Maybe...Just Maybe

The past couple of weeks found me visiting two more Sweet Adelines choruses. First up was Harbor City Music Company Show Chorus (harborcitymusiccompany.org/) located in the Baltimore area. I had visited this award winning group last year and was looking forward to another great rehearsal under the direction of Master Director Michael Gellert. Well known for their show packages, they like to say they perform “a cappella with a twist!” And anyone who’s seen their “Crayon Package” would certainly agree! Unfortunately on this particular night, the room they normally occupy for rehearsals was being used, and they had to squeeze into another one elsewhere in the building, which also meant no risers but that's not something that would deter this chorus for carrying on! I joined in for the physical and vocal warm-ups, but those very quickly segued into relating the vocal exercise to one of their contest songs so I moved off to one side. They are preparing for their upcoming Regional Competition so no room for me to participate, but that’s ok because I still enjoy watching and listening and seem to learn something new with each visit. Several ladies were out sick, and some were being taken out in small groups to another room to work on other things so the pictures don’t really show the entire scope of this 70-member chorus. The evening concluded with last year’s Regional quartet champion, Lustre, performing their new contest package for us…awesome job, ladies! All are members of HCMC and are hoping for a repeat win this year (sorry, I didn’t get a picture of them).

Next up was the Heart of Maryland Chorus (www.heartofmarylandchorus.org/) located in Rockville, MD, and under the direction of Karen Collins. This group of nearly 40 women immediately made me feel at home and have such a positive, upbeat attitude and energy that obviously comes through Karen. She definitely seems to have a way of bringing out the best in them. I had been e-mailing with Membership Chair, Jan, and Chorus President, Marsha, since the beginning of the year about my impending visit so by the time we met, it was like we were old friends! (Photo below right, L to R: Karen, me, Marsha, Jan) The evening started with sectionals (each section in a different room fine-tuning their part), and after the whole chorus returned, I was able to stay on the risers and sing for the entire rehearsal. The obvious work ethic and wonderful sound emanating from this chorus shows their desire to continually improve as they ready themselves for contest and an upcoming performance. Thanks for such an enjoyable and fun night, ladies!

We also had a visit from our friends Bob and JoAnne during these last couple of weeks. They were our “neighbors” a couple of years ago in Orlando, and we’ve continued to stay in touch including a lengthy visit one day last winter when we were checking out the campground where they were staying. A bond was initially created because their husky, Pearl, loved Mikey and would always look for him when she came outside, often laying down beside him. Now we figure they’re probably chasing each other without pain in doggie heaven. As it turns out, Bob and JoAnne have sold their rig and are living about an hour south of here so drove up one day for a visit. After a couple hours of chatting, we spent a leisurely lunch at Ruby Tuesday’s and then it was time for them to hit the road hoping to avoid the rush hour traffic. It was so good to spend some time together, and hopefully we’ll be able to do it again before we leave town.

Which brings me to another bit of news…the hosts who were to replace us March 1 had some sort of emergency and will not be coming. While Ranger Kevin searches for a replacement, he asked if we’d be able to extend our stay for a couple more weeks, and we agreed. Besides hopefully avoiding any ugly weather in St. Louis (our next destination), maybe…just maybe…we’ll be able to see the cherry blossoms in DC, another one of those things we’ve never experienced.

You're How Old??

One thing I was looking forward to this year was being able to celebrate my sister’s 50th birthday with her. Though it was a scheduled work day for us, Russ offered to stay behind and cover the shift while I drove to DE for an overnight visit. With her husband out of town, it was going to be just us girls! I made a quick stop at the dollar store near her house to pick up one of those “over the hill” helium balloons to attach to her present. The only option was “You’re How Old?” and I quickly tied it to the gift bag. Within a few minutes I arrived at her place, and as I grabbed my luggage and the gift bag from the car, the balloon suddenly came loose from its ribbon and went floating off into the heavens! I was so bummed…that was the 50th item!

Now I guess I should briefly explain that statement. On my 50th birthday we were living in Baton Rouge, and a box arrived from my sister. In it were 50 individual items…some silly, some lovely, some yummy, some reminders of my youth, and the most precious…a ruby ring that had been my mom’s. I had decided to do something similar for Julie, and collecting 50 items is not as easy as you might think!

After the initial greetings, we left everything in the bedroom and headed out for lunch and to run some errands. Since one of those was at the dollar store, I decided to let them know that the balloon I had just purchased had not been tied well enough. As it turns out, they come pre-strung so it was a manufacturer defect, and the manager gave us a new one!

Back at her house it was time to open gifts. The first item I had her open was something that meant a lot to both of us. This owl picture had been embroidered by our grandmother and had hung in our mom’s place until she died. It came to live with me but had been in storage since we hit the road. After we emptied our storage unit last year, I had been concerned that it would get damaged as we had nowhere to hang it in the RV and decided to make it one of the 50 items.










Once everything was opened, I had one more surprise for her. About a month earlier I had contacted several people via e-mail asking if they’d like to join in the fun of celebrating Julie’s 50th birthday by mailing a card for her to my attention at the campground, and then I’d deliver it to her on the big day. I was able to surprise her with 12 cards plus a special package from her friend, Nancy (some of which are seen in the photo at right). Thanks to all who participated in the fun!

It was time to get ready for dinner and head over to Applebee’s because Julie knew she wanted to start with one of their “Perfect Margaritas”…mmmm! It was Trivia Night, and while we enjoyed a scrumptious dinner, we had fun trying to answer the questions between ourselves even though we hadn’t signed up to win any prizes. We ordered the yummy dessert shooters, and our fantastic server, Rachel, arrived with a little something extra. Since there weren’t enough other servers available to sing their typical birthday song, she had spelled out Happy Birthday in chocolate on a plate with Julie’s shooter, and didn’t charge us for either of our desserts! Our plans to go dancing were scrapped as we were both tired after a long day so we returned to her place to just hang and relax.

I left around noon the next day but not before we enjoyed some breakfast at IHOP and a leisurely drive down Route 1. We’re both so happy I was able to be there and share in her special day.

More Music & History....Naturally!

It was back to the Natural History Museum on our next trip into DC. There’s so much to see, and even though we’ve seen most of it all before, we still enjoy walking through all the exhibits whether it’s past the 2,200 year old Egyptian mummy or through the Sant Ocean Hall with its replica of a 45-foot-long North Atlantic Right Whale. In the Hall of Bones as you can imagine skeletons abound and are grouped together, i.e. man-like apes, rodents, birds, fish, or whatever. Of course no skeleton exhibit would be complete without those of the dinosaurs which are located in the Hall of Paleobiology.


















Located near the dinosaur exhibit is the FossiLab, a glass enclosed area that allows visitors to watch museum paleontologists and volunteers work on extracting fossils from rock and creating fossil casts and molds. There were several working today, and this man was removing rock from around the pelvis of a small meat eating dinosaur that lived 200 million years ago.

In the Hall of Human Origins (http://humanorigins.si.edu/exhibit) you travel back in time as you walk through a tunnel showcasing the evolution of man. This 15,000 sq. ft. Hall explores the question of "What does it mean to be human?" and tells the story of how humans have “evolved over 6 million years in response to a changing world” through many fascinating exhibits…stories of extinction and survival, life-size reconstructed faces of early humans (wasn't able to get a good picture this time), bronze statues and skulls, interactive games, and so much more…all very educational.

The Hall of Geology, Gems and Minerals is home not only to the Hope Diamond but also nearly 2,500 minerals and gems of all sizes, a section on earthquakes, volcanoes, meteors, and plate tectonics, 4 mine recreations, and its newest temporary exhibit: “Against All Odds: Rescue at the Chilean Mine.” At the center of this display is one of the capsules used for testing the rescue shaft. Standing 13 ft. tall with a diameter of just 21 in., it really helps one visualize just how small an area this was that brought these 33 miners back to the surface from a half mile underground. A museum volunteer was on hand to answer questions and further explain the exhibit, i.e. the small narrow tubes used to get food and supplies to the miners, graphs demonstrating the corkscrew mineshaft, while in the background video footage of the rescue played continuously on a small screen. The exhibit was fascinating and is an excellent tribute to the endurance of the human spirit.

It was Tues. and you know what that means…the Butterfly Pavilion was open for free, and we had gotten the first timed ticket of the day! The butterflies were in abundance, and near the entrance on a tray of cut fruit, they were getting their fill of some sweet nectar. We were also fortunate to actually see one emerging from its cocoon!

We had been told about the Maine Avenue Fish Market also known as The Wharf and decided to venture down there after the museum. Located on the DC waterfront, it’s an open air seafood market that has been in operation since 1805 and is the oldest continuously operating fish market in the U.S. We were amazed at the number of vendors and the amount of fresh seafood! They sell every kind imaginable from floating barges, and you can even have it steamed right there. Tourists rarely know of its existence but is regularly frequented by the locals. Since we weren’t heading straight home, we didn’t pick up anything but definitely plan on a return visit before we leave town.


The next chorus visit on my Sweet Adeline tour was to Capital Accord (http://capitalaccord.org/) in Silver Spring, MD. Under the direction of Sherry Stanton since 2001, this small chorus of nearly 30 women placed 2nd in their division at last year’s Regional competition. After vocal warm-ups, we jumped right into working a couple of songs but when they started working their contest song with choreo, I stepped out for a bit. Didn’t want to get in the way! I got to join back in the fun, and then it was time for some chorus business which included welcoming in 3 new members! That’s Sherry in the green top along with Carol far right welcoming in the new members. What a fun evening with great singing!

As we’ve mentioned before, one of the great things about this lifestyle is the people we’ve met along the way and sometimes having the opportunity to reconnect again. We met Rich and Joan a couple years ago in FL. They still have a home in NJ and had not headed south yet, but Rich e-mailed me that they were planning to make one of their overnight stays here in Greenbelt. Once they got settled in their site, they came over and we talked for a couple of hours, Joan and I picked up a pizza, and we chatted some more. It was so good to see them and catch up.

We also got to visit with Shayne, the brother of our good friend, Scott, who passed away a couple of years ago. He was in town on business, and we met him at a little Italian place in Silver Spring, MD, called Olazzo (http://www.olazzo.com/). We sat at a booth in the bar area, and I never made it to the back section to see what the rest of the place looked like, but we spent the next couple of hours catching up, sharing memories of Scott, enjoying each other’s company, and a good meal. Hopefully we can do it again some time.