Poem for Friday, Kensington Antique Row, Crazy Rich Asians

I Opened a Book
By Julia Donaldson

I opened a book and in I strode.
Now nobody can find me.
I’ve left my chair, my house, my road,
My town and my world behind me.

I’m wearing the cloak, I’ve slipped on the ring,
I’ve swallowed the magic potion.
I’ve fought with a dragon, dined with a king
And dived in a bottomless ocean.

I opened a book and made some friends.
I shared their tears and laughter
And followed their road with its bumps and bends
To the happily ever after.

I finished my book and out I came.
The cloak can no longer hide me.
My chair and my house are just the same,
But I have a book inside me.

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For reasons not worth getting into, I went to Kensington on Thursday after breakfast -- okay fine, the only way to catch a Nincada in Pokemon Go is to complete the research quest to find five bug-type Pokemon, but it's very rare to get that quest from a Pokestop, and someone I knew said he got it at a stop in a park in Kensington that morning. I was just going to stop at the park, spin the Pokestop, and go home, but it was right near Antique Row, which I had somehow never visited despite having lived in the county for many years and driven right past it on the way to University Boulevard.

So since it was a gorgeous day, I decided to take a walk. I looked at books and glassware and jewelry and dolls and rare collectibles and all kinds of fun things in about 10 stores. Plus I visited the historic train station, which has a B&O Railroad station master's house though that's only open when the farmer's market is taking place in the parking lot, and the Antique Row tea shop though I didn't wait in line for food. I don't know why it took me so long to visit but I will certainly be back. Here are a few photos, including a train reflected in the bookstore window and the Maryland National Guard:

















Because I hadn't had lunch by the time I left Kensington after 4 p.m., I stopped for Indian food at Mirch Masala in the mall, so I wasn't very hungry for dinner. We watched Crazy Rich Asians, which is finally streaming, and it is every bit as great as I was told; I'm rarely a fan of any rom-coms, but this is only a rom-com superficially in its structure, it's a family drama with a lot of funny moments, a stellar cast, gorgeous views of Singapore and the locations in Malaysia that doubled for it, and lots of interesting women who I wish had talked more about their lives and less about their men!