Eradication

My last post ended with a slight case of self-pity about the loneliness of my First Friday celebrations. As today’s title suggests Saturday more than solved that minor issue. A couple of my Favorite Panamanian’s cousins as well as their mother and my mother-in-law came to spend the day with us at the beach. That meant a day filled with the usual amount of laughter and good vibes that’s bound to occur whenever my wife’s family assembles. They only came for the day but the sunset celebration was fully staffed with our upstairs neighbors and the couple who hosted us in Panama City earlier in the week.

The Sunset Bunch

Earlier with my Wife's Fam

The sunset gathering extended well into the night as the lively conversation with these great people meant no one wanted it to end. As the last effects of the setting sun faded away the usual dome of breathtaking stars appeared. We saw a shooting star as well as a satellite pass through the starfield. One of the ladies also survived a vicious attack by a 2 inch wide land crab. It was a great night, sitting on a tropical beach under the stars with a gentle breeze blowing, drinking beer, and sharing laughs with good friends. On second thought, it wasn’t just great, transcendent leaps to mind.

Fun Bunch

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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; CRC - Connecticut Riverboat Captain – another close friend from high school, renowned sailor of the big river; Curbside Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during him 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; PCR - Pittsburgh College Roommate– high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; PCR+1 - Pittsburgh College Roommate’s wife; 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