Whoa, it's not really that often that I go on a long hiatus. I guess I just haven't felt like writing.

I'm sitting home alone now in the early afternoon of a holiday Monday. Bri and I got back from the Doran family reunion yesterday. It was a lot of fun. There were a few people that weren't there, but not many. It was most of the family. Some of us did some swimming in the lake (good lord it was cold), most did a ton of walking, and I think all had a good time. It was a gathering of four generations! Grandma beat Kevin and others in staying awake, which was pretty funny. On to the scandal:

Somehow Joe and his friends blew out the tire of the Cadillac on friday night. They really blew the fucker wide open, creating a fist-sized gash in the high performance tire. I heard it as I was falling asleep friday night, but just assumed it was a firecracker or something. Joe, feeling rough from a long day at the ball game, declined coming with Bri and I when I attempted to wake him up at 9:30. Bri and I were in the car, ready to go at 10 when we pull out the car and things don't feel right. I pop out of the car and discover to my surprise that the tire is totally fucked.

There was more disaster as two of the chrome screw-on lug nut covers are stripped, making it impossible to get the tire off. Bri went back to sleep while I tried to figure out how we were going to get to Indiana for the reunion. I called Joe's friend who blew the tire and he came over to help me. No dice, the thing wasn't budging. Against everything that I wanted to do, I borrowed the Tracy's red Volkswagon Beetle (new) convertible. They are the nicest people in the world to let us borrow that, and Bri and I made it up. Mom and Dad aren't home yet, but Joe told me that he plans to try to stay away until Wednesday. HA! I'd probably be trying to do the same thing - he is in some kind of crazy other-worldly trouble that I can't even conceptualize for not showing up this weekend.

He managed to cut off the lug nut covers this morning and get the tire off, and bought a new one which will get him back in the good graces of the ones in power here. It will get him back in their good graces a little. I was kind of pissed at him for not going too, but I told Bri after I saw him when we got back yesterday that I no longer was angry at him, I just felt bad. He is in for it.

...and terrible as it is to say, Bri and I are saintly by comparison. Whoo! I shouldn't have even said that because Mom and Dad will read this.