West and East and 36 years
Last Saturday night, Carol and Marcus attended the Oktoberfest Party at Sierra Canyon in Reno, where they now reside (a Dell Webb 55+ community).
Here’s Carol and a bunch of old people… There was live music — think Danke Schoen and Roll out the Barrel. The couple across from us, Buck and Jan, moved here from Mesquite NV, a town of 15,000 in the desert about 75 miles north of Las Vegas. They have 8 18-hole golf courses and 133 days over 90 degrees. Everybody here is from *somewhere else,* so that’s usually the first topic of conversation.
The buffet included more than one kind of wurst, cabbage in many forms, German potato salad and plenty of beer. The first round was draft Sam Adams Oktoberfest followed by various bottled beers. There was dancing and frivolity but we didn’t stay to the bitter end… we were eager to get home to the Nebraska at Ohio State football game. We watched the first quarter before leaving and “taped” the balance of the game. The Buckeyes were struggling and trailed at the end of the quarter. As you can see, they turned THAT around.
We transition to another place and time in my life: Not much more than 6 actual hours later, son Eric was taking pictures at Faneuil Hall Marketplace in Boston where, in 1975, he accompanied his dad on a very early morning tree planting in South Market Street.
That’s right, Eric. On a rainy October morning in 1975 I didn’t have to pry you out of bed at 4am to go with me to meet the first of the tree trucks, arriving with their Locust trees from New Jersey. You were so excited that you were dressed and ready to go when I knocked on your door.
Faneuil Hall lent its name to Faneuil Hall Marketplace just behind it. The Grasshopper weathervane was adopted as the Logo for FHM and the Dock Square light clusters are the same as those designed for South Market Street, above.
When the dome was being restored, scaffolding was built up to the base of the dome. Just before the scaffolding was removed, I placed my business card in that rosette, to be found sometime in the future, perhaps when the dome was repainted. I haven’t heard.
Leaving Faneuil Hall Marketplace he came to Washington Street and Downtown Crossing.
“What are the odds?” he asked, of coming across costumed patriots near the site of the Boston Massacre.
A little farther down Washington Street at the corner of Temple Place, he photographed the office building where I started Marcus Rector and Associates, Architecture and Planning, in 1983.
Thanks for the nostalgia trip, Eric.
RectorSite 
Interesting symmetry. I guess I was excited about planting things even at 11 years old? And I know from Victorian vs. Greek Revival styles, but the buildings themselves are Victorian era, so I’m KIND OF right…plus “Victoria on Greek” sounds like a porn movie…
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Eric,
It may have been about planting things, but I think your eagerness was more about curiosity and being involved.
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Kel and I thoroughly enjoyed the Marketplace and Faneuil Hall when we were there a couple years ago. Of course, I knew you were involved in the restoration (you gave me a tour back in the day) but the extra insight you provided here was interesting!
As for the Oktoberfest at the old folks home, glad you liked it.
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Such a transition – from one Sam Adams to the home of the original. Carol and I still remember our tour of the Marketplace shell during one summer home from Germany. Maybe we have some slides of the experience somewhere in the archives.
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