She Looks Better Now!

This week I've been alternating between posting vacation pictures on Facebook, writing "diary-type" entries, and doing nothing. (When you're outside till after 9:00 and you want to be in bed by soon after 10:00, there's not much time left!) But I wanted to catch up on an entry I should have made last Saturday.
Evelyn and I went to her high school graduating class reunion. And she was, BY FAR, the best-looking woman there (she looked better than the men too!). They gave everyone a nametag with their senior picture and name on it, and the evening was punctuated by confused smiles followed by a glance at the name tag and then a squeal and a big hug: "Oh, Sally (or whoever), it's YOU!"
Evelyn enjoyed seeing several people she really wanted to see and several more she didn't know that well but remembered she went to school with them. I enjoyed meeting several of her classmates. And the buffet was very good. It was a nice evening, although Evelyn's not making noises about wanting to go to another reunion in the future.

Evergreen Goes Orange

Evelyn and I helped serve the monthly Evergreen banquet this evening. She got to church about 4:00; I left work at 4:00 and got there by 4:20. We put cake and salads on plates and then put salads at the tables--216 guests came for dinner tonight. Evelyn helped serve a the buffet line and I bussed tables (removing the salad plates while they stood in line for the main course). There were a dozen or more workers there. And most all of us helped serve dessert after the main course (and after more bussing of the tables.)
This evening's theme was carrots, because the musical guests were a quartet called Wild Carrot. (I got to hear them sing a couple of numbers--wonderful voices, perfect blend, accompanied by a variety of acoustic instruments they played while they sang).
So leafy-topped carrots in bud vases made the center pieces. The salad was a carrot gelatin combo. And for dessert? What else but carrot cake?
In addition to the fun of the fellowship, the pleasure of serving at these deals is getting to EAT the wonderful meal that's always offered. Evelyn and I enjoyed it.
We here home by about 8:15. I changed clothes and watered plants outside. Then Evelyn and I read on the deck till it was too dark to read. Then I sat outside and watched the night settle in, listening to the birds chirp, watching the breeze turn up the maple leaves. Just before it was finally dark, Evelyn (having brushed her teeth, washed her face, and put on her pajamas) came outside to join me. We scurried inside by 9:45 when we felt the first mosquito bite.
I love to just be outside in the summer. It was relaxing and rejuvenating to do so this evening.

Sunday Guests

 Ajai Lall spoke at our church this morning--he brought a passionate challenge to act on our concerns for the poor and powerless and the lost. Evelyn and I had welcome center duty, and I hosted at the 8:30 service. At that service, we sang a worship song that was popular some time ago.

No other name but the name of Jesus
No other name but the name of the Lord
No other name but the name of Jesus
Is worthy of glory, and worthy of honor
And worthy of power and all praise.

For some reason, the words struck me as particularly meaningful today. I've been thinking too much lately about my own glory and honor, perhaps.

Later in the morning we had a nice visit with Ajai's lovely wife, Indu, and I was able to snap a wonderful picture of her with Evelyn.

We ate lunch at Olive Garden with a gift card Evelyn had received at school for leading her "D" group. We cut grass and I did some other yard work as soon as we got home. And after a shower, I went to Lowe's to pick up what I hope is our last batch of mulch for this year before heading to the grocery store. We had a nice visit with Jennifer on the phone, and then Evelyn fixed grilled cheese and tomato sandwiches on rye bread; I talked her into strawberries with ice cream to finish it off. We watched "60 Minutes" and then later both struggled to stay awake during a PBS "Masterpiece Mystery."

Remembering 40 Years Ago

It's our 40th wedding anniversary, and we're basking in all the good wishes after I posted two of our wedding pictures on Facebook.
It's a low-key weekend. Tonight we're celebrating by going to Evelyn's 50th high school class reunion! She insisted we don't need to do it, but there's no reason not to go. Hey we do get dinner out of the deal, and Evelyn says this will probably be the last time she tries to see these friends from so long ago.
Some time ago I got a Groupon for the 360 Restaurant, the latest brand for the revolving restaurant atop the Radisson in Covington, Kentucky. It struck a chord with me, because that's the hotel where we spent our wedding night, and we ate dinner (sort of) at that restaurant after the wedding. (We had an evening wedding with a cake and punch reception. We were both exhausted after the long day, and, really, I don't think we ate much of the meal.)
The night holds several memories; the ones I'll report include the fact that our room, high above I-75 had a perfect view of a flashing liquor store sign in Covington; and I had a nightmare in the middle of the night and woke up hollering out loud in abject fear. The next morning Evelyn was sick to her stomach--a result of the new birth control pills. I distinctly remember her ordering toast and tea at a Jerry's restaurant in Kentucky as we made our way to Cumberland Falls State Park. Another highlight of the morning: a phone call to our hotel room from either Evelyn's mother or her brother (I forget which). They needed a key to her apartment so they could stash all our wedding gifts inside. Evelyn thought one of the bridesmaids had the key so they could run the errand the night before, but, alas, it was nowhere to be found. So we had a rendezvous with Evelyn's brother in the morning before we left town. (We tried to look and act normal when we met him.)
Friends . . . this is the real life stuff they just don't include in the romance novels!
Anyway, back to last night. To tell you the truth, we were underwhelmed by the restaurant. Same nice views as always, of course, and we enjoyed the panoramas.
But the food was just OK, and the service lacked a certain panache. Maybe we're just spoiled by all the attention we received on the cruise ship, but I don't think so. The dinner was OK at a discounted Groupon price, but this place isn't on our list for a return visit--even on a future anniversary.
It will be good to get some tasks around here done today and tomorrow, in between going to the shindig tonight and church tomorrow.
And I promise to post some more vacation pictures soon.

Vacation Diary—the Vatican

The jet lag has really thrown me for a loop this week, but every day is better. I'm almost feeling human now. Sunday morning I was up at 5:00 and got through two weeks of work e-mail before we went to church that morning! Monday morning was the same story, and I got to work very early. Yesterday I woke up at 3:15 (after having collapsed in bed about 9:30 Monday evening) and determined, "I am NOT getting up yet!" I took two Tylenol P.M. and had no trouble sleeping all the way till the alarm went off at 6:00! Last night was a little better, but I was up before 6:00 this morning, so I'll take advantage of this time to post another entry about our trip. (Dentist appointment this morning means I don't leave the house till about 8:00.)
After flying all night from Newark to Rome, we got on busses and drove straight to the Vatican Museum. It was raining--a steady, unrelenting rain. The temperature was about 58 degrees, with an intermittent breeze. And we stood in line in that weather for more than 2 hours to get in the place.
This was a much less than glamorous way to begin our European adventure, but the visual treats inside the museum and around the Vatican were worth it. By the time our tour got started, the rain had stopped, and we had sunshine for our bus trip to the hotel where we could cast off damp clothes and take wonderful, warm showers.

Back Home, Back to the Blog

"I haven't been off the Internet for two weeks straight since 1998!"

That was Jennifer's comment when we were reviewing our vacation with her on the phone today. We took a 12-day cruise of the Mediterranean preceded by a 3-day Rome pretour, and except for 30 minutes to check e-mail at the beginning of the trip, I didn't log onto the Internet the whole time. No Facebook. No e-mail. No blog posts.

So I'll catch up here, interspersing details about the trip with more typical daily diary reports.

I decided to sift through my dozens (hundreds?) of pictures and to begin with pictures of me and Evelyn, more or less. (Remember when I began this project, I said, "It IS all about me!")

Here's the thing. At the moment, my body, which hasn't adjusted back to Eastern Daylight time after two weeks in Italy and Greece, thinks the time is past 3 in the morning tomorrow. So I'm fading fast, and I don't have the energy to keep dates and places straight to accompany all the scenery photos.

So I'm beginning with these pictures just to record for the world and remind myself that Evelyn and I were in some beautiful, memorable places during the last two weeks.

In the Colosseum at Rome

On the Acropolis in Athens, and at the foot of the stairs leading up to Mars Hill (below)

On the beautiful islands of Malta and Santorini (below)

In an outdoor restaurant in Venice

All dressed up for "formal night" on the ship