WEDNESDAY We lunched at the Pub with the ladies of Stitch & Bitch (Ann, Cynthia, and Carolyn), all of whom I know from previous visits.  I ordered my usual, the delicious crab soup, and also 'forced' myself to eat the kettle chips.  (There's a reason I don't keep potato chips around the house!) Afterward we trooped up to Carolyn's apartment, which is the same floor plan as Mom's except it has 'bump outs' in the sun room and living room (not available when Mom and Dad moved in) which give nice added room.  We sat around and stitched (first time I'd picked up my needlework since I'd been here) and talked some more until it was time for us to head back and get ready for our big evening.

Andy and Sandy picked us up and we headed to the University of Maryland Law School in downtown Baltimore for a special evening.  At the end of Andy's first semester of law school (December of 1978) he became critically ill and was not expected to survive.  When he did, my parents endowed a scholarship fund in his honor to which I have contributed each year.  When that scholarship became totally funded, they started a second one specifically for disabled applicants.  Last night there was a dinner to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the scholarship, with many of the recipients attending.  It was heart-warming to hear what the scholarship has meant to each of them, and what it had enabled them to achieve.  Most of them were 'paying it forward' by the way in which they have chosen to use their education and skills.  We also received a packet of letters written by some of the other recipients who were unable to attend the dinner but were also quite appreciative of of the opportunities given to them by virtue of receiving the financial aid.  Dad, who put himself through school and knew the value of an education, would have loved to have seen how the scholarship had impacted so many lives since its beginning so many years ago.  When Andy spoke at the end of the evening I discovered that the Dean at that time had tried to convince Dad to put the money into the Dean's Discretionary Fund, but Dad (always a huge proponent of education) felt strongly about funding a scholarship.  At the time it was the first such scholarship at the law school, although since then other families have followed suit and created a scholarship in someone's honor or memory.

THURSDAY We we lunched in downtown Silver Spring with Mom's friend Judy, who has known me since high school.  Of course I've changed a little <g> since then...but so has Silver Spring!  Mom had the latkes, and Judy and I both ordered the blitzes. I could have stopped at that, but Judy (who was treating) insisted I have dessert, so I caved in and ordered the Big Fat Chocolate Cake.  Let's just say that when it arrived (with 3 forks, as I'd requested) it was enough to feed an army.  I divided it into 3 portions and we did our best, but none of us could finish our 'slice'.

There was some 3D artwork at the restaurant that intrigued me, so when we were leaving I stopped by the manager's office to get some info on the artist. Later when I looked him up on the internet I guess I shouldn't have been that surprised to discover he's out of MY price range...

More Rummikub (mom is on a roll and has been beating me) and then off to dinner with Lucille and Dave.  Even though we'll see them on Thanksgiving it'll be nice to visit with them tonight.