Another Awesome Brother and Some Stuff....

"Where have you been?"

Have you heard that from anyone recently?

Boy, these days my life has been insane!  For the last two weeks I've been working 10 hour days and trying to stick everything personal into weekends that just ooze with activities.  We had our Church quilting group on Saturday, and I signed up for a Saturday Bible study.  They wouldn't have overlapped if we hadn't spent time chatting before the 8 a.m. Bible study class -- and then I dashed home to find my house full of grandchildren! 

The oldest of my brothers, my favorite brother whose name is Dave, stopped by one evening after work.  He was supposed to come on a Wednesday but his Tuesday plans fell through so he came a day early.  He lives in the fine state of Minnesota, where we all went to junior high and high school.

We lived in a little town called Cottage Grove, south and east of Minneapolis.  We moved there when I was in 8th grade, and Dave was in 7th.  (Tom in 6th, Ken and Gail in 4th, Phil in 2nd and Chet about to start Kindergarten.)

After I graduated high school (back in the dark ages) I moved back to Wisconsin, got a job, got married and settled here.  Dave met a girl in high school, they married and he settled in up there.  His kids went to the same high school we did.  Funny story for another time, but a guy I had a crush on back then is now a teacher there!

Dave was in the Air Force for four years, where he fell in love with airplanes.  He's especially fond of the B-52 if I understand his Facebook page... 

Cool, huh? 

He's also a motorcycle enthusiast, and owner of a Harley Davison -- don't ask me what kind of cycle it is, there are so many different models and I am NOT an enthusiast.  I think he inherited the love of cycles from our dad.  I remember how Dad used to bring one home in the fall in bushel baskets with a bare frame and spend all winter cleaning and assembling it.  I can see pieces laid out in rows as he pulled apart the engine, cleaned and oiled it, and put it back together.  Then he'd paint the body and shine it all up and ride it all summer.  When winter was coming he invariably sold the bike and bought more parts and pieces!

Dave is a member of the Minnesota Patriot Riders.  Well, I think actually this year he's the Ride Captain I think they call it.  They turn out for all the veteran funerals they find out about, and they ride to honor the fallen. 

Dave is in the center in the denim shirt.

 My sister-in-law, also named Sue, has been putting up with his shenanigans for a zillion years.  She was behind us in high school.  Dave had already joined the Air Force and was going to be sent to Guam.  She would not be able to join him unless they were married, so they got married during her senior year, as soon as she turned 18.  That meant that she graduated from high school with the same name as I had, only differing by the middle initial!  I told all my other brothers they needed to marry girls name Sue too.  (One did, and when someone said "Aunt Sue" we all said "Yes?"... too much fun!)

 

She still looks the same, except for the sparkles in her hair...

So Dave dropped by to say hi while he was in Wisconsin, and we had a nice chat.  It's nice to see the big lug once in a while!  He had work the next day and so did I (groan)... so he left for his hotel and a stop at a local book store he read about.

He's turned out to be a very good man, one of the good guys.  I'm very proud to be his big sister,

Sew on!