How Does an Anglophile Properly Celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee?

Queen Elizabeth II's Coronation*

      What's all the hoopla and what is a Diamond Jubilee anyway?  For Queen Elizabeth II it means that for 60 of her 86 years she's been the Head of State of Great Britain and the Commonwealth nations of Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and several islands around the world.  It means that from June 2-5 during The Central Weekend she'll be honored with parties,

Queen City Cookies...Eat. Smile. Repeat.

      Findlay Market is known for showcasing local food artisans and their specialties.  We chanced upon Queen City Cookies a few weeks ago while showing off the area to some relatives.  The shop has the feel of one located in a resort area or a European town.  Peggy Shannon is the pastry artist who formed the idea from her passion for baking and the fine arts.  All of that love shows in the store décor, visual presentation, packaging, and of course...the cookies.  

Customized Cookies

      Customized cookies are the feature.  The highest quality buttery shortbreads are iced with dark chocolate, white chocolate (ivory colored), or fairy dust (glistening porcelain white) highlighted with white or chocolate piping.  There are over 460 antique molds from Peggy's collection to customize your order for every occasion.  Frida Kahlo was the inspiration for Frieda's Creations (they use the European spelling) with assorted colorful images

A Real Nice Clambake

This was a real nice clambake,

We're mighty glad we came.

The vittles we et

Were good, you bet,

The company was the same.

Our hearts are warm, our bellies are full,

And we are feeling prime.

This was a real nice clambake,

And we all had a real good time.

                                from "Carousel"

                                                       lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein

      While Hurricane Irene moved up the east coast, Carole and Tom were preparing to host a clambake on the east coast of Cincinnati.  They own and operate the 1861 Inn Bed & Breakfast in Batavia (the link is in our sidebar), a historic and inviting establishment that served as the setting for their afternoon and evening dinner party.   

Those Real Nice Clams

      When we arrived a little late, they were in the kitchen making last minute preparations.  All eyes were on the steamer pot filled with chicken, sausage, and mussels,—topped off with the clams.  Carole asked that we

From the Ashes Rises a Phoenix Party

The Phoenix Party Hosts, Karen and Tom

      We had plans to meet Karen and Tom for dinner back in April.  The night before we received a call saying that they would still like to get together, but they'd like to get Chinese take out from Red Pepper and meet at the Residence Inn.  What did they have in mind?  It turned out that their garage had burned since we were last together and they were having to stay in the hotel until the smell left their home.  The take out was wonderful as we enjoyed one another's company in the hotel breakfast area.  

      All was going well when Tom announced that they had a proposal.  After thinking about their misfortune, they had decided to throw a party to celebrate the reconstruction and they wanted to hire me to come up with a theme and the decorations.  My mind started to drift to visions of flames and Atlanta burning in Gone WIth The Wind.  We were in the South (Kentucky), but I don't think that was what they had in mind.  I blurted out "the flight of the phoenix" and the four of us thought it was something to work with.  And so —we had a theme!

Phoenix Party Entrance

      I met with Tom about a month later to go over the design concept.  My proposal was to use Chinese silk kites in a phoenix shape along with paper lanterns.  They had been thinking of a caterer and had decided