I just didn’t get enough driving in the rain on Friday so we were on the road again last night. This time, thankfully, the distance was much shorter and the rain nowhere near as pervasive. We drove down to Rhode Island for one of the trademark “McShawn’s Nights”. These are named after the bar we used to patronize for these get togethers of Soxfather’s inimitable family. There were too many memories for Great Aunt of Soxfather at the bar so they have moved to the homes of one of the participants. Last night we gathered at the house of Soxfather’s brother and sister-in-law.
We
had the usual members and the laughter rose almost as soon as the group gathered.
There was a big surprise in that the entire clan arrived within the thirty minutes
of the scheduled start time. That is decidedly outside the norm where timeliness
within the family is usually as absent as the use of turn signals in Rhode Island.
I put forth the theory that Soxfather’s sister denigrates my photographic
abilities because she knows how I will react and take even more pictures of
her. This proposed concept was roundly dismissed by most present although I believe
it might hold some merit. She refused any opportunity for me to take a photo
last night but I think she was secretly enjoying it. It must be tough growing
up knowing her younger brother was their mother’s favorite. 
Fun Times
Captured in Photo, Great Aunt, and Soxfather's Sister 
The Group
It
was a great opportunity to reconnect with these special people and learn what
everybody has been up to over the summer. We heard tales from the epic summer
residency of one of Soxfather’s nephews in Saratoga, New York, where he became something
of a local legend. Photos of grandchildren were examined and pronounced superior
(the grandkids, not the photos). Soxfather was present in sprit and celebrated in
all of our conversations. Way too much food was produced and sent down range,
there will be extra laps required in the pool this week. In a major surprise the
drive home involved no rain whatsoever. I didn’t miss it but it served as a
fitting end for what turned out to be yet another special night spent with these
all too special people. 
Ladies Migrated to Their End of Table
Three movies fell in my A-Z watch, all keepers:
Get Shorty, too funny send up of pretentious Hollywood; Get Smart, not a very
good movie, but still love Agent 86; and Ghost, great movie, Demi with the most
luminous eyes ever.
Knocked Out Another Puzzle
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 3rd 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
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