Sick Bay In Dallas

Halle And Girls

Happy Birthday Halle

A Happy Twelfth Birthday to our granddaughter Halle, our youngest grandchild.  We hope you  have a fun day.

It's almost 7:00 and Beth is up making Marisa's breakfast, Marisa is showering, and Rami is getting ready to head into work although he still feels bad.  It looks like a nice day here so I hope everyone starts feeling better.

Yesterday, as my title shows, was not a good day for either Rami or Evie.  Rami stayed in bed most of the day although he tried to go to work but turned around and came home.  Evie stayed in bed after coffee until later afternoon when she started to feel better, having taken a hot shower.  The rest of us had a normal day.  I went with Beth around 7:30 when she took Marisa to her school since they don't have school buses in the Highland Park schools.

A Cathedral Of Oaks

When we got back, I decided to walk up to one of the more popular strip malls, with a Trader Joe's, Starbucks, and perhaps fifty or more small shops, restaurants, etc.  It took me about forty five minutes to get there, through the lovely neighborhood of University Park.  Lots of oak trees line the streets, and every house is different from the next, mostly brick, most probably built in the 1950's and 1960's, with an occasional new house, a result of a tear down.  When I got uptown, I did not feel much like shopping so I hardly stopped in a store but soon headed back home, working up a sweat as the sun came out and warmed the morning.

Typical Spreading Oak In University Park

When I returned home, Evie had gone back to bed and it was just Beth and me the rest of the day until late afternoon.  Tyler was around but he mostly stayed to himself, playing video games, figuring out what to make and eat and late afternoon, going for five mile run.  I even took a nap, tired from my walk and did some reading of my new book BARBARIAN DAYS: A SURFING LIFE, by William Finnegan, a writer for the New Yorker.  His book follows his travels early in life as he tried to find and surf the perfect wave, taking him all over the world.  I am liking it, probably because he mentions a number of the surfing spots I used to surf in Hawaii, like Ala Moana and Queens Surf and the famous Sunset Beach, where I took one big, scary wave and vowed to never return.

Marisa Trying To Study

Marisa was picked up just around 3:00, came in and disappeared for a bit to get some homework done, then came downstairs to get it finished and bother us. When Evie came down, we all settled in and sat around, sipping wine because it was after 5:00, watching Beth make dinner, a special Sopa de Fideo soup, with swiss chard and chicken,  and BLT's, an easy but really good dinner.

Settling In At The Bar

It was nice to see Evie somewhat perky and we spent a good hour and a half just talking, eating, enjoying the early evening with Marisa, Tyler, and Beth.  Sometimes an easy dinner is best (think paella).

Granny And The Grandkids

Marisa wanted to watch more episodes of The Office before going to bed, so the three of us and Tyler watched three or four episodes.  By the end, Evie and Marisa were ready for bed, Beth was with Rami in the bedroom watching TV, so I watched an hour of NFL football before going up to bed as well, early for me but I, too, was tired.