Everette T. Wright, 1936-2005

I just got news from Merilyn that Everette passed away around 3PM ET today. Everette was Dad and Roaul’s cousin, and had been someone I’d heard about all my life.

I’m sure I had seen Everette when Grandma and Grandpa were buried in the mid-80s, but I don’t really remember specifically seeing him. Of course, I saw him at both Dad and Roaul’s funerals over the last few years.

I really hate this for Charlotte and Missy — I remember how tough it was when Dad died, and there’s nothing to say or do that helps. I can’t help but think, though, that all of them are in heaven, cutting up, telling tall tales, and smiling down on us.

I neglected to mention that yesterday was Molly’s third birthday — Happy Birthday Molly-cule!

It’s been such a joy to watch this big pup grow up and become such a big part of our lives. We’ve travelled places we wouldn’t have, met people we would’ve never known, and found the love of a dog and breed that we would’ve missed.

She’s a jewel, and deserves every kibble she gets!

[Suck Creek Mountain TN]

Today, we went to visit Grandma Holley and Aunt Frances in Maryville and Oak Ridge (respectively). That’s quite a haul back and forth, but I really do enjoy it!

They both seem to be doing great. I hope I am as quick of mind and as mobile when I reach Grandma’s age!

While on the drive back from Frances’ new home, I was so reminded of being out west again — weird to have that same resonance twice in two days! — with the gentle lay of the mountains in the distance, purple from the thickness of atmosphere between here and there.

It was a nice trip, and it was certainly nice to see Grandma and Frances again. I need to get down here more often to see them!

$1.499

[Suck Creek Mountain TN]

To grandmother’s house we did go…..

Almost three days after the onslaught of one of the biggest midwestern winter storms in a while, we loaded up the truck and headed to The Mountain.

Ordinarily, we travel south, through Sikeston, so we can pick up lunch at Lambert’s. That involves some back road driving through some of the area that got hit the hardest by the storm. This trip, we decided to go through Mt. Vernon, south from there to Paducah, and on to The Mountain.

As we drove, we could see the snow on the side of the road dramatically increase over a twenty mile span west of Mt. Vernon. From there, the snow stayed heavy on the side of the road, and the number of abandoned, snow-bound vehicles climbed. We eventually counted forty vehicles — cars, trucks and tractor trailers — that had been abandoned where they landed after sliding off the road, some upright, some on their sides, and all planted in the heavy snow and ice.

The worst stretch of road was the stretch south of Paducah, which was the same forty miles or so of I-24 that had been closed all day Thursday and Friday for vehicle removal and snow clearing. Folks stuck in that mess were in their vehicles for almost two days, with little or no movement. There’s little around those parts, so lodging and food were scarce.

I was amazed at how much I was reminded of Colorado as we drove through snowbound Kentucky. For some reason, it resonated with the sights I remember from our trips out west, and once again, made me think of travelling west.

In any case, we made it to The Mountain, and came up with a little list of things to be thankful for out of our Christmas travel.

• Thanks to folks at Denny’s in Mt. Vernon for being open on Christmas morning, and having hot coffee ready for us.
• Thanks to the road crews that were out doing their work, clearing the roads for the rest of us who were trying to get to our families.
• Thanks to most of the other drivers who were driving courteously, and not trying to drive through the snow and ice like it was the dry pavement of the Indy 500.
• For those that did drive like idiots, thanks for the entertainment.
• Thanks to the gas stations for being open. This was the biggest worry, because I knew I couldn’t make it on one tank. (Gas was high on the trip — a cheap $1.499 in St. Louis to a high $1.799 in Tennessee.)
• And most of all, I am thankful for my family, who really make Christmas wonderful for all of us.

We arrived at Mom’s, settled in, and decided that we should go ahead with Christmas, exchanging our gifts under her tree. And again, it was a generous, wonderful Christmas, my second in two days. I was overwhelmed emotionally with some of the gifts, and chuckled right along with others. It was a Wright family Christmas in all its glory, and I was happy and thankful to be front and center for another one, along with my family.

We put off the trip to Mom’s last night due to the horrible winter storm between here and The Mountain.

In my family, we have a tradition of opening one small gift on Christmas Eve. Given that we were going to try to travel on Christmas, we figured we should go ahead with Christmas on Christmas Eve, and lighten the load for travelling to Mom’s. We travel pretty heavy most of the time, and had heard rumbles that Siobhan had loads of stuff at Mom’s — this might be the only way to make it home with all the loot! 🙂

I set a fire in the fireplace, and it was the perfect backdrop for a generous, old-fashioned Christmas. It was a wonderful spread with tons of gifts for all three of us, plus a little something for the dogs.

The neat thing about opening gifts on Christmas Eve is that returns can be made and gift certificates can be used before the post-Christmas crush begins. That’s nice!

Now, to see if we can actually make it to The Mountain tomorrow. Over the river and through the woods…….

Today is Mom’s birthday — happy birthday!

It’s also the wedding anniversary of the finest marriage I’ve ever seen — that of my Mom and Dad. Dad’s not here to share what would be their 42nd wedding anniversary, but somehow, I know he’s smiling down on all of us, and that we’ll meet up with him again one day.

Today would’ve been Dad’s 64th birthday, observed the same week as the anniversary of his death.

Much like last year, anticipation of this week was dreadful, as I knew my thoughts wouldn’t be on the here and now, but rather, focused on reflecting. There are times when the finality of his passing sucker punches me when I least expect it, and this week has been full of those times. Last night, I fell asleep in Becky’s embrace, her soothing away the pain of the moment that had surfaced unsurprisingly.

Here’s to you, Dad — happy birthday. I know you’re smiling down on all of us, and I hope you’re proud of where I’m trying to go, and where I’m trying to lead my family.

Today marks two years that this big blue marble has spun without the laughter and light my father brought it.

It’s still hard for me to take at times, and he still frequently pops up in my dreams (remind me to talk about the one with the puppy sometime…). I can still hear his voice in my mind, and still remember his appearance. As long as I have that, then I still have him close. His wisdom still echoes in my actions and my choices, and that’s probably the finest tribute I could pay him.

Today, Beck’s brother, Morgan, and his wife and three kids, came to visit from Virginia. Once again, I’m reminded of how big this house is — even with five extra humans in the house, the house is comfortable, and I still have quiet places to work. Amazing!

Morgan is a minister of music, and is was the officiator at our wedding just over five years ago. He’s a great guy, and his family reflects his spiritual values. I could only hope to have my walk with God be as close as his!

$1.669

Today, we all piled up in our cars, and went to the air show at Fair St. Louis.

It was a bit hot, and mostly cloudy, but that didn’t deter us and a whole bunch of other folks from trekking down there for the opening of the Fair. We walked over to the Eads bridge (which again this year was set up for pedestrian traffic), and got set up for the air show. This location was terrific for last year’s air show, and I expected it would be again this year. I was not disappointed!

What added to the ambiance of this hot bridge, cooled by river breezes, was the news crew from KMOV. They decided to interview us during part of the airshow. My nephew Matt and his father Warren got speaking roles in the piece. Of course, the local media was all over the fact that they had run into “the Day family from Golden, Colorado” who had come out to see the Fair.

Of course, we all knew that they were here for the reunion on Sunday!

With some luck, I hope to have that piece of video up here in the next week or so. I haven’t tried bringing video into the laptop, so that’ll be a new challenge for me, and the first step to converting to old family video tapes to DVD.

After an afternoon at the fair, Warren grilled dinner (during a monsoon-like storm), and enjoying the company of Beck and Warren’s Dad and neice Hailey, we sat down to a large family dinner.

That’s a cool thing to me. With only four of us in the family when I was growing up (and the occasional bachelor that Mom and Dad would “adopt”), the big family gatherings and dinners were pretty alien to me. Since being married to Beck, though, they’ve been very regular, and becoming very comfortable for me. I like it!