Happy day after Dad's Day

Hope everyone had a fun Father's Day..we did.
Ralph even went out Saturday to get us a tablecloth for the patio table. Woo hoo!
We is FANCY.

This is about as festive as it got here. I posted on Facebook last night about the troubles Allegra and I had getting the grill going..we are convinced it's "a guy thing"!
But the coals were finally ready and we were able to make steak for dinner. And actually dine outside, the first time this year.

Dessert was Ghirardelli chocolate brownies with walnuts...yummy. Yes, it was a mix.

Happy Monday to all!

Father's Day spurs happy, sad memories

It's after 7 p.m. on Father's Day and I am going to attempt to write a post. I find it difficult to look through photos from the 70s, but I did go through them, and here is what I found to share:
This is my dad, Donald McDonald. He may look dour here, but he really wasn't. He suffered from a multitude of ailments, from arthritis to renal failure. He was ill a lot when I was young, but he was a wonderful father to his only child.
He was a smart man, intellectually-oriented, but kept his feelings mostly to himself. I attributed that in part to a tough childhood.
He was the oldest of six and when he was 14 their father died. So he became the responsible one, going to work at 15 while he was in high school. He ended up continuing at the company and became an executive there. He worked for the same company for 50 years, something unheard of today. He died when he was just 65.

This is my grandpa, Charles Albert.
He was born in Germany in 1895, and came to the United States when he was 4, along with his mother and three brothers. Their father had immigrated here first, found a job and then sent for his wife and sons.
I can't imagine what my great-grandmother must have gone through, crossing the Atlantic in steerage for days, caring for three little boys. What a soft life I lead in comparison!
Grandpa made friends easily, wherever he went he found someone to chat with. He would talk about anything! He loved animals, and apparently he loved to grow sunflowers!
Grandpa had a great sense of humor and was always full of silly stories when I was little. He used to send me cards and put "Elvis Presley" as the return address. One of his favorite expressions was "Holy smokes! the church is on fire."
Grandpa died when he was 84, nine months after my grandmother died. They had been married for almost 63 years. That's a long time, I'd say.

This year for Father's Day we made dinner for Ralph. I think he enjoyed it. I hope he did. We went to an antique car show, only to get there and find it had been postponed until July 19. And it wasn't even raining! That was a disappointment. Ralph loves to look at old cars.I hope he had a nice Father's Day anyway.