For future reference, if one finds themselves seated at a patio table (obviously we weren't at IMUs house) with a blazing sun in a cloudless sky and nary a patio umbrella to be found making consuming their NY Strip steak less than ideal, Frank makes a
very effective and rather compliant shading device.
Frank failed to mention that he was offered a bite of my strip steak. He also, though, failed to mention his desire for more at the time I was actually consuming it, which I ascribe mostly to my holding a knife literally as long as my forearm while doing dialogue impersonations of Bill the Butcher from
Gangs of New York ... perhaps threatening to festoon mine bedchambers with his guts if he didn't stand still had something to do with that.
It was a delight to be in the company of so many lovely young women with breasts considerably larger than mine. Except for whoever Marcy Darcy and her service dog were (sadly I think a lot of the 'servicing' probably involves peanut butter and Sarah McLaughlin tunes), who was kinda dressed like the old Garfield Goose lady with a face like Lewis Black's obscure
Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law character 'Elliot the Deadly Duplicator' ... to wit ...

Delighted to meet Tad ... unusual to see normal, mentally sound folks show up to a bored function.
If anyone out there was wondering if those cheapo white patio chairs you see all over the place will burn or not, well, yes they do ... very well ... surprisingly well ... just as shocking to me was the lack of visible toxic smoke ... any gains I had made in lung health being off smokes for about 7 years was certainly negated however by breathing in the invisible chemical emissions from it.
There should be a west suburban version of this some time, or at least a west burbs poker game ... tentative discussions were had ... we shall see ... it was decided to mandate CoF to appear if/when it occurs.
I forget who brought the caramel corn and kindly sat a small vat of it in front of me, but I'll treasure it always, particularly when they cut off my diabetic feet in a few years.
Congrats to the Boyds.
Perhaps next year I will remember the postgame breakfast gathering and will arrange to be a part of that. I'm sure that will be exciting for all to know.
Sorry to not see 'piracy, CLH. RPB, Ivan, or Furious make it out; it did leave more birthday cake for me though, so there's a silver lining in everything I guess.
All in all a terrific time and my thanks to our hosts as well as the attendees for giving me such rich fodder from which to derive commentary from all day and even now; methnks it does my black heart a little good.