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Playing catch-up
Back home, survived, could've been worse.
Lots of driving through the snow this trip. We did the three-corner grand tour again, NYC => Cleveland => Buffalo (extra value-added fun!). Driving home, there was snow in the Poconos, but the roads were almost entirely clear. Cleveland to Buffalo was a more serious undertaking, as a Big Whompin' Snowstorm was being predicted in doomful voices. However, the roads were again remarkably clear, the only exception being the lake-effect snow belt east of Cleveland (Ashtabula County, for those of you playing along at home).
We spent four days at my mom's, and then drove up to Buffalo on Christmas Day. Note to self: really empty roads that day, by and large. Though part of that might have been the storm, too.
Could've been worse. Mom wasn't actually cranky until the last day, when she was getting ready to go to Boston, but it was a weird situation because she put us in _her_ bedroom and she slept on the couch. So, if we wanted to stay up, that meant we had to do it in the bedroom, and there's not a lot to do in there. (Why she didn't just clear out my former bedroom I don't know.)
Saw lots of Grandma and Grandpa, which was good. Very very painful, but this is not the time for me to be a big whiner. Grandma's still doing pretty well, somewhat fragile of course, and she is writing lots more notes to herself to keep on track, but Grandpa...isn't. He has to rest after walking across the room, which is bad enough, but far more ouch is the increasing mental confusion. (And worst of all, he _knows_ it's happening.) I really want to run away and Not Deal, but I swear that won't ever happen again.
We met Mom for lunch on Monday (she had to work), and she took us to this very cool place up the road from her job which is...well, it's a gourmet and import market, and a cafe, and has some housewares, and a not-inconsequential wine selection. Very cool. We dropped way too much money there. We also went to the Zoo Lights, which is a nifty thing they do at the zoo: xmas lights everywhere, some just outlining buildings and trees, some forming animal shapes. And of course you can view the animals that don't mind the weather. (The polar bears were clearly having a grand time.) They also sell spiked hot drinks near the waterfowl lake. Whee! And, Mom took us to a jazz brunch at a well-regarded restaurant right on Lake Erie; it was very good. Most brunch buffets are sort of ehh, but this was a happy exception.
After Mom left for Boston on Tuesday, we went back over to Grandma & Grandpa's for cake (since that's also Grandma's birthday), and then home for some downtime. I picked up Grandma for church at about 10:15 (Grandpa wasn't feeling up to going) (!) at which time it was already snowing pretty hard. I spent much of the service crafting a rant in my head about such topics as: screwing around with a Christmas Eve service which has been comfortably and happily the same since I was a toddler, "musical directors" who don't seem to grasp that a good part of what people like about xmas services is getting to bellow the ol' familiar carols and replacing this with really awful soloists and an organist with delusions of grandeur is *not* an improvement, and the impersonality of drive-by Communion. But then, like unto the sailors of HMS Surprise, I like what I'm used to.
Arrived in Buffalo midafternoon on the 25th; Steve's mom had a nice dinner just about ready for us. So we ate, chatted, and watched TV (the usual options there). Later in the evening, Ross and Jeff and Zerb stopped by and we had a good visit. The next day I slept in til noon (ah! bliss!) then we picked up Jeff and went for Duff's for lunch (that's a most excellent wings place; not quite as good as the Anchor Bar, I'm told, but pretty darn close and a lot cheaper). Then back to the Cohens' for hanging-out, and home for dinner. That evening, the guys called and asked if I could come out to play Divine Right (since Steve was working on the campaign). That was cool. I crawled home about 3am...
Next day, we all went to see The Two Towers (this time without the Odorama, *ahem*), and then were all invited over to Doug & Jennifer's for a buffet supper and bonhomie. Much fun was had (in spite of the fact that I won an allergy attack from their dog). And then Saturday was The Game. It went very well; still somewhat slow-moving as people get used to 3rd edition, but we're gearing in nicely.
Then I got back to find that Focal has announced they're ending all DSL service as of Jan. 31. I'm in my happy place! LA LA LA!
Lots of driving through the snow this trip. We did the three-corner grand tour again, NYC => Cleveland => Buffalo (extra value-added fun!). Driving home, there was snow in the Poconos, but the roads were almost entirely clear. Cleveland to Buffalo was a more serious undertaking, as a Big Whompin' Snowstorm was being predicted in doomful voices. However, the roads were again remarkably clear, the only exception being the lake-effect snow belt east of Cleveland (Ashtabula County, for those of you playing along at home).
We spent four days at my mom's, and then drove up to Buffalo on Christmas Day. Note to self: really empty roads that day, by and large. Though part of that might have been the storm, too.
Could've been worse. Mom wasn't actually cranky until the last day, when she was getting ready to go to Boston, but it was a weird situation because she put us in _her_ bedroom and she slept on the couch. So, if we wanted to stay up, that meant we had to do it in the bedroom, and there's not a lot to do in there. (Why she didn't just clear out my former bedroom I don't know.)
Saw lots of Grandma and Grandpa, which was good. Very very painful, but this is not the time for me to be a big whiner. Grandma's still doing pretty well, somewhat fragile of course, and she is writing lots more notes to herself to keep on track, but Grandpa...isn't. He has to rest after walking across the room, which is bad enough, but far more ouch is the increasing mental confusion. (And worst of all, he _knows_ it's happening.) I really want to run away and Not Deal, but I swear that won't ever happen again.
We met Mom for lunch on Monday (she had to work), and she took us to this very cool place up the road from her job which is...well, it's a gourmet and import market, and a cafe, and has some housewares, and a not-inconsequential wine selection. Very cool. We dropped way too much money there. We also went to the Zoo Lights, which is a nifty thing they do at the zoo: xmas lights everywhere, some just outlining buildings and trees, some forming animal shapes. And of course you can view the animals that don't mind the weather. (The polar bears were clearly having a grand time.) They also sell spiked hot drinks near the waterfowl lake. Whee! And, Mom took us to a jazz brunch at a well-regarded restaurant right on Lake Erie; it was very good. Most brunch buffets are sort of ehh, but this was a happy exception.
After Mom left for Boston on Tuesday, we went back over to Grandma & Grandpa's for cake (since that's also Grandma's birthday), and then home for some downtime. I picked up Grandma for church at about 10:15 (Grandpa wasn't feeling up to going) (!) at which time it was already snowing pretty hard. I spent much of the service crafting a rant in my head about such topics as: screwing around with a Christmas Eve service which has been comfortably and happily the same since I was a toddler, "musical directors" who don't seem to grasp that a good part of what people like about xmas services is getting to bellow the ol' familiar carols and replacing this with really awful soloists and an organist with delusions of grandeur is *not* an improvement, and the impersonality of drive-by Communion. But then, like unto the sailors of HMS Surprise, I like what I'm used to.
Arrived in Buffalo midafternoon on the 25th; Steve's mom had a nice dinner just about ready for us. So we ate, chatted, and watched TV (the usual options there). Later in the evening, Ross and Jeff and Zerb stopped by and we had a good visit. The next day I slept in til noon (ah! bliss!) then we picked up Jeff and went for Duff's for lunch (that's a most excellent wings place; not quite as good as the Anchor Bar, I'm told, but pretty darn close and a lot cheaper). Then back to the Cohens' for hanging-out, and home for dinner. That evening, the guys called and asked if I could come out to play Divine Right (since Steve was working on the campaign). That was cool. I crawled home about 3am...
Next day, we all went to see The Two Towers (this time without the Odorama, *ahem*), and then were all invited over to Doug & Jennifer's for a buffet supper and bonhomie. Much fun was had (in spite of the fact that I won an allergy attack from their dog). And then Saturday was The Game. It went very well; still somewhat slow-moving as people get used to 3rd edition, but we're gearing in nicely.
Then I got back to find that Focal has announced they're ending all DSL service as of Jan. 31. I'm in my happy place! LA LA LA!