The May Family  
The May Family; Garland, Texas

 

28 November 2005

200000

An important milestone has been achieved in our household today. The trusty VW Jetta upon which we have come to depend these last nine years turned 200k on the odometer just before noon. Though no surprise to us, the vehicle is largely none the worse for the experience. Other than normal maintenance and upkeep expenses, it the sedan has only had a few major repairs...and most of them were due primarily to design flaws. Among the more notable are two ECMs, two throttle controllers, an oil pump, a drive axel and, most recently, a transmission rebuild and a clutch — the latter of which was only tangential to the transmission rebuild as it still had several hundred miles of use remaining.

27 November 2005

Thanks Given in 2005

We bid farewell to our last house guest this morning when Herman's brother, Christopher, departed for his journey back to Franklin Creek. It marked the conclusion to one of the most entertaining and busy Thanksgiving holiday weekends in which we have participated in many years.

Our festivities began the night before the official holiday as members from several branches of the family converged at Studio Movie Grill for a viewing of "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire". In the end, there was a slight adjustment to the roster. No-shows included Caitlin and Alec Rhodes as well as Kristie, Mark and Aidan Adame. An unexpected attendee was Herman's mother, Sandy. It had previously been suggested that she would have to work on the holiday. However, as we were headed out the door to the theater, she called to say that she was in town for the holiday. An invitation to join us was extended and she accepted. Otherwise, the balance of the party was as expected and included Margaret, Theodore, Lori (Theodore's daughter), our household, John's household, as well as Jen and Christopher.

The Thanksgiving gathering was, again, pretty much as expected with a couple of surprise guests and a few no-show disappointments. Those expected consisted primarily of the roster from the preceding evening — sans the Westminster branch of the Adame Family who were spending their holiday at an equine endurance event near Banderas — plus the venue hosts (Kristie and Mark) and a special visit by the Johnson Family matriarch. Once again, the Rhodes' were an unexcused no-show. (In fact, an internal wager netted one individual ten dollars.) Catalina and Oberon were in attendance as well and enjoyed the opportunity to play with their cousins, Dexter and Simon.

We hosted a pasta dinner at our home Friday. Most members of our branch of the May Family were in attendance. The missing were Jen and Jason. Unfortunately, Jen had several tasks in need of completion, even during the extended holiday weekend, and flew back to Franklin Creek (by way of Mobile) earlier in the evening. The evening's entertainment consisted of slide shows by Christopher and Herman of recent trips and local damage caused along the Gulf Coast by Hurricane Katrina.

Saturday offered yet another opportunity to visit together. We all gathered at Marion's home late in the morning, prior to Sandy's departure for Norman. Originally planned as simply a few hours of visiting, it morphed into another reunion of sorts when Jason called to say that he would be joining us a little after noon. Evolution continues as we spent "The May Boys" spent most of the afternoon together; first visiting our favorite outdoor retailer for some Christmas shopping and then stopping by Chaat Cafe for dinner.

19 November 2005

Spotlight the Sterling Stars

We are proud to announce that, for the third straight year, Rebecca will be participating as a member of a Naaman Forest High School Drill team at the annual Neiman Marcus Adolphus Children's Christmas Parade. This event will take place two weeks from today, on 03 December 2005. Two firsts will be the hallmarks of this year's edition.

The first, of course, being the fact that this will be Rebecca's debut in the parade as a member of the varsity Sterling Stars. Her previous appearances have been as member and, last year, Squad Leader, of the junior varsity Starlettes.

Perhaps more important and impressive is the fact that the Sterling Stars will be the featured performance group of the parade. They will have the spotlight turned their direction as they open the televised coverage with a special performance at the beginning of the celebration. Local coverage will be carried live on WFAA-TV (most likely, also on Christmas Day morning as well). The parade is usually carried nationally through syndication between the date of its occurrence and Christmas Day. A current list of the boradcasts can be obtained from this page of the parade web site. Published markets are listed for Bryan, Corpus Christi, Tyler, Orlando, Gulf Port/Biloxi, Oklahoma City; just to name a few.

For the second year, our family will be forced to split attendance as Collin will be representing Saint Paul School and Music Learning in the Richardson Christmas Parade on the same day.

17 November 2005

Tentacular Thanks

Family gatherings are an important part of giving thanks in our family. We often plan or participate in nodular get-togethers of one family branch or another. This year, for the first time, we will be organizing a large rendez-vous of multiple extensions of our family under one roof.

The household of the Lewisville branch of the Adame Family is the venue for an extended Thanksgiving Day feast for members of the Adame, May, Rhodes and Trott Families. At present, firm commitments exist for members of the Franklin Creek and Garland branches of the May Family, the Tyler branch of the Trott Family and our hosts: Kristie, Aidan, Mark, Dexter and Simon. Hopeful additions are members of the Johnson family, the Rhodes Family and other members of the May Family. Whether or not the full extent of the anticipated roster is met, it should prove to be an enjoyable and festive event, and the first of many similar, future events.

16 November 2005

"Goblet of Fire" Gathering

Members of the North Texas Adame Clan are coordinating a group viewing of "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" at Studio Movie Grill on the eve of Thanksgiving. Those currently scheduled to attend the gathering are the Westminster branch of the Adame Family, the Garland branch of the May Family, the Tyler branch of the Trott Family and the Franklin Creek branch of the May Family. Also expected are members of the Rhodes branch of the Walters Family and some or all of the Lewisville branch of the Adame Family.

12 November 2005

Celebration Station

In a shining example of prognostication, The Shooters finished their 2005 fall season precisely as predicted: winning the first game of the play-off tournament by about six to two and losing the second by a reciprocal margin. Their loss, however, was not due to lack of effort. The team played well together and they gave it a good effort.

An end-of-season party was held at CiCi's Pizza immediately following the game. Following an enjoyable meal, an award ceremony was held wherein all team members received a small trophy and a few words of recognition.

Elizabeth and Rebecca were only able to make the first half of the first game. They journeyed to Tyler where they met up with Margaret and Theodore before traveling down to Jasper for a celebration commemorating the ninetieth birthday of the Adams Family patriarch. Pat Adams will reach this milestone on Tuesday of next week, but his numerous nieces and nephews are throwing him a surprise fête this evening at the Belle-Jim Hotel.

edit: 20051115
link to the node.Zero announcement added.

05 November 2005

2005 Soccer Tournament

Unfortunately, the Shooters lost their final regular season game earlier today to the top ranking Tigers. Though taking an early lead by scoring a goal less than five minutes into the match, they were unable to maintain that momentum. Nevertheless, their rank remains unchanged at fourth and they will likely be playing at least two games next Saturday, 12 November.

Their first game will start at 0900 when they compete against the Red Hots — one of the two teams they beat during regular season play. The Shooters are anticipated to win. In so doing, they will then play against the top ranked Tigers in a rematch of this week's contest. Though long-shots for a win, they can pull it off if they concentrate on cooperative play and shift at least one key position.

Plans at present call for the team to rendez-vous at an area eatery following their last game of the day to celebrate the end of the season and have an awards ceremony. Specifics remain pending.

 

continue to the October 2005 archive

 

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last edited: 2006.07.25