Happy Fall!

Happy first day of fall! I am trying to re-organize the blog, so bear with us.
First, on the home-buyer front, we put in an offer on a colonial gambrel on Sunday. We are currently in negotiations. It is like playing a game, trying to guess the seller's strategy and make our moves. It is not always easy for Brian and I to agree on offers, since neither of us has experience in this area, but at least we agree on the houses! I am constantly entering home improvement sweepstakes, in my grandmother's line.
Our big adventure this week was the U2 concert on Monday night. We left home in the afternoon, hoping to arrive at the stadium by 6:30 for the 7 o'clock opening act, Snow Patrol. I guess we under-estimated Boston commuter traffic and concert traffic. I was famished, bone-dry, and really in need of a bathroom when we finally arrived; it took over 4 1/2 hours to get to the Patriot's stadium! We heard that exiting the parking lot had been a problem after the show the night before, but we were still surprised to see the private lots charging $50 for 'easy-out' parking. It was a reality check when we reached the stadium lot; it was $40 for gravel parking FAR from the stadium! As we navigated our way to our seats, I was overwhelmed by all the people. I guess I have gotten used to rural life, and 80,000 people seemed ridiculous. We missed Snow Patrol, but had plenty of time before U2 started. The stage was weird, a four-legged monster structure that was meant to be alien-like and give people a good view from all angles of the stadium. The show was good, but there were 5 songs in the middle that I didn't know and found a bit dull. Bono clearly loves to perform, but his age did seem to slow him down sometimes. They ended strong and Brian was able to hear some songs that had not been performed at the show he saw 4 years ago. We sat in the parking lot nearly 2 hours before getting on the road, and made it to my grandma's house at 2 pm, thirsty and tired.
From the show, we went straight to Dartmouth, where they installed a new president. We went for the music, speeches, and free good food!
For entertainment, I recommend Julie & Julia. I saw the movie this week but have not read the book. Julia Child's joi de vivre is contagious. The movie reminded me of last fall, when I had no jobs or local friends. I planned most of my days around meals and enjoyed serving Brian exciting meals. You can always fall back on good food.
It has been nice to have Brian home this week before he heads off to LA!