a fabulous weekend.

i had so much fun in gettysburg! it was great to see macrina. the first time i visited there it was late fall, i believe, maybe 2 years ago (see previous description) and it was great to get back and really see the town in the summer light.

the drive was easy, if not a little odd considering the weather's strange behavior, but i arrived at about 9 pm, i think, and macrina and i played ping pong in the building that houses her dad's office for quite a while until we realized we shoulf probably go back to the house.

on saturday we started the day early by heading out to the new gettysburg national park visitor's center and museum. it was really very fascinating; i realized i'd never really learned anything about the battle at gettysburg, and i'm really a sucker for museums and historical things, so the whole experience was very enlightening. i've been putting up pictures - more to come later.

macrina, her mom, scottie and i all went to lunch at The Pub on the square after that (amazing crab soup in a bread bowl with a caesar salad) and then macrina and i walked around the town a little. neither of us were in the mood for shopping, but we stopped in a place called Abe's Antiques and i bought an old photograph of a mustached man for 50 cents.

brad and i had been texting, and he said he was actually having a big party on saturday night and would love for me to come, and that of course macrina was invited too. it didn't really matter to me whether or not i would get to see him - of course it would be nice, but i was really there to spend the weekend with macrina - but she said she'd like to meet him, and as he only lived in new oxford, which is about equidistant from the house in gettysburg and the house on lake meade, it wouldn't really be difficult to get to his farm. so after dinner macrina asked her parents if that would be okay, and of course they said yes because they are not my parents and as her mom said, "their night is just beginning!" so true.

so we went to see brad. the night was wonderful! odd rain here and there, but i got to meet some of his high school friends, and his mom, and his two horses, bobo and spot. god, i miss horses. macrina had a good time, too, which is really what i was worried about, considering that she'd never met any of my lafayette friends before. the farm was beautiful, and large, and there was a campfire (my hair, after 2 washings, still smells like it). we played manhunt in the dark and just generally talked and listened to music. there was beer, of course. most of brad's friends had already graduated from college, which wasn't surprising since he's going to be a senior and took a year off after high school. i think it was good for our friendship to spend some time with him, away from campus. he's such a great guy, and although we had some 'moments,' i didn't and don't expect anything, and i think the whole thing just went really well. i'm not pushing it.

we got back to lake meade at about 4:30 am, after having had some gps problems and then picking up milk and eggs at rutter's. but we got up for breakfast, went to the pool, tanned, read, i wrote a little, then went out in the boat and had lunch across the lake. the trip back was an adventure, as it starting pouring, but it was fun, the 5 of us in the little motor boat. i packed and showered when we got back, hung around until the rain subsided, and then left close to 6 pm.

the drive back was nice - rainy, but not too stressful. i went to bed early, having been up so late the night before.

and now here i am, happy as a clam! at the office, but awake and in a good mood, and although the day seems to be going slowly and missy isn't here i think everything should go well. i hope i'm speaking too soon. i have police reports to type up, and maybe a few other things to check up on, which makes me nervous, but i'll try to suck it up.

going to check with beth to see if i can visit her this thursday through saturday.