Surprisingly,
we arrived at the same time our friends arrived, including The Cousin,
The Photographer and their two daughters, and a family who doesn't yet
have a Musings nickname. I'll call the husband The Laughing Man because
of his unfailing good nature and frequent bouts of laughter. He was accompanied
by his wife, their little boy, and their 1 1/2-year-old girl.
The Cousin
and her family had been there before, so they told us what to do. Hopewell
Furnace is a national historic site, and visitors may collect apples using
buckets collected in the visitor's center. Afterwards, they can weigh
them and pay for what they've picked.
We couldn't
take enough apple pickers for everybody, because then there wouldn't have
been any left for other visitors. But we figured we could take turns.
When you
pick up the buckets, you also pick up a map of the orchard that shows
you what varieties of apples are on different trees. So we started with
some apples The Cousin's family was particularly fond of: Smokehouse.
As the name suggests, they have a smoky flavor and are great for either
eating or cooking.
To make
sure we knew what we were getting, we'd take an apple from a tree and
cut it into slices for everyone to sample. Then we'd determine if we wanted
apples from that tree. Some apples people wanted just small amounts, so
we put them in plastic bags The Cousin had brought, in order to keep them
separate.
At one point,
The White Rabbit expressed concern over the ethics of tasting apples.
The Cousin assured him that it was a common practice but that if he felt
guilty about it, he could give them some extra money when we paid.
One of my
favorites were Northern Spy, which is a very tart apple. I like apples
with a lot of taste to them. We also got some Cortlands. I checked in
with The Gryphon to make sure we had enough for his applesauce recipe,
which he intended to make as soon as he could join us at the White Rabbit's.
I didn't
have to do a lot of picking, as it turned out, because The Cousin's daughters
were very enthusiastic about helping. Similarly, The White Rabbit, The
Dormouse and The Photographer were particularly industrious. The girls,
though, had more fun with it. At one point, the younger one even climbed
on her dad's shoulders to reach some higher apples.
I made myself
useful by helping to carry buckets from tree to tree, and harvest a few
apples. Eventually, we put them all on a wagon that The Laughing Man and
his wife had brought.
Since I
had the opportunity, and since The Cousin had specifically requested I
bring my camera, I took some pictures of the others in action. The Cousin
returned the favor and got a few of me.
When we
were done apple picking, we paid for our apples and then walked down to
a tree which would be a perfect place to take pictures. We got a group
shot.
Of course,
I hadn't brought my tripod, so in order to get me in a photo, The Photographer
had to take it.
I also got
some pictures of The Laughing Man's family, by request.
Then we
grabbed our lunches from the cars and walked over to the picnic area.
Some people had forgotten to bring lunch, but fortunately, The Laughing
Man and his wife had brought extra sandwiches and plenty of chips.
We were
met by a ground hog who had dug a hole at the foot of a tree and was hunkered
in as if guarding his territory. Strangely, even after we ate our lunches
on the other side of the tree, he was still sitting there, trying not
to be seen. Perhaps he knows he's safe because he lives in a national
park. Fortunately, the children listened to warnings not to go near him.
The Gryphon
had packed my lunch at my request and had done so with great love and
care. He'd even put a cold pack in to keep it cool. While it made the
sandwich a little soggy, I appreciated the thought. And he'd even put
some napkins in and given me more carrots and soy chips than I'd requested.
I think he was concerned that I would have enough to eat.
By the time
we headed out, we had 42 pounds of apples in our vehicles, some of which
were destined to become pies and applesauce within a short time period.
There were also some for eating and some for people who'd requested we
bring them apples.
We drove
back to The White Rabbit's place in a caravan, fortunately having better
luck navigating the directions the second time around. The White Rabbit
had told people we'd be back by 3, and we were actually a little early.
We bustled around putting things in order.
The Gryphon
arrived just about 20 minutes later. Along with The Cousin, I peeled apples
for him to make apple sauce. Meanwhile, The Laughing Man's wife put an
apple cake in the oven. She also made a delicious apple and yogurt fruit
salad.
Soon, more
people began arriving (if I leave anyone out, it's unintentional). The
March Hare showed up the same time as The Gryphon. Other guests included
Batman; The Cheshire Cat, whose wife, The Paper, was home sick; The Pirate;
a friend I'll call Ka-Pow after his online nickname, along with his wife,
whom I'll call The Eeyore Fan because of her fondness for Winnie the Pooh's
sad-sack friend; and The Martial Artist, The Book Lover and their baby
son, who is growing rapidly and even standing now!
And then
there were the guests of honor, Agent Smith and The Costumer, who would
soon be moving to Northwestern PA because of The Costumer's promotion.
They've also announced they're expecting a baby, due in April, so the
party was also to celebrate their good fortune.
At first,
I had trouble relaxing, finding various ways to pitch in. I was trying,
in particular, to childproof the place as much as possible, thinking of
the things my brother and his wife did in their homes. But The Laughing
Man and his wife have a more relaxed approach to parenting, and he told
me it was OK if, for example, bottle caps stayed on the table after bottles
were opened. I kept worrying that the little ones might try to swallow
them, but those worries seemed unwarranted.
Batman grilled
up some chicken, and they also grilled up some kielbasa, which nobody
had put slits in. Various people commented on it as it swelled up and
swelled up. The Pirate joked that he likes to cook them that way, put
it in a bun and watch them explode when someone bites into them. I'm not
sure everyone realized he was joking.
He calls
himself the conversation assassin, and for good reason. He has a way of
tweaking people by saying the most strange, out-there, potentially offensive
things. Such as, for example, wondering aloud how many Americans knew
what human flesh tastes like.
The
Dormouse listens to a salty tale from The Pirate
I told him
he's got plenty of "Piratitude", a term I learned on a recent
episode of ABC's Wife Swap, where the matriarch of a family of
pirate reenactors swapped with a professional organizer.
The Gryphon
also cooked up his chicken, which had a tasty spice rub. I also had some
fresh vegetables, which someone had thoughtfully brought. And of course,
I had to sample the apple cake and one of the apple pies. Fortunately,
I was good the rest of the week, so my weekly weigh-in showed a slight
loss rather than, as I had feared, a gain.
We spent
some fun time on the back porch, eating and talking to people. The Cheshire
Cat and The Dormouse, who will be two of The Gryphon's groomsmen, were
joking about their plans for his bachelor party. Apparently, it involves
some sort of a marathon of anime and science fiction.
"Should
I leave the room?" I asked. The assured me there was no need. Nice
to know!
Sometime
later, couples started sharing stories of how they'd met. I told them
about The Gryphon and I flirting during Otakon 2003 and how he'd showed
up for our first date, having shaved off his shaggy beard, carrying flowers.
So sweet!
Agent Smith
regaled us by telling us about his shy, stumbling first attempts to ask
her out, a process encouraged and abetted by The Cheshire Cat and The
Paper, who not only sat them together at their wedding reception but also
told him he should take a chance and ask her out.
And The
Cheshire Cat told us about how his wife, The Paper, had set her hat for
him and, upon discovering that subtlety wasn't working, found a direct
approach more successful by basically making her intentions clear.
After we'd
eaten dinner, The White Rabbit announced he had the recently finished
trailer to S.T.E.A.M., a fan parody directed by his friend, The
Video Director. The White Rabbit had helped write it and had done voice
work.
The promo
was brilliant; it had us laughing out loud.
We cleansed
the palate by watching some 80s music videos by the group Asia, which
The March Hare had brought. We had fun figuring out how they achieved
the hokey effects. After all, in those days there was no digital editing.
Then we
watched S.T.E.A.M. It was a great way to watch it, because you
always laugh more at comedies when you're in a group. There was a lot
of brilliant stuff in the movie, and I was particularly impressed with
The White Rabbit's voice work. He should seriously consider doing that
professionally.
By the time
the movie had ended, people were starting to drift away. We collected
some apples and, of course, the other items we'd brought. We said good-bye
to everyone, and hugged Agent Smith and The Costumer, wishing them the
best of luck in their move.
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