An Evening of Jazz

It was a month ago today that my daughter left for college. After a period of adjustment, she told me the other day (via IM, of course) that she's not homesick at all. As for those of us left behind, my husband & I have managed to keep ourselves busy, so when we get home, we're just glad to be able to relax and don't notice the vacant sign on the third floor where the daughter resided.

The week-end after she left was my annual family reunion in Lancaster. The next week-end was the annual retreat of the LLWL Gang* in Atlantic City.

And Friday night a few of the LLWL members and I hosted a Reception at my house for Center in the Park, which is celebrating its 40th Anniversary this month with a series of events. Founded in 1968, Center in the Park is a non-profit community center in Northwest Philadelphia primarily focused on the needs of older people. The Center is a wonderful community resource, providing access to supportive services and activities, and was recently featured in Philly Magazine as a worthy charity.

The reception was my idea of the perfect way to entertain. My house, a big old home in Mount Airy, is a great place to have an event and I love to see it put to good use (as I've done before). The Reception was in support of a good cause -- the Center in the Park.

Even better, I didn't have to cook! The kitchen mavens from the LLWL Gang took over my kitchen (which is a cook's dream) and whipped up an assortment of hor d'oeurves and desserts to die for, including a few tasty treats from CIP's 40th Anniversary Cookbook, “Delicious Gems from Center in the Park.”

They were assisted by a few volunteers from the Culinary Program at Simon Gratz High School, who helped with prep, serving and clean-up. They were not only cute, they did a great job -- with a smile. I told them my daughter would be jealous that she wasn't home at least this night!

And best of all, we were entertained by the Young Lions Jazz Trio, a young trio of tremendously talented artists, who provided the smooth jazz sounds for our listening pleasure, as we sipped our cocktails and dined. Here's a sample from these young musicians, who definitely are at the beginning of a wonderful future in jazz:

"Stolen Moments" live at Chris's -2007


After the Reception, we attended a CIP Jazz Concert at Germantown Friends School, which was the perfect ending to a wonderful day. The concert was arranged by Warren Oree and featured The Barbara Walker Story, UCC Royal Brass Band, The Edgardo Cintron Latin Band, & Oree's own Arpeggio Jazz Ensemble. Each performer was different, yet they were all fabulous!


* LLWL Gang = Lady Lawyers Who Lunch a/k/a my officemates

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Old age is an excellent time for outrage. My goal is to say or do at least one outrageous thing every week.

Maggie Kuhn, founder of the Grey Panthers