Tuesday, July 14 and Wednesday, July 15- Good Vibrations

As covered earlier, Tuesdays nights were "Cairn and a Movie" nights. I'm sure it was done for practical reasons, like the kitchen staff's day off, but Cairn gave us an opportunity to be outside and to appreciate our beautiful surroundings. Lenore was laid out in a rather formal geometric way, with the Lodge being the focal point. It was a large, gray building with two gables over-looking a large stone columned porch with stairs leading up the center. The vista was one of a vast front lawn of green grass. If you viewed the Lodge as the short side of a large rectangle, here's what you'd see from its porch: The entry road bordered the longer side of the rectangle on the left, and a beautiful, red clay tennis court bordered it on the right. (Cutting across it was strictly forbidden!) The Music Shell was situated on the left corner, and the flag pole was approximately on the right side.(The infamous birdbath was somewhere off-center) The Perg (pergola) was situated further down, slightly off to the right on a outcropping of rocks. The lawn then sloped down, and at the base of the slope was the volleyball/newcomb court. The newer tennis courts, with asphalt suface were off to the right, below the Perg. and if you continued walking, you would be on the athletic field, with the softball field on the right and the golf/general play area on the left. It was near this area, that we had many cairns and campfires.
On Wednesday, July 15, 1959, the Lenorlog noted that there was both a Music Hour and a Senior Play:the equivalent of a cultural double-billing. As campers, we were fortunate to be provided with regular opportunities to expand our cultural awarness, on and off-site. Tanglewood was a particular favorite. The summer home of the Boston Pops Orchestra, it was a place we regularly visited each year. A huge pavillion, along with ample picnic grounds, afforded us the chance to listen to world-class music under the night sky. There were times when we went in August, and we could see the Northern Lights... But, there were other trips. a little less high-brow, that were equally memorable. Like the time we went to the Berkshire Music Festival in 1967 to see the Beach Boys and The Four Seasons. Talk about a double-billing! It was amazing to see those great groups together, outside, on a warm summer night. A teenage dream come true. Fast forward 42 years. The show Jersey Boys (about the Four Seasons) is running in Chicago. And last night, we went to Ravinia, the Chicago version of Tanglewood, to see- The Beach Boys. Mike Love and Bruce Johnston are all that remain of the original group, and the crowd was considerably older, but no less appreciative, For a few hours, under a warm summer sky, we all went back in time.