Connecticut Open House Day

What a curious day!

Having no commitments for a change, I decided to take advantage of Connecticut's annual Open House Day. Like a kid in a candy store, I poured over the 200 or so tourist attractions listed in the brochure. Many were offering reduced or free admission, complimentary product tastings, or special demonstrations.

I circled five possibilities, but as it turned out I had a few things to attend to in the morning, and with a couple of the venues having limited hours, I ended up revising my original list to just two destinations. I left home at 12:00 and drove to Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam for a free tour of the Victorian Theater, something I had been wanting to do for years. The hours listed were 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

During the drive, I listened to the rebroadcast of Faith Middleton's Food Schmooze, having missed it during the week and knowing there was a call-in segment for listeners' favorite picnics. By the time I got to the parking lot, it was 1:45, and I sat in the car to finish listening. At approximately 1:03 I walked into the theater and was told they had just ended the tours. When I questioned the fact that the brochure had said 2:00 I was told the reason for the change was that today's performance time had been moved up to 3:00 and the actors would be coming in soon to get ready.

Although I was disappointed, it was a lovely day and the drive was pleasant, so I simply set off for my next destination, Rose's Berry Farm in South Glastonbury. At least the pick-your-own strawberries, plus "free snacks, beverages and wagon tours of the farm" was offered until 5:00, although really, I was only interested in picking berries. By the time I arrived, my mouth was watering for the first native strawberries of the season. But, when I arrived, I was told there was no picking after all because the berries were not quite ready.

As I headed for home, I thought, so much for the information listed in that glossy colored brochure, until I remembered the quote in my own book by John Steinbeck in Travels with Charley, "What I set down here is true until someone else passes that way and rearranges the world in his own style."

Isn't that the truth!