July 14, 2006: Lexington & Louisville

Don't say "loo-ee-vil"; say "loo-uh-vul"!

We spent the morning relaxing in Lexington at Meryl's house. Early in the afternoon, we drove back to Louisville to visit relatives of Debbie and Meryl on both sides of their family.

On their father's side is cousin Jay, who works on Baxter Avenue at an Irishtown bar and pizza joint by the name of Flanagan's. Over lunch, we talked with Jay about Irishtown nightlife, about the depressed business core of Louisville, about pretty Cave Hill Cemetery, and about how Jay's house burned down - a tragedy at the time, but the way he tells it, a funny story.

(Meryl and Debbie both saw Jay in Louisville earlier this year, but I hadn't seen him for over ten years. In the early '90s, we were in Florida visiting Gam, Debbie's paternal grandmother, and we drove down to Key West, where Jay was living. On the same trip, we also stopped in Ft. Lauderdale to meet Charlie, my father's step-father, for the first, last, and only time in my adult life. Both Gam and Charlie passed away shortly thereafter.)

On the sisters' mother's side, we visited their uncle Philip, a surgeon, and his wife Ellen. Before we drove out to their home, though, we took in a couple of horse races at Churchill Downs, site of the Kentucky Derby and, this year, the Breeder’s Cup. Meryl has lived in Kentucky for five years, but she had never been to the track.

Debbie hadn't ever been to a horse race, and it had been years since I'd gone.

We're no gamblers, but we had fun studying the racing form,

wagering imaginary money,

and cheering on the horses. In race seven, on the inner turf track, we rooted for Don't Cuss the Fiddle, which placed. The winner was Rose's Jewel, a 20-to-1 longshot. Race eight, on the outer main track, was an exciting photo finish. As we were leaving the track, Meryl pointed out all the Ford trucks in the parking lot. It was no coincidence; there are two major Ford plants in Louisville.

Philip and Ellen have an elegant and colorful home (check out the "wild" powder room decor), and a passion for sailing. They've sailed to the South Pacific a number of times, so Philip showed me slides of the vividly-hued sealife they've seen while diving in Palau and Yap. Being an enthusiastic diver myself, it was a pleasure to see.

The weather took a nasty turn while our hosts were preparing dinner, but the dauntless duo were not deterred!

The lashing rain and flashing lighting didn't faze Philip, who braved the elements in his sailing gear in order to barbecue hamburgers.

A blackout added to the excitement of the thunderstorm. I took a snapshot. Soon after Ellen lit candles, however, the lights came on again.

We talked about the recent wedding of their daughter Keri and son-in-law Jonathan, who now live in Chicago and whom we hope to see on our return to Seattle; about their son Trent and his wife Ellie, with whom we will be staying in Nashville; and about their son Brice and wife Dina, whom we'll try to look up in New York City.

After a delectably rich dessert of homemade derby pie, a Louisville specialty, we said good night and drove back to Lexington.