Anniversaries

Susan and I try to get together with Eddie and Eveline once a month. Usually we drive up to their house, it being easier for them than bringing Robyn, Jonathan, and Julian down here and trying to think of something for them to do. When we see them, I usually make the date for the next visit, and in April, when they were here for Easter (one of the times when they come our way), I started thinking about dates in May. A Sunday is our usual get-together day, and - ahah! - the Sunday that suited best for May was the 20th, which happened to be our wedding anniversary. Well, that's a nice coincidence. So we will come up to see Eddie and Eveline on the 20th. I would have been smarter not to have mentioned the significance of the date - well, smarter if I wanted to avoid what I think of as fuss, and what others call fun. Eddie and Eveline decided they wanted some fun. "We," they decided, "are going to take Dad and Mum and some others out to dinner!" As the plan - or plot - developed, at became this:

• Members of the group = Eddie and Eveline and children; Susan and me; Ka'ai and Lincoln (her boyfriend); Johnny, who was going to come over from Sydney; Noel and Jenny Surrey and Irene Farrell, who are our closest friends.
• We would go to Valentine's for lunch

Well, seeing I am outnumbered, I succumb with as good a grace as my black heart permits. However, I am not excited about Valentine's. It's one of these buffet, all-you-can-eat-for-twenty-bucks places. However, we would all show up, eat, talk a bit, and then go home. Susan and Johnny talked on the 'phone about it and thought that it would be more fun (and less fuss) if we were able to have something at home - catered, so that it was still Eddie and Eveline's shout (Americanese: 'treat'). This should save money as well.

Which, after considerable backing and filling, is what happened. We had a lovely time. Eddie, showing his cruel streak, took some videos on his digital camera, which Johnny, even more cruelly, has put onto his own web site at http://www.nzjohn.com/Movies/1.MPG and http://www.nzjohn.com/Movies/2.MPG. Warning! These are huge files - about 100MB each - so do not attempt to download or view them if you are on a slow or limited connexion. They are also not all of what Eddie took. Be thankful for small favours.