Documenting a radiantly sunny September day

This morning, I wondered what I wanted to blog about today. What stories were there to be told? What images to be shared? I looked out the window and saw that it was truly a radiantly sunny day, just six days before the start of autumn. I thought… why not document my adventures here in Grand Island, New York. 

Last year, a house burned down very quickly. It was torn down and the land was sold. Just recently, construction started on a new house.

Soooooo…. I set out with a camera around my neck, ready to document the interesting images of the day. I left the house, headed to Elderwood, a nursing home in Grand Island. At Elderwood was a food truck from Chef’s, an Italian restaurant in Buffalo. Not long after I left the house, I saw my friend, Diane, who was driving her car. She had stopped to pick me up. It was nice to see Diane driving because, a few months ago, she was in a car accident,which resulted in injury to her. 


Bouncing back from an injury is challenging. There is pain and loss of confidence, not in your own driving but in your ability to predict the behavior of other drivers. Unfortunately, there are people on the road who are not really paying attention, for various reasons: texting, talking on cell phones, mediating disputes in the car, or anything else that distracts them from keeping their full attention on the road. 

minion at the garage sale, looking to be adopted.

Diane and I visited a garage sale in Grand Island. A mom and her daughter were selling a variety of things, including a half-size refrigerator. We found out that the mom and daughter had just recently moved here from Syracuse. As I was born in Syracuse, I enjoyed talking about central New York with them.

the food truck from Chef’s restaurant.

Then, we got back in the car, and Diane dropped me off at Elderwood. I went to the food truck, which was from Chef’s restaurant, in downtown Buffalo. I looked at the selection of foods and chose eggplant parmesan, which came with spaghetti, a marinara sauce, cheese, and bread and butter. Yum. I sat down at an outdoor table to enjoy my meal.

Lunch at the food truck. The eggplant parmesan cost $6.50.

Unfortunately, there were a few yellow jackets, who also wanted a taste test of my meal. They aren’t bees, although some people call them bees. Confusing yellow jackets with bees is a common mistake. Yellow jackets aren’t bees; they are wasps. Yellow jackets can be quite aggressive and a yellow jacket can sting over and over again, which can’t be a very pleasant thing for the recipient of the (seemingly) endless stinging session.

The folks at Elderwood were giving away sunglasses. Hmmm, wouldn’t sunglasses make me look super cool, especially when I’m driving this BMW convertible?

Other than a bit of annoyance from the yellow jackets, eating outside was a pleasant activity. I was joined at the table by four women who work at St. Stephen School, which offers education to children from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. They let me know that St. Stephen will hold its annual chicken barbecue and basket raffle from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. tomorrow. All proceeds will benefit the school and its educational mission.

The Pepper Mill has been closed for several years. My parents used to enjoy eating there. A new restaurant, called 773 North, will open sometime soon in that location.

After lunch, I started walking home. Before long, I was across the street from my sister’s house and was surprised to see her car in the driveway and the garage door open. I also saw a man standing on the lawn, talking on a cell phone. Hmmm. My eyesight is not awesome enough for me to identify people who are across the street so I crossed the street and soon found myself happily hugging my nephew Devin, who was on his way back to California from a business trip in Quebec. He had stopped to stay with his mom for a few days.What a wonderful surprise that was!


After visiting, I walked home via the town’s linear bike path and a few roads.

seen along the bike path

On the bike path, I met a couple who had been riding their bikes and who were relaxing at a bench. They expressed an interest in Grand Island history so I answered a few questions and told a story or two and encouraged them to come to the October meeting of the Grand Island Historical Society.

one view of Woods Creek

footbridge over Woods Creek

Another view of Woods Creek, at a different location

I arrived at home and was so happy that it was warm enough for me to sit on the porch. My friend Carmen came and delivered a box filled with produce from the Becker Farms CSA. I found a huge stack of corn and a spaghetti squash, among other produce. I’m thinking of making fresh corn chowder. I’ll look for recipes for spaghetti squash.

Omelet, potatoes, and tea…

I cooked dinner, but, after my big lunch, I really wanted a light dinner, so I made an omelet and sauteed potatoes and onions.






What sort of adventures have you been enjoying today?