Too Many Things…

…to talk about, tonight, so I’m just going to bring up one thing tonight. I’ll see if I can get to the rest of them tomorrow.

My brother, Bill, and his lovely wife, Julie, who will be celebrating 12 years of wedded bliss very soon, had invited me to dinner on Thursday night. While they were at it, they invited Julie’s sister, Ellen’s, family, Julie’s parents, and my mother as well. Julie’s sister happens to have two yonkers, a boy and a girl! Can you tell where this is going?

I tried to take some back roads that I haven’t been on in years and what with the darkness, the rain, and the unfamiliarity I got turned around. So I headed over to roads that I knew better and did just fine.

Doing so, however, took me past the roadside location where my best friend died 9 years ago. I guess I’m never going to give up on that, huh? So, I took my hat off as I drove by. The guy that had been riding my bumper all the way from town decided to back off and give me some room for some reason.

It was nice to see Julie’s folks. I had thought of stopping by their house on the way down, only to find out from talking with them that they had sold that place and had moved closer to the grandkids. Sometimes memories work against you!

Julie had cooked a great meal—I wasn’t sure that Bill would tell you, Julie, so I had to put it here—and I found myself wishing I could have eaten a lot more. But it was nice to see how most everyone pitched in to help get it on the table. It was primarily Italian so it had plenty of flavors! I could taste it even with my limping taste buds. At the end of the meal, she served desert and that’s when I was able to start teasing the kids.

Michael is 6-years-old and I hadn’t seen him since Lorie, Tayler, and Robin had last been here in 2002, I believe. You can’t say they grow up fast if you don’t see them for almost six years! They’re just here.

But Michael seems like a great kid, great sense of humor, and full of life.

Gabrielle—I hope I’m spelling this right since I didn’t take notes—was a sweet young lady. I was told that when she found out that she’d be meeting uncle Bill’s brother, she decided against the jeans and t-shirt and went with a skirt and blouse. This at almost 4-years-old!

She had been rather shy so we played it cool for a while. But as I said, at desert, I thought I’d make my move.

I have a pen/stylus for my HP iPAQ that contains a laser pointer and a small flashlight. So, while Gabrielle was settling in to eat her custard pie, I pointed the laser beam at her piece of pie. She stopped, fork poised in the air, and watched what was transpiring.

Now, Michael was sitting right alongside of her and figured it out immediately and enjoys my eternal gratitude for not saying anything about what I was doing. I said he was a good kid!

So, after watching the dot on the pie, and listening to comments from the folks around her for awhile, she went off into the kitchen to talk to Aunt Julie about the “red dot” that was on her pie. Julie, having no idea what was going on had to come back into the dining room to see what was going on. You see, B&J live in an old farmhouse that, in the fall, gets an influx of those Asian beetles that look like ladybugs but stink to high heaven when squished. They wait until spring then, if they survived the eradication and cleaning efforts, to come out of hibernation and make everyone’s life interesting. And we happened to have one flitting around the chandelier earlier in the evening.

But, Julie’s quick, and figured it out real fast what I was up to. So, we had Gabrielle sitting in front of her pie, while her father would “catch” the red dot off her pie and stick it in his mouth to “eat” it. It was hilarious! I looked up and down the table at all the smiles that were going on over my antics, realizing that I like smiles! And these folks know about how I love kids.

I finally got an attack of conscience and had to let her know that it was Uncle Bill’s brother that was messing with her and let her play with the laser pointer for a while.

All and all, a memorable evening.

I don’t know if they could tell that I was really tired, because I hardly moved from my chair and I should have been more physical with the kids.

But, it was time for the cameras to come out and I did get a couple of pictures. You should be able to tell from the pictures that I too that I wasn’t feeling too well because I usually do better.

PHOTOS
Michael is the subject of the first photo, so intent on getting a tiny RC car working.

Gabrielle is the focus of the second photo, sitting in Aunt Julie’s lap, while mom, Ellen, and brother, Michael, look on. Look at those eyes! Don't they just break your heart?

The third photo has that guy from the streets on the left--how does he keep getting into my photos anyway--then my mom, brother Bill, and then Julie!

Now, the fourth photo shows Gabrielle's proud mom, Ellen, along with that street guy again. I'm sorry that it's a little blurry, but that sometimes happens when somone uses cameras they're not used to. As you can probably tell, Ellen is a bon vivant, otherwise known as a fun-loving person. And she's a good listener, too!