takeoff/grandpa mele.

finally left today. FINALLY. have been running around like mad and i'm finally off. packed up my life (suprisingly, most of it fits in the trunk), and mom in tow, headed west. excellent start: picked mom up at dean college, where HERRELL'S was giving out free ice cream cones. score.

drove through berkshires to albany and grandpa mele, who lives at an independent living facility (read: college for old people) called coburg. we had dinner in the lovely dining room, sitting with three lovely ladies who informed me that there was plenty of gossip to be had at coburg. but they were reluctant to give it out (darn).

grandpa mele was in fine form. he's "quite busy". he's taking a painting class to "see what it's all about", which is after his lectures at the hospital (he's a doctor) on strokes, and "tumors of the breast (they serve a nice lunch at that one)." he's also an avid bridge player - as are many other coburgites ("yes. i play bridge, but i'm not a barracuda. i try to smile a lot.").

for those of you who don't know, my grandpa is 90 (and tells everyone he meets), and italian. his name's dominick and he's practically the mayor of coburg. at one point, we were sitting in the dining room, and he looked around and said to us: "yes. i think i know just about everyone here."

tonight with friends in rochester. tomorrow, indiana! hopefully, i'll get my mom to drive a stick shift somewhere in ohio, so i can get a break. in the meantime, i'm trying to keep the showtunes and soft rock to a minimum. but there's no telling what will happen if she breaks out the "ultimate broadway" cd.

i'm also working on this digital camera so we can get some visuals. hm.......