MONDAY NIGHT I did attend the movie, and while there were no surprises in the plot it was certainly enjoyable. Plus I learned a lot about the game of lacrosse (which wasn't hard since I'd known practically nothing about it beforehand.)

TUESDAY

Remember the crappy cold I suffered through in the days right before my trip?  Shortly after I left for Maryland it got Alex, and last night I found out that Tom has been down with it for the past three days.  Sounds like it made him just as miserable as it did me, but it also sounds like he is over the worst of it, and (with a little luck) will be all recovered by Thursday.

It was an amazingly balmy day here yesterday (incredible for late November) when Cindy met us for lunch.  The temps actually soared into the low 70s (!) although there was quite a brisk wind (one gust almost blew Mom over) so that negated some of the effect.  Today it's back to the more seasonal 50s,  but a winter storm is expected to arrive early tomorrow - certainly not good news for all the holiday travelers!  At the moment it looks like we could get an inch (or possibly three) of snow tomorrow, so we're both glad that it's the one day during my visit that we have nothing planned and can hole up here with movies and Rummikub. Even if it just turns out to just be rain (the forecast map has us close to the line) we really don't need to be out driving in it, wondering if/when the roads could turn icy.

Mom and I both both woke up early so I've already crossed off my most important 'to do' item for today: boiling the eggs so I can devil them tomorrow.  Mid-morning we headed over to the cemetery to say hi to Dad.  I still miss him, and think of him all the time - hard to believe it's been more than 5 years - but especially around Thanksgiving, my favorite family day of the year.  And of course nobody carves the turkey like he did!  The gravestones at this cemetery are all flat on the ground, and Dad's was (again) getting covered in mud and in danger of disappearing - again.  I cleaned it as best I could (the squeegee in Mom's trunk helped considerably) but next visit I'll be sure to bring better tools with me.

Speaking of cemeteries, this past weekend was the unveiling of Bev's headstone in Connecticut.  Her daughter Perri posted a picture on Facebook yesterday for those of us who couldn't be there.  Bev touched so many lives, and while I knew her longer than most (over 60 years) she is also missed by so many others. It's especially tragic that she didn't get her final wish, to hang on long enough to spare her parents the sorrow of burying a child.  Her father just died last month (at 99) and her mother is still going strong at 95. Despite "choosing" the right parents (with good aging genes) she lost her battle with cancer in March at the too-young age of 63.

After the cemetery we stopped in to visit with Marge and Merle, family friends for the past 35 years.  He's dealing with numerous (and serious) health issues which means they can't get out much, so they were especially appreciative of our visit.  From my seat I had a view of their spectacular holly tree, all dressed in red.  I meant to take a picture when we were leaving, but we all know how that goes...