As promised/threatened last week when my
hometown visit was cut short by spousal medical requirements, yesterday I executed
a full-blown thunder run back to Keene. I was ably assisted by some of the
usual suspects, Keene Friend, the Cantankerous Friend, Kindergarten Friend and the CRC. We convened
at the Lab ‘n Lager in the late afternoon and immediately set about catching up
on the all the vagaries that life has thrown our way during my four-month
tropical sojourn. Inevitably, given our ages, the talk centered around medical stuff
as we compared notes on our various and sundry conditions. We also kept a sharp
lookout for the pub’s crowd, which waxed and waned during our stay, but
included a representative percentage of college students of the fairer persuasion.
I mentioned that I thought it was disturbing to now being almost seventy and to
remember how ancient that seemed not so long ago.
 |
| My August Thunder Run Crew Yesterday |
It was a very rewarding afternoon spent
with these old friends. We made our semi-obligatory call to the PCR, fulling
intending to give him his usual ration of, well, you know. It turns out he was
dealing with the aftermath of a potent thunder storm bordering on a tornado. We
had to be nice. The beers may have been sliding down a little too easily which
is usually the case when this bunch gathers. As required, my Favorite Panamanian
was back in her favorite hunting grounds which meant I was perilously left to
my own devices. The Keene Friend was given his usual guidance from her when she
dropped us off. She told him to make sure I didn’t imbibe too many beers. He
accomplished his usual level of success at that impossible task and struggled
valiantly to serve as my filter.
We eventually declared victory and left the
Lab to its gathering population of college students. The CRC and Kindergarten
Friend had familial responsibilities while the rest of us wandered across the
street to
Margarita’s where we hoped to rendezvous
with my Favorite Panamanian. When we approached, we spied yet another high
school classmate passing by and roped her into joining us for dinner. She is
the Cantankerous One’s bike-riding buddy and usually the source of some good natured
ribbing of him (not that any help is ever needed in that department). I failed
to take a photo of this dinner gathering. If I had to guess, my level of prior beer
consumption may have impacted my intellectual functions in that regard. Again. Just
a guess. It was very fun dinner liberally laced with laughter which is what
makes these gatherings so much fun. My wife eventually joined us and administered
her cautionary looks at both the Cantankerous One and myself. Keene Friend, as
usual, comported himself in such a fashion as to be above recrimination (even
for his usual pointed failure to follow her earlier guidance). A great day but
a long ride home in the co-pilot role. In good news department, my Favorite
Panamanian forgot a couple items from her list which means we’ll have to return
next week. Now that I’ve reenergized the thunder run process for 2025, I’ll try
to be a little more circumspect next week. But it was fun.
On Tuesday we went to see The Accountant
2. I loved the first Accountant movie with Affleck playing a lethal auditor operating
at a high level of the autism scale. The lack of aspect the character requires leads
perfectly into Affleck’s acting style an he delivers once again in this sequel.
One of the best arts of the original was the relationship he had with his
estranged brother, played by the latest Punisher, Jon Berthal, an assassin in
his own right. Th filmmakers must have liked that also because the sequel is centered
around that relationship. The very few moments bodies weren’t flying about were
amply filled with the two reconnecting as brothers. The accountant is called in
to identify a missing immigrant family which has also caught the attention of a
dangerous female assassin. There are some neat twists at the end involving the
climactic battle with the villains. They obviously set themselves up for another
sequel which is welcome news. A great action flick with fully developed characters.
Three movies fell in the A-Z watch, all
keepers: Ocean’s 11, smart, saucy take where all the cool kids team up; Ocean’s
12, not as much fun as the first one except when Julia Roberts impersonates
Julia Roberts; and Ocean’s 13, the series definitely ran out of steam but still
some harmless fun.
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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 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
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; 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; Wingmom – Wingman’s mom,
of course
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