Parties, Knees & Batteries

I’m exhausted and it’s only Monday. That, of course, speaks volumes about my weekend which was so much fun that it brought along the requisite fatigue. We kicked off the weekend with a well-attended rendition of First Friday celebrations which continued onto Deckzilla which has become a new summer tradition. We were safely ensconced out there when the Maine Musquetera appeared to stay the weekend with us. She’d come down to see my mother in law and accompanied us on the rest of our weekend adventures. She was accompanied by her signature cupcakes which set off the usual battle between my Favorite Panamanian and I. She was even making noises about sending the delicious cakes to my son. I conveniently forgot about that guidance and the confections are safely secured in our fridge (hopefully she doesn’t read this part).

Son and the BRS on Sunday with my Mother in LAw

I had a whole Saturday morning free for the first time in a long time so I was back at my old stomping grounds at the Home Depot. I spent so much time there during the renovation project that it almost felt like returning home. I secured picture hanging wire, fertilizer, and a bag of asphalt to repair the driveway. While I was trying to find that last item I was accosted by a salesman who told me I should investigate having solar batteries or panels installed on my roof to reduce my electric bill. Since he pointed out where the asphalt was for me I told him he could send his representative to look at the house on Sunday.

Birthday Party

My Tiny Czech Shadow to left of Cake

I had the picture hung and was working on the driveway when the Latina contingent made their first appearance of the day. They’re late risers whenever they’re together; must be the late night conversations that extend into the wee hours of the mornings. They were soon in heavy prep mode as we had a birthday party to attend in the afternoon and I was informed we were also going out dancing with the Panamanian Mafia later that night. I thought it would be a good test for my recently arrived knee brace.

Wife, I and Brace

My knee is gradually dissolving, I’m told. I’ve had two operations on the damned thing after I injured it back in the early 1990s. I invented a game when I was an ROTC instructor to help teach some aggressiveness to my cadets. It was a cross between combat soccer and team handball we called Bryant Ball. At times it resembled a scene out of a Mad Max movie but it was a lot of fun, involving some pretty jarring hits at times (hence the aggressiveness thang). One cardinal rule was no diving on the floor for the ball because someone’s knees could get injured. One cadet ignored the rule and the knee that paid the price was attached to my right leg. I had the cartilage repaired that same year but waited 14 years until I had the ACL repaired which probably wasn’t the smartest course of action. Twenty seven years in the infantry and jumping out of airplanes a couple hundred times is enough to put a healthy strain on any joint and this one certainly paid the price. A few years ago I was told to stop running so I could put off the knee replacement as long as possible as the knob was drifting backward behind the knee cap.

Mafia Gathering Saturday Night

I’m saying all this because the pain, which is kind of always there, was getting worse lately and I found myself hobbling up and down stairs which was harmful to my inflated self-image. My wife had me ordering thigs for her on Amazon so I also ordered some knee support braces that can be worn under pants. These arrived Friday so I was wearing (and loving) one on Saturday. It’s amazing what the little bit of support can mean. This may give me a couple more years! I even used it dancing Saturday night and I could care less if it makes me look goofy(ier) when I’m wearing shorts.

Wife and her Mom With Mafioso

We journeyed to the wilds of Leicester for the birthday party which was a lot of the fun. The Neighborhood Mafioso was there as well as my young Czech shadow. I wrote earlier about the very nice couple from the Czech Republic we go to know over the summer. Their nine year old daughter had adopted me for some reason and I received a true hero’s welcome from her upon arrival. It was a very hot day but beer proved a more than adequate mitigation plan to address the humidity. There was plenty of birthday cake and the usual amount of excellent company we enjoy whenever we’re at one of the parties at this location. We had to leave to address certain shopping priorities but were under strict orders to join the Neighborhood Mafioso at a newly discovered dance locale in western Worcester. We’ve been without a “go to” venue for dancing since Maxwell Silverman’s closed and the Auburn VFW burned down. The Mafioso found this place which I’d driven by hundreds of times never realizing what it was. They converted an old factory into a bunch of offices and the ground floor was hollowed out to encompass an immense dance floor surrounded by tables amidst a country western style bar(s). It was kind of cool to be carded going in, it’s been a while.

Mother in Law Dancing into the Night

The Mafioso had secured a table right on the dance floor with easy access to the rest room and a good view of the TVs so I could keep a surreptitious eye on the Red Sox and Patriots’ games. We eventually had a good size contingent of the Panamanian Mafia present and a live band kicked off shortly before eight. The band was very good and played hits from the seventies which were right in our wheel house. The dance floor was soon crowded but I noticed for a good portion of the evening the only males on the floor were those from our table. I couldn’t understand why so many guys were sitting on their butts when so many, frankly beautiful, women were out dancing with themselves. My wife pointed out this was not a mystery I should worry about solving.

Sunday!!!

The knee brace turned out to be an immense win as I usually end one of these dancing evenings in agony but I hardly noticed it and I woke up Sunday with a normal sized knee (we’ll not discuss my head). I had a lot of fun sitting next the Mafioso’s husband, my neighbor, as we compared notes on the flora and fauna (mostly fauna) in evidence throughout the evening. Even though the band was loud you could still converse and because of the massive size of the dance floor we never felt crowded, which was always a problem at Maxwell’s. I was feeling pretty tired as the night wore on but I couldn’t complain because my eighty-six year old mother in law was still out on the dance floor shaking her hips. It was a great evening spent with good friends.

Dancing with Abuela

She's a Natural

Goofing with Grandpa

Sunday brought scant respite. I met with the solar rep, a striking young lady with a pierced eyebrow (still cannot fathom why anyone would think that’s attractive). I’m actually going to look into having the solar units installed since it will be free and I get a guaranteed reduction in my electric bill by feeding the production into the grid. They’ll be back on Thursday to do a complete assessment. Who knew I could be green!  (grandchildren kind of do that to you – thinking about the world we’ll be leaving to them)          

ABFA's Mom and the BRS

She Eventually Let Other People Hold the BRS

We bid farewell to the Maine Musquetera as she headed back north and then packed ourselves into the car for a trip to New Hampshire. We were meeting up with my Favorite Son and his family at the ABFA’s parents house in Hudson. They wanted to host my mother in law before she returned to Panama. It was a very fun afternoon as the BRS held the entire group in her thrall. She was soon dancing with her abuela and playing chasing games, which she loves. She’s vocalizing more and even says the FBR’s name each time she sees a picture of her. The ABFA’s parents are fabulous hosts and we enjoyed a delicious dinner on their covered deck with Riggins providing the needed policing of the floor.

ABFA and BRS from Earlier in the Week

There’s something almost medicinal about spending time with this group of people. I should have been exhausted after Saturday’s adventures but I found myself feeling recharged just being around these all too excellent people. The ABFA’s parents bent over backwards to make my mother in law feel welcome even though they couldn’t understand anything each other was saying due to the language barrier. So in summary, an draining but all too well spent weekend – let’s do it again – soonest!

FBR was Out Swimming this Weekend

With Some of her Buds

Ice Cream Was Involved

Starting to look Almost Like a Teenager!

And Still Sassy, With Wingman

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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; 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^rd musquetera (musketeer); 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; 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