Memorial Day Weekend is off to a great start! We spent most of Saturday with Shawn and Jess and it was, as expected, an awesome day! We started off at the main Troy Hill Art House – La Hütte Royal – which just reopened this month after being under refurb for the last year and a half. I was there many years ago with Corey and Kara so I was interested to see what all had changed.

They don’t allow any pictures or video, and usually I will try to be sneaky but we had the same docent as we did a few weeks ago when Henry and I toured Lighthouse Darkhouse (Zach I think is his name?) and I really like and respect this guy so I left my phone in my purse which was hung on a hook as soon as we entered the house.

There were two other people on the tour with us – a quiet couple who seemed cool – and a new docent-in-training who was so cute and cool, I loved him and his calming presence. He was wearing really cool patchwork pants which I feel is necessary to add, it’s an important detail that I must remember always.

I also had to laugh though because before we left the house, I jokingly said, “Maybe I can sneak pictures with my little Kodak!” which was hanging off my purse.

“That makes a shutter sound though, doesn’t it?” Henry pointed out. And then as we were all standing on the porch waiting for Shawn and Jess, Zach goes, “Is that a camera?!” so then he and the other docent were marveling over it as I explained that it came in a Blind Box but yes it actually works and it takes video too! Seriously, this thing is so hilariously fun to me for such a simple object.

OK, so the house was ALMOST the same but there were some new rooms, including one that used to be the private room that they used as a office (“We moved it down the street to one of the other houses,” Zach explained and I almost added, “Yeah the one that you let HENRY PEE IN.”) but now is completely covered in records – floor, walls, and ceiling – with an entire kitchen counter/sink tilted in the air with mechanical arms bowing some crazy kitchen sink-cum-string instrument. It was incredible and I whispered to Henry, “We need one of these.”

“WHERE?” he asked incredulously.

And there is a basement now which I don’t think there was previously! The upstairs was mostly the same but I feel like it might have been rearranged, I don’t know, I can’t remember. But here is the post from when I was first there with Corey and Kara maybe 10 years ago!

Troy Hill Field Trip!

I really enjoyed the experience this time because Zach is such a knowledgeable and friendly docent — you know he’s basically there to make sure people don’t get unruly, desecrate the art, steal things, get hurt, etc. — but his presence is never looming or intrusive. He’s very easy-going and I felt like asking him if he wanted to grab some coffee with us afterward but he was already on to his next tour at one of the other houses.

And the other docent is going to be great too! We had some great convos with him in the sculpture garden, talking about the Bayernhof and experimental French bands. I told him about my doorbell playing Kraftwerk and how recently two people came to my house trying to shill windows and they were VISIBLY ALARMED / NOT AMUSED by the doorbell tune and that pissed me off. Like, no I can’t buy windows from your un-fun ass because I don’t own this house but even I could, I WOULDN’T due to your obvious disdain!

Afterward, we went to the Modern Cafe for an early dinner + LOTS OF YAPPING.

Henry was so focused on taking this selfie that he forgot to smile.

I’m still getting the hang of this Kodak, OK?!

The music they were playing at Modern Cafe was god tier. Yes, Howard Jones, The Cure, Crowded House – it was just a wall of jams!

We totally overstayed our welcome there but I didn’t feel too bad because it wasn’t crowded (at one point, aside from some bar flies, we were the only people taking up a table) but it did get to the point where I could have ordered dinner part 2 – chatting makes me hungry!

I swear we could never run out of things to talk about with Jess and Shawn. And the crazy part is that I don’t feel emotionally or mentally spent afterwards like I often do after having to “be on” for any length of time out in the wild and I think it’s because…I’m not being “on,” I’m just being “me.” That’s all I ever want!

I’m so glad that we are doing a better job at hanging out more regularly! I have a bad habit of only seeing a lot of my friends just when I have parties, but then I don’t get to talk to everyone like I want to so while it’s great to “see” people, the actual connection isn’t there.

This midlife crisis has me reassessing and adjusting everything in my life, I swear! I never thought I’d be pushing 50 and over here trying to break out of comfort zones and routines ON PURPOSE. But it’s been so fun and fulfilling!

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