Daytrip: Traverse City on a rainy evening

When an old friend from Detroit said she’d be in town with her daughter and son-in-law and the grandchildren, I said I would meet her.  This, after all, is a woman with whom I shared carpooling duties back in the day when our kids were little and she was working on her Masters and my husband was going to law school at night and life was one big blur with a couple of reliable anchors.  Gay Montgomery was one of the reliable anchors.

Penny and George, the other grandparents, live in Traverse City, so we agreed to meet for dinner at Apache Trout Grill. This was no hardship at all, as I am very fond of the way Apache Trout Grill treats a piece of fish.  I was early, if you can believe that, which was a good thing as there was an hour wait for a table.  I thought about that.  My life is organized so that I almost never go out to dinner on a Saturday night in the summer.  That is a good plan.  I put us on the list and wandered outside to take pictures of things I liked. Here, for example, is a very nice bike rack.

Around back, the harbor was full of mist and the promise of rain, which didn’t deter diners from choosing outdoor tables.  Michiganians.  Go figure.

When the rest of our merry band arrived, the Apache bar was overflowing, so we went next door to the Yacht Club, where George is a member, for pre-dinner drinks and sailing talk.  I don’t understand any of it, but I like to let it wash over me.  It’s very atmospheric.  And aren’t these nice barstools?

The grown-ups took turns sitting outside watching the grandchildren horse around.  Children are almost as mysterious to me as sailing talk, but they are a lot of fun to be around, and these two are particularly engaging. 

Before they could dump themselves in the Bay, it was time for dinner.  It was every bit as good as I thought it would be in spite of the crowds that were pushing the kitchen to its limits.  We caught up on all the details of life, including how things are going for Rob the Firefighter and what Gay thinks of retirement and what George  thinks of iceboating on Torch Lake and how much fun Penny had arranging the summer entertainment at Grand Traverse Pavilions and what happened to the restaurant we all used to go to when we lived in northwest Detroit.  Then it was time to go home.  Hugs all around, promises to exchange photos, promises to meet again. 

Life is filled with blessings, even on a rainy evening.