Mon Jun 15 08:03 EDT 1998
Weekend Update: June 13, 1998

What a wet weekend where we wound up waterlogged!

On Saturday, we may have held the wettest cookout ever!  Sheets of
rain came straight down in the Boston-area's record rainfall for one
day.  I got drenched placing a tarp over the deck, just off the barn.
The tarp did it's job, however, and I was able to man the fire pits,
churning out burgers and dogs to supplement the rest of the feast
going on in the house.

Despite what could rightly be termed a constant downpour, as many as a
dozen kids, led by Emily, begged to swim in the pool.., and they did!
I know that I did some swimming in the rain when I was a kid, but I
don't remember the urge that compelled me to do so; I've lost it with
my youth.  But the 12-and-under crowd certainly did not lose the urge,
though I questioned whether they had lost their minds.

Saturday's event was Miranda's graduation party and around 75 people
braved the liquid elements to congratulate her and wish her well.  I
had occasion to leave the grills and venture through the congregation
of friends and relatives and everyone seemed to be doing fine and
enjoying themselves.  We introduced people to my wife's sister, (the
one they hadn't met before but heard about), and they would say, "Oh,
so *you're* Aunt Faith!"  (which delighted me no end for some odd
reason, and probably delighted her more).

We had Joy's dad with us for the week and he got to see the
graduation, the party, the kids' concert, and we also dragged him
along to everything else that we had to do (poor guy).  I wonder if he
would appreciate a week at the Manor where he could rest the whole
week? We should give him a raincheck for just that.  He doesn't need a
raincheck for all the love and attention his grandkids lavished on
him. And we enjoyed having him around.

The kids get out of school this week and the summer vacation begins
for them on Friday morning.  Funny how the summers get shorter as we
get older, even in school.  I hope to take a day here and there and
have some summer days with my kids, climbing Mt. Manadanock, visiting
the Basin, or something like that.  What are your summer plans?

Mark
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