So that was a long, complicated trip home. Nearly all objectives were achieved: the traditional dinner at Rafferty's (which apparently has its own beer now, Rafferty's Red), the trip up to the cabin to see my relatives, the retrieval of various forgotten necessities, the purchase of a used car, etc.

They wouldn't budge on the price, but the dealership gave me a $100 Fleet Farm gift certificate. The place is basically the world's biggest convenience store, but spending money there turned out to be quite a challenge. I bought... grilling supplies?

I decided to stay up north until the 4th, and the weekend's bonus round included a trip up to Garrison to see Dylan and his special lady.

It took me 25 minutes to get to his family's place from Unorganized Territory, and for someone who drove 10 minutes every day just to get to town, 25 minutes is nothing. It makes me wonder why I ever complained about the distance. Alternately, this could just be the new car talking.

Unfortunately I was unable to get in touch with Larson.

The other surprise event was a boat trip around the bay for my grandpa's birthday on Monday. I think the last thing my skin was expecting was an hour of direct sunlight; I am now terribly sunburnt. It's even more annoying knowing that this is such a 4th of July weekend cliche. We "did fireworks," as they say, Monday night at the cabin.

For the actual 4th I left the cabin in the morning, drove to Chaska ("Just thirty minutes from cool") for a late lunch with an all-star cast of other relatives, and then grilled at Barry's with most of the usual suspects. Complicated logistics, good times.