The last leg of our summer vacation isn't as easy to follow. Perhaps this is because there was such an inconsistent mixture of work and play. We were glad to get back from the North Shore just as the worst of the heat wave was over. This allowed for a bit of work on outdoor projects such as adding
rocks to our garden. During the mid afternoons we would take breaks to watch some Band Of Brothers episodes on DVD. That weekend though, David spent a fair amount of time working with Brother John and the crew with his
truck loading project. That same day, we drove Dad to the airport for his trip back home.
The following week was my (David's) Jury duty. Despite all of the anticipation, I never got the chance to sit on a jury. Being in such a crowded room for so long, I took full advantage of the allotted break times, and wandered around city hall whenever possible. I even came into close contact with Randy Kelly. When I saw him, I was quite tempted to walk up and say, "good morning Norm". And of course when he went to correct me, saying Norm was the previous mayor, I would say, "what, no one has ever confused you with a party-switching republican in a national office?" You see, apart from the party-switching stab, the irony there comes from my first encounter with Representative Kelly. Back in the early 80s, while running for state office, I answered the door when Kelly knocked. He managed to convey to my young mind that he was campaigning for a political office. That, combined with a haircut that I knew as a trademark, prompted me to ask: "are you Ronald Reagan?" But alas, such a joke even Dennis Miller wouldn't have laughed at, so I let the mayor walk peacfully by.
Capping off the stint away from our workplaces, we were briefly revisited by the events in Duluth. When we had stopped by Mary and Susie's, I had left my violin with Susie to be strung and tuned. Susie not only returned it to us last weekend, but she even gave me a bow for it. It hasn't taken me nearly as long to learn to play it as I had feared it would. It was only a matter of minutes before folks were eagerly seeking to accompany me. Heather was the first; she was keeping time by stomping around, and she was also creating near-overpowering sounds through a variety of other means. Later the neighborhood dogs chimed in with some haunting howls. Next time I play, I'll try to make a recording of our symphony.
The rest of the weekend showed us signs of the return to the norm. Saturday I briefly attended the night
bike ride (after betting it would be more fun than the Irish fair or the brass band gigs at the Cabooze). The riders opted to go to Hopkins, and I opted out. And of course, Sunday was NASCAR. It was the first race we had seen in our home in weeks. Unfortunately we'll have to go out if we want to see next Sunday's race.
