Wrapping it Up

It’s about 4:15am on Monday morning and I’m awake after 6 hours of sleep. Not as much as I would have liked to have but enough to get me through the day.

The trip home was uneventful, pretty good food, a couple of good movies and a little nap. Getting through immigrations was a breeze (thank you to Global Entry) and my bag was the 5th one on the carousal (thank you to business class priority bag tag), so about 45 minutes after landing I was on the curb waiting for my brother and sister-in-law to pick me up. They arrived a few weeks ago to house sit for me. It was great to see both them and my beautiful house.

Here are a few pictures I couldn’t share earlier. While in Paris, the girls sat for a portrait that I wanted to give to Christina’s husband, Andy, as a thank you for trusting me with his 3 precious girls for two weeks. They gave it to him yesterday as a Father’s Day gift so now I can show you the pictures from the sitting.

Nora wasn’t very happy about sitting for this, but she relented because she knew it was for Daddy and that it was important to me. She said that the ice cream mom promised for after the sitting was just a bonus.

I think the artist did an amazing job and Christina said Andy loves it.

Christina called yesterday for Father’s Day (she is Andy’s middle daughter; and, yes, both her dad and her husband are named Andy) and it was good to see her and the girls on the call. Everyone said they had a great time but are glad to be home with Daddy, the dogs and their things.

I was unpacked in no time and settled back into my house very quickly. Andy, Annette and I played golf early Sunday morning, and I didn’t do too badly. Not my best round but certainly not my worst. I unpacked the boxes I shipped home, and it was like Christmas as I had forgotten what I packed.

I put it in a grouping with the weaved pieces and the wooden mask. I think I broke a toe when I stubbed it while hanging these up, but it’s a small price to pay. I think it looks great, the grouping, not my toe which is stiff, swollen, painful and bruised.

Today (Monday) I get back into a routine. I have several appointments and another round of golf Thursday morning. I think Annette and I are driving down to Tubac, a cute artists town about 90 minutes south of here. If I just lay around the house, I get sleepy and the car hasn’t been driven in almost 6 weeks, so I need to blow the dust out of her. Besides, they have really good Mexican food.

In about a month I head out again, this time to Chicago. I’ve only been back 3 times since we moved here in Nov 2020, and all of them have been related to death and dying. A dear friend’s memorial service, taking Peter back to say goodbye to his family and then, of course, Peter’s memorial service. This time I just want to enjoy everything the city offers in the summer…. concerts in the park, walks on the Lake path, and of course, a game at Wrigley Field. I will be in Chicago on Aug 6, the 1st anniversary of Peter’s death, so of course, I will drive out to the cemetery to visit with him. I’m driving from here, so I’ll do a bit of site seeing along the way in Sante Fe and Dodge City. I’ll also visit friends in Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa and Michigan. On the way home I’ll stop in the St. Louis area to see the girls. It should be a great time. I probably won’t post but I’ll give a quick update before I start posting for my next big trip… Christmas markets and a concert in Europe. That trip begins on 20 Nov when I fly to Budapest.

Thanks again for following me on my latest adventure; it was fun to have you along.

Love to all and have a wonderful, safe and healthy summer.