Odds and Ends

Today is my little brother’s birthday. He is 44 years old. Happy birthday Pete! I remember when Mom brought you home from the hospital. In all my five year old knowledge, I said, “That is not our baby. That is a Chinese baby.”

We had some stormy weather here yesterday, but most of it went west of us. We got a good rain, which is always nice. The sun came out in the afternoon, and Toby was able to go for a ride on his new bike.

I only had a few art students. While at art two of the girls decided to make plans to get together after art. Although they were still here at my house, they left long before art was over. They made lots of phone calls to mothers trying to get permission to do what they wanted to do. When they thought they had it all arranged, they realized that they had not taken into consideration the third girl at art – the one whose mother had brought them – the one their mother was supposed to take home. In fact, they were not really very considerate at all. If there had been lots of girls at art, then two girls making plans would not be so noticeable. But when there are only three girls and one is completely left out…well, I found it very inconsiderate. So, I turned to little Stephie and said, “Hey, you want to go to a party with me?” Stephie started laughing and said, “Sure!” I told the other girls, that I would take Steph home. She really was a good sport. The other girls are not really so bad; they are just immature sometimes and maybe a little thoughtless. I think I will talk to the girls about making their after-art-plans before they come to art.

A year ago last Christmas, I blogged about an 82nd Airborne paratrooper showing up at our house to see Jesse. Travis was just home from Afganistan and wanted to find some fun friends. He hung out with Jes and her friends over the Christmas holidays. He deployed to Iraq a few months later. He came home, and he is back in Iraq now. After Monday’s news about losing nine troopers from the 82nd Airborne, I called his mom to check up on him. She said that he had gotten a cell phone and called home to let everyone know that he was okay. It was a unit attached to his, and not his unit. He did not know, yet, who exactally had been killed or wounded. My heart goes out to the parents and fellow troopers of those soldiers.

Tomorrow, I am picking up Mom, and we are going to Kerrville, TX, for the big Wichita Falls High School Friends of the Forty’s reunion. It is actually my dad’s reunion, but after 50 years of marriage, it might as well be Mom’s reunion. It may be hard for her this year without Dad, but it will be good too. I have been to this reunion several times in the past, and it is always fun. Kerrville is a beautiful town. The hotel is great. There will be a big dance to a band called Sentimental Journey – they dress in WWII uniforms and play big band swing music. The Friends of the Forty’s crowd is shrinking so the reunion now includes people from the Fifty’s. They might have to add some rock and roll music soon. My brother and his girlfriend are supposed to be there for the dance. I am looking forward to seeing them and all the old crowd, too.

Here is something interesting that happened on our vacation to the Hill Country. While we were dancing at the Broken Spoke on Saturday night, Willem Dafoe came in. He did not get far into the building before people swarmed him for pictures and autographs. He seemed to take it quite well. I felt sorry for the man – not being able to just come into a place and have a beer and a dance. We did not take a picture or get an autograph, but just smiled from afar. He is much shorter than I thought.

I will post in the morning, but I will not be able to blog again until I get back – another long time without my computer – yikes.