A post in which it is the bear pool party

Today was the day of the pool party.  I had been looking forward to it.  I had done my beans yesterday, so I just popped them in the oven when I got up this morning. 

Steve has a lovely place for a party, in the middle of town, but it feels secluded.  The pool is beautiful, as is the landscaping.  He's always making improvements.  This year, he added a bathroom onto the back of the house, specifically for the convenience of guests - super nice, and quite a step up from the port-o-potty of years past!

Gary and I were there pretty much on time, got in, and got settled.  The weather was overcast, but at least it wasn't raining.  At first. 

I met a new guy today named Sam.  He is young, good-looking, and quite flirty.  Apparently he was making defiant faces at Gary over my shoulder while we were in the pool.  While Gary was not impressed with that (understandably) I thought it was actually pretty funny.  Gary fit in pretty well, and while he wasn't the life of the party, he wasn't a recluse either.  We all lounged around in the water, visited, had a couple of drinks, and relaxed.  The boys showed up.  It was just a nice, laid back gathering.

Billy suggested today that Rhonda and I ride to Savannah with him and Russ.  Logan is going down early, so there is room in the car, and then I can just drive Logan's car back.  They always leave late and end up spending hours sitting in the post-holiday traffic on the way home, and I am not up for that.  When he threw this plan out in front of Logan, I could tell that it was the first Logan had heard of it.  Apparently I am not the only one being volunteered for things without his knowledge.  So I'll have to check in with Logan on that privately (and of course Rhonda), but I would really enjoy riding down with them and getting in some rare Russ and Billy time. 

When food was announced, I was quite gratified to find that my beans had NOT been ruined.  They were actually the best thing there that I tasted.  There were things there for me to eat this year, unlike last year when everyone brought fried chicken.  As we ate though, it started to rain.  Again.  Gary had to leave anyway to go home, so we made our goodbyes and headed out.  Steve singled Gary out to invite him to come back, which I thought was very nice of him, and which I know Gary appreciated. 

Of course, when I got home, it cleared up and decided not to rain, but I was really kind of ready to be home anyway.  It had been a nice party, but I have to work in the morning...