On Wednesday, during her day off, Liz spent a lot of the afternoon working on the house. She talked with Bob at length the day before, and we now have a revised plan on what we need to tackle. The basement and upstairs are now higher up on the list than we previously thought.
After our day of slothful decadence yesterday, Liz and I actually got out of bed and did some work around the house. I headed up to the attic, while Liz settled in to work in the basement.
We arrived around 3PM, and spent the rest of the afternoon and early evening just hanging out with Bob and Julie. We had some drinks, opened some gifts, and whiled away the time until dinner. After traveling from Chicago to Atlanta to Chicago to Frankfort to Indianapolis and back to Frankfort… we were ready for a bit of a break.
Jasmine and Jahnu, focused on their electronic devices. What is with kids these days, and how they seem to be so obsessed with technology and gadgets? Incidentally, that would be my Amazon Echo in the middle of the table.
After flying back in to Chicago from Atlanta, Liz and I decided we wanted to spend the night in Frankfort. Doing so allowed us to spend more time with Julie and Bob, and also had us at the house when Katie came over with the kids.
After church, we went out for a late brunch. Kirt and the girls ended up playing a really silly game (where they pinched his mouth, and forced him to talk and make farting sounds). They were in absolute stitches for a really long time, and it was hysterical to watch both him and their reactions.
An early Xmas in Atlanta, with the Ford kids in the midst of opening up their gifts.
I have to say – playing Skee-ball with the kids, they’re all arms and power throws. Every ball is a hail Mary attempt to hit the small “100 point” spot in the corner. And I’ll be damned if they don’t hit it more often than one would think. I was clearly the worst player of the bunch, score-wise.
It’s funny – I used to be all careful coming up here, putting on a Tyvek suit and booties. Now, I just come up in jeans, a t-shirt, and a hoodie. Where I used to be super careful moving around, I’m literally just swimming in this stuff. I’m on my hands and knees, I’m on my back, on my belly. I’m hugging the dirty shop vac as I move it around – I don’t really care anymore. It’s like I’m taking a bath in all this muck, and it’s become normal now.
In meeting new folks, I got to chat with some really fun people. I met Mena, who used to be part of a bar trivia team with Meg. I told her about Mystery League and learned she was really into crime and detective shows. She brought up Serial, which I’ve been listening to (and I was playing Episode 1 for Liz, on our way over).
Our original plan was to take Uncle Danny and Auntie Karen out for a meal. But the timing of everything worked out to where we spent the day at their house. At 2PM, with glasses of champagne filled and two bottles of wine opened, our Thanksgiving meal was on in full force.
After yesterday’s brief exposure to the West Fork Trail, Liz and I ventured off on our own early in the morning to hike the trail.
Near the trailhead, we spotted a few warning signs that we were entering “Bear Country.” My parents were a little spooked by this, and headed back to wait by the car. But Liz and I pressed on for a bit.
I’m afraid of falling down, and afraid of getting pulled up. I guess I’m just incredibly happy with things as they are.
It was all fairly climbable, as some parts were steep… but still allowed enough traction so it was more like an aggressive stair step.