No Need To Get Fancy

Kelly's Restaurant, Rt. 9, Amherst

Lunch is for the birds

Menu Mural

Kelly's great staff

The Wise Bloggers

This is only the second time Sarah and I have managed to have lunch together since starting Ladies Who Lunch--so much for the fantasy of endless free time to hang out. We decided to lunch at Kelly's Restaurant on Rt. 9 in Amherst just a mile or so from each of our homes. We decided we had no need to "go fancy". Kelly's is a townie breakfast and lunch spot with no pretensions. However it recently went through a decor uplift with painted murals by local painter and artist Becca Wheeler.

Search Results

1. 
   

   Becca Wheeler's Painted Whimsy: Decorative Painting

   
   

   Becca Wheeler creates beautiful works of art on your walls or of your favorite pieces of furniture. Becca will also teach you and your friends how do bring ...
   www.beccawheeler.com/

   
   

   
   

   In the photos you will see some of Becca's work as well as some of Kelly's cooks and wait staff as well as Sarah and me enjoying our time together.

   
   

Loving My Work

Funny...I just read my mom's last post and she also went to Esselon. I met my friend Kathy (Mireault) Foster for lunch at Esselon. I have known Kathy since 7th grade - so for over 25 years!

We met for a working lunch and Esselon has great coffee and free Wi-Fi.  We were meeting so I could help her with a business plan for a business she plans on opening. It was really fun to hear about the business (an indoor gym for kids). We worked on the financial plan for the business so that she could show it to a potential landlord. At one point she asked me "don't you hate doing this" and I replied "no, I love doing this - this is what I love to do".

Doing something that I love - helping people start or manage their businesses - makes me wonder why I didn't start my own consulting business sooner. It is especially fun to work with someone like Kathy who is so passionate about kids fitness and providing a fun, clean, and safe environment for families with young children. I commend anyone who wants to work with kids full time - I sometimes wonder how I manage to handle one (my 10 year old son Liam), never mind twenty or thirty kids at a time!

Here is a picture of us after our lunch (not the greatest, but the best of 5).

And my best advice for the day is to try to find something that you love to do - because this is the path to success!

Lunch is the Antidote to February

February may be the shortest month but it sure feels never ending this winter. But having lunch with friends are some of the bright spots. A few weeks ago I picked up my dear friend Sue Thrasher at Five Colleges Inc. where she works as the Schools Partnership Coordinator. We ventured over to Hadley to have lunch at Esselon. Esselon is a favorite place to hang out for breakfast, lunch or just a 'cupa.

Esselon Artisan Green Coffee Roasters | Premium Coffee Beans and Teas

Esselon artisan green coffee roasters offers fresh roasted premium coffee beans and quality teas, both retail and wholesale. www.esselon.com/ They have the best coffee in the Valley in my opinion.

Here you will see some snaps of Sue and an assortment of Esselon views.

Lunching with Fran

Lucky for me that many of my friends are out of or between full time employment and are happy to have lunch with me and talk about what we're currently doing. This Monday I had lunch with an old friend, Fran Van Trese who I initially met when she was on the Town of Amherst Redevelopment Authority. Fran's no longer doing that but she is serving on the town's transportation committee and on the Advisory Committee to the Norwottuck Rail Trail. This week she's off on a trip to Africa to see wildlife. We lunched in downtown Amherst at the Monkey Bar. Here's a picture from the lunch as well as the business card from my almost ready to open B & B.