Family Find

I'm a bit behind on my posting and have several subjects, so I figured I'd get one in now.

A couple weeks ago, we got a message from John - we're family and he's in town, it'd be nice to get together to visit. I *love* visiting with family - any chance I get!! Even if I've never met them before... =) (Thanks mom or Aunt Anna or whomever passed along our contact information - I'm so glad you did!!)

Turns out, John is my first cousin once removed. I admit I had to use wikipedia to get a firmer grasp of the familial relationship. My grandmother (on my dad's side) and his mom are sisters - so not first cousins, but not seconds either. 1sts, once removed. It was very nice to visit for a bit, and I kept thinking that mom would really enjoy seeing this bit of living genealogy - branches of the tree coming together, if you will.

It was wonderful to spend time with John - starting a new relationship with family, finding I have roots in another part of the country, hearing a bit about my dad's side from a different perspective. Fascinating and very enjoyable. If we get to travel down to FL next spring for Greg's work, we'll have to see if we can work in a visit to AL... Thanks for calling, John!! I'm glad we could hook up - but next time, dinner's on us!! =)

On the way home, we ran across a vehicle that I've seen around town for the past couple of years. It's so interesting and odd that I've wanted a picture, but I only ever see it when I'm driving. Since Greg was with me, I had him take the picture as we passed the car. Then we did a loop-back and caught a side view too. I'm sure the people driving thought we were nuts!!

I've heard it's a motor-home-type vehicle, made to be able to handle rugged terrain. Sure looks like that would do the job! And such a pretty blue, too...