Days 14 and 15

In Branson:

It was a restful couple of days here. We were able to unpack and rearrange and repack, do laundry and just kick back and relax. The back of the minivan had begun to look like the Clampetts. All we needed was a rocking chair and Liz strapped to the roof of the car.

We went to see Leatherheads with George Clooney and Renee Zellweger. It was probably a good choice for Bob. He actually remembers playing in leather football helmets when he was a freshman and sophomore. Richard had never even seen one, except in museums.

The second day, we explored our Irish roots by attending Spirit of the Dance and the Twelve Irish Tenors. Both were entertaining, but could have included more Irish protest songs for Bob and me. Where was The Rising of the Moon?

Saturday was Bob's 74th birthday. We left Branson about nine o'clock and cut across to Wetumka, Oklahoma to visit the grave sites of our great-grandparents: Double-Thumb Jim Porter and Joan Landers. We saw many Darnalls (the cousin we had lunch with in Gallatin, Tenn. He is the descendant of Grandad Hugh's brother.

When I was a kid and acting my usual boisterous self, my grandmother would tell anyone who would listen that I was just like Stell Porter, my granddad's sister. It was no compliment. We have photos to post, but I think I'll wait until I get back to Colorado to do that.

We arrived back in Rockwall in time to have a surprise dinner for Bob. Two of his children (Bonnie and Bobby (Dr. Banjo) came over, and Leslie (Richard and Liz's daughter) and her family came, too.

Bob and I came home with Bonnie to spend the night to let Richard finally be done with us. Bob left at the crack of dawn to get home to San Angelo. I had a luxurious sleep in and plan to teach Bonnie to purl this afternoon.

I intend to fill in all the blank spaces on the blog when I have a bigger keyboard and bigger screen. My laptop is great, but all the extras on my desk help me work better. So, look for photos and more details in the near future.

So, ends the Porter ancestral trace and the 5000-mile round trip. Thanks to Richard for organizing the trip and being our tour guide, chauffeur and social director. He was a natural.