First things first...We are truly blessed to have the means to set a pretty table and invite our friends to join us for good food and fellowship. I am mindful that many are not so fortunate. My daughter has a passion for the work of the Food Bank. As a singer-songwriter, she has written and recorded a song that is the anthem for the world wide Crop Hunger Walk project. Her song, "Raise Your Voice" is featured in their video. I've included a link in the side margin of my blog. I hope that it will encourage you to support projects in your community that contribute to the effort to overcome hunger.
As we drove up the twisting drive to the Hearst Castle, I looked at Sweet Mister and said, "Gee, it's good to be home again. Will it just be the two of us, or are we expecting guests this weekend?" This week, I thought that I would share a typical evening at the ranch with William Randolph Hearst. The guests should be gathering in the living room in just a short while for dinner...
We're here. Some of the staff will bring our luggage up to the house...
...don't forget anything! We don't want to have to make extra trips up and down these steps!
It's nice to have a great patio.
Ah, here we are at the ranch house.
Come on in.
Make yourselves at home...
Cozy, don't you agree? Yep, definitely cozy. Right.
Mr. Hearst will join us through this 'secret hallway' which leads to the stairs to his private quarters.
Come on in to the dining room...
...there will be eight for dinner.
We always dine casual here on the ranch...
...yes, definitely casual.
The Booth's Real Old Blue Willow is the only pattern used at the ranch. After all, it's all very casual here. It's always about the opportunity to visit with interesting people. The dinnerware was special to Hearst because it had belonged to his mother.
After dinner, we'll mosey on into one of the entertaining rooms for cigars...
...and then, we'll saunter into the next room...
...for a few rounds of pool (or is it billiards...I can never tell) before heading for bed. Just another low key, laid back evening at the ranch...hope that you've enjoyed yourself. Do you remember how to get to your room? Next week we'll take a look at some of the guest quarters!
Thank you, yet again, to Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for hosting her magical meme, Tablescape Thursday. I'll be linking my post to "TABLESCAPE THURSDAY." Hop on over and check out the myriad of marvelous tablescape designs, after 10:00 AM on Thursdays. You'll be glad that you made the trip...it's a wonderful adventure.
When I think of August, I think windows of opportunity to travel to new spots. How about you? With thankfulness for her dedication and efforts, I'm joining the multi-talented Tablescaper for her fabulous meme SEASONAL SUNDAYS. Hope to see you there!
When I think of August, I think windows of opportunity to travel to new spots. How about you? With thankfulness for her dedication and efforts, I'm joining the multi-talented Tablescaper for her fabulous meme SEASONAL SUNDAYS. Hope to see you there!
Wednesday evening is the twenty-fourth edition of Cuisine Kathleen's meme, "LET'S DISH". Excited to be a charter member. Pop over (pun intended for the Chef Supreme Kathleen) and join the fun!
You can check out KC's music at www.kcclifford.com, on iTunes, and on YouTube. I hope that you'll take a few minutes and give her a listen. You'll also enjoy reading back through her blog on this site. The girl can really write! KC has just released her 5th studio CD project, "The Tag Hollow Sessions". The sold out CD release concert was this past weekend. "The Tag Hollow Sessions" is available on iTunes or through her website. I hope that you'll give her music a chance. I know that I have zero objectivity where she is concerned, but I think that you'll fall in love with her music and her!
A Weekend at the Ranch House
In June, the state legislature passed and Governor Corbett signed Senate Bill 100, now Act 122 of 2012, legislation to address Pennsylvania's woefully overcrowded prisons. Yeah for us! The new law expands eligibility for alternative sentencing programs and creates a tiered sanction system for technical parole violators. We've written about this on at least two occasions.
Unfortunately, the law also repeals the Department of Corrections' pre-release program. This program, which has existed for several decades, allowed some inmates to go to a halfway house as they approached their minimum sentence, in anticipation of being paroled. Now, all inmates, regardless of offense or danger to public safety (or lack thereof), will stay in state prisons until they hit their minimum.
The repeal of the pre-release program was borne from a mentality that continues to haunt the legislature, even with the passage of SB 100. I call it "dumb on crime." With the legislature due to return on September 24, there are at least two issues percolating that continue the pro-incarceration mentality. I'm not at liberty to talk about them at the moment because the ACLU of PA is in a position of possibly influencing the direction of those issues.
But the bottom line is this: For all the hoopla around SB 100 and the apparent awakening to the problem of overincarceration, Pennsylvania won't make any progress until policymakers stop reacting to every problem with new crimes and longer sentences. There's no evidence that their mentality has changed just yet.
Will PA go backwards on prison reform?
We have received numerous calls from friends and family of Philadelphia firefighters regarding the city’s new social networking guidelines. We are happy to look into it, but we need to hear from firefighters themselves about how the policy directly affects them.
Please call our Philadelphia office at 215-592-1513 x501 and leave a message including your name and phone number. All calls are confidential and protected by attorney-client privilege.
Philadelphia Firefighters: Please call us!
First things first...We are truly blessed to have the means to set a pretty table and invite our friends to join us for good food and fellowship. I am mindful that many are not so fortunate. My daughter has a passion for the work of the Food Bank. As a singer-songwriter, she has written and recorded a song that is the anthem for the world wide Crop Hunger Walk project. Her song, "Raise Your Voice" is featured in their video. I've included a link in the side margin of my blog. I hope that it will encourage you to support projects in your community that contribute to the effort to overcome hunger.
Last week I shared photos from the Vinyard Rehearsal Dinner. This week I want to share some pics that I shot at the wedding and the reception. The wedding and reception took place at Santa Margarita Ranch, in Santa Margarita, California. The ranch is quite rustic, and the people of the community are quite excited about the possibilities of having this venue in their town.
The bride's family owns a multi-generational railroad transportation car company, and one of the neat features on the ranch was one of the original Disney Land Trains that offered guests rides around the property. Once again, I've provided limited comments, and I think that you'll enjoy the details that I was able to capture of the wedding set-up, the reception, and the dinner. Enjoy!
It. was. very. hot. The market umbrellas provided welcome shade and comfort. After the service, we gathered on the lawn immediately behind the ceremony site for a cocktail reception that preceded the wedding reception dinner.
Cool seating...
...open bar and passed appetizers.
Iced tea, water, and lemonade...
...I knew that you'd love the details.
Bistro tables...
...and a delightful vignette for the guest book.
The flower girl and the ring bearer had a grand time!
The outer walls of the amazing, huge barn were filled with tables of 8 for the wedding guests...
The food was delicious...beautifully presented and prepared.
I thought that you would enjoy the treatment for table numbers and the gorgeous centerpieces.
The wedding party made up of the bride and groom, 10 bridesmaids, 10 groomsmen, and spouses/dates were seated at this stunning long table that ran through the center of the barn...
A special spot for the smallest guests...
Details...
Notice the variety of containers for the flowers...
...catching the light in charming fashion.
The lovely bride and the handsome groom make their entry...
...The best of weddings always seem to capture just the perfect details.
...Everyone was delighted with a pair of wedding crashers...they watched the proceedings from high in the barn rafters throughout the entire evening. They were quite well behaved.
Once again, the day started out hot and ended up perfectly cool, comfortable with just the right amount of evening breeze. Next week, I'll share our day at the Hearst Castle. Thanks for stopping by for a visit.
Thank you, yet again, to Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for hosting her magical meme, Tablescape Thursday. I'll be linking my post to "TABLESCAPE THURSDAY." Hop on over and check out the myriad of marvelous tablescape designs, after 10:00 AM on Thursdays. You'll be glad that you made the trip...it's a wonderful adventure.
When I think of August, I think windows of opportunity to travel to new spots. How about you? With thankfulness for her dedication and efforts, I'm joining the multi-talented Tablescaper for her fabulous meme SEASONAL SUNDAYS. Hope to see you there!
When I think of August, I think windows of opportunity to travel to new spots. How about you? With thankfulness for her dedication and efforts, I'm joining the multi-talented Tablescaper for her fabulous meme SEASONAL SUNDAYS. Hope to see you there!
Wednesday evening is the twenty-third edition of Cuisine Kathleen's meme, "LET'S DISH". Excited to be a charter member. Pop over (pun intended for the Chef Supreme Kathleen) and join the fun!
You can check out KC's music at www.kcclifford.com, on iTunes, and on YouTube. I hope that you'll take a few minutes and give her a listen. You'll also enjoy reading back through her blog on this site. The girl can really write! KC has just released her 5th studio CD project, "The Tag Hollow Sessions". The sold out CD release concert was this past weekend. "The Tag Hollow Sessions" is available on iTunes or through her website. I hope that you'll give her music a chance. I know that I have zero objectivity where she is concerned, but I think that you'll fall in love with her music and her!
Wine Country Wedding
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