Riffday: Greetings from the friendly confines

Hi!  We got home late Friday night (Saturday morning, actually), and spent all weekend recovering.  I've only done one load of laundry so far so you can imagine the piles of laundry that are still waiting to be done.  Eventually.

We started out in Oregon at the wedding of the son of some dear friends.  The wedding was beautiful, and the bride and groom were beaming with happiness.  Nice to see that when it happens.  We wish them well, from the bottom of our hearts.

Then on Saturday, Julie UrthaLun drove up from Eugene and we spent the afternoon and a good bit of the evening talking non-stop (there is a picture here).  We wandered around the Oregon state capitol and walked around the riverfront park and talked.  It is always fun to see a blog friend in person and have a real talk, and she had good insights into some things I've been thinking about.  Wish we could do that more often.

So then we hopped on a plane and flew all day to Chicago, got a rental car, and drove an hour and a half to Northern Indiana, to a conference center we used to visit when we were kids.  It was time for my family's tri-ennial reunion (tri-ennial means every three years, right?).  My sisters and almost all my cousins were there, with their spouses and families. We let various parents, aunts, and uncles tag along, too, if they're nice, but mainly it is The Cousins.  We have a blast.

It was a great week.  Ahead of time, I always wonder what we're going to do during our family reunions, but that is never a problem.  The week flies by.  Mainly we sit and talk.  Sometimes we go for walks, and many games are played and jigsaw puzzles completed, but those are mainly excuses for more talking.  Our family game is Rook, and we are a bit demented about it.  I only played the last night, but if you went in the meeting room any time after lunch, there was almost always a Rook game going.  Any other Rook players out there?  two decks, call your partner?

Dean, MadMax and I went into Chicago one day.  We saw the Chicago Symphony rehearsing outdoors at the Jay Pritzker Pavilion; we spent several hours in the Shedd Aquarium; we took a water taxi on a gorgeous afternoon across the marina to Navy Pier; and we climbed an ungodly number of ramps and stairs to get to our seats in the nosebleed section at Wrigley Field so we could watch the Cubs get stomped by the Angels.  It was a fabulous day.

We also go to see Debbie, of Stop Her She's Knitting.  We have practically been part of each other's families since we were toddlers.  If you click here, you can see the pictoral evidence.  I have almost forgiven her for taking my picture while we were out on a morning walk, pre-shower and in the midst of the worst humidity I have had the pleasure to experience in decades.  Only someone near and dear to my heart could get away with that.

So now we're home, facing mountains of laundry and trying to get up the energy to get things done in the midst of a summer heat wave.  Hope you are all enjoying July!