Overwhelming Anticipation

Alright, I need some cooperation from you. Under no circumstances is anyone to tell my Favorite Panamanian that I, 1 – took this photo and 2 – posted it on Frail Deeds. Okay? We good with that? Fortunately, I won’t be seeing the Cantankerous Friend this weekend where I know he would savor the chance to see me skinned alive by my better half. I’m posting it because I’m once again in awe of the lady I’m fortunate enough to be married to (in case she sees this). We are fully in anticipatory mode for the upcoming weekend as we’ll get to spend it with both of our children and all three granddaughters. Remember, “Mums” the word!

My Hero at her Work of Love

The New Jersey bunch arrives tomorrow and then we’re headed to the beach house of the New Hampshire bunch. I count this as a serious win. My wife’s anticipation manifested itself, predictably, in shopping for the granddaughters and then throwing herself into the kitchen to cook meals and a birthday cake for our son late into the night. I’m not kidding by saying I stand in awe of her. She strives to make dishes that both our kids and granddaughters enjoy and injects so much love. The picture was taken last night as she worked on the birthday cake for my son. I’ve tried, not always successfully, staying out of trouble by running errands for her and cleaning some of the areas impacted by her efforts. It pales in comparison to her immense workload.

Possible Outcome

You’ll notice the large number of movies I’ve sent downrange this week. That’s a result of no date night since the big movie out this week is being saved for next week’s birthday celebrations with my son and my date has been decisively engaged with her tasks. It’s been so godawful hot and humid this week that time in the Man Cave was almost, but not quite, required. I mowed the lawn this morning at 7:30 before the worst of the humidity descended. The backyard squirrels were seriously confused and a little belligerent about my unexpected presence. If I never write on Frail Deeds again, you’ll know she found out about the photo.

Nine (!) movies fell in the A-Z watch, eight keepers and one, not so much: I delved into the world of Resident Evil with six pictures in a row, interesting to watch them all in sequence for the first time, Resident Evil – best of the six, with those cursed jump scares and Alice learning the evil of Umbrella; Resident Evil Apocalypse – Alice wanders out of the hive to confront the ongoing destruction of Racoon City by zombies, meanwhile I fell in love with Jill Valentine; Resident Evil Extinction – Alice is wandering the desert when she runs into old friends, both good and bad; Resident Evil Afterlife – Alice now wanders in a plane, really cool final confrontation on the ship; Resident Evil Afterlife – Alice finds another hive and more old friends (including Jill!!), some to kill, lot more CGI this time; Resident Evil The Final Chapter -  God, I hope so, all roads lead Alice back to Racoon City and a generous effort to close all the plot holes; The Revenant – great to watch this during a heat wave because it makes you feel so cold, nearly three hours of watching DiCaprio suffer (so that’s fun), still think Hardy could have taken him; Revenge – love this old Costner movie, a young Madeline Stowe, all I can say is, YIKES!!!!; Righteous Kill – DeNiro and Pacino heroically tried to save this deeply flawed movie, but can’t, reject.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------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; Wingmom – Wingman’s mom, of course