Friends 2023

 The annual gathering of my high school friends took place in Chautauqua County this year.  We weren't in Westfield though.  We had a house on the lake way over in Ashville.

 Not many bluffs like this on Chautauqua Lake.  The steep drop continues in the water and this is the deepest point of the lake too.

 Nice house, and much bigger than this picture makes it look.

 It is located directly across from Long Point State Park.  Despite having grown up less than 15 miles away, and driving past the entrance at least 500 times in 40 years, I'd never been there.  I kayaked over twice.

People love their fires.

Another place I'd never been that is near the state park is the Roger Tory Peterson Institute.  They had an exhibit of paintings a woman did of crows every day for a year.  Having once lived (reluctantly) with a crow, I found it pretty interesting.

 

160 of the paintings.

 And one close up.

 

A treat was a huge painting of Golden Eagles by Peterson that has always been my favorite from his bird guide.

 

Roger visiting penguins.  He was so skilled at noting differences in individuals, he could probably have given each of these penguin a name.

 He didn't kill this Passenger Pigeon or Ivory Billed Woodpecker to paint them.  He was no John James Audubon.  I don't think I've ever seen either on display anywhere before.  Two new birds on my Lifeless List.

 

And finally, I also went to the Comedy Museum in Jamestown.  This is separate from the Lucille Ball Museum that I did visit 25-years-ago.  Lucy is here too.  This was my favorite picture.  I wondered if Chevy Chase and President Ford spilled their drinks on each other.  That made me laugh.

 I didn't see anything directly involving Bill Cosby other than another comedian talking about a rape joke that fell flat, but they had this picture of Fat Albert with a bunch of other cartoon characters.