Since my last column two weeks ago I did get to achieving a couple of my goals. I did get to my home in Callicoon Center with my friend Joan Whelan. We got there on Thursday, the 17th and returned on Saturday afternoon.

There are two things Joan likes to do when she comes to the country with me. One is attending a Callicoon Center band concert in the summer and the other is riding home by way of route 97 from Callicoon to Port Jervis in the fall.

Route 97 is one of the most scenic routes in the United States and having such close access to it and not taking advantage of it, could be considered a crime to nature enthusiasts. It winds along the Delaware River high above it and includes Hawks Nest in Sparrowbush, an even higher viewing point. This time we needed to return to New Jersey sooner than this route would allow.

Thursday night we ate at Farm House Catskills (formerly Hills Country Inn) and had a scrumptious brook trout dinner. The Inn has a bar open to the public serving from Wed. through Sun. from 5:30 on, opening a little earlier on weekends. They are closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. There is a light menu at the bar on Wednesdays from 5:30 to closing. Brunch is served on Fridays from 11:30 to 3, and on Saturdays and Sundays from 11 to 3. Dinners Thursdays through Sundays 5:30 to 9. Reservations are not required.

On Friday Joan and I ventured to Callicoon and had lunch at Peppino's Restaurant on Lower Main Street where we had two huge spaghetti and (for me meat balls and for Joan meat sauce) dinners, that with the take-outs were enough for three meals each.

Another thing I wanted to accomplish was to make reservations at Siesta Key in Sarasota for the two weeks right before Thanksgiving. I did manage to get accommodations on one of the upper floors with a front balcony BUT did I manage to get someone to go with me? Read all about it in my next column.