On the Eve of a New York Kind of Weekend

Well, I've been very busy since my return to The Palacio. Last Friday I got to The Palacio around 8:30 and unpacked, unwound and crashed. I woke up at 7:00 on Saturday morning and caught up on mail, cleaning, and reading before my cousin and I met Mark across the street for breakfast at Solo 1530. The rest of the afternoon I caught up around The Palacio, and then I caught up with Arianna over the phone until my cousin, her husband and one of her friends knocked on The Palacio door!

You see, I lost my cell phone in Ireland, and about a month ago I reduced my local phone service to a mere dial tone for $8 per month (so that I can continue to get DSL for $16 per month). I also acquired in internet phone number that I use to make long distance phone calls, including international phone calls for $.02/minute. Along the way, I also signed up for an internet phone number in Italy so that Arianna can call me cheaply. To summarize a short story that has been made long, my complicated telephone situation meant that my cousin had been trying to call me for a few hours before she knocked on my door! With every step forward, it seems I take one or two backward in the line of technological progress...

So, on Saturday afternoon I visited with my cousin in The Palacio and eventually at Bricks for some pizza and beer.

Sunday morning I drove south for a breakfast at my parents' house, a church service, and an after-church luncheon to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the church of my youth. In many ways the luncheon was like a family reunion. I saw many people I had not seen in years, caught up, reminisced, all in all it was great to be surrounded by those with which I share so many childhood memories. We shared a lot of good times.

Work Week
This week I tried my darndest to finish 10 days of work in four days. I probably finished six days worth of work, which just about allows me to rest easy as I take the next three days off for a quick vacation to New York City. Yes, that's right, New York City! I've just finished searching for restaurants for the weekend. On Saturday night we'll go to a costume party hosted by the girlfriend of an old friend of mine. Monday morning we'll go to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. For the rest of the time, we will have to be creative in how we fill the pages!