L'Envoi

Yeah, that's the last stanza of a Victorian sonnet -- and this is the last entry on Southbound. If anybody is still reading, give me a shout; I'm considering giving up blogging for a while.
Anyway, we had a good respite on the trip back home: two days in warm, sunny, clear an beautiful Carmel Valley. We are again convinced it's the perfect location for family R/U gatherings. When will we have the energy and courage for the next one?
It's great to be home!

Laborious Day

It's a national holiday; and yes, we are on vacation, as you might say; and since we are such lucky people, I feel guilty about griping. But the weather down here in Santa Barbara (and that goes double for Pasadena) is The Shits. It's partially overcast; warm, but not hot; and the humidity makes it feel like one is walking through a steam bath.

However, we are having some good visits with friends: Pierskallas had us over for dinner last evening; and I had two good visits today with my dear friend, Sarah B. (this evening we had dinner with her and husband Steve) and a discussion with both of them about their Ghana project work. I've met with a couple of St. Mark's friends too; and tomorrow I'm having breakfast with my old nemesis, Fr. Tomas -- no longer a nemesis to me, of course, just a tired, overworked, sick old guy who was very, very good to me in the end.

We'll spend time with Frank and Melissa tomorrow afternoon and evening, and then we're off early on Wednesday morning -- look for a much more upbeat entry here when we get to Carmel Valley that afternoon!