May is here!

Dateline Charlotte. Yes, we're in Charlotte on a layover on our way back home from a few wonderful days in Daytona with John and Marilyn. 

First things first. Charlotte qualifies as the worst airport. At least among all the ones we've been to. Too crowded; too much construction; too little food. Looks like a Jersey Turnpike rest area. Not as good though.  

Someone asked us in Daytona if we were on vacation. Can you go on a vacation if you're retired?  The answer is yes. It sure felt like a vacation. We went to the beach (it was Jeep week down here) a couple times; went house scouting for Timmy who wants to move down here; went swimming, walking; played all kinds of card games; and went out to eat a few times. Mary said she felt like a teenager since John and Marilyn took such good care of us. Marilyn is still on the long road back from her knee replacement. 

Also in Florida recently was Daniel who had come down here for a WWF fight. We didn't see him at the bout we went to. Ok we didn't really go to one. 

We had a long chat with Paula who's feeling a lot better. Her cough has almost disappeared and she's looking forward to the Poconos. Speaking of the Poconos, I hope to get a message out to everyone in the next few days. July 17-20. 

In the pictures Annie sends from India, she's always smiling. A good thing. Then again, she didn't take any pictures of the rat she wrote about. She's back in Thanjavur with Sankar's family for a couple of weeks to attend a few ceremonies. 

I've been brushing up on all things Gettysburg for a class I got roped in to teach. I'm finally learning about the full extent of the carnage and its consequences. Sorry Pop, it didn't take on the previous trips. I do see why he was so taken with learning about it. Lots to learn. 

Mary helped teach a group of school kids how to swim in a prevent drowning program. Last year, a young girl did drown on a class trip to a state park. The program made it in the papers a couple of times. 

Seems like a long time ago but we had a wonderful Easter with Joe and Leonor and children. We did Easter egg hunts and lots of soccer, baseball and volleyball games. One day was so warm that the boys took off their clothes and jumped in the stream behind the house. A few minutes after they left the stream a pair of mallard ducks came swimming by in the same area. 

Margaret and Andrew and Simon went to Pennsylvania for Easter with Andrew's parents!

I think everyone who reads this knows of my diagnosis of prostate cancer. I was able to schedule a series of appointments at Dana Farber in Boston for the month of May. I'll know then more about my treatment schedule. I'm feeling fine and confident. 

They're calling our boarding group so I better post this and hop on the plane. 

Love from down here. 

 

 

Bouncing around

Our last letter was from Paris. That seems so long ago.  So much has happened. And this time, it's not all about us!

Let's start farthest afield. Annie and Sankar finished their two-week class on permaculture. And part of the class was drawing up a plan on what they intend to do with their new land. And even more, they have promises from other people in the class to come visit, and even help!  Anyone else ready to join them?

Closed to home, a lot's going on with the Illinois clan. Andrew and Lur went up to Milwaukee to watch a Brewers baseball game with Claire, the first game of the year for any Dickson, I believe. And guess who they were playing?  That's right, the Cincinnati Reds. And guess who won? Easy. The Brewers, or the Cerveceros.

There are some new jobs, we can report. Leonor has a new job, and so does Jeffrey.  She got a job with the development bank where she used to work, and Jeffrey, I understand, is the CEO of a law firm that help veterans get benefits. Congrats to you both. I will let them fill in the details. Also on the job front, Margaret, Joe, and Andrew still have theirs!  Also congrats.

Back to Illinois, where Andrew and Lur saw Billy who had come east for a work trip. And Daniel was on the move, heading to London for a class!

Back to DC, where everyone is enrolled in some kind of sports activity, soccer, tennis, swimming, ballet.  I'm sure I missed one somewhere. Baseball?

And over to New York, where David has been busy working with his old insurance firm, on a consultancy retainer. I thought he was retired, but why retire if you enjoy it?

Down to Florida, where Marilyn's recovery from knee surgery is going slower than expected. She and John also are helping Timmy on his house search in Florida. They also sent us a video of Sage's final concert at Berklee College of Music. That went fast.

We are heading to Florida at the end of the month for a quick visit. Because, it was snowing here today. The weather is tricking us and the poor daffodils. One day, up in the 60s, and then snow. We are ready for full on HOT!

And here, in Pittsfield, we are playing host to Leonor and the children, during their spring break. I bet they wished they had headed south. But so far, it's still been fun, with activities every day. Mary had flown down on Friday and drove back up here with Leonor and the children. We're calling their spring break Camp Avo Mary, since she has arranged for swim lessons for the two boys every morning. Joe, who is, as you can imagine, very busy at work, will fly up this weekend and spend Easter with us.

Did anyone notice that yesterday was tax day? We did, because we already got our refund, even though we filed just five days ago.

One highlight for me was to do a book talk with Sarah Vowell for the lifelong learning institute. She wrote a book about Lafayette, and she has a very entertaining approach to history. And she was both informative and entertaining in the zoom talk that 250 people joined, from all over the country.

That's a lot, and I'm sure there's more in each of your households.  Happy Easter, and love from up here.

Dateline - CDG

Dateline - CDG

With our flight home delayed, there's time to write a weekly letter. On April Fool's Day. Something in here is not true. Can you guess?

After spending two weeks in the same place, Montpellier, we hit the road. Or the trains. We had bought a Eurail pass before leaving so we had 7 days of free rides. Or so we thought. The trains have taken a page out of the airline travel industry and are charging to make a reservation. That led to some last minute, not-fun juggling. Nevertheless, it is pretty incredible on board a high speed train that is so smooth and comfy. And fast.

The other problem was luggage. Our suitcases were stuffed and heavy. And the French don't believe in elevators. Our air bnb's were on the 4th, 6th, and 4th floors. We did not need to go to the gym walking up and down those stairways. And why are they circular, with no lighting? If USAID hadn't been eliminated, I'd suggest a grant to help the French build elevators for the elderly tourists.

Destinations? A medieval, walled city called Carcasonne, Toulouse, the pink city, Paris, Woerden in the Netherlands and back to Paris. When you ask what we did, it was pretty simple. We walked and we ate.

We actually squeezed in a few museums but that's just a different way of walking.

Highlights? Many, but Leyden in the Netherlands stands out. Beautiful city where our Dutch friends Henk and Marja went to university. By the way they pulled out a photo album with pictures from their Rhode Island visit in the 90s with Kathleen, Patrick, and Pop.

We tried to stay in touch with family. Annie and Sankar went to another extended wedding and are off to Hyderabad for a course on permaculture in preparation for their new project. Joe had work travel to Honolulu. Thomas and John started tennis lessons. And we see Ronan growing so fast!

And there were birthdays as well. Simon had several parties, including one at an indoor gym that school friends and cousins attended. Some very brave parents. I'm not sure how many parties David had, but I did see photos of him jumping on trampolines.

We heard from Timmy a few times who's in Pittsfield watching our kitty. Or is it the other way around?

We're coming home to spring and excited about that. We have a busy April ahead and we're excited about that too.

Love from CDG.

(Did you guess the April Fool's? Too easy!)