When
my Favorite Son was a youngster, we always kidded him about the amount of
birthday parties he managed to get each year. This was due to having a summer
birthday and a military parent so the summers usually meant a move to a new
location. This resulted in a birthday party at the old house, one with his grandparents
during a relocation visit, and finally one at the new location. I mention this
because Monday was this fine human’s birthday again and I don’t know if I’ve
enjoyed one more. He and the ABFA rented a beachside house in Hampton, NH, not far
from their home. This beach is an entirely different atmosphere than our Las
Lajas condo in Panama where all our recent beach time has been spent. They invited
both sets of parents to join them. We journeyed up Sunday and reunited the ABFA’
parents for a fun filled start of the week.
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| Wife and I on Son's Deck |
Before
we get there though I have to mention the mini-thunder run we accomplished on
Saturday. It was a bit of a spur of the moment trip but Keene Friend was more
than ready to rise to the occasion. He and I walked downtown while the ladies went
to pray at the tax free altar of TJ Maxx. We set up in the Cobblestone Pub. In
short order we were joined by the Cantankerous Friend and a couple other high
school friends. As is customary, the afternoon flew by and before I knew it I
was walking down Main Street with the Cantankerous Friend to link up with the
ladies for dinner at Margarita’s. Too much fun. Cantankerous made an effort to
set new decibel levels at both Cobblestone and Margarita’s. I think he’s trying
to damage our hearing as badly as the Navy did to him.
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| Saturday at Cobblestone |
Back
to Sunday; we arrived at the address our son had provided and were immediately
impressed. The house sat right on the shore line with devastating views of the
Hampton coast. There was a rocky beach directly in front of the house with a
short walk to the Hampton town beach. We were immediately engulfed in family
atmosphere as both the BRS and BR3 noticed the arrival of a second set of grandparents
to bend to their will. We arrived in time to appreciate what may be the most
satisfying win of the year for the Red Sox, beating the Yankees with five runs
in the eighth inning after being no hit until that point.
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| Abuela with BR3 |
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| Son and I Celebrating |
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| Son and ABFA on Their Deck |
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| Dinner Time |
We
celebrated with a walk along the beach although the BRS ran almost the entire time.
Much to his credit, the ABFA’s dad kept up with her step for step. They have a
special relationship where they’re best buddies, so the keeping up was
required. I seriously do not know how he does it. It was great walk as we
searched for heart shaped rocks and my son demonstrated he has surely passed me
by when it comes to skipping rocks. We bid the day goodbye on their beachside
deck watching the tide slowly consume the rocky shore. Meanwhile, inside the
house, my Favorite Panamanian and the BRS were decorating the birthday cake my
wife had created for our son.
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| Other Side of the Table |
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| Grandmas with BRS |
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| My Date |
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| BR3 Wants Out |
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| She Got There |
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| Evening on the Deck |
Monday
morning, my son’s birthday, dawned with hojaldras and bacon for the birthday
boy. We followed that up with a walk to the beach. My son and I watched the BRS
continue to exercise her other grandfather in the surf. The ABFA showed up
later with an umbrella that my Favorite Panamanian had dispatched her with.
While my wife remained at the house with the ABFA’s mom and BR3, she still
maintained her role as my dermatologist’s assistant. I was surprised by the fierceness
of the sun so I appreciated the shade. I, however, cautioned everyone not to
mention this to my wife, no need to empower supervision any more than
necessary.
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| Son and His Mom Walking the Beach |
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| BRS and her Sidekick, ABFA's Dad |
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| Smile!!! Hojaldras!!! |
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| The Two Grandmas on the Front Deck |
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| Birthday Boy on the Beach with BRS |
My
son hadn’t been to the movie theater in over a year, a combination of the pandemic
and very young children conspiring to keep this movie addict (don‘t know where
he gets it from) from the cinema. One of his birthday wishes was to finally see
a movie again. We made that happen traveling to nearby Newington to watch Snake
Eyes. We had to time it out well because I had to be back at the house for a
3pm Zoom meeting I was in charge of. That set up a very interesting ride after
the movie. The movie got out at 2:30 and we figured we were in good shape since
we were only 15 minutes from the house. That calculus did not take into account
a major construction zone and a seemingly endless supply of very senior drivers
in front of us. I ended up being five minutes late to the meeting but had
texted everyone that I would be there shortly. We had a good laugh about it as
I ate some major crow after lecturing the group last week about repeatedly missing
the meeting.
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| Popsicle Time! |
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| Birthday Cake |
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| Son Blowing One Candle BRS Left to Him |
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| Beautiful Family |
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| Dad Time |
We
ended the day with a birthday celebration including the BRS decorated cake for
my son. She offered her expertise in candle extinguishment as well. It was a
very fun time surrounded by the gorgeous views of the coast and surrounded by the
aforementioned family atmosphere. We watched another dramatic Red Sox win
sprinkled with non-stop viewing of the Olympics as well. There was nothing special
about the gathering, other than the people involved, but that was enough to
make this birthday very special indeed.
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| BRS Trying to Braid Dad's Hair |
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| Wife Cold Because Temps Fell Below 75 |
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| Beach Photos |
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| Leaving Grandparents Behind |
My
son and I were able to achieve some real quality time with each other since the
two granddaughters had to be rationed with three other grandparents present. I’m
not sure he saw this as much a gift as I did but I’ve come to treasure these
times together. He talked me through the next steps planned on his Man Cave/Home
Theater do it yourself project that we started together a few weeks ago. We talked
about work and life in general which there never seems to be time to do in normal
circumstances. My time with him only reinforced my pride in the man he has grown
into being. I’ve never met a finer person.
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| The Child Tossing Portion of the Walk |
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| BR3 Loved It |
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| BRS Also in to the Act with her Disciple |
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| ABFA and BR3 |
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| Family Walk in the Rocks |
The
rest of our time together was just as delightful as we wandered over the beach
a couple times and enjoyed my son’s expertise with the grill. We were marveling
last week when BR3 took eight whole steps in a row. This week she was walking,
almost running, everywhere. The house was perfect for the gathering with four
full bedrooms. My wife and I took up residence in what was a fifth bedroom that
normally serves as a home office. They had the most comfortable futon I’ve ever
slept on and it turned out to be the coolest room in the house on a couple of
sweltering nights. The main floor had large windows which provided sweeping views
of the coast.
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| Wife on Beach in front of House |
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| Much Happier Now |
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| The House Seen from the Shore Line |
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| Views from the Deck |
On
Tuesday evening one of my son’s and the ABFA’s friends (actually the one that
introduced them to each other) stopped by the take professional pictures of the
family on the beach. We spent a lot of time trying to get BR3 to look at the camera
and smile. The friend’s arrival brought back even more memories as she had attended
some of my son’s legendary summer college parties at our house in Charlton. I
know it’s silly but I’m still getting used to seeing all these guys all grown
up. It also reminds me of the years I’m accumulating as well. As long as I get
to spend as much of what I have remaining as I can with the people I spent the
last few days with will be a true blessing.
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| Our Room |
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| Good Buddies |
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| ABFA and her Girls, Bubble Gun!! |
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| Son and I with his Girls |
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| Chow Hound |
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| Living Room |
I’m
not intimately aware of the “mythology” of GI Joe world so my son had to help me
out with some of that as I watched Snake Eyes. It was kind of weird seeing Henry
Golding, of Crazy Rich Asians, as a down and out street fighter recruited to
join a mysterious Japanese ninja clan. Alright, this wasn’t Grapes of Wrath territory
but it was a serviceable action movie. The plot didn’t make a whole lot of
sense but as long as it got us to the fight scenes, that was fine. The film did seem to take itself a little too
serious and could have benefited with a little humor. They also criminally underused
Iko Uwais, the star from the Raid. The climactic battle was awesome but it
quickly became clear this movie was a vehicle for additional movies in whatever
they’re calling the GI Joe universe.
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RECURRING CHARACTERS
BR3 – granddaughter #3, 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; Kindergarten
Friend – friend since kindergarten whom I reunited with after many years; 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 3rd musquetera (musketeer); Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog; 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; Curbside
Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during her single days in
Brooklyn
