Catching up.
I got to go the the family reunion in Wisconsin a few weeks ago. I had a really nice time. Lots of food, and card games, and loud discussions (not "arguments" per se, since to me, "argument" implies anger, or at least a stronger degree of contention than generally goes on.) Lots of sitting around under trees and knitting (for me) and eating. And eating.
This is how it usually is, at the big reunions, and I love it. It's also nice when it's only a few, or only our family visiting, but it's just not the same. It's more than a little chaotic, but it's exciting. Almost everyone was there - as far as my mom's siblings, anyway. I think only one did not make it - Aunt Cathy, who is extremely reclusive. It's been a long, long time since I was there with that many people. I remember it always being that way when I was little, and always loved it - playing with all my cousins - rolling down the hill, swimming in the creek, swinging from ropes and tumbling down stacks of bales in the hay mow. None of those activities this time, of course, as most of us cousins are now in our late teens and early twenties. My Grandpa also remembers those days fondly, apparently. He was teasing me and David (who is about my age, and whom I hadn't seen in about 10 years) about how the two of us were the best of friends when we were little, and remembering all of us grandkids playing on the slip 'n slide out in the yard. I remember that summer, too. Why didn't we play like that now? Grandpa asked. I told him he had to find a slip 'n slide first.
I got to see my Uncle Steven for the first time in about 17 years. I barely remembered meeting him at all - in fact, I think I remember it more from photos than from real memory. I wasn't sure what to expect. From stories I've heard, he's always been a bit wild, and he's spent more than twenty years working for the church of scientology. But he turned out to be reassuringly normal. A bit crazy, maybe, but crazy in the same way as the rest of the family. Not scary cult crazy.
This was really the first time that I felt like I could sit and talk with the "grownups" and actually feel like I was being listened to and taken seriously. That was nice, too. There are a lot of big personalities, and it's good to feel like you're noticed.
I totally kept forgetting all the rules to Hand and Foot (which is the card game we always play that apparently only our weird family knows about) just because the only time I get to play is at reunions. We played a hand with something like twenty people, it was insane. Nobody knew what was going on or whose turn it was, so people (especially Grandpa) were randomly declaring it to be their turn.
And we had a party for my grandparents' 60th anniversary. We had reserved a pavilion in a park at a nearby town, ordered a bunch of food and cake, and put an ad in the local papers for the people of Rusk County to come by and celebrate with us. My grandma's brothers and sisters and such were invited (the reunion for grandpa's side had been the weekend before) and I got to meet several relatives I'd never seen before, many of whom looked so much like Grandma it's scary. There were crayons and white paper tablecloths, so I doodled as I sat and listened to my Grandpa talk to some old friends of his. We had reunion t-shirts, and it's not as cheesy as it sounds. They're cute - just a picture of my grandparents on their wedding day, in the shape of a heart, and their wedding date underneath.
I hated leaving. I always have - when I was little, I would always cry so hard when we had to leave. I cried again this time, too, mostly because I had to leave early and almost everyone else was still there, playing cards and eating food and sitting under the tree without me. I went with Aunt Barbara and her husband to Minneapolis and we flew to Dallas. I ALMOST got stuck in Dallas/Ft. Worth airport - I got onto an earlier flight on standby, which was then canceled, and then had to run to the gate of the flight I was originally booked on to keep that seat, and then they couldn't find the pilot, and then there was a power outage and the computers went down, but we did get off the ground, about two hours after we were supposed to. I obviously got home fine, but I am NEVER flying anywhere by myself EVER AGAIN. It was terrifying. I almost had a panic attack in the middle of the DFW terminal. Way too stressful. I don't mind flying, not at all - I kind of like it, actually. It's airports that I can't stand.
I've basically been doing nothing but watching the Olympics since Friday night. I LOVE the Olympics!!! I wish they did it every year, but I guess if they did, it wouldn't be as special.
This is how it usually is, at the big reunions, and I love it. It's also nice when it's only a few, or only our family visiting, but it's just not the same. It's more than a little chaotic, but it's exciting. Almost everyone was there - as far as my mom's siblings, anyway. I think only one did not make it - Aunt Cathy, who is extremely reclusive. It's been a long, long time since I was there with that many people. I remember it always being that way when I was little, and always loved it - playing with all my cousins - rolling down the hill, swimming in the creek, swinging from ropes and tumbling down stacks of bales in the hay mow. None of those activities this time, of course, as most of us cousins are now in our late teens and early twenties. My Grandpa also remembers those days fondly, apparently. He was teasing me and David (who is about my age, and whom I hadn't seen in about 10 years) about how the two of us were the best of friends when we were little, and remembering all of us grandkids playing on the slip 'n slide out in the yard. I remember that summer, too. Why didn't we play like that now? Grandpa asked. I told him he had to find a slip 'n slide first.
I got to see my Uncle Steven for the first time in about 17 years. I barely remembered meeting him at all - in fact, I think I remember it more from photos than from real memory. I wasn't sure what to expect. From stories I've heard, he's always been a bit wild, and he's spent more than twenty years working for the church of scientology. But he turned out to be reassuringly normal. A bit crazy, maybe, but crazy in the same way as the rest of the family. Not scary cult crazy.
This was really the first time that I felt like I could sit and talk with the "grownups" and actually feel like I was being listened to and taken seriously. That was nice, too. There are a lot of big personalities, and it's good to feel like you're noticed.
I totally kept forgetting all the rules to Hand and Foot (which is the card game we always play that apparently only our weird family knows about) just because the only time I get to play is at reunions. We played a hand with something like twenty people, it was insane. Nobody knew what was going on or whose turn it was, so people (especially Grandpa) were randomly declaring it to be their turn.
And we had a party for my grandparents' 60th anniversary. We had reserved a pavilion in a park at a nearby town, ordered a bunch of food and cake, and put an ad in the local papers for the people of Rusk County to come by and celebrate with us. My grandma's brothers and sisters and such were invited (the reunion for grandpa's side had been the weekend before) and I got to meet several relatives I'd never seen before, many of whom looked so much like Grandma it's scary. There were crayons and white paper tablecloths, so I doodled as I sat and listened to my Grandpa talk to some old friends of his. We had reunion t-shirts, and it's not as cheesy as it sounds. They're cute - just a picture of my grandparents on their wedding day, in the shape of a heart, and their wedding date underneath.
I hated leaving. I always have - when I was little, I would always cry so hard when we had to leave. I cried again this time, too, mostly because I had to leave early and almost everyone else was still there, playing cards and eating food and sitting under the tree without me. I went with Aunt Barbara and her husband to Minneapolis and we flew to Dallas. I ALMOST got stuck in Dallas/Ft. Worth airport - I got onto an earlier flight on standby, which was then canceled, and then had to run to the gate of the flight I was originally booked on to keep that seat, and then they couldn't find the pilot, and then there was a power outage and the computers went down, but we did get off the ground, about two hours after we were supposed to. I obviously got home fine, but I am NEVER flying anywhere by myself EVER AGAIN. It was terrifying. I almost had a panic attack in the middle of the DFW terminal. Way too stressful. I don't mind flying, not at all - I kind of like it, actually. It's airports that I can't stand.
I've basically been doing nothing but watching the Olympics since Friday night. I LOVE the Olympics!!! I wish they did it every year, but I guess if they did, it wouldn't be as special.