Best Month Ever

This very well may be one of the best months of my existence. Ha! That sounds funny, right? But it's so true.

The month began in IL, in my hometown, visiting friends and family. Then we drove back to Boston, but left town again soon after. I visited my sister in Eugene OR, and we had a blast. The kids came along, and got to explore a whole new coast. My sister packed in tons of fun stuff from breweries, to ball games to waterfalls.The action didn't stop there. We flew home and my aunt visited. She loves history so we took her on a Mass crash course from Salem, to Lexington and Concord, to Plymouth. The Mayflower was gone for repairs, but we still had a great time, and my son got his junior park ranger badge.

And yes, folks the action doesn't even end there. The next thing you know, I'm fishing with a friend, only to come home to a surprise 40th birthday party, expertly organized by my wonderful wife. A ton of close friends popped out from behind the house and startled the hell out of me. The reveal was a strange experience and threw me off for a few minutes, especially after the fishing beers I'd drank all day. But the party had just begun, and we even had a keg of beer, the first one I'd seen at my residence since college.

So, as this pertains to writing... I've learned that you can never have too much action. And, as taken from the surprise party, the foreshadowing can be very subtle. In hindsight, there were all these tiny flubs that were made, which I had noticed, but didn't notice-notice. Like when we hadn't been fishing long enough, so my buddy invited me to his house, to fix a ceiling fan -- something pretty easy too, that he could have easily done alone. Or how about the new card table and chairs that I had found hiding under my son's bed. "Oh, that was on sale," my wife responded, with a nonchalance that was Oscar-worthy. Such details I just glossed right over. Friends are great liars, when there's a good cause involved, no doubt about it.

The party really did top an already eventful month. I've made some memories that will stay with me forever. What a great time. What a great gift.