Quester's Luncheon

Saturday was the Mah-Nah-Be-Zee Questers Chapter #198 20th Anniversary Luncheon. The theme was Timeless Memories.  There were 60 tablescapes this year, and as usual I ran around like a mad woman photographing all of them within one hour.

Five of the ten ladies who went on the Southern Tea Time Getaway last May, were at the luncheon, so I took their picture.  It hardly seems possible that almost a year has passed since we went on that phenomenal trip!

~ Cheryl and Ann ~

~ Linda and Louise ~

~ Barb ~

It was a lovely event and the tables were so creative and detailed.  The pictures really don't do them justice.  In this post I'm only going to share the top ten tables.  Attendees vote on the top five, but they gave a tally on the top ten.  It truth, all 60 were winners, because every table represented so much time and effort.

#10 Table 25 - When Life Gives You Lemons

#9 Table 32 Coral Creation

#8 Table 20 Autumn Splendor

 #7 Table 2 Sweet M & M Memories

#6 Table 27 Gone Fishing

#5 Table 45 Music of the Night

#4 Table 24 Be Happy

#3 Table #35 Bewitched, Bejeweled, Bedazzled

#2 Table 1 Downton Abbey - the Dowager Countess was even there, and for added ambience they had the theme music from Downton Abbey playing!

#1 Table 40 - Dreaming of Easter

~ Ladies who created the table ~

There was so much detail to this table I had to take several pictures.

I sat at Table #42 Blue Christmas, so I had to give it honorable mention.

Three Local Upcoming Activities

If you live local, you might want to know about these upcoming activities.  The first one is tomorrow, April 6th.  Sorry for not posting sooner, but tickets might still be available.  Call 586-465-4918 to inquire.  Cost is $45 per person.  Tickets will not be available at the door. I think this is the last luncheon they're planning to host.

This is the event that features a large number of different tablescapes.  I'll be taking pictures to share on my blog.

The second event is the Great Lakes Depression Glass Show and Sale.

Saturday, April 27 - 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Sunday, April 28 - 11:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Admission is $6

It will be held at:  Madison Place

876 Horace Brown Dr.

Madison Heights, MI 48071

The third event is the 2019 Clara Ford Tea - Theme:  "The Spirit of Nursing"

Date:  Sunday, May 5, 2019

Time: 3:30-6:00 p.m.

Place:  Ford Piquette Avenue Plant

Cost:  $40 [Tickets by Eventbrite]

~ Clara Ford is in the center in the black suit ~

Hope to see you at one of these events!

Julia Child

Cherry Hill Presbyterian Church has invited me back for the third time to be the speaker at their ladies tea on May 11th.  My first time was Nov. 2016 presenting Queen Elizabeth, II and Nov. 2017 J.L. Hudson Department Store.  This time the theme will be Julia Child in Paris.  

For the presentation I've put together a 'Julia Child outfit.'  Of course, I'll be considerably shorter than she was [5'2"].  She was 6'3" but usually told everyone she was 6'2".  One inch must have seemed significant to her.  ;-)  I won't be able to re-create her voice either, but hopefully the interesting highlights about her life will make up for it.

Julia usually wore a cotton blouse with the logo Paul [her husband] designed for her.  Her PBS cooking show was titled, The French Chef, and began in 1963.  Usually a single strand of pearls accompanied her outfit as well as a long chef's apron with a dish/hand towel draped over the ties.

The logo loosely translates, "The School of Three Happy Eaters", referring to her two friends who taught cooking classes with her in Paris - Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle.

My Julia Child presentations in the past have been from the biography pictured below.

But this time I've going to use a book she authored with Alex Prud'homme - the grandson of Paul's twin brother, Charles Child.  It primarily focuses on Julia's life in France and her pursuit of French cooking.

I have a trip coming up shortly that will require a 5-hour airplane ride, so I'll be taking along the book below to occupy my time in the air going and returning.  Dearie is the name Julie called everyone.

She said her book, French Chef Cookbook, Volume II was a personal meander full of stories, tangents, and comments about her twenty-five years in the kitchen.  It was her most personal book, as well as her most favorite, so I'd love to be able to find a copy of that book.  

I've enjoyed re-watching the DVD, Julie and Julia and it's a lot more meaningful after reading My Life in France.  It's a cute movie with a twinge of sadness that Julie Powell never got to meet Julia Child, because Julia didn't think Julie was truly serious about cooking.

It's incredible that Julia went from a 37-year-old who previously had no interest in the kitchen to one of the most famous chefs in the twentieth century - even though she said she wasn't a chef.  She referred to herself as a teacher and a cook.  What an amazing person to research!