We’re departing from Bayonne, New Jersey for a cruise to Bermuda with The Yankee’s parents (see them in the background, there?). See you suckers fine people soon.
family
5
Jun 11
On a boat
4
Jun 11
Other photos
We’ve found our summer home:
Now someone just needs to tell the people that presently live there …
At any rate, this will be our view:
The Yankee, family friends John and Kate, my lovely in-laws Nancy and Bob and the irrepressible Wendy:
This is at the delicious Tutti’s Ristorante in Westport. The place is practically under an interstate and the building has the feel of an old mom-and-pop video rental store, but the food is sooooo delicious. We went there Thursday.
30
May 11
Happy Memorial Day
Many of the men and women in my family have bravely fought for this country of ours, but we’ve been lucky enough that they’ve all come home. A few were wounded in action, but in so far as I know, they all made it back home dating back at least to World War II.
I remember once, as a child, when my great-grandmother told me that I had uncles who fought in the Civil War. This was big news, impressed as I was at that age by the Civil War. My mother rightfully pointed out that lots of people had family members in that particular war. But my great-grandmother might have watched the Battle of Bull Run as an onlooker. (To a little kid she was very, very old.)
So, while I can’t say today I’m thinking of friends or family members who’ve paid with their lives, I thought often of my trip to Gettysburg with friends a few years back on a very warm Memorial Day. (Here’s a slideshow I made of the day.) Everyone that is able should make that trip at least once.
Today we caught the train from Boston, which required a cab, Dunkin Donuts and then a quick ride in the quiet car to southwestern Connecticut. At the train station yet another person asked Wendy for help with directions or details. I’m making her a sign that says “I’m new here.”
On the way you see this, in New London:
This is the Bank Street Roadhouse, according to Flickr, which yields to reviews on Trip Advisor and Yelp that the place is so, so, with average this, average that and attractive bartenders. A picture of the front of the place I found makes it look far more reputable.
The Yankee’s dad picked us up at the train station. We headed home and then out for Pepe’s pizza. Ordinarily I don’t take, let alone publish pictures of food, but Pepe’s is the stuff angels eat:
Seven of us were there, we made short work of three pies.
Hope you’ve had a lovely Memorial Day, and I hope you’ll check out my slideshow.
Tomorrow: New York City!
26
Apr 11
Picture day (Show and tell)
This weekend my grandmother was talking to The Yankee about how she used to decorate her trees for the grandkids at Easter. You see it every now and then still, but when we were young this became the colorful yard decor of spring. My grandmother strung plastic eggs through her giant show trees on colorful strands of yarn.
She invented this decoration. Ask her, she’ll tell you.
Anyway. My grandmother went on the search for photographs to complete the story. Before my grandmother’s birthday dinner I looked through a few of the pictures myself, which is how I ran across this one.
These are my great-grandparents. The back of the photograph said it was their 60th anniversary, which would put this snapshot in early 2000. He died just under two years later. She died earlier this year. He was a farmer, she was a homemaker. I’ve written about them here from time to time, so I’ll try not to repeat myself. In sum, they were sweet, lovely, kind, gentle, Christian people. I miss them a lot.
Just to put all the pictures from around the site in one post …
I found this picture of them last Christmas at my aunt and uncle’s home. This would have been their youngest grandchild, if I am not mistaken:
This one is on the wall at their home. My great-grandfather was going off to Europe as a medic. The little boy is my grandfather.
As far as we know this is the last picture of the two of them together. We buried them each with a print.
(None of these are particularly sharp, obviously. With the exception of the last photograph they are all cell phone pictures of a print. The last picture is an upsized version of a digital image that’s been floating on my hard drive for a decade.)
23
Apr 11
Happy Birthday!
Today was my grandmother’s 27th birthday. She had a small, family get-together. She’s just as young as ever. Someone invented a party game that we played. It involved tea bags and baseball caps. Because all of the natural talent runs through that side of the family she naturally won the game.
She played it three times, beating great-grandchildren seven decades younger.
I have video of that, but I’m keeping it just for me.
A few years ago we had a “surprise” party for her. She danced her way into the room. And then she danced her way back out again.
Here she is on that night:
That’s her son, husband and my mother. My uncle later married The Yankee and I. He embarrassed me with an off-color joke at the Christmas table last year. It was the kind of thing that you’ve heard worse, but you’d never ever imagine such a thing coming from him. They’ve all been a lovely family to grow up with.
Anyway, we sang Happy Birthday twice tonight, because why not?
Happy Birthday to my grandmother, who has been the neatest grandmother you could have, even though you can’t hand-pick them.
(She probably would have let me choose, if I’d thought to ask, because she’d spoil us all that way. Her other two grandchildren would have to be allowed to do so, too. She has always been very serious and conscientious about her grandmotherly duties. If I could pick, I would pick her every time.)
