Swans, Clear Skies & Futures

Posted on | May 21, 2007 |

Phoof

It’s that time of year we all get to see the fruit of our labor as parents, aunts, uncles, and grandparents: graduation time. This past weekend, our rather motley extended crew traveled to Monterey to celebrate a dear one of ours launch herself onto the good ol’ US of A job scene much like a swan that has just taken flight.

CSUMB 2007

To be accurate, she’s been working for several months now because she officially finished in December. So 25 of us gathered to freeze our collective woogies off in the rather brisk and fog draped concrete stadium at CSUMB, sited at the old Fort Ord, to join in the festivities, and douse her with undying ~~affectations~~ congratulatory affection.

Family dramas aside — because they are always hilariously present when large groups get together — the weekend was a big hit with everyone. Some people flew in, some drove,

Craigvair

and others did a bit of both. Regardless, we all ended up at The Stagecoach Inn. *Ahem.* Suffice it to say that at least our room hopping didn’t bother anyone because we took up just about the entire ~~dive~~ motel.

We were gleefully able to overlook:

the construction going on in one entire area of the motel;
the construction workers staying in the room next door and debris piles outside our doors;
the lights that flickered ominously each time the handy room fridge clicked on;
the hot water knob that wouldn’t quite turn off no matter which way we turned it;
the bricks that were disguised as mattresses;
the 11:45 pm delivery of one lost suitcase; and
the cacophony of snores that ~~punctured~~ punctuated everyone’s attempt to catch up on beauty rest —

because:

the stagecoach and flowers out front were so cute;
family is worth everything;
we’re basically salt ‘o th’ earth when you get right down to it and are used to these deluxe accommodations;

Hot Towel?
time with family is priceless;
we’re serious wannabee residents of the Monterey Bay area and try to go once a year to laze around and contemplate retirement; and
family histrionics absolutely cannot ever be missed.

Okay, so, this is just one perspective. But thank goodness it wasn’t the Hotel California — I think. We did check out, and did successfully leave.

Nice Day

If you’ve never visited, Monterey and Carmel truly are beautiful places, and perfect for a few days stay if you enjoy taking things a bit slowly, looking at art,

Carmel Paints

cruising through the hilarious Tee-Shirt stores in Turismo Heaven, eating some great food, marveling over the often craggy shoreline,

Lone Pine

and cooing at the seals and otters.

To hear the young graduates tell, however, there isn’t much of a night life, so after getting their bearings, they’re all heading to other parts of the country to take on their new lives. I don’t know, though. I’m thinking the MoH was having a great time Saturday night at the pub over the discussion on abstract algebra, multivariable calculus, statistics, actuarial science and whether an LLC is a better way to go than an S-Corp.

Numbers, Chips, Beer & Futures… Ahhh…

Asilomar Sunset

Clear skies ahead. Life is good. Very, very good.

We love you, are extremely proud of you, Phoof, and wish you all kinds of happiness and famousness!

Category: Uncategorized
Tags: Family > Gratitude > Learning > Life

Comments

4 Responses to “Swans, Clear Skies & Futures”

Dave
May 21st, 2007 @ 8:18 pm

discussion on abstract algebra, multivariable calculus, statistics,

Oof. Good to know that hemisphere is alive and well in some

Sounds like you had a great weekend!
Phoof
May 22nd, 2007 @ 12:01 am

Thanks for nice comments. Monterey is a great place and yes you are lucky if the fog doesn’t blur your vision, freeze your legs, and make you want to stay inside when you visit. I’d say it was a successful weekend that could have gone another direction. Really glad you guys came :)
kellypea
May 22nd, 2007 @ 2:04 am

Hi Dave — Yes, listening in was a bit interesting, but I did seize the opportunity to throw in a few serious nods of agreement, and grunts of pseudo knowledge. Umm…I see…conceptual understanding…

Hey Phoof! Swanstress! You throw a mean par-tay! Hope your Monday is going a bit more coherently than mine and that the the picture is okay. Nice smile!
loripea
May 22nd, 2007 @ 11:48 am

What a nice way to sum up the weekend. It was a great time. I’ve been to Monterey 12 times in the past 5 years and it felt a bit odd leaving and heading east to Virginia and not south towards our old home (sniff on the “home” part and not the “house” because it’s a giant booger we cannot seem to flick off our finger).