Belatedly: Happy 61st birthday to my darling dad! Here he is with a spectacular gift he received from Tom and Tra (of course) Scott and Debbie (thanks to Jennie for the correction), photo courtesy of Mom. Happy birthday, Bussey!

In other news, it’s six days until I leave for Texas to meet Miss Abby (and to spend time with Lisa, of course!), and just seventeen days until half marathon number seven. It’s going to be an interesting race, as I was diagnosed with Achilles tendonitis a couple of weeks ago. I’ve been given the go-ahead to race, but I’ll be bringing plenty of ibuprofen along for the ride just in case. I’m certainly not expecting a PR, but here’s hoping I don’t get a DNF.

Here, at last, is a picture of me and work hubby JPo… well, sort of. Since he’s a very private guy, I’ve covered his head with a picture of Jared Padalecki instead. Ha!

I’ve been busy with work, workouts, Gilda’s (both Gang and Gala), and voice over work, but have still found plenty of time to do one of my favorite things: read. So, for no good reason, here’s a list of the last ten books I’ve read (starting with the one I’m currently working my way through):

1. Fierce Invalids Home From Hot Climates by Tom Robbins.
2. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson.
3. Flight of the Falcon by Daphne du Maurier.
4. Scott Pilgrim’s Precious Little Life by Bryan Lee O’Malley.
5. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier.
6. Why Girls Are Weird by Pamela Ribon.
7. The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg.
8. Ultramarathon Man by Dean Karnazes.
9. Emporium by Adam Johnson.
10. Parasites Like Us by Adam Johnson.

The title of this post is inspired by the fact that I can’t believe summer is almost over, and yet I can’t wait for fall (Bradford reunion! Maine!). It’s from a poem called “Pursuit,” by Stephen Dobyns:

In such a way do the days pass -
a blend of stock car racing and the never
ending building of a gothic cathedral.

I can’t believe how fast the summer if flying by. It’s only four weeks until the Rochester Half Marathon (which I will be participating in providing my stupid heel gets better), and just two and a half weeks until I fly down to Texas to spend time with Lisa and Abby. There’s been a lot going on the past few weeks, including seeing the Barenaked Ladies on the last stop of their summer tour at CMAC with Heather and Linds last night. It was a gorgeous summer night on the lawn, including fireworks from the Canandaigua pier. Above is a self-portrait of the three of us, and here are shots of Heather and me and Linds and me during the concert.

Last weekend, Linds and I drove out to the Genesee Country Museum for Little House on the Prairie day, where we got to meet and greet Almanzo Wilder himself, Mr. Dean Butler (who also played Buffy’s dad and is married to the woman who played Felice Martin on 90210. Multiple worlds collide!):

Today, the Sorensens paid a visit to Grandma and Grandpa’s for coffee. Here are a few pictures. First up, here’s Dad, Bob, Grandma, Mabe, Sarah, and Debbie:

Cousins! Donna, Howard, and Tracy:

Jennie and Tracy do… something…?:

Gathered around the kitchen table:

Grandpa in the foreground; Bob laughing in the background:

And here’s Howard, with Dad showing off the walker/seat he’s going to need when he turns 61 on Thursday:

In other news, I’ve been booking more audio gigs, working out like mad with Jillian Michaels, and watching Supernatural, of course. I also found out that at the Gilda’s Gala on September 25th, I’m going to be receiving an award! Paul, Alex, and I are all receiving the Come As You Are Award, which “is given to an individual(s) demonstrating meritorious, outstanding or heroic distinctive personal involvement in the Gilda’s Club Community, positively affecting the lives of members living with a cancer experience. This/these individual(s) are welcoming to all, are involved in multiple facets of clubhouse activities and events, provide outreach to further the Gilda’s Club mission to new partners and contributes to keeping the red door open.” Time to buy a fancy new dress!

The title of this post is from the Bon Jovi song “Summertime” (so sue me, I like Jon Bon and the boys!):

I was a warm breeze with a cool tan,
Life mapped out on the back of my hand.

It’s been a busy few weeks, but now two batches of jam (better late than never) are cooling on the kitchen counter, so I have a few minutes to catch up. Besides work, audio work, Gang training, Supernatural nights, and Gilda’s committee work, I managed to fit in a trip to see the Red Wings play with Heather and Miss Julia:

I was also lucky enough to spend some quality time with fellow Bradford Alum Tammy during Zombie Weekend:

Matthew and Sarah’s three-week visit to Penn Yan went by far too fast! Here’s a picture of Matthew and Jennie sharing a pool-side goodbye hug:

There are a few more pictures from their visit in the Summer 2010 album here. And here’s a shot of Linds, me, Matthew, Kim, Andy, and Sarah after a night of swimming and pizza:

I wasn’t here for this one, but it’s definitely worth posting (thanks to Mama for remembering to take photos!) – Dad and his big sisters, Phyllis and Joanne:

The Dowds invited me to help celebrate Alex’s high school graduation, and Karen thought it would be a good time for a day care photo. So, here’s me (with Rachael’s son, Charlie), Rachael and Bright, and Karen and Myles:

Richmonds from Arizona, South Carolina, and Florida popped up for a visit after the Fourth of July. Lots of pictures from their visit here. And here’s one of Tracy, Debbie, Steve, and Mom.

Today is the Ironman Lake Placid, and we’re all cheering on Gang trainers Alex, Beth, Paul, and Annette as they tackle the 140.6 miles. Here they are at the fundraiser Alex held at The Old Toad, on his way to raising almost $5000 for Gilda’s Club!

While they’re swimming, biking, and marathoning their way to another medal, I’m kicking back with a good book.

Saving the biggest news of all for last… A big welcome to my newest “niece,” Miss Abigail Reese Wesneski! Here she is with her mama and her grandma (photo stolen from Lisa’s Flickr site – thanks, Lis!). I’m flying down to Texas to spend some time with the girls over Labor Day. Can’t wait!

The title of this post is a song from the musical Blood Brothers. It starts:

There’s a few bob in your pocket,
and you’ve got good friends,
and it seems that summer’s never coming to an end.

It’s only the 6th, but what a July it’s been already! Matthew Charles and his mom have been visiting for a few weeks, and above is one of my favorite pictures from their trip: Matthew on the swingset at Mom and Dad’s. And here’s a good shot of Sarah, me, and Linds on an oddly chilly Thursday afternoon.

My other favorite picture (so far, as I’ll be seeing the Merrills again later this week) is of Matthew and Mom in mid-giggle:

I spent last weekend in DC with Mandy and her fabulous friends. We ate out, we saw a movie, we went to a Nats game, we tubed down the Shenandoah River. And to cap it all off: We watched the fireworks from the South Lawn of the White House! Here’s Evan, me, Carol, and Mandy right as we arrived:

It was an amazing experience – the nicest portable bathrooms you can imagine (!), the friendliest people, Secret Service everywhere, yummy Dove chocolate ice cream bars, lots of beverages, a concert by The Killers, and the most gorgeous backdrop for watching fireworks I’ve ever seen. I guess the Obamas made an appearance, but we didn’t get to experience the meet and greet. Still, thanks to Keri for the amazing, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Here’s me at the White House!

There are more pictures from Sarah and Matthew’s visit in the Summer 2010 album, and lots more from DC here.

In other news, I hit a raccoon with my car, and I had a chipmunk in my apartment! For a few days, I felt like I was living in an evil Disney movie. Ha! And this also happened…

Chav injured his paw again, and has to wear this ridiculous cone. I think it’s been more traumatizing for me than for him! He’s doing much better than he was when I snapped this picture, thankfully!

The title of this post comes from a quote by Ada Louise Huxtable:

Summer is the time when one sheds one’s tensions with one’s clothes, and the right kind of day is 
jeweled balm for the battered spirit. A few of those days and you can become drunk with the belief 
that all’s right with the world.

A week ago today I arrived back in Rochester after twelve-and-a-half hours in the car. Road tripping to and from Nashville isn’t bad; not having a working air conditioning system in the car when it’s 100+ degrees with the heat index is pretty awful. But I survived it! I took two days to drive down, resting and relaxing for the first night in beautiful (?) Louisville, Kentucky. Where it was already very, very hot. When I arrived in Brentwood on Sunday, Uncle Steve already had an eight-pound brisket cooking in his new smoker. Chris, Mike, Leisl, and I all helped him to eat it that night (picture above is of the boys waiting for their dad to start serving), and then Dan and Sarah wandered back from Bonnaroo to help finish it off.

On Monday, I had dinner with Cindy, who I hadn’t seen in eight years. We had a delicious Mexican dinner at Rose Pepper’s in East Nashville. On Tuesday, I hauled it up to Springfield to have Mexican (what’s up with that?) with John, Sandra, and Crystal.

Tuesday night was Creole (finally, not Mexican!) with Steve in Brentwood. (As you can see, the majority of my time was planned around eating!) On Wednesday, I had brunch with Michelle, Brent, Suttree, and Oliver in Goodlettsville…

…and then I drove over to Murfreesboro to have dinner with Liz, Miss Charlotte, and Chad. Best time of the trip: Charlotte whispering in my ear, “I love you, Wendy!”

On Thursday, I spent a lovely afternoon with Linda, Deanna, and Zane on Coronado Court…

…then met Ran for a Thai dinner and an evening of great conversation.

Friday was Dalts reunion day! I spent the afternoon with my two favorite transplanted New Yorkers (or would that be transplanted Nashvillians?), Chris and Leigh Anna. We ate yummy pizza at Michelangelo’s (sad I didn’t know about this place when I lived there!), and then drove out to East Nashville to meet some old Dalts friends, including Derrick, Josh, Tracy, and Brad.

Drove straight home on Saturday, and have been recuperating ever since. There are more pictures (mostly outtakes from the ones shown here!) in the Nashville 2010 album here. The next adventure: Fourth of July weekend with Mandy in DC!

I wasn’t away on Father’s Day, but it’s been a very busy week since I got back from Nashville, so I’m just getting around to posting. Here’s a picture of the dads who were present on Sunday: Tom, Dad, and Grandpa. There are more pictures from the day (including a visit from Aunt Cindy and an appearance by Meghan and Joe’s new puppy, Jackson) in the Summer 2010 album here.

The title of this post comes from a quote by Bill Cosby:

Fatherhood is pretending the present you love most is soap-on-a-rope.

I was away on Chavo’s birthday (June 18th, or so I decided long ago), so here is the (belated) traditional post in his honor. Happy birthday to my bean!

Happy Memorial Day! It was a gorgeous, sunny, hot weekend, full of picnics, parades, family, and friends. On Friday night, Linds, Heather, Jena, and I shared s’mores and lots of laughs over a bonfire in Jena’s backyard. On Saturday, Linds and I braved the Outlet Mall, then enjoyed some pool time and dinner with the family on Ogden Street. Yesterday was a picnic at the Woods and an evening with Heather and the Winchester boys. Today was the parade in PY, more pool time, and a picnic with the family. I’m tan, full, and tired. On to the photos (the one above is of a rose in Mom’s garden)!

Here’s Dad marching with the honor guard in the Penn Yan parade:

And here’s Jennie waving a flag as the parade goes by:

More photos in the new Summer 2010 album here. The title of this post is from a quote by Benjamin Disraeli:

The legacy of heroes is the memory of a great name and the inheritance of a great example.

This is photo of the amount of kleenex I went through during the finale.

Top Five Series Finales That Made Me Cry The Most

1. Doctor Who (the last episode with David Tennant)
2. Fame
3. Buffy the Vampire Slayer
4. Lost
5. Beverly Hills, 90210

Bonus: MacGyver*

*because of how ridiculous it was

Finally, here are two of my favorite Lost-related photos, from Best Week Ever (I think I’ll miss their episode recaps more than I’ll miss the show itself!):

See you in another life, brutha.