Thursday, October 28, 2004

3:54 PM Don’t forget the Concert of Prayer for the upcoming elections this Sunday night, 6 PM, in the Dining Room. Please spend an hour with us as we seek God’s face regarding the choices facing our nation next Tuesday. 3:40 PM Yesterday in Tupelo I spent the afternoon running errands with Alan. First to his office to get his passport and to chat with his nurses. Then to a costume shop (don’t ask me why) to get a passport picture made so we can apply for visas for the trip to China in January, then to Jim Bain’s Pharmacy where Alan chatted with Mr. Bain who is a huge Mississippi State football fan. Then we went to a bike shop because I told Alan he needed to start riding a bike. He said he had one, but when I saw his puny, worn-out mountain bike, I scoffed him down like a good older brother should. When we got to the shop, Alan chatted with the owner who let us take two different bikes out for a test ride. I said that would never happen in Chicago. He ended up buying a jazzy Trek road bike, padded shorts (my recommendation), clip-in pedals and special bike shoes (ditto), a cycling odometer, a wrist watch that measure your heart function, a helmet, some lights, and a water bottle. Very nice set-up. Then we went to Sam’s Club where Alan looked for some computer stuff for his office. Then to his office to get the money for the bike. Talked to his nurses for a while. Then back to the bike shop. Paid the man, put the bike in back of his Navigator and drove home. It was a blast. The longest time I’ve spent with Alan in several years. I told him that I would come down with my bike and we would ride the Natchez Trace together. That’s a national parkway that runs from Nashville through Tupelo to Natchez, Mississippi. Over 400 miles. It passes about a half-mile from his home so it would easy to hop on and ride for a few miles. 3:38 PM Our rolling vacation has come to rest temporarily in Florence, Alabama. We’re staying with my older brother Andy and his wife (and Kathleen who is on the Florence High School swim team) in their home on a bluff overlooking the Tennessee River. I love coming here for many reasons, but mostly because I feel at home here just like I do in Oak Park. That’s what family is for. Marlene and Betty are upstairs chatting about knitting and making plans for the evening. They are going to Kathleen’s swim meet tonight. Andy and I will stay here because he’s on call. That way we can talk over the Civil War and Ole Miss football—two subjects close to my heart. 3:33 PM How ’bout those Red Sox? Does this mean the Cubs will win it all next year? Or maybe the White Sox? Shannen Coffin writes a moving tribute to his father who did not live to see the Red Sox win it all.