Czeching In

My weekend of re-connecting with my Stateside friends continued yesterday when we journeyed to the wilds of Leicester for a very fun dinner with our Czech friends. We hadn’t seen them since their epic visit to join us for the equally epic 70th birthday party at the Panamanian condo in February. The Shadow continues to grow up which is scary enough in its own right. She’s now working and getting ready to obtain her driver’s license. That’s enough to rub salt in the wound of feeling old. She also created my personal kryptonite, those cursedly delicious chocolate chip cookies. I may have to double my workouts this week to deal with the aftermath of my uncontrolled consumption. They were so good.

The Great Crew Last Night

It was so good seeing these friends again. They prepared a fantastic meal and made sure they included enough dead animal flesh with the exotic Czech dishes they knew I wouldn’t attempt. My picky eating habits are always one of the first topics covering at one of these dinners. They are good sports about my finicky palate. We were joined by their neighbors, stalwart members of the Latina Mafia which always adds to the fun. We were treated to a photo show that included one of their trips home as well as the ones from their time in Panama. It felt like coming home, spending this evening with good friends. We left with yet another large bag of books that the Shadow routinely bequeaths to the FBR.

The A-Z watch continued with four movies, all keepers: X-Men The Last Stand – kind of dark ending to the original cast but great final battle scene; XXX – kind of goofy action flick but Diesel is perfect before he started taking himself so seriously; XXX The Return of Xander Cage – screwing up that original concept but still some fun action sequences; Yes Man – one of my favorite Jim Carrey films.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------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