My friend Letitia was singing Cleopatra in Handel's Julius
Caesar, so Bonnie and I went down to Hartford to lend our
support. The performance had been rescheduled from Saturday
to Sunday, and we were flying out early Monday, so our usual
routine - concert followed by a celebratory supper followed
by a hotel night, followed by a leisurely ride back, had to
be rejiggered to become: trip to REI to get a headlamp, hotel,
dinner, matinee, back toward Boston.

Headlamps were on sale, and I got what looked to be a
nifty one for a substantial but not bizarre cost. It
was from Black Diamond and had flood and spot capability;
also red, blue, and green with strobe capability. Altogether
more lighting options than I need.

The highway traffic was, except for the usual spots around
I-84, pretty good, and we rolled into the Hilton Hartford
about 5:30 - a pleasant enough journey.

It was still light, so we visited the site of the first
pay phone in the world and the famed Stone Field sculpture
of which we have spoken here; then, feeling just a little
peckish, we headed for Max Downtown, where with our drinks
they offered generous bowls of snacks - blue cheese crackers
(Bonnie had all of these), marinated radishes (I had all of
these), and really good, not too salty fresh mixed nuts -
in order of abundance cashews, almonds, hazelnuts, pistachios,
macadamias, and Brazils. Inquiring after food (though we had
emptied the fridge at her house over the last couple days
and eaten overmuch as a consequence), they came up with
bunches of reading matter - the regular menu, a specials list,
and a tavern menu. "Coffee Rubbed Slow Roasted Prime Rib, Blue
cheese whipped potatoes, crispy harissa onions 39.95" sounded
mostly interesting, and we were delighted that the tavern
menu offered the same 13 to 14 oz werving, with no sides, for
$22. We split one, and the bartender chuckled at the eating
habits of old people. Two setups came out promptly and were
followed by a nice chunk of meat, perfectly rare rare, one of
the few that I've ever encountered that way, despite our not
having been asked how we wanted it! On top a tangle of tobacco
onions, some which were delightfully crisp, others soaked in
the somewhat salty "au jus." The only downside was a very salty
crust, which the jus helped to wash off. A surprisingly yummy
meal, just enough (I got 8 oz, she about 5 or 6), though
instead of dessert Bonnie asked for a refill on the cheese
crunchies, upon which we got the whole shebang, of which as
before she had the cheesy things, and I ate most of the nuts
and radishes.

I'd had a boring but local beer and had bought her a glass of
the Giesen Pinot Noir 16, quite respectable actually; to reward
the bar staff for their generosity and because we were just
five minutes from the hotel, we had another round of drinks -
a third Giesen for her and a Ransom Pinot Noir 16 for me for
research purposes - this is cherryful and obvious and no better
than what United Airlines serves for free: Giesen was a much
better deal at only $1 more.
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