I converted this weekend, already long due to having Fridays off in the summer, to an extra-long weekend, using a vacation day for Thursday so Rhonda and I could make a quick overnight getaway to the excellent Grounds for Sculpture. The weekend was otherwise populated with a graduation party yesterday and hanging out with old friends last night. There are baby back ribs on the smoker as we speak.
Grounds for Sculpture
As I mentioned in an earlier post, Rhonda and I finally nipped away for an overnight stay near the Grounds for Sculpture. We took the boys back in 2019, and after a big lunch at Meatheadz Cheesesteaks, we were no match for the day’s heat. Rhonda and I have always meant to go back.
I always wondered about the place before we took the boys, too; I’d see signs for it on 295 on the way home from visiting my grandfather in Milford, NJ. I had developed an appreciation for sculpture working at the Berman Museum at Ursinus; they had a notable collection of Lynn Chadwick pieces displayed across campus, and even at a private school nearby. As told to me by the collection manager, the museum had a very valuable collection of his maquettes, too.
Grounds for sculpture is especially enjoyable because much of the art is displayed outdoors (there are indoor galleries as well). The scope of the art ranges from small pieces on pedestals to life-size installations of humans lazing at a picnic. There are many installations that are massive as well. It’s a very cool place to wander around irrespective of your fluency in sculpture.
Bellview Winery’s Gruner Veltliner
We hit some wineries this weekend, but one special treat was a bottle of our local Bellview Winery’s Gruner Veltliner, which I picked up to take over a friend’s house. Rhonda and I polished it off in short order. It’s an Austrian grape known for producing a crisp, dry white.
Watermelon Salad Hack (Serious Eats)
Speaking of the party last night, I wanted to bring a watermelon salad along, to only because watermelon is delicious, but because I saw this trick on Serious Eats and wanted to experiment with the technique. You macerate the melon with a small amount of granulated sugar for a half hour before tossing your salad together. The fruit did shed a fair amount of liquid during its stay in the colander. Everyone seemed to like the salad. Sadly, I took no pics.