Sunblock is the Devil

It was a crazy weekend and I feel obliged to write all about it!

Friday night: We spent a relaxing evening going to our favorite local Italian Restaurant, Fiore's in Old Saybrook. Then we came home and watched Charlie Wilson's War. I was not impressed and do not recommend the movie.

Saturday: We got up bright and early to drive up to my parents to pick them up for a day/night filled with fun! Jared got me tickets to see John Williams at Tanglewood so we decided to make a day of it. He planned the entire day and none of us knew what we were doing. Jared loves to do that and surprise people. We started off in Lenox, Massachusetts at an old train station where they give scenic rides. It was a very relaxing and pretty ride as well as historic. The train used to be the hub of transportation in the area. We really enjoyed the train trip.

The Train

One view out the window

After the train ride we had lunch at the Church Street Cafe. We sat outside in the quaint little town center and had a very splendid lunch before walking through some of the shops. Then we went to Hancock Shaker Villiage. Shaker village is a 1200 acre farm where the Shaker's used to live. Their land and buildings have been preserved and are now used as a museum. It was interesting to see the way they lived and the views were spectacular.

The round barn that was so pretty on the outside and and full of smelly animals on the inside!

My dad pretending to wheel it Shaker style.

We met up with our dear friend Jonah for a wonderful dinner at a Malaysian Restaurant. The food and cocktails were delicious. Then it was on to Tanglewood! I was so excited. I love classical music. It is the most beautiful sound in the world. It is so amazing when you hear the violins doing one thing, the oboes doing another, the trumpets, the drums, the harp, the flutes, the cellos, and so many others all doing their thing which makes one beautiful piece. It takes my breath away and whenever I've seen it live, brings tears to my eyes.

Tanglewood was a great indoor/outdoor arena and we had seats under the overhang. But as far as the eye can see were people on chairs and blankets enjoying the music under the stars. The guest that night was John Williams. He is the famous composer of many films such as ET, Star Wars, Superman, Indiana Jones, Harry Potter, and the list goes on...

The first song they did was a collection of the best movie soundtracks. It was so beautiful to hear and recognize your favorite film moments. But I have to say when they did the entire ET song later on, it was so incredible!

The second half of the show, they had a screen showing movie clips during the music. They did a tribute to Bette Davis, one to James Dean, and then did the Harry Potter music to scenes from all the movies. It was super cool! At the end of the show, they did the Superman music and the Indiana Jones theme song. The sounds were amazing and I couldn't get the grin off my face! The show was one of the best I've ever seen.

The closest picture of John Williams I could get was on the big screen!

The show went on for so long and by the time it ended it was after 11. We wouldn't get to my parents house until almost one in the morning. By the time we got there we were so exhausted we just decided to crash there rather than going another hour home.

Yesterday we were tired but happy after our fun day. We spent the morning in the garden and Jared worked the rest of the afternoon on odds and ends in the yard. I on the other hand needed a rest! I decided to lay out by the pool and finish my book. I had applied sun block on earlier so I was not afraid of the rays. I spent a glorious 3 hours by the pool reading, swimming, and relaxing. Jared eventually joined me and it was great to sit together by the pool since we do often don't have time.

Later on Jared made an incredible dinner and I decided to take a shower. That's when I noticed that I had forgotten sunblock on a few areas of my body. I have burn marks all over me. I look like a freak show. I came downstairs and Jared was laughing hysterically at me - it was not funny....

After dinner outside on our deck, I too, my splotchy self on to the grass with Jared and we played Bocce Ball together. It was so much fun to relax and hang out. The weather was great too, just perfect. The end of the night again I was exhausted and in pain - sun burn pain.

Today I look like a spotted freak show. My right arm from the mid shoulder down is bright red. My chest has 2 spots of red on it. The tops of my feet are red. Both of my inner calves have a thick red line on them. My right knee is burned. I have a spot on my left thigh and my forehead is burned.

So all in all I had a fabulous weekend, saw some cool things, listened to some fantastic music, and got some relaxation time too. I also learned that sunblock is the devil.