IN WHICH Calls are Placed, Calls are Answered, the Sky opens Up with Torrents of Rain, Plans are Made, Things are Accomplished, at least one Sly Biblical Allusion is Used, A Running Gag is Hinted at, I Remember the Format for this Introductory Section, AND - in the Meantime - Insulation is Installed.

My grandmother was on the phone, and she told me that so far, it looked good.  The only thing that might change that, she said, was the condition of her sister-in-law - my great aunt - who was in the hospital down in Binghamton (2 hours south), and not doing really well.  If she got markedly worse, Grandma said, our plans would have to change.  In that case, she might still be travelling, but probably down there, to call on my great aunt.  Since a playoff game is hardly as important as a person in the hospital, I of course told my grandmother I understood.

And there was evening, and there was morning - the first day.

So I called Mike back Tuesday, and told him that the chances were good, but not 100%, that I'd be able to make it, and he said he'd call me on Wednesday to give me directions to his house from my uncle's.  I tried to call my grandmother at work, but didn't hear from her.  It rained very heavily that day, and I'd like to tell you something exciting happened, but as I consult what I've written down about it, the best I can do is, "Jere gets his first paycheck from the hotel."  There you go.  Now that's excitement, as they say in France.  Le excitement.  Oui, oui.

And there was evening, and there was morning - the second day.

Wednesday came around, and I decided that since we were probably going, I had better take care of the responsibilities I had that weekend.  Right after I did a whole lot of other things, like watch Game 1 of the ALCS.  But I missed the first few innings of that game, helping to staple insulation to the inside of the new roof my father and I had built over the past week.  Stapling insulation, as you may know, has all the glamour of roof construction, except without the excitement of walking far above the ground in the sunshine, and with the addition of painfully bending over backwards while inhaling tiny pieces of glass.

After the game, which the Yankees won, was over - and both Mike and my grandmother, incidentally, called during the game, to give me directions, and tell me that we were definitely going, respectively - it was about midnight or so, just enough time for me to finally get started on packing, completing the music set I needed to have ready for a meeting on Monday, and thinking about a skit I had to write for a meeting on Friday.  But figuring I needed to get a fair amount of sleep before traveling to Connecticut, I went to bed around 2.

And there was evening, and there was morning - the third day.

The next day, I did manage to finish the skit, had my mother cash my dad's check for me in town so I'd have enough money to make the trip, loaded my things into my grandmother's car, brought her suitcases down for her, and sat down in the driver's seat.

As you may know, I am at least 6'5".  What might surprise you is that my grandmother is significantly shorter than me.  Thus, her car - which fits her quite well - did not accommodate me nearly as comfortably.  Pushing the seat most of the way back, I found I could sit well enough, but my knees were on either side of the steering wheel.  "You're sure this steering wheel doesn't tilt at all?," I asked hopefully.  But the answer was negative.  I looked forward to using cruise control as much as possible.

I backed the car out of the garage, and we went left, up the hill on Maxon Road.  It was about 12:30.  The journey had begun - and as you remember, that's when things actually start to get interesting.

TO BE CONTINUED . . .

Round THREE

NHS Speech

"My View" Editorial

The October Surprise
|  Round 1 |  2  |  3  |  4  |  5  |
|   6  |  7  |  8  |  9  |  10  |
|  11  |  12  |  Final Bell  |

Journey to Jersey II
|  Intro  |  1  |  2  |  3  |  4  |  5  |
|   6  |  7  |  8  |  9  |  10  |  11  |
|  12  |  13  |  14  |  15  |

Journey to Jersey I
|  1  |  2  |  3  |  4  |  5  |   6  |  7  |  8  |
|  9  |  10  |  11  |  12  |  13  |  14  |
|  15  |  16  |  17  |  18  |  19  |  20  |

An Epic Saga
|  Act  1  |  2  |  3  |  4  |  5  |
|   6  |  7  |  8  |  9  |  10  |  11  |
|  12  |  13  |  14  |  15  |  16  |

Christian Rock Email

Freshman Room Draw
|  Part One  |  Two  |
|  Three  |  Four  |  Five  |