Tuesday, September 04, 2007

Labor Day Weekend

Ceil and I got a late start Friday night, going out to dinner. I thought it would be low key…El Porton or Chipotle, but Ceil didn’t want Mexican or BBQ. There wasn’t a crowd at P. F. Chang, so we ate there. Afterwards we stopped by Kroger to stock up on Poweraide (the 32 oz 59 cent sale ended Saturday). Ceil was looking at the magazines, so I checked out and took the groceries to the car. When I came back in I saw Ceil talking to a man I didn’t recognize, so I checked out some things before finally walking up to them. Turned out to be Bryan, buying the last inner tube boat…for himself, he said.

Bryan sold a screenplay, and is working on cutting the length. Set in Atlanta, part of it’s about church softball. He said he’d let me read it to make sure the scenes are realistic. Bryan is temporarily hosting the Buckhead Church Kidstuf while the crowd gets used to the newer actors. After that they may look for a closer church, and may visit East Cobb Presbyterian, where the Normans go. Susan called Ceil last night and I think they were talking about that.

We wound up going there Sunday, and it was ok. After NP, any church is going to be a letdown, particularly a smaller church. NP is comfortable for me because I can go and be anonymous. At ECPC several men came up to introduce themselves, and some figured me to be “Will’s dad”. Ceil enjoyed being with Becky. The preacher was ok, at times humorous and also thought-provoking. Before the service he approached with his hands in his pockets and introduced himself, explaining he didn’t want to shake hands because he had a cold. People say he’s a better relationship guy than preacher, but his sermon may have been more applicable than the Bible-story type sermons Bryant Wright preaches at Johnson Ferry. Saw Will’s former teammates David Bartlett and his brother, the great Willie. Their parents seem to be getting involved at ECPC in a low-key way. We like the Bartletts…Coach Henry and mom Kristie, who is crazy.

Will had practice Saturday morning, basically a scrimmage game like we did in the spring. Afterwards Will wanted to hit more, so Coach Donnie pitched to him and three others. Everyone then left, but I threw two more bucketfuls to Will, and his hitting seems to be coming around. Will also pitched well. Saturday afternoon Will went with Joel and another boy to Conyers for a huge Christian concert. Since it was free (and it had rained) I figured it would be a zoo, but Will said they had a good time. He spent Saturday night at the Norman’s…that factored into why we went to ECPC, along with no NP classes for the kids.

Saturday afternoon I swam with Anna and Matthew. They like to throw the tennis ball in the pool, so I had them jumping in and catching it. Anna would stand and jump, so she had more success. Matthew would take a running start, and the way he’d crash into the water had me cracking up. He finally got to where he’d catch it more often than not, but he must’ve jumped in twenty times.

Sunday after church I took the kids to Macon. My mom wanted to make sure they liked the food. Will was ecstatic over the ribs, Anna loves mashed potatoes, and Matthew got his beloved hot dogs. My dad’s centipede lawn was in good shape. Will cut the front and I cut the back (in sandals, so my feet are now itching), and I blew off the driveway. My dad can do small sections of lawn before getting worn out, so he usually does a little every other day.

Yesterday I spent a lot of time cleaning upstairs, putting up piles than had accumulated. Ceil wanted to go to a thrift store to look for an old bedspread, so we hit a few in Roswell, then TJMaxx. Will and I fixed a ceiling fan, then we all went to see Pirates 3 at the Picture Show. I had forgotten that only Will had seen it, so we all enjoyed it.

No comments: