My first communion was Sunday, April 3rd, 1988, at a sunrise Easter service in Kingston, Jamaica. I had traveled, at sixteen, with the Rochester Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, to tour the island, with host-family lodgings, and concerts booked in several cities. I remember the organist playing the first few bars, and then Edwin, the young violist beside me, blessed with perfect pitch, beginning to squirm, and at some point everyone in my pew stood up and walked down the aisle, so I followed suit and found myself, mouth agape, accepting the Eucharist. It seemed perfectly normal to me – when in Rome, and all – but some time later, I was informed – and this has been confirmed - that this is not a rite normally extended to the uninitiated.

My mother’s family is Jewish, but not the temple-going sort, and my father’s parents were Catholic and Episcopalian, so you might think I’d have known better, but all of this meant that Sundays began as a free day for me. No school, no cello lessons, just a time of rest and leisure, but when I started waiting tables, Sundays often meant working brunch, nobody’s favorite shift after a late Saturday. Or brunch AND dinner, oof! At age nineteen, I had a gaggle of Irish friends working the restaurants on Fire Island, and they dubbed me ‘The Pope of the pool table’, or just ‘Pope’ for short. Young Ciaran would say: “Hey Pope! What’s the craic? You working a double down at The Hideaway today?” And if it was Sunday, my answer was often “Yes, Merch, I am indeed, maybe with a quick, baptismal refresher in the sacred Atlantic between shifts.” They called me Pope for years, and some still do.

When Daniel and I went looking for a storefront for the wine shop five years ago, we viewed the spot on Telegraph that would become Julie’s. (We miss you already, Julie’s!) Nick from Nick’s Pizza on Shattuck, hoping to expand, had built out a kitchen with a brick oven before surrendering his lease, and we toyed then with the idea of opening a combination wine shop and bakery. We thought we might call it ‘The Sacrament’, though I think now the name would play better in the state capitol.

We’ve always wanted to sell bread with our wine, so when baker Lee Magner asked if we’d help distribute his freshly baked artisanal loaves, we were thrilled. Lee’s Brown Bag Bread Club accepts online orders until noon on Thursdays for Friday afternoon pick-up at OAKLAND YARD. That’s right now if you’re quick – click here! These days, I must confess, the tomato toast is my holy communion, and holy communion season is now in full swing in California.

ALSO, beginning this weekend, Oakland Yard will again be OPEN SUNDAYS, from 12 noon until 6pm. For better or worse, we’re getting back in the swing of things, and we’re ready to serve you, now six days a week. So, do what you do on Sunday morning - I’ll be treating myself to an Early Girl on a Brown Bag toast - and then come on down and buy some wine.

We’re open for CURBSIDE PICKUP TUESDAYS through SUNDAYS from NOON until 6pm. Weekly Bouquets are also available from Flower & Forage! Orders accepted Friday- Wednesday for Thursday pickups of fresh flowers here at OAKLAND YARD.

Cheers,

Max