Baptismal Birthday

We all know my Favorite Panamanian is a serious Catholic, I’m talking very serious, if you catch my drift. In the apple not falling far, her mom is also known for her Catholicism. This means the house has been subjected to a serious amount of rosary reciting and religious music since her arrival. In other words, fairly normal given the first serious Catholic I mentioned. I bring this all up because I was inveigled to attend Spanish language mass with them on Sunday. Heretofore I was able to dodge this requirement because of the language. My Favorite Panamanian drew the mother-in-law birthday card to get me to agree to go with them. She knows the priest and he was going to deliver a special blessing for my mom in law, meaning my presence was required. I should mention at this point that this was the first Sunday of the NFL season with Patriots game at 1PM. The mass was in nearby Clinton, about 20 minutes away, was at 1215PM. Not a recipe for punctual football viewing, especially given the usual length of the Spanish language mass.

Very Fun Birthday Lunch Today

I was exercising my very best son-in-law behavior because I didn’t want her to feel bad and I need to maintain her support in the old spousal skirmish game. The priest greeted us like long lost friends and the service started on time, a win and a first in my experience. Things were going along swimmingly when they announced we were “privileged” to take part in a baptism as part of the service. I turned to my wife who smiled in an apologetic manner (didn’t think that was even possible). An hour and thirty-five minutes later we were released from attendance and made a speedy return home. After watching the remainder of the Patriots’ game, I shouldn’t have hurried as they laid their usual egg in Miami.

BRS Cookie Prep

The Master

Monday was an interesting day since it involved a dual vaccination (Covid booster and Flu) for me and a lunch visit from my Favorite Son. He, ably assisted by the BRS, had baked up his signature sugar cookies for this upcoming weekend’s surprise birthday party. My Favorite Panamanian had agreed to do the frosting so the cookies needed to be delivered. One of my son’s projects is in nearby Concord, MA so he used the lunch hour to drop the cookies off. I was charged with smuggling them into the house surreptitiously. My Favorite Panamanian paid for the cookies with one of his favorite meals.

The Cookie Team

In what I’m hoping is the final phase of my backyard patio project I installed lighting on Monday afternoon. I created portable footings over the weekend for the light poles that had to be dug into the back hill. I started the holes Monday afternoon with the post hole digger. I had just broken through the grass on the first hole when I, predictably, ran into a rock. After my summer adventures digging into the hill I knew this was going to happen but I wasn’t prepared for the size of this one. After twenty minutes of trying to dig around to extract it I admitted defeat and moved the hole a few inches away. The rest of the holes involved much less drama. The same could not be said for the light set I had to unpack. I sincerely hope whomever packed these lights makes it to the third level of hell. It was not fun but the Favorite Panamanian was happy with the result, so, win.

The Patio Lit Up

Yesterday was also noteworthy for the birthday of the auspicious personage, Keene Friend. Since Monday was a full day, we resolved to go up to Keene today to take him out to lunch to celebrate. I also invited the Cantankerous Friend to join us. We enjoyed a steak dinner at the Longhorn and then the Panamanians decided they couldn’t resist a little tax-free shopping. Cantankerous drove Keene Friend and I downtown to register as the official first customers of the Lab ‘n Lager this afternoon. My Favorite Panamanian indicated she expected me to behave myself as I was expected to drive back to Worcester. I told her that was completely up to her and that if, as in past visits, she left me at the pub too long, she would be driving.

Lab 'N Lager Time

This device did not have the hoped for effect. I reached what I considered the safe limit all too quickly and she showed no signs of leaving her hunting grounds. I cherished the time spent at the pub with two of my oldest friends. The Pittsburgh College Roommate chimed in with a text that I shouldn’t have ruined Keene Friend’s birthday celebration by including the Cantankerous One. That being said we conducted a through analysis of where everything went wrong for the Sox this year and the dreadful Patriots’ game. My two friends are also in the same fantasy football league which meant a detailed discussion of this past Sunday’s carnage.

Birthday Cake

Since staying at the pub after reaching that beer limit was not a plausible scenario for staying under that limit, we drove over to Keene Friend’s house after informing the shoppers that my wife was on the verge of being the Worcester bound driver. For some reason this was the message that broke the tax-free spell. We all gathered at Keene Friend’s house for some birthday cake. Today was a good day. You just can’t put a price on time spent with close friends.

Two movies fell in my A-Z effort, one keeper and one definitely not, Barbarella (supremely silly with traitress star – goodbye) and BASEketball (uncomfortably funny but irresistible for what it says about sports)

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RECURRING CHARACTERS:                                        

ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete - my daughter in law; BR3 – Blog Reader #3 – granddaughter #3; BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; Curbside Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during her single days in Brooklyn; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter; First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Great Aunt - my elder sister; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Kindergarten Friend – friend since kindergarten whom I reunited with after many years; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rd Musquetera (musketeer); Namesake Nephew – son of Great Aunt and Soxfather named after me; Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member; 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; Pittsburgh College Roommate– high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog; Soxfather - my brother in law; Tia Loca – wife’s younger sister; Wingman – my son in law; Wingmom – Wingman’s mom, of course