happy birthday, Dad!

28 February 1947

Still Life With Camaro And Nissan

Wegmans

To begin to imagine the pull that Wegmans has on us, you have to understand the role it played in our lives at college. More than a decade ago, it was without a doubt the largest grocery store I'd ever seen, with novelties such as a huge cheese section (with samples!), aisles of bulk food, a Chinese restaurant in the store — it combined the best of any store any of us had ever been in. Shopping there was a wonderful adventure, and there was a small, but committed, group that believed that if we led good lives, when we died, we would go to Wegmans.



It took years for Wegmans to work its way out of the upper New York state area. The Bankos first had the Wegmans experience a few years ago when the chain moved into Pennsylvania. With one visit, they understood why it still loomed so large in our imagination. Wegmans opened a store in Northern Virginia soon before we moved; we never made it there — the crowds never died down, plus it seemed just kind of cruel to get a taste, just to leave it behind.

But a store has opened in this area — their largest yet. And we couldn't pass up the opportunity to see if it still had that magic. It was undeniably a pretty spectacular store; in the intervening years, other chains seem have caught up with what Wegmans has to offer, though not on this scale. The bulk food aisle is disappointing, but the prepared and fresh food area is extensive, and surprises such as their international section are a treat. It's just all too large to take in, but we got some fun photos, stocked up on some Fluff and Grandma Utz's, and headed out with most of our fond memories still intact.

Around Baltimore

Arrived into BWI without much incident yesterday. Delays at the airports, due apparently to some nasty weather around Chicago, but that same storm seemed to be kicking up some west-east tailwinds that kept us on schedule.

Slept in a little, a nice breakfast, then we all headed to downtown Baltimore to The Walters Art Museum. It's a pretty amazing collection, mostly historical pieces from ancient Egypt to ancient Greece, Rome, and to at least the Middle Ages (about as far as we got). And, with only a few exceptions, they're from Mr. Walters' private collection, mostly acquired in the early 1900s. Parts of the whole experience reminded me of The Wadsworth Atheneum, especially in the way there's an old building connected to modern additions, and seemingly endless rooms branching off them all. The rotating exhibit features the work of Louise Bourgeois — but not in any one space. The work was mixed in with the artifacts from ancient cultures, in a kind of odd scavenger hunt sort of way. It made for some interesting surprises, but made me wonder what else I was missing around the museum. We concluded with another rotating exhibit, early illuminated and printed legal books (much more beautiful that those you'll find today), and headed out.

The Bankos indulged me in a side trip to Atomic Books, which, years ago, when I first moved to the area, I remember hearing about as a dealer in design books and magazines. It's changed ownership since then, and is a popular independent book/zine/comic dealer. Picked up a few missing issues, the new Atomic Books-published Lulu Eightball collection — and left them with a copy of RBS to sell on consignment (so now it's all just sit back and wait for the Benjamins Hamiltons Washingtons to roll in).

Back home to a late lunch of pulled pork from Andy Nelson's. Gearing up now for some crab cakes . . .

(Remembered the camera, but not the cord to connect it to the machine; photos later).

Baltimore Bound

At Albuquerque Sunport, headed to the Bankos' for the long weekend. Maybe we'll sneak in some updates from the Baltimore area.

Sixty percent chance of "snow showers" in Santa Fe today.