Adieu, Adieu, Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow!

Due to unforeseen circumstances, Dan and I will soon be leaving our position as the Innkeepers here at The Garden Gables Inn. While we wish we could stay here forever, immersed in the magic of The Berkshires and this beautiful Inn, we have decided to move back home and spend more time with our families.

Thank you so much to everyone who took a moment out of their day to read my silly ramblings and stories. Thank you everyone who stayed here and helped make it such a great place. Thank you to everyone who had such kind words about Dan and I and the Inn, and voiced them either in person, or on Trip Advisor, or in emails. Thank you so much for making this the experience that it has been!

While I'm sad to leave my little blog, I'm very pleased with all the positive comments that I have received from you, my readers, and that there are plans for the Innkeepers Blog to continue. There will be a whole new set of ramblings and discoveries and recommendations that I think you're going to love.

Again, thank you so much readers, guests, and friends. It's been a great ride!

With Much, Much Love,
~Brande N.

Regarding my love for Technology

Please, dear readers, forgive me for my unexcused absence. It's been a whirlwind of craziness here at the Inn. Summer preparation is in full swing and BOY is there a lot to do! In addition to all the usual summer prep, miscellaneous this-and-thats [broken lamps, clogged showerheads, order placements and pick-ups, new bed deliveries and set-ups, power outages, and the pool situation, just to name a few] keep coming up here and there that need to be attended to. So unfortunately, there isn't a whole lot of time for blogging in between all the chaos!

But I haven't forgot about you, I promise. In fact, for the last week or so, I've been working on a neat little slideshow about the aforementioned pool. As we've been repairing and painting it, we've also been setting out the pool furniture and putting in an entirely brand new fence. In short, we're getting it prepped for the big opening this weekend. Each day there's a bit more paint, a few more chairs, and a couple feet more fence. It's fun to watch the transformation. The pool is still on schedule to open this weekend (knock on wood!), so as of this morning I was almost done with my photo set and it was going to be a great post.

Also on the camera with the pool pictures were photos of the aforementioned dining guide, and photos of my birthday and the day that Dan and I spent with friends and family who visited us from NY. I wanted to upload the pictures of the dining guide so that I could [finally] blog about it, so I put the memory card in my computer and get ready to start the post. Then I realized that I had only taken pictures of the construction of the book and not the final product. So I took the memory card out of my computer (being very certain to use the "Safely Remove Hardware" feature), and put it back in my camera. I went out to the Guest Pantry, took a few pictures of the Dining Guide and a few more of the pool, and went back to my computer.

When I put the memory card in, however, all of the photos had somehow been corrupted. Everything was lost. The pool photos, the making-of-the-dining-guide photos, all of the pictures from my birthday, everything. It was all gone. Ugh.

I'll still do a post about both the pool and the dining guide, but unfortunately they won't be as complete.

Isn't Technology just grand?

With Love,
~Brande N.

Local Intelligence

I'm a chronic Google-er. I'll admit it.


"I can't get this jar open!"...Google it!

"I need new shoes." ...Google it!

"What does 'eidetic' mean?" ...Google it!*


From my habit of over-Googling I've found that the answers I'm looking for often come from the same source again and again and again.

Example?

Rural Intelligence.

Time and again as I'm researching events and attractions in the Berkshires, Rural Intelligence ends up on my Google Radar, providing me with the answers I need. For example, when I was looking up photos and additional info on Rubiner's Cheesemongers in Great Barrington, I found this article, which talks about Rubiner's "Oysters and Champagne Fridays". Another time I was doing a bit of research on The Mount, and found this article which, in addition to offering a spectacularly beautiful photo of the estate in winter, highlights an interesting event happening on-location. Oh, and this article too, which speculates on The Mount's reputation for being haunted, and mentions its recent filming for the Sci-Fi Channel's show Ghost Hunters. Spooky!

Why exactly does Rural Intelligence keep coming up on my radar? The answer is simple: it's a website focused on only 4 counties in the New England area, one of which is Berkshire county. That means that of all the articles on the website, there is a 1 in 4 chance of an attraction relevent to me being featured.

Needless to say, I've become more and more convinced that this is an excellent local resource. I've even bookmarked it, and now browse it periodically looking for updates and insights. (I won't lie, it helps that Rural Intelligence hosts 3 different blogs, too. We all remember my blog addiction, right?)

Anyway, I think that you [as a reader of my blog and apparent lover of the Berkshires] should head over to Rural Intelligence and do some poking around. Whether your coming to the Berkshires for a special event, food, nature, culture, or even just to visit family, I'm sure you'll find something helpful. Have fun!

With Love,
~Brande N.

*Ok, so "Let Me Google That For You" might be a little harsh, but I can't help but find it hilarious that someone actually created that website. An odd and cranky form of genius, I think.

Haut Couture, Eggs, and Whimsy

It's a documented and confessed fact that I love reading blogs. When my blog addiction began, it was with blogs focused on environmental awareness. I would read each of these 10 or so blogs every day. And while the messages were inspiring and enlightening, the fact of the matter is that the truth in those messages was heavy, startling, and often depressing.

I went through a burn-out for a month or so when, after realizing that everything I do has an impact on the world around me, I just gave up. I bought useless plastic gadgets, I quit recycling, I ate Mcdonald's, and I couldn't care less if my carrots were organic. I was exhausted. Dan recommended that I take a break from reading all those blogs in an effort to let my brain recuperate, and read something else instead. "What else could be worth reading?" I thought.

So I spent sometime skimming various blogs and eventually started bookmarking some about cooking, photography, fashion, comedy, and even parenting. Of these, the topic that became most absorbing was fashion. I, the t-shirt-and-jeans-girl who asks for the wash-and-wear hair cut, was reading fashion blogs. Over time, I realized that I like fashion because it is expressive, artistic, and dramatic. Very much like Theatre which has always been my first love.

One of the blogs I read covers everything from reality-TV shows about fashion (Like Project Runway) to critiques of celebrity red carpet ensembles, to reviews of the latest collections being debuted by various designers.

Today's post on said blog covered the Fall 2009 collection by Agatha de la Ruiz Prada, who is known for her whimsical and dramatic (though not exactly wearable) designs. This particular collection made me laugh and I knew I had to share it with you.

I would have called this the Bed and Breakfast Collection.

Although, I'm still trying to figure out that last one. The first is a picnic blanket or tablecloth, the second an entire egg, but what is she? An oddly shaped raspberry? A strawberry?

As I said, these dresses are certainly not wearable. But if I did procure one, I'd style it with a charm bracelet. Not just any charm bracelet...

...but this one. Which I actually own.

And now I'm hungry.

With Love,
~Brande N.

Please Excuse the Interruption...

Recently I've noticed that the template for this here blog is pretty stinkin' common. In an effort to remedy this situation, I'll be spending the next few days manipulating the images, layout, code, and content to hopefully inject a bit more personality.
So if you come back and everything is upside down, black and white, gaudy, green and written in Greek-- do not fret! 'Tis only temporary, and I'll be back very soon with a spiffy (or at least spiffier) new layout to show off.

Until then, have a great weekend!

With Love,
~Brande N.

Happy Holidays!

Hello everyone!
The Inn will be closed for the holidays this week, and Dan and I are headed back to NY to visit with family. I'll be back and blogging on the 28th, hopefully with some fun new stories to share. Happy holidays, travel safely, and make some memories!

With Love,
~Brande N.

A Secret, Shhh!

This week revealed to me a secret that I only wish I had known before becoming an Innkeeper.

It’s not a secret that for nearly all Inns, the busy season is summer. The weather is beautiful; theatre, art, and music abound; swimming pools beckon; and all manner of outdoor fun is in its prime.

Winter is the ugly stepsister of Summer. No one wants to travel on icy, snowy roads; it’s cold outside; the kids have school; and influenza is lurking in the shadows, waiting for you to let down your guard and catch just the slightest chill so it can pounce on you like some vicious jungle cat and spend the next 4 weeks eating you alive (graphic, I know, but influenza is mean like that).

Reasons like that are why Dan and I spent the last 5 days with only one guest in house. The first three were spent with a nice young couple, and the next two with a couple of ladies enjoying a bit of time away from family and home. And while these folks may have had to brave the risk of vicious viruses and damp, chilly, yucky weather, they certainly didn’t have any issues with getting a reservation to any of the restaurants in town. Nor did they have to worry about any loud, boisterous guests in the room next door. There was no fear of having their TVs too loud or any guilt for parking in the best spots in our lot.

On top of that, being the only guest gives you the opportunity to ask for a personalized breakfast. Now, don’t get me wrong, we have an amazing breakfast to start with. But there’s something great about being able to say, “You know, I don’t really like granola and I’m just not feeling like an omelet today. Can you make me oatmeal instead?” And Dan and I can say, “Sure, why not?” because we’ve got time now to whip that up. With all 17 rooms filled, that’s quite a bit more difficult. It lets Dan and I get a bit creative and the guest gets to eat a breakfast that is exactly what they wanted.

Not to mention the fact that room rates are lowest during the winter. And if you can manage to avoid weekends and come on a weekday, they’re even lower.

I’ve learned now that every day comes with a handful of lessons. And every week comes with a car and several suitcases full of them. This week, the lesson is: when going on vacation, it’s worth the oatmeal to risk the influenza.


With Love,
~Brande N.

An introduction, of a sort.

I read blogs. A Lot. It’s an addiction. If you were to peek into my Yahoo account and view my bookmarks, you’d see an entire folder called “Blogs”. You’d see that that folder contains about 25 different blogs, and you’d see that I read every one of them every single day. Some of them I even several times a day in desperate, grasping hope of an update. Like I said, it’s an addiction.

I read a lot of books too. And the ones that always grab me are the ones that throw me headfirst into the action. “Johnny lept from the bow of the ship, terrified of what might await him in the murky waters below…” Those are my kinda books. And while I won’t be jumping off the bows of any ships as an Innkeeper (hopefully), there are times in this new job when I feel like I am.

I think that’s sort of the way I like things though. When I first learned how to waitress it was because our best waitress called in sick just before lunch. My boss looked at me and said, “So Brande, you’re going to be my waitress today.” I was thrown headfirst into the lunch hour, stunned and utterly clueless, left to take orders, bus tables, deliver sodas, and make more mistakes than I care to think about. But I learned. And because of those struggles, I became a darn good waitress.

So while I have no experience of any kind in Inn Management, I know the struggles and silly mistakes I will inevitably make will be good for me. It’s sort of like going to the dentist. It usually hurts and I always want to go take a nap afterwards, but it’s good for me. And it’s gonna make me a darn good Innkeeper.


So here’s to making mistakes, learning from them, and, above all else, keeping an online record of every last one of them. I’m sure I’ll have plenty of stories to tell. So stick with me, keep reading, and let’s have some fun, shall we?


With love,
-Brande N.