It's Here Again And We Have Plans, But First.... Miss Lilly Says "Hello"!
The Best Laid Schemes Of Mice And Men
We planned to go to Orange Coast Winery and called them last week. When we arrived, alas, it was not open until 5:00 leaving us maybe 25 minutes to taste wine and have to wait an hour in the parking lot. Poof!
"Tae a Moose, on Turning Her Up in Her Nest with the Plough" (English: "To a Mouse") is a Scots poem written by Robert Burns in 1785, and was included in the Kilmarnock volume.
According to legend, Burns was ploughing in the fields and accidentally destroyed a mouse's nest, which it needed to survive the winter. In fact, Burns's brother claimed that the poet composed the poem while still holding his plough.
Quotation To Remember From Robert Burns 1785:
But little Mouse, you are not alone,
In proving foresight may be vain:
The best laid schemes of mice and men
Go often askew,
And leave us nothing but grief and pain,
For promised joy!
The bright thing was the distance from the winery to the Newport Harbor Elks was 2.1 miles taking the streets for 1.5 miles as the bird flies! It was off for the Elks!
The Elks were ready for out-of-town-visitors
It was a beautiful day on the bay!
The gondolas were busy this afternoon... Duh!
Did You Know? - The gondola (/ˈɡɒndələ/; Italian: [ˈɡondola]) is a traditional, flat-bottomed Venetian rowing boat, well suited to the conditions of the Venetian lagoon. It is similar to a canoe, except it is narrower. It is propelled by a gondolier, who uses a rowing oar, which is not fastened to the hull, in a sculling manner and acts as the rudder.
For centuries, the gondola was the chief means of transportation and most common watercraft within Venice. In modern times, the iconic boats still do have a role in public transport in the city, serving as traghetti (ferries) over the Grand Canal. They are also used in special regattas (rowing races) held amongst gondoliers. Their primary role today, however, is to carry tourists on rides at fixed rates.
Doing it by hand!
Motorized... Not nearly as romantic!
Off To Dinner At Il Garage
25 minutes (17.1 mi) - We took the non-freeway route!
It was like this only every light was RED!
We dined at Il Garage in Buena Park... It is a hidden treasure located behind and to the left of Park Avenue Steakhouse. Slightly eclectic but great food and service! We even walked in the gardens surrounding Il Garage.
This year, like last year, we have the Roberts, Kuhn's, Branders, Zaitz, and the Liles joining in the celebration.
It was pretty cool but they had a large outdoor heater in the room and plastic drapes hanging from the doors!
The service was unremarkable! Apparently the regular wait staff was occupied as we had a nice girl but "slow" was her middle name and she was so busy, she paid little attention to us or anyone else...
Excellent dining! In the country
After the Beach Boulevard traffic, wine is mandatory!
Dark and romantic... Ed took care of that problem! Trusty iPhone!
Ed always carries the light just in case!
Donna wonders about the wine!
Sharing the light was important this evening!
Wonderful to see Del out and about!
The Branders arrive!
>
Leon and Marcia studies the menu... Eclectic for sure!
Ah... So cute!
Donna tires on the costumes!
Do you feel like you are being watched??
Vicky has a fast growing mustache!
He is a marked man!
Did You Know? -
Hugs and kisses or xoxo is a term used for expressing sincerity, faith, love, or good friendship at the end of a written letter, email or SMS text message. There is controversy as to which letter ('X' or 'O') represents which action ('hug' or 'kiss').
The common custom of placing "X" on envelopes, notes and at the bottom of letters to mean kisses dates back to the Middle Ages, when a Christian cross was drawn on documents or letters to mean sincerity, faith, and honesty. A kiss was then placed upon the cross, by the signer as a display of their sworn oath. It was also used in early Christian history as much of a display of the same.
Since most of the common people could not read or write, the 'X' was placed on documents, and a kiss was placed over it as a show of their sincerity. The Chi Rho, often represented with the letter 'X', was also used as a holy symbol throughout Christian history as it represented the Greek word for Christ ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ; this gave rise to the practice of using the letter 'X', which was then kissed in this tradition of displaying a sacred oath.
There is speculation on the internet from at least one original source that the 'O' is of North American descent: when arriving in the United States, Jewish immigrants, most of whose first language was Yiddish, would use an 'O' to sign documents, thus not using the sign of the cross, and shop keepers would often use an 'O' when signing documents, in place of an 'X'.
"Hey... We are matching"
To The Garden
"I will protect you
...oh, and drink your wine!"
More beauties in the garden!
"Hello there"
The garage was sealed against the cold... Sort of!
The pea pods were just forming
Kathy and Donna neede their little reminder
We all passed up dessert... Tunnies too full... Bodies too cold!
"Adios dear friends... See you Friday to Topper's!"
