First (and last?) snow of the winter

Weird weather. It was sunny and 70 on Saturday and by Sunday night we were getting snow. It had melted off by Monday morning and on Wednesday it was back to 70. Crazy. Got a picture of the little black dog checking out her first snow. I don't think she was impressed. She smelled of it and tasted it and then her feet got cold.

For Mom

My cousin, Keiko, took some of Mom's ashes back to Japan and had her interred in the family site with her mother and sister. They had a memorial service for mom's sister, Fumiko, who died 13 years ago. Apparently it is Buddhist tradition to mark the 13th anniversay. I'm glad Keiko was able to do this for mom. It is somehow comforting. It is certainly more meaningful since mom didn't have a real connection to NC. It's been 6 months now. I think of mom a lot. I certainly miss her, but I miss who she was, not who she had become the last 5 or 6 years of her life. Dad really misses her. He misses her so much that it actually hurts. But, he stays very busy which is good for him. And we all keep chugging along. You have to live until you die, might as well make good use of the time.

Mike, Guitar God

Mikey, with the Village Pistols, Fridays Reunion show at the Somewhere Else Tavern, December 30. Yes, it's a wig.

Friday's Reunion

Back in the day, about 30 years ago, there was this rock club called Fridays, in Greensboro, right near the UNCG campus. A lot of interesting bands came through, touring up and down the east coast and doing the college circuit. Before I met Mike and made an honest man of him, he played in several bands and hung out at Fridays. He was part of the "scene" at that time...because he was a musician and also because he worked at a record store down the block. Last Friday night, Dec 30, there was a Fridays reunion. Since Fridays no longer exists, the show was held at "Somewhere Else Tavern." Mike current band, Stratocruiser, played a set, then there was a short set by the Village Pistols. This was a punk band Mike was in when he was 17 or 18. They reformed for this one gig and played all 3 of the songs they knew. It was hilarious. We had a great time...it was a lot of fun seeing people we hadn't seen in years. Since I wasn't one of the old Fridays gang, I was introduced as Mike's wife and Trish's old roommate. Wow, I wonder what happened to Trish. The picture is of Bert, me, Barbara, Jessica and Courtenay.

Sophie with her new toy

Boxing Day and more family pix

Mikey and me drove up to Cana to visit his mom. Mike's sister in law, Pam, was also there. We had lunch (crab cakes!) and exchanged gifts. Mike's mom has 2 little chihuahua dogs-Markie and Ellie. Pam has 2 boston terriers, Petey and Norton. So, there was a lot of dog talk and we gave each other dog toys and treats. Turns out Mike has a long-lost cousin in Canada who owns a chocolate shop. She sent a bag of homemade chocolates that are to die for. We're home now and Christmas is officially over. The lights are coming down tomorrow, or whenever I can get to it and the DIET begins again in earnest!

Mi Familia Christmas Day 2011

Another Christmas. I went to see Dad yesterday. He's doing well. I think time weighs heavily these days...he said he wasn't afraid to die now because he knew he had someone waiting for him on the other side. He misses mom a lot. We had church this morning--a special Christmas program. It was really nice. Came home and did some cooking. I made an executive decision and went with a non-traditional meal of crab stuffed flounder. We distributed the gifts and watched the dogs go crazy. The cats are no where to be found, of course. They don't seem to care much for the dogs. Tomorrow Mike and I plan to drive up to the mountains to visit with his mother. I think she is making seafood also. After tomorrow I really have to get serious about losing some weight. I mean, I REALLY have to get in shape, otherwise I'll be penalized on my health insurance premium. Maybe this is the sort of motivation I need. Happy New Year!!