Happy Fourth of July weekend! This will be the first time in three years that I've actually spent it in the USA. Last weekend, however, was a much more exciting venture. After a long, exhausting VBS rehearsal, I took off on a wild adventure that involved celebrating the fiftieth birthdays of my beloved aunt and uncle, Mark and Shirley Spencer.
I woke up at home the morning after the rehearsal and finally cleaned up my room from my swift transition between school and my internship. Then, my parents and I took off into the sunlit afternoon and stopped on our merry way to see Toy Story 3 and Karate Kid. Toy Story was so good, it actually made me cry! It certainly signals the end of an era. Even though Karate Kid had great locations shot in China, it was not nearly as good as the original from the 80's. We stopped in Merced for the night, only to get up at 6 the next morning.
We drove with all haste to meet my beloved aunt and uncle at the Ahwahnee for breakfast. There, I met a good deal of Shirley's family for the first time, including a number of rather charming cousins-in-law I would be happy to meet again. The breakfast was delicious, with hot oatmeal and fabulous fresh fruit. The Ahwahnee's crowning glory is not its food, though--it is the view of the valley through their high clear windows in the craftsmen-style dining room. We took pictures in the spacious lobby before going over to Manure Pile to do some rock climbing. It felt good to have my hands on the granite again, slowly and carefully scaling the slope. I always feel safe with Mark or Shirley on the other end of the rope. I had forgotten how much I missed that.
The traffic going out of the valley to check into our hotel in Oakhurst was epic. It was like Highway 5 on the day before Thanksgiving. Thanks to this, we missed seeing Shirley's art exhibit in the Fish Camp Library, so that gives me incentive to try to visit again this summer. Once at our hotel, we crashed, exhausted, until we went back to Fish Camp to visit with Mark and Shirley for a little while. Then, we went over to see my grandparents and my aunt Dolly at the Tenaya Lodge, where they were staying. According to family custom, we played Hand and Foot. As usual, my dad and Grandpa won.
The day of the party, my dad and I helped procure more soda for the festivities before going to Fish Camp. Shirley had come up with a splendid mixer game of human bingo. We had to find different people on the sheet of paper to win, such as a John Muir scholar, my grandmother, and an elusive member of Mensa, who never revealed their identity. Shirley's niece and nephew found almost everybody but him/her, and won fair and square. Their prize for their efforts were a photo from Mark's Half Dome series, one of which I hang up in my dorm room at PUC.
After a splendid meal of pesto pasta, Mark and Shirley presented their chocolate birthday cake, resplendent in crowns. We all sang to them and played with the balloons while waiting in line for the cake. Mark was nice enough to give me a ride in the Model T his neighbor from the Tin Lizzie Inn had lent him, and we had a great time dropping my grandparents off at Tenaya Lodge. When we got back, my parents and I played Set with a long-lost friend of ours, Kelvin, before joining in with the Chicken Dance and leaving. A thoroughly lovely evening.
The next morning, we swung by Mark and Shirley's one last time to say goodbye. After a brief exchange of china at the Ahwahnee (one or two of the pieces we had from them were faulty), it was a rush to get me to board meeting on time. I barely made it, but I made it! It was a truly epic weekend, followed by a busy week. Tomorrow, I get to tell the children's story at Napa and on Sunday, there's a Fourth of July parade I'm going to. Happy Birthday, Mark and Shirley and welcome home, Diane--I dedicate this children's story to you.
