Busy talking to family yesterday

Above photo is on the road in Boulder.
Yesterday was my grandson Ethan's birthday, but his mother must have been working one of her long nurse's shifts so I did not get to talk to him. I watched So You Think You Dance last night which is hers and my favorite tv show, so we will have to discuss that one of these days, probably on her way to dance. Last 4th of July weekend she was busy with the annnual dance convention held in Phoenix every year to one of the resorts.
Next I talked to Angelina, Dante's mother, who is going to take Dante to Blythe this evening to meet up with a relative driving there from the Los Angeles area to pick him up for the next month or so summer vacation. My son Dan was transferring some funds for the trip, so I could give her the money. I agreed to cash the birthday check Doc gave Dante. She said Dante had a nice birthday celebration on the 28th of June.
Son Dan called who has been very busy up to Boulder doing the tech part of Raymond's one man show, which also includes moving the set from one place to another. Raymond just posted a new entry in his blog Cowboys and Bohemians on my list saying he had booked the show as a dinner theater event to the Kiva Koffeehouse down on the Escalante River, a very beautiful spot. He is saying now that moving the set around is considerable work!
But they are still looking for places to book it. And also getting ready for the Festival weekend after next.
I called son Gary to find him now living in a motel. He moved from his daughter's and is looking for a house. I thank goodness for cell phones or I could not keep up with my kids for sure. Now no matter where they go it is with their handy cell phones by their sides. Gary was happy because he still hadn't smoked yet! What the doctor thought was the most important thing to do for his heart, stop smoking! He is still planning to take a day off and drive up to Utah for the festival.
I talked to my niece Cheryl who proposed the idea of me coming up in October to Boulder for a Writer's Workshop the Festival is sponsoring. I have been getting Utah fever which happens every summer when I hear about the rest of the family arriving there for fun, hiking, family reunions, etc.
Sister Ann's family just met there at their family cabin up in King's Pasture. They brought ATV's and a good time was had by all. She reported she went down to visit my sons in Dean's old trailer. My son Dan joined the family for icecream up to my niece Camille's ice cream place. She has a motel, too, and gift shop where Dan is putting in a few hours to help her out.
My son Raymond found the need to establish an AA chapter in Boulder. He says he can't conquor his alcohol addiction unless he has one of those going. I don't think Gary has sworn off beer. One thing at a time and right now his top priority is cutting out cigarettes.
So you can tell there is a lot of action going on in Boulder. Weekend after next a whole passle of relatives will be headed for Boulder and the festival. Motels are booked. Some have jobs like running an auction and cooking for the dutch oven feast that has become a tradition. All the relatives who will and can cook a dish, which they sell to the crowd on the last evening of the Festival. There is nothing like dutch oven cooking in Boulder! They are looking forward to seeing Gary, glad he is alive. He says he feels pretty good, so they must have pretty much caught his heart attack in time.
Sister Ann and her husband Tom had to make a quick trip to the eye clinic in St. George as he started having leakage in the back of one eye, and an expert doctor must perform some sort of laser surgery on him. She has not reported back on the family site yet.
My sister Margie called me Sunday to thank me for her birthday book (it arrived early) and tell me family news I may not have heard about. I am always grateful for family calls. I see my sister Linda has reported on one of her fascinating dreams tonight, in Vooman's Voice on my blog list. In this entry a woman asked her to give her advice about a business venture she and her partner were thinking of taking a chance on. Linda said she would try to dream about it, and remarkably she did, and the woman said that her advice from the dream was right on, warning them the venture was not a good thing! This is the kind of dreaming Linda can do. She is certainly a professional dreamer. If you are interested in dreams, her blog is your cup of tea.
I have those kind of dreams, too, but not so frequently. For example a few days ago I was dreaming about my sister Margie and her husband Floyd it seemed like the whole night, which told me something was going to happen with them that affected me, and sure enough she called with a whole bunch of news that kept me calling Utah all afternoon! In fact, Raymond just called back today, as I had to leave a message for him to call, and he assured me he was okay. We discussed our panic attacks. I used to call either him or Gary to talk me down from one. If they weren't available I would usually go to emergency for a while. I would even take the bus there. I knew they wouldn't let me die while I was in there, so I could relax.
You can see I have a large family to keep up with! I hope I haven't left any news untold. Oh yes, my first cousin Sue in Richland Washington who has cerebral palsy also developed numb hands like my sister Linda still waiting for an MRI after months of numb hands. Sue got her MRI and the doctor told her the fusion in her neck was old and worn out, causing pressure on her nerves and numb hands, and he told her she needed to retire from work on disability. She is 56, and has been such a hard worker all these years. Her boss did not even know she was deaf she reads lips so wonderfully well. My Aunt Vesta became a teacher of the handicapped so she could be sure she learned skills to carry her through life. An RH factor caused her to be deprived of oxygen. They had to take all her blood out and replace it with new, but didnt do it in time to prevent the cerebral palsy. Her brother had to have the same thing, but they were in time. The wonders of modern science! Without those procedures neither would have survived! I so admire my cousin Sue for her courage and perseverence being so independent. Has she ever earned her disability benefits! She is wonderful. Photo below is a meeting of the clan in the aspens of King's Pasture where the deer roam freely and mountain air is so fresh!