Bruce Live in Barcelona in Cape May

Bruce doesn't cavort much with his wife Patti on stage in this movie of a concert. This adds to the illusion that when he sings "She's the One," he's really singing to me. He horses around with Clarence Clemmons and Little Stevie, but Patti...not so much. Bruce himself gave permission to the Beach Theatre Foundation to show this concert this weekend and keep all the profits to Save the Beach. The Beach Theatre Foundation was formed to save the theater from demolition and rebirth as oceanfront condos and parking lot. and this is how one of my favorite places in Cape May came to be. They stayed open all winter showing independent films and the monthly high-definition opera, and this is how they won my heart.

Back to the Springsteen concert: this was two and a half hours of energy and intensity filmed at the Palau Sant Jordi arena in Barcelona. Bruce and the E Street Band performed many of the old favorites and the new stuff he was promoting with this tour ("The Rising"). He even tried to learn some Spanish, but I have no idea what he said to the crowd. This man loves his job, and it never shows more than when he performs "Dancing in the Dark" which to me is one of the newer songs. As he was strutting around on the edge of the stage, I just knew he would extend his hand and pull all 749 pounds of me onto that stage to dance with him instead of that Monica girl in the original video. Of course it really didn't happen--it is a five-year-old movie after all and I'm not 749 pounds. I can't really dance anyway. It wasn't long after that song and video that Bruce and Patti got married, causing young ladies all over the state of New Jersey to say, "That should have been me!" I understand, though, because Patti can sing and play the guitar. I can't do those things. I can play the saxophone, but Bruce already has a pretty good saxophone player.

All these goofy thoughts faded away when Bruce, the thoughtful employer, gave his band a break. He sat at the white piano and performed intimate versions of his old chestnuts "Spirit in the Night" and "Incident on 57th Street." These songs were just as poignant as any time they were ever performed. I didn't expect my reaction to these (tears fell out of my eyes). But when I thought about it, Bruce's music has been important to me for a very long time. That "new" song, "Dancing in the Dark" is already 25 years old or so. Bruce's music has been with me since I discovered him in high school, and I clung to his music when I was so homesick at college in Pittsburgh. I defended him to parents who never understood the music I liked, but at least took the trouble to know who was performing it. I defended him to a husband who really didn't like his music, but would admit publicly that Bruce is, indeed, a poet.

Luckily, Bruce gave me lots of time to recover. A few songs later he ended the concert, but in true Bruce form came back on stage for an encore and another...I think I counted seven songs after the concert ended. "Born to Run" was there, and "Born in the USA" of course. When I got home I ordered the DVD as a consolation prize for resisting the urge to sit through the next showing at the theater.

National Lighthouse Day

Today's big event was the National Lighthouse Day celebration at the Cape May Point Lighthouse. It was a hot day so I consumed a lot of the freshly-squeezed lemonade for sale there. It was a fun event with foods, craft vendors, and sea-themed musical entertainment. Dr. Physick, Cape May's well-known historic citizen and honorary mayor, made an appearnace in a summer white suit.





I took a walk over to the bird observing deck and met a North Carolina birder with his lens focused on a glossy ibis. What an amazing specimen! I couldn't see it with my naked eye, but through his glass the glossy ibis revealed its black feathers with a reddish sheen. There was a great egret there, much more common in Cape May, along with seagulls, common terns, and a white swan. It's going to take a lot of practice before I can recognize these birds.

Gladys the Sheltie Puppy and I finished the day at the bay. We hoped for a beautiful sunset since we carried the camera, tripod, beach chair and beach stuff all the way there. The sun was behind a big cloud (bummer), but there were still pinks and blues in the sky.

Fisherman's Wharf Tour

Fred joined me for Tuesday’s fun tourist activity, a tour of Fisherman’s Wharf. First of all, the tour guide told us that we weren’t actually standing in Cape May. The famous Lobster House on Fisherman’s Wharf “in Cape May” is actually in Lower Township, the same municipality in which my own famous house sits. Although no seafood (fish or crustacean) never passes these lips, I still enjoy the Lobster House because their Chicken Francaise is the best anywhere. Go figure. We learned on the wharf tour that the same family that owns the giant restaurant and seafood market owns the port and the seafood packing operation.

We were there when a huge load of scallops were being unloaded. Loads have to be big to offset the cost of fishing (fuel, nets, salaries, etc.) but there are limits to how much the fishermen can bring in. The scallops have to be a certain size, and the too-small ones fall through the net.

It was a very interesting tour, cleverly offered at 11:00am so that when it ends over by the Raw Bar, folks are just starting to be hungry for lunch. This tactic worked on us: Fred bought an assortment of shrimp, scallops and salmon, and I got a cannoli. Yup, the fish market has a wonderful selection of luscious desserts along with the seafood, seasonings, bread, and cooking gadgets.

This contraption is a squid vacuum! It unloads squid from a boat and drops it into a waiting truck.

Queen Victoria Garden Tour

On Monday evening I attended the Garden Tour at the Queen Victoria Bed & Breakfast. I brought along the new camera just in case there were beautiful blooms, and there were. Most of the flowers and greenery were familiar, but I saw some unusual speimens. The free booklet guide helped identify them by garden location, and will be handy when I get around to labeling my photos. The self-guided tour took about an hour and covered not only the Queen Victoria, but some other properties nearby.

Look at this shot of crepe myrtle buds with the blurry blooms and Victorian window in the background. I'm not saying how long it took me to learn how to do this!

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Afterwards, I took advantage of the early evening light and took some new photos of Cape May's Victorian architecture and the beach. Lots of people were walking around even though it was a Monday evening. There were strollers everywhere, and although they tried, none ran me over. Here's a whale watch boat and lifeguard stand. I'm standing on the Promenade to take this.

Bay Sunset

Last evening I saw the best sunset. Gladys the puppy and I went to our favorite spot on the Delaware Bay beach with a chair, a book, and water for both of us. We sat there for about two hours, me reading my book and Gladys frolicking in the sand and greeting any people who walked by.

As the sun sank into the choppy dark blue water, it gave off an orange-gold light. It made the beach look magical. I realized I hadn't seen enough sunsets. It was gorgeous. (of course I hadn't brought my camera, or even a notebook to write down my description. This picture is from last year at the cove in Cape May.) The kayakers and occasional seagulls flying by looked like they had been planted there by a postcard company. The little sandpipers did their dance by the edge of the water. Down the beach to the left, multiple generations of a family all wearing white were having photos taken for Grandma's birthday. We found this out from two little girls who came over to meet Gladys. They looked like aliens--fifteen of them all wearing white.

The tide was coming in making Gladys concerned about the water getting closer. The orangey light illuminated her sable and white fur, and together with the cool breeze ruffling her newly-shaggy coat, made her look so pretty. If Gladys ever needs glamour shots, we know exactly where to go!

PNWA Conference, part three

I’m working my way through my list of books recommended at the PNWA conference. Recommending their favorite books was a common thread among the agents, editors, and presenters. I was pleased to note that I had read many of them already or at least had them on my shelf. A few are on their way to me thanks to the magic of Amazon.com 1-click ordering.

I’m currently savoring Eudora Welty’s One Writer’s Beginnings. It is a small book describing her beginnings as a person and as a writer. Her descriptions are so precise and vivid I feel like I am there in Jackson, Mississippi with Eudora and the Welty family and their big clock in the hall. I suppose in her descriptions of things that are not only visual but also have an aural presence, she is able to easily evoke two of our senses. In one of the memoir sessions I attended at the conference, the instructor pointed out a student’s technique of setting the time and place by naming the songs her father sang to her mother’s piano accompaniment. No further description was necessary if the listener was familiar with any of the songs listed. Eudora Welty does this by mentioning the clock in the hall that chimes and the Victrola that needs winding and plays opera overtures and popular music of the time.

I’m pasting here an annotated list of some of the books recommended at the conference. Due to my selective listening, though, the fiction and screenwriting titles that I wasn’t interested in are omitted. I wouldn't mind knowing what books on writing readers recommend!

Katz, Christina. Get Known Before the Book Deal: Use Your Personal Strengths to Grow an Author Platform. Writer’s Digest, 2008.
It’s all about the platform! This was a recurring theme. Before you can pitch your book to an agent, and before people will buy it, you have to prove you’re an expert on the topic and known.

King, Stephen. On Writing. Pocket, 2002.
I’m not the biggest fan of Stephen King’s scary books, but this was one of the best, most down-to-earth books on writing I’ve read. And it is funny.

Lamott, Anne. Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life. Anchor, 1995.
This is a popular one, and for good reason. It completely changed the way I approach writing. It makes a lot of sense.

Lukeman, Noah. The First Five Pages: A Writer’s Guide to Staying Out of the Rejection Pile. Fireside, 2005.

Lyon, Elizabeth. A Writer’s Guide to Nonfiction. Perigee, 2003.
Lyon, Elizabeth. Nonfiction Book Proposals Anybody Can Write. Perigee, 2002.
This author was at the conference, and unfortunately I could not stay for her whole presentation because of an editor appointment. I was able to tell from her speaking that she was clear and focused, and her books seem to have the same clarity and practicality. I bought these two, but there are more.

McGee, Margaret D. Sacred Attention: A Spiritual Practice for Finding God in the Moment. Skylight Paths, 2007.
I get a little nervous about memoir-writing classes because sometimes people (and me) get a little emotional. This was a wonderful session for two reasons. First, she really did show us how to reach out to readers with the Universal Human Emotion, and second, she had a great technique for recalling important memories and writing about them. This book is linked to the church year, but not in an intimidating way for those of us who are not churchy.

Welty, Eudora. One Writer’s Beginnings. Harvard University, 1983.
Just lovely writing with great descriptions.

Zinsser, William K. On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction. Collins, 2006.
This book covers many kinds of nonfiction writing and covers them thoroughly and elegantly. He has other books on writing that I count among my favorites.

Jammin'

This weekend was all about the berries. Yesterday, Fred picked about 8 pounds of blueberries at Terhune Orchards, and I joined him later for an attempt at raspberries and blackberries. Bad news about the raspberries: they are almost gone. Ripe blackberries weren't much easier to find, but there were still plenty of red unripe berries waiting for later this week.

Today I made the blueberry and blueberry-lime jam. This isn't hard work, but the rinsing and stemming of all those little berries can get tedious. My blueberry-lime recipe (from the Ball Blue Book) requires 4 1/2 cups of berries, and the plain blueberry jam needs 8 cups. That's a lot of berries. Once they are prepared, the work goes quickly and steamily. The jam takes about 10-15 minutes to cook, and then is ladled into sterilized (via the dishwasher) jars. Lids and bands (the screw-on part) are also sterilized and waiting for me to the left. To the right, on the other front burner, is a pot of boiling water waiting to vacuum-seal the jars in the special rack under water. After 15 minutes the jars come out and cool on towels for at least a day. I made about thirteen 8-ounce jars today, and together with the strawberry and strawberry-banana jam from June I should have enough for Christmas gifts. Usually by peach season I'm all jammed-out. I rarely make peach jam. Or tomatoes. Maybe this year.