Well, not much construction news in this one, folks. Took five days off for Thanksgiving and ran up to the DC area for the annual gathering of the clan.
     Drove up Wednesday with son Alex in my Honda Odysey .. He has been working with us at Habitat Tuscaloosa through the AmeriCorps National program. It is great that he was able to help out on the (ugh!) 15 hour drive. Left at 530 Wednesday morning and got there at about 8pm. Tedious. We took two or three hour shifts, with the non-driving one taking naps in the back bench seat. Checked in to the Residence Inn (Marriot) in Cryistal City, five minutes from the airport and also close to the old homefront in Arlington, just off Glebe Road.
     Picked up eldest son Lawrence (29) and new fiancé Sasha, who flew in Thursday morning from Miami. Had the buffet breakfast at the hotel and then drove the four of us downtown DC to visit the Botanical Gardens, a large greenhouse located in the shadow of the Capitol building. Nice place for a winter morning. Then off to Union Station for a bit. Then off to my youngest sister Mary's home in Burtonsville, Md,. Mary has hosted our Thanksgiving gatherings for the past 8 years.
     My younger brother John and my older sister Anne, middle sister Jean also made it this year, so that our whole generation was there . We have become the old folks now. Oh well. Anne came from Boston, where she does IT work for Berklee school of music.  Dr. Jean Salemme (phd in chemistry) lives in Maryland also and works for the FDA. Mary is working at Verizon. Brother John works for Penske.
    We got to see four fifths of my sons there.  Youngest Albert (23), with his Salemme stubborn streak, held out cajoling of his brothers and myself to join us at the event and had to settle for leftovers brought to the house afterwards. Lawrence and Sasha came with us there. Lawrence is manabger of a temporary office place and fiancé Sasha is in marketing. Alex, of course was there. Paul and steady girlfriend Erin came in from Baltimore. Paul is working as a subcontractor installing commercial bathroom partitions and Erin is a special needs teacher. Bob and girlfriend Sheila flew in from Columbus, Ohio where Bob has been working as a crash test engineer at Honda and Sheila is a flight attendant but also aspiring dress designer . She is from Ghana.
     My sister Mary's three kids were also there for the festivities, although eldest daughter Elizabeth had a migraine and wasn't seen much. Will is working 60 hrs a week as a temp box chucker at UPS. Allyson is an executive assistant for a small company. Her boyfriend Steve was there too.
     My sisters did all of the cooking. I brought the sparkling cider. Great meal as usual. My favorite is the sweet potatoe casserole (the sherry). Wills green beans were pretty good too. Lawrence carved the bird.
     After the Thanksgiving festivities, Alex went back with Bob and Sheila to Bob's friends house where they were staying and had a mini high school reunion with Jason and John and Vinh and others. Lawrence, Sasha and I went back to the hotel. They were on the 9th floor and Alex and I stayed on the 4th.
    Friday morning, got up, buffet breakfast at he hotel. Love me the make-your-own- waffles. Then we drove out to Mclean, Virginia to visit my long time friend Ennio Garau. He is from Italy and we worked together for many many years . In Korea in the 80s for a year and a half as single guys and both came back with Korean wives (another story for another day). He was working that Friday so we went to the jobsite to see the dome that he had just installed at a private residence that was definitely not a Habitat home.
    From there, stopped by the bagel store and went to the old house in Arlington (it now belongs to my former wife) for a gathering of the boys with their mom. One little catch, my former wife, Lois, uninvited Bob's friend Sheila to the event. Awkward. So, the three of us went to visit another old friends, Carl and Jeanine Santillo in their beautiful new old home that they built on the river in Alexandria Va. Carl has worked with us over the years in Biloxi, Louisiana and Atlantic City but have yet been persuaded to come to Tuscaloosa.
     While we were in Atlantic City a few years ago at the Millard Fuller Legacy build, Carl and Jeanine shared a story while sitting at a table that moved me to tears. It seems their daughter Theresa and her husband Michael felt moved to adopt a little Chinese girl who had been abandoned and abused and had suffered burns over most of her body . Unable to walk or move her hands due to the burns. It is tough enough to raise a normal, healthy child. How much love and heart did these new parents to be have? Both Theresa and Michael are professional musicians. He plays for the Air Force Band and She was with the National Symphony. The plan that came up with to afford what were to be massive hospital bills was this. Carl and Theresa would by and sell homes and use the profits to foot the bills for daughter Sarah's operations.
      When we went for a visit, we had the pleasure to meet Sarah and her parents. She has had six operations at a Boston hospital and is one brave little girl. As Carl said, no one told her that she wasn't supposed to be happy. The staff at the hospital is having to "harvest" skin from her back and legs to replace skin on her feet and hands.   Besides all of the medical issues, Sarah also has new siblings, new home, new language to adapt to. Sarah's my hero!
     After our visit, went back home to pick up Lawrence, Sasha and Alex and went off to shop for Korean food at the Lotte markets . Drove up to Paul and Erins place in Baltimore where Lawrence (former chef) prepared Korean banquet for us. MMMmm! Masitda! (Delish) Met their dog Sid who does a good high five but does not like pickled radish.
   Saturday, guess where we had breakfast.   Alright. then off for a quick visit to the zoo. Hey!!!   Albert agreed to come along!!!   Victory!! Saw the pandas. And the elephants.   Then Starbucks. Then took Law and Sasha to the airport.
     Saturday afternoon saw Interstellar with Alex and then watched the Iron Bowl (Roll Tide ate the Tigers).
     Drove back Sunday.   15 hrs again.   Flyin next year, thanks. And a good time was had by all.