Busy day. Hung out with family and visited. Caught up with everything…sort of. Met new relatives. All in all, a fabulous day.
Billy, Ray’s brother that took care of their dad, was putting a roof on a cousin’s house. He was in and out. Somewhere there was a Costco run where much wine was purchased.
We all jumped in and cooked dinner together. Just like Thanksgiving!!
Bernie and Patsy (the aunt and uncle extraordinaire) put us up (as in gave us a place to stay) along with others and then they left for North Carolina. Seems that they had a timeshare to go to. They plan to return for the service. Their kids, Bernie, Jr., Tim (and wife Deb), Paula, were here. Carol Ann from Florida (Ray’s step sis) were here. Ray’s brother, Mark and his significant other came over from Chesapeake. Paula and Tim became the leaders of the group and organized dinner. Stuffed peppers, fruit etc. It was quite an evening. And all the wine was consumed. We missed Bernie Sr. and Patsy. We all jumped in cars and went to a multiplex for a movie. Some of us saw Burlesque ad others went to 11 loves or something like that. Most did not like it. We liked Burlesque. Came home talked some more then retired.
In the middle of the night, Ray got up to go to the bathroom. A loud crash ensued. This began a wild goose chase. It seems that he leaned against the wall in the bathroom where a wall hanging was located. It crashed, not to the ground, but to the top of a white ceramic toilet paper holder (the arm of said holder), and cracked it to smithereens. EEEEEEEEKKKKKKKKKK.
In the morning it was obvious he had broken a antique holder and would need to replace it. We had the day to find a replacement. It didn’t happen. Ray and I moved over to Freddie’s (Ray’s first cousin) . Our plan to was to stay two nights. We had a great visit and the phones stopped ringing. Much more subdued. Ray and Freddie got to talk to each other for the first time since all their parents have died Stayed up to the wee hours comparing notes. They remembered they played a lot together growing up. A lot happened that neither was privy too. Those “adult” secrets, you know.
Ceramic toilet paper holders did not present themselves at Lowe’s or Home Depot or Dale’s Plumbing. We found one at Morris’s that seemed alike but when we took it home, it did not fit. We kept looking and found a second TP holder at this store.
One of the good outcomes from chasing down a TP holder is that the whole family went along the second time just so we could all eat lunch together, which we did in a Mexican restaurant in a strip mall in Virginia Beach. Good stuff and we all had a great time yakking and munching chips and salsa and all the other goodies!!
The viewing was held on Monday night and we went to it with Freddie after going to an early dinner of fried green tonatoes and crab cakes. I don’t like viewings. Rather remember the person as alive. But I did it.
We left and went back to Freddie”s and I retired early. The funeral was the next day.
We were lucky it didn’t rain. It had been forecasted. Everyone met at the Tibbett’s for a ride in the limo…except Billy because he forgot his reading for the mass so he rushed home, didn’t find it, and rushed back to the church where he found it. It was a full R.C. service complete with communion. Then is was followed by a police escorted limo ride to the cemetery which seemed to be located 20 miles away. There was an Army contingent of young men at the cemetery and did the flag folding ceremony and presented the flag to Ray. His father saw action in WW11 in Italy. It was very touching.
That was followed by pictures galore. Everyone had a camera and everyone wanted their own special pictures on their camera of the family. I felt like a movie star with paparazzi talking hundreds of shots. Hope I receive some of the pictures.
Food is never far from anyone’s mind. We were hungry. So we “yelped” a restaurant in the Ghent neighborhood (upscale) and found a Wine bar with food named 626. The food took forever but it was very good and we left satisfied…though the cell phones kept ringing and a dish of mayo hit the floor. Having Patsy Tibbetts in the group kept it sane!!!
And Ray and I returned to Freddie’s for a quiet evening and good fish dinner.
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