no gathering of my family would be complete without the droning of a power drill or a trip to home depot. normally it's my parents working on some sort of home improvement project, but this time i'm visiting my aunt and uncle at their beautiful abode in colorado springs, and they seem to be at the throes of home improvement projects.
when my aunt and grandmother picked me up from the aiport, my grandma proudly told me how she just bought them a new microwave to fit over their stove. while i bummed around enjoying the splendor of being around family (and greedily doing as many things as i can on their high speed internet), my aunt and uncle were busy at work the rest of the evening trying to install this microwave. trial and error revealed some holes drilled in the wrong place (measure twice, drill once, my friends), so i was called over to help out. eventually the microwave found it's new home (power drill and saw: check).
the next morning, on a simple trip to the store to get yeast for baking bread (must...feed...the...addiction...), we stopped by REI, home depot and a camera shop before making it to the grocery store (home depot stop: check).
i've spent the past few days relaxing, crocheting, writing letters, buying way too many things on the internet (all on sale and free shipping...), and listening to my sassy grandma's banter. she claims she's losing her sense of humor with her age; i just think she's getting more hilarious. i really wish i had a tape recorder to capture her remarks about life.
i'm writing this entry to the soundtrack of a power drill, shopvac and clanging of electronic bits as my uncle tries to configure a way to use skype in the living room. by the way, i just got skype (username: miller.is.robin) and was able to catch up with my good friend heidi in real time! she's teaching english in taiwan and has her own blog (
http://heidialford.tumblr.com/). we communicate mainly through written correspondence; however, i thoroughly enjoyed our nearly 2 hour conversation...both of us in pajamas thanks to the 15 hour time difference! me just having woken up and her about to call it a night.
back on track...we did the quick and dirty version of the garden of the gods in manitou springs. i snapped some photos of the kissing camels, held up balance rock and was wooed into buying too many postcards at the trading post. then we stuffed ourselves silly with sushi before returning to prepare pies for tomorrow's feast.
at the trading post by the garden of the gods, there was a sign saying "it all started when two people fell in love". being with family for thanksgiving makes me reflect on the gravity of this souvenir sign. family does start when two people fall in love. the reason that all the people in the room around me are here is because two people fell in love enough to welcome children into their lives.
what the future holds for my family remains unknown. for now, i will enjoy the time we have to spend together.
