Anniversary Wishes and More

It hardly seems possible that 10 years have passed since Prince William married Kate Middleton.  I vividly remember watching it on TV.  So today in honor of their 10th Wedding Anniversary, I got out my royal memorabilia:  A china teacup from their engagement, a Royal Worcester commemorative wedding plate, and two commemorative tins of tea. 

Here's to many more anniversaries to celebrate!

[Internet Photo]

It's been a busy week.  Monday I was all settled in my office ready to begin writing the script for an upcoming Hudson's Department Store presentation on May 4th when the power went out. Since there's very little you can do without electrical power [we're so spoiled!] my hubby and I decided to go to Cracker Barrel for lunch.  During our wait to be seated, I spied French Macarons on the shelf.  The sophisticated, luxurious, high-end tea time dessert seemed rather out of place in the homey, down-to-earth Cracker Barrel restaurant, so I had to photograph it.

Tuesday was an early morning dental appointment, then I drove to the city where I grew up to have lunch with some of the girls I graduated from high school with.  I navigated through countless orange road construction barrels and my GPS took me on three different expressways due to all the construction, but I finally made it.  Four girls couldn't join us, but there were four of us who could make it.  It's the first time we've been together since the COVID pandemic began.  We ate on the patio of the restaurant and it was so nice to get caught-up again. 

I enjoy going back to the city where I grew up.  I belong to a Facebook Group called All Things Wyandotte where pictures of people and places in the city - past and present - are posted. Recently a mid-1950's photo [below] was posted of Fort Grove Shopping Center which was right near my house.  You can see the houses on my street on the right beyond the parking lot. A & P Food Store, Grove Drugs, HFC [Household Finance Corp.], and Ben Franklin Dime Stores no longer exist.  And look at those old cars that were actually new back then.  As the saying goes, nothing is forever!  As a kid, I loved Ben Franklin's candy counter with its compartmentalized candy bins and scales to weigh the candy on.

Yesterday was lunch with our son, and our daughter-in-law joined us.  Afterwards I came home and went to work on my Hudson's project.  I haven't done a Hudson's presentation since 2017 and I'm so enjoying the review.  It makes me want to resume my research that had fallen by the wayside, crowded out by life's situations.  The year of COVID quarantine gave me plenty of free time, but the libraries were all shut down, so that eliminated the opportunity to do any Hudson's or Whitney research.  

The beloved block-long department store was imploded in 1998, but Dan Gilbert and his real estate firm, Bedrock Detroit, have plans to honor the store in the new Hudson's Building and Tower.  Ground was broken in 2017, but progress has been slow.  It's not targeted for completion until 2024, and will consist of a street level market, retail space, office space, event venue for 1,250 people, hotel rooms and residential units.  A photo of what the completed building and tower will look like is below.  Oh how we wish Mr. Gilbert would have been around in 1998.  He would have saved the iconic 25-story Hudson building from implosion. He has done so much to preserve the buildings that remain in downtown Detroit.

I'll be sure to post pictures of next week's presentation as I endeavor to renew the cherished memories of J.L. Hudson's Department Store for attendees.