Happy Memorial Day, friends.
I'm always appreciative of all of the important women in my life & all the different ways they've effected me throughout my life. I could name them all, but I'd forget something about someone & anyways a couple of words on a silly blog site wouldn't do them justice. Today, though, my thoughts go to the fellas.
First of all, tip your hats to all of the soldiers you know & all the ones you wish you did. I hope they all come home soon, no quick. Here's another link to my good friend Dan's blog site, who's currently serving in Iraq. Wish him a happy birthday, he's 25 now. If I know him, he's probably thwarting policy in all sorts of ways & getting into all kinds of mischief but still getting the job done. Have a good long listen to some Blue Train or some Nashville Skyline today, Brother Dan, knowing that all sorts of people are appreciative of your efforts.
Speaking of Nashville Skyline, it was playing on the turntable yesterday at my cousin Matt's graduation party yesterday. I'll not talk about all of his accomplishments or scholarships because I hear he's got plenty of them, & I don't know what most of them are. I will say that he's got a great record collection, which in my opinion, is a good companion to a higher education that he'll be embarking upon soon. He's also already read On the Road before he's turned 18, a book that tells you all kinds of things you need to know about the world & all kinds of things you probably shouldn't. He's well on his way, methinks.
At the party, I of course saw Opa. Opa's usually more excited to see Christie, understandably, but today he was excited to give me something. He pulls out a Cool Whip container with a signed baseball from the great Charlie Gehringer, second baseman for the Detroit Tigers in the thirties. I knew the name, & I knew that he played for the Tigers World Series Championship team in '35 but I mistakenly thought that he was a catcher, forgetting about another Tiger great Mickey Cochrane who played the position. Charlie Gehringer played second. It was another in a series of great memories Opa has given me with the game of baseball. We used to play on the farm, & he taught me how to better catch fly balls by throwing the ball up on the roof of the barn & waiting for it to come down. I went to my first game with Opa & my dad, when the Tigers played the Milwaukee Brewers in 1986 & Johnny Grubb hit a home run. I also went to my first game at Comerica Park with Opa. He used to come to alot of my little league games & give me pointers. My dad always used to tell me that Opa could've made it to the majors if only he could run better, & I used to always tell my friends that. When Oma & Opa used to go to Florida for Spring Training they'd always bring me back autographs from the players. Thanks Opa, if you read this, this is an incredible gift.
Christie & I rode to the party with my old man. We drove past Opa's house & all of the other family members who used to live on the ridge. This is always a great drive for me to listen to my dad tell stories about the people who lived there, especially with Christie with me.
Finally, I spent the rest of my trip to the east side with Heidi & her family at her house. It was Quinn's fifth birthday earlier in the week. The sun came out just in time for us to play on the swing set & on the sidewalk. It's fun to watch the kids in their own little habitat. Heidi suggested that we go to a vegetarian restaurant in Ann Arbor called Seva. I thought this to be an undeserved luxury seeing as how I'm the only vegetarian in the family. When I got there, though, I was in heaven. I don't usually expect too many vegetarian options when I go to restaurants, & am usually happy if there are a couple of options. I didn't know what to do when the whole menu was vegetarian. I apologized to Scott, an avid carnivore, but he assured me that he'd eat anything, which is true. If they had such a place around here I'd be fat & broke. The major highlight of the evening was driving Quinn to the restaurant, though. We got him to say hi to everyone we passed by who was in hearing distance. It doesn't sound like much, but it was hilarious. I've never heard Quinn talk as much as he did in the car, & it's a blast seeing how his personality is taking shape. He's quite the funny little guy.
Well, I found out that Christie gets out of work early today, so we're going for a hike & to the beach. I hope it's as beautiful where you are today as it is here. Mid-seventies & sunny.
Five Favorite Songs of the Day
Cross the Green Mountain-Bob Dylan, Gods & Generals Soundtrack
Une Annee Sans Lumiere-Arcade Fire, Funeral
Muddy Hymnal-Iron & Wine, the Creek Drank the Cradle
Wide River to Cross-Buddy Miller, Universal United House of Prayer
Ramblin' Round Your City-Woody Guthrie
Have a good week, friends...
andrew
p.s. all the pictures were lifted from other websites. by the by, i'm sure this is as close as opa will ever get to a vegetarian restaurant :).
I'm always appreciative of all of the important women in my life & all the different ways they've effected me throughout my life. I could name them all, but I'd forget something about someone & anyways a couple of words on a silly blog site wouldn't do them justice. Today, though, my thoughts go to the fellas.
First of all, tip your hats to all of the soldiers you know & all the ones you wish you did. I hope they all come home soon, no quick. Here's another link to my good friend Dan's blog site, who's currently serving in Iraq. Wish him a happy birthday, he's 25 now. If I know him, he's probably thwarting policy in all sorts of ways & getting into all kinds of mischief but still getting the job done. Have a good long listen to some Blue Train or some Nashville Skyline today, Brother Dan, knowing that all sorts of people are appreciative of your efforts.
Speaking of Nashville Skyline, it was playing on the turntable yesterday at my cousin Matt's graduation party yesterday. I'll not talk about all of his accomplishments or scholarships because I hear he's got plenty of them, & I don't know what most of them are. I will say that he's got a great record collection, which in my opinion, is a good companion to a higher education that he'll be embarking upon soon. He's also already read On the Road before he's turned 18, a book that tells you all kinds of things you need to know about the world & all kinds of things you probably shouldn't. He's well on his way, methinks.
At the party, I of course saw Opa. Opa's usually more excited to see Christie, understandably, but today he was excited to give me something. He pulls out a Cool Whip container with a signed baseball from the great Charlie Gehringer, second baseman for the Detroit Tigers in the thirties. I knew the name, & I knew that he played for the Tigers World Series Championship team in '35 but I mistakenly thought that he was a catcher, forgetting about another Tiger great Mickey Cochrane who played the position. Charlie Gehringer played second. It was another in a series of great memories Opa has given me with the game of baseball. We used to play on the farm, & he taught me how to better catch fly balls by throwing the ball up on the roof of the barn & waiting for it to come down. I went to my first game with Opa & my dad, when the Tigers played the Milwaukee Brewers in 1986 & Johnny Grubb hit a home run. I also went to my first game at Comerica Park with Opa. He used to come to alot of my little league games & give me pointers. My dad always used to tell me that Opa could've made it to the majors if only he could run better, & I used to always tell my friends that. When Oma & Opa used to go to Florida for Spring Training they'd always bring me back autographs from the players. Thanks Opa, if you read this, this is an incredible gift.
Christie & I rode to the party with my old man. We drove past Opa's house & all of the other family members who used to live on the ridge. This is always a great drive for me to listen to my dad tell stories about the people who lived there, especially with Christie with me.
Finally, I spent the rest of my trip to the east side with Heidi & her family at her house. It was Quinn's fifth birthday earlier in the week. The sun came out just in time for us to play on the swing set & on the sidewalk. It's fun to watch the kids in their own little habitat. Heidi suggested that we go to a vegetarian restaurant in Ann Arbor called Seva. I thought this to be an undeserved luxury seeing as how I'm the only vegetarian in the family. When I got there, though, I was in heaven. I don't usually expect too many vegetarian options when I go to restaurants, & am usually happy if there are a couple of options. I didn't know what to do when the whole menu was vegetarian. I apologized to Scott, an avid carnivore, but he assured me that he'd eat anything, which is true. If they had such a place around here I'd be fat & broke. The major highlight of the evening was driving Quinn to the restaurant, though. We got him to say hi to everyone we passed by who was in hearing distance. It doesn't sound like much, but it was hilarious. I've never heard Quinn talk as much as he did in the car, & it's a blast seeing how his personality is taking shape. He's quite the funny little guy.
Well, I found out that Christie gets out of work early today, so we're going for a hike & to the beach. I hope it's as beautiful where you are today as it is here. Mid-seventies & sunny.
Five Favorite Songs of the Day
Cross the Green Mountain-Bob Dylan, Gods & Generals Soundtrack
Une Annee Sans Lumiere-Arcade Fire, Funeral
Muddy Hymnal-Iron & Wine, the Creek Drank the Cradle
Wide River to Cross-Buddy Miller, Universal United House of Prayer
Ramblin' Round Your City-Woody Guthrie
Have a good week, friends...
andrew
p.s. all the pictures were lifted from other websites. by the by, i'm sure this is as close as opa will ever get to a vegetarian restaurant :).
4 comments:
It was a great time! Thanks for making us a part of your "East Coast" trip!
Matt just loved the book and the two mixed Cds. You are so thoughtful. I have not read that book but he thinks it is the best thing ever. It meant so much to have you come to his party. He was so upset that the stereo system wasn't working as he had planned. I will copy your blog and give it Opa so he can read your thoughts. LOL
Nice Ball! Ps I turned 26, yea I'm getting up there
My weekend was so full. Thanks for enriching it further with your commentary. A Charlie Gehringer signed ball, WOW! Have a fantastic week.
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