Nicki's Central West End Guide

A wedding at beautiful Bridge Gardens, Long Island

Last week I posted photos taken during our recent trip to Long Island where we combined a family reunion with the wedding of Erica Perth, daughter of dear friends Jill and Rod Perth, to Michael Jaconi at Bridge Gardens in Bridgehampton. It's been my experience that the friendships forged when your children are young are some of the best you'll ever have. That's been the case with the Perths, whom we first met at least thirty-five years ago when they moved onto Pershing Place. The wedding was also a chance to see other long-time friends and former Pershing Place neighbors, Charlotte and Andy Lyons.

The site of the wedding was a public garden in Bridgehampton, a 5-acre tract of beautiful grounds donated to the Peconic Land Trust in 2008 by founders and gardeners Jim Kilpatric and Harry Neyens. They had been cultivating the garden for twenty years before donating it to the Trust.

The bride's sisters, Chelseah, left, with her younger daughter Caroline, and Lauren, right, with her daughter Robin, were babies themselves when the Perths moved from St. Louis to New York, then to Chicago, and finally to Rod's hometown, Los Angeles, where they have lived for many years.

The handsome ring bearer, above, is the bridegroom's nephew, Luca.

The bridesmaids, above.

The stunning bride, Erica, with her father, Rod Perth.

Photo courtesy of Lauren Perth

Rod and Jill Perth with Erica and her husband Michael Jaconi. Erica and Michael, who now live in New York City, both grew up in Los Angeles and met as undergraduates at USC.

I love this sweet moment captured after the ceremony as family photographs were being taken.

The ceremony and tent were nestled at the edge of a lavender garden, close to the Long Island Rail Road tracks. That proximity lent a bit of local flavor to the ceremony when a passing train's whistle blew just as it was time for the couple to say "I do."

At the entry to the tent, lush pots of herbs held place cards, above.

 Another shot of the gardens, above.

Works by seven contemporary artists from the U.S. and Europe are sprinkled throughout the gardens, above and in upper left below. More information about  "Uncommon Ground III" can be found here.

Eight large lavender beds are ringed by germander and boxwood, a stunning sight at dusk.

Thanks to Jill and Rod for allowing me post these photographs from a most beautiful and joyous wedding, and to Erica and Michael for including us in the celebration.

Sounds of summer

One evening last week I stopped to photograph saxophone player Daniel Stark, above, at the Maryland Plaza fountain. 

Sunday, July 29

 A dahlia in Bridge Gardens, Bridgehampton, NY

Audrey Cage heads to the Junior Olympics

It isn't too far-fetched to tell you about Central West Ender Audrey Cage on the day the Summer Olympics open in London. Someday we may be watching her compete in the Olympic Games. Today, Audrey, age 9, is boarding a bus with other hopeful contenders heading to the AAU Junior Olympic Games in Houston, Texas. (Those of you who attended Wednesday night's Movie on the Plaza were introduced to Audrey's fabulous parents, Diann and Lance, during the "CWE Love Stories" feature shown before When Harry Met Sally.)

Audrey attends Dewey International Studies Elementary School, and is a member of the Police Athletic League's (PAL) Track Club. The St. Louis region has a strong tradition of success in track and field events. The PAL Track Club practices 4-5 days a week, sometimes twice a day, on the track at St. Louis University.  Audrey runs the 100m and 200m dash, and excels in the High Jump. She placed 2nd in her age group in the National Qualifier for the High Jump--the top 5 go to the Jr. Olympics. She also made it to the finals in the National Qualifier in both running events, finishing 8th (100m) and 7th (200m), but only the top 5 go to the Jr. Olympics.

The Junior Olympic Games are held from July 28 until August 4. Good luck Audrey! Bring home the Gold!!!

Long Island Getaway

Anyone who grows up near the ocean and moves away misses it---forever, I've learned. For many, many summers we've gone back to Long Island to visit Jim's family and the towns on the south shore that are so familiar to him. The photo of a mother with child in tow, pulling a wagon full of gear, brings back fond memories of vacations spent at the beach with our three children.

A couple of weeks ago we were able to combine a family reunion in Bellport, where Jim's sister and her husband have a house, with a wedding in Bridgehampton for the daughter of dear friends who were Pershing Place neighbors years ago.
A town beach on Bellport Bay, above.

A ferry crosses Bellport Bay, an arm of the Great South Bay, from the town marina to Ho Hum Beach on Fire Island, visible in the distance. The beaches on Fire Island, or any of the beaches on the south shore of Long Island, are absolutely stunning, and in most areas, not crowded at all.

White fences and manicured hedges add to the charm of Bellport, above and below. The town is about 60 miles east (yes, east) of New York City.

I love this stunning variety of hydrangea which was planted everywhere.

 

One day we visited Jim's aunt in Westhampton, and then spent some time at the Parrish Art Museum in Southampton, above and below.

Statuary (not identified) on the grounds of the Parrish Art Museum.

An outdoor display at a florist shop near the Parrish Art Museum, above and below.

Coincidentally, the swimmer caught someone else's eye too, as she showed up in a recent Bill Cunningham piece about the Museum's Summer Gala in the NY Times.

The plantings lining the path to Ralph Lauren's shop in Southampton.

As you might imagine, every display in the courtyard leading to the shop looked as if it was straight out of a perfectly-styled photo shoot, above and below.

 

News from the chicken coop

When Kristen Southworth emails a list of produce available each week from her farm and that of neighboring farmers in Campbell Hill, Illinois, she includes an introductory note, usually having to do with the weather. For a city girl like me these communiques offer a peek into life on the farm, and the challenges and joys that reside there.

Last month Kristen mentioned that the yolks in her hens fabulous eggs were getting paler due to the fact that the chickens were hot. Yesterday she wrote: 

"Well, it's still hot! But we haven't lost a chicken in the past 3 weeks so I am hoping they are all sufficiently acclimated by now. We also got a new calf named Lucille (see above). Her mom deserted her the day after she was born because of the heat stress. We happened to stumble across her, panting, alone, and almost dead in the sun. We threw her in the truck and built her a little shelter on the back of the chicken coop, got the biggest bottle I've ever seen, and she has been getting better ever since. She thinks she is a chicken and is constantly in the chicken coop! One day soon she'll be too big but for now it is just so cute and the chickens pay no mind to her, in fact I think they like her. "

When Kristen sent the photo so I could post if for you, she continued: "It absolutely amazes me how the dogs, cats, chickens, guineas, and the cow get along so lovingly.  It makes one think. An Amish gentleman here has offered to help me get her halter trained so eventually we can hook her up to small carts.  He says cattle are less stubborn than horses, but I'll keep you posted."

If you would like to get on Kristen's list for produce delivered to your door, contact her at shilohhillhens@gmail.com

Summer In The City: Cool events for a hot week!

The Movies on the Plaza series continues with crowd-pleaser "When Harry Met Sally." The fun begins at 7 p.m. with a showing of the latest fashions from  Mary Jane's and clips of CWE Love Stories collected by Frances Thompson, Marketing Director for Maryland Plaza. See the poster for more details and for a list of the wonderful sponsors who support the series. 

 

On Thursday evening all invited to an ice cream social at Rosati-Kain High School, 4389 Lindell at Newstead starting at 5:30 p.m. The CWE landmark institution recently held graduation ceremonies for its 100th class, and has announced plans for expansion of its facilities, so there is much to celebrate. Check out the poster for more details.

Several artists from the immediate area, including Barbara Holtz and Terry Whittle whose studios are in the Pierce Arrow Building, 4814 Washington (above), are part of CAM's City-Wide Open Studios Tour on Sunday. (Saturday's schedule is for tours of studios south of Highway 44.) Other artists who are taking part in the CWE are Lois Ingrum at 4937 Washington, and Gina Grafos, 17 Westmoreland Pl.

For a complete list of artists, a map, and other events connected to the weekend, look here. A Preview Party is scheduled for Tuesday at CAM, 3970 Washington. You can tour the studios on your own or there are both curator-led bike tours and writer-led bus tours to the sites. The final event of the weekend is a BBQ on Sunday evening with food and drink provided by Pappy's Smokehouse and Schlafly beer, with Bluegrass music by Cumberland Gap.

Anything but a dull time in a hot city!

Student displaced by recent fire

Photo from CBSLocal Website

Jim was approached this afternoon by a Chinese undergraduate at SLU (he's a junior Marketing Major) who is looking for a place to live following the big apartment fire on Lindell earlier in the week. Ideally, he would like to find two rooms with a family (to improve his English), one for him and the other for a female Chinese student. Jim spent some time with him and sensed that he is a good guy.

His contact information is: luyaozhao@gmail.com, (314) 498-0316. Thank you.

Sunday, July 22

Trailnet sponsors Literary Tour of CWE tomorrow

Trailnet is sponsoring a Literary Tour of the Central West End tomorrow morning.  Here are the particulars found on the Trailnet website:

Start: Five Guys parking lot 4177 Lindell Blvd. St. Louis, MO 63108

Registration: 9:30 – 10:00 AM,  group bike ride departs at 10:00 AM

Route: 6 mile bike ride on city streets  

Features: In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, St. Louis’s Central West End and a few blocks to the north was home to a surprisingly large number of writers who became part of the American literary tradition. This group bike ride includes visits to select writers’ former homes for short readings of their work, and stops for historic interpretation on a route through some of the most architecturally fascinating neighborhoods in the region.

Fees: $5, $3 children 10 and under

In partnership with: The Central West End Association and St. Louis Public Library