Absentia

At the Tavern with This Great Group

I know. I’ve been away for a while but I consider that an excellent indicator that life, in all its panoply, has been exceedingly busy and diverting. Five days is the longest I’ve been away from Frail Deeds since I started this maddingly addictive activity seven years ago (really? – 7!!!).  A wealth of distractions arose to prevent me from writing either because I was having too much fun, too busy, or too exhausted. There’s way too much to cover so the accompanying photos will have to suffice for some of it.

Favorite Son and the BRS 

Small and in Charge

Happy Abuela

For the fun part, there was an excursion up to New Hampshire to celebrate the ABFA’s equally excellent father’s birthday. In addition to the guest of honor there was the august presence of the BRS herself in all her smiling glory. With four grandparents in attendance there was a real competition for holding time with my Favorite Panamanian being the most ardent of competitors. The BRS herself was much more interested in gaining access to the floor so she could continue the explorations that make sense only to ten month olds.

BRS Finally made it to the Floor

But Soon had Company

Birthday Boy

Wielding Bonecrusher

We gathered at a Londonderry, NH tavern completely decked out for the holidays to include a guest with an electronic Christmas suit. I hadn’t spent any time in Londonderry since I was twelve years old at Camp Carpenter (wonder if that place is still around). It was a fantastic time at the tavern and I got some extended time with the BRS conducting an inspection tour of all the decorations.

Meanwhile in New Jersey These Two Young Ladies WereOut

Daughter (center Front) Had a Karaoke Night with a Few Friends

We adjourned to the ABFA’s parents’ house for post dinner birthday cake and I also conducted an extended and through reconnaissance of my Favorite Son’s Christmas cookie production. His grandmother would be exceedingly proud of his efforts which trace back through my wife to her. Bonecrusher was deployed for the ritual cake severing before we had to painfully leave for a return home.

FBR Cookie Production

The busy and exhausting part kind of goes hand in hand. I’ve been painting up a storm lately in the new addition. I painted the entrance hallway, the three new doors (complete pain in the ass there), as well as the rest of the trim. The only thing left to paint are the bathroom walls which have been tough to get to with all the work that’s been going on in there (hopefully that goes down tonight).

Son and ABFA Tree Hunt

FBR Was Supposed to be Napping
Instead she Decided to try out her Teacher's Lipstick

I also took yesterday off from work to assist Deckzilla Dude in the creation of my wife’s dream closet. My part, in addition to writing checks, was carrying everything upstairs and then lifting whatever needed to be lifted while the Dude handled the technical aspects requiring any real skill (so each to his strengths). By the end of an exhausting day we had eighty percent completion and against all odds a seal of approval from my Favorite Panamanian.

New Closet Construction

We are really staggering to the finish line as, ready or not, we will move our bed into the new room on Friday night. The bathroom might not be fully operational for a while but everything else should be in place. Now to get to the geek squad for the installation of the new TV. My wife is more concerned about more mundane things such as window blinds (go figure). As exciting as this process has been it is nothing compared to my impending joy at having the entire immediate clan under the roof for Christmas - best gift ever.

My wife “dragged” me to the movies fro date night and we saw The Favourite which my wife hated. There is no denying the talent on screen as three dynamic actresses vie for supremacy despite one being the queen of England with that inherent advantage. It was hard to root for anybody and maybe that was the point as the idiocy of British class system was laid bare for parody and ridicule (not a bad target there). Nicholas Hoult is singularly hilarious as a 17^th century political fop and seems to be the only male capable of keeping up with the dynamic troika of actresses. Rachel Weitz plays a British noblewoman, confidant to Queen Anne of the early 18^th century. An ambitious cousin, Emma Stone, seeks employment is soon trying to supplant her cousin in the Queen’s court. I enjoyed the film but it couldn’t seem to figure out where it was going and the whole point seemed to be how ridiculous everyone was – kind of a pessimistic outlook. The scary part is that after some investigation the entire sequence of events seemed pretty loyal to the actual events surrounding the latter reign of Queen Anne. God help us all.

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RECURRING CHARACTERS

BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter, ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete = my daughter in law, formerly known both as MEF – Most Excellent Fiancé & MEG – Most Excellent Girlfriend; Wingman – my son in law; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Soxfather - my brother in law; Great Aunt = my elder sister; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; Pittsburgh College Roommate – high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rdmusquetera (musketeer); Buddy – AKA the Wonder Pooch – family dog, a black lab – hates squirrels, died in 2017; Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog, surrogate grandchild while awaiting arrival of the BRS; PanaGals – female relatives/friends of my wife from Panama; Panamanian/Latin Mafia – inevitable group of Latino friends my wife accumulates wherever we have lived & their spouses; Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member, Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Excellent Boss – my former direct boss at work; Deckzilla Dude – senior citizen carpenter/contractor; Voices of Inappropriate Worth - members of public who come to every Worcester public meeting to complain, all are on public assistance along with demeanor issues