The · New · Republic · of · Chelemby

First of all, Salmonberryboyboy says "mmrrreereh **PEEP!** fmmorrigh"

So, I took off from my Bay Area domicile on Tuesday and arrived in Santa Rosa in a timely manner, thus meeting up with Krisli at nearly the exact time she requested -- gotta love it when a bus schedule actually works out.

Oh lordy, didn't I need to get away for a while... And for the better part of a week I was in a comforting environment where I could break out of my usual routines.

Let's hit some of the high points: Turkey Day itself was wonderful. There were seven adults at the table, plus Nico, the babe-in-arms son of Melia, Gabe's daughter. It is amazing just how focused a group of adults can get when there is a baby in the room, especially one that smiles a lot. Let us say that the food was plentiful, the drink appropriate, and the company warm and joyous. Turkey, gravy, mashed spuds-n-rutabagas, cranberries, homemade pickles, a plethora of cheeses, an amazing cactus salad, and many other wondrous goodies were passed from hand to hand, and to the ancestors as well. As is always said at the table, "Bless the food and bless the cook and bless the people in the household." What more could one ask for?

On top of this we had your usual Turkey Day Film Festival. The ... uh ... selections this year were 7 Zwerge, a strange joint German-South Korean supposed comedy based on the tale of the Seven Dwarves ... kinda. It "starred" Nina Hagen, one of the stranger acts to come out of Germany in the 80s; this time she was an evil queen who demanded brunette jokes from her jester and threatened people with perms. No, really. This film would have to be experienced to understand... There was also a horrible film out of the early 60s about a nuclear missile attack. Mercifully, I have forgotten the title of this horror. Let's put it this way -- I have seen worse films ("Manos", the Hands of Fate comes to mind ... but that may be it...), but not many and not much worse. Then again, this is the point of the Turkey Day Film Festival -- to show the worst we can find! Next year I swear I am going to subject them to White Pongo, probably the single worst "British in the Jungle" film ever made.

On Saturday, thanks to strange luck on Krisli's part at a charity casino night, six of us trooped down to San Francisco to go to ... THE WAX MUSEUM! I mean, this is about on par with the Turkey Films! It would have been painful to do this on my own; the last time I had been to the Wax Museum was when I was about 9 or 10; at that point it seemed pretty cool. As an adult ... well, it is pretty darn Velveeta-licious... I mean, quel fromage! But we also went to the Ferry Building and the amazing farmer's market there -- you could eat all day on the luscious samples handed out on all hands, and this was during the "off season"! In any case, it was a helluvalotta fun, thanks to many friends. :-)

We also were proud to maintain the "No Shopping Except For Necessities" rule for the day after Turkey Day. ;-)

On top of this, I saw most of the second season of Torchwood. After seeing this many episodes I can say it is ... a show. The acting is pretty good, but most of the stories fall apart the moment you think about any of them. On top of this, if you are not "in the know" about Dr. Who, there are many references (and even whole episodes) that simply make no sense. Sad, that.

Now on the rougher parts...

Melia and Nico were by quite a bit. While this in and of itself was quite fine, the circumstances that led to it were not. There has been a severe fallout between Melia and the sperm-donor to Nico. She is now working to get sole custody, but this is requiring a fair amount of grandpa babysitting time. I feel sorry for her and the kid; the dork semi-ex is another matter. I have only met him once (this weekend), and I have rarely met anyone so socially clueless. The guy is a dip who doesn't realize what is going on around him. Still, he can get pretty aggressive apparently so all of the folks at the Last Homely Home are doing their bit to make sure Nico is taken care of. I am sure that At Least One Of My Readers will understand this situation and may have some suggestions to pass along to that household.

Gabe is also in very poor health as of late. The Agent Orange is really catching up with him. He is on 100% disability. His joints hurt pretty much all the time and now he is having trouble with soft tissues, including, quite sadly, his right bicep. At least one muscle has detached in such a way that there is no way to reattach it, thus giving him far less upper arm strength -- his doctor has forbidden him to do anything that would put more than about 50 pounds of weight on that arm, which would include not only lifting, but also most of his chopping. This is a man very used to being physically active, to buildings, creating, lifting, being the tough one. He stays pretty stoic most of the time, but as he said, "On a scale of 1-10, I am usually at a 4 in regards to pain every day, and that was before the muscle problems. Sometimes it spikes up to 6." I cannot even imagine how he lives with this; all I can say is that he is a stronger and braver man than I.

I know that he and Krisli are having rough times adjusting to his health issues. The two of them are, in most ways, a perfectly matched couple and utterly in love with each other. And all I can do is hope for their perseverance and grace; it hurts that I can do little more than light candles and wish well for them. They are as dear of friends as I can say.

If any of you can add to those well-wishings, I would be deeply obliged.

So, there it is -- the highs, the lows, the in-betweens. It was a grand time and I desperately needed it. In the end, all I can say is that I got out alive with a jar of THE AMAZING DILLY BEANS and absolutely lovely plum jam (yummerz!), but my heart hurts for my friends.

So many thanks for the ability to visit and best wishes for health and harmony in the northern clan!

Current Location:	next to the fan...
Current Mood:	tired
Current Music:	"Gothic Love Songs"