The past few weeks have been terrific, but a special shout-out goes to all the good food I've eaten. My mom was my breakfast "enabler," bringing home donuts for me many mornings--ready and waiting when I dragged my late-sleeping ass out of bed. Heidi and Randi made incredible bacon-wrapped BBQ pork chops, which I enjoyed while sitting in their wet backyard. Yvette and I and Mom and I and Maddie and Randi and I chowed down at Plaza Del Sol, while amazing zucchini fries and pomogranite martinis served as the perfect accompaniment for court gossip at Jaime's surprise happy hour. Of course, the be-all end-all of dining came just two days before I left: Reiner's mouthwatering spread for Indy breakfast. All that food and a win in the 500 by a rookie from Nevada City? Oh hell yeah! In spite of all this food, though, the seat belt needed a little more tightening today. I'm not really sure what that was about.
I did a bit of studying over my vacation, which Charlie Bucket supervised from the end of the chaise lounge in my parents' backyard. I didn't get as much done as I might have liked, but that's Heidi's fault for introducing me to a new game for my phone. I have no self-discipline.
Lunches and happy hour with the Princess were, of course, all about laughter and talking and eating and talking some more. Can't wait until December when we take Tahoe by storm.
Along those same lines, Yvette and I did a lot of talking, eating, and laughing as well. I especially liked the way we, along with Kimber, sidestepped an awkward social engagement with a little help from Mother Nature. And it was great to see Phebes, the Trishter, Jaime, Alice, Kirstin, Sally, Shawn, Monica, and Megan as well.
A highlight of the trip was watching my nephew Joe graduate from high school--WITH HIGHEST HONORS!! He was simply too cool for school during the ceremony, not even acknowledging the roar of his many fans as he passed by where we were sitting. Tricia and Brian then hosted a yummy taco bar lunch, after which Joe and I went to an auntie-nephew celebratory (and conspiratory) dinner.
Conspiratory, you ask? Yes! Since Heidi and Mom came to Knoxville for spring break back in March, a prank had been in the making. The target originally was just Tricia, but it expanded to include Dad when he mouthed off one too many times about how he hates tattoos. The idea was for Joe to appear at Indy breakfast the morning after his graduation with a brand-new tattoo of the Mercedes symbol. Maddie's artwork with Sharpies was beyond realistic, right down to the slight reddening around the symbol. Sadly, Joe's poor performance in the starring role did not let the prank go on for too long, but my loving father did believe it long enough to threaten my life.
And now it's back to Knoxville. I'll get home late tonight, and the plan is to sleep late tomorrow. Not too late, though, because I have to get up, repack, and head out for the Society of Civil War Historians conference in Chatanooga tomorrow afternoon. My life bears absolutely no resemblance to what it did a year ago. Even less to what it looked like five years ago.
So, I'll say goodnight from the home of Scarlett O'Hara. After all, tomorrow is another day.
No comments:
Post a Comment