This weekend I’m coming to you live from the rather tiny town of Lamesa Texas. Try to not be jealous of my big exciting life.

My family gathers once a year for our family reunion in Lamesa. My great-grandparents settled in this part of the state in a town near here that no longer exists. All that is left of it is a few buildings and the cemetery (which was, like the town, named for my family). This is my mother’s family…well, my adoptive mother’s family. Family lines get tangled when you’re adopted and have two sets of family. They’re mostly farmers and salt-of-the-earth folks. They’re a great group.

It isn’t a terribly long drive, but when you’re surrounded by your mother and her sister it can feel long. I’m now caught up on family gossip at least. And of course there is already drama. My second cousin – my mother’s cousin – W is widowed and a grandfather. And he has a new girlfriend. A much younger new girlfriend. There is gossip running rampant about her and the foolish behavior he’s indulged in because of her influence. I don’t care frankly. From what I’ve heard, the odds are that she’s a gold-digger and nothing but trouble. But W is a grown man and makes his own choices. As family peace-maker I’ve had to stick up and remind people that just because they don’t like her, it doesn’t mean that they can ignore her and treat her like crap. They’re the only two people in their relationship. No one else has the right to judge or comment on it.

So far that’s the only drama. But it is only 9:30 am.

It’s going to be a long weekend.

Thankfully, my third cousin once removed (that would be the wife of my third cousin) has a new baby girl. So I’ll leave you with this picture of little baby E. She’s just a doll and will probably save my sanity this weekend.