high

While Lyons and John were 

spending the weekend

in Ellijay

with the guys in our family,

CC was excited that we

were having a 

"Girls' Weekend."

On Saturday morning,

I woke to 

hazelnut coffee,
a comfy couch,

and half of

Wolff Hall to complete,

when I decided that I was lucky 

to have these moments

when  CC
actually
wanted
to spend time with me.
I decided to
get up,
get moving,
and
get engaged!

I quickly texted a friend

and

made plans to 

visit the

High Museum 

in

Atlanta.

It was a exquisite fall day.

We enjoyed
looking at the European art
~ especially the French Impressionists.
However,
asking CC to find

Monet

was somewhat
disappointing,

considering the number of times we visited the

Metropolitan in NYC.

As in,

"Who's Monet?"

Seriously???

The girls were excited

 to discover

folk art

and modern art.

CC found a horse,

but she knew 

not to touch it!

We were 

Obsessed

with 

Howard Finster

and hope to visit his house

sometime soon

since it's

right here

in Northwest Georgia.

We had a great time,

moved by art

and so fortunate to

have it

accessible.

Hopefully,
we enhanced the girls' appreciation
for art
while spending
some fun quality time together.

If you haven't been to the
High lately,
get movin'!

really good stuff

On Friday,

my mom and I 

went to Atlanta.

First,

we shopped at 

Scott's Antique Market

where I found an 1895 map

of Long Island.

I've been looking for one 

that wouldn't break the bank 

for years now

and was beyond thrilled to find one.

Next,

we had lunch at JCT Kitchen

where we devoured some

parmesan truffle fries.

I thought the day couldn't get any better

when we 

saw this sign:

Only in the South...

Of course,

when you see a sign like that,

you must follow it.

So we did.

We walked across this bridge

and on the other side was...

I had heard

Calypso had opened in Atlanta

and here it was!

We had unwittingly

stumbled upon it.

We had a marvelous afternoon shopping.

I ended up with some things off the sale rack

and talked mom into some

AG Jeans that I hope she doesn't regret.

Some days,

if you are open 

to following unexpected signs,

you just might find some

"really good stuff."

oh sandy

Years ago,

I remember watching one of those

"It Could Happen"

tv shows

about a potentially devastating hurricane

hitting Manhattan.

It was fascinating, 

but I didn't think it would

ever really happen.

Sagg Main Monday Morning

Watching it come to pass 

with Superstorm Sandy,

has been surreal.

On Monday afternoon,

(before the arrival of Sandy)

John left our house to go check on the stables.

He had traveled about a mile,

when he was forced to turn around 

due to a huge fallen tree in the road.

Upon turning around,

he discovered he had been trapped by

this tree.

At that point,

he realized

it was time to 

get home

and

"hunker down."

There was no more to be done

for the businesses.

I was glued to the news, Facebook,

and Hamptons.com

looking for pictures of Sag Harbor.

I couldn't believe Bay Street had become

the bay

 or that Long Beach,

my favorite place to walk,

was flooded.

Christie Brinkley

posted pics of Noyac,

right down the street from my house.

I lost touch with John about 3:00 p.m. on Monday.

I knew we had lost power in Sag Harbor,

but assumed we would keep in touch by cell.

Of course,

 he lost cell service next.

I spent a long night worried about his safety

and our home.

On Tuesday morning,

I finally heard from John

and he reported that it had been 

a "wicked" storm,

but (Halleliujah!) he and

our house were fine.

On his way to work,

he sent some pics 

I was crestfallen

to realize many of my friends

will be faced with 

rebuilding their homes

and businesses.

c.brinkley

The Hamptons sustained serious damage,
especially on the coast.
However, we escaped the utter destruction 
of whole communities
such as Breezy Point,
Fire Island,
and parts of New Jersey.

My thoughts and prayers 

are with everyone

affected by this storm.

The Morning After
c.brinkley

Praying for blue skies,

and

 brighter days ahead.

"if heaven ain't alot like dixie..."

We had a wonderful time in Alabama.

Mornings were spent

watching the sun rise

and enjoying coffee on the dock.

Days were filled with

sun and sand,

empty beaches,

clear water,

 feathered friends,

fun,

and family.

Nights were spent

fishing down at the dock,

and reveling in quiet peace

under the stars.

The only things that could have made this break more perfect -

would've been
more time

 and one less 

   broken arm...

*quote from Hank Williams Jr.

gulf shores

Last week,

the kids had a couple of days off 

for fall break.

We debated 

what to do 

and 

where to go.

We considered going to

"the happiest place on earth,"

but it tends to be

"the most expensive place on earth."

We looked into all the 

"last minute"

deals

on the internet,

but just couldn't find anything

that made sense

with our time constraints.

And then

I remembered...

While living in New York,

I vowed that if I was ever back in Georgia,

I would take full advantage of being so close

to the Gulf.

We loaded up and left for one of our favorite places 

in the world,

Gulf Shores, Alabama.

When we arrived late Thursday afternoon,

we found

the view from the back of Grandmother's Beach House, 

 to be just as beautiful as 

the Gulf 

across the street.

The kids scampered down to the bay

to see what they could find

and it didn't take long until the kayaks

were out.

As the sun began to set,

we got dressed and headed for dinner

at Lulu's -

an enormous local restaurant 

owned by Jimmy Buffet's sister.

The kids were thrilled to see something new -

 the "Mountain of Youth,"
a four story climbing aparatus.

After dinner,

we agreed to let Lyons and CC

attempt

the mountain.

Having no fear,

both kids quickly ascended.

At dizzying heights,

they bravely navigated

the ropes course.

I could barely watch,

but was glad they were having fun!

It was clear,
we were
exactly
where we needed to be.