The big event........ Alan Jackson Concert

A family affair...... Tim, Kristi, Moe, Wilma & Donald

(Ada taking the shot)

Country duo...... Ada May & her Cowboy, Donald

"Everybody's gone Country!

At Meadowbrook, a beautifully landscaped open air venue in the lakes region of New Hampshire, country legend Alan Jackson put on a great show to a packed, sold out crowd. Performing so many of his hits, that of course, everyone knows by heart, it became a non-stop sing along for over 90 minutes. Scanning the masses of people, the love affair with Alan Jackson's lyrical ballades attracts generations between 8 and 80 and the his concerts certainly become family affairs..... just like our's did.

Off to see......Alan Jackson, a Country Music Icon

Counting down the hours....26 left, until Ada & Don are off to see one of their country music favorites, Alan Jackson. Actually, he's Ada's favorite, as Don's favorite flavor is LeAnn Rimes, and he will get to see her on October 1oth at the Topsfield Fair. Ada received the tickets for the concert in New Hampshire tomorrow from her sister for her birthday in May and they have been in the safe deposit box ever since. (Taking no chances.....)
Dust off the Stetsons.... Polish those boots..... for it's country music at it's best!

DON'T CRY FOR ME ARGENTINA...........

Ok, now that we’ve sung that tune, and they're tired of hearing it, we welcome two couples from Buenos Aires (Beautiful Air) for a few days while they explored Salem and the North Shore. Fascinated by the Witch Trials history, Salem is their last stop before flying home after three weeks touring New England and New York City. They loved the big cities, but glad to be mellowing out in Salem. After a full day walking around Salem yesterday, they were off to the Rebecca Nurse House in Danvers this morning, (always unpredictable, I hope they were open) then, off to picturesque Rockport and Gloucester in the afternoon. I expect them home later, looking for a place to have a late night bite. Fingers crossed, I hope they haven’t sent all the chefs home by 9pm, as it’s customary in Argentina to venture out for the evening meal when the rest of us are going to bed.

Germany, meets Colorado, meets New Jersey........

It was Labor Day Weekend and visitors came to Salem for many reasons. Whether it was a wedding, a weekend getaway or a transcontinental vacation, everyone seemed to be enjoying their stay, sharing experiences and appreciating one another's company.

Father of the Groom....Doesn't he look dashing!

Here we go again............

Can't believe another season is about to begin, and that Ada has fallen into the competitive trap of Fantasy Football for another 17 weeks of NFL Football. While the first game was actually last Thursday and her picked team won, tomorrow there are 13 team picks. There's little to go on other than last year's record, but since then, all the teams are a mishmash of some old and new players and for a few weeks an uneducated guess and women's intuition will have to guide her choices. Wish me luck!

Week 1 Update: 13 correct picks out of 16 put Ada in a four way tie for First place on her SalemCity team. One week down and 16 more to go..........

Take me out to the ball game.............

Lets play ball.......... A perfect fall night for a baseball game, Ada & Donald we're ready for an evening at Fenway Park last night. It didn't matter who the Red Sox were playing, we were just glad to be there. (It turned out to be the Baltimore Orioles.) Cheers from the crowd were loud and non-stop as they showed their enthusiasm for the fast lead and for the guys who had been out of town for much too long. Glad to have them home, the Red Sox did not disappoint. Home runs started in the 1st inning and kept on coming. With a score of 10 to zip, Buckholz pitched a great game. And so did the food vendors. Seems everyone wants to be a pitcher in this park. If you wanted peanuts, or ice cream, you better be able to catch them from 90 yards away. Getting the money to the vendor was another matter.

It's nice to be at the game as you get to hear the National Anthem, see Mike Lynch (Channel 5 sports announcer) do his 6pm sportscast from the field, or join in on the wave and sing to Sweet Caroline in the 8th inning. Of course, we missed Jerry Remy's (Remdog) and Don Orsilo's play by play and silly antics; always an entertaining part of the televised broadcast on NESN, but there's always the 2hour rewind of the game at midnight or the the next afternoon. We can always watch it again and see if they saw the game as we did.

Our tickets were compliments of the Massachusetts Healthcare Connector for an essay that Ada wrote about, "Why she is happy to have healthcare in Massachusetts." Always a favorite topic for her, she could have written a book!

Photo session with Rick Bern

Today, Donald and Ada had their photo session with professional photographer, Rick Bern. Sent by the Massachusetts Connector folks to catch the innkeepers working and playing at home, Rick took hundreds of pictures of us all around the B&B, indoors and out. After a number of kitchen shots, we went for some action at the piano in the living room. Looks like he got a good sing-a-long picture. Hopefully, there are other pictures with my eyes open. Can't wait to see some of the other photo's soon. We were stars for a day and had a blast. Thanks Rick for your patience........... Such fun!

The Massachusetts Healthcare Connector had a essay contest asking, "Tell us why you are happy to have health care in Massachusetts". If your essay was picked, you won two tickets to see the Red Sox. Ada & Don can't wait to go to Fenway Park September 8th, when the Red Sox play the Baltimore Orioles. In addition to the tickets, they will be using some of the pictures, and testimonies of the essay winners, on the Massachusetts Connector website and other publicity pieces in the future.