Summertime Adventures

This summer I have had more time off then I have had in a very long time, a whole month. I finished working at Northeastern at the end of June and spent all of July working as the choreographer for Indian Hill Music's Summer Music production of The Wizard of Oz. I was able to work with a Mr. Andrew Rhodes who had directed me in the past and two of Indian Hill's wonderful music/vocal directors. The highlights though were of course the 33 budding young actors I was able to work with. Aged 8-16 these kids did a great job performing 4 shows of the entire original London cast version of this musical with just 4 weeks of rehearsal. Indian Hill also did an amazing job of finding a great set and lighting team to transform the concert hall into Oz.

Since the performances finished I have had some time to get myself ready for the 4 months of craziness I am about to embark on with student teaching, after-school coordinating, classes and wedding planning. I have also had some great opportunities to see friends, family and travel. The first journey of this summer came when Matt and I ventured in Kemo (the SAAB) up to Guelph in Ontario to see Matt's second cousin, David. We drove 90 through Buffalo and were able to see Niagara on both the US and the Canadian sides. Normally, I am biased towards the good ol' US of A, but Canada does a far better job of having the area around the Falls reflect, in at least some small fraction, the awesomeness which is Niagara. The New York side is pretty depressing actually except for the park immediately surrounding it. Nonetheless, I would highly recommend a trip there when on route to our neighbors to the north.

The next couple trips were one night deals, but very worth every minute. First, Matt and I ventured down to Halifax, MA for our friend Dean's birthday. Jet skis, lobster and dancing by the lake were how we celebrated and it was a blast. The next trips were solo ones for me. First, I headed to Cape Cod (Falmouth, MA) to my grandparents' house with my Mom. My Aunt Diane and her two little boys are staying there and my Uncle Mark, Aunt Nancy and their three children were staying at a hotel close by. Albeit brief, the time I got to spend with my extended family was great.

Next, I headed down to Southampton with my dear friend Marissa where we met our friends Aisling and Brianna at Aisling's uncle's house on the bay in Southampton. We were able to spend Friday night and all day Saturday on the beach enjoying the sun, the Magee boat and much needed together time. Saturday night we had dinner with Aisling's uncle, aunt, cousins and Pop Pop and Sunday we hung out by the pool. It was the first time in a long time we have gotten to spend that much time together and I am so grateful we got that chance. Thanks Ais!

The most recent and last trip of my "lady of leisure" days was out to the Bay Area in California. Matt was working for EKC on Thursday and Friday and we decided to make a little trip out of it. We left Wednesday morning for SFO and once we landed went and had a fun lunch of Dungeness crab at Fisherman's Wharf before we ventured to our hotel in San Ramon in the Tri Valley. On Thursday our friend Katy was able to make it out to our hotel and share an interesting meal at "The Brass Door" where Matt learned the hard way that prime rib is not ribs... I assumed that was general knowledge, but apparently an Oxford education only takes one so far. (jk)

Friday evening we ventured into Danville and had a great time meeting some locals at some great neighborhood haunts. Saturday we met Katy in Oakland at the Eat Real Fest (eatrealfest.com), a really fun and tasty collection of local growers, restaurateurs, brewers, bakers, etc. celebrating all that the Bay Area has to offer in consumable goods. Matt and I then took a hour or so to head over to the Golden Gate bridge for a our one photo shoot as we forgot our supposedly broken camera at home. My crappy phone turned out to be a much better camera then I gave it credit for and we at least got a few decent shots of the bridge from the park overlooking the bay.

Following our Mr. DeMille moment we headed for Castro to see Katy's new place which just so happens to be a former residence of the late, great Janis Joplin - too cool. Her former lover actually still lives across the street, Janis's that is. The house was a pretty amazing place full of old charm, nifty gadgets and a fancy Pottery Barn outdoor couch courtesy of Katy's roommate. It was first time I had been out to visit Miss Buckland since she moved to become a corps member for Teach for America in the Bay Area and I am so happy I got the opportunity to see her in her current home. It was a beautiful spot and both Matt and I became more and more tempted to perhaps make a move out there for awhile before we fully settle down. I guess once the next 4 months conclude we will know much more clearly how feasible that option is - we'll keep you posted.

MTELs

This is slightly off topic when taking the previous posts into consideration, but I am quite excited and my giddiness in taking precedent at the moment. I just found out a couple of hours ago that I passed the History portion of the MTEL examination. For those of you who do not know, the acronym, MTEL, stands for Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure. I took and passed my general exam which all hopeful teachers take a few months ago, but had yet to sit for my subject matter test. One of the reasons why I am most excited to find out that I passed is the Fall is going to be quite a crazy time. I am student teaching at Boston Lation School from September to December, taking the last two courses of my Masters and working part-time as the after school coordinator at the Maimonides School in Brookline. All this will be going on as Matt and I try to finish planning a wedding, figure out our plans for the future and prepare for Christmas and New Year's in the UK.

It's all wonderful though, both Matt and I find we do our best work when we are busy and 2009 has been quite a year, so I say - bring it on! Well, maybe I will take advantage of the last couple weeks of summer first and my time living as a lady of leisure first. Off to celebrate at Lala Rokh in Beacon Hill - Persian food sounds like a good way to celebrate!

Registering

"The practice of a bridal registry was first instituted by Chicago-founded department store Marshall Field's in 1924 at its Marshall Field and Company Building as a means for the engaged couple to indicate chosen china, silver and crystal patterns to family and friends. US-based Target stores were the first to introduce an electronic self-service gift registry in 1993, using a service provided by The Gift Certificate Center, Minneapolis, MN. The technology was invented and subsequently patented by William J. Veeneman et al., the founder and CEO of The Gift Certificate Center." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bridal_registry)

Registering is an interesting experience. The choosing of items to accommodate a lifetime... It is also seems slightly strange to be choosing the gifts you wish to receive. I see the practicality associated with the practice, but odd none the less to know what you will be receiving before you receive it. Tradition continues though and of course there is some sense in the customs that have become mainstays. This all being said, I would like to inform everyone where they might find our desired home goodies. All are available on-line and two of the three are available in store if you so choose to shop the old fashioned way. All should be found by searching with my name, Corinne Duggan, and with our wedding date Nov. 28, 2009.

• Amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/wedding/X6E3DDD8YBAI - direct link if needed)
  
• Bloomingdale's (Brown bag it!)
  
• Bed, Bath & Beyond ( I like that this store has such an epic name for selling towels and linens)

Hats - A gift from my friend Aisling

My friend Aisling sent a friendly reminder about HATS being encouraged for the wedding as we are trying to bring a bit of the UK to this Boston extravaganza. It was quite the reminder complete with visual aids so I thought I would share.





The cat had one.

Hogwarts has a sorting one.

I like to wear this one when I'm shopping

And, at our best friend's wedding November 28, 2009, we shall all have ones that are as fabulous as hers

Thats right! We will ALL wear hats to Corinne's wedding, because she is quoted as saying they are "strongly encouraged. [edit]."

No Wimping out! No saying you can't find one! No complaining that the live Blue bird on your head makes your face look fat. Besides, think of the photo op this will be!

Ok, so you've had plenty of warning. Go out and shop ladies!

Aisling

So it begins...

I have decided to join the world of the bloggers. Never really thought I would, but I guess we all eventually succumb to the times. This is really a duel blog for my fiance, Matt, and I to help record our lives and share our thoughts and experiences with others. Hopefully, this attempt will prove enlightening, lucrative and fun. Let's get started shall we...

Matt and I are getting married on November 28, 2009. It has been a whirlwind journey for us. Matt is from the UK (Scotland by birth and England by default) and I am a Bostonian, to put it lightly. We met a mere month after his arrival in October 2006 and we have been together ever since. Normally I would insert some kind of bad joke about British colonial tendencies, but I will restrain myself. During this crazy, nearly 3 years we have had some amazing and amusing experiences living in Boston and traveling. Between the antics of L Street living in South Boston, the winding roads of Scotland, the trails (or lack there of) on Mt. Washington, we have had quite the adventurous life to date and only have plans to have the adventure continue and grow.

In this first of many postings to come, I want to just dabble in what has been and what is to come so I will close in saying, welcome. The future Coates family is looking forward to the future.