Sunday 20 May 2007

I should add, about staying here with my sister, that my real choice was between sleeping on Kris' couch or sleeping on our parent's couch! still, i can sleep about anywhere; for example, the first night after the ice storm in December, 2004, i slept on the floor of my office without benefit of blanket, pillow, or toiletries, because my car was still a cake of ice! Today I was volunteered to help Kris put on the family's graduation party for Natalie, an opportunity for the whole family to get together, since Natalie and Laura decided to go to the beach that morning instead of helping! That was okay because Laura was going back to Arizona on Tuesday and the 2 girls had not had much time together.

Kris was ready to get going just as i was waking up! I felt like getting out after i got dressed so i took off for a walk, ended up about a mile or so away at the closest grocery store, Publix, and met Kris loading up her car with groceries, just in time! I didn't know that was where she went, just guessed! If i had missed her i would just have had to walk back which wouldn't have been a big deal.

The party was a big success. M&D, BJ&M, KCLC&N, i and natalie's grandfather Ed were all there, plus Joe's son Victor, and--here we go again!--my 1st cousin once removed Gabe, his wife Tammy, and his children my 1st cousins twice removed, Kelsey, Jerrod, Dalton, and baby girl Madison, born while Gabe was stationed in Iraq. I hadn't seen Gabe since he was 2 years old, and i've never met his sister, my 1st cousin once removed Edna, who was invited, lives in Florida, but was unable to come. Laura, Charley, Natalie, and Miranda met their 2nd cousin Gabe and their 2nd cousins once removed, his kids, for the first time! Got it? We got some pictures of everyone but Mother is bemoaning the fact that we did not get a picture with all 11 Neubergers in it, since one of them was taking the picture. This pic has everybody in it but Chuck.

After everybody left, including Nat for some more graduation parties with friends, Kris and I settled down in the frontroom, but she felt like a movie and i didn't, so she watched a PBS mystery with me, Rosemary and Thyme, but then retired to her room. I tried her MacBook computer, which had been an xmas present from her husband the previous year, and eventually got enough of a hang of it to get this blog started; I also checked eBay on it! i had to use a browser called safari, which i had never heard of.