band that has delighted our New England village over the years, and we left the Common, headed for a nearby fireworks display, feeling proud and  privileged to have been a part of it.

SPEAKING OF RITUALS:  An essay by daughter Eleni Gage Baltodano is currently featured on the  “Martha Stewart Living” blog.  It mentions four of Eleni’s favorite rituals, and  includes a shout-out to Grafton’s Fourth of July, photos of baby Amalia and her two grandmas, as well as a Greek tradition: Orthodox Easter,  a Nicaraguan tradition: visiting the nativity scenes at Christmas, and  an Indian tradition: Holi, which figures in Eleni's new novel; Other Waters.  To read  Eleni’s essay click here: 

Amalía Does San Francisco & Wine Country, Part Two

On the second day of her San Francisco visit, Amalía, eight-month-old fashionista, headed for the wineries of the Russian River Valley with Tia Marina at the wheel and Yiayia Joanie and Mommy Eleni completing her posse.

Amalía visited three wineries in all:  first Copain in Healdsburg, noted for its Syrahs and Pinot Noirs and the view of the Russian River Valley.

Because Amalía is too young to drink, she enjoyed the crackers that came with the tasting wines.
And she met a dog named Max.

The next day she visited the Korbel Champagne Cellars in Guerneville, noted for their, uh, champagnes, and had a delicious lunch.

The third winery was the DeLoach vineyards in Santa Rosa, noted for its Pinot Noirs.  It was so crowded with tasters that Amalía could hardly make it up to the bar.

They stayed in one of the western-themed cottages at Fern Grove in Guerneville, a quaint small town where Amalía saw her first five and ten cent store.

But walking across the historic Guernevillae bridge proved exhausting-- perhaps she had partied too late the night before.

Best of all was the Amalía's first sight of the Redwoods in the Armstrong Redwood Park--now part of the state park systems.  She was awed by the trees--so tall,

with such big roots

and so ancient that some are more than 1,400 years old.

On the way back to San Francisco they stopped at a house party at the home of a college friend of her Mommy's.  There, in the back yard, Amalía got a chance to practice her walking and her crawling while wearing her psychedelic dress and the retro-hippie headband that she'd packed specially for San Francisco.

Amalía was very sad saying good-bye to Tia Marina before she and her posse left for JFK on the red-eye, but she managed to sleep the whole way back, which is a lot more sleep than her Mommy did, and Mommy  had to go to work as soon as the plane landed.

Amalía Does San Francisco (Part One)

 Recently People magazine had a page of photos of Suri Cruise, fashion guru of the pre-school set, hitting the hot spots in Manhattan with a stuffed giraffe as her constant escort (although he looks more like a deer to me.)

During the same week, my granddaughter Amalía, eight months old, fashion guru of the pre-walking set, flew to  San Francisco with her Mommy and Yiayia Joanie to hang out with her Aunt Marina (known as "Tia Marina"), attend a book event presenting her Mommy’s new novel “Other Waters” and take a quick tour of Wine Country and a hike through a redwood  forest.

She didn’t have a stuffed animal as an escort, although a teddy bear was seen atop her head at the Fairmont Hotel, and a certain mooing cow went AWOL before the flight back, but Amalía still managed to flaunt the latest fashions while partying like a rock star on the  Left Coast.

She chose psychedelic clashing colors for brunching at the famous (since 1918) St. Francis Diner in the Mission District near Tia Marina's apartment.

It was Cinco de Mayo, so there was a lot of celebrating (including dancing Skeletons) in the streets.

Amalía admired the fabulous murals on nearly every wall in the Mission District.

She took in the view from the roof of Tia Marina's building in the Mission.

And in downtown San Francisco, on the roof of the buiding where Tia Marina works for BAR Architects, there was a giant heart.

From the Fairmont Amalía walked with Yiayia Joanie to Chinatown.  (It was a very steep hill.)

One day her Mommy spoke at Book Passage in the Ferry Building, about her new novel "Other Waters." That's the Ferry Building in the background below.

Afterward some friends stayed for dinner at a restaurant in the same building.

That night there was a wine and cheese pajama party at the Fairmont, but Amalía, in her jammies, was all partied out.

(Tomorrow--Partying through wine country and the Redwood forest.)

A Mother Kvelling About A Daughter’s Novel

Valentine’s Day was the launch of daughter Eleni’s second book, first novel, “Other Waters”, published, like her first book, “North of Ithaka",  a travel memoir, by St. Martins Press.  Despite having surgery a week before, she’s thrown herself into publicizing the book with book signings and presentations in Coral Gables, Florida (at Books & Books) , and tonight in Manhattan at the Barnes & Noble on 86^th and Lexington.  (Tomorrow she’ll be speaking at the Library in her hometown of Worcester MA, and then  on to Boston, Denver and who knows where else.  With a six-month-old baby.  Who’s still breastfeeding.)  To find out exactly where and when, check out her website:  http://www.elenigage.com/

I’m amazed at how many more ways there are to promote a book than there were back in the 1970’s and '80’s when my husband and I were doing it.  Today many of those roads for making your book known involve the internet—a subject I’m going to write about later, when I’ve seen all the ways Eleni’s using them and how effective they are.

“Other Waters” has already had excellent reviews from the likes of Library Journal and Kirkus Reviews (which is traditionally hard to please).  Kirkus called it “A lovely read” in a review that began  “Can goddesses walk among us?  Can an entire family really be cursed?”

But today I just want to kvell—a more picturesque way of saying “brag”-- because today I saw the review of Eleni’s novel, “Other Waters” in the  March 5 issue of People Magazine—the one with “Elizabeth Smart’s Dream Wedding” on the cover.

The review starts with a photo of the book cover and a small headshot of Eleni and People gives it four (out of a possible four) stars.  The review is by Caroline Leavitt and just In case you don’t have a copy of People handy, I’ll quote it for you here: 

“A Jane Austen-ish plot gets a delicious Indian accent in this effervescent novel by former People editor Gage.  Maya Das, a psychiatric resident torn between her parents’ traditional values and her bustling New York City life, finds her world upended when her grandmother’s death ostensibly unleashes a curse.  Maya’s boyfriend dumps her and she’s faced with a malpractice suit, so she heads back to India to remove the curse, save her family and reboot her life.  But in this exotic, mysterious setting cultures collide, love grows more complicated and Maya finally discovers just whom—and where—she is really meant to be.”

Jane Austen-ish!  A family curse! Exotic, mysterious India!  Doesn’t this review make you want to rush out and buy “Other Waters”?  Well, do it now.  You can even buy and download a Kindle version of it.

Amalía Fashionista, Chapter 2

Having challenged Suri Cruise to a fashion showdown for the title of style leader to the pre-school set, granddaughter Amalia, who’s now nearly six months old, knew she’d have to be on top of her game for several important occasions recently.  She paid close attention to the news out of New York’s Fashion Week.

When her Papou and I arrived in Miami, she rejected the ladybug hat we’d brought her, calling it “too Gaga”, but she thought better of the ladybug jammies that came with it. 

 She approved, however,  of the moose-themed onesie from Aunt Robin and Uncle Bob, who live in Jackson Hole, WY.  She said she’d use it while roughing it in Yellowstone Park.

 Valentine’s Day is a big challenge for a fashionista, and Amalía said nothing is “tutu much”  for such a romantic occasion. (Mommy is wearing Missoni from Target.)

 February 16 was a very important occasion, as well, because it was the launch of her Mommy’s new novel “Other Waters” with a reading and book signing at “Books & Books”, the renowned bookstore in Coral Gables (and several other locations.)  Amalía greeted everyone with her usual warmth and charm, but unfortunately fell asleep and slept through the entire presentation.  (But she’ll be at several more book parties, readings and signings in Manhattan, Massachusetts, and elsewhere.  For details check her Mommy’s web site: www.elenigage.com.)

 Yesterday, because her Grandma and Grandpa were staying at the famous Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables, with its elegant pool, Amalâ knew she’d have to choose a swimming ensemble equal to the glamorous 1930’s ambiance of the place.  

She settled on a navy and yellow daisy-themed one piece bathing suit with a cloche swim cap and matching sandals.  It even came with its own terry robe.

Amalia spent the day by the pool, but the combination of sun and water proved exhausting, and she decided to take a power nap before dressing for dinner.

And today, like the jet-setter she is, Amalía had to choose her wardrobe for her flight to Manhattan, where her resort wear wouldn’t do at all, especially in winter’s cold.  The first thing she packed was her (faux) leopard coat.  She knows that it’s all about animal prints right now.

What She Left When She Left for College

Yesterday I was sorting out my books (as part of my New Year’s resolution to de-hoard my life) when I came across a very special book that I had completely forgotten about.  It was a fabric-covered journal filled with about 50 hand-written pages composed by daughter Eleni when she was 17 years old—right before she went off to college.  The entries on each page were brief, and often broken up into lines like free verse. The first page read:

This book belongs to Joan,

The most influential woman in my life.

So that when I’m in college,

You can look at a page a day. 

And it will be as if I’m still here

In my peach jumper.

Naturally I sat down and read it through, laughing and crying as I went.  I have a notoriously bad memory, and Eleni has a scarily good one.  She’ll say things like, “Remember three years ago when we were walking on Fifth Avenue and you were wearing your navy pants suit and I was wearing….”

So I read through this little volume of memories, most of which had floated out of my skull, and I thought what a beautiful thing it was for a teenager to write something like this as a farewell to her mother before setting off into life.

And now, two decades later, Eleni is a married lady with a five-month-old daughter. I hope when Amalía grows up and goes off to college that she’ll take the time to write a journal like this one to her mother, to say, “I love you” and “Thanks for the memories.”

Eleni wrote that journal 20 years ago, and even then her writing talent, eye for detail and sense of humor were evident on every page.  Now she’s about to publish her second book and first novel “Other Waters” on Valentine’s Day.  In the journal she gave me, Eleni was recalling golden moments when we travelled, often just the two of us, the ultimate tourists, on annual trips. We had wonderful adventures, many of which would be forgotten if she didn’t write them down.  Below are some of my favorites.

Page 1. Remember before I was born how you wanted a girl? And you only drank out of the girl mug, and Grandma transferred your coffee from the horse mug to the girl mug.  And didn’t laugh…So you went to the hospital Monday night, because your appointment for a Caesarian was on Tuesday, even though Constantinople fell on a Tuesday.

At 8:15 a.m. on Tuesday, October 8^th they wheeled you in and knocked you out.  Ten minutes later you had a baby girl, perfectly unsquished.  And you asked Daddy what she looked like and he said, “Me”, meaning him. And that was the beginning of as beautiful friendship.

Page 2. Remember that day in the early eighties when we went to Child’s World and a strange man stopped you and said, “My God – you’ve got the best-looking pair of legs I’ve ever seen on a woman”  Remember that?  I thought so.

Page 3.  Remember our long drives to Old Sturbridge Village when we’d listen to Les Misérables,  Fun Rock and Janis Joplin, and stop and get gas and I’d have my bonnet on. Just like Thelma and Louise.

Page 7. Remember the man who pulled me out of the audience to folk dance with him in Greece.  All the Japanese folks took pictures and he told me I was beautiful.

Or

Remember the man on Spetses who hoped you’d be his Shirley Valentine?

Page 8.  In fourth grade I did a report on Massasoit and you colored in all the feathers on his headdress for me. Thanks.

Page 9. Remember that night in the apartment in Kolonaki when you and Marina talked to me at 3 a.m. because the state of the world upset me so much.  I got over it.  I always do!

Page 12.  The first time I went to Greece alone with Daddy you were sure the plane would crash and it didn’t.  So relax.  I repeat.  We are NOT having a crisis!

Page 16.            Remember New Orleans:

                            The Jazz Funeral

Marie Laveau

Valentine’s Day

Jackson Square

Beignets – Le Café du Monde

The Fortune Teller

Jambalaya

Gumbo

Pecan Pralines

The Moonwalk

Shalom Y’all

Crawfish

The Farmer’s market

The Beauregard – Keyes house

Cajun cooking with Justin Wilson

Page 17.  Remember Charleston

You driving a rental car as a stranger in a strange land.

The marketplace

Poogan’s porch—one of the several times in our lives I’ve cried at dinner, although I was happy that night.

Tin Pan Alley

The boy in a military school uniform with his suspenders hanging down, feeding doves on the battery with his girlfriend.

Page 23. Remember my sixteenth birthday party?  You made it a highlight of my life.  Thanks.

Page 24. You introduced me to

Fitzgerald

Upstairs Downstairs

Gone with the Wind

Chipped Beef

Soufflés

Appreciating photography

Peking Duck

Flea Markets

People magazine

Page 29. Remember my graduation from kindergarten?  I cried at the rehearsal. [Because she didn’t want to leave.]

Page 31.Together we’ve climbed to Prophet Elias, braved the Dreaded Palomidi, scaled Monemvassia, waterskied and ridden Space Mountain.  We’re unstoppable.

Page 32.  Everyone you come in contact with, from the lady at the bank to Al, loves seeing you because you make them feel important and brighten their day.  You think you don’t have friends, but you have them all over.

Page 33.  How many fifty-one year old women can say they refused Dan Quayle’s invitation to dinner? You can.

.

Page 35.  You gave me my first memory book, fine lingerie and perfume.  What an honour.

Page 37.  Things I got from you:

Blue eyes

A small mouth (no X-rays)

An appreciation of 5 p.m. Sunday afternoon drives, photographs and doors.

A twinkle in my eye.

Page 39.  Remember when I was in 8^th grade, we had a snow day on your birthday and we made a cake and took pictures and God smiled.

Page 41. You are one of the few people who have met the Beatles.  Therefore you will always have a place in Mohan’s heart.  John and Yoko were in their white stage at the time.

Page 42.  Remember our trip to the Dakota with Betsy?  The doorman was from Limerick and feared John was forgotten.  But the next day in Strawberry Fields, a young blonde mother was telling her son:  “There was a man called John Lennon and he was part of a group called the Beatles.  He was killed nine years ago today.  That’s why all these people are here.”  So the legend continues.