Goddesschess' Eighth Anniversary Celebration

By Jan Newton
August, 2007

Vacation Time! Every year we marvel at the fact that we are another year older and still online, bigger and better than ever. We debuted Goddesschess on May 6, 1999. In celebration of our eighth anniversary, we got together at Maison Newton from July 23 - 30 (backyard shot, left). The weather was warm and as the week wore on it got progressively hotter and more humid - yech! We had a little rain - it fell late night-early morning Thursday and didn't disrupt any of our plans. The rain was important to me as a gardener, because we've been under drought conditions for the past couple of months, and the ground was parched, despite weekly waterings. It was also welcome to Isis and Michelle who, hailing from Las Vegas, revel in the Goddess' watering of planet earth. The sound of rain upon the roof and occasionally blowing against the side of the house pressed by the west wind was a welcome refrain that woke me up more than once Wednesday night-Thursday morning, despite the house being shut up tight against the elements and the central air conditioning on.

This year saw travel glitches that hadn't happened before (other than some delays last year for weather-related reasons). Don's flight from Montreal to Detroit left on time but was diverted to Toronto for a medical emergency and he arrived in Milwaukee - finally - more than five hours behind schedule to find a frantic, tearful me. I'd called the airlines after checking online about an hour AFTER Don was due to arrive to see that his flight had been diverted for a medical emergency - but of course the airline would not give me the name of the person who had been removed from the flight and would not even tell me whether he was listed as a passenger on the next available flight from Detroit to Milwaukee. I was imagining all sorts of horrible scenarios - and Don didn't call! I was frantic, totally losing my mind! As it happened, he'd forgotten to bring along his address book (it was packed in another bag with his laptop which he decided, at the last minute, not to bring along) and didn't have my telephone number and he doesn't have it memorized, and so he couldn't call. Egoddess! I swear I'm going to have it tattooed on his arm! He seemed surprised (but highly gratified) that I threw myself into his arms and sobbed my eyes out when he finally got here. That's my man!

Isis and Michelle had their share of travel-hassles too. While their flight here went smoothly enough, returning home to Las Vegas was not problem free. First, I received a surprise telephone call from the reservations desk at the airport after Don and I had seen Isis and Michelle off in their taxi to Mitchell International on the evening of July 30th, because Midwest Airlines couldn't seem to find their return reservations on their computer system. I got the call because I had arranged the reservations. Just when I was logging back on to my computer to look up the confirmation number at Travelocity where we'd booked the flight, as I was chatting with the reservations clerk I must have said the magic words (last name is "Albert") and voila! She found the confirmed bookings! The troubles had just begun; the flight we had originally booked had, unknown to any of us, been rescheduled for a later departure, and then there were some mechanical difficulties. Isis and Michelle's flight left Milwaukee more than hour after the original itinerary time. More complications ensued. Further mechanical problems diverted the flight to Omaha in the middle of the night. Oh for goddess sake - Omaha! Not a blasted thing was open! They fed themselves snacks out of vending machines. Don and I had been blissfully unaware of these travails, as we shared a late supper and prepared for his departure on July 31st, lingering until long past my bedtime, as I was due back at the office the next day. Isis called me on the 31st about 6:30 a.m. to let me know that they'd arrived home at last - around 4:30 a.m. their time - about four hours behind schedule. I was glad for the call and to know that all was well from their end.

Michelle's 18th birthday was on August 6th (or is it August 9th - I can never remember, duh). Our vacation was before M's birthday, but I'd gotten a few gifts and presented them to her later in the afternoon after their early-morning arrival on July 23rd. Here is Michelle modeling a necklace, one of her birthday gifts.

I cooked up a storm while everyone was here - formal and informal meals. I love cooking for guests and my managing, rather autocratic (but motherly, I hope) personna comes to the fore during these annual visits - beef tenderloin, beef burgundy, homestyle pot roast with vegetables, my fluffy potato pancakes whipped up one afternoon for a late lunch, a rich egg, cheese and sausage breakfast casserole, mixed in with Hamburger Helper and Jack's Pizzas and left-overs. We had a cook-out too - bratwurst cooked to a turn and my patented hamburgers were once again a great hit. Georgia cooked a pork tenderloin one evening that was delicious, served with mashed cheesy potatoes. We ate far too much all week long - but we balanced the menu out with lots of salads and stayed away from heavy desserts (although we did treat ourselves to the occasional dish of ice cream and I treated myself to double chocolate Dove Bars, ooooooohhhhh). I whipped up some easy breakfasts for Don and I several mornings - Isis and Michelle preferred to sleep in except the first morning when they arrived and we had a grand celebration breakfast; on other days it was more relaxed, with everyone rummaging in the refrigerator and cupboards for breakfastly fixings whenever the hour (and their stomachs) prompted.

Our get-together was a relaxed time of sleeping late, spending hours reading, staying up "late" (well, any time past midnight is LATE for me these days, darlings!), and kicking back. But, as I AM the Patton of the group, I also put them to work! Don cut the grass and chopped down some overly-aggressive wild grapevine. Isis, Michelle and Don walked the mile to the supermarket and the mile back several times during their stay to keep me supplied with victuals, peanuts, birdseed and kept me supplied with wine. Everyone except me took walks around the neighborhood (I preferred to nap). Michelle and I had a contest going as to who could get through Harry Potter 7 the fastest! (I won - but she didn't read much while she was with her friends in Chicago)...

Michelle was meeting up with friends in Chicago and planned to stay for a couple of days - she's 18 now and doesn't want to hang around so much with us - and so, after some shuffling of plans, we took the train down to Chi Town on Thursday July 26th. As we were walking down Jackson toward Millennium Park from Union Station, we espied the "W" Hotel (photo left), where Michelle's and Isis' Las Vegas friends would be checking in later that day.

We toured Millennium Park (photo right) and environs and took in parts of the great river walk, and Isis treated us all to an architectural boat tour on the Chicago River (see photo gallery). The city is amazing - a wonderful blend of building styles and eras, and Don got many great shots. As much as I love Milwaukee, we don't hold a patch to Chi Town.

I got totally sunburned during our outing - I finally lost the last traces of red around August 4th and I don't like being this brown! It is particularly noticeable when I'm shirtless (never in public, darlings!) because I've got a classic farmer's tan - brown from the elbows down and a dark "V" at my throat, the rest of my torso being lily white! We had planned on eating lunch at the Walnut Room, but after the boat tour, where we were on the water between 11 a.m. and 1:00 p.m., by the time we made our way back toward the loop (I was slowing us down, having long since run out of energy) I decided not to appear at the Walnut Room sunburnt, hair a mess and sweaty to boot and unilaterally declared we would eat that the Elephant and Castle, where Don and I had intended to visit someday since discovering the restaurant during our 2004 Chicago foray. The burger I ordered was delicious - but the side salad I ordered left much to be desired - not enough cucumber, hardly any tomatoes, and way too much greens, not chopped up enough. It seemed a bit strange to be sitting opposite a gas-fired fireplace too, when it was about 95 heat factor outdoors. All in all, a bit too much of the "chain" restaurant feeling, and not enough of the original "pub" feeling that made the name of "The Elephant and the Castle" famous in England.

We walked what seemed like endless miles taking in the local scenery in the loop, Daley Plaza, etc. etc. and Don got more great photos with the digital camera (what a goddess-inspired invention). (Photo right, a view from Daley Plaza). We also spent a good hour travelling through Marshall Fields (now known as Macy's) flag-ship store on State Street. Don and Isis obligingly trailed along as Michelle and I ooohed and aahhhed our way through the decorative glass and china displays on the seventh floor :) Don got some interior shots of the fabulous architecture that are in our photo gallery.

We connected with Isis' and Michelle's friends at their hotel, the W, on Jackson, about 3:45 p.m. and had time only for some brief conversation and a quick drink before we headed back to Union Station. I was exhausted; Don Isis and I caught the 5:08 instead of returning on the 8:05 as we had planned. It was my fault; the sun and the heat and humidity just did me in, they wiped me out. I slept most of the ride back home. The rest of the evening is a blur...

On Friday Isis went off on her own and spent the day visiting some of the sights in Milwaukee, including the Art Museum (with our spectacular Calatrava-designed wing) and a visit to the historic Forest Home Cemetery where she found the tombstones of some of her ancestors. I spent the day laying low and rested, recouping my strength. Ahhh, there's nothing quite like putting up one's feet on one's own deck, resting under the double shade of a large patio umbrella and overarching Chinese Elm trees. Meanwhile, Michelle and her friends were wearing themselves out walking all over Chicago and shopping shopping shopping!

I was sufficiently recovered by Friday evening, and as Isis arrived home and settled down for an evening in, Don and I ventured out to Meyer's, a local popular restaurant within walking distance, for a classic Milwaukee Friday-night Fish Fry. Oh, it was so good! I believe this is the first time I actually saw Don turn down free seconds on the beer-battered cod! After Don and I arrived back home, we all gathered on the deck and talked far into the night. We ate in the "smoking" section which is in the bar/lounge area, separate from the main dining room. While we ate we were entertained by a live band who sang the greatest hits from World War I, and were about as old...but for the most part their harmonies were well done and it was an entertaining hour spent stuffing our faces and schmoozing with each other - rye bread, cole slaw, American-style potato salad, rolls and butter - and that was just the introduction. The main course was the breaded cod fish with potatoes.

Saturday Isis headed back to Chicago to meet up with Michelle and their friends and spend the night, and Don and I took in a matinee of "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix." Don't believe any of the bad reviews - the movie is excellent! Before the movie we had a quick lunch at another Milwaukee institution - Omega Restaurant on 27th and Morgan - the ubiquitous Greek place with tasty, plentiful food for moderate prices!

Almost every night after we moved indoors, we watched one or more DVDs that Isis and Michelle brought along. I never thought I'd watch Talledaga Nights but Don and I did Saturday night. LOL, I'm not sure I'm recovered yet from that viewing... I didn't care for Laws of Attraction, the Julianna Moore/Pierce Brosnan flick (no woman could possibly be that fricking stupid, particularly as she was supposed to be a top-notch attorney), but I did enjoy Happy Feet and two other movies we watched in the still of the night whose names escape me at the moment. There were other movies too, including a July 30th afternoon matinee of Bride and Prejudice suggested by Isis (Don stayed on the deck during this Bollywood-hit while Isis and I danced to such catchy Bollywood tunes as "No Life Without Wife"...).

We took care of Goddesschess business, too. We had discussions about how to increase our readership and where we want to take Goddesschess in the future - and who might take over for us in the future. It is a concern - will we still want to be doing this 10 years from now after we've retired? There is also the never-ending tension between whether to develop a more "scholarly" approach to our research and the desire to reach a broader audience by producing and publishing more popularly-aimed features. Which way do we go, what is the best way to proceed? What will happen to the site if one or more of us decides we don't want to (or cannot) do this anymore?

Part of our ongoing plan to improve Goddesschess and make our work more accessible was a major re-design of the Goddesschess website (something that came out of our 2006 anniversary celebration get-together), which Webmaster Don started implementing within a few months after our meeting in August, 2006. What looked so simple on paper while we were spouting our ideas on the deck in the cool of the evening didn't turn out to be so easy in real life. After several test models, designs, lay-outs and color schemes were tried and critiqued, all of which took lots of emails back and forth over several months, Goddesschess received a lighter and brighter look and a new color scheme and theme. A more uniform navigation system was also created and put into place, completed in March of this year. Kudos to Webmaster Don, who has the patience of Job and endless tact in dealing with often contradictory suggestions and requests :)

Another project to integrate Goddesschess into the 21st century resulted in the Chess, Goddess and Everything blog debuting at the end of April, 2007. The blog interacts with but is also independent of the Goddesschess website and our established message board at Delphi. It has been surprisingly popular. A downside has been that time spent blogging is time not spent on our research and writing projects for Goddesschess. We're all working on various projects and research for Goddesschess - be patient - it will all be published eventually!

Chess Femme News was started in May, 2006, the result of a continuing effort to integrate women's chess news into the overall theme of Goddesschess. Chess is the Game of the Goddess, and there is nothing more appropriate to our mission than covering events in which female chessplayers participate from all around the world. As part of our continuing efforts to support women's chess, this year, for the very first time, Goddesschess was pleased to sponsor a $300 Brilliancy Prize for the 2007 U.S. Women's Chess Championship. This year's winner of the Goddesschess Brilliancy Prize was Elizabeth Vicary, with her excellently executed win over higher-rated veteran player and Chess Goddess Camilla Baginskaite. (Left, Elizabeth Vicary receiving check for Goddesschess Brilliancy Prize from Jim Berry). Liz is a teacher as well as teaching kids how to play chess and she also writes for USCF's Chess Life. Goddesschess hopes to sponsor Brilliancy Prizes for future U.S. Women's Championships.

All too soon, it was Sunday. I got up at my usual time (6 a.m.) and got the pot roast going in the slow-cooker. Isis and Michelle would be arriving home from their Chicago stay later in the day and I had promised them one of their favorite Jan meals. Don cut the grass in the back yard, I did some laundry. We both spent time reading the large Sunday newspaper. Tres domestique!

Isis and Michelle arrived home from Chicago in the early afternoon, and pot roast with carrots, potatoes and gravy was dished up while I took a nap on my recliner. (The pot roast was a big hit). After relaxing on the deck for a couple of hours, the evening was lovely and we strolled a few blocks away to St. John the Evangelist Church's annual festival where we spent a few pleasant hours. Don and Georgia rode the bumper cars (egoddess!) and were a big hit with the younger set who were in the other cars!

Don and Georgia show the kids how it's done!

Every year St. John's festival puts on a glorious fireworks display and I had planned this year's Goddesschess Convention around the display, feeling that grand fireworks would be a fitting finale. The festival closed down at 9:00 p.m. and we walked back home and settled in on the deck. Although the trees in my backyard have grown a great deal over the past 17 years, there is still enough clear space looking at the sky to the southwest where the fireworks can be viewed in total comfort from the deck. We turned off the lights in the house (as did the neighboring houses) and settled in, where the dance of the fireflies around the yard kept up entertained until the greater fireworks started. The show started about 9:30 p.m. and lasted 30 minutes, and was far better than any local 4th of July display! St. John's hires the Bartolotta Brothers to do their event every year and people come from miles around to watch - and all the neighbors get to see the display up close and personal! Neighbors host parties of their families and friends, it is a neighborhood tradition and strangers park in the area, sitting on top of their cars and on lawn chairs to watch the great show. The grande finale was suitably stunning - and LOUD! It is amazing that it seems to get bigger and better every year - how do they continue to do it year after year? It was a suitable bang-flash! ending to our Eighth Anniversary get-together.

Unfortunately, none of Don's photographs of the fireworks turned out. But we took a couple of shots of our stash laid out on the kitchen/dining table- the prizes we won at the festival!

Monday came and it was time for Isis and Michelle to leave, but their flight wasn't until 8:50 p.m. so we had the day together, which was a kick-back, relaxed kind of day. Don, Michelle and Isis went to the grocery store for me for one last stock-up while I rested - what great friends! For some reason this year the heat and humidity really did me in. I had ordered a taxi earlier in the day to arrive at 5:45 p.m. and in due course it arrived and took Isis and Michelle off to the airport as Don and I watched from the driveway, waving goodbye. Don's flight was leaving Tuesday early afternoon but I was scheduled to go back to work at 8:30 a.m.; we arranged for a taxi for him and packed him up. On Tuesday morning he walked me to the bus stop and kissed me goodbye just before 8 a.m. Before he left he cut the grass in the front yard for me one last time - once a helpful neighbor pointed out that the "deadman" release bar had to be engaged in order to start the engine :) His flight back to Montreal was on time and without any glitches, and I arrived home to a smooth front lawn and empty house.

All is well that ends well. I don't know what will happen next year. Michelle is starting college in the fall. She's a young lady now, graduated from high school and of age to do her own thing. It seems just yesterday she was a hyper 12 year old jetting along with us over the Atlantic from Montreal to Amsterdam - and we were all on edge because 9/11 had occurred just a few months before... And now here she is, a beautiful, articulate, engaging young lady who is light-years ahead of her peers - well, we think she has no peers really (are we prejudiced - I don't think so). Will we be able to get together again anytime soon? Will Michelle want to hang out with three middle-aged esoterics obsessed with ancient history who fuss and argue but love each other despite all? I don't know.

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