Yesterday was a very special day for us--it was Bob's and my fourteenth wedding anniversary. We had asked around for a recommendation on restaurants to go to, and decided to make a trip to Phoenix and visit Seasons 52.
Seasons 52 is an upscale chain of restaurants around the country that features seasonal, fresh food (each entree is under 475 calories) that is beautifully prepared. We started with a shared appetizer of lobster flatbread. Bob ordered blackened mahi-mahi with broccoli and whipped sweet potatoes. I had Carmelites grilled sea scallops with butternut squash and leek risotto, broccolini and lemon butter. It was so good. Our table was outside in the garden.
Oh! I forgot to tell you about Sunday! We stopped in to the Casa Grande Historical Society to see what they had on display. The building itself, now called Heritage Hall, was originally a church. It was built by parishioners over a hundred years ago (by both men and women, the docent pointed out) and consists of stones hauled by hand from the river bed of a now-dry river. It's a lovely building
The museum boasts three vintage fire engines, Native American artifacts, a model railroad display, period rooms with authentic household furnishings, farming equipment, and the Rebecca Dallis School House, a one-room school that was used to educate the local African American students from 1939-1952. Rebecca Dallis had as many as 70 students at a time in the one-room school.
On display was this beautiful fire engine.
A Bell Telephone switchboard
...and this hat, covered in rattlesnake rattles. The owner reportedly killed all the snakes herself.
There was also an intriguing old two harness loom that was sitting in the sun, half under a building overhang, with bird droppings all over it. It had a very interesting shedding system where the forward movement of the beater triggered a change in harnesses. I spoke with the docents and urged them to at least bring it into a building. Perhaps someone would undertake a restoration project and bring it back to its former glory--I think it could be saved. I told them that if we lived in Casa Grande I would restore it (Bob rolled his eyes at that!) I also said I'd be back to visit next year and see what they have done with it! It just needs some love.
Unfortunately the bright sun and shadows prevented me from taking a decent photo of this loom. :/
Way to go, weaving advocate!
ReplyDeleteLol! April, I really did pressure them a bit, told them what a learning experience it would be for children who visit, and how weavers would volunteer to demonstrate on it as our Guild does. I really hope they save it.
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