You Scream, I Scream, We All Scream for . . .

ICE CREAM!!!
:-)

A friend from California was in town for a few days for a special event that was organized by a dear local friend and former colleague. I knew their schedule was very busy, but we hoped to get together over an ice cream cone at the Creamery. The Penn State Berkey Creamery, to be specific. (A full list of flavors may be found here.)

The northeastern U.S. was in the middle of a weather event known as a "bomb cyclone," whatever the heck that is. It ended up leaving one million people without power, primarily in points northeast of us, such as Massachusetts. We did get rain in central PA, and it spun around us counter-clockwise: it would seem like it was leaving, and then it would come right back again. It was an all-day rain; in fact, a nor'easter.

So my pal Tiny Tiger and I got in the car and went to town. I had my pink umbrella and my pink tunes box, so I was ready to walk in the rain. I took a quick 10-minute stroll through the Arboretum, and aside from a few workers in raincoats, the place was mostly deserted. Raindrops danced upon the waters in the new bird and pollinator garden.

From there, we went to the Creamery, where we met our friends. During Covid times, there is no indoor seating at the Creamery, but there are some tables and chairs outside. Some of them are even under roof, which helps when it's raining, or even raining HARD, as it did for a while.

My friends were in the middle of a very busy day, with a presentation and panel discussion planned at Penn State for the evening on the topic of interrupting police misconduct. The names of some of the panelists are nationally known.

The weather was chilly and wet, and as it turns out, sitting outdoors in such weather wasn't everyone's cup of tea. So they grabbed their ice cream and headed back to the hotel where they could eat it in warmer environs. For myself, the flavor I wanted (cinnamon caramel apple, an October flavor) was not available for hand-dipping. So I was practically forced to buy a half-gallon box. Yeah, I know. Poor, poor, pitiful me! :-)

My friend from California mentioned how much she enjoys the adventures of Tiny Tiger. And much to her surprise, I said, "HE'S HERE!!" And I whipped that Tiger out, so she could coo over him and take his picture. (As she tried to explain to her friend that yes, this Tiger was a bona fide Internet CELEBRITY.) Oh, T. Tiger loved all the fuss!

After a short but chaotic visit, and a couple of really nice, big hugs, suddenly, everyone was gone, and I headed back to the car with my ice cream box in my daysack. When I got to the car, I looked for my keys in my bag, and I thought to check on my Tiger too.

For a minute, I couldn't find him, and I was distraught! Had he ended up in my friend's bag by accident? Then - whew! - he turned up. He had just climbed up a little bit into a pocket he doesn't usually go in. So all's well that ends well! And to top it off, we came home with ice cream, yay!

My photo for this day is a picture of the ice cream half-gallons for sale at the Berkey Creamery. Do you see that one door that is all misty? That's the one I just opened to take out the box I ended up bringing home with me.

I picked two songs for this day. One is for the ice cream: John Denver, with Sweet Surrender. The other is for poor, poor pitiful me, the girl who just HAD to buy a whole box, because they wouldn't sell her a cone! Here is Linda Ronstadt, with Poor Poor Pitiful Me.