Icing on the FBR

My Favorite Panamanian and I completed our granddaughter reunification process this past weekend with a hasty trip to New Jersey to hang out with my daughter’s family. The FBR took up ice skating for the first time a couple months ago and immediately decided she wanted to play hockey. Her hockey season is winding down so we had to get down there to see her in action. Given the earlier weekend’s visit with the BRS and BR3, we have now checked the granddaughter block after our return from Panama.

Wife and I with FBR at Hockey Practice

We drove down on Saturday morning and apparently Connecticut hadn’t gotten the word we were back because it took us only three hours to reach New Jersey. One of the fastest times we’ve ever achieved on that trip. I kept waiting for Connecticut to drop the hammer with one of its usual hardships, but we sailed through. Wingman was waiting for us to arrive as were the cats, Pistachio and Walnut. The FBR and our daughter showed up from dance class shortly after we arrived. While Wingman had to go into work, my daughter decided we’d swing by Maplewood’s village center where “we” could go shopping. My wife and the FBR were ecstatic about the chance to shop; me, not so much. The FBR inveigled a can of slime at our second stop from her abuela while I provided security outside people watching and iPhone surfing. Our third place was a definite improvement with an old-style bookstore. Both my daughter and the FBR inherited my fascination with reading, so I abandoned my security responsibilities and joined them perusing the shelves. At lunch time we decided to check out a well-regarded diner with views of the NYC skyline for lunch. We circled the parking lot four or five times before we decided it wasn’t worth competing with the other six cars circling with us awaiting a parking spot.

FBR with Walnut

FBR Checking to See How Close in Height she is Getting to her Abuela

Getting Close

FBR at the Bookstore

We went to the Boathouse, and I got that promised NYC skyline look as we made our way to there. The FBR entertained us with her recently acquired slime. The Boathouse was located very close to the FBR’s favorite ice-skating rink and she just so happened to have loaded her skates in the back of the car. I volunteered to hang at the rink while my wife (allergic to cold environments) journeyed back to my daughter’s home so Pistachio could received a needed medication from my daughter. I thought I could sneak out to the warmer environs once the FBR got rolling. I was so wrong. She checked each time she came around that I was watching. She then decided she was getting too warm and would remove her jacket to drop it off with me. This lasted for about two laps when she would once again come over to don the jacket again. I was strategically located near the door onto the ice which, when open, would drop the temperature in my seat another ten degrees. Still, it was fun watching the FBR glide around, amazed that she just recently started skating.

Slime Demonstration at the Boathouse

FBR Gliding 

Checking to Make Sure Grandpa is Still There

Sneaking a View of the Skyline

Pistachio Bonding with Grandparents

My daughter eventually returned to rescue me and when we got home, lucky me, I got to go shopping again. This is something only one of my granddaughters could get me to do. In another surprising athletic achievement, the FBR taught herself how to ride a bicycle last September. She had depended on borrowing a friend’s bike to this point, but her parents decided to reward her with her own. Wingman was in charge and we hit three different shops before we found “the bike”. The FBR was predictably excited about her new acquisition and immediately took to riding the neighborhood upon our return.

FBR With her New bike

Pistachio and Walnut Checking out the New Bike

FBR Cruising

Sunday had a couple big events awaiting us. Their favorite neighborhood pizza place, the Corner Slice, was hosting a block party to celebrate their one-year anniversary. While there was a long line, it moved quickly and the pizza was as great as I remembered from last year’s visit. It was a little brisk outside, but we stopped outside (since that was where they were serving cake) at the party and were rewarded by running into one of the Curbside Girls with her family.   This is one of the things I am so happy about the neighborhood my daughter and Wingman settled in. It is a real neighborhood with a close-knit community reminiscent of earlier times. It’s something most of the rest of the country has lost.

At the Block Party

Curbside Reunion

Wife and I with Corner Slice Cake

The other big event was the aforementioned hockey practice. It was hilarious to watch the FBR with Wingman’s assistance don all the pads and equipment associated with hockey. Wingmom joined us as well as the gals took to the ice. I was once again truly impressed with the FBR’s athleticism. They were joined on the ice with one of the best players from the New York professional women’s hockey team, whom the FBR worships. One of the best moments of the afternoon was during a speed drill that the pro joined the youngsters. She and the FBR both finished ahead of the others and the pro gave the FBR a fist bump. Both grandmothers stayed near the ice for the entire practice while I and her parents explored the facility which happened to have a sports bar. After they left the ice the FBR got the pro gal to sign her jersey, she was more than a little excited.

FBR Donning her Gear

Ready to Go

She's a Bit of a Ham

Good Skater Though

With the Professional

Since the rink was more than 45 minutes north of Maplewood, we had decided we’d leave for home from there. It allowed very quick access to the interstate without having to deal with the end of the Garden State Parkway, so I was a little excited about how fast we’d get home. That held until, you guessed it, we ran into Connecticut. That benighted state’s traffic system, now aware we were back, was ready for me. Thirty miles an hour for a solid 45 minutes on the Merritt Parkway and when we finally escape that and got onto I-84, the traffic abruptly came to a complete halt. Luckily, Waze was ready for it. My Favorite Panamanian, awake from her nap concerned as I made a radical move to the last exit before the parking lot we could see forming just ahead. Waze took us through some backroads, and we emerged after the major accident which had closed two of the three lanes behind it. Just another day driving through Connecticut.

BR3 and BRS Meet Rey

And Captain Jack Sparrow

Finally, I received these photos from my son from their trip to Disneyworld. Details surrounding them are still unavailable but it’s nice to see the granddaughter smiles. The ABFA apparently has a lot more which I hope to get to this weekend when they join us for Mother’s Day. In another major development, my wife’s iPad arrived today after its world tour. I’ll detail that adventure tomorrow. I’m happy to be home and not have to drive through Connecticut for a while.

A New Guardian?

Sisters

With the ABFA for a Nightmare

And then Minnie

On Their Way Home, A Bit Tired

The A-Z watch continued with one movie, a definite keeper: Warm Bodies – Romeo and Juliet story transported into a zombie apocalypse, Hoult and Palmer are so good in this.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------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 her single days in Brooklyn; Czech Connection – Czech couple who’ve become good friends along with their daughter (the Czech Shadow); 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; Seis Amigos - two couples from our condo complex and my wife and I; Soxfather – my brother-in-law (whom I miss more than I can ever explain); Tia Loca – wife’s younger sister; Wingman – my son in law; Upstairs Neighbors – American couple and great friends who live in condo above us in Panama; Wingmom – Wingman’s mom, of course

Homecoming Validation

Yesterday was the final validation for me on truly being home. It involved my hometown friends and a trip there for the monthly KHS Class of 1973 luncheon. It speaks volumes of my classmates that after more than 50 years, more than 30 of us gathered to hang out. The luncheon was held in Dublin at a golf course restaurant. It was great seeing all the friends we last saw in 2024. Of course, it was especially good to see the gang from the March trip to visit us in Panama. In the good news department, Keene Friend has finally stopped coughing, his signature activity during his time on the beach with us. The Cantankerous One was up to his usual shenanigans, it really felt like coming home. My Favorite Panamanian has decided she enjoys these gathering almost a much as I do so she was a welcome addition to the crew.

The Panama Gang at the Lab

I’m sure it has nothing to do with the tax-free shopping she engages in after each. After we made our way back to Keene from Dublin, Keene Friend surprised her with a belated birthday cake and ice cream, ably assisted by Keene Friend’s lady friend, another of our classmates. After accomplishing noteworthy destruction of the cake, the Panama gang adjourned to the Lab ‘n Lager to compare notes while my Favorite Panamanian set out for old friend, TJ Maxx. I fulfilled my duties in regard to supplying the Cantankerous Friend with his overdue birthday beers and we set about to solve most of the world’s problems as well as those of the Boston sports teams.

Scenes from the Luncheon

Wife and Cantankerous

After a suitable interlude, we unanimously voted to check out the re-birth of old favorite Penuche’s. It’s now called the Owl’s Nest in a blatant attempt to lure nearby college kids with their mascot’s name. It has been significantly upgraded inside, you no longer have to double tie your shoes because the formerly sticky floor would grab at them. Everything has been painted and the kitchen expanded, surprised to learn one existed in a prior visit. The wait staff has been meaningfully improved, at least at first glance. The bathrooms have also been remodeled. There was this interesting sign in the men’s room which could cause damage to the opposite wall as guys back up after they read it.

Birthday Cake

The Owl's Nest 

The SIgn in the Men's Room

Wall on the Right may Need to be Reinforced

It was after 6 when I reached out to the absent wife. We had already made the well lubricated call to the PCR. My Favorite Panamanian was not ready to escape from the clutches of TJ and told us to head to dinner without her. We adjourned to Margarita’s to continue our scholarly debates although we lost Keene Friend 2 enroute. We were holding forth there when my wife finally appeared and proceeded to seize, by main force, 1/3 of the Cantankerous One’s dinner. It was a very fun evening with these great friends. I’m looking forward to the next thunder run to continue the November Birthday Pub Crawl reconnaissance plan.

Yesterday's Sunset Nowhere Near as Picturesque as Las Lajas

Margarita's Dinner

I finally heard from my son who confirmed our theory about why we weren’t seeing any photos from their ongoing Disneyworld trip. Much like his parents were when we took him there so many years ago, he is just plain exhausted at the end of the day. While we were talking to him, the BRS and BR3 were flitting around his hotel room, certainly not exhausted, and begging to go to the pool. The ABFA graciously offered to perform that escort duty while my son caught us up on their adventures. Both granddaughters were fresh off a princess makeover before enjoying dinner at the Disney castle, meeting Cinderella beforehand. The BRS confirmed her status as a lover of really fast roller coasters. BR3, on the other hand, is not so sure. My son stated the souvenir photos taken on the rides are hilarious with their opposing facial expressions. BR3 went on a slower ride with the ABFA and said to her mom, “this is my preferred speed”.

Before Picture of Stairs

Earlier in the week I completed another back yard project. My wife’s vast backyard garden complex has a set of stairs I created to offer access to the upper tiers. I’ve been trying to grow grass between the stairs ever since I created them. I saw some rolls of grass sod at Home Depot and decided to try that. I scarfed out the vestigial grass that was there and replaced it with the sod which was interesting since it had to be cut to size. I needed to use the salvaged  grass I removed for the final couple of stairs at the top. It looks pretty good, now I just have to hope it grows roots. An update will be provided in a couple weeks, that is if it works. If not, this act will be lost to the mists of time.

And After

Fantastic Gift!!!

Finally, Keene Friend 2 gave me a surprise gift when we were together yesterday. It was simply amazing. You know I’m a huge fan of John D. MacDonald and his Travis McGee series, which I re-read every year at the beach. The gift was a pamphlet that contained MacDonald’s last known piece of writing before his untimely death in the 1980s, an essay on the importance of reading. It features a conversation between his two iconic characters, McGee and Meyer. Meyer is holding forth on the history of mankind and how humans developed our larger brains because of the need to survive in a harsh pre-historic world. He states this increased cranial capacity is being wasted by modern humans who refuse to read and learn about the world they live in. I offer a couple passages that are especially poignant in today’s world and our current political atmosphere.

“The life unexamined is the life unlived. Can one examine his own life without reference to the realities in which he lives? The political, geographical, historical, philosophical, scientific, religious realties? He does not have to know all aspects with some kind of deadly precision. He has to know the truth of them, the shape and the size, their place in relation to each other. He has to know them in the context to which the reasonable and rational and thoughtful men of his times have assigned them.”

“My point is that the man who reads is using the fabulous memory storage and relationship analysis of the brain that his ancestors developed aeons ago. He is facilitating his survival in the contemporary world. He will recognize the pockets of fanaticism around him and know what is causing these universal foci of dementia. Of course, he will be called an egg-head or a bleeding heart or secular humanist, but he can lean back and, in a certain way, enjoy the marvelously crackpot rantings of . . . . people from both ends of every spectrum, whooping and frothing, absolutely livid at the idea their particular warped vision of reality is not shared by everyone. Their basic lack of education, of reading, of being able to comprehend the great truths of reality has left empty places in their heads, into which great mischief has crept.”

I think the single best gift my mother ever gave me was handing down her love of reading. I’m glad old friend Meyer would approve. The second quote certainly addresses what we’re seeing being spewed from Washington, Moscow, Tehran and, well, you fill in the blank. What a great gift from Keene Friend 2.

The A-Z watch continued with three movies, all keepers: Warcraft – interesting fantasy flick, with amazing CGI work; War Horse – only Spielberg could conjure up a really long movie about a horse and make it watchable, great WW1 battle scenes; and The War Lord – one of the most cherished movies of my youth, great historical drama.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------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 her single days in Brooklyn; Czech Connection – Czech couple who’ve become good friends along with their daughter (the Czech Shadow); 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; Seis Amigos - two couples from our condo complex and my wife and I; Soxfather – my brother-in-law (whom I miss more than I can ever explain); Tia Loca – wife’s younger sister; Wingman – my son in law; Upstairs Neighbors – American couple and great friends who live in condo above us in Panama; Wingmom – Wingman’s mom, of course