Saturday, March 21, 2015

Fine Wine

Old people, old folks, seniors, q tips, silver canes, whatever you want to call them = over 60 to me at 65.  In my teens it was anyone over 25.  All it took was a quiet drive to Wellsville the other day by myself  to get this old mind  thinking of a few old people from my teens.  Maybe the ride wasn't quiet, I put in a cd made by our friend John Surra, it's a keeper and one of my favorites to chill with.  Thank you John!  The view was mighty fine too with frost thick on brush, dead grasses and trees at the very top of hills.  With the sun pulsing down the frost looked like diamonds giving off rainbows of color.  What really made me think of a few old people from the past was going by an old run down farm house.  I have no idea what family or families lived there long ago but it was similar to a few from my past.

The first house I thought of was a crooked, tilting, run down maybe 3 room shack.  Sorry to call an old man's home a shack but that is how I remember it.  I'm sure it felt like his castle to him.  It was way up Bells Run just about before the turn to the left going over to Sunnyside.  We would go by there when spotting deer, riding around,.........or ;)  If your old enough you know what the or means.  Ok, so the old man that lived there always had his TV on, every time we went by.  There was never a picture on it!  Remember how the tv would flicker or roll with poor reception from the antenna hooked to the roof?  You have to be really old to remember that.  The old man's tv was always rolling and flickering. We always were in amazement but now that I think about it maybe there was proper sound and he listened to the programs or was blind and didn't know there was no picture.  I shall never know the answer.  Then there was the old man that lived just above our farm on the Horse Run Rd.  Lloyd Babcock, he sat in the front window watching the world go by.  I can never remember not seeing him setting there and still picture him like it was yesterday.  I knew him and  his wife , Emma.  He always waved when I walked or rode my bike by.  A few weeks ago I went by and the house is still there, of course no Lloyd in the window. Long time ago.....good grief it was 54 years ago......I'm really an old person!

Truth is with gray hair, wrinkles and 65 years of living I know I'm old...the funny part for as long as I have thought it reality slapped me reading an article the other day.  The sentence that made me suddenly quiet (yes, I was quiet ;) for just a minute was....The elderly couple 66 and 68 years old.  BAM!  I like the word "old" much better than elderly.  Old can be used like...I'm 16 years old or 30 years old and in my case 65 years old, it sounds so much better than I'm elderly.  What ever it takes to be happy is how I put the twist on.

The next two people I remember as old were women.  Sara Pearsall lived on the corner of Palmer Ave and Honeoye St.  I was impressed and so curious about her.  She would set at her very elegant dining table and just looked like a queen to me. Dick and I would walk by often when we were going "steady"!  Do kids go steady now a days?  The other lady was Hattie Gibson.  She also would be setting by a window when we walked by.  I did talk to her at times, she was very pleasant and kind.  I often wished to see all of the beautiful rooms and what filled them in both homes.  All old people to me at the time and possibly they were younger than I am now.

No cooking for this chick today ♡ We went to Watkins Glen with our friends, shopped a little and then had a delicious meal at the Wild Flower Cafe and Rooster Fish Brewery.  Food ordered was a Blues Burger, Fish tacos with a smokey chipotle slaw, a Po Boy Sandwich and a Pulled Pork Sandwich with smokey chipotle slaw.  Everyone was happy and stuffed at the end of the meal, no room for dessert.  The guys had the specialty beer and the girls had Lakewood Niagara Wine.  When I asked the waitress about the wine she told us the winery was just up the road a couple miles over looking Seneca Lake.  After lunch we stopped at the entrance of the Glen to see the waterfalls and ice formations.  Our next stop was Lakewood Winery, yes the wine was that good.  In fact Ron and Dick bought a case to split, considering they don't drink wine you know it was very tasty.    We did a tasting at the winery and the young man pouring knew his stuff, he was funny and made for a great time.  For a few hours we were able to forget our Spring Fling Day was a little wet and on the chilly side.