Gabe found a freind to play with in the JFK airport..

The flight was smooth and uneventful.. about 5 and a hlaf hours…
Here’s Cuba !

We got in around 6.. spent about an hour wokring on the car rental and got tp the hotel around 8pm. .. Max had arrived here about 2PM.. he was there waiting for us. It was so wonderful to see him there !..   We had only 20 min to catch dinner.

It felt good to sit down as a family … Both Diane and I had the instant reaction.. we should be five..

We had a wonderful time..

I ordered casado.. ‘weeding’>. the traditional Costa Rican meal.. rice, beans and soemthing else.. plantains.. and hot sauce.. yum !

Now we’re back in the room. getting ready for an early start down the coast tomorrow..

This is our last civilization for awhile.. so we’re really enjoying it..

Tomorrow we’ll be in Domincal.. then further down the coast..   More then

Night all.. Nite Sam.. it’s nice to be here.. we miss you..
-me

Greetings from beautiful Jamaica .. Jamaica New York, that is.. We’re in a Holiday Inn near JFK on our way to Costa Rica.. ..We’ll be traveling in some pretty remote places in the far south of the

country so my blog posts will be spotty… but probably

interesting…   check in for tails from the road..

Today was great !.. We started the day in Providence.. which is a really nice city !..

We were there for Gabe’s Lacrosse Tournament.  This was the last game of the season.. and the championship. Gabe’s VT Select team was in good position at the start of the day.. they’d won all 4 of their games yesterday..

The game began at 9 .. as a bonus. my folks had driven down from Boston to watch Gabe play. It was hot .. really hot and sunny as the play started..   they won their first game . That put them in the final…

The final game was really. really exciting.  we were playing a team from Massachusets. . The guys were down by 3 points just before the half.. Then they rallied and came back to wind by five. Both teams played really well. !

The guys were so psyvched that they’d won the championship !   They put on the championship shirts for a final photo op for the season.. but not before dousign the four coaches with ice water !.

Another treat for the day was getting to hang with my folks..   THye were doing well..

After the game we had a nice brunch.. kissed the folks.. and headed off for NYC…

Only 167 miles… but it tool us more than 5 and a hlaf hours due ot construction and traffic.. We saw a ton of taillights..

It was great to finally be back in the city.. man.. .

We were so happy to get to the hotel..   Just waiting for din-din to be delivered..

OK.,, dinner’s here !.. More from the road..

Nite folks.. Nite Sam
-me

Greeetings from Providence Rhode Island.. A very nice town in a staate that’s lying about it’s island-hood. It’s really a cool place thoguh.. W’ere just off the RISD campus. I uses to work with folks from RISSD when I was an interen in the Art Department at MIT. I remember when the MIT Architecture group helped make an album cover for the Talking Heds.. some of whom whent to RISD…

But I digress…

Welr edown here forthe final Lacros tournament for Gab’es VT Select Team. They’ve had a good season..a nd an excellent torunament.THey’ve really learned to play together and it shows. They were undefeated today.. .. and even hoguh I’m not a sports guy.. I know that’s  good.  🙂

The game has a warlike, hard0ass image it tries to through off.. but it’s really played by gentle , well-behaved boys and girls. Don’t let that out.. as it may destroy the image of the game.

This tourne marks the star tof our vacation.. the sitting around between games. is great practice for being on vacation.. no computers.. no cell phone.. no distractions.. I’m already going CRAZY.. I resorted to playing footsie with Diane..
Seriously, though.. I just don’t do relaxed well.. .. it’s so…so.. un-busy… !

(yikes. where did my justify left button go ?!?!)

Afterwards we all headed down to teh beach.. Naragannsett beach…   It was full of seagulls, and of people.. it was a sea of rhoade islanders..   they all were there..

Shortly after we got there… so did a band of thundershowers… A miraculous thing happened then.. everyone but our little band  left..

We jumped in the car as everyone drove away..We watched the storm from inside our car.. it was awesome .  The entire crowded beach was now empty and ours !

We wre starving at that point.. so we went out and grabbed soem food from the little snack bar in the beach entrance. Our freind Martha used to work in this very buuilding about 30 years ago.!!! .

Yum.-ish..

We hung out on the beach and played with Reese and Didi’s new puppy… buckwheat aka Thor (which name do you like.. s. it’s still up for debate !)

I tossed ia samstoen into the bay …

While the kids hung out in the water and body surfed..

I collected rock and made a lame rainbow for Reese and Didi’s daugter abbue..

Finannly back at the hotes..l.. then a short cisit to a pool hall / restaurant..

now.. two tired to stay awake.. so.. that’s it. for today..

more tomorrow. Nite all.. nite Sam !
-me

what an amazing day.. Diane and I lef Jonesville around 11:30.. As we headed out I took a long look. I won’t be home for about 2 and a half weeks.   .. I’m lookign forward to the adventures.. I’ll also be missing home.

The big event today was Bob and Pam’s wedding. We know Bob through the most amazing situation.  When he died, Sam donated 4 organs.. Bob received one of Sam’s kidneys .  As with all transplants,  effort is made to  keep the identity of donors and recipients private.. We had sent all of Sam’s organ recipients a letter with no names.. and a samstone (with no website info). Bob had been watching the colony when he saw me put a SamStone in the water filter on the first episode of the Colony last year. From that he was able to find us

Sam’s kidney saved Bob’s life. He was on dialysis after his first transplanted kidney failed after 9 years.. After the transplant he regained his health, met Pam and fell in love..  Bob and Pam live in Florida, but Bob gre up here in Vermont.  This afternoon Bob and Pam got married in a beutiful stone church in Killington. Bob had first seen the church as a boy and figured it would be a good place to get married.. it was !

The moment we walked in we felt so welcome.. It was so wonderful meeting Bob.  . . He’s a wonderful man .. He has a permeinant twinkle in his eye.. he’s soft spoken and funny.. and did not stop smiling the entire day.. though all of us shed a bunch of tears too.   Even though it was his wedding day, Bob spent so much time with us.. he was so greatful to Sam and to us.. It was wonderful… humbling and uplifting.. and of course.. very sad all at the same time.   There s no Hallmark card for this..

We signed in and joined our place in the lovely little church..  The place was packed with both Bob and Pam’sfriends  relatives.. His from Vermont and Florida, hers from Florida and Ohio   We tried to keep everyone’s names and stories straight.. Not sure I remember all of the who’s and where’s.. but I do remember everyone being incredibly nice.. and touched by our reason for being there. We talked about Sam all day.. which was wonderful for us..

Then came the time for thewedding.. It was short and sweet.. complete with cute flowergirls

the bride and her folks..

Bob even asked us up to help light a peace candle in Sam’s honor..

Then it was time to seal the dealll

.. and then they were hitched !

Then everyone poured outside to congratule the newlyweds.

This bumper sticker was out in the parkign lot.. not for these twins thoguh.. for another set..

Here are Bob’s son and nephew.

Everyone got a chance to ring the bell..

Then inside for more pictures.. Here are Pam’s best friend and daughter.

We spent the most time talking to Brian and Lisa. bob’s niece. . They live in Rutland.. great folks. .

THey were all great and fun folks.. the mood was wonderful..

Bob and Pam really made us feel part of everything. Bob kept sayign that he’d never have been here without Sam’s gift..

From the church we all went back to Rutland to a a restaurant where Pam had once had the best turkey dinner she’d ever had..

We’d taken over the place.. so it was closed for other customers..

No matter who they were.. Senator Lehey and his wife happened to come in just as we did.. they saw that the place was closed and decided to leave.. but not before saying hi.. The funny thing is that I’m writing an Op-ed piece to support the new patent legislation that the Senator is trying to put through congress. I had a chance t talk to him about it breifly.. … which was an unexpected and fun coincidence..

The party was a baseball theme.. since Bob and Pam are big fans.. and Baball factured big in their dating..

There was plenty of toasts and smooching.. al the stuff you expect at a wedding.. it felt very good to be there..

We sat with Brian and Lisa and family.. they helped us figure out who every one was..

Here are Lisa folks.. they were great..

THen came the feeding of the cake.. all very dignified… no icing in the hair or anything..

Something came over me and I ran out to a convenience store and bought a red bull and asked bob to chug it .. just for sam.. . Bob did it gladly..

We did alot of talkign about sam. Bob had askde for a bout 50 samstoens for the guest.. we handedd them out from a bowl that jen had made just for the event.

 We gave Bb a sam pin.. which got handed around.> There was so much laughing and cryign .. it felt great to bbe able to talk so much about sam..

Then around 7L30 it was time to hit the road.. It had been a wonderful and meaningful day..

We went away feeling good…  Bob had found happiness..  and health.. andSam had helped it happen.
  We were proud and blessed.. and sad.. all at the same time…

It was wonderful sharing the time with Bob and his family and friends. It’s so great to see the other side of the organ donation story.. the happy side.

All of you reading this can honor Sam and Bob by having the conversation with your family and friends about the wonderful.. OK I need to sleep now

Congratulations Bob and Pam.. may you have many happy and healthy years..
Good nite all

Good nite Sam.. we are very proud of you my son.. We felt you very near today

-me
 gift of organ donation.