“We are all storytellers. We all live in a network of stories. There isn’t a stronger connection between people than storytelling.”
–Jimmy Neil Smith, Director of the International Storytelling Center
Well, we made it. We made it to Pensacola. We made it to the 2018 Satterfield Family Reunion! Whew, that a great drive! I’m so glad we were able to make this drive together.
And today is Thursday (okay, actually I’m writing this a few days later, but I’m remembering Thursday). Front desk tells us Breakfast is served 6 until 9am. We can do this!
Breakfast for one, breakfast for all
“Feedback is the breakfast of champions”
Ken Blanchard
As some of you know, I’m a big proponent for a healthy breakfast, and a healthy meal. Breakfast? My normal breakfast is berries (carbs), low sugar added Greek yogurt (protein), oatmeal (carbs, plain no sugar added oatmeal!), milk (protein), no juices, no processed whites, and of course water. Today shall be no different!
Thursday breakfast didn’t exactly work out as I planned. Instead of a heart healthy meal, I had flavored yogurt (flavored with sugar that is), plain white flour waffle with sugar, some kind of little danish with sugar, what I believe to be frozen fake egg, what I believe was advertised as “sausage” of unverifiable origin, 2% milk (that was healthy!), an orange and apple (yum!), and coffee with milk but no sugar.
Finally family
“Family is not an important thing, it’s everything.”
Michael J. Fox
I called Donnie as soon as we woke up and showered. “Hey cousin! Love you man! Where are you?” He was waiting on James D to come pick him up, and he’d be in by early afternoon. I spent the next few hours writing that “before the first day” blog post.
Hey guys, what’s for lunch?
“A hungry people listens not to reason, not cares for justice, nor is bent by any prayers.”
Seneca The Younger
Sometime soon after noon Donnie and James D showed up. We were all pretty hungry. Without much ado, we decided on PIZZA! Who doesn’t love pizza?
We went to Lilos right at the hotel. Pretty good meat lovers pizza! Thank you James Allen for paying for this great pizza.
The afternoon is upon us!
By the afternoon many other cousins were coming in from all over the country! It was good to see everyone. We sat visiting with each other for the rest of the afternoon.
Hey guys, what’s for dinner?
Yeah that was quick! Already time for dinner. What’s up for dinner? Donnie recommended Peg Leg Pete’s.
Great, fish is good for me! Let’s see… I’ll have either the Salmon or the Tuna. Hmm… I think I’ll do the Salmon tonight, that should be the best!
Donnie recommended “we” call to make sure the wait wouldn’t be too long. Sounds like a great idea! Oh, I should mention, Donnie is a retired chief. What this means is that he is used to delegating. And what this means with regard to this story is that the earlier mentioned “we” as in “we should call” means that “you (as in Mark) should call”. hehe…
So… I called, and I’m promised there is no wait. Great!
We head over to Peg Leg Pete’s in a couple of cars, and it turns out yes, there is a wait, unless you guys want to enter the restaurant from the back staff entrance and sit downstairs next to the kitchen. Executive decision was made, and that’s exactly what we did.
Oh wait, but there is more! I look over the menu, and I don’t see my salmon, and I don’t see my second option in tuna. What do I see? I see fried. Everything. Fried everything. Wait, fried everything?
Fried food 🙁
Yes. Fried everything. One of my favorite cousins recommended the grouper. I ordered it… fried grouper, fried potatoes (french fries), coleslaw. I couldn’t eat it. For those who have not eaten much fish, generally fish is lightly tasting. Grouper is very light tasting. And this grouper was probably frozen, and had no taste other than the breading and the deep fryer oil. Oh my gosh. I couldn’t eat this. It was absolutely not to the liking of my pallet. I was feeling sick at the end of the meal.
Hotel anyone?
“My definition of a good hotel is a place I’d stay at.”
Robert De Niro
Back at the hotel, the conversations were flowing and entertaining! One fellow came up that took a lot of our attention. Johnny Appleseed.
John Chapman, better known as “Johnny Appleseed”, was this guy who lived in the late 18th century through the mid 19th century (1774 – 1845). We thought Johnny maybe brought apples to The New World, or something to do with spreading seeds, or something like that. Turns out Johnny was the first bootlegger! He was spreading his non edible apples in the form of rich apple cider! Of course, the conversationalists at the tables pondered, was Johnny getting the young girls drunk on his apple cider? The rest of the conversations related to good ol’ Johnny are probably best left in the minds of those who were there! [ Johnny Appleseed, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnny_Appleseed ]
Healthy living = healthy life
As you know by now, I support a large population health management initiative, and I do my part in eating somewhat healthy. This weekend was not my normal nutritional lifestyle! Well, my cousins picked up on my healthy lifestyle! They helped me convert my bad few days of bad eating into “The Healthy Alternative”, and gave me a Spring Water. See the bottle of pure clean water in that picture here? Thank you cousins!
Goodnight!
“Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it be morrow.”
William Shakespeare
A great day and a wonderful evening was had by all. By 10 pm Eastern time, we were all getting ready to call it a night. Well, not everyone, but most of us. Until tomorrow!
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