Murrieta Here We Come (Page One)
We and many of our dancing friends were invited for an afternoon party at the home of the Keens, brother of Kathy Roberts. We had met Jule and Sandy a few months back after a Temecula wine tasting adventure and got to talking about dancing. We had a magnificent time meeting new friends and sharing a fantastic afternoon with the Keen's and Robert's. Please join the fun.
It was NOT difficult to find.... Just follow the signs
The people at the Open House probably wondered why no one showed up.... he he he
Thank you to our wonderful hosts... Jule and Sandy, Kathy and Ed.... Let us share with you what one of your guests shared with us in private during the party.....
"When I was little, I used to go to the library and read every fairy tale I could find. I never though in my life I would be invited to such a nice event with such wonderful people and wonderful hosts dancing on the clouds overlooking the Kingdon of Murrieta! Thank you, thank you , thank you!"
"Can I come to the party also????"
A gentle reminder that we are in the "high desert"
Did You Know? - Murrieta is a city in southwestern Riverside County, California, United States. The population of Murrieta was 103,466 at the 2010 census. Murrieta experienced over a 100% population increase between 2000 and 2010 according to the most recent census, making Murrieta one of the fastest growing cities in the state. Largely residential in character, Murrieta is considered a commuter town, with many of its residents commuting to jobs in San Diego County, Orange County, the more commercialized neighboring city of Temecula to the south, and Camp Pendleton.
We were having some heat today.... It was in the 90's when we arrived but the breeze made it perfect!
Sandy and Bob were already there and had a great seat at the outdoor bar
Around the bar (Courtesy of AJ Saam)
On top of the world (Courtesy of AJ Saam)
From the pool (Courtesy of AJ Saam)
Looking towards San Diego
(Courtesy of AJ Saam)
Greg and Herbie having fun tilting their perfectly reflective heads so as to flash the guests...
Paul is sometimes known as a tree hugger....
... and, all the way from Sun City.... Laura and AJ
Paul stood under the sign for 45 minutes and no one squeezed him....
Todd & Rosie Boorman are friends and neighbors of our hosts and we were provided with a magnificent selection of wines!
Very very nice people who shared their stories with us.... Thank You!!
Marianne and Craig were first to the dance floor... They gave the high sign... "Come Dance!!_
Outstanding Entertainment
Dr. Jerry Benton... Professor of Dancable Music lite up the party
Not just a DJ... A man who knows his dance music, makes excellent mixes, and
throws in surprises like the Twist, Polkas, Line Dances....
Difficult to dance when the scenery was breathtaking also....
The closest neighbor is 1 mile away
(Courtesy of AJ Samm)
Paul and Craig giving an assessment of the dancing arrangements....
The only one unimpressed by the scenery had four legs
Jule And Sandy Hit The Dance Floor With Irene And Herbie
Irene and Jule (our host) take to the floor
Beautiful in charcoal
Did You Know? - For most of its history Murrieta was not heavily populated. Its gently rolling hills dotted with native trees (such as the now-threatened Engelmann Oak) encouraged a Spaniard named Esequial Murrieta to purchase the Rancho Pauba and Rancho Temecula Mexican land grants, comprising 52,000 acres (210 km2) in the area, intending to bring his sheep raising business to California. Instead, he returned to Spain and turned the land over to his younger brother, Juan Murrieta (1844?1936), who brought 100,000 sheep to the valley in 1873. Using the ample meadows to feed his sheep.
Herbie found Sandy (our hostess) and got here onto the dance floor....
Pastels also work quote well.....
Ed Seems To Attract The Girls... Keep An Eye On Him
Carri, Ed, and Nancy discuss the finer points of a new step
Sam and Brenda found a place right on the dance floor.... Romance is in the air
Let's dance....
Miss Marsha (doing her Hollywood starlet impersonation) and Lee Brander
See... It is hard to concentrate when the views are so spectacular
A quick sketch
Sandy and Bob gravitated to the music and dance floor
Did You Know? - (intransitive) (figuratively) To tend or drift towards someone or something, as though being pulled by gravity.
The dance floor and the bar area were far enough apart that people could dance and talk
The dance instructors at work
Craig and Marianne
make a great dance couple
Long shadows of the afternoon provide for much conversation
... but which shadow belongs to who????
Sandy was working too hard at setting up the buffet for dinner....
Line Dancing Anyone???
The Electric Slide???
Nancy leads the way.... "Come on you all, do it this way!!"
Some people just light up their surroundings.....
"Turning... turning...."
The old 180 degree maneuver
Tripping the light fantastic
(Courtesy of AJ Samm)
The slide is easy... any multi-billionaire can do it
Beautiful fall decorations
Call To Dinner
Ed plays the dinner triangle
Did You Know? - Most difficulties in playing the triangle come from the complex rhythms which are sometimes written for it, although it can also be quite difficult to control the level of volume. Very quiet notes can be obtained by using a much lighter beater ? knitting needles are sometimes used for the quietest notes. Composers sometimes call for a wooden beater to be used instead of a metal one, which gives a rather "duller" and quieter tone. When the instrument is played with one beater, the hand that holds the triangle can also be used to damp or slightly modify the tone. For complex rapid rhythms, the instrument may be suspended from a stand and played with two beaters, although this makes it more difficult to control. It is historically associated with calling people to dinner, especially in nineteenth century depictions.
Did You Know? - The triangle is an idiophone type of musical instrument in the percussion family. It is a bar of metal, usually steel but sometimes other metals like beryllium copper, bent into a triangle shape. The instrument is usually held by a loop of some form of thread or wire at the top curve. It was first made around the 16th century.
The reason cats are not chefs....
Craig was not bashful.... First in line
A view from the dinner table (Courtesy of AJ Saam)
Turn your head to the left and another vista (Courtesy of AJ Saam)
The buffet and the kitchen were mere steps apart.... Great dinner... Veggie Lasagne, spaghetti and several sauces....
Lining up to refuel (Courtesy of AJ Saam)
Guy, Irene, and Herbie discovering the goodies
Did You Know? - The buffet table originates from the Br?nnvinsbord - Swedish snaps (shot of alcoholic beverage)[1] table from the middle of 16th century, and had its prime during the early 18th century, and was developed into the buffet we more know today not until the beginning of 19th century. The Smorgasbord buffet did not increase its popularity until the expansion of the railroads throughout Europe.
The smorgasbord table was a meal where guests gathered before dinner for a pre-dinner drink, and was not part of the formal dinner to be followed. The smorgasbord buffet was often held in separate room for men and women before the dinner was served.
Sm?rg?sbord became internationally known as Smorgasbord at the 1939 New York World's exhibition as the Swedes had to invent a new way of showcasing the best of Swedish food.
The term buffet originally referred to the French sideboard where the food was served, but eventually became applied to the form. The buffet became popular in the English-speaking world in the second half of the 19th century after the Swedes had used the smorgasbord in New York. The word is still borrowed into the English language.
It is historically associated with calling people to dinner, especially in nineteenth century depictions.
Everyone is getting refueled for after dinner dancing
Meeting new friends....
Laura sent AJ back for seconds... Or was it thirds???
The Professor entertains throughout dinner... An amazing entertainer
Jim smells Italian food... He cannot be stopped
Sandy tells us her secrets
Meanwhile Back At The Bar
Meanwhile back at the bar the fort is being held down quite well
Ah ha.... The people are gone and it is time to compare notes guys.... Whaddaya think?
Yo.... Waiter
Do not give Craig any more katchup
Did You Know? - Ketchup (sometimes catsup in American English and Canadian English or tomato sauce in Commonwealth English; see Etymology) is a sweet-and-tangy condiment typically made from tomatoes, vinegar, sugar or high-fructose corn syrup, and an assortment of vegetable seasonings and spices such as onions, allspice, cloves, cinnamon, garlic, and celery. Ketchup is often used with french fries (chips in the UK), hamburgers, sandwiches and grilled or fried meat. Ketchup is also used as a base for various sauces. It is a typical accompaniment for the meat pies of Australia and New Zealand.
This is serious... Sandy has her glasses on....
Bob and Sandy are just delightdul.....
A wine glass for each hand..... This is good
Back from getting the thirds....
AJ is washing everything down with wine
After Dinner Storytelling Begins
Greg Leach and Janet
Talbott share stories
The Wine Makers finally get to sit down....
Herbie explains to Todd the finer points of foot stomping the grapes...
OR
Would you beliebve Herbie is teaching Todd the "Hokey Pokey"
OR
Herb is explaing how to stretch the leg muscles beforfe serious dancing an begin
Did You Know? - Known as the "hokey pokey", it became popular in the USA in the 1950s. Larry LaPrise, Charles Macak and Tafit Baker of the musical group the Ram Trio, recorded the song in the late 1940s.
They have generally been credited with creating this novelty dance as entertainment for the ski crowd at Idaho's Sun Valley resort. However, two club musicians from Scranton, Pennsylvania, Robert Degen and Joseph P. Brier, had previously copyrighted a very similar song, "The Hokey Pokey Dance", in 1944. (One account says that copyright was granted in 1946.)
According to Degan's son in The New York Times, Degan and Brier wrote the song while playing for the summer at a resort near the Delaware Water Gap.[9] Degan resided at Richmond Place Rehabilitation and Health Center in Lexington, Kentucky until he died on November 23, 2009 at the age of 104.
In 1953, Ray Anthony's big band recording of the song turned it into a nationwide sensation. The distinctive vocal was by singer Jo Ann Greer, who simultaneously sang with the Les Brown band and dubbed the singing voices for such film stars as Rita Hayworth, Kim Novak, June Allyson and Esther Williams.
The wrath of grapes
Twilight makes the setting even more romantic
Did You Know? - Twilight is the time between dawn and sunrise or between sunset and dusk, during which sunlight scattering in the upper atmosphere illuminates the lower atmosphere, and the surface of the earth is neither completely lit nor completely dark. The sun itself is not directly visible because it is below the horizon.
Owing to the distinctive quality of the ambient light at this time, twilight has long been popular with photographers and painters, who refer to it as the "blue hour", after the French expression l'heure bleue. Twilight is technically defined as the period between sunset and sunrise during which there is natural light provided by the upper atmosphere, which receives direct sunlight and scatters part of it towards the earth's surface.[
Remember: A friend is one of the nicest things you can have, and one of the best things you can be. ~Douglas Pagels
Our co-hosts Kathy and Ed take a minute out to enjoy themselves and a glass of the grapes....
Look into the cactus very closely and....
... Mr. Cactus says "Let's dance!"