![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
electricland...damn, 'tis late, but I do want to finish writing about the weekend before I forget all about it. Because it was good. One day at a time.
I believe we had left off in Georgeville at long last...
I woke up in my Mediterranean-themed room (shutters and a beach umbrella, and I don't mean just pictures either) wishing I'd left the curtains open, because it was a bit stuffy. Staggered downstairs to find half my family in residence, drinking all the coffee and eating the most fabulous cinnamon buns ever. I said hello to the ones I recognized and some of the ones I didn't (I had no idea, for instance, that I had a cousin Julia) and ate my share of bagels and fruit and cinnnamon buns and whatnot. Jenny and her girls and I then went swimming -- it was a bit rough, but lovely and warm -- and I tried to be as unobtrusive as possible about ogling the half-naked men in wetsuits (and two women, but I wasn't so much ogling them) who were wandering around getting ready for a mine-clearing exercise in Lake Memphremagog. They all had knives and little fluorescent orange plastic canisters strapped to their calves. I approved.
It took, as usual, about half an hour of negotiation before we could figure out who was going where in whose car -- I backed out of the fray early on with a "Just tell me what I'm doing and I'll do it" and went to borrow the hotel's only iron from Heather. Ironed my long navy linen sundress, hung it up to let it rest, and went to sit on the balcony with somebody else's newspaper to read all about the blackout for half an hour before getting dressed.
Onward to the point of the whole gathering, which was a memorial party for my great-aunt Barbara (my grandmother's eldest sister), who died in the spring. We parked at Aunt Mardie's cottage and walked over, which is not so very easy in an elegant sundress, silk shawl and cute little mules. Aunt B's cottage wonderful as all parties are when Robert and Betsy in charge -- they had a parachute on bamboo stakes for a canopy on the road side (I was convinced the wind was going to carry it off, but it didn't), and a solid marquee on the lake side, and piles and piles of food and a constant stream of champagne. And, of course, scads of people, family but also friends from the area and elsewhere. Also photos of Aunt B from birth to old age (cigarette in one hand and Scotch in the other), also birth certificate from Somerset House (with column for "Rank or Occupation of Father", which I thought was hilarious), confirmation certificate, naturalization certificate, etc. My goodness she was lovely in her youth.
Granny, as the Last of Her Generation, was much feted and reminisced a good bit -- I must record her one of these days.
Lunch was buffet and a bit of a free-for-all, find your own table and try to end up with interesting companions. They had photo confetti all over the tables which I thought was brilliant. Robert, Cynthia, Daniel and Betsy all made speeches, I think they were hoping others would leap up to reminisce as well but I couldn't think of anything offhand!
Most of the family was there. Using outline numbering, absentees in parentheses, deceased in brackets:
[1. Barbara, the cause of the party] - [Bill, died in the '50s]
1.1 Janet (had a rotten cold and seemed rather down)
1.1.1 Ben (very quiet, but Mummy says he's always like that)
1.1.1.1 Will (cute, much less garrulous than last time I saw him, he must be about 7 now, still has the most enormous head)
1.2 Robert - Betsy
1.2.1 Daniel
1.2.2 Cynthia (up from San Francisco for the week, looking fabulous as always, I suppose that's what you get for running marathons and moving in with your boyfriend, hasn't found a job yet but doesn't seem TOO concerned, she says she'll worry when she's out of money! Anyway fall will be better)
[2. Mardie] - [Scotty]
(2.1 Doug - Rosina)
(2.1.1 Jessica - family is worried about her, I must try getting in touch, I am a Bad Cousin when you consider I live around the corner and NEVER see her)
2.1.2 Simon (didn't talk to him much)
2.2 Barbara - Trevor
2.2.1 Andrew - Mari-Ellen (hair very short from the chemo but as lively as ever)
2.2.2a Tim (OK, I'm not absolutely sure he's the elder twin, never mind - seemed well)
2.2.2b Mike (likes his job much better, is dating a Turkish girl)
2.3 Sheila - (Bill - away in the Arctic)
2.3.1 Nick (looks really healthy and happy, I'm delighted) - Leo (never met her before, she's awesome)
2.3.1.1 Maya (absolutely adorable, nearly 2, took off her clothes at every possible opportunity)
2.3.2 Patrick (going into 3rd year of industrial design, another beautiful boy)
2.3.3 Anna (just got back from Peru, had her hair all braided, off to study biology in the fall)
3. Val - [David]
3.1 Chris
3.2 Gill - Stuart
3.2.1 Me!
(3.3 John - Helen - absent for reasons previously explained)
(3.3.1 Jen)
(3.3.2 Mike)
[4. Ralph] - Andrea
4.1 Harry - Heather
4.1.1 Julia
4.2a Jenny - Jack (I went with the family on Sunday to collect their dog Cinnamon from the kennel, a German spaniel, she's sweet)
4.2a.1 Hannah
4.2a.2 Molly (comedian - she did a fantastic Finding Nemo routine)
4.2a.3 Zoe (currently wishes to be called something else - Alex, I believe)
(4.2b Roz - initially said she was going to come, but didn't - we are worried about her too)
Party wound down after a while as the locals faded away, so I drove my parents back to the hotel (probably over the limit, oh dear) and collected my bathing suit and Mummy's towel (my own being soaked) and came back to swim. As so often, most of the party ended up on the dock, with the two Labs occasionally leaping in (Milly to try to rescue people, and Angus as far as I could see for the sheer love of the thing). It's a great dock. There's also a tiny stream running underneath it which is ideal for beer-cooling purposes.
Barbara and Trevor hosted the evening party with lots & lots of smoked meat and salad, and I talked with Kate and Elise which I haven't really done in years. Kate's with the Foreign Service, posted to Rome, and knows Mona; Elise just finished a pastry-chef course and is getting somewhat fed up with living at home.
And after a long time, we all went home to bed. Which I am going to do now.
I believe we had left off in Georgeville at long last...
I woke up in my Mediterranean-themed room (shutters and a beach umbrella, and I don't mean just pictures either) wishing I'd left the curtains open, because it was a bit stuffy. Staggered downstairs to find half my family in residence, drinking all the coffee and eating the most fabulous cinnamon buns ever. I said hello to the ones I recognized and some of the ones I didn't (I had no idea, for instance, that I had a cousin Julia) and ate my share of bagels and fruit and cinnnamon buns and whatnot. Jenny and her girls and I then went swimming -- it was a bit rough, but lovely and warm -- and I tried to be as unobtrusive as possible about ogling the half-naked men in wetsuits (and two women, but I wasn't so much ogling them) who were wandering around getting ready for a mine-clearing exercise in Lake Memphremagog. They all had knives and little fluorescent orange plastic canisters strapped to their calves. I approved.
It took, as usual, about half an hour of negotiation before we could figure out who was going where in whose car -- I backed out of the fray early on with a "Just tell me what I'm doing and I'll do it" and went to borrow the hotel's only iron from Heather. Ironed my long navy linen sundress, hung it up to let it rest, and went to sit on the balcony with somebody else's newspaper to read all about the blackout for half an hour before getting dressed.
Onward to the point of the whole gathering, which was a memorial party for my great-aunt Barbara (my grandmother's eldest sister), who died in the spring. We parked at Aunt Mardie's cottage and walked over, which is not so very easy in an elegant sundress, silk shawl and cute little mules. Aunt B's cottage wonderful as all parties are when Robert and Betsy in charge -- they had a parachute on bamboo stakes for a canopy on the road side (I was convinced the wind was going to carry it off, but it didn't), and a solid marquee on the lake side, and piles and piles of food and a constant stream of champagne. And, of course, scads of people, family but also friends from the area and elsewhere. Also photos of Aunt B from birth to old age (cigarette in one hand and Scotch in the other), also birth certificate from Somerset House (with column for "Rank or Occupation of Father", which I thought was hilarious), confirmation certificate, naturalization certificate, etc. My goodness she was lovely in her youth.
Granny, as the Last of Her Generation, was much feted and reminisced a good bit -- I must record her one of these days.
Lunch was buffet and a bit of a free-for-all, find your own table and try to end up with interesting companions. They had photo confetti all over the tables which I thought was brilliant. Robert, Cynthia, Daniel and Betsy all made speeches, I think they were hoping others would leap up to reminisce as well but I couldn't think of anything offhand!
Most of the family was there. Using outline numbering, absentees in parentheses, deceased in brackets:
[1. Barbara, the cause of the party] - [Bill, died in the '50s]
1.1 Janet (had a rotten cold and seemed rather down)
1.1.1 Ben (very quiet, but Mummy says he's always like that)
1.1.1.1 Will (cute, much less garrulous than last time I saw him, he must be about 7 now, still has the most enormous head)
1.2 Robert - Betsy
1.2.1 Daniel
1.2.2 Cynthia (up from San Francisco for the week, looking fabulous as always, I suppose that's what you get for running marathons and moving in with your boyfriend, hasn't found a job yet but doesn't seem TOO concerned, she says she'll worry when she's out of money! Anyway fall will be better)
[2. Mardie] - [Scotty]
(2.1 Doug - Rosina)
(2.1.1 Jessica - family is worried about her, I must try getting in touch, I am a Bad Cousin when you consider I live around the corner and NEVER see her)
2.1.2 Simon (didn't talk to him much)
2.2 Barbara - Trevor
2.2.1 Andrew - Mari-Ellen (hair very short from the chemo but as lively as ever)
2.2.2a Tim (OK, I'm not absolutely sure he's the elder twin, never mind - seemed well)
2.2.2b Mike (likes his job much better, is dating a Turkish girl)
2.3 Sheila - (Bill - away in the Arctic)
2.3.1 Nick (looks really healthy and happy, I'm delighted) - Leo (never met her before, she's awesome)
2.3.1.1 Maya (absolutely adorable, nearly 2, took off her clothes at every possible opportunity)
2.3.2 Patrick (going into 3rd year of industrial design, another beautiful boy)
2.3.3 Anna (just got back from Peru, had her hair all braided, off to study biology in the fall)
3. Val - [David]
3.1 Chris
3.2 Gill - Stuart
3.2.1 Me!
(3.3 John - Helen - absent for reasons previously explained)
(3.3.1 Jen)
(3.3.2 Mike)
[4. Ralph] - Andrea
4.1 Harry - Heather
4.1.1 Julia
4.2a Jenny - Jack (I went with the family on Sunday to collect their dog Cinnamon from the kennel, a German spaniel, she's sweet)
4.2a.1 Hannah
4.2a.2 Molly (comedian - she did a fantastic Finding Nemo routine)
4.2a.3 Zoe (currently wishes to be called something else - Alex, I believe)
(4.2b Roz - initially said she was going to come, but didn't - we are worried about her too)
Party wound down after a while as the locals faded away, so I drove my parents back to the hotel (probably over the limit, oh dear) and collected my bathing suit and Mummy's towel (my own being soaked) and came back to swim. As so often, most of the party ended up on the dock, with the two Labs occasionally leaping in (Milly to try to rescue people, and Angus as far as I could see for the sheer love of the thing). It's a great dock. There's also a tiny stream running underneath it which is ideal for beer-cooling purposes.
Barbara and Trevor hosted the evening party with lots & lots of smoked meat and salad, and I talked with Kate and Elise which I haven't really done in years. Kate's with the Foreign Service, posted to Rome, and knows Mona; Elise just finished a pastry-chef course and is getting somewhat fed up with living at home.
And after a long time, we all went home to bed. Which I am going to do now.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
Oh dear. . .
Date: 2003-08-20 11:01 pm (UTC)And also: Check your messages! Exciting stuff!!
Weekend sounds lovely. Whinnys and hugs from the horses.
Re: Oh dear. . .
Date: 2003-08-21 07:09 am (UTC)I'd've answered except the phone in my bedroom was still unplugged from the Bell guys' exertions. (Wow, that could sound really dirty.) It's generally safe to call me before 11:30... although occasionally you'll get me on a crabby evening when I've decided to get to bed early and don't appreciate it.
Messages, hm? Hm.