Family.

With it being Father’s Day and all, we had a family gathering here at the house today. The weather was a little cool, but absolutely gorgeous. I had initially pledged to Earl that I was going to prepare the feast, what with my desire to be a good cook and all. But naturally he took over and I ended up playing assistant. I guess I didn’t really mind. He went all out – BBQ’d ribs and chicken, grilled pineapple, salt potatoes and Karen brought along some delicious macaroni salad. And for dessert, Earl made this delicious fruit dip (cream cheese and fluff) for strawberries and melon. I’m going to start a blog for him so he can share photos of his creations, along with recipes to share. In the computer world, I suppose Earl would be considered an open source cook.

It was great getting together with my sister Jennifer and my dad and his girlfriend. Just sitting down and chatting about old and new times is so relaxing. Karen brings me up to date on the renovation project going on at the school she works at, Dad chimes in with his commentary and occasional nostalgic anecdote and then we catch up on the going-ons with the rest of the family. One thing I realized is that it’s going to be a busy summer with weddings and family visits and whatnot.

It’s wonderful being in a family where everyone gets along. Or perhaps its that we’re really good at pretending that we get along. Either way, it is nice to get together.


Last night Earl and I ventured out arouind midnight and went to the local club – where I DJ’ed for a number of years. We hadn’t been out around here in about 18 months. It was the first time that we’d been in a bar since the new NYS smoking law had been in effect. While it was much more comfortable being in a smoke-free environment, I couldn’t help but notice that business was significantly slower than when I was DJ’ing there. Kicking my ego aside, I believe it was due to the smoking ban instead of the change in DJ.