Time to Remember the Month of September

A couple of days ago I looked at the list of my posts on this blog, and I was amazed to see that I haven't posted anything since September 2. So it's about time for an update.

My sister-in-law came for a visit, beginning on Wednesday, September 3. My brother met her at the airport and drove her out here. As it happened, Donald Teeters, a fairly well-known conductor in this area, had recently died, and his funeral was that evening. He had taught her conducting when she was at New England Conservatory, and had visited her school and was a guest in her home one time when he visited Japan. So she wanted to go to the funeral. I brought her to the subway and helped her figure out how to get to her destination. One of her classmates, who lives in eastern Massachusetts, played the organ at the funeral, and gave her a ride home. I still hadn't had my dinner when she got back, so I  shared with her. The gala welcoming dinner of steak was postponed, as was the plan, to Thursday evening.

On Friday, she wanted to visit her organ teacher from the conservatory. The teacher now lives in an assisted living facility about a 50 minute drive from here. I was tied up when she needed to go, so my brother drove her there. About 2 ½ hours later, I went to bring her back. I took a route back home through an area which has very little traffic — country roads through the woods. But along the way there was an ice cream stand, and we each had some, which was refreshing, since the day was hot. That evening it was time for the gala farewell dinner — boiled lobster, steamed mussels, corn on the cob, sponge cake with fruit and whipped cream.

On Saturday morning I brought her to South Station in Boston so she could take the express train to New York where she spent several days visiting my nephew. He and his girlfriend have moved in together, and one feature of the visit was my sister meeting the girlfriend's mother. I understand they got along well. In the olden days, the next step would be for the kids to get married. I hope they will, but nobody's said anything about. Somebody's got to transmit those Naturgesetz family genes to the next generation.


The next big event was my "annual" check-up with my primary care physician on the 11th. He couldn't find anything wrong, except for a bit of ringworm near my right nipple — Gold Bond powder should eventually clear it up. He conducts the exam very conversationally, and of course, I like the chance to be naked with someone pleasant like him. I don't remember other doctors checking for testicular cancer, but he does, and I was surprised at how gently he felt my testicles on both visits — my previous doctor retired and this was my second time with this doctor.


My last Race Committee assignment was on Saturday the 13th. It was a fairly windy day with choppy seas. We had a problem with the mechanical winch which hauls up the anchor. Fortunately, we discovered it early in the day, and by the time we needed to haul up the anchor, the boy who drives the boat and shoots the signal cannons had figured out how to get it working.


The following Thursday, the concert season began for me with the opening night of the Boston Symphony, followed on Friday with a concert by the Boston Artists Ensemble at Salem's historic Hamilton Hall. If you follow the link and then go to "Community" and then to "Lectures" you can read about a series that my mother used to attend for many years. I'm happy to know that they still serve bouillon.


I was invited to dinner with friends on Saturday and then there were two events on Sunday afternoon. First was the funeral of a long-time sailor and member of the yacht club — also an avid and accomplished skier. After the service, the family had a reception at the yacht club. Coincidentally, when I was at the Hamilton Hall website just now, the widow was in the picture at the top of the "Community" page. She's the one on the right. Before that reception was over, I had to go to the other end of the club building to join an "Octoberfest" for the race Committee. Many years ago, I used to bring German Oktoberfest beer and German style cold cuts out to the Race Committee boat for the last event, which fell within Oktoberfest in the old country. Circumstances changed, and it didn't work anymore, but people kept asking for me to revive it. Finally this year, club management put on an event ashore, with advice from me as to what it should include (roast chicken, bratwurst, weisswurst, sauerkraut, potato salad, and Oktoberfest beer from Munich). So it was actually more like the real thing than what I could do on a boat.


The rest of the month was fairly routine. There is a thirty year old guy I've known for a dozen or more years. Last winter he was hospitalized for depression, and now he's moved back to his parents' home. I know he's interested in music, so I thought it might be helpful for him too get out to some of the concerts I go to, so I've given him a list of everything I have planned over the season (basically through April) and said if there are any he'd like to go to, just let me know. We'll see if anything ever comes of it. He mentioned, when I gave him the list, that he especially likes baroque music, which is largely lacking in the concerts I attend. I'll have to keep alert for possibilities from Boston Baroque and the Boston Early Music Festival.

Recent Doings

New Doctor: Getting Acquainted & Physical Exam.
My "primary care physician" of the past 20 or so years retired last fall. He had been in partnership with another doctor, whom I decided to try before searching for anyone else. My first appointment with the new doc was on April 15. The nurse took my blood pressure etc. and then told me take of all my clothes and put on a johnny and left the examining room. Eventually the doctor came in, asked some questions and began the physical exam. He had me lower the johnny to my waist while he listened with the stethoscope, then to my groin to check for hernias, then to my thighs while he checked for testicular cancer. I was surprised at how light his touch was; I'd have thought that more pressure would have been needed to detect anything. He brought the johnny back to cover my genitals. Then there was some discussion during which I put my arms back into the sleeves and brought it back to my shoulders. Finally, there was the check of my prostate, which he did by having me lie on my side on the examining table. I somehow didn't feel it as much as when it's done with feet on the floor and bending over the table.

We talked about colonoscopies, Vitamin D supplements, and pneumonia vaccine. He was pretty clear that I needed the Vitamin D, and gave good reasons for the others. What I really liked was that he didn't  order me to do things. The way he put things recognized that I'm the one in charge of my health care decisions. So I'm quite satisfied with him.

I had been procrastinating on the pneumonia vaccine and decided to have the shot while I was there. The nurse administered it after he was through and I had put my clothes back on. My upper arm was sore until Friday.

I noticed that he had a faint Irish accent. Turns out he's from Dublin, but has been here so long that it's very faint except when he's with other Irish people or has had a few beers.


Play at Arts Emerson: Trojan Women.
On Wednesday, April 17, I went to Boston to see an adaptation of the play by Euripides. There's a pretty good summary in the Globe's review. I liked it better than "Neva," which I had seen a couple of weeks earlier. This play not only evoked some of the horror of war, but also showed the complexity of the chain of causation: was the fall of Troy the fault of Priam and Hecuba for allowing Helen to remain, rather than giving her back to Menelaus; Helen, for leaving Menelaus and going to Troy with Paris; Paris for seducing Helen; Aphrodite, for promising Helen to Paris if he declared her the most beautiful; Zeus for selecting Paris to judge among the goddesses; Priam and Hecuba for letting Paris live after it had been prophesied that he would bring about the destruction of Troy.

On the way back to the subway, I encountered a couple who wanted directions back to their hotel. With the help of a nearby map I was able to furnish the directions they needed.

Although it was the day after the Marathon bombing, things seemed normal on the subway and in the Theater District.


Symphony Concert.
Thursday evening, I attended the Boston Symphony's concert. Apart from not stopping at the Copley station the subways ran normally. At Symphony Hall, all bags were examined, but then the eveninig went as normal. (The following night's performance was cancelled because of the manhunt and the 'shelter in place' advisory.)

I posted about the concert on my music blog.

It seems to me that the actions of all of us who went to the theater or the symphony or were otherwise out and about on Wednesday and Thursday illustrate what President Obama said on Thursday at the service at Holy Cross Cathedral: "We don't cower in fear. We carry on."


A Movie and Dinner.
On Friday evening I went with a priest who had formerly been in my parish to see the movie "Quartet." It was quite enjoyable. Afterwards we went to The Black Cow restaurant for dinner. I had been there a couple of times before, but it had been renovated in the meantime. The interior had been opened up, and it seemed significantly noisier, with more patrons, largely of a younger age. No doubt it's a business success, but it was a personal disappointment to have lost the ambience of former times. Well, I still have good memories of dining there before the renovations.

Seth the Waiter.
On Tuesday evening this week there was a concert and social evening at the Harvard Musical Association. As usual on such evenings, I went to the Scollay Square restaurant, and was pleasantly surprised to see Seth there. He was equally surprised to see me, since the HMA events are almost all on Fridays: this was the first Tuesday that I can recall. He had been working Mondays and Saturdays, but now, as he told me, he's working Tuesdays as well.  We greeted each other warmly. Then he had to go back to work. Unfortunately, I was seated at a table which wasn't in his section.

Looking Ahead.
This evening (Thursday the 25th) I'll go to another BSO concert, and Friday to another evening at the HMA. I don't expect to see Seth, since he didn't say he works regularly on Fridays. Next week, the HMA has its last social evening on Wednesday, and my final BSO concert of the season is on Thursday, May 2.

Meanwhile, the yacht club reopens for the summer this Saturday. The racing season begins in earnest about a month later. The Race Committee schedule hasn't been issued yet, but I expect to be assigned to help run the races on seven or eight Saturdays from June through September. Then the concert and theater seasons will resume.