Oh ... By The Way, John & Sandi ...

... there may be two more guests at the Anniversary Party / Reunion.

One of them has requested a Farouk (for herself) LOL

Back "Home" (for) Now ...

... but I had a great time seeing the kids. It has been far too long for me ... and I think for them, too. Liz and Rhys are wonderful kids. I can't help but think that Hazel and James are keeping an eye out for them, as they seem to be pretty well "grounded". I also met my "grandson", Asher ... Liz's cat. He's a cutie, although a bit shy.

Rhys drove me to dinner on Saturday night, insisting on taking his "ride" ... and he's a good driver, while perhaps somewhat "directionally challenged" (we took the long way, but had a good talk during). Here's his "ride" (it reminds me of a relatively late-model "Maude", but he needs to clean it out):I thought he followed cars a little too closely, but I explained to him that was from a prior "phobia" of mine. The funny thing was, I told him "You know, Rhys, this is kind of weird for me, since the last time I rode with you was when you put your Papa James's pickup in a ditch." "Oh, yeah, Dad, but that was when I was like what, 8?" Good point.

Liz gave me a good "tip", by the way. I flew back home yesterday, via Las Vegas (aka "Lost Wages") and she said "The best thing to try is the 'Wheel of Fortune' slot machine." I tried it.

I put in a $20 bill ... and after 3 minutes betting $11.75 ... I hit for $250. Jane, you have nothing on me now, since I stood up and said "Cash me out!" LOL

It was also a "checkered flag / banner day" for Janice, since she picked the winning driver in the "Cronin Family Indy 500 Sweepstakes" ($10 per entry, pick your driver, 11 losing entries).

A day of good luck for us ... and a week of good luck coming up, I hope. "Closing" is tomorrow.

I took the day off ... if you feel like calling after about 3:00 pm, have at it.

I Just Got Off The Phone With Janice ...

and the packing count (including wardrobe boxes) is now up to 85. God bless her. Jake and Elwood are continuing to help, much like you can see from this earlier picture. They are still "freaking out", since they are wondering what the heck is going on. Whenever we pack for a trip, they get "weird". Now they are seeing all this stuff getting put into boxes, and they are very "clingy" and follow us around everywhere ... we are both so excited for them in their new home and I'm sure they are going to love it there.On the Tucson front, the official celebration for Rhys's graduation was last night. It was a good time ... a cookout (nice filets by yours truly) and Rhys was seated at the head of the table, and it was fun for him to get a good "haul".

A funny couple of pictures here - Bert and Margie gave him a "bankroll". He was excited to see it was a "Franklin" on the outside ...... and inside, a bunch o' ones. LOL

And Speaking Of High School Graduations ...

Live from Tucson ...

I got in around 4:45 pm yesterday, in time to get to Rhys's graduation from Catalina Foothills High School. The ceremony was held on their football field at 7:30 pm. Quite the graduating class (I counted 444 names on the program).Rhys was about 53rd on the list of kids announced, and we (Liz, me, Robin, Bert and Margie) all gave him a hearty cheer when his name was called. After the ceremony, we got to see him for a few minutes before he headed into "Grad Night" where they have a "lockdown" party for all the graduates in their gym (much like a prom, but here it's more of a big deal). He was on cloud nine, as you can well imagine! I don't think I've seen him with a bigger smile!I'm extremely proud of him and his accomplishment. He's a smart kid with a bright future in whatever he chooses to do. I wish Janice could have been here ... she's "holding down the fort" and continuing the packing efforts at home, while slaving away at her work.

Anyway, just a quick post here now, and will have more later.

Congratulations, Ross!

I saw (and got an email from Sandi this morning) about Ross's Pre-K graduation ... Congratulations, Ross! You look very very happy! I'll bet you're excited about next year, already!
Remember to study hard, and soon you'll be graduating from High School!

Weekend Update

This has been a pretty productive week for us. I don't know if there are a couple of homebuyers and homesellers who are more evenly excited about both moving in and moving out than us and the sellers.

Janice had been given the phone number of the sellers of 469 Dennison Ridge Drive (Scott and Laura Cole) and had a chance to speak with Laura at the beginning of the week. The main thrust of the initial conversation was to coordinate the steam-cleaning and deodorizing of the finished portion of the basement (which the sellers had agreed to do, knowing their dogs had been ... ahem ... "smelly").

That conversation led to Janice's statement that we would really rather prefer a steam-cleaning of not only that area, but also of the remainder of the carpeted area in the house. As a negotiating point, Laura came back with an offer of two custom-made pieces of oak furniture in the eat-in kitchen that we really liked when we saw them. Here are two pictures that show them reasonably well.
The left photo is a good shot of the Mission-Style console table / wine rack that has an inlayed tile top that includes portions of leftover tile they used for the backsplash in the kitchen. It's very nice.

The right photo is a better shot of the corner hutch.

An added bonus to the conversation between Janice and Laura was an invitation to come to the "Spring Neighborhood Tag Sale" held yesterday. (A "Tag Sale" in New England is equal to "Yard Sale" or "Garage Sale" anywhere else in the US.)

We took advantage of the opportunity to meet them, yesterday morning, and couldn't have been more pleased. I spent about an hour with Scott, going over property lines and boundaries, various plantings, yard quirks, and what could and might be doable.

I was also very happy to find that we are owners of blackberry and raspberry vines that grow wild there, so I am looking forward to either Jane or Sandi (or both) coming for a visit and showing Janice the finer points of making a blackberry cobbler. Marion or John and I can handle the home-made ice-cream portion of the event.

We actually have a good portion of the property line that extends into the woods behind the house. Inside of that property line is also a stone-lined stream that provides drainage along the upper hillside for the few properties to the right and slightly up the hill from us. At just about the same time, Scott brought up what I was thinking - hey, it would be nice to put a little bridge over the 8-foot wide expanse and maybe a little sitting area on the upper area there, at some point.

The other nice thing I learned from Scott is that the area to the left of the house (designated a "natural wetlands" [in other words - cannot be built on]) is all on our property. He uses it as a place to dump bagged grass, leaves, etc. The funny thing he pointed out is that while it is designated as a "natural wetlands" ... it drains the water into the city sewer lines, and is never really wet.

Scott had some nice yard-related items to offer us. I gave him a small sum, and bought some garage shelving, some yard implements and best of all, a back-pack-mounted gas-powered leaf blower that will come in handy in the fall. For my $100, we got quite a deal.

The really nice thing between Scott and Laura, and us, is that they wanted someone to buy the house that appreciated it. We wanted to buy from someone who appreciated their space. The appraisal showed that. We "melded" together very well. I told Janice as we drove away, "I wish we had known these folks a while ago ... we could have become good friends, I think." She agreed.

From there, we got lunch, I got a haircut, and then we headed to Lowe's and to Home Depot.

At Lowe's, Janice found a couple of birdfeeders she could not live without. We also found the best patio / deck table and chairs we have seen and I think we are set with that choice.

At Home Depot, we made the "big purchase" of the day. I've had my eye on a certain gas grill for at least a month now. It is a Ducane 32" Stainless Steel, with a side burner integrated into the main body of the grill, which leaves both shelves available for platters, etc. It comes with an electric rotisserie standard, and has all stainless steel components. It should perform well for us for many years. We opened an account with Home Depot, and got 12 months 0% financing, plus a 10% discount for opening the account, and they will assemble. I am really excited about resuming outdoor grilling and cooking ... it has been years since I've been able to cook outside.

I am only hoping that my siblings might actually come visit us at some point. I will be happy to cook some delicious things on the grill, and we will be gracious hosts (as always). John and Sandi have been to our current abode ... I guess that leaves Jane and Marion to be the next pair? Better yet ... why don't the four of you retirees come out for a visit, after we've settled in? The neighborhood has frequent (I think monthly) "Ladies' Bunko Nights".

Anyway ... that's all for now. We're back into "packing mode" now, in preparation.

We Are Proud Of You, Olivia

Winning a spelling bee is a HUGE thing. We are all very proud of you!

"Tarragon" is a very good spice, and you should always associate it with "chicken". I'm not sure, but I don't think it would compliment baked marmoset.

Then again, I think your Uncle Eric might know better. Maybe he has some marmoset in his freezer.

A Bit Melancholy ...

You know ... when you have two-foot-thick brick exterior walls (and some interior) you get spoiled.

You know ... when your home has been built by a large number of immigrant bricklayers, you get spoiled.

Youu know ... when you have a 28 X 25 living room, with a 20-foot ceiling topped with a 10 ft high by 20 ft-wide skylight, you get spoiled.

We both had a bit of a... "moment" ... earlier tonight. This was the place that brought us together. This was the place that has always been "home" for me for the past 7 years. For Janice, it's been almost 15 years. When I walked into this place 7 years ago, I said "Where do I sign?" not thinking about anything else ... it has been perfect. We've always said if they had made or allowed them to be condos, it would have been a "no-brainer".

We have lived in a place that is a part of Manchester history, a noteworthy portion of which being the Cheney Mills supplying a majority of the silk parachutes for the airborne portion of the D-Day invasion. At one point, Manchester was the biggest single silk-producing city in the world. In fact, we can still walk just up the street and see the railroad vault built to keep things "undercover" during their production for the war effort.

As I look outside now, in the dawning light, I see a magnificent piece of brick architecture that is the "Clocktower Mill". It is a home to a brood of roosting pigeons, who Elwood is "stalking" even now.

We won't wake up to that view again.

Packing Progress - Installment #1

Thursday we got an estimate from a local moving company. I met the rep-woman here at the apartment over my lunch hour, and the cats were quite interested. I think what got them going was her saying she is allergic to cats. Elwood expressed his sympathy by jumping up onto her shoulders, about midway through her assessment of the living room. That may or may not have influenced her estimate - four men, two 26-foot trucks, 8-10 hours. I know we're a city block and a half away from the elevator, but I also remember that it was me, Janice, Frank, and a coworker of mine who moved Janice out of her place from the far opposite side of this building and it only took 4 hours to do that. Hmmm ... I may get another estimate. Or John, if you still have your big truck and it would make it out here and back, you and Sandi and Jake and Dee and Lori and Brad, et al, and whoever else would fit are more than welcome to drive out for a little ... ahem ... "visit" on June 3rd. Jane, Marion, Dave, Susan, Eric, Samina, et al ... you are more than welcome to attend the "party" as well! The more, the merrier, after all! LOL

Anyway ... Last night we began the packing process in earnest. Probably we're a little late on the start date, but at least it's not like we don't have until the 30th of June to vacate these premises.

Janice has been replaced by an alien life-form that looks just like her and talks just like her, but doesn't really act just like her. I got a call from her at about 4:40 pm yesterday, saying she was getting ready to leave work. Unbelievably, I got another call around 5:00 pm, and she was already in her car and on the road home. This is not the Janice I know, who typically works until 9:00 pm ... I have to watch "her" closely ... it reminds me of the Steven Wright joke "I came home last night and found that everything in my apartment had been replaced with an exact duplicate. I asked my roommate 'What's going on?' He said 'Who are you?' "

We had our DVD player die on us last week, and no housework is really enjoyable without some background music. Yesterday at lunchtime, I picked up a new 5-disc DVD changer and installed that when I got home. It's nicer than the old one, I think, and was the same price. Oh well ...

So, our progress over three hours last night is as follows:

• Department 56 Village Houses - packed
• Department 56 "Twelve Days of Christmas" figurines - packed
• Department 56 custom-built display shelf mounted on wall - partially dismantled, to be completed today, spackling to commence thereafter
  
• Department 56 Village lighting system - dismantled and packed
  
• 1 box of cookbooks - packed
• Turntable - disconnected, ready to move
• Tape Player - disconnected, ready to move
• Classical Music CDs - packed
• 1 CD rack - ready to move

Jake and Elwood are very curious about what is going on. We keep reassuring them that we are ALL moving, not just "Mommy" and "Daddy". I guess they understand. They do seem to enjoy it when we tell them that they will have not just pidgeons to "stalk" at their new home (here's Elwood, ready to leap out at a pidgeon)

, but probably a lot of other wildlife as well. We've been told that "them thar hills" also contain Black Bear (which I seriously doubt, although in Avon, CT, a 7-foot black bear did wander up onto someone's front doorstep recently, and that area doesn't have roughly 3,000 acres of mountain woodlands behind it ... maybe one of you might want to come hunting), Red Tail Deer (again, maybe one of you might want to come hunting) and Eastern Timber Rattlesnakes and Copperheads. At least we're not in Florida, where one might not want to jog (as if I would do that anyway).

All for now ... more "Packing Progress" installments to come. (Aren't you all excited? LOL)

Strangely Quiet ...

... here on The Brookhart Blog.

My guess is that everyone else is busy with spring-time chores.

We're patiently (well, not really) waiting for closing day, and the ensuing craziness of the move. It should be "fun". Our theoretical plan is to move the small stuff ourselves over the month of June, and have a mover do the heavy stuff.

Obviously, we want to get in there as quickly as possible after closing, to let the boys get started acclimating themselves to their new "digs".

So, essentially, I think what will happen is that we'll end up wanting everything done in that first week. LOL

Moving, quite honestly, is one of the biggest pains in the butt that I can think of.