Highlights

Doug & Jim aren't our only friends from DC spending a week's vacation here at the beach. On Thurs night we had dinner at Striper Bites with Michelle & Shannon. They were staying at Broadkill beach this week, about 15 minutes from Lewes, with Michelle's family. Gosh, it had been a long time since we'd seen them! But we had a lovely time talking, laughing, catching up, and trying to predict the future of our messed up country.

Earlier on Thurs I went to my new optometrist for my annual eye exam. "So, you ran out of contacts" my aunt teased me, knowing my reluctance to go to any doctors for routine or preventative measures. But my new eye doctor is close by and very nice. I hadn't realized the doctor was going to dilate my pupils, resulting in an inability to read for about 3 hours. Ooops, guess I'd better not schedule those kinds of appointments for 10:30 in the morning on a work day anymore. So I was forced into taking an extra long lunch hour, which included a 20 minute nap and some TV time, since I was unable to focus enough to read. But good news: my advancing age has caused my near-sightedness to improve a little.

On Fri evening Spouse & I went to the grocery store to pick up last minutes stuff for our weekend guests, then we met Rick & Nick and assorted other diners at the Miltonian restaurant for our regular Fri night dinner. We got home from the grocery store with just enough time to put away the groceries before leaving for dinner. I'd arranged for our weekend guests to call my cell phone when they'd crossed the Bay Bridge, but we finished dinner and were on our way home before my phone finally indicated that I had a voice mail message. Then I remembered that I don't get cell coverage in Milton! Our friends left 2 messages, and we got home less than 5 minutes before they arrived!

We've known Ron & James and Mike & Clark for about 10 years. We all used to go to the same church and began doing things socially shortly after meeting. They are great friends with whom we'll always stay in touch, regardless of where we live. We used to spend occasional weekends together at a guesthouse in Lost River, WV. Then in 2003 when we had our vintage 1955 mobile home in Lewes the 4 of them came with us to spend a weekend. It was so much fun we did it again in 2004. Then in 2005 and 2006 we shared a weekend together at our beach house, and now that we live in Lewes full time, we saw no reason not to continue the tradition of spending a weekend together.

When everyone arrived on Fri night we showed them around the house, got them settled in their rooms, and had cocktails and snacks while talking until 1am. After breakfast Sat morning we walked to the farmers market and milled around some of the stores in Lewes, had lunch at the Blue Plate Diner, then walked to the bay and had a frosty treat at Dairy Queen before walking back home. We watched "The Eyes of Tammy Faye" which we all found entertaining. Its the one-sided story of Tammy Faye Bakker-Messner. I found it ironic that it happened to be the next DVD in my queue, when she had died just a week before. That night we had dinner at Serendipity on the Indian River. After a leisurely breakfast Sun morning we headed out for a little tax-free shopping, then had lunch. It really wasn't 'beach weather', which was just as well since Ron & James and Mike & Clark aren't much for hanging out at the beach. We bid our friends goodbye at about 3pm, then relaxed for a while.

Sun afternoon we had a rather strong thunderstorm, complete with lightening and heavy rain. We'd been invited to a barbecue that afternoon but had decided not to go due to the weather. But around 4pm Rick & Nick called and talked us into going anyway, since the venue would have a tent and a 'studio' in case the rain kept up. So we met Rick & Nick and went to the barbecue and had a nice time. The band was really good. We got home around 7pm. Spouse was surfing the internet and I watched home improvement/decorating/design shows on TV the rest of the night. The storm ended, but the rain continued on and off the rest of the night.

Today it has been very humid, with intermittent rain showers, just the kind of weather to match a Monday where I can't seem to shake the feeling that I'm in slow motion all day.

Drag Queen name of the day: Angie O'Plasty