Windy Wednesday

Had to actually turn on the heater last night as it got quite chilly and son still is battling a cough. The cold front moved the humidity out so that is a plus.

The City Club of Cleveland was the host of President Bush Monday for his speech concerning the anniversary of the emancipation of Iraq. Brought back memories of the City Club of Lafayette. My husband and I had a membership and the City Club network across the country is quite extensive. If you belong to one city's then you are welcomed as a guest to the others in the network. Reciprocating membership, they call it.

The City Club of Lafayette is a private club. Not a country club with tennis courts and swimming pools. It is a fine dining and forum for fundraising and speeches kind of club. We joined to have access to their annual lecture series and to have a nice quiet dining facility to bring visiting family and friends.

They have a daily lunch buffet open to the public and frequented by all the office workers from downtown, as that is where the City Club is located. They are pros at setting out a fine buffet. Good southern food. Good Cajun dishes.

Anyway, tickets to the speakers series were in big demand by the membership. As soon as the series was announced each season, the member had to get right on the telephone and reserve seats or lose out on the chance. We had the opportunity to meet some interesting people in receiving lines and listen to what they had to say.

We listened to F. Lee Bailey during the O.J. Simpson trial, we heard from William F. Buckley and his thoughts on conservatism, Charlton Heston spoke of Hollywood and then his presidency of the NRA. Those are three that readily spring to mind.

Membership didn't equate to free tickets, mind you, but we did get a small, token discount on them. The forums were always in the setting of a welcoming reception/cocktails, dinner, speech, that kind of thing.

We also enjoyed the dining experience at The City Club. We liked to go for holiday celebrations - Easter brunch with the Easter Bunny for the kiddos, Santa's visits, etc. We often went to brunch after church. The atmosphere was always inviting to families and all generations were represented. The adults could inbibe in champagne at brunch or mimosas, or blood Mary's, etc and the kids could enjoy a Shirley Temple or Roy Rogers.

The City Club was a great site for fundraising. I helped raise funds for the Childrens Museum of Acadiana when I was working to help open that facility and also raised funds for the professional woman's group to which I belonged. I was very active in our local chapter of American Business Womens Association. I held all the offices of the chapter at some time and one year voted Woman of the Year. Made some good friends there. I remained active when I left the outside working world when son was born. I learned all about the fine art of networking and making contacts.

Days gone by.


"The optimist says the cup is half full. The pessimist says the cup is half empty. The child of God says my cup runneth over." - Unknown