Posted Jul 28, 03:56 PM in NewsGames by Scott Conley

Well, the Bride and I are back from my second-ever Thesing Family Reunion™. It’s an event that is staged every three years, drawing the prodigious number of collective offspring of Mr. Clarence Thesing together. As one who’s married into the family, I’m what’s known as an ‘outlaw.’ It’s a title that carries a certain charm in the group and one that probably fits me, too.

It’s one of these events where they issue you a shirt. This year’s color was baby-blue.

From left to right, Russell, Barbara, Jim, Caryn, me! We actually went out to dinner in the small fishing town of Calabash, NC right after this photo was taken. In these shirts, I felt like a Power Ranger about to be ambushed.

The reunion was in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Caryn and I had never been- it felt a LOT like Daytona to me. Daytona with golf. We played a round of golf, two rounds of mini-golf, swam in the Atlantic, chucked the Aerobie around, tied for first in the family-sanctioned Euchre Tournament (albeit without the Bennies) and rocked through the New Super Mario Brothers – all in 3 days.

Which brings me to my new Nintendo DS Lite ! I picked up this guy on Saturday afternoon. What a gorgeous little piece of hardware. It’s got 802.11b wireless, condenser mic, touch screen and stylus. Not to mention my old friends Mario, Zelda, and the gang from my old SNES days. Really fun. And a life saver after yesterday’s SIX hour flight delays at MYR. (Which reminds me- anybody else behind my idea to retitle Newark’s airport code from ‘EWR’ to ‘WTF’?)

If any of you are reading, a special shout to Mary and Jack, Phyllis and Jimmy, Bob and Fran, Glenn, Mary Catherine, Randy, Kim, Richard, Fr. Mark, Mary Ann, and all the other Thesings, Barnes, and Lytles that looked after me (and remembered my name!) all week. Also to “Babe” Thesing, who again demonstrated her usual grace and hospitality in a setting far from home.

All told, a satisfying week. It was nice to spend some quiet time with the in-laws, and the more folks from Her family that I meet, the more I am able to find joy in the reunions. Cause this was the 9th consecutive, and there appear to be plenty more to come..

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Bits