When I called my mom to tell her that he'd died, I made it clear that she's not invited to this one. My dad was kind of dreading it and I'm trying to relieve his stress. She tried to negotiate for just the service and not the gathering, but I said no. I found out later that it's just a gathering anyway. My sister called Thursday to see if she should come. I told her she could if she wanted to and she is going to come. She had to know who is coming that she'll know. I think we'll both know the same people. She's only met my grandfather's wife once so I'll know one more. And if a couple that we used to camp with come, then I'll know two more. She asked about our Aunt Peggy (grandfather's sister) and I said that she's not coming. She's in bad shape and they're considering not even telling her of his death, but one of her kids will come since he'll be passing though to see her in northern California.

She died yesterday morning. That makes me so sad, she was always my favorite aunt. That's it for my grandfather's four siblings. I'm trying to think of the others' names, but, it's like the seven dwarfs, can't name them all -- can only come up with three of them -- Katherine, Hugh, Peggy and...?

My dad's cousin gave me a few things from her late mother's (my deceased grandmother's sister) things. When I first walked in, she said that she had something for me. She gave me a frame with two water color paintings matted in oval cutouts. OK, thanks. It wasn't until a minute or two later that she told me the reason that made me like it better: the one on the left was a group of pansies painted by my grandmother in 1938 and the other was a pansy with some little yellow flowers around it painted by her sister in 1951.

My dad got a couple more painting by their (grandmother and great-aunt) father. I cannot believe that his cousin parted with those. He kept lobbying for the big one, but that, of course, is a losing cause.

I also got a Sorby painting. Sorby is billed as a cousin of my great-aunt, but I'm not quite sure of the association. He apparently taught art somewhere (I've heard University of Chicago and San Jose). The painting I have looks a little hotel-ish, but I think I'll put it up at work.

His cousin gave me some photographs of the family, my great-father and his family (mother, father, siblings) and some documents that my grandmother and her sister needed to join the DUV (Daughters of Union Veterans). The story I had heard was that my great-grandfather's father hand run away from home at 14, lied about his age, and joined the army. I guess it's all true.

Today, we're getting the stuff for the gathering tomorrow and we're going to pick up his ashes.

I'm just sitting here


I went down to visit my mom and other grandparents.