A Picture Not Taken

I resisted taking a photo of our son John $ as he told a bear story. He is allergic to the front side of cameras. When I do take his picture, he doesn’t complain, but I know he prefers not to be recorded. That evening he was stretched out on a sofa and told us about a hike a few days before. There is something about the way he tells a story that commands attention. Hiking on a little-used trail, he and a bear surprised each other. Since he was alone, he wasn’t making much noise. He spotted the bear climbing up a tree about the same time the bear saw him. They parted amicably. Further up the trail, he startled two bears digging for grubs under rotting logs. He said it was highly unusual for two grown bears to be together. He wondered if they were two-year-olds cast off by their mother but still used to being together. One scampered off, but the other started toward him. You need to think quickly in a situation like that. $ made noise and sauntered back the way he came, diffusing the situation. Our son is not accident prone, but dangerous things happen to him all the time.

I wish I could take credit for $’s self-sufficiency. Just before we all went to bed, $ asked if he could have the air mattress. He lugged it from our closet to the living room, set it up himself, knew where to find a pillow, and was soon settled in. The next morning, when I looked in the living room, there was nothing in the middle space. He had already stowed away the air mattress and put the sheets in the laundry room. That’s as close as we come to having an instant guest. We didn’t even have to stir in water.

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig

Our drive from Maryland to North Carolina was pleasantly uneventful until we were 20 miles from home. Traffic came to a halt in the gorge, and we sat there for one and a half hours. There was a long stretch with no exits, leaving us no alternative. The attraction of the moment was the rising of the moon. When we finally moved, we passed an 18-wheeler on a tow truck headed in the wrong direction. It was a strange sight. The four-lane interstate was squeezed by mountains on both sides with a concrete Jersey barrier down the middle. Perhaps the road was closed again later to allow that rig to escape.

062618 Moon rising in the gorge over stopped traffic on I-40.JPG — Darkness on the left is the empty interstate going the other way.

Needless to say, we dragged ourselves into the house, carrying as much as possible. Nathaniel clapped his hats on my head for an easy ride in.

062618 Carrying hats in the house.JPG

After the car was unpacked, Nathaniel performed his mirror ritual. His summer has officially begun. [Every time he comes to stay, he moves the mirror to the hanger where the former owners hung a clock. He is the only one who can use it easily, although David can see himself on tiptoe.]

062618 Nathaniel's mirror ritual.JPG

A couple of days later, a cloud invited itself to dinner on our porch. It shied away at the last moment.

062818 Cloud inviting itself to dinner.jpg

Visiting our old Chair

Catherine and Lars (niece and nephew) invited us to their place to see an old chair John had given to Lars. Lars had it reupholstered, and it was lovely. When our grandchildren were young, John would sit in the chair and hold them to watch train videos. Good posture was not possible in that put-you-to-sleep chair. It was almost guaranteed to knock you out in 15 minutes. I took a turn sitting in it, but I got up before sleep overcame me.

062618 John sprawled in his old chair.JPG

John’s sister Barbara and Thom were there, too. Barbara took her grandson Thomas out to swing. Nathaniel went out shortly afterwards and was soon swinging the four-year-old. I stepped outside to text grandson David who was sick as a dog back at our house. I told him where to find medicine and how to make Jell-o. I overheard Nathaniel ask Thomas what he liked to do. The boy replied, and then he asked Nathaniel the same question. Nate answered that he liked to bake and said he’d make Thomas a cake or some cookies the next time they were together. This shy little boy was having a real conversation! I was amazed. There was give and take, with questions asked and answered. I know teenagers who can’t do that!!! The two stayed outside most of the time we were there.

062618 Nathaniel pushing Thomas.JPG

Inside, Lars showed us the illustrated manuscript he did. He assigned his students a project of doing an illustrated page, giving them three months to finish. He wanted them to know first-hand how time-consuming it was. How long did it take for him to finish the big one? One whole year! Catherine had it framed for him as a gift. Lars has been interested in history almost all his life. [He has published four books: Lost to the West: The Forgotten Byzantine Empire, The Normans: From Raiders to Kings, The Sea Wolves: A History of the Vikings,and In Distant Lands: A Short History of the Crusades.]

062618 Lars with his illustrated manuscript.JPG

Before we left, I asked for a group picture. Barbara and Thom posed with Lars and Catherine. Barbara is holding Ellertsen, the baby whose christening we missed. We nabbed Nathaniel from the swing set and continued our drive back to North Carolina.

062618 Lars Thom Barbara Catherine Ellie.JPG

College Bound and a Post-christening Party

Off to College! The day after graduation, we picked up grandson Nathaniel He was always a light traveler. We thought the car might be filled to the brim with all his clothes and gear for college, but there was plenty of room for us to sit comfortably. He is working again at the steakhouse where he worked last summer and will go to Johnson & Wales in August.

062518 JC N packing the car.JPG

Post-christening Party We missed the christening of our great nephew in Maryland, but John’s sisters and spouses stayed an extra day to visit with us as we drove down from New York. Thom and Barbara’s twins and their wives provided a lovely cook-out. Nathaniel offered to cook the meats – hamburgers, hot dogs, and locally made chicken-apple sausages. I wish I lived near that sausage-maker. They had a lovely way of accommodating appetites for a mixed group, providing a choice of large hamburgers or sliders.

062518 Nathaniel grilling.JPG

I particularly enjoyed watching six first cousins from age four to age sixteen playing together. I can’t think what relation grandson Nathaniel is to those six. He might be a second cousin or something once removed, which sounds like a second-rate person dumped in the garbage. I hadn’t looked at the calendar and was surprised when we were suddenly celebrating Barbara and Thom’s 52^nd wedding anniversary. I hope I can be forgiven for forgetfulness, because I’m old.

062518 BA Thom's 52nd anniversary.JPG

062518 Barbara Thom on anniversary.JPG

The next day when Thom and John were both trying to pay for breakfast, Thom pulled a fast one . He told the cashier not to pay attention to John because he was senile. We all burst out laughing. I was glad the cashier was not flustered, but laughed with us.

062618 N Thom BA JC breakfast at Chick fil A.JPG

Celebrating with Friends

After grandson Nathaniel’s graduation party, we had dinner with friends of long standing. They have known our grandson all his life. I enjoyed hearing about their granddaughter’s graduation two days before. Her class had 93 graduates and was quite different. Instead of processing them like cattle, someone read a short bio about each one. They included awards, academic achievements, and where the student would be going to college. In addition to all the speeches and lengthy diploma ritual, this class had a formal recessional. The graduation ceremony took twice as long as Nathaniel’s. It must have been very gratifying.

When host Al knew Nathaniel was inside, he invited him out to help cook the steaks. What a meal we had! The meat was exceptionally tender and tasty. They also served a tossed salad, corn on the cob, a corn concoction in the husk, and fresh bread. Ice cream with a choice of hot toppings ended the meal. Excellent coffee set it off to perfection.

062418 Karen and Nate serve dessert.JPG

Being with old friends is such a delight. You pick up right where you left off, because you have a shared history. Through the evening we caught up on recent events and verbally checked up on mutual friends. I don’t remember a train conversation this time, but Al is always trying to share at least one tidbit of information on trains that John doesn’t know. Once in a while he succeeds. Karen and I talked about graduated grandchildren and our college days, among a thousand other things. I’m ashamed to say I forgot to ask what she was knitting these days. She’s an expert and creates the most beautiful things. I lined everyone up for a quick photo as we were leaving. It had been a soul-satisfying evening.

062418 Nate Al Karen John after dinner.JPG

Graduation Party

Grandson Nathaniel’s graduation party was held in a county park under shade trees. When Nathaniel arrived, he immediately started the charcoal fire. He and his brother Alex did most of the cooking.

062418 N starts fire for graduation party.JPG

We were so happy his dad’s family could be there so that we could visit. Nate’s other grandmother, two brothers, and two sets of aunts and uncles, and four cousins were there from Massachusetts and Long Island.

062418 Most of Nate's paternal family.JPG

062418 Nathaniel and two brothers.JPG

Nathaniel is used to cooking and dealing with food, so it didn’t faze him a bit to cut the cake. For those who don’t know, he took culinary arts the last two years of high school and is now a certified food manager. He is going to Johnson & Wales in Charlotte this fall.

062418 Peter Kate watch Nate cut cake.JPG — Peter and Kate watch Nathaniel cut his cake

Graduation!

We were up early to be ready for grandson Nathaniel’s high school graduation. While waiting, I asked for a re-enactment of the tall one’s stair climb. The day before, I saw Nathaniel get to the top of the stairs, taking only two or three steps. He was hampered this time by the graduation gown and not having the right shoes.

Nathaniel’s dad, Peter, saved seats in the bleachers for us. I suppose many high school graduation ceremonies take place on the school’s football field. I know mine did 58 years ago. Luckily clouds covered the sun much of the time, so we didn’t bake. The band began to play Elgar’s Pomp and Circumstance precisely on time, and the faculty and students processed to their seats.

062418 Graduation procession.JPG

Most of the speeches were predictable, but the valedictorian’s address was a poem! Impressive! Two people read the names of the graduates as they filed past the podium, making fast work of a tedious ritual. There were 364 of them, so it could have been excruciating. There was no stately recession at the end, just tons of blue-robed graduates mixing with family and friends. The ceremony was over only one hour after it began. Amazing!

062418 Anne Nate JC at graduation.jpg — Nathaniel with John and me

062418 Nathanial Kate after graduation.JPG — Nathaniel and his mother, Kate

Before graduation, Nathaniel went to the prom.

062018 Nathaniel going to his prom.jpg

Family and Favorite Foods

We made the most of a few hours spent with John’s sister Barbara and Thom on Long Island. Daughter Kate had already driven from New Jersey and picked up her son Nathaniel. We converged to eat pizza from our favorite pizzeria. The deer-in-the-headlights photo was more a reflection of the photo flash than shock or surprise.

062218 BA Thom Kate JC N.JPG — Barbara, Thom, Kate, Nathaniel, and John

Nathaniel’s high school graduation was postponed one day because of weather. Barbara and Thom left for Maryland to go to their grandson’s christening, so the four of us had a full day to play and visit. We had breakfast at my favorite bakery, the one my sisters- and mother-in-law frequented years ago. What a treat!

062318 Bakery Kate John Nathaniel.JPG

We had such a good lunch at the Public House that we ate only oranges and strawberries as a snack before bed. You can see our anticipatory smiles. John was wearing a tie because we had been to Mass at 5 pm. If the graduation had not been postponed to church time on Sunday, we would have gone to the Lutheran church we belonged to for 50 years.

062318 Public House Kate John Nate.JPG — Kate, Nathaniel, and John at the Public House restaurant

062318 N K JC fruit snack for supper.JPG

The weather was surprisingly cool, cool enough that we shut the windows! Who could have known we would be shivering in the middle of June?

Meeting a Favorite Blogger

There is nothing like meeting a favorite person face-to-face. I avidly followed Kate’s blog for several years and finally met her. She writes about her four cats, Starbucks, exercising at the gym and outside, and funny things that happen to her. She has a marvelous sense of humor. We drove near her home on our way to grandson Nathaniel’s high school graduation, and she graciously invited us to drop by. Her accent on the phone did not surprise me, since I knew she lived in Pennsylvania. In person, I found she was animated and most engaging. Her beloved husband (the name she uses for him on the blog) was also most interesting. He played the guitar in bands in his earlier years before they met. Kate joked that we would know her entire history in an hour, but I have a thousand questions left hanging. We knew we were not likely to meet the shy cats. They hid while we sat on their favorite porch, but I didn’t sense them trying to push us out.

062218 Kate and Dan.JPG

Kate has written about her pond. Words and pictures don’t do it justice. The clematis regally held sway over the pond, while the sound of falling water soothed our ears.

062218 Kate Crimmins pond.JPG

062218 Frog in Kate's pond

There was even a friendly frog to greet us, calmly sitting on a lily pad.

If you follow Kate, you already know about her magic with words. If you don’t know her, prepare to be entranced if you read her blog. The address is coffeekatblog.com.