From Southern CA to Ohio

Sweetie and I really enjoyed our beachside days in CA, even if we only actually walked along the beach once (Brrrr....that Pacific water is COLD!).

After four days in California, we flew to Ohio to visit the bulk of my relatives, including my 91-year-old grandmother.

We decided to visit Grandma early on in the trip and I called her to schedule our visit. Since I was last home, my grandpa died and my grandma had to be moved into an assisted living facility.

When I called her, she asked me Sweetie's name and when I told her his first name, she said, "And is that how I should address him?" Hmmm...ummmm....yeah... I was trying to figure out what else she might want to call him...?!

Anyway, I should have taken that as a sign that something was amiss. Very long and painful story short, Grandma thought Sweetie was an AMBASSADOR. She called to reconfirm his title the night before our scheduled visit to the assisted living center. She said something about a "camera crew" and the "newspaper." I completely panicked. I called the local newspaper and sounding like a complete lunatic, explained my apparent predicament. I was told that they would inform the lady who would be working on the story, if there was in fact such a story in the works.

Then, my aunt calls and mentions something about the "nursing home newsletter." NewsLETTER? Newsletter?? Not newsPAPER? So, apparently I really really sounded like a complete lunatic calling up the newsPAPER. "Welcome home, Cha-chan," is all my aunt had to say.

Well, in the end, Sweetie did okay without my mom and her friend showing up dressed in black with my iPod headphones in their ears looking like bodyguards. There was no red carpet, no formal diplomatic welcome reception, no cameras....no newspaper or even newsletter. Just a nice quiet chat with Grandma on such gentle issues as global warming (she brought it up!).

As it turns out, we did end up in the newspaper later during our trip. We were at a wine festival and while Sweetie was getting us more wine, a reporter made a beeline for me. My aunt called the next morning to report that we were on the "front page" of the "local section," right below "Daddy stabbed Mommy."

That's Ohio excitement for you. And Sweetie really took a liking to the place.