Ok - we are back in Rome after a very interesting trip back to the states. Our arrival and stay in Richmond was not terribly eventful in comparison to some of our friends & family up north. The perfect storm 'Sandy' passed Richmond by without much of a trace. According to Tabitha, Sandy was an 'Intense Drizzle Event' (we were lucky).
Up north on Long Island and in New Jersey thing were far more disasterous. All of our friends and family were lucky and just lost power...many others were effected much worse. James and Greg lost power for about 48 hours, my parents were out for a week and Joanne was out for about 10 days.All that being said, our trip back to the states was uneventful - we were the first flight back to IAD (Dullas Airport in DC) from Italy since the storm hit. While getting our tickets we were encouraged, to the sum of $1000.00, to give up our tickets. Though tempting, we decided getting back to the states was more important.
We did have a little bit of excitement after we landed - we were going through passport control when Tom noticed someone and pointed her out to me...take a look:
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| Yes, the one & only...Dame Judi Dench (playing M in the new 007 movie - Skyfall) |
We made it safely back to the house in Richmond - it was great to be home! After our journey we were hungry so we went out to dinner with Tabitha and her beau Jon. We had a very nice time catching up with Tabitha and getting to know Jon. We give our stamp of approval (not that that matters)!
Also, to our great pleasure:
- James, Greg & Tooie were able to take the trip down from Long Island and spend a few marvelous days.
- Diane & Bill came in from Virginia Beach to help us celebrate.
- We got see some wonderful friends and neighbors while we were home.
Well, I am going to jump around a little and give everyone a summary of our stay at home. The main reason for our visit was to celebrate Tom's Moms 80th birthday - so we did...
On Saturday, Georgia's birthday, the amazing staff at the Jefferson Hotel and their restaurant Lemaire were able to organize an amazing birthday dinner in a private for Georgia (Tom's Mom)...take a look:
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| Amazing Chocolate Cake! |
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| A Chmapagne toast! |
A great time with Family & Friends...
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| Tom, his Mom & cousin Diane... |
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| Greg & James... |
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| Tom, Louise & Georgia... |
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| Louise, Bill, Greg & James... |
Though the main reason was Georgia's birthday we also had many other reasons to celebrate - so on Sunday we did a great brunch at the Jefferson! This is the first time we ever did the Sunday Brunch at the Jefferson - Amazing doesn't even come close to how spectacular it was. I would strongly recommend it to anyone! There we celebrated Bill's 70th, Diane's birthday and James' birthday! We hope everybody had as amazing a time as we did...
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| Me & Tom...toasting to life! |
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| Diane & Bill... |
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| Tom and his Mom... |
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| Greg, James & the Ice Scarecrow... |
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| More birthdays...more cake! |
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| Make a wish and blow... |
Again, I must thank Pat & Melissa from the Jefferson for setting up two wonderful parties!
While we were home this time we got the chanse to get together with our wonderful neighbors the Cochran's. Tim & Beverly are great neighbors and good friends - we are glad to have them in our lives. We went to a beautiful restaurant Acacia mid-town - the food, the drink and the company made for a very special evening! Thank you Tim & Beverly!
Lastly, we also were able to have a lunch with Tabitha and Angi at Comfort. Comfort is an amazing little place right on West Broad Street - with good southern, warm, home-n-heartth food! If you are ever in the area - try it - you'll like it!
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| Angi, me, Tabitha & Tom at Comfort! |
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| Local Richmond Architecture! |
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| More Richmond charm! |
Now I guess I have to explain the remaining parts of the title of this blog -
- Squirrels - we woke up the first morning in Richmond to some scratching on or in the roof. After some searching we found a hole in our roof flashing that allowed a squirrel to take up residence. One day, during the day while he was out playing, James and I patched the hole with some metal screening and steel-wool. That evening all we could hear was him trying to get back in - it looks like we did our job! He continued to attempt re-entry for a few days and then lost interest. Hopefully, that is the end of our rodent issues...
- Snow - The day after my parents got their power back, the north east was hit by a nor'easter that brought snow to the already badly effected area. My parents got about 3" of snow, James & Greg about 6" and parts of New Jersey were hit with over a foot of snow. Everybody was fine but it was just another thing they didn't need. Just glad everybodies power stayed on and everybody was safe!
Everything here on the home-front is going well.
I continue my Italian lessons and my painting (I will show some pictures in the next posting)...
Tom is on a business trip to Switzerland for the week and will be home on Friday...
Today, there was another protest in Rome - the government wants to cut funding to education. A friend of ours had to ride his moped through a cloud of tear-gas to get home...
And lastly, the Tiber River (Fiume Tevere) has started to rise heavily due to the flooding that occured in northern Italy...take a look:
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| This is usually about 20 feet below the bridge... |
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| Tiber Island almost under water! There is usually 100' of landing... |
We are fine - the river is far away!
Just a few ending thoughts...
- My Aunt Nikki and Uncle Dick recently under-went hip surgeries - we wish them a speedy and healthy recovery. Our thought and prayers are always with them.
- Since we were just home - we will not be home for Thanksgiving this year - everybody have a happy, healthy and safe holiday!
Ciao for now!
Abbracci a tutti!
Ron & Tom
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