Over the weekend we celebrated our friend Stephanie’s birthday by stepping back in time for tea and cookies at Roedde House Museum. We also got to listen to a live reading by Bill Richardson from his new book of poetry.
You will find the house at 1415 Barclay Street in the West End of Vancouver. The house was built in 1893 for the family of Gustav Roedde, the city’s first bookbinder.
My favourite part of the tour (besides getting to indulge in tea and cookies) was of course the kitchen!
Mrs. Roedde was under 5″ tall and her counters and sink were very low. Here is Reg demonstrating just how low they are.
Is there anything more charming than an antique kitchen?
Truly the heart of the home.
The elegance of Roedde House Museum is quite lovely.
Here is Stephanie showcasing one of the many sewing machines of the house.
Here is the doll the kids who come on the tour call Chucky because she freaks them out.
This stained glass window is original to the house and when the children were bad they had to press their noses against it and stay there, as Reg is demonstrating.
Bill Richardson, formerly the voice of CBC’s “The Roundup” (AKA The Sad Goat), read from his short stories and poems from his book The First Little Bastard to Call Me Gramps: Poems of the Late Middle Ages to a packed house. My favourite was the poem “The M Word” referring to the first time a woman is called ma’am.
Stephanie even gave us a tour of the grounds beside the house on a dark wet day in Vancouver before we headed off for hot beverages and a long talk.
Happy Birthday Stephanie! Thank you for introducing us to a piece of Vancouver history and a literary afternoon.
So cool! What a fun afternoon. I love Bill Richardson. I received his book for Christmas and identify with a lot of the poems, LOL!
You would have LOVED his reading Debra! I wish you could have been there and yes, it was lots of fun.
That doll really is a little freaky. Yikes.
Isn’t she freaky? I am not a fan of dolls!