LABOR DAY of LOVE

On September 3 (LABOR DAY),

Chris proposed and Suzy said "Yes"!

Wedding plans are underway for August 2008.

Congratulations,

Chris & Suzy!!!!!!!

He'll Be Moving On!

Many of you already know perhaps, but if not I just wanted to put it out there that Jason will be starting his new job next week!

He's in frantic mode working on finishing his thesis. He must turn in the full thesis 4 weeks before his defense which will be on October 12th. He's hoping to have it done by Monday so he can turn it in, take a deep breath and head on downtown to the new job.

Big congrats to him...time to turn a whole new page!

Belated HappySails Birthday

Hey, Scott, pardon us banana heads for missing your birthday last week! We were all disoriented with the house renovations going on here. This photo shows us trying to find our way out of cardboard boxes...no luck with that and therefore, no surprise that we didn't look at our calendar, send an email or make a phone call on July 12.

BELATED BUT HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Hope you had a good day and are sailing (by boat or motorcycle) into a very good year.

Love

The Henders

Do Cicadas Taste Like Chicken?

Ask Sarah!

At Camp Discover

(summertime 5 day bible/activity camp at Glen Ellyn Bible Church)

the CM Director

(Children's Ministries Director--that would be Sarah)

challenged the 140 kid-attendees to bring in groceries to help stock the local community food pantry. She told them that if they filled a designated space (about 5 foot diameter) with groceries from floor to ceiling, that she would eat a cicada :/

As you can imagine, lots of LARGE items came in and the kids did succeed in meeting the challenge. Here she is downing the crunchy tid-bit.

Admirable dedication, Sarah! and good results for the food pantry.

Let The Weddings Begin

Josh tuned up the singing voice to participate in the recent wedding ceremony of his high school friend, Eric (white tie). The music and voices sounded great!
One of the guys remarked about the wedding..."there goes the first one down!"...BUT...this is a tight group of friends and that the old song lyric ("wedding bells are breaking up that old gang of mine") will probably NOT apply.
Josh, enjoy your ride on the twenty something wedding train!

Summertime, and the livin' is easy...

Hello from Villa Graf!

My friend Brian recently learned that he has been re-classed from stage 4 to stage 3 cancer, which was awesome news. As you can see in the picture posted below, he sure doesn't look sick.





This is (L to R) Emily and Chloe Graf, their friend Sam, and their neighbor Emma.

This is Abby Graf, who is not-quite-10, but going on 20. This is her "shyster lawyer" look.

This is a rare picture of Barb Graf sitting still and relaxing. I do believe the Bloody Mary I made for her may have been to blame.

This is the next door neighbor, Jina. She reminds me of "Judy" from accross the street in Camelot.

And this is her husband Tom, who is a great guy, but also kinda reminds me of the Camelot neighbor.

Ok, that's all.

More Running!

This past weekend Jason and I were part of a team that was in the Great Midwest Relay. This race started in Madison, WI and ended in Chicago at Montrose Harbor.

We had a team of 12 people each person running 3/36 legs of the trip. The total time our team took was roughly 30 1/2 hours. Jason and I were in Van #1 which ran legs 1-6, 13-18, 25-30. Jason was runner 2 and I was runner 3. All went fine, I got lost at one point and had a minor...ok major freak out.

It was just about the most fun thing we have ever done and are looking foward to doing it again next year.

You can check out stories from the race at our blog : http://jasonleahrun.blogspot.com. and you can find pictures of the race here.

Keep It Going, Sarah

Sarah

Great to have you back into a running regimen with former (and future) roommate, Meghan. Can't even tell which photo is the "before" and which is the "after" at the 10K run this past Saturday in Wheaton. Keep on.

OOOPAAAAAA!!!!!!

OOOPAAAAA!!!! said Mike as he safely escaped the singe of saganaki flames at The Parthenon in Greek Town this past Saturday night.

The evening was marked by Lots-O-Lamb, Rots-O-Rodytis and a big portion of good conversation and laughter. Missed you, Jeff, Kim, Steph, Sue & Scott. Thanks, Andrea, for once again utilizing your "Julie skills" and getting us organized for this outing. Next "dinner out" planned for end of summer. By the way, for those who missed this family outing...meet Sarah's friend, Brad.

Alfie Probably Doesn't Know

Hey Y'all in the DR

Well, Suz, I was intrigued by your Alfie essay and wanted to comment but your post wouldn't let me (Maybe you inadvertently checked "don't allow reader comments" under "post options" or maybe you meant to block response. I doubt that...that would not be Suzish.)


Anyway, I too have pondered the "what's it all about" question (especially while relaxing at the tanning booth...see above) and have come to a few conclusions .

I believe that we are created with a yearning to seek something...someplace...someone bigger than ourselves. And so, even though I am NOT drawn to the sea as you and Scott are, I understand your adventuring spirit and your desire to continue the cruising life for whatever while you can. It seems you are on a mission of sorts and may still be aways from saying "mission accomplished"..."done". I understand that too. Gotta work it. You'll know when it's "done". In the meantime, I think you sailors are putting an interesting concept into practice. Remember that banner Mom made for Mike & I for our wedding?..."Joy is in the making, not the finishing of things"...Hmmmmm

I also believe that relationships are more important than anything, anyplace, any activity. So, I appreciate that you are making an obvious effort to keep connection with all us landlubbers while you hoist the whatever and jig the jag. I do miss you and would like you both to be closer, but I don't question your love and commitment to fam. I realize that at times there will be "high tides" of communication and at other times trickles. That's OK.

But I do admit...I hope that the "family sailors" will continue to nurture a desire to sail home often to family.

Well, that's all for now, Alfie. My fur is getting singed in this tanning booth and I hate when that happens.

Bye for now from the DG
Ci

What’s it all about Alfie?

.......to quote a movie and song from the 60’s. It’s a question to ponder more than once, I think. And so as I sit here in Bahai .... Harbor in Luperon, Dominican Republic and I ask myself - What’s it all about?

I don’t have an answer but I still think it’s an important question.

I got an email from my sister Cindy today. It was great to hear from her. She was glad to know that we eventually got to the DR safely though our sail was more than she wanted to think about. I understand. She told me what was happening with her crew (family) and ended the message with - miss you.

Indeed. I miss her too. I miss my step-daughter and son-in-law. I miss my brother and both my sisters and in-laws. I miss my nieces and nephews; aunts and uncles. Ultimately I miss all my friends and relatives. At the same time I don’t feel totally unattached. It’s true that there are times when we can’t communicate because Enee Marie is nowhere near civilization. An internet signal or telephone is nowhere to be found. Still I think about them and know they’re thinking about me/us.

So why in the hell are we out in the middle of no-man’s land or sea as the case may be? What’s it all about Alfie?

It’s about living a dream but still maintaining closeness with those you love. It’s about discovering something extraordinary about the world and yourself and still trying to stay as close as you can with those you love. It’s about still being curious and inquisitive and explorative (maybe a word) in a world that often makes itself out to be rather predictable, at least in the good ol’ USofA.

I know that Scott really misses Leah and that Leah really misses Scott. They are so close and this distance is very difficult for both of them.

How do you maintain a close relationship when you are many miles apart. No simple answer here. Daily communication is not possible at this time. Although if Leah and Jason get an ssb radio we could be in constant communication. Perhaps that is something for us to work on.

We began this journey not having all the answers up front. It would be impossible to do so. We knew there were going to be difficulties along the way. We hope that we can find ways to make it work. Maybe Scott and I are being rather selfish. We are interested in sailing, cruising, exploring while we can. We know this won’t last forever. Already we question how long we can physically do this. And everyday we miss those back home. But for whatever reason we both have this adventure bug that keeps us wanting to continue on. Life isn’t forever and I suppose it is what you make it.

So what’s it all about Alfie?

We’re still wondering. And we still want to explore the possibilities.

Belated HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!!

Sue & Scott

Here's to a memorable 19th wedding anniversary (above)

and a remarkable 20th to come (below)!

Best Wishes From "The Fam"

How's This Going?

By lack of comments and posts I am just wondering if this is working for everyone. The Scott and Sue crew really like to hear what's going on with family even if it doesn't seem that interesting to you. So let's try and post more! Please please let me know if there are problems with posting or comments or viewing the blog.

So our Fermilab volleyball team finally had some good games yesterday. We won 2/3 and played very team like. We have been cranky towards each other which never helps because as most of you know, I don't particularly like to be yelled at....but yesterday we were back on game. Calmly playing the other team, no pushing or shoving or yelling.

Jason and I are again signed up for the marathon which is very exciting. We signed up just in time too since it closed the next afternoon. My roommate from college, Bridgette who you all might remember from the wedding, is also signed up to run it this year. This will be her first introduction to the marathon so I am hoping she enjoys the race as much as I do. The race this year will be on October 7th, so mark your calendars now! I am going to be trying to qualify for Boston and I do not feel bad about shamelessly asking for spectators :-) I need to drop 5 minutes from my time last year but will be training to drop 10 minutes, going from a 3:45 to a 3:35. I need a 3:40:59 to qualify.

That's all that's happening in the Welty-Rieger world....oh yeah....

Jason has started to write his thesis!

A Story is Worth a Thousand Pictures

Ok. So here we are in George Town - Exumas, Bahamas. Not quite what I expected but ok anyway. I just thought it was going to be bigger. More options for boaters since hundreds of them show up every year. Maybe thousands. Anyway........

Last night I saw the biggest cochroach I’ve ever seen in my life. Ok. I was half asleep and not quite sure what I was looking at while turning on the light in the galley but it was BIG! Wait....was it one or two?

Well then.....last summer while we were living in Fort Myers Beach we first encountered the ‘cr’ or more commonly known as the f’n cockroach. Not sure how they got aboard but they did. Cardboard is a no-no and perhaps we brought some aboard that way. In any case there they were. EWWWWWWW! One night last summer when I couldn’t sleep (too much bourbon or the hot flashes were not agreeing with me) I got up and sat on the couch in the salon to read. Suddenly I thought I saw something moving on the floor. NAWwwww. Just a shadow. But then I saw it again. Hmmmm. I got the flashlight and shown it on the dark floor below me. SHEEEE-IIIIIIII-TTTTTT. It was a giagantic cochroach sitting right there below me. EEEWWWWW! I slowly got up fetched the fly swatter and whacked the be-jesusssssss out of the thing. The next day I put little ‘alluring boric acid pills’ every 6 inches of the boat. WHEW. Got rid of that nuisance. Or so I thought........

But wait. There’s never just one. I remember this from when I was a sophomore in college. My roommates JoAnn and Linda and I had a 3 bedroom apartment in the Loyola neighborhood of Chicago. It was a 3rd floor next to the ‘el’ and for Christmas we got a Christmas tree. Very nice. Except the temperature in the apartment was always at least 80 degrees all year round December being no exception. We decorated the tree with strung popcorn, cranberries, and whatever else we could find (wine corks, glitter, etc.). Well, one fine evening after the holidays when we were all back at the apartment we heard this pesty noise. Low and behold the christmas tree was a movin and groovin. The f’n cochroaches were having a feast with the popcorn and cranberries leaving no needles on the tree. EEEEEWWWWWW!!!

Well then. I should have learned my lesson. There’s never just one. So now back to our anchorage in George Town. Was this the extended family of cochroaches? I was just noticing that I hadn’t seen an f’n cochroach for months and then now here I see 2! What’s the deal?

They were huddled near the refrigerator lurking to do something terrible - I could just tell. I grabbed the fly swatter and beat the b’j’s’s out of the spot where I saw the buggers. Get out of my kitchen! I mean Galley! I mean Get Out!

I stood there for a few minutes with the light on waiting for retaliation. Nothing. You can never get satisfaction with these buggers.

Today I bought the biggest container of boric acid I could find. I sprayed the powder everywhere I could find a space in the galley that would not contaminate the food. Tomorrow we’ll see if I’ve been successful. Or maybe we’ll have to wait until next Christmas when we put up the tree.

A Blistered Kind of Love

"Adopt the pace of nature. Her secret is patience."
--Ralph Waldo Emerson

This book was written by a couple who took on the daunting (even for a yearly marathon runner who knows a challenge when she sees one) task of hiking the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT). This trail takes you from Canada to Mexico and in the summer of 2000, Angela and Duffy took one hell of a long walk. Approximately 6.3million steps worth.

Read More

The Book is 'Done'

Hello all WRBs! Yes the book is done from my end and on time! That's the cover to the left. The publisher now has all the text and over a hundred diagrams and pictures. Whew! I expect there will be some re-writes or maybe they do all that. I don't actually know much about this publishing business. I'm working on the publisher and a friend in Chicago to get me into the book signing seminar at the Strictly Sail Show in Chicago end of January 08. That should be fun!

Today we will probably head to Georgetown, Exuma. That is one of those 'stops' where you can get things done on your boat. Then on to ..... not sure. Sue and I both look forward to reading this blog so WRITE it! We love reading what YOU are doing. We know what WE are doing.

Stay warm and GO CUBS!

52 Books in 52 Weeks

I am starting a new project.

Jason and I have started taking the train to work and I blew through a book in about 3 days. I was wondering if it would be possible for me to read on average a book a week. Some should take longer and others should take less......so I started a blog to keep track of what I'm reading and to include reviews of the books when I'm finished.

I'm already done with one! So come check it out at

http://52books52weeks.blogspot.com

I'll Get the Party Started

Bahamas 2007 : Day 6&7

Hello Family folks. Here is one of the albums from the recent trip to the Bahamas to get the WRB Junction back on a roll. For all the albums from Jason and Leah's recent vacationing visit : http://picasaweb.google.com/jasonleahrun

And We're Back

I have started a new WRB Junction site to get it moved over the new blogger. I don't know what this is going to do to inviting new folks. You will have to get a google account, but I do believe that the invitiation will direct you to do this.

The good thing about that is that once you have a google account you can get gmail which = awesome.

Stay tuned as this site gets updated and overhauled.