Savannah 2010
Wes and I went to Mass at nearby St. Patrick’s church and when we got home he and Deb handed me a Mother’s Day card. Lovely card but most amazing of all was that inside was the agenda for a writer’s summit! It was a Storyteller’s Summit that the College of Communication and Journalism of the University of Florida had prepared. There were well known authors, and editors and agents from Florida, Georgia and NYC! I had a hard time processing the information that Wes and I would being going to spend two days together at a conference for writers!! I could only stammer my thanks.
We packed and got ready to go to Savannah, but did stop at an Art Gallery to see work by a woman who had been a student of Wes’s at Santa Fe College. She and a friend and their daughters displayed their work, fittingly, on Mothers’ Day.
Savannah is about three and a half hours away so we arrived around four or so. Wes had told the owner that I needed a ground floor room (the main dining room is on the second floor of a four story bed and breakfast.). Well, we walked up to the dining room and checked in and had a snack. They walked me to my room which was in a new bed and breakfast the owner had bought. Not only was I to be on the ground floor, but it was a suite!!! A large room with a fireplace, couch, three large chairs, couple small and a coffee table. Had a lovely bathroom and a beautiful bedroom with a huge bed – three pillows wide!! There was a small desk in that room and books in various places in both rooms. Wes and Deb were on the third floor in the original building. Wes had promised to take photos to put on the Inn’s website so this was sort of a working holiday for him. After getting settled, we walked several blocks to a restaurant that had been recommended – The Crystal Beer Parlor which had a huge variety of German beers and very good food. We walked around a bit as Savannah has such lovely parks – we took pictures there as well. When we returned to the Inn, we sat on the deck in the back and enjoyed chocolate chip cookies and milk before bed. Met couple of interesting women from Nova Scotia and had an enjoyable evening. Wes and Deb walked me to my room, planning full days of adventure.
Monday May 10, 2010
They came for me around 8:15am, so that we could enjoy breakfast together and were pleased to be near the two ladies from Canada. Afterward, Wes took pictures, Deb visited galleries and I relaxed. For lunch, Wes and I walked quite a ways to the Mellow Mushroom pizza place and ate at a small table in front of it. We then found a bookstore and I bought books by authors we would see at the Summit so that I could be familiar with their work. I also bought a thin book by Alex Guiness whom I have always admired.
Back to the Inns to relax and then we walked several blocks to a restaurant we all like – The Firefly. We enjoyed macaroni and cheese and glasses of wine there. Weather has been perfect and though a lot of walking not tired nor hot.
We later had fresh baked chocolate chip cookies and milk on the deck behind the Savannah Bed and Breakfast inn. Wes and Deb walked me to my room to another night of rest.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Deb came for me so that the three of us could eat breakfast together in the gathering room of the Inn. We always chose our breakfast the night before and they were always good. Wes needed to take pictures of the staff and get all of his photos on a CD, so Deb and I walked several blocks to an old cemetery. I had decided to rub some inscriptions on grave stones, but really had not planned or researched it. I had done it long ago and forgot how I did it. Had purchased thin paper and charcoal. Well, I now realize that the last time I used even thinner paper – tissue paper – and not charcoal but graphite! Well, dear Deb walked me around to find the best samples of what I wanted but the paper was thick and the stones were rough and we got charcoal all over our fingers. She held the paper but as I was not getting a good transfer, she showed me how to use the charcoal to capture a design from one and few words from another. She was concerned that some of the charcoal would mark the white marble! We laughed a lot as she said if the police came she would say that some crazy old lady dragged her over to the tomb stone and made her help! As we walked around it was very hot and at one point she asked “Do you want to rest – in peace – here?” and we both laughed. She is so much fun to be with and such a wonderful artist in many mediums and did not mind that I dragged her to this graveyard in the heat when I was so ill prepared. She even talked about spraying what I did transfer so I could preserve it. Decided that will pursue this interest in graveyards in Ohio. Sure that I can find interesting ones in Mespo and Middlefield and know of graves of gypsies in Bedford and of an Indian who had been hanged and is now in East 9th Street cemetery in Cleveland.
For lunch, we walked to a Café near a park several blocks away. Had sandwiches at a little table outdoors and when Wes and Deb went in to buy them, I spied a couple who had ice cold glasses of beer and I called Wes on his cell phone to ask if he would buy one for me. It tasted soooo good!
We then walked to a thrift shop that they like and Deb bought a light blouse and Wes bought a filmy night gown and peignoir for one of his photo shoots. As we walked through the park, he told Deb that he liked the blouse she bought and he was really pleased with his nightgown. A girl walking by us, turned her head to see who had made that strange comment; we laughed so hard about her reaction as we had not even noticed her.
When we got back, Deb left me to pack and rest and she joined Wes so she could help him finish up. When they put out snacks at the Inn, she brought me slices of a couple of different kinds of cake and a huge glass of iced tea. Sweetheart.
Though we left during rush hour traffic, it soon thinned out and we had a pleasant ride home. Had hoped to get home before dark so Deb could water plants, we arrived around 9:30 and too dark to do that.
What a wonderful time we had! We each did our own thing but we also did a lot of stuff together. It was a mixture thoroughly enjoyed by all of us.