When next in New York, try Williamsburg!

What could tempt Karen to brave the northeast winter storms?

A Council for the Arts at MIT sponsored event in Williamsburg, to celebrate the closing night of the very racy Powder Her Face opera directed by MIT's very own Jay Scheib. You might say that's what you get for being CAMIT's vice-chair, but frankly, it was a great excuse to revisit this part of NYC that has been going through a tremendous metamorphous this last decade.

The Wythe Hotel is a gem, with cleverly appointed rooms that cross cozy iconographic French with contemporary industrial. The staff is amazing, the restaurant a gem and it's wonderfully situated between ferry and subway stops, just a few blocks from the main drag. This is not the Williamsburg of kielbasa and perogies, although they are still to be found. This is a place bursting with creative energy from wall murals and artists spaces to warehouses being converted into maker-labs.

It was a terrific 3-day visit. Being snowed in for a couple of days really wouldn't have been so bad. Instead a quick trip to Boston for meetings, visit with Cal and a grateful hop back to Useppa, Florida.

Not so guilty pleasure

Whether its hosting a party to celebrate our neighbors and Blue Chip's Useppa arrival or simply a Tuesday evening, this is our backyard view. Prefer sunrise? Take a look out the front door.

You could be here - just give us a call.

Simply the BEST!

How to begin the new year? What could be better then the schlep out to Eugene to spend time with Erin, Jeremy and the girls?

Clara has introduced Evie to one of her favorite past times - reading books. Evie, still obsessed with hats, is sharing her favorite page turners with Pop-pop and won't let him skip a word. Big sister Clara does a silent scream and gets lots of points for her patience with both of them.

We all had a wonderful time. Next? Keep a look out for a family visit to Useppa this Spring followed by European adventures this Summer. We'll keep you posted.

Useppa Thanksgiving Recruits

This year, not only did we make it to Useppa for a LONG Thanksgiving weekend, we brought along 5 willing recruits. Karen's nephews Cal and Tim were joined by their friend Jesse while Crysta was there with her friend Erin. But what to do if your under 30 on an island with no cars or malls?

The boys built a VERY impressive lean two with found items at a small private beach at the island's end. Incredibly impressive and, along with their fishing prowess, proving that these three are definitely the guys you want to have with you if ever shipwrecked.

The girls chose to relax and wowed the islanders with their croquet abilities. They insist it's the first time they've played, but their shots indicated otherwise. Beginners luck, Erin's birthday luck or were they just faking us out? Steve came back with a one stroke shot through the wicket from across the court, but the girls were still tough to beat.

We all had fun. The weather was terrific and the turkey available in abundance. We hope they'll return again for more kayaking, swimming, fishing, exploring and did we mention eating?

Lowcountry Visit

Each year one member from a small group of Steve's McKinsey buds takes their turn to host a Columbus Day weekend trip. Besides the pleasure of relaxing with old friends, it provides an opportunity for a wide variety of experiences.

This year Kiawah Island and nearby Charleston did not disappoint! Traveling through this low-country natural paradise is always one of our favorite legs when bringing Blue Chip north, but we rarely have the chance to stop and explore land-side.

Kiawah is a known for its golf, but it's natural beauty, extravagant bird life, colorful marshland and ten miles of sandy beach packed hard enough to bike ride on, makes it truly special. Dolphins work together to "strand feed", forcing fish onto the shore, where the dolphins follow, wrestling mullet from aggressive pelican's. Observing this unique behavior is just one more reason to explore the Kiawah River via flatsboat or kayak.

And then there is Charleston. Always a pleasure to explore. Horse and buggies keep the traffic moving slow as you pass from one well preserved historic district to another. You endlessly hear tales of people who stopped for a visit and simply never left. Fantastic culture, beautiful design, great restaurants, southern hospitality, 30 miles to Kiawah - who knows?

Story time is the best time!

Video calls undoubtedly help to keep us connected with our granddaughters, but there's no substitute for being with them. Evie models the hat she's most recently obsessed with, gleefully swings as we push her as high as possible and quickly remembers who her Pop-pop and Bubbie are.

Big sister Clara is learning French instead of Mandarin, much to her Pop-pop's chagrin. She's getting so tall that she's rapidly approaching Bubbie Karen's chin. She loves her new teacher and is flourishing!

But at the end of the day everyone shares a meal and snuggles up to read goodnight books. That alone makes a weekend trip to Eugene worthwhile!

Boating crew

We like nothing more than sharing Blue Chip with crew. Karen's family is hardly close by, so having Steve and Kathy join us from Maryland along with Crysta who, has been in Boston getting her Masters, was a super treat! Two weeks later, our Useppa friends, the Trinos, gave us an excuse to visit our mutual friends the Symonds on Cuttyhunk - the outermost of the Elizabeth islands off the coast of Massachusetts Cape Cod. Like Useppa, it's available only by boat, has no cars and folks make their own entertainment. Delightful!

West Virginia - "Color is Magic"

Every couple of years, we have a business engagement that brings us to Virginia's Allegheny Mountains. Here in the middle of nowhere, and I mean NOWHERE, is the Greenbriar - a most unusual resort hotel.

What makes it unforgettable, from the moment you walk in the door, is color AND pattern - everywhere and in abundance - on floors, walls and ceilings. Imagine Lily Pulitzer on steroids and you'll get the general idea. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

In 1778 this resort's sulphur springs offered the cure for its first guests, it closed for the Civil War and was then purchased by the C&O Railway who named it the Greenbriar Hotel. Used as an army hospital in WWII, it was then repurchased by the C&O, who in 1946, gave Dorothy Draper 18 months to transform it. Inclusive of everything from rooms, to uniforms and china, it was the largest redecoration of an American hotel ever undertaken. Architectural Digest declared the end result to be Dorothy Draper's Masterpiece - the Greenbriar had been "Draperized". For fifteen years, Draper personally continued to oversee its design. In the 1960's Carleton Varney joined her firm and has guided the resort's Draperized look ever since.

Being met outside this statuesque, white pillared entrance by black groomsmen gives one pause and a glimpse into a time you thought to be long gone. Throw in a well recognized spa, golf, croquet, tennis, trout fishing, skeet, off roading and a half a dozen in-house restaurants, all in a beautifully landscaped, mountainous setting and you will feel transported into a unique, otherworldly place where somehow it all works. Oh, and of course there is the US government bunker which was secretly built built in1959 and was active until the Cold War's end in 1992. Really.

Want an escape from the ordinary? Can't get enough Lilly P? Then the Greenbriar is for you. But hurry. It has survived bankruptcy and is now owned by West Virginia entrepreneur Jim Justice. Who knows how long this unique ode to color will survive? Catch it while you can.

Record breaking events galore!

Okay, I agree that we've posted a paucity of "wow" photos this trip. But, to give a little perspective, we're in venues with 100,000 - 10,000 people and a LOT of activity. To give you an idea, heres a run down on the Thursday night athletics. It was a bevy of record breaking events. The men and women are simultaneously competing in the decathlon and the individual events that make up the sport, while medal ceremonies are being conducted. Focusing is a real adult ADD challenge!

Not to mention that most of these Olympians are there breaking SPEED records..... You try catching Usaine Bolt's season best 200-meter run, handily winning another gold, with the two other Jamaican teammates taking silver and bronze! Nearly 100,000 of us stood and cheered.

Fastest man in the world? Bolt's charisma certainly gets him press, but Kenya's Rudisha set a new world record that same night for his 800-meter distance. Hey, I can barely run to the end of the block to catch the mailman, so what do I know about running speed?

While javelins were flying, US won the gold and silver men's decathlon medals, with Cuba winning bronze. As all the decathlon competitors took a congratulatory lap, the men's triple jumpers led us in stadium wide claps as they completed their event. US Christian Taylor won that event, with a world record jump distance, followed closely in points by a US silver.

The women were right there with them. Kenya won the 800 meter and the US just missed bronze. Javelins continued to fly, while the races continued. We stood no less than four times that night to sing the American anthem. I think we've finally agreed on all the words!

So, with so much going on, the option was to focus on the field, not the camera. The image here is the queen as interpreted in a jellybean mosaic (seriously) and some of the 2012 Olympic mascots that are making a hit with the younger set.

We're possibly setting a record for most events seen. Steve's superb logistics, fired by his London tube ap, has been faultless!

Jump so high - crouch so low

Twenty events in 8-days of Olympic viewing makes for a wide variety and allowed us to try a few new things along the way.

Basketball matches were closer than predicted. France beat Nigeria 78:73, when just a few days before the US swamped Nigeria 156:73. The crowd was definitely supporting the underdog. We also saw Great Britain sweat it out with China, while the crowd roared for both sides.

Greco Roman versus Freestyle wrestling differences still alludes us. The guys were easily the most emotional we saw, with heads buried in the mat at match's end. Women's freestyle wrestling is a whole other sport - amazingly strong at barely 100 pounds, much more aggressive and with no hesitation at the match's end.

We're grateful that wrestling wasn't WWF style, but doubt we're going to start following the circuit. Basketball on the other hand, was a different game and lots of fun - with some previous US players showing up on unexpected teams.