Easter Sunday

I was invited to brunch today for Easter Sunday with my mother and her friend and her family. We all spend most holidays together, so I agreed.  Then my mother invited me to attend church services. I politely declined - if I were going to attend church services, I wouldn't necessarily choose a high holy day to start.  There are way too many other issues involved in this decision, however, my decline was well received and, hopefully, understood.

We went to brunch at 11am. The place was very crowded, of course.  The price had gone up $4 from last year and the quality of the food had declined quite a bit. It was a little disappointing.  The company was good until the phones came out and the search for the wifi password started. Once people need a hotspot, it is time to leave. I'm not going to sit in a busy restaurant with people while they search for stuff on their phones.  Insert rant here.

Later, I went to see "The Hunger Games".  I wasn't sure how the movie would be, but I thought they did a nice job with a complex book and subject matter. I liked the casting and I thought the tone of it was very similar to the books.  Woody Harralson, who is not my favorite, was actually quite good. In fact, I think he was perfect for his role. He had some moments of subtle facial expressions that really conveyed the depth of the character he plays. I'm interested to see more of his portrayal of Haymitch.  I think the movie is accessible for people who have read the books and those who haven't.  I usually like to see the movie first because it peaks my interest in the book and makes me want to read to fill in the gaps.  Really, I can do it either way. I usually think the book is better, but most of the time, I like both.  This was one of those times.

To those of you who celebrate Easter, Happy Easter. To those of you who don't, I hope you had a great weekend/Passover/Seder/whatever. :)

Reflections

So, first of all, I have been thinking about how we each have impact in large and small ways on those we come into contact with - whether we know it or not, whether it is intentional or not.  I believe that most people want their impact to be a positive one and try to make that happen more often than not.

So many friends have been reaching out to me, to each other, to Alan's family. It is inspiring and it is a good reminder to reward people for their efforts.  I want to reach out to those I love and who have an impact on me in personal ways - maybe small ways, but enough to know that I told them they made a difference.  Everyone should know they are making a difference when they are.

Today, I went to brunch with family. Some difficult times recently, so it was nice to be all together.  Then I saw "The Adjustment Bureau" which was much better than I thought and left me with some things to think about.

Just a good day of reflection.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

This picture is from an evening out with my parents, my Dad's brother and sister from Pennsylvania, my sister and her husband. We went to Nonna Emilia's for dinner and had a good evening.  I think my dad was really happy to have his family all around him.

My dad would have been 71 years old today. Happy Birthday, Dad. We miss you.

What Was I Supposed to be Doing?

I have been cleaning, decluttering and getting distracted from all of the above this weekend. I have made some progress, although not enough for my taste. Then I got distracted because I was frustrated with my progress but lack of progress in my head.

I found some of the photos I have been wanting to scan, so I did and am posting them here today. I'm still frustrated with my lack of ability to scan slides, though. I have a feeling I'm going to have to go professional on them, but I have heard that they ruin the slide if you do take them in. I'm not sure I'm ready/willing to chance that just yet.

So here are some of the photos I've unearthed today. I found more, but I didn't feel like taking the time to edit them all, so I will post more in the coming weeks.  For now, some childhood photos, a picture of my dad, my mom, some of my sister and I.
Good memories, all.

David F. Miller, USAF probably around 1973ish

Sandy (5), Jean (5), Linda (9) May 1973. Aurora, Colorado in front of our house. Crawford Elementary School is across the street.

My fifth birthday. Friends of the family, the Browns, there celebrating with us.

My fifth birthday with the pink stuffed dog gift I fell in love with instantly.

Linda and I in the "little bedroom" with Pez dispensers. I remember watching "Emergency" in there and listening to Kenny Rogers and the First Edition in here.

Me. 1973 Easter dress. Close up from the next photo.

I have to rescan this straight. Linda and I in our identical Easter dresses. I believe we have photos of us outside, as well, where you can see that the state of my dress is much more disheveled. 1973.

Me again. May 1973. Detail from the earlier photo. I like this picture. :)

Linda from when Mom was living in West Virginia while my dad was in Vietnam.

Mom when she was living in West Virginia while my dad was in Vietnam. Probably 1964-65.

 

 

 

It was nice to see some of these old photos.  My family never hung photos because we were in the military and they would have to pay for any "damage" done to the apartments we lived in. Basically, white walls. Photos mostly on slides and one or two photo albums. Then, almost all of our photos from the time we were in Germany were stolen when we were moving back to the U.S.A. - the cameras were in the same boxes as the photos.  (Lesson learned.) My parents would pull out the old slide projector once or twice a year, so seeing old photos is always a big treat for me.