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bigmacbear) wrote2021-08-24 11:59 pm
bigmacbear) wrote2021-08-24 11:59 pm
Cincinnati Trip, Day Five
TUESDAY, August 24
I got up to pee about 6:30. Gary got up shortly afterward and couldn't get back to sleep, so I got up about quarter to eight and shut off my 8:30 alarm. I tried on Dad's shoes and while the dress shoes fit and just need breaking in, the sneakers squeeze my big toe uncomfortably. They fit Gary better. We left for breakfast around ten after nine and sat in our usual spot by the window. Over breakfast I looked for a place to buy T-shirts since Gary had packed more long-sleeved shirts and it's too hot to wear them. Since both DXL and the mall didn't open till ten, we returned to the room for a few minutes before venturing out about 10:15. At DXL we selected two polo shirts each: Gary in black trimmed in grey and white and mint green; me in dark brown and speckled red. Next door was an Office Depot where we picked up a couple of plastic boxes for photos and a pack of file jackets for documents.
From there we returned to the hotel, where I sent an email to my high school Alumni Association inquiring about Kevin and David's yearbooks, Gary tried on Dad's shoes (both pair fit), and we both tried on the white socks that went with them. I called Colleen and she was at Erin's house after she and Jay picked her up at Indianapolis airport from Hawaii. We decided to have lunch at Bob Evans' and to meet at Colleen's house after one.
At Bob Evans' Gary had chicken salad and fresh fruit with banana nut bread and I had the pot roast dip sandwich with French fries. The dip was a thick gravy and dipping fries in it reminded me of Poutine.
When we got to Colleen's, we went downstairs to retrieve a large blue storage bin and take it upstairs to sort out. Most of the space was taken up by the framed family photos that were hung on the wall in the condo basement. There was also a portrait of my maternal grandmother painted by my cousin Kay. Colleen wasn't going to keep it so she agreed I could take it home to frame and display. The rest was mostly historic documents like Grandpa's military discharge papers; a letter he'd written to Senator Henry "Scoop" Jackson supporting his possible campaign for President; a typed copy of Brass Nelson, his thinly-veiled memoir of his service in World War I; and at least two retellings of his life story, one accompanied by a photo of him working in a Kroger grocery before the invention of the supermarket. There were also an assortment of holy cards from funerals, obituaries clipped from newspapers, and business cards; a quantity of identification cards for Grandma including health insurance and Social Security, but also several religious societies; and to my surprise, a lot of pictures with handwritten captions from my great-aunt Elnor (Grandpa's sister) from Falmouth, MA. Finally, there were wedding albums from several family weddings and my parents' 25th and 50th anniversary celebrations. We put the smaller boxes and folders in the two plastic boxes we bought, then stacked the albums and framed photos on top and closed the box. As we returned the box to the basement, I noticed a large poster print of a photo of my four siblings and myself; I was probably five or six. Beneath it was a tattered diploma for Grandpa from the Ohio Mechanics Institute in Lithographic Design. I photographed both for reference before returning them to the pile.
We sat with Colleen and chatted until about 5:30, then left for dinner with James and Shib at Agave and Rye in Covington. I went in to reserve a table for four and nearly collided with Shib on the way back out. The three of us chatted briefly out front until James joined us. There was a party of seven seated on a picnic table on the sidewalk beside the door, including at least three tall dudes with epic beards. The last of them to be seated had to awkwardly straddle the bench support. It took about an hour for an inside table to open, but the time certainly wasn't wasted and the food was well worth the wait. Their specialty is Epic Tacos (appropriate for Taco Tuesday) and they lived up to their name. After an hour and a half of good food and better conversation, we walked together to the parking garage before parting company about nine.
Almost immediately after returning to the room, I got a very bad headache, took my contacts out and lay down while Gary watched a baseball game. I got up around midnight to finish my evening medication and testing before returning to bed for the night.
I got up to pee about 6:30. Gary got up shortly afterward and couldn't get back to sleep, so I got up about quarter to eight and shut off my 8:30 alarm. I tried on Dad's shoes and while the dress shoes fit and just need breaking in, the sneakers squeeze my big toe uncomfortably. They fit Gary better. We left for breakfast around ten after nine and sat in our usual spot by the window. Over breakfast I looked for a place to buy T-shirts since Gary had packed more long-sleeved shirts and it's too hot to wear them. Since both DXL and the mall didn't open till ten, we returned to the room for a few minutes before venturing out about 10:15. At DXL we selected two polo shirts each: Gary in black trimmed in grey and white and mint green; me in dark brown and speckled red. Next door was an Office Depot where we picked up a couple of plastic boxes for photos and a pack of file jackets for documents.
From there we returned to the hotel, where I sent an email to my high school Alumni Association inquiring about Kevin and David's yearbooks, Gary tried on Dad's shoes (both pair fit), and we both tried on the white socks that went with them. I called Colleen and she was at Erin's house after she and Jay picked her up at Indianapolis airport from Hawaii. We decided to have lunch at Bob Evans' and to meet at Colleen's house after one.
At Bob Evans' Gary had chicken salad and fresh fruit with banana nut bread and I had the pot roast dip sandwich with French fries. The dip was a thick gravy and dipping fries in it reminded me of Poutine.
When we got to Colleen's, we went downstairs to retrieve a large blue storage bin and take it upstairs to sort out. Most of the space was taken up by the framed family photos that were hung on the wall in the condo basement. There was also a portrait of my maternal grandmother painted by my cousin Kay. Colleen wasn't going to keep it so she agreed I could take it home to frame and display. The rest was mostly historic documents like Grandpa's military discharge papers; a letter he'd written to Senator Henry "Scoop" Jackson supporting his possible campaign for President; a typed copy of Brass Nelson, his thinly-veiled memoir of his service in World War I; and at least two retellings of his life story, one accompanied by a photo of him working in a Kroger grocery before the invention of the supermarket. There were also an assortment of holy cards from funerals, obituaries clipped from newspapers, and business cards; a quantity of identification cards for Grandma including health insurance and Social Security, but also several religious societies; and to my surprise, a lot of pictures with handwritten captions from my great-aunt Elnor (Grandpa's sister) from Falmouth, MA. Finally, there were wedding albums from several family weddings and my parents' 25th and 50th anniversary celebrations. We put the smaller boxes and folders in the two plastic boxes we bought, then stacked the albums and framed photos on top and closed the box. As we returned the box to the basement, I noticed a large poster print of a photo of my four siblings and myself; I was probably five or six. Beneath it was a tattered diploma for Grandpa from the Ohio Mechanics Institute in Lithographic Design. I photographed both for reference before returning them to the pile.
We sat with Colleen and chatted until about 5:30, then left for dinner with James and Shib at Agave and Rye in Covington. I went in to reserve a table for four and nearly collided with Shib on the way back out. The three of us chatted briefly out front until James joined us. There was a party of seven seated on a picnic table on the sidewalk beside the door, including at least three tall dudes with epic beards. The last of them to be seated had to awkwardly straddle the bench support. It took about an hour for an inside table to open, but the time certainly wasn't wasted and the food was well worth the wait. Their specialty is Epic Tacos (appropriate for Taco Tuesday) and they lived up to their name. After an hour and a half of good food and better conversation, we walked together to the parking garage before parting company about nine.
Almost immediately after returning to the room, I got a very bad headache, took my contacts out and lay down while Gary watched a baseball game. I got up around midnight to finish my evening medication and testing before returning to bed for the night.