Off to Indy

The long-awaited trip is finally upon us!

As Joe has mentioned in his e-mails, I will be leaving San Diego early tomorrow morning for Indianapolis ahead of the big Sunburst Half Marathon in South Bend. We'll be wearing our Gene Ely shirts during the race on Saturday morning as we run through the neighborhoods near Notre Dame, finishing at the 50-yard line in the historic stadium on campus. It will be quite an event.

We will have plenty of photos to post up here, from before, during, and after the event, and from the entire weekend as well. I'll be in West Lafayette with the whole Ely family on Thursday night, then with Joe and David Eichstadt in South Bend Friday, racing on Saturday, then in Carmel with Brian and Susan and the kids after that. Back home Sunday afternoon.

The weekend will really zip by with everything going on, and I do wish I had more time to spend out there, but we will make the most of the 3.5 days we have. The added, unexpected treat will be seeing David Eichstadt (and maybe Kate and Mikey? Will they be there?) when he's in S.B. for his college reunion. It's all coming together perfectly, and I'm looking forward to a great trip no matter what the weather might bring us during the race.

So if the mood should strike you, feel free to wear your own Karen-made Gene Ely shirts on Saturday morning to join us as we honor our family Patriarch.



John

Nebraska Photo

This will come as quite a surprise to all of you, but I actually spent about 2 hours yesterday at an art fair here in Lafayette.

OK, now you are up off the floor.

This is an annual event in downtown Lafayette, with about 100 or more artists setting up, showing and selling their creations. It was a beautiful day here Saturday, so I went down, along with lots of other people.

I found myself attracted to the folks doing landscape photography. At one booth, I looked at the items the guy had hung up, then casually flipped through some of the other photos he had in a rack below.

When this one jumped out at me. I pulled it from the rack and then looked at his penciled title below the photo: "Nebraska". Oh my. The photo really pulled me in, in a way I have seldom seen.

I took it out, walked over to the photographer and chatted with him for about 15 minutes about the photo and his work. He was from Seattle now but used to drive across Nebraska regularly. He said he loved the light in Nebraska, as their is a lot more sunshine there than in Seattle. "But no mountains," I replied. He just smiled.

The scan here doesn't really do it justice. It is a B&W photo and the lines and the subject matter capture some of the spaciousness yet difficulty of rural Nebraska. And that speaks to me in many ways.

Enjoy...and if you ever visit my office, you can see the real deal.

Three Kids in the Tub

For the past week, David and Susan have been off on a cruise in the Carribean. They had long planned this outing and it is well-deserved, given all the time they've had apart.

One obvious implication of this involved us (primarily Gretchen) taking care of young Drew, Nathan and Berneice for the week. While tiring, we had a good time. The kids are fun and are so verbal and interesting and interested.

Of course, we had to bathe them and their pattern still is for everyone in the tub at once. It works for now and makes for quite an event at the end of the day. So, I had to capture the moment here...if I remember, this photo may well come out in the future!

Moving Day - Part 2

The moving van made it to Ohio and the movers are unloading as I write. It is a bit rainy this morning, so hopefully this won't complicate things. I spoke to dad last night he said that while driving off of Wedgewood Drive and out of town was emotional, all said, they did not have any complications with the final closing paperwork or inspections. I am sure it will take a few weeks for them to really unpack and settle in, especially with mom driving back and forth to OU until the school year ends.

The Chem Dept at OU held a retirement reception for Mom on May 16th. Many of her past and current peers and mentors over the last 20+ yrs celebrated with her and it sounded like a wonderful evening. Since OU is on quarters, I believe that the school year ends around June 13th, so this will be another big milestone for mom! Love - Amy

Moving Day!

After 31 years in Parkersburg, today is moving day for Mom and Dad. The movers are loading the van right now and should pull out around 3pm this afternoon. The last few months have certainly been an emotional journey for Mom and Dad. They held an open house last Saturday to celebrate friendships and had a wonderful time. It was a great way for them to say goodbye to many friends from the neighborhood, work, and church. Andrew and I also each made a final trip "home" in the last month. And yes, my Strawberry Shortcake doll collection is now safely stored in my own basement along with other assorted childhood treasures! Well, say a prayer for Mom and Dad today!! Love, Amy

Goodbye Carol!

I am a little behind on some of my errands, but today I finally made it to the post office to send Carol on her way out to Karla. We've enjoyed having Carol visit for the year and she was prominently displayed on our mantle during March Madness. Abbey was quite fond of the photo too and several times she pointed to it and said "Nana." Apparently Abbey thought that Carol resembled Nana Waun.

Photos of Extended Ely Family

Mary Alice's funeral on April 28 provided a rare opportunity for our extended family to be together. Marge and I enjoyed our time in a venue and situation quite different from ordinary life.

We also took a lot of photos...so here they are, with captions of who is who.

Joe, Bob, Dick, Jim, Mike and John Ely, with Marge in front.

Brian, Marge and Joe (in front of a blooming tree, which is not in the family)

All the assembled Ely cousins.

Joe, Jim, Bob, John, Bill, Mike, Ed, again with Marge in front.

Single sylable names rule.

Dick Ely, seated, the last of the living children of Laura and Edward Ely.

With his three sons, Jim, John and Bob.

All the assembled family.

Brian Dean, Linda, Joe, Jim, Bob, Marge Dean, Dick, Barb, Bill, Mike, John, Carol and Ed.

Hope this is fun to see.