2013 Annual Picnic

Over the Memorial Day weekend, more than two dozen Sherlockians gathered at the Hobbs House for our annual Sherlock Holmes Picnic. My wife, Joyce, is a party planner extraordinaire. This year, we cooked burgers and it was her idea that everything on the menu be able to be eaten without cutlery. So we enhanced the burgers with chips, cookies, and Klondike bars and plenty of wet-wipes. No one complained or left hungry, for that matter.

In front of my house there is a 'No Outlet' sign. I just happened to have piece of cardboard-box that fit the sign perfectly. A quick substitution of the Master's Silhouette made it easy to identify where the picnic was happening. It was just one of those details that make hosting a Sherlockian gathering so much fun.

The converted No Outlet sign in front of my house

Since it is said "a picture is worth a thousand words" I will let the pictures tell the story instead of typing all of the words. From the platter of Kitty Winter's Biscuit Barrage to Inspector Lestrade's Lemonade every detail received special attention from Joyce's discerning eyes. A tribute to a house full of Sherlockians, that those same details did not go past unnoticed.

More finger food

Everyone had their own name tag. One of the pet peeves of the party planner extraordinaire is attending a Sherlockian event and no one knows Mary Morstan from Mary Sutherland. Each tag badge featured the new Crew of the Barque LONE STAR logo, their name, the date (May 26, 2013), and 'Annual Crew of the Barque LONE STAR Picnic' on a background of green for keeping the memory so.

The name tag alone will one day be a collector's item.

The Inspector Lestrade's Lemonade was made with more love than a Led Zepplin song lyric and was gone faster than parsley melts into butter on a hot summer day. Details, details, details.

Pucking good refreshment

Mrs. Vickie's potato chips morphed into Queen Victoria's Crisps for the afternoon and made Mrs. Hudson proud. They looked simply marvelous in front of the vintage forty-eight star American flag, very fitting indeed for Memorial Day. From Mrs. Vickie to Mrs. Hudson to Mrs. Joyce we tip our deerstalker to you.

Queen Victoria's own crisps

Writers Carole Nelson Douglas of the Midnight Louie and Irene Adler fame and TD McKinney of the Gay and Lesbian fiction fame were just two of the guests that held court, enthralling others with their tales of earning a living by their wits alone. Mrs. Joyce, in her kitchen, held her own court, impressing all with tales of her culinary genius. Cheers to her, indeed.

From left to right, Pam Mason, Carole Nelson Douglas, Joyce Hobbs
Terri Haugen, and David Haugen's left shoulder

David and Terri Haugen of Seattle, Washington were on their final leg of a multi-month holiday to Europe. Neither fly so getting from Seattle to Europe includes a touch of creative planning that would make Rick Steves proud. I hope our Texas Sherlockian hospitality made a lasting impression. They certainly impressed us with their wit and charm.

David Haugen and me in my library.

Alas, like good things, they come to pass all too soon as did the 2013 Annual Crew of the Barque LONE STAR picnic.

Happy Blogging!