Friday, August 10, 2007

Road Trip, Day 16, Time Flies When You're Having Fun

Ashley has great taste in men. After ignoring Grandpa all week, today when she saw him covered in sawdust after a hard day's work, with whisker stubble long enough to be really good and soft, she smiled and held out both arms to him. He reached out with a melted-smile look on his face and she patted him and rubbed his cheeks, cooing and grinning. This is a good grandpa. What a smart kid. We both had a lot of fun with that little girl today. Once you have a grandchild, you understand even more than when you have your own children why they're referred to as "bundles of joy."

Ben's new classes start tomorrow, and then we'll have Sunday together. It's hard to believe how quickly eight days goes when you're having fun and seeing people you rarely get to see. They've been here two plus years now, I think, and this is our fourth trip out. I counted. It doesn't seem like enough, but since it's been the best we could do, I guess it is enough. I always told the boys to do your best. If you've done your best, and it's not good enough for someone, then that's their problem, not yours. Now it's time to take my own advice, even though four times in two years doesn't seem good enough to me.

Monday morning we'll again hit the road, on our way to Wisconsin, where we'll spring Aunt Cookie from the assisted living home and take her back to her log cabin nestled in her 40 acre woods. We have everything we need for a good time there, I think... guitar, flask, cooler, cheese... anything else important (like her medications) we can pick up from the nurses or buy as needed. One of the cousins sent a letter saying she'd just had a psych evaluation and was deemed "competent." I wrote back saying it was really great knowing that someone competent would be at the cabin with us. Do you suppose they got it? A couple of the cousins emailed back to ask who was going to be here with us. Oh, well. I guess I have to be more specific with my humor.

Guess I'd better go call Ellen. I hear there was another earthquake under her house, and I want to make sure her decanter lived through another shaker.

2 comments:

Ben said...

I do believe we've been here for over 3 years now.

Unfortunately.

Kathleen said...

There are blessings, even though you are in an area you wouldn't choose, as we were in California. You are blessed with each other, and with great educational opportunities, plus with a job where you are really treated with trust and respect. And it's a job you truly enjoy. No pay check can buy that...