25 Acre Woods Digest (2022-03-01): Speaking of the Shining

The 25 Acres crew have been out and about in the world these past few weeks. Including a new adventure underway now.

Let’s dig in.

Zach and I headed to Bethesda to hang out with the Grand Matriarch.

Here we are nestled in Cafe Oxaca amongst the skyscrapers of Bethesda on Friday night. Time for a little mexican & margaritas.

Speaking of food, a special shout out to Katie and Brian, who made dinner on Saturday night. Their multi-course Thai extravaganza beat this place’s Oaxacan hands down.

Meanwhile, Michelle also headed out. Headed to Atlanta to rejoin the world of conferences.

You would be shocked.

Yes, even though we’ve all been given time to reflect through our forced Covid timeout, Michelle reports that the conference presentations still seemed, on the whole, well, jejune.

But she did get to hang out with Kemi Jona, an old friend of mine from grad school.

The 25 Acres Research Team would like to share the last known photo involving both Kemi and Michelle.

Ok, so this one is taken by Kemi, he’s not in it. But that’s his wife, Sue, on the left. Some other grad school friends in the middle.

Yes, the evidence is stark. Our Sponsor has not aged a day.

Question for those who clicked on the link: have you ever seen Charlize Theron and Michelle in the same room? Me neither. Makes you think.

Up here in the 25 Acres, the weather is beginning to think about maybe at some point becoming spring, meaning mud season.

Which means that the driveway melts-and-freezes-and-melts-and-freezes.

Leaving it, as it is now, a sheet of ice.

And when the driveway becomes a sheet of ice, how does one get their suitcase from the house to the car parked at the bottom of the driveway? (Parked there because it’s too slippery to climb up the driveway).

Here’s Michelle as she starts out sitting in our plastic Wal-Mart toboggan, suitcase between her knees.

I worry a bit when I go out of town.

Thanks to our Media Team, we’re able to bring you this exclusive of the entire video. Takes you right up to the first time the toboggan crashes into the berm.

In other travel/movie news, remember when we shared a little clip of The Shining?

Time for Chip to live the dream. I’m now up in the Stratton Brook Hut, one of a small chain of huts run by a group near us.

I’m volunteering as a caretaker from Sun-Weds, giving the staff a chance to take a break.

Beautiful place. My main job is to feed the wood boiler. You can see the attraction.

OK, while there’s lots else going one, that’s enough for one edition. We know that you, our esteemed reader, like to keep it punchy.

Stay tuned next week to learn about Chip’s new job in which I get to wear yellow pants with suspenders.