Good Things by David

The blizzard named Jonas which hit a good section of the east coast over the weekend has been on the news around the world.  People near and far have sent me emails and texts expressing their concern for our safety, so I thank you for being in touch.  We're doing well and have not lost power.  Thankfully! Looking at photographs that some of my friends have been posting on social media, it seems as if everyone received a substantial amount of snow around their area.  A friend in the Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania measured 35 inches in her backyard this morning.  From what I've been reading, Manhattan received over 2 feet.  Here in Montgomery County, just outside of the city, we got about twenty inches of snow, so we certainly had our fair share. I was able to take several photographs throughout the weekend of the snowstorm, and I even captured a small video clip while standing on the front porch Saturday evening. Take a look. This photograph w...

My trips to California never cease to be opportunities for me to bring back a little something (or a lot) for us to enjoy here in Pennsylvania.  More often than not, I stock up on fruits from dad's trees, and if I'm lucky enough to have found something at an antique shop, it too gets carefully packed up in my luggage for transport.  An ordeal to be sure, but it's the only way to be certain there won't be any mishaps. This time around I found a variety of things at antique shops that I wanted to scoop up, many of which you've already read about, but I showed restraint because it would have been a nightmare trying to figure out how to ship everything.  There were two items, however, which I simply couldn't leave behind because they would have bothered me for months had I done so.  Keep reading to find out all about them! Lemons.  I can't write enough about my love for lemons!  These tasty meyer lemons with their thin, fragrant skins and juicy ...

The Culinary Institute of America at Copia is planning to open the Chuck Williams Culinary Arts Museum, in Napa, California, in the spring of 2017. Through a generous gift bequeathed by the Williams estate, the CIA at Copia is happy to announce that they will have on permanent display, the numerous culinary tools and collectibles that Mr. Williams acquired over his lifetime. This important collection of approximately 4,000 culinary tools, appliances, pots and pans, and cookbooks, spans from the 18th century through today. From chocolate tin molds and European pudding molds, to French copper pots and pans, and majolica plates, the Chuck Williams private collection of unique valuables will take us through his personal culinary odyssey, which defined and honed a vision for one of this country's most prestigious brands. To house Mr. Williams's vast collection of kitchen ephemera under one roof is a stroke of genius on his part as well as the museum's.  I can only imagi...

At the beginning of the new year I had the pleasure of visiting the Pasadena Antique Center in California for the very first time.  A few of my friends had mentioned that this establishment would be a place that would entice me with their selection of antiques, but little did I know that I would love it so much. As much as I try to keep my antiquing to a minimum while I'm on vacation, I'm always up for visiting places I've never been to before because one never knows what vendors will have in their booths.  Believe me when I tell you that there are many more antique stores in Southern California that need to be explored in the future, and there is the Long Beach Flea Market which I need to return to.  It will all happen in good time. This collage shows you a sampling of what I encountered as I made my rounds at the Pasadena Antique Center.  There is so much wonderful antique pottery by Bauer and several other pottery works that I hadn't even heard of before...