Celebrating Good Friends

From Columbia it was on to St. Louis, and once again we parked ourselves in the lot of the Hollywood Casino (www.hollywoodcasinostlouis.com) located just north of the city limits (that's ours on the near right). Being in St. Louis even for a short
       visit of course means time with friends and as what seems to have become a tradition, our first night in town brings a visit from Steve, Patty, John, and Rick for a few beers and lively conversation.

   As usual I met up with Gloria and her bowling team one day, and Dana and Diane were able to make it, too.  It’s always a great way to catch up with some of the gals who are on her team that I’m not in touch with as much.  Afterwards it was off to Culver’s for lunch, then
   some shopping, and finally a happy hour margarita at La Fiesta Mexican Restaurant!  Diane had to leave while we were shopping, but Mary Ann got off work early and was able to join us.  Hadn’t seen her in a couple years so it made this extra special!

Of course we couldn’t be in St. Louis without a visit to Russ’ brother and his wife.  As you may recall, they live in the city of Wentzville about half an hour from the casino, and it’s always a nice drive to get to their farm.  We got to meet Bella, their new German
      Shepherd, and though Jackie has her in training, she still has lots of puppy in her!  We stayed a couple of hours chatting and catching up on our lives…always a very pleasant and enjoyable visit.

    This was a great time to be in St. Louis because Cardinals fever was high throughout the city.  The team was in the playoffs!  I managed to get together with my friend Pam, and it just so happened that Gloria was off, too, so the three of us made plans and you can see that great minds think alike…all wearing our Cardinals shirts!  (You notice we don't get any pictures of Russ out with his buds unless I'm along! J)

When in town we generally try to pay our respects at a couple of cemeteries.  Our first stop was Calvary Cemetery to visit the graves of my mom’s parents, grandparents, brother, aunt, and several other relatives.  However, when we arrived, a huge dead tree was covering the headstones. 
   I managed to check between the branches to see that all was well though a nearby headstone for another family was knocked over.  One of the workers stopped by and said that the tree had been cut down due to disease but said the workers would be clearing it in the
   next day or two.  From there we headed over to Memorial Park Cemetery to visit the graves of Russ’ parents, uncle, cousins, and grandparents.  Afterwards it was lunch at Lombardo’s (www.lombardosrestaurants.com).

   One thing that I was especially looking forward to this trip was a birthday celebration.  There were 7 of us who were close in high school, and though two are no longer with us, the remaining 5 have stayed in touch, all but me
still living in St. Louis.  Since a couple of us had already turned 60 this year and the rest would do so next year, I made plans for us to get together for a birthday lunch at Rizzo’s Italian Restaurant (www.rizzostl.com).  We toasted to our 60 years and to 45 years of friendship through all its ups and downs.  We were stuffed afterwards but split a piece of cheesecake anyway.  (Gloria supplied the party hats, and I supplied the centerpiece to add to the fun.) 
However, this wasn’t the end of the celebration I had planned.  Though neither of the Dianes could make it, Gloria, Dana, and I continued on to include Ellen and Mary Beth in our 60th birthday celebration.  Ellen would have been the first of us to turn 60 and Mary
   Beth would have been the last.  After making a stop at Resurrection Cemetery to celebrate Mary Beth, we ventured over to Missouri Botanical Gardens (www.missouribotanicalgarden.org) where Ellen has a brick engraved with her name.  It was a gorgeous
   fall day, and we managed to find someone to take our picture at the circle of bricks.  We wandered around the Gardens a bit more, enjoying the beauty and each other's company.  What a truly wonderful day it had been!

  We crammed a lot into a short stay, and this didn’t even cover watching Cardinals baseball (they lost the Series L) and Tigers football games either at the RV with friends or at Steve and Patty’s (and a special thanks to them for letting us use their washer & dryer!).  As you can see, the guys
can be pretty intense when watching their alma mater even on TV. And what’s a girl to do when two of her favorite teams are on at the same time?  Well, wear her Tigers t-shirt and her Cardinals necklace!  Didn’t do any good, though, since both teams lost that day.
 

The day before we left, we had one more visit with Gloria as she came by the RV after work.  With the beautiful weather, she and I sat outside, drank some wine, and enjoyed each other’s company one last time.  The perfect ending to a wonderful trip.