August is slipping away ...

Dragon Mood? -- feeling a bit guarded

I am at lunch.

I think to myself, "I'll post something on Calypso."

I open the (Blogger) Dashboard. What!?!... I haven't posted since August 10th! Where have the past two weeks gone? Where is the month going?

Which all reinforces the notion that life is flying by me, we're on the fast track, S and me, and it's gonna get worse before it gets better!

Twin A, Mark, is now a married daddy and we survived a rehearsal dinner, wedding and reception with thunder clouds of homophobia hanging over them. We can't pinpoint the source of the sudden emphasis on "tradition" and "family-values" language, but it was there; it was definitely there. And we do have our suspicions. Even S's ex-husband came to our defense as a couple. That was a lovely, unexpected silver lining in those clouds.

This past weekend, we attended a bridal shower for Sarah, #1 son's fiancee. Their wedding is happening in about five weeks. (Sigh!) The shower was a large, noisy, diverse affair and while some people were strangely silent, most everyone was warm and welcoming. It was a lovely contrast to the other family and thank goodness for that!

Then, yesterday, we met with Sarah again at the restaurant where their rehearsal dinner will be held. We had a drink, met with the manager and talked about entrees, desserts, booze and number of guests. It was all rather tiresome, but necessary attention to the details of their wedding.

S has really been struggling internally with what her responsibility is, as the mother of the groom, for paying for/contribuing to the liquor tab at the reception. I think she has finally come to peace with that and I hope she can "stay the course" (oh, geez, a #1 Bush-ism!) on this issue.

We also had an impromptu dinner with J & J and Kevin last night. Kevin fixed a tasty pork tenderloin and Jeanne fixed her mother's potato salad. It was a rather brief gathering, but I enjoyed talking with them all and catching up on what their summers have been like. Of course, we gave them the whole lowdown on Mark & Lindsey's wedding and all the trauma/drama inherent to that.

We didn't see our elderly neighbor, Mr. Browder, this weekend and I'm feeling a bit badly about that. We just didn't make him a priority because of all the other demands on our time.

We got home last night in time to videotape and watch the last episode of Six Feet Under on HBO. Things were moving fast, with lots of changes, closures and a dreamy, into-the-future ending for the show. I liked the ending. It felt rather peaceful and hopeful, which I appreciated. That show feels to close to life, with all its messiness and ugliness and hardness. The ending was almost like a gift.

Thank you, Alan Ball!