Retro rock: Brien & Dan at special Hot Tuna show

Concert photos by Vernon Webb, via Facebook

Brien and Dan were at the Beacon Theatre in Manhattan on Saturday night to see Hot Tuna put on a special show to mark guitarist Jorma Kaukonen's 75th birthday. He and bassist Jack Casady were members of Jefferson Airplane who started Hot Tuna as a side project -- which has far outlasted the original band.

Brien was delighted to see Jorma playing a Gibson Firebird during large portions of the show - being a long-time fan of both the player and the instrument, as seen here.



For the first half of the show, Jorma and Jack and drummer Justin Guip played as a trio. In the second half, they brought out guest musicians to recreate some of their work with Jefferson Airplane. 



The guests included Rachel Price from Lake Street Dive (right) and Teresa Williams and Larry Campbell, a duo who have recorded with many artists including Levon Helm. Also on stage were well-known guitarist G.E. Smith and singer Jeff Pehrson. It was a terrific show all around.

Dolores shares impressions of Bayeux Tapestry

During Dolores and Hugh's visit to Europe last spring, Dolores fulfilled a long-held wish to see the famous Bayeux Tapestry.

Now, her impressions and commentary have been published in the December issue of Needle Arts, the national publication of The Embroiderers Guild of America.



Click here to see her article (as pdf file), illustrated with details from the tapestry.

Related articles:
Dolores & Hugh's 2014 European Tour
A visit to Bayeux

Checking in with Nolan at 3-1/2 months

These images are captured from a video that Gerrit posted on Facebook of Angela and their baby Nolan, who is now about three and a half months old.

We're not saying he has magical powers, but it so happens that a certain football team has gone undefeated since Nolan began rooting for them.

Halloween fun for all ages (Updated 11/3)

We're collecting Halloween photos - Send us yours!

Beatrice became "Bumble Bea" for her first Halloween.

In Massachusetts, little Nolan (right) celebrated with his cousins Branson and Leila. 

In Virginia, Marie, Brian and Xander became Princess Peach, Mario and Luigi from the Mario Bros. video games.

Stephanie's band wrapping up successful season

The Hilliard Darby High School Marching Band capped another successful competition season, earning top marks and a Superior ranking in the Ohio Music Education Association state finals on Oct. 31.

It's the second year of marching for Stephanie, on clarinet. The band isn't quite finished for the season, as it will perform at football playoff games and in the local Veterans Day parade.

The beauty of Fall in the woods

Dan, Julie, Christine and Andy visited the Dingman's Falls area of the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area on a late-October Sunday.


They took in the fall colors and Dan enjoyed taking photos of the foliage and the two waterfalls in that part of the park.


Afterward they went to dinner at a restaurant they've visited before in the little village of Delaware Water Gap, Pa. The outing was to celebrate Dan's birthday a couple of days early.

Look closely - Christine & Andy wave from platform at top of falls

As they drove out of the restaurant parking lot, they saw a black bear sniffing around the dumpsters. But it ducked out of sight before anyone could get a photo.

Atop the falls

Happy Halloween!

Got pumpkins? Let's see! Send us photos of your creations - and your costumes!

Shannon, Andy, Christine and their carvings

Back in time to Colonial Williamsburg

Marie, Brian and Xander spent a September day soaking up history at Colonial Williamsburg.

During the visit, Xander took part in "RevQuest," an "immersive game" in which he played the role of a colonial spy during the Revolutionary War.

Xander picks up intelligence from an innocent-looking fellow spy.

One of the highlights of the living-history museum is the blacksmith's shop. After all, Xander's great-great-great-grandfather was a blacksmith - not in Colonial Virginia, but in 19th Century New York.

From our archives:
Dolores and Hugh spent a day at Colonial Williamsburg in December 2012
Cathy, Christopher and Stephanie visited Colonial Williamsburg and other Virginia historical sites in October 2007

A fine Fall weekend, visiting in Virginia

Dan, Julie and Christine took a scenic drive to Virginia to visit with Marie, Brian and Xander in mid-October.

Dan writes: I took Friday off from work and we headed out through Pennsylvania and slivers of Maryland and West Virginia to Front Royal, Va. There we picked up Skyline Drive, which runs along the Blue Ridge Mountains in Shenandoah National Park.

The foliage wasn't at peak color yet, but the weather was beautiful and we took in the great views of the Shenandoah Valley to the west and the rolling hills to the east. We stopped at one of the west-facing overlooks to watch the sun set over Massanutten Mountain. Here's a handful of the photos I took.



We arrived at Marie, Brian and Xander's house Friday evening. On Saturday, we all went to the Fall Harvest Festival at Belvedere Plantation outside Fredericksburg. The attractions included some simple rides, a "maize maze," pig races and, of course, a hay ride to a pick-your-own pumpkin field. Here are some photos from our day at the farm, and back at the house.



We're not sure why the plants in the "maize maze" were only a couple of feet tall, but the pathways were so complex that it was still hard to find our way out!

We brought with us the costume Julie made for Andy in 2004, of Fluffy the three-headed dog from the Harry Potter stories. It still looks good!

On the way home on Sunday, we stopped in suburban Baltimore and enjoyed a visit with Julie's parents, Hugh and Dolores, at their Oak Crest residence.

Family team walks to win against Alzheimer's

Bea at Walk to End Alzheimer's in honor of Great Grandma Lorraine.

Ten members of our family team took part in the annual New York Walk to End Alzheimer's on Sunday. Nine walked the route through Manhattan's Riverside Park while the newest team member, Bea, rode in style.

Team captain Shanna, who has organized our family's participation since 2008, reports that family members and friends have contributed over $1,700 to our effort. "Absolutely amazing," Shanna writes. "Thanks everyone!"

For a brief time, donations toward our total are still being collected at our team page. The funds go to the Alzheimer's Association to support care and research programs as well as support services for loved ones of those affected by the disease.

Join the family team for tomorrow's Walk

Thanks to all the family members who have contributed to our family team's annual effort to raise money for Alzheimer's research and care. Now it's time to Walk to Win.

Shanna and other team members will gather at Riverside Park tomorrow for the New York Walk to End Alzheimer's. If you'd like to stroll along with them, contact Shanna for details. There's an e-mail address on our team page.

Also go to the team page if you'd like to contribute to the team's donation. Thanks to all who help!

This Sunday: We walk to win vs. Alzheimer's

Our family team at 2014 walk

The forecast is favorable for a brisk walk in Manhattan's Riverside Park this Sunday. Once again our family team will be "walking to win" in the New York City Walk Against Alzheimer's.

Shanna, our captain, is hoping for a good turnout -- but the team effort is already a success, as family members and friends have contributed well over $1,000 to the fund-raiser.

The annual walk raises money for the Alzheimer's Association, which supports research into prevention, treatments and a cure for Alzheimer's and assists families coping with the disease.
To join our team of walkers and/or add your donation, please visit the team page here.

Darby band plays at Ohio State stadium

Stephanie and her Hilliard Darby Marching Band performed last Saturday in the Buckeye Invitational competition, held at the Ohio State University football stadium.

Cathy writes: "Darby placed 5th out of 38 bands, earned a Superior rating (1 of only 9 bands that did so) and our Color Guard won the award for Best Auxiliary!"

Here's a video of the performance.



This fun photo was taken by a friend at an earlier performance held at Hilliard Bradley HS.

Stefanie and her bandmates in local news feature

A local news outlet did a video feature earlier this month on the Hilliard Darby Marching Band. Sophomore Stephanie (who celebrated her birthday today, Sept. 27!) is seen marching and playing a couple of times during the four-minute report. In particular, she appears on the right side of the screen starting at about the 3:15 mark.

Stephanie moves to the center of the camera's view at the very end of the video.

Click here to see the full report.

You can also watch this video of the band's full performance at the Hilliard Band Festival.

Walk to win against Alzheimer's

Our family team at last year's walk

The New York City Walk Against Alzheimer's is just a few weeks away, on Sunday, Oct. 18. Captain Shanna is once again organizing our family team.

"I have been doing this a walk ever since soon after my Grandma was diagnosed and continue to do it in her memory," Shanna writes. "Hopefully one day, Alzheimer's won't be a part of life, but until then I'd love to show support for this cause and those touched by it."

The walk through Manhattan's lovely Riverside Park raises money for the Alzheimer's Association, which supports research into prevention, treatments and a cure for Alzheimer's and assists families coping with the disease.

To join our team of walkers and/or add your donation, please visit the team page here.

Marie starts new job with web-developer site

UPDATE: CodePen's announcement of Marie's hiring is here.

Marie started a new job this month, working for an online site where web developers can try out ideas and build portfolios of their work.

"I'm the all-around support, social media, and community outreach person at CodePen," Marie writes. She became the company's first employee, as the site's growth promoted its three co-founders to start building a staff.

One of the CodePen co-founders also runs another site for web developers, CSS-Tricks. Marie has been a writer and editor for that site since January (see previous story), and will continue to do so while working for CodePen, all from her home office.

Marie adds: "So, what the heck is CodePen? It's a front-end developer's playground where devs can experiment with code and share their experiments with the world. There's more info and a video here."

As it happened, Marie's first week in the new job coincided with her birthday. (The CodePen crew sent her donuts!) Her first post on the site's blog is here.

Together again on Birch Street

Dan, Kathy, Brien and Kevin managed the rare feat of being in Noyac at the same time on the weekend of Sept. 12-13. They posed together in front of the Birch Street cottage, like they did each year as kids spending summers there with Mom and Dad.

The three brothers spent Saturday doing some clean-up work on the property.

In the process, Brien and Kevin found a "time capsule" -- a handful of items that they and friends Madelon and Eric had buried in a plastic bag more than 40 years ago. They dug up the remains of a sneaker inscribed with their names, a toy car and an aluminum-wrapped piece of paper bearing cryptic phrases, whose significance has been obscured by the mists of time.

Kathy arrived later Saturday, and along with friend Robert, the group went to a local steakhouse for dinner -- followed by an amusing round of pool at a table on the premises.

Marching Band season under way for Stephanie

Stephanie and her bandmates in the Hilliard-Darby Panthers Marching Band made its debut performance of the season at a football game on Friday night.

It's Stephanie's second year playing clarinet in the award-winning band.