The Aerie
The rocket-sled ride continues. I'm here at Moldy's place, having just
succeeded in finally getting his wife to go grab some sleep. Man! You
can't make a German girl do anything she doesn't want to do, let me
tell ya. Finally she dozed off on the couch and when she awoke was
convinced to grab some shuteye.
The week itself continues ridiculously busy, but not bad. Business is
actually remaining steady, even slightly picking up. A couple of
opportunities have come up which, if they come through, will continue
the growth of my company in a modest fashion. That would be wonderful,
since summers are usually slump times for consulting, so I'd be very
happy.
Fourth of July was fun. Went over the Professor's for his annual
Independence Day picnic. It was actually one of the nicest in years.
The weather was absolutely perfect, warm and sunny without humidity or
bugs. Everybody showed up, including Fitz, Zotpub, Wictor and even
Harchar up from Florida. Fantastic!
And the kids had fun: we played croquet, which fortunately kept me
busy while other unfortunates helped the Professor move heavy
furnishings. The kids also had some others to play with, which was
unusual.
Afterwards we went to see fireworks with Debby up at County Road C. We
were skeptical, but they were much better than two years ago.
Prior to the show a number of bands played in the park bandstand, and
as the evening drew to a close they asked everyone to rise for the
Minnesota State Song. Several did. Then they asked everyone to rise
for the National Anthem. Around me many people rose, but several did
not. I began to wonder if they were just unaware, or were deliberately
ignoring the song. The others, I supposed, were patriotic souls who
felt the song deserved respect. Young and old, they rose to their feet
to show their respect for the nation.
About 1/4 of the way through the song, the fireworks started.
The entire crowd wheeled around. And lo! The fireworks were low! They
were going off over the lake, blocked for the most part by a mighty
oak. Yet good viewing areas were open on either side.
The crowd moved, dare I say en masse, and ignoring the anthem jostled
for position on either side of the tree. The anthem petered out as the
second volley of starbursts exploded overhead...
Saturday I had a party at my house, and invited many old high school
alum. Unfortunately, few could attend. But those who did had a good
time. We caught up for a couple hours with Greg and Bonnie, who were
visiting from Colorado. After 23 years of separate careers, the two of
them ened up in Colorado working in adjacent offices.
Then we went to visit Steve. I could tell the trip was intimidating
for them, and reasonably so. Steve has continued his decline, and did
not seem fully aware of who was visiting.
Then it was back to my place for barbeque and more conversation. It
was the first time in 25 years that I'd seen Bonnie, the second that
I'd seen Greg.
Sunday was a workday for me, with a number of reports to complete and
a new toy to play with... which I'll hopefully have time to describe
in a journal entry Real Soon Now.
Sorry if this seems addled and distracted -- I'm tired and I'm still
here at Moldy's place, so the brain isn't entirely functional. Two
more hours and the hospice volunteer shows up, then I can head home.
Cancer. Hate it. Etc.
And a meeting at 9:30 a.m...
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Posted by Albatross at July 8, 2003 12:00 AM