Feb 23, 2007
My brother Joe and sister-in-law Dolores showed up a little before seven – with cupcakes and Ben and Jerry’s for Gary’s birthday! I knew they were bringing the goodies, but Gary didn’t, so he was happily surprised. They stayed for about an hour before going to a local campground where they had left their trailer and dogs, and during that hour we talked of this and that – they have spent most of the past month getting my mom moved from her house into an apartment. And they thought they were going to be having some vacation time – hah!
Feb 24, 2007
Happy Birthday to Gary!
Joe and Dolores came over around 10:30 (timing it so Gary would be done with his shower). We gave them a tour of the house. Dolores had only seen pictures, and Joe hadn’t seen the finished garage or things like the shades he picked out being in place. Of course we couldn’t let Joe get by without doing some work for us ;-). He noticed the stopper in my bathroom sink didn’t work and so fixed that, and when he asked why the garage door was up, I said because it doesn’t work. It kept slipping our minds to call somebody about it, and we just got used to having the garage open all the time. Joe figured out that the electric eyes weren’t lined up correctly, which was why the door usually wouldn’t close, and that the setting on some dial wasn’t quite right, which was why on the rare occasions the door did close, it would immediately bounce right back up.
Tigger was fairly friendly fairly immediately with Joe and Dolores – no doubt hoping someone would finally break out the Fancy Feast again, since he hasn’t gotten any since Joe left. Blackjack, however, would not come around. Joe thought him rather ungrateful, since Joe had gotten up around 5 every morning to feed the whining beast. (This is why we have the cat barrier, which keeps the cats in the kitchen, on the opposite side of the house from our bedrooms.)
For lunch we went out to Paneera’s, which Joe evidently had eaten at nearly every day while he was here this summer but hadn’t eaten at one since. Mostly the lunch was spent Bush-bashing ;-). After lunch, Joe and Dolores went back to their trailer so they could walk their dogs and “rest up.” I took the opportunity to rest up, too. Gary talked to his family and read email and snail mail birthday cards (thank you to those who sent them!). Dimitrina called him from Bulgaria (!) to wish him a happy birthday. Ronnie Levy sent him Belgian chocolates. Since I had given him a bag full of goodies (chocolates, peanut brittle, dates), his sweet tooth was well satisfied.
In the evening, we went in Joe and Dolores’s minivan to a Mexican restaurant for a 6pm meal. Earlier in the week we had called and emailed the people who had helped Joe out this summer, so that they could have a reunion with him and also meet Dolores. It was just good timing that they happened to be able to come when it was Gary’s birthday. At the dinner was Phil Zenor, Donna Bennett, Janet and Jack Rogers, Krystyna and Wlodek Kuperberg, Krystyna and Piotr Minc, Narendra Govil and his wife, Jo and Bob Heath, Andras Bezdek, and Michel Smith.
We had Joe and Dolores sit in the middle of the table so the maximum number of people could talk to them (at least, that was our intention), and Gary and I sat at one end, so we wouldn’t hog them. In a rare instance of foresight ;-), I had bought a little guest booklet for people to sign, which was supposed to be in appreciation of Joe and Dolores. They were quite surprised by it, and also to find that they were the guests of honor. Musical chairs were played a couple times that night, so I think everyone got to mix fairly well. Everyone seemed to be really enjoying themselves. People mentioned we should do this again – they probably said that because I paid the bill. JUST joking.
The party broke up a little after 8. Out in the parking lot, Narendra’s wife gave Gary a Bundt cake! Joe and Dolores came inside our house for a short time, where Belgian chocolates and cake were served. Then we said our goodbyes, because Joe and Dolores were leaving for Colorado early in the morning (and God knows, I wasn’t going to get up early to see them off ;-)).
Gary said he most definitely had a happy birthday!
My brother Joe and sister-in-law Dolores showed up a little before seven – with cupcakes and Ben and Jerry’s for Gary’s birthday! I knew they were bringing the goodies, but Gary didn’t, so he was happily surprised. They stayed for about an hour before going to a local campground where they had left their trailer and dogs, and during that hour we talked of this and that – they have spent most of the past month getting my mom moved from her house into an apartment. And they thought they were going to be having some vacation time – hah!
Feb 24, 2007
Happy Birthday to Gary!
Joe and Dolores came over around 10:30 (timing it so Gary would be done with his shower). We gave them a tour of the house. Dolores had only seen pictures, and Joe hadn’t seen the finished garage or things like the shades he picked out being in place. Of course we couldn’t let Joe get by without doing some work for us ;-). He noticed the stopper in my bathroom sink didn’t work and so fixed that, and when he asked why the garage door was up, I said because it doesn’t work. It kept slipping our minds to call somebody about it, and we just got used to having the garage open all the time. Joe figured out that the electric eyes weren’t lined up correctly, which was why the door usually wouldn’t close, and that the setting on some dial wasn’t quite right, which was why on the rare occasions the door did close, it would immediately bounce right back up.
Tigger was fairly friendly fairly immediately with Joe and Dolores – no doubt hoping someone would finally break out the Fancy Feast again, since he hasn’t gotten any since Joe left. Blackjack, however, would not come around. Joe thought him rather ungrateful, since Joe had gotten up around 5 every morning to feed the whining beast. (This is why we have the cat barrier, which keeps the cats in the kitchen, on the opposite side of the house from our bedrooms.)
For lunch we went out to Paneera’s, which Joe evidently had eaten at nearly every day while he was here this summer but hadn’t eaten at one since. Mostly the lunch was spent Bush-bashing ;-). After lunch, Joe and Dolores went back to their trailer so they could walk their dogs and “rest up.” I took the opportunity to rest up, too. Gary talked to his family and read email and snail mail birthday cards (thank you to those who sent them!). Dimitrina called him from Bulgaria (!) to wish him a happy birthday. Ronnie Levy sent him Belgian chocolates. Since I had given him a bag full of goodies (chocolates, peanut brittle, dates), his sweet tooth was well satisfied.
In the evening, we went in Joe and Dolores’s minivan to a Mexican restaurant for a 6pm meal. Earlier in the week we had called and emailed the people who had helped Joe out this summer, so that they could have a reunion with him and also meet Dolores. It was just good timing that they happened to be able to come when it was Gary’s birthday. At the dinner was Phil Zenor, Donna Bennett, Janet and Jack Rogers, Krystyna and Wlodek Kuperberg, Krystyna and Piotr Minc, Narendra Govil and his wife, Jo and Bob Heath, Andras Bezdek, and Michel Smith.
We had Joe and Dolores sit in the middle of the table so the maximum number of people could talk to them (at least, that was our intention), and Gary and I sat at one end, so we wouldn’t hog them. In a rare instance of foresight ;-), I had bought a little guest booklet for people to sign, which was supposed to be in appreciation of Joe and Dolores. They were quite surprised by it, and also to find that they were the guests of honor. Musical chairs were played a couple times that night, so I think everyone got to mix fairly well. Everyone seemed to be really enjoying themselves. People mentioned we should do this again – they probably said that because I paid the bill. JUST joking.
The party broke up a little after 8. Out in the parking lot, Narendra’s wife gave Gary a Bundt cake! Joe and Dolores came inside our house for a short time, where Belgian chocolates and cake were served. Then we said our goodbyes, because Joe and Dolores were leaving for Colorado early in the morning (and God knows, I wasn’t going to get up early to see them off ;-)).
Gary said he most definitely had a happy birthday!
posted by Peg Daniels at 7:18 PM
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