Category: Music

Saturday the 4th might have been our most epic Wizards Unite day ever. I wanted to do something different than a walk, plus it was raining. We ended up at Lake Anne and walked over to the fortress and did a challenge under umbrellas. Then we went into the Lake Anne Brew House for beer, kombucha, and soda and started 3 dark detectors in both of the inns we could see. Then we discovered we could see the fortress from there and Jill and I finally finished Dark III for the first time. We went to the used book store, then got dinner at the Greek restaurant. While waiting for dessert, we started another 6 dark detectors, and did even better: 2 Dumbledores, Hermione, 2 unicorns, Fred, George, Grawp, Quidditch Harry, 2 Percival Graves and I think 1 other. Plus a Tom Riddle as we were leaving, and a Veil when I went out for groceries later. Sunday Dad came over for lunch and I gave him his Christmas present – a new laptop (so I didn’t have to deal with upgrading Windows 7 on his old one).

Monday after an epic bedtime tantrum had Nina not going to sleep until 10:45, I wasn’t sure I wanted to go out and walk in the freezing weather. At 11:40 I decided to, started Wizards Unite, did the inn across the street twice and hustled to the nearest fortress. I completed the challenge with 30 seconds to go until midnight, but when I tried to click the last collect button got the restart popup, and that took too long so failed to collect my daily task money. Plus on the way back I was catching a foundable and my phone died. Plugged it in when I got home and it was at 47%. WTF?

Friday the 10th was a rough one for me, as it was announced that Neil Peart, the drummer/lyricist of Rush, had passed away after a battle with cancer. I said “Dammit 2020. R.I.P. Professor.”

My favorite “Closer To The Heart” video – Rush Through Time (loved that cassette). I saw this online then did it – donate $21.12 to the American Cancer Society in Neil’s memory. And here’s a good read from someone very important to the band.

Saturday we went to see Nina perform her songs from Frozen at her last theatre class; later I took Nina to see a rehearsal of The Little Mermaid Jr. also from Lopez, then in the evening we took advantage of Jill’s mom coming down and went to DC to use one of Jill’s Christmas gifts to me: PubPass, where you get a free beer at participating bars. We went to Georgetown and started at The Berliner, then hung outside and played Wizards Unite at a fortress because it was close to 60 degrees. Then we went to Pizzeria Paradiso Georgetown for more beers and dinner.

Sunday I made a tribute to my favorite band, as we lost one of the holy trinity this week. This one’s for you, Professor.

Tony Reed – Garden Road
Skid Row – What You’re Doing
Sloan – In The Mood
Audioslave – Working Man
Mark Slaughter, George Lynch, Deen Castronovo & Stu Hamm – Anthem
Spearfish – Making Memories
Dave Grohl, Taylor Hawkins & Nick Raskulinecz – 2112 I. Overture
Steven Wilson – The Twilight Zone
Alice in Chains – Tears
Dream Theater – Xanadu
Alain Johannes – Madrigal
Steve Morse, Mike Portnoy & Billy Sheehan – La Villa Strangiato
Rachel Barton Pine – The Spirit Of Radio
Tyler Warren – Entre Nous
Beth Patterson – Tom Sawyer (with Josh Paxton)
Rik Emmett – Red Barchetta
Mike Portnoy, Philip Bynoe & Pete Thorn – YYZ
The Smashing Pumpkins – Limelight
Jacob Moon – Subdivisions
Jack Russell, Mike Portnoy & Billy Sheehan – Analog Kid
Eric Martin, Brad Kaiser & Robert Berry – Mission
SPiN – Time Stand Still
Fleesh – The Pass
Rage – Bravado
Allegaeon – Animate

Tuesday the 15th I thought it was an odd week, as the loss of an icon I first encountered in the ’80s (Neil) is now balanced by the adaption of another series from the ’80s: Crisis on Infinite Earths. I would have never thought they could have pulled it off but they did, with nods and winks to every DC adaption on small and big screens.

As The Magicians returns for their 5th season, let’s appreciate the masterful Season 4 episode synopses:
1. Brian takes a friend out for ice cream; Sam is one week away from retirement.
2. Dean Fogg gets a new suit.
3. Kady gets a puppy. Quentin meets a snake.
4. Josh gives Margo a muffin. Julia drinks schnapps.
5. Alice and Quentin confront a dog. There are some flashbacks.
6. Quentin and Julia play Pictionary. Margo drinks some weird milk.
7. Kady goes to the flea market. What’s Zelda has been up to? This one’s all about Fen, you guys.
8. Penny licks an egg. Alice gets jealous of a flower.
9. Quentin eats a quesadilla. Kady and Zelda share a smoke.
10. Margo hits her step count.
11. The gang talks to a book. Tick threatens to drink some water.
12. Quentin yells at a plant. Margo stares at a fish.
13. Quentin and Josh get cake. Quentin reflects on his actions.

Friday the 17th, Jill and I got another night out thanks to her mom. We once again got a free beer, this time at Valor Brewpub as they were literally steps away from Rose’s Luxury, where we had a reservation. The kitchen view was perfect, as was the tasting menu (the Cacio e Pepe was amazing). Saturday we all went out for concert #1: Eddie From Ohio at The Birchmere. An unusual show by just the core four with no opener, unexpected covers (Warren Zevon just after I’d been listening to the tribute CD that week) and blasts from the past (“Blue Jeans” and “Loitering In The Lobby”). We also grabbed dinner before the show at Northside 10. Sunday we had brunch at Red’s Table, then everyone but me went to see Little Women in the afternoon.

Monday Nina got her orange belt at Tae Kwon Do. Wednesday I hadn’t bought any Wolf Trap tix for the first set of shows, but for the 3 shows on sale that week, bought all 3: Steely Dan/Steve Winwood, Barenaked Ladies/Gin Blossoms/Toad the Wet Sprocket & Brandi Carlile + NSO.

Saturday the 25th it was road trip time. After a stop in Front Royal for lunch at McAlister’s Deli, we drove to Bryce Resort where we stayed at Chalet High. It was late afternoon by the time we checked in, so we only did tubing that night. Sunday it was skiing time, with lessons for Jill and Nina. Jill said “Well, after 3 years off the mountain my body still (sort of) knew what to do!” Nina and I skiied some more after lessons, then we called it a day. We brought our Amazon Fire stick but not the remote. The 2nd hack listed here (have Amazon Fire, but not at home) works perfectly. Genius. Nina was not into watching Doctor Who, so we watched Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (we were listening to Goblet of Fire in the car).

Monday Nina had another lesson while I signed her up for summer camps, then we skied most of the mountain with another 8 year old we picked up on the lift while Jill stayed home, spun and watched Netflix. We drove down to New Market and had lunch at Jalisco. Tuesday we drove back home, while Wednesday Jill picked up the Girl Scout cookies at Wolf Trap as she was cookie mom again.

One thing that took the sting away from Neil’s passing: receiving a signed copy of Far and Near from publisher ECW Press after they ran a contest on Facebook to “Please share your favourite fact about Neil, your favourite lyric or prose he wrote, the thing you’ll miss most about him — anything about Neil Peart that brought you joy or connection.” I had written this:

Neil’s lyrics were a big part of surviving high school, but as I grew up and had a family of my own, his words never stopped being relevant.

I always come back to “Afterimage” when someone I care about passes:
“Suddenly, you were gone
From all the lives you left your mark upon”

Friday the 1st Nina got her braces; Jill said “Getting braces apparently means going to Target, getting a toy, and playing hooky for the rest of the day instead of going back to school! Who knew?”. Saturday we went into DC to see the Nats Parade. We first went to Astro Doughnuts & Fried Chicken so we could get chicken and doughnuts for lunch (had to try the Baby Shark doughnut). Then we walked over to the parade on the other side of the street from Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. We didn’t stay for the speeches, got back so Nina could enjoy the sunshine at a park near East Fall Metro (which was so packed we had parked on a side street). Jill said “We pulled out our swag from previous games and headed downtown for the World Series Victory festivities. We ate at the ironically named Astro Donuts and Chicken then headed to Constitution Ave where we got as best a view one could from 250 feet away. We still had fun and everyone was in a celebratory mood! We didn’t stay for the rally but stopped at a playground on the way home to enjoy the day.”

Tuesday I went to concert #43: Emmylou Harris, Jackson Browne, Patty Griffin, Steve Earle & Thao Nguyen at the Warner Theatre on the Lantern Tour II for The Women’s Refugee Commission. I’d seen everyone but Thao before, and she was great. But there’s nothing like Patty singing “Mary” with Emmylou on backing vocals. Wednesday Jill said “N and I went to the polls yesterday (as is our tradition; I vote and she watches and asks lots of questions 😊) and helped flip the state legislature for the first time in almost 25 years. For an off-off election year, what a voter turnout! [Today I] Got one of the best cuts of my life thanks to Second Life Salon and the DevaCurl curly girl method!”

Saturday the 9th we got fancy and headed over to Meadowlark Botanical Gardens to get our pictures taken. We needed a holiday card photo, plus we hadn’t done family pictures in a while. Jill said “We had family portraits taken at one of our favorite places, Meadowlark Botanical Gardens by Dion Seneca Photography who was super patient and made it fun for everyone! We wandered around afterwards and explored the park during the day where the Winter Walk of Lights is already set up! N especially liked the metal bench shaped like a tree and enjoyed waving to adoring crowds in her horse drawn sleigh”. Nina enjoyed watching the live action Little Mermaid that night.

Sunday was show #44: Jay And Silent Bob Reboot at the Arlington Cinema and Drafthouse. Ordinarily a movie wouldn’t make the list, but it does if stars Kevin Smith & Jason Mewes are there to host and do a q&a afterwards. Funny movie and aftershow. Bonus was the slow ordering and food delivery had us waiting for dinner until afterwords (good thing we chose the early show) and we got to try The Renegade. It’s owned by a friend, but we hadn’t been and it was delish (the lamb lollipops were great). Jill said “we stopped for dinner afterwards and so glad we did! We had an amazing meal and everyone was really nice and attentive. A great spot; we’ll be back!”

After a long morning on a field trip at the National Museum of Natural History on Thursday the 14th, Dominion Wine and Beer in Falls Church was a great find. Nice store, and I wouldn’t have know they had a bar with food upstairs without Yelp. Delicious and affordable, I’ll be back (yes, I made it to CD Cellar too).

Saturday was a packed day with a Girl Scout Expo (Jill said “Had a great morning at the Girl Scout Expo! Unfortunately we had to leave early which was hard, there were so many great things to do and see!”) and drama class. It was parents night out at Tae Kwon Do, so we ran errands, tried out Urban Plates in Tyson’s II, then hung out at the bar in Barrel & Bushel while we finished off the latest Wizards Unite challenge. I’d taken Nina to McDonald’s for lunch when she asked for lunch out instead of takeout before her night out and she was very disappointed when the shake machine was broken. So for dessert we all had shakes from Shake Shack after we picked her up. Pretty much a perfect evening. Sunday was show #45: Roald Dahl’s Matilda at the NextStop Theatre. Great cast, and Nina’s still singing the songs.

Tuesday the 19th was concert #46: Letters to Cleo at Union Stage. It probably wasn’t the wisest decision to go to 2 shows that week with Jill working 7am to 7pm 3 days, but after being home all day with a sick kid, it was nice to hear some loud rock music (and I’m not kidding about the loud – in the 2 years I’ve been recording every show on my phone, this was the loudest one). The band was great, the venue was nice (my 1st time) and someone even started a discussion with me because of my shirt (the band Belly), which never happens. And their new album is Christmas music, so that was nice timing. Thursday was a concert, then Thanksgiving lunch at Nina’s school, then that night was concert #47: The Low Anthem and Futur Primitif at Jammin’ Java. I went from the loudest concert of the year to the softest as The Low Anthem celebrated the 10th anniversary of Oh My God, Charlie Darwin by playing the full album. But oddly, not in order, and with other songs in the middle. But a fine show nonetheless.

Saturday the 24th we started vacation after drama class by driving up to Philly. The annual Friendsgiving was a lot of fun, and for the first time we stayed in the city afterwards (Homewood Suites by Hilton, very nice). That meant we got fresh NYC bagels for breakfast the next morning, then went to Reading Terminal Market where we bought some delectables and booze, and had lunch (I had a delicious roast pork sandwich at DiNic’s). It was a shorter trip to Massachusetts after starting in Philly even with predictable slowdowns due to rain, and we arrived not much after dark. Jill wanted food from Mel’s, but I’m not a fan and got a sub from Pizza D’Action.

Monday we visited Jill’s dad’s mom, then had a bunch of family over at Jill’s mom’s house for takeout Chinese food from North Garden. Tuesday we drove over to my sister’s house south of Boston, where my mom and her husband had been visiting since Sunday. We went out for dinner at The Quarry Restaurant, where I had a pork belly bun, lobster sliders & roasted broccoli rabe. The next afternoon we had a catered Thanksgiving lunch, before trying to leave before traffic got bad. We were partly successful by heading through Rhode Island and running errands there, then angling back northwest. We arrived at Jill’s sister’s house in time for a spaghetti dinner and a white elephant exchange (since we wouldn’t be up for Christmas this year).

Thursday was Thanksgiving at Jill’s other sister’s house. Black Friday was my favorite day, as I got to go CD shopping and eat at The Green Bean while Jill had Nina and the younger cousins at the parade in Springfield. That night was concert #48: Stephen Kellogg with Casey at the Iron Horse. We thanked Jill’s mom for being kind and generous by watching Nina and letting us do the VIP before the show and getting a cocktail at The Green Room and hot tubs at East Heaven afterwards. We also finally got a Nields sighting in Northampton as Katryna joined him for the encore. Saturday morning we met Jill’s dad and his wife at Stir the Pot for brunch. We also picked up Jill’s niece Maddie there as a storm was coming that would eventually cancel her flight back to school. We hit a White Castle in a sketchy part of town for a drive thru lunch in Jersey; traffic soon diverted us through Pennsylvania. We stopped at Pistarro’s in Frederick because they were vegetarian friendly (and tasty). By the time we were done, all traffic had died down and we were able to take Maddie directly to school via 270, then home.

Sunday the 1st was Nina’s birthday party. She finally had a small scale party – this one was at our house. First she and her guests did pet themed crafts, then they had pizza. After water balloons and sprinkler fun in the backyard, it was time for cake, and then the girls played until their parents came.

Monday Jill hadn’t gotten sleep while working during the night, so Sue joined Nina and I on a trip to my dad’s house after we realized we hadn’t gone and visited him at his house all summer. We got there and headed to the beach and buried Nina in the sand before having lunch with Dad. Later Jill was up and we all went over to Glory Days Grill for dinner and celebrated Nina’s birthday with dessert at Baskin Robbins. Tuesday Jill and Sue explored Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens before Sue went home the next day. Friday Nina started Tae Kwon Do lessons, continuing on from the after school classes she’d taken in the spring.

Saturday the 7th was Family Day at my work, and Nina did everything, from pony rides to face painting to temporary tattoos. We were supposed to go to the opening festival of the Reach at the Kennedy Center, but bailed after getting home later than planned (plus there were dragons to catch in Wizards Unite). Jill went out that night to catch the Legwarmers at a winery. We planned to meet Lorna & Dave at Taco Zocalo for dinner on Sunday but they were closed for some reason, so we went to Cafesano instead.

Saturday the 14th Jill and I saw What the Constitution Means to Me at the Kennedy Center (Show #36). Great, even though we came in late because dinner ran long at Rasika West End (but totally worth it). Sunday we took Nina and my dad to see the Nats not get swept by the Braves. I was especially happy that my second choice for the previous night’s dinner, ChiKo, had an outpost there (too bad only the tots lived up to their reputation). I also had a Coke Icee with bourbon, which caused a weird nostalgia mash up of going to 7-11 as a teenager and college parties.

Monday I was sad over the passing of Ric Ocasek (from The Cars) and tumbled down a covers rabbithole, including this great one:

Thursday the 19th Jill was off to Tennessee for her Into The Wool Retreat. It was business as usual during the week, then on Saturday Nina and I went to the REACH Opening Festival at the Kennedy Center (for Show #37). Debbie Allen hosted as the emcee for the first performance as students from the Debbie Allen Dance Academy performed, then New York City Ballet star Tiler Peck taught the crowd moves from her appearance in Charlotte OC’s “Medicine Man” music video (Nina wanted to meet her after that). We had lunch from the food trucks next, then explored the new area (anyplace you can you can get your feet wet is fine with her). She also participated in the Floor Barre conditioning master class taught by Renee Robinson. Finally we caught the sound check for Fela! The Concert while she and other kids built a fort with the boxes used for seating, then we got ice cream. Sunday we picked up Jill from the airport and missed the retirement of our favorite clerk from Safeway (we’d said farewell the week before).

Wednesday the 25th was school picture day, then Saturday after drama class we returned to Queen City Mischief & Magic. It was a bit surreal to play Wizards Unite while so many people were dressed up, but cool. Nina got her picture taken with lots of characters, got treasure from a mermaid, and finally got to watch a Quidditch game. We’d stopped in Front Royal for lunch and were getting hungry by dark, but Nina voted for not eating there. So we returned to the parking lot with the shuttle and found Brother’s Pizza, which had something for everyone. Then we got to the Best Western, which seemed fine until the train rumbled by 20 feet away as we were going to bed, but it only came by once more during the night and everyone managed to sleep through it.

After a nice hotel breakfast, we returned to Queen City for a couple hours. Nina had a Lego Hogwarts Express appointment and did a chalk drawing and henna, she and Jill got slices of pizza from Emilio’s while I got a Bánh Mì at Laughing Bird Pho then headed north and dropped Jill at the Shenandoah Valley Fiber Festival. Nina and I went to downtown Winchester and she played on the splash pad there, then we hit Sonic and picked up drinks before getting Jill and heading home.

We woke up on the 1st in Edison, having left for vacation the night before and stopping halfway to our destination. We were staying at Home2 Suites by Hilton, most remarkable for being only a couple of months old, and everything was fantastic. After a complimentary hot breakfast, we got on the road (minus Nina’s pillow). Jill got some of her favorites at Nathan’s for lunch, then we got back on the road. When we were close to Hillsdale, we went grocery shopping, first at Taconic Orchards for produce and cider donuts, then Hannaford Supermarket for everything else. We were soon at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival and got everything set up and collapsed. The Cannons had arrived soon after us, and we got dinner together. I wasn’t feeling up to it and skipped music that night. I’d brought a glow in the dark capture the flag type game, but the girls skipped the game to have impromptu lightsaber battles with the pieces.

Friday Nina had a new friend (daughter of an old friend) and tried some of her hard cookies. A week earlier she’d had an expander (precursor to braces put in), and one of the cookies knocked it out of one side. We just needed to get it out at that point, and Jill spent hours on the phone trying to find someplace that could do it that day. Finally Adirondack Orthodontics was able to fit us in. It was about an hour away, but we didn’t have much of a choice, so we headed northwest past Albany. They were even able to take us earlier once we were up there, and so pleasant and quick. Jill saw a Friendly’s on the way out and we stopped there for lunch. We headed straight back to Copake Falls as the Cannons were swimming there. When we got back to camp we made food for the taco night potluck dinner, then I started assembling the jellyfish umbrellas (Nina’s number one request from last year). Soon we were ready for concert #28: Gandalf Murphy & The Slambovian Circus Of Dreams at the Dance Tent, and all the girls marched in the jellyfish parade.

Saturday Jill once again had to trek into civilization to wash some sheets. At midday we went over to the Workshop Stage (and met up with AJ) and caught the end of Our Roots Are Showing with Carolann Solebello, Low Lily & Mid-City Aces for concert #29, then concert #30 was also there: The Songwriting Process with Stephen Kellogg, Kerri Powers & Beth Nielsen Chapman (and a whole lot of talking). We made leftovers for dinner, and Jay made some ridiculously good Korean barbecue as well, so I enjoyed that. Later I went out solo to see concert #31: BoDeans at main stage.

Sunday the 4th we packed up and headed out. Jill was hungry and we stopped at Betty’s Pizza Shack in Lenox for some delicious pizza. Jill said “Nina said ‘it’s so nice to be able to flush the toilet!’ Yep, got that right. Nothing like a little gratefulness training.” Later we went to Jill’s mom’s house – I thought about trying to go see Queen with Nina that night near Boston, but they were sold out and it would have been a lot of work. Monday Nina and Jill ran errands and I walked over to Stop & Shop, enjoying some uninterrupted Wizards Unite time (Jill and I were getting competitive, and she was 2 levels ahead of me). That night we met the Bradys at Joe’s Spaghetti & Pizza in Northampton, then after dinner, Jill and I played Wizards Unite while Sue accompanied Tiernan while he played Pokemon Go (the others went back to the house).

Tuesday morning we met Jill’s dad and Sue at Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory & Gardens. Nina was scared of the butterflies, but liked the turtles getting fed. We had lunch at The People’s Pint in Greenfield, then some ice cream at Ice Cream Alley. Then we all drove over to Hadley to visit with Jill’s dad’s mom. We packed up in the afternoon and went over to Robin and Mike’s house, where we stayed the remainder of our visit. Wednesday Jill and her sisters planned a beach day (but weather meant they ended up in Old Sturbridge Village). Meanwhile I took Nina to Half Mile Falls Park and the Tavern Restaurant for lunch. In the afternoon, I made it over to Turn It up before we had dinner at Sue’s.

Thursday Jill and Melissa took Nina and Ava to Six Flags while I hung out with Mike and Finn, going to Stanley Park. That evening Sue and Dave brought dinner over. Friday we headed home, and traffic was not terrible, which was a nice surprise. Saturday we ran some errands and played Wizards Unite at Reston Town Center – Nina tried Pokemon Go on her Kindle, but it kept crashing. Sunday, Nina and I went to concert #32: Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band at Wolf Trap. Nina’s second Beatle, although the song she was most excited to hear that night was Africa (thanks, Weezer). She also lost another tooth (good timing as her expander went back in the next day).

Friday the 16th Sue and Tiernan arrived for a visit. Saturday we celebrated our anniversary early (Sue took the kids to Glory Days and the Air & Space museum). Jill started first, “I treated myself to a boudoir photo session as a 40th birthday present to myself. I wanted to celebrate this body I’m in, and have some fun. It exceeded my wildest expectations. Makeup by @chellzdidit, hair by @jasminepalmaartistry, photography by @ahiddenexposure. It was an amazing experience; if you feel the slightest inclination about doing something like this for yourself, I Highly Recommend it! Kerry and I also got some anniversary pictures taken. @ahiddenexposure put us at ease and got some great shots of us goofing around!“. She’d booked a room at the Kimpton Lorien Hotel & Spa, and after the photos, we went downstairs to Brabo for an excellent meal.

In the morning we had bagels across the street (only ok). Jill headed home and I went to Hole in the Wall books to stop by for the last time as the owners were retiring and closing down at the end of the month. my best friend Chris and I started getting into comics around 1981 by riding our bikes across 236 to the 7-Eleven and buying them there. Hole In The Wall was the first actual comic book shop I started going to. It was tiny and cluttered but it was awesome. Later we discovered Burke Center Used Books & Comics which was closer and I had a subscription for comics there for the longest time until I moved to Herndon and went mail order (they closed not long after that). That night I was out solo for concert #33: Mark Knopfler (from Dire Straits) at Wolf Trap. Amazingly he was still on my concert bucket list, and happily still sprinkling in the Dire Straits songs. He also had a 10-piece band for a very full sound. It was a hot night, and a cool breeze during the show had me worried until I saw on radar the storm was heading up through Maryland. This is a pretty spot on review.

Wednesday the 21st I went over to Mosaic and had dinner at Caboose before going to see the Rush: Cinema Strangiato at Angelika, but the combination of salt and heat had me feeling poorly and I left halfway through. Thursday Nina skipped camp so Jill and Sue could take her and Tiernan to the National Zoo. Friday Jill was working but I was planning on taking everyone else to The Pietasters at Royal Lake Park, but it was canceled due to rain. I took Nina to Target after her last day of camp and got her the new Taylor Swift CD, plus put things on her birthday wishlist. And we ended up going to Popeyes as everyone but Sue was into that (big lines even though they were out of their new sandwich). That night it had taken a while (I started last year), but due to recent events (our band director passed away), I got working a little harder. Here are just about all the W.T. Woodson Band tapes I have, now digitized and free to stream or download. Saturday Nina had a cold and we tried to sell the tickets we had for Aladdin without luck. Melissa and Maddie were down so Maddie could move in, so we all went to visit the new apartment, then had dinner at Alto Fumo Pizza & Pasta Bar in Clarendon. Sunday Sue went to the Fairfax Comic Con solo to meet the teacher from “Stranger Things” before Melissa and Tiernan headed home.

Monday Nina recovered just in time for her first day of school. Tuesday we got takeout from Hunan East and I guess it had been too long since ER visits, as I got another one that night. Apparently I just got my first food allergy, so no more sushi for me for a while. Wednesday the 29th Jill and Sue visited the National Cathedral during the day. That night we did end up going to the Kennedy Center for show #34: Aladdin. Contacting member services proved helpful, as we were able to use our tickets from Saturday, plus bring Sue. Nina loved it of course – we were thinking about leaving after intermission, but we were outvoted. And Major Attaway has a wonderful performance as the genie (I just found he’s headed to the Broadway version now). Thursday I went to Jammin’ Java for concert #35: SHEL with Wild Harbors. SHEL is a band of all sisters with great harmonies, and I’d helped crowdfund a CD of theirs a while back but hadn’t gotten around to seeing them live. Worth the wait, and they do a smokin’ cover of “The Battle Of Evermore”. Friday school was closed and Sue took Nina to Clemyjontri. Saturday we got ready for Nina’s birthday party.

Monday July 1st was Jill’s birthday and we were still in Rochester, and after some quick birthday wishes and farewells to Mom and David, we got on the highway. We checked the border crossing times at a rest area before Buffalo, and kept the original plan to cross into Canada at the Lewiston–Queenston Bridge. After a 10 minute wait, we were north of the border. We stopped at Dillon’s Distillery and tasted and bought some spirits (I knew the official alcohol stores were closed for Canada Day). We had a quick stop at a Panera later for a bathroom break, but soon pulled up to the Fairmont Royal York in Toronto. I was happy to leave the car there, and we checked in and relaxed.

We got hungry for lunch and went across the street to the Union Summer market popup. Nina had guacamole and chips from El Catrin and a fried chicken sandwich from Union Chicken, while Jill and I got sausages from Wvrst. We even got concert #21 with our great lunch: Jordan Hart & Emily Schultz.

When we found out we couldn’t see the fireworks from the nearby waterfront, we decided to go to the Toronto Islands. We bought ferry tickets and headed over, getting there around 4. What we did not know before going was the Toronto Islands had been flooding. It didn’t affect us too much – Nina got to ride some rides at the Centreville Amusement Park, then we walked over to Toronto Island BBQ & Beer Co. for dinner. It was the best option for eating on the island and was pretty crowded, but we got our food and drinks without too many issues.

We had been told we could see the fireworks from the beach at Ward’s Island, so we started the hike (at least a mile, with a small child complaining for the entire second half). Unfortunately when we got there, 3/4 of the beach was flooded and the mosquitoes were everywhere, so we gave up and went over to the ferry there, where we could see some of the fireworks far off in the distance. My original plan had been to see both the fireworks and the free concert by Broken Social Scene at Harbourfront Centre. I realized we got back in time to see some, so the girls went to BeaverTails while I hurried over to catch the last 1.5 songs, so it counted as concert #22.

Tuesday we slept in, then walked over to SOCO Kitchen + Bar for a nice early lunch, then went across the street to Ripley’s Aquarium. It was super crowded but we took our time and went through all the exhibits. Later we took the streetcar up to Kensington Market. Jill’s must was Yarns Untangled, and Nina and I went next door to a coffee shop while she browsed. We’d planned on eating tacos at Seven Lives as they were recommended, but they didn’t have anything Nina would eat so ended up at El Trompo Taco Bar, which was a nice sit down place with great tacos.

I was planning on going to Sonic Boom Records, and had checked their website that morning to see it said “We’re open 364 days a year”. Apparently I was supposed to check their social media as well, as they closed for the day to film a TV show. The day was saved by our trip to Cool N2 Ice Cream. Nina got Mr. Brownie which comes with two scoops of chocolate ice cream with brownie bits, two roasted marshmallows on a stick, a syringe with chocolate syrup and half of a Two Bite Brownie, while I got Dragon’s Breath: Cheese curls are placed in a cup and then liquid nitrogen is poured on top, then smoke comes out with each bite. We got off the streetcar near Rogers Centre and let Nina run around for a while outside of the Toronto Railway Museum.

We got back to the hotel around 8 and were planning bedtime, but found out Nina’s friend who lived there (granddaughter of our next door neighbors) was possibly only available that night. So we too the subway to Yorkville and the girls got to run around on the Yorkville Rock. We were told that nearby Summer’s Ice Cream had the best ice cream in Toronto, so we made the great sacrifice to have a second dessert. We were also told we had to see the Casa Loma castle, so we drove over there and took the subway back after.

Wednesday we slept in a bit, then checked out. We managed to stop for breakfast at the very same Panera we’d stopped at Monday, then were soon at the African Lion Safari. It turned out Nina’s friend was heading there as well, so we toured the safari in our car, then met up at the waterpark. They played there for a while, then went to an Elephants & Friends presentation. It was hot, so the girls got Dippin’ Dots to cool down. Next we drove into Hamilton and stopped at The Coop for chicken, then I got my record store make up at Dr. Disc that had 3 CDs for a dollar in the basement. We’d been hearing good things about Tim Hortons, so we stopped so I could get an iced tea and Jill could get a latte – that was a mistake, they had no idea what an iced tea was (gave me a giant cup of hot tea and small cup of ice) and Jill took one drink of hers and tossed it in the trash.

Soon we were in Niagara Falls, where the rest of Jill’s family had arrived and checked in at the Best Western. We drove over to Clifton Hill and parked, then walked over to the Hard Rock Cafe (it was Tiernan’s birthday choice). Unfortunately Jill noticed Nina getting hives on her face and we didn’t pack Benadryl, so I walked over to the nearest drug store and back (she had them again a bit the next day, but we washed her all over and her shoes and it was gone after that). We all went down to check out the falls after dinner and watch the fireworks, then called it a night.

Thursday the 4th we all gathered at The Flying Saucer for breakfast, then slowly made our way to parking near the Table Rock Welcome Centre. We couldn’t get tickets for the Journey Behind the Falls until eveyone was got there, so we explored the gift shops and went outside to check out the falls. We went down in an elevator, and found the ponchos they had passed out were very necessary.

We took Tiernan back with us, and he wanted Popeyes for lunch, which Nina was definitely down for. Jill had been interested in a hot dog at Table Rock but we were leaving, so she looked them up and found the best was next door at The Flying Saucer. We ate our bounty by the pool in the hotel, then Nina went in the pool for a while. Melissa watched Nina while Sue, Dave, Maddy, Jill and I took a tour of the Wayne Gretzky Estates Winery & Distillery, where we got wine, beer and liquor. We got the family together again for dinner at Napoli Ristorante, where everyone had a delicious Italian meal (antipasto for me). Later Dominic, Melissa, Maddy, Jake and Tiernan joined Jill and I on the Falls Fireworks Cruise. They took two boats out and we got good looks at all the falls lit up before the fireworks went off above us. Meanwhile Sue and Dave took Nina and Ava to Clifton Hill to do what Nina really wanted to do, take selfies with Taylor Swift at Movieland.

Friday we got a late start and managed to show up at Niagara Helicopters with two tour groups in front of us. But soon they went from 2 helicopters to 4 and the wait wasn’t too bad. Nina sat in the front with me and gripped my leg tightly for the whole ride, but she enjoyed it. For lunch Nina wanted McDonalds (right next to the hotel), while Jill wanted poutine from Potato Heads – I got regular fries and very good fish sandwich.

In the afternoon, I dropped off Jill, Melissa and the girls at the waterpark and found a UPS Store I could rent a PC to reprint my car registration (left it at home) and back up all my photos. Realizing I had nothing I needed to do, I went record store searching. The nearest good one was Mindbomb in St Catharines, but while they had a nice vinyl selection, the CDs were sparse. Then I went to the nearby Sunrise Records which I didn’t realized until I got there was in the Pen Centre mall. No used stuff there, but they did have a David’s Tea so I was able to have a real iced tea. Plus on the way out I spied a Goodwill store, went in and totally scored. I got back to the hotel just in time to leave again to pick up the ladies.

We got back and everyone got ready for dinner, this time at The Blind Pig, a gastropub in walking distance (I had the small plates of pork belly and Korean fried chicken). After talking up BeaverTails, everyone wanted some so Jill, Melissa, Maddy, and Ava went to get those while I played with Nina in the arcade area at the hotel. After bedtime I went down to Doc Magilligan’s, the hotel restaurant and bar and enjoyed a 7 year old Irish whiskey. Apparently I missed the band “Widow Maker”, but I wasn’t torn up about it.

The bad thing about coming home on Saturday was the long line at the border crossing (45 minutes at the Peace Bridge) and the showers and storms that followed us home literally all day. At least we got delicious meals at two great out of the way places, Ashford Junction Diner (in Ellicottville, NY) and Dolce Pizza Gourmet & Eastern European Restaurant (in Hagerstown, MD).

Monday the 8th Nina started art camp. Thursday Jill picked her up and she once again had hives, but gave her a Benadryl. She was soon better, and that meant we didn’t have to cancel our plans. We all went to East Falls Church Metro, but Jill left us at Rosslyn to head to La Fromagerie in Old Town Alexandria for a wine tasting & dinner with Franklin Habit. Nina and I went to Gallery Place to again have dinner at Nando’s, spend some time at IT’SUGAR before heading into the Capital One Arena for concert #23: Jeff Lynne’s Electric Light Orchestra with Dhani Harrison. It was Nina’s mandatory classic rock show for the year, but she enjoyed herself. Her favorite song was “Last Train To London”, but mine was a fantastic version of The Traveling Wilburys “Handle With Care” as Dhani joined them to sing George’s part.

Saturday we went over to Barnes & Noble as they were giving away Lego Golden Snitchs (and since I bought the Night Bus, I think they came out ok). Then we drove over to Cactus Cantina for a late lunch/early dinner before going to the the Kennedy Center for show #24: Mo Willems & the Storytime All-Stars present: Don’t Let the Pigeon Do Storytime! Anthony Anderson, Yvette Nicole Brown, Tony Hale, Tom Lennon & Natalie Morales were all hilarious. Plus we got to see Rachel Dratch before the show looking for directions (“No, I’m in the show!”) and Nina got a picture with director Bobcat Goldthwait.

Sunday the 14th Jill had worked the night before so I took Nina over to the Springfield Dave & Busters because I got a Groupon for all day video games. We had a great time and a good lunch at Chuy’s, but after I showed Nina where my record store used to be, I felt my blood pressure go up – and stay up. We got home and we did chores and I was making dinner, but sat down and told Jill it was up and felt high. We had a blood pressure cuff and I was at 210/110. So off we went to the hospital. They admitted me and ruled out anything really scary but kept me for observation overnight. I got to sleep at home Monday and was feeling better Tuesday, but didn’t go back to work until Wednesday.

I was cleared for concert duty after a 2.5km walk Tuesday morning, so took Nina to concert #25: “Weird Al” Yankovic with the National Symphony Orchestra at Wolf Trap. Nina had a blast, and loved the videos she hadn’t seen (“Word Crimes” and “Weasel Stomping Day”) and got her current favorite: “The Biggest Ball Of Twine In Minnesota”. Plus we got to see Lorna! This review is spot on.

Friday as we’re leaving the house: “I’m not hot because I don’t have underwear on.” Follow up: “It’s a long story. I lost them at the pool.” (spoiler alert: we turned around and corrected matters). Friday was way too hot (heat index over 100), but it was a good choice to use our Encore Circle pass for their fans and ice water. We were hot at concert #26: JoJo Siwa with The Belles at Wolf Trap, but the folks on stage gave it their all. Not the worst show (though everything except vocals were prerecorded) but Nina loved it. Plus she got to play tag afterwards, thanks to seeing our friend Monica and her daughter. We also made the smart move to give up the Dave Matthews Band tickets we had for Saturday when it was even hotter (we hid indoors and packed for vacation while Nina played with neighbors just back from vacation on Saturday, while we built Legos on Sunday). We did get to see the new art on the lake.

Wednesday the 24th I was off to DC for concert #27: Our Native Daughters at the National Museum of African American History & Culture. The unforecasted rain meant I got soaked walking over, but light refreshments (popcorn and lemonade) were nice after I finished drying my hair with the hand dryer. The show was good, and I’d been wanting to see Rhiannon Giddens for a while. At home, Jill had a “Baby great blue heron sighting in the backyard”. Thursday I was amazed when the seemingly canceled Woodstock 50 festival was now suggested to happen at Merriweather.

Saturday the 27th I took Nina an hour away to a mall in Waldorf, MD, so she could do Descendants crafts. She was one of only two cosplayers, but she didn’t mind. Afterwards I got to go to Justice for the first time, and it being her favorite store made perfect sense. Meanwhile Jill was “Done! My first handspun laceweight shawl. This was such a rewarding project.” Sunday Jill started working at 3, so we worked on vacation playlists, making dancing and lip syncing videos, and building a hotel.

Tuesday Queen + Adam Lambert wasn’t a must earlier, but “One Vision” is one of my favorite songs and they haven’t done it on an American tour before. Plus a full “’39”! Then they dropped “One Vision” and I was still excited, but an ultrasound on Monday revealed a blood clot in my left calf. My doctor wasn’t super worried, but Jill wasn’t comfortable with just Nina and I going, so I didn’t get tickets (and I’m now on blood thinners). But I knew it must be getting close to Falcon Ridge time if I’m making jellyfish umbrellas at night. The next night a centipede crawled out of the camping gear and on to my shirt. I don’t think I’ve ever moved that fast. After work and camp Wednesday, we left on vacation, staying in Edison, NJ for the night (someone had to get her White Castle on).

Saturday the 1st the rest of the family was still in Massachusetts so I took advantage of a full day off by going over to CD Cellar then having an early dinner at Donburi in Tysons Galleria (Sakedon bowl FTW). Then it was concert #15: Guster, Adia Victoria, Matt Braunger, Chris Thile, Madison Cunningham & Brittany Haas at Wolf Trap as part of Live from Here. The show was great, including yet another Led Zeppelin cover to honor John Bonham’s birthday (listen here at 1:29:48). And one fantastic part that didn’t even make it to air was soundcheck with Madison Cunningham covering Radiohead’s “No Surprises”.

Chris Thile covers No Surprises during a taping of Live from Here from r/radiohead

I also had a fast exit over to Herndon for concert #16: Farewell Angelina at the Herndon Festival where they whipped out a fine version of “Free Fallin'” and I got to visit with Linda. Sunday Lowe’s delivered a washer to my Mom’s old house in Annandale that was now on the market. They gave me a delivery window so I cooled my heels at the beginning of it by having lunch in Annandale at The Block. Balo Kitchen was my choice – twice, once for lamb tacos, then again for loaded fries. Then I got the call and it turned out there was an open house at Mom’s and got to meet her agent. I got home with time to unload the trunk (renters had left stuff in the house) and make it to a very crowded Dulles where the family had landed (they’d also gone to the Asparagus Festival and seen concerts from Oshima Brothers and Samirah Evans & the Joe Belmont Experience).

Friday the 7th was concert #17: Rodrigo y Gabriela at Wolf Trap. We saw them there back in 2010, but Jill wasn’t interested that night, and I have to admit I went mostly because they’re covering Pink Floyd’s Echoes on the album and tour. But it was magnificent, and a glorious night for watching a show. Tuesday I voted for Laurie Dodd for Hunter Mill District Supervisor in the primary, but honestly anyone would be a better choice than Comstock spokeswoman Maggie Parker, busy trying to erode our First Amendment rights and bring unrelenting gridlock to Reston. Wednesday Nina’s class danced in the school talent show. That night I found this to be so true.

Wednesday the 12th Nina got her hair tinted for the 1st time while Thursday was her last day of school, and Friday Jill took her to the pool and Tacos & More with friends. Saturday we celebrated Father’s Day a day early at Taste of Reston and Ben & Jerry’s, then Jill was working Saturday night and sleeping Sunday so I took Nina to get toys at Walmart and 2nd & Charles, then we ended up at Crafthouse in Fairfax Corner for brunch.

The next was the start of camp season, first week at Emmaus Church. Thursday I got dinner from Mason’s Lobster (got to admire them having whoopie pie from LaBree’s Bakery) for concert #18: Trampled by Turtles with Deer Tick and Maggie Rose at Wolf Trap. Perfect weather, great sets. Could have used a little more Deer Tick. Row 7 was a great place to be – we weren’t that close for the next night’s show, concert #19: Ariana Grande with Normani at Capital One Arena. Nina’s first big pop star show, and undoubtedly not her last – she loved the whole thing (also loved Nando’s for dinner beforehand).

Thursday the 27th was concert #20: Robbie Schaefer and Ines Nassara at Signature Theatre for a mostly covers show called Blowin’ in the Wind: Folk-Rock in America (plus some Robbie songs). Ines Nassara has a voice that was a mixture of Tracy Chapman and Dionne Warwick, and did an amazing version of “Baltimore”. My favorite surprise was a take on “Go Your Own Way”. Lopez Broadway Bootcamp was next on the camp agenda that week:

We both took the day off Friday to get ready (and a haircut), then picked Nina up from camp and started vacation by driving up to Rochester. Best thing about that day was a stop at Bullfrog Brewery with delicious beer infused food and a wheel of beer sampler. The next morning we took a walk with Mom and her dog Tati, then went to the Strong Museum of Play, which we visited for 5 hours and still didn’t get to everything (we stopped at the Bill Gray’s diner inside for lunch). Mom and David hosted us for dinner in the private dining room at Cloverwood Senior Living where they live (I had some tasty lamb chops and my first raw oysters).

Sunday we had breakfast at Char Broil Restaurant, then I had to go to Best Buy to get some equipment as I was upgrading Mom’s computer, then I went over to Record Archive, where you can sip a beer while you browse the vinyl and CDs. Later we took a cruise on the Erie Canal through a lock and back again, then stopped at the nearby Pittsford Farms Dairy for ice cream. We finally met David’s daughter and two of her sons when we all had dinner together that night at Hong Wah Chinese Restaurant.