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| Me, Joshua, Jacob and Mark Himes today at the Brickside Grill, Eagleview, PA |
Today I met my first blogger friend face to face. Mark H. of "Our Simple Lives...a Daddy, a Papa and their four children... took a ride from his Harrisburg, Pennsylvania home to meet me and my partner Bill at our former home outside of Downingtown, Pennsylvania. Mark also brought his two twin sons, Jacob and Joshua. Bill and I traveled up from southern Delaware to our former home in Downingtown, PA.
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| Mark arrives at our former home in Downingtown, PA |
The meeting was a great success! Everybody clicked, even Bill is notoriously solo. Mark's kids took to Bill as all kids take to Bill, which was immediate. Pretty soon they will be calling him "Uncle Bill."
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| Bill and Mark (our old house behind them) |
I took Mark on a tour of our former 'estate' (which now resembles a 'Gray Gardens' since the previous owners defaulted on their mortgage but that is a story for another blog posting).
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| Mark's boys are working of some energy by my old chicken pen |
Today was nothing but positive. The kids had a great time running around the seven acres of woodland. I took Mark on a tour of our former grounds. Then we all went to lunch at the Brickside Grill in Eagleview which....can you believe it?!...had a magican there today to entertain the kids!
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| Me and Mark |
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| Mark leaves after too short of a visit |
16 comments:
Man, Ron, I'm really falling behind here. You have been going here, going there, having reunions and still posting away.
I have to get going.
Lar
Oh great!
Maybe we will meet someday Tai!
Lar,
My pace is starting to catch up with. On the way home to Delaware from Pennsylvania this afternoon I momentarily fell asleep and almost hit a car in the opposite lane head on. Bill caught me just in time. I need my afternoon nap.
That's great... I have yet to meet any of mine, except my friends here in Pittsburgh :(
This is the first blogger that I've meet other than my three friends who I got started blogging. Todays meeting was perfect in every way. A good day all around. Lots of smiles. We came quite a distance. Mark came from the west (Harrisburg) to Downingtown and I came from the south (southern Delaware) And the twain met! My drive was 2 1/2 hours and I think Mark said his drive (on the turnpike) was 2 hours.
I am always jealous when I see bloggers meeting up. I have so many I want to meet (many? all!)
I've met 4 bloggers (who I didn't know before I started blogging), and each time has been like meeting an old friend, even though it was the first time we met.
I think because of the immediacy of blogging, it allows relationships to grow much faster than pen pals did in the past.
Ron, how did you put this together so quickly? I can see it was from yesterday. All I could do yesterday after I returned was melt into the sofa and have Fred serve me a glass of wine.
Yesterday was tons of fun and I was so thrilled to meet both you and Bill. Plus, although your former home is seeing some major wear, I can see how beautiful it and the grounds once were. Had I spent almost 30 years there, I would be visiting it again and again too.
I love love love how the kids took to you and Bill. Never again will I believe you when you say that you don't like kids. Okay, maybe that part is true but as you can see, mine love you. And I didn't have to bribe them with candy to do it!
Thanks again for inviting me and I can't wait until Fred can meet you this Summer.
Your Friend, m.
p.s. I have a lot of photos. I'll write about our adventures on Wednesday and then I'll shoot them to you. But you'll just have to wait. m.
What fun to meet blog friends. Great post...thanks for sharing.
Kim,
You're right, meeting my blogger friend in person yesterday, with his twin sons, was like meeting an old friend. Great fun.
Mark,
It was great fun meeting you and your kids yesterday! I have to qualify my "I hate kids" comments. I don't really hate kids per say. I think they're adorable. What I don't like are undisciplined, rude, and disrespectful children. Your kids are well behaved and very respectful. Obviously you and Fred are doing a wonderful job in raising them. To me a 'good kid' is one who has manners, is respectful and happy. Your kids are all three. I have to be careful the way I word my feelings in my postings because sometimes I paint too broad a brush and give the wrong impression. Consider me like my favorite comedian of all time W.C. Fields who said "The only good child is one who is parboiled." In real life he loved kids but in his movies roles he was often bedeviled by some bratty kid, which I thought was very funny. So my comment is "I don't like bratty kids." Jacob and Joshua are sweet, good natured kids. I'm glad they have a good home with you and Fred.
Rick,
It was indeed great fun to meet my blogger friend and his kids yesterday. A perfect day!
Spo,
To quote you we had a "jolly good time!"
I just read Mark's account of your meeting and had to check it out here, too! What a wonderful time you all had! It's sad about the old place (it really looks beautiful in your prior post about it). You obviously made many memories there.
Walt,
Thank you for your comment. Yes, we had a wonderful time this past Sunday. It's always sad to visit our former home and witness the neglect but our visit was lightened by the laughter and happiness of Mark's two young sons running around and enjoying playing in those wide open spaces. It is a perfect home for children. Maybe someday happiness will reign again on that land. By the way, 'Walter' is my middle name.
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