IYC Happenings

Work has been so busy the past couple of weeks between preparing for tomorrow's tutor training and working on next week-end's Chocolate Festival that I've barely had time to participate in the non-work events on my calendar, much less write about them.  Rest assured, though, that I've managed to fit in a few fun outings.  Here are the highlights:

Bike Ride to Webb Lake.  The featured event during the last day of my friend Wendi's visit was a bike ride at Webb Lake.  I clearly hadn't explained to Wendi that this was an IYC event because I heard her say on the phone that we were going on a ride with "a couple of people."  Yes, the ride was with 43 of my closest friends!  Dorrit and Bruce did a great job organizing the outing, and the ten mile ride along 395-acre Webb Lake was peaceful and pretty.  Wendi hadn't been on a bike in about ten years and her experience gave credence to the expression "it's like riding a bike!"

IYC's Got Talent.   When I was growing up, I took piano lessons.  I loved it at the time, but can't even read music any more.  Some IYC members have kept up their skills, however, and they put them on display at the Club's annual talent show.  Jim Griffiths' banjo playing was terrific, and I loved Marsha Carpenter's rendition of Eileen Quinn's "If I Killed the Captain."  ("...if I killed the captain, really, who would know, we're two weeks out of port, we've got one more week to go, and all that it would take is a timely little shove, how swift the course the heart may run to hatred from true love, true love, true love...")  Commodore Rick Kilmer's comedy act got a standing ovation (and only a bit of trickery was involved!)  And Courtney's steaming hot performance of "All that Jazz" brought the house down.

Cooking Demo with Chef Phillip.  The "Admirals" meeting this month featured Chef Phillip sharing his "boat friendly" gumbo recipe with the ladies.  Chef's instructions say that "[the roux] needs to be the consistency of wet beach sand, smell a bit like toasted nuts, and be as dark brown as you can possibly make it without burning.  Some Cajuns will tell you this process takes about three beers or forty minutes..."     With his toasted flour, though, it didn't take long to create a beautiful golden roux that provided the base for a chicken and Andouille sausage gumbo that the ladies greatly enjoyed.

The next few days promise to be exhausting but fun, with the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra tomorrow night, the Superbowl on Sunday (go, Giants!), and final preparations for the Chocolate Festival.  The Festival is being held at the Port Charlotte Town Center Mall from 1:00 - 5:00 on Saturday, February 11th, and is being sponsored by the Adult Learning Center to raise money for our tuition hardship assistance program.  Over 15 local businesses and organizations, including IYC, will provide chocolate treats for attendees, and there will be music and raffles and chocolate making demonstrations and probably some other surprises along the way.    (To hear more about the Festival, tune into the Golden Hippo's radio show on 1580 AM on Tuesday morning around 8:10.)   It will be a fun event for a good cause.  Hope to see you there!