Merry Christmas I

The annual Christmas Concert by the high school orchestra and choirs took place last Sunday. I’ve come to think of it as the local event of the year as Brad Lambrecht, orchestra; Steve Deitz, choir; and Bob Hines, narration, do a marvelous job of arranging and choreographing this major production, as it seems every student in the school participates in one or the other. There are 8 videos dispursed herein.

The concert opening:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcWxSFvFq1I

I was going to include this concert on the “Christmas Card,” but the card was getting a tad long (in the immortal words of brother Cam, “Duh, d’ya think?”).

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HGE5cr1ajg

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtEAYs5hlpA

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxu4i73Uwko

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i88ybvFcF2U

And the very next night, a 5-course Christmas dinner at the place Where everyone knows your name! 😉

[Introductions by the wine guy, Pete of Paustis Wines in St. Cloud, to a full and happy house.]

[The supervisor displays the first course. She’s not really a shrimper, so I got about half of hers too! 🙂 ]

[Happily displaying course 2, I had never had smoked duck before so it was a leading contender for the desire to attend. Unlike most “new” things, it didn’t taste like chicken – it tasted like ham. And it was a substantial portion – we were pretty much full with three courses to go. Nevertheless, I never felt the need to say, “I’d like to return this duck.”]

[Three medallions each – uffda! They were each a substantial filet – wonderfully delicious, but we had to box up three to take home. And oy, the au gratin potatoes – to die for! 🙂 ]

[Then for the 3rd day in a row, we were entertained by the Jefferson High School Carolers. We were now on a first name basis with many of them. 😉 We were advised by a source, who is a roadie for the group, that this was their 49th performance of the season!]

The Carolers: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yaqDasTek_4

Part II: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aw603uAwVKA

And Part III: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtS5bV-t2Tk

Thank you Steve Deitz . . . and the source!

[Then it was time for the cheese course (I had loosened my belt a notch by then). If only “Weakie” had attended, he would have finally attained Alexandria “A List” status. 😉 ]

[The dessert course made the supervisor swoon . . .]

[The chocolate fruit cake was fabulous! And the ice wine was a dessert all by itself.]

[Probably because of our seating location, in the niche where the talent usually performs, I finally noticed the sign on the building across the street. It’s also the name of a famous colonial style restaurant in Leesburg, Virginia – a place oft sought on Basketball Dan’s multiple forays into the nation’s capital. A highly recommended dining experience.]

[We left under the glow of the city’s Christmas lights. 🙂 ]

[The kids and grandson arrive early in the morning. We’ll leave a light on for them! 🙂 (Shot with my Honeywell Pentax, 35mm, SLR, with a macro lens on Okinawa in 1971.)]

About tomobert63

The Journey Begins Thanks for joining me! This is the follow-up to the original, “alexandriacardinals.wordpress.com,” which overwhelmed the system’s ability to handle it any more. Thus, this is “Part 2.” As the original was initially described: 10-26-07-4 “It all began in a 5,000 watt radio station in Fresno, California” . . . wait a minute, that was Ted Baxter on the Mary Tyler Moore Show! Let’s see . . . oh yeah, it all began in 2003 when retirees, i.e., old people, in Alexandria, Minnesota, who had no desire to become snow birds, went looking for mid-winter entertainment here in the frozen tundra of West Central Minnesota. We discovered girls’ high school hockey, fell in love immediately, and it remains our favorite spectator sport to this day. Initially, and for several years, reports on these games were e-mailed to those who were actually snowbirds but wanted to keep abreast of things “back home.” It was ultimately decided a blog would be more efficient, and it evolved into a personal diary of many things that attracts tens of readers on occasion. It remains a source of personal mental therapy and has yet to elicit any lawsuits. ~ The Editor, May 9, 2014 p.s. The photo border around the blog is the Cardinal girls’ hockey team after just beating Breck for the state championship in 2008. It’s of the all-tournament team. The visible Breck player on the left is Milica McMillen, then an 8th-grader – she is now an All-American for the Gophers. The Roseau player in the stocking cap I believe is Mary Loken, who went on to play for UND; and the Cardinal player on the right, No. 3, is Abby Williams, the player we blame most for making us girls’ hockey fans who went on to play for Bemidji State. *********************************************************************************** Photos contained herein are available for personal use. All you have to do is double click on any of the photos and they will become full screen size. You can then save them into your personal “My Pictures” file. They make lovely parting or hostess gifts, or holiday gifts for such as Uncle Ernie who wants to see how his grand niece is doing on the hockey team. If any are sold for personal profit, however, to, for example, the Audubon Society, National Geographic, Sven’s Home Workshop Monthly, Curling By The Numbers, or the World Wrestling Federation, I only request that you make a donation to the charitable organization of your choice. You have two hours and fifteen minutes. Pencils ready? Begin! **********************************************************************************

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