Sunday, June 1, 2025

Tales of the Traveling Tote # 43




Rabbit, Rabbit!
Welcome to June and  Edition 43 of
Tales of the Traveling Tote


March brought us some beautiful spring days.
and annual events about town, one of which was the
Helping Hand Home Annual Crystal Ball fundraiser that
includes a morning luncheon to introduce the debutantes, the 9th grade volunteers, and the first grade princesses.  
Notice who accompanied me!
Miss Mini Mac likes to attend parties.

A longtime supporter of HHH and my good friend, 
invited me to join her at her table.  
Our handsome driver chauffeured 
us door to door, to and from.

The Long Center, beautifully decorated with gorgeous flowers, 
set the stage for the presentations and our delicious lunch.

Over the years you've heard me mention my CAMEO group,
Collecting Antiques and Memorabilia and Educating Ourselves.

I, along with another member, was responsible for our monthly meeting in March.  Terri and I are both avid Mah Jong players, and we invited our friend, Elizabeth, to present a program on 
Antique and Vintage Mah Jong Sets. 

Miz Merri Mac is too large for most daily outings, so my Mini CC
tagged along to learn about the history of the game and the 40+
sets that our amazing friend, Elizabeth, has collected.

View the video above for a look at some of Elizabeth's collection.

Terri, on the right, was my co-host, and 
Elizabeth, our good friend, was our speaker.

We put together an Asian 
inspired board full of tasty bites.

Guests helped themselves to a plate of goodies and
settled in on the sofas and chairs for Elizabeth's presentation.

Elizabeth, an exceptional tabletop stylist, 
is also adept at machinie embroidery.
She made these monogramed napkins,
 stitching the family initials within a pagoda.

Another fun March treat was an evening at Austin's Zack Theatre.
Started in 1972 with seats for 230, in 1990 a new 135 seat 
theatre-in-the-round was added and named the Whisenhunt Theatre
In recent years the city of Austin passed a bond issue 
to fund the 420 seat Topfer Theatre.  
We were in the intimate theatre in the round 
for the evening's opening night of 
Bob and Jean.

"In Bob & Jean, two friends from college find unexpected love when they reunite in 1941 New York City. As Bob heads off to war and Jean tours as a USO actor, their love is tested across thousands of miles. Written by Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award®-winning playwright and Austin native Robert Schenkkan (All the Way, The Great Society), this true story follows the tale of his own parents’ love for one another – a story about overcoming distance that captures the complexities of the human heart amidst wartime challenges through its timeless themes of love and resilience."
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The extra treat about this evening was being a guest of a long time friend and the fact that Robert Schenkkan, a local, was in the audience along with many friends who were neighbors of Bob and Jean.  
Truly an amazing performance and evening!

April brought another interesting CAMEO meeting, 
a excellent power point presentation, on Chinoiserie.

Carole, our hostess, lives on beautiful hill country acreage, 
so I'm sharing views of spring in the open fields and 
the horse farm in her neighborhood.  

Miss Merri Mac and I didn't want 
to leave this bucolic scene.

April also took Miss Mini CC and me back to 
another Zack Scott Theatre production.
What the Consitiution Means to Me is an American play written in 2017 and premiered on Broadway in 2019.  Heidi Schreck is the playwright.  The play, highly acclaimed, needless to say addresses a timely subject for our current political scene.  I highly recommend it!

Last few days of May, and  Miss Merri Mac 
tagged along with me to my longtime hair stylist.
Amy recently gave up her own salon and is 
now renting a chair at another salon.
Each stylist station consist of a vintage English cabinet.
Love the heavy carving on this piece made in
 London, England, in the 1960s by Brennner.

It's now June, and we are headed into summer.
Austin has had an interesting spring with wide temperature extremes and recently violent weather.  The video of the creek below our home was taken the day after our severe storm.  Soon after the storm the creek was already crested below this point at the bridge 
and flowed out of the banks onto the road.

Happy Summer, friends.  
Don't miss all the adventures below:

Debbie with Miss Aurora @ Mountain Breaths 

Emily with Miss Courtney ChildsThe French Hutch   

Linda P with Miss Lola @ Life and Linda

Patti with Miss Kenzie @ Pandora's Box  

Rita with Miss Luna C Panoply 

Sarah with Miss Merri Mac @ Hyacinths for the Soul Your Are Here

Jackie and Miss Madi K @ Purple Chocolat Home

Ricki Jill and Countess De Monet @ The Bookish Dilettante  


Comment on Rita's post on Panoply 

for a chance to win this Travel Tag.


Happy Summer Adventures.

We'll have more TTT  in September.


Stop by on June 10 for a fun 
Summer Tablescape Blog Hop.

Joining

Sarah
Sarah

The summer we married, my husband was in graduate school, and I was employed as a teacher. We took a portion of our savings that summer and purchased a sailboat. We christened our Catalina 22, “Hyacinths For The Soul” after Saadi’s poem. Our "Hyacinths" provided years of pleasure.

14 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  2. Rabbit Rabbit Sarah, You’ve had some fun and interesting outings! Your friend’s hill country estate looks beautiful and your Asian board looks like a fun and tasty way to graze for an evening get together. Love the embroidered napkins and plates! Happy June ♥

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  3. Sarah, your spring outings have been remarkable. I loved each one that you shared. Butch and I have visited the Hill Country a couple of times and enjoyed both immensely. I have never played Mah Jong, but would enjoy learning. I so enjoyed reading your post and wishing you a Happy June!

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  4. What fun and interesting things.You certainly have cultivated various interests and friends.That is really something Sarah.Good for you.I love what you wore and the necklace also how Asian inspired ..in a beautiful way,

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  5. Sarah, you've had such a busy and fun spring with all of your events. The Helping Hand fundraiser rings close to my heart, helping young people is always a blessing. Love the way you traveled too :). Your CAMEO group had a very interesting presentation, I've always been fascinated with Chinoiserie. Love the idea of enjoying time in your TX hill country. Beautiful! Sorry you've had damage to your garden from all the storms. We've had our fair share as well but lwe were lucky, no damage outside but lightings did come in on some of our electronics. The electrician came and installed grounding protection. That was scary. Happy June Sarah.......

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  6. You are one busy gal - with so many varied interests! I love virtually traveling to all your local events and clubs with you! Rabbit, rabbit!

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  7. Water can be so, so scary. Hope the storms cease soon.
    I just love your Asian board. We have had so much fun with different boards - what a great way to entertain. I even bought my girls a book on creating boards.
    I would love to have a machine that does embroidery. What a fun idea.

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  8. Sarah, you've attended and participated in some really interesting events this spring! I have played MahJong just once, with a friend who has taken it up with a weekly group. I like the mental challenge and the spice of chance in the tiles dealt, chosen. Your CAMEO group is definitely one that I would love attending and learning. I once presented to a local antique club on my antique purse collection. It was well received and very fun to share. I love your Mini Merri Mac.
    Storms like the one you just went through are so scary, and leave so much damage. We had a damaging hail storm in early April (not the same one that hit my flowers on May 5). I'm praying we are spared from floods and devastating summer storms.
    Happy June!

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  9. You and Mini Merri Mac have been busy! MahJong is becoming popular here in Birmingham, but I've never played it. It looks like fun, and the pretty antique sets look so interesting with the different images on the tiles. They are like little works of art. I love how you enjoy learning about things, Sarah. It must be the teacher in you, and we (your readers) benefit from learning right along with you! Maybe I should join a local MahJong group. :D

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  10. Sarah, you , Miss Merri Mac and mini Cc are having so much fun. Very fun group activities. Love the Asian theme with yummy Asian inspired food. The napkins are gorgeous, love the embroidery. Your friend's country farm is so beautiful. How special the horses are and the beautiful green pastures. So sorry to hear about the damage to your yard. Scary times. Do stay cool in these upcoming summer temps. Happy June.

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  11. Hi Sarah, you’ve had such an interesting and educational Springtime. I love that you keep so busy and active by participating in such wonderful outings and adventures. Happy June and may your summer be lovely in Austin.

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  12. You are a busy gal. And a cultural one as well. We love Texas Hill Country and travel there a few times a year.
    I enjoyed your outings and adventures. Thank you and Happy June.

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  13. Loads of fun here, Sarah! I especially loved all the details of the maj jong party (I need to learn to play this!) I'll bet your talk was fascinating. It all looks delightful!

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  14. Hi Sarah, you are an inspiration, always on the go doing varied and interesting things! Living in Alabama, I know Spring weather in the South can be unpredictable and violent. I have never played Maj Jong in person, but I do play it on line and I'm addicted! The Texas Hill
    country is beautiful...I hope you have a wonderful summer!
    Jenna

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Thank you to each of you who take the time to leave a comment. I read and appreciate each and every one and will respond to any questions. Your notes are the only way I know who has stopped in for a visit.