SIDE SALAD - Everything crunchy is good.

ANOTHER WEEKEND, ANOTHER GOODBYE

Last weekend we said goodbye to our neighbors Drew and Susan and their boys. This weekend, it was more of the same.

Our neighbors Mike and Autumn and their kids Austin, Travis, Elayna and Peyton moved away to Greensboro, N.C. on Friday. Longtime readers of the Salad Bowl (that's you, mom) might remember this entry introducing the happy couple on April 18, 2004:

There are two types of people in the world: people who were made to wear mullet wigs and those who were made to wear sombreros. Mike and Autumn have clearly found their correct niches.

That party would lead to a whirlwind romance, one that led the two of them to engagement and relocation.

But not before engaging in some horseplay and hijinx. Such as when Autumn came by on Cinco de Mayo of that year to borrow a sombrero.

Here's the scenerio:

Time: 8 a.m.

Date: May 5

Scene: A knock on my door

Action: I open the door to see my neighbor Autumn, who is dating my other neighbor, Mike.

Dialogue: "Mike has a Cinco de Mayo party today and wondered if he could borrow your sombrero.''

Sure, I say, no problem, since I have two.

I give her a new one I bought just for the day.

I go back in the house, discover my other sombrero is M.I.A.

I then realize I will be sombrero-challenged the entire day. That's a bad, bad realization to have on Cinco de Mayo. Take my word.

Then there was the time when Mike attempted to tong Drew's head on the grill during Fourth of July festivities:

Mike's affinity for fireworks was shared by Drew and myself.

I knew Mike and I would be friends when I saw him unleash a foot-long match-shaped lighter that night.

For Mike's explosives, this was a match made in heaven. His son Austin was mightily amused.

In fact, Mike left me a bag of mortars and other gunpowder nasties on Friday because the moving company wouldn't take them. I considered it a high honor that he would entrust me with their safe keeping.

It didn't hurt that our kids became great friends, too. Their lovely children were always up for playing with my son.

Mike and Autumn also were more than game for an embarassing photo or two. I appreciated that. Especially after Grace and I found this bottle in a nearby liquor store:

Mike also had a great idea for cleaning up the fireworks shrapnel after each year's blow out:

I call this suburban holiday ballet the Dance Of The Men With Their Leaf Blowers.

So it was with great sadness that we said goodbye to them on Friday.

We'll miss all of them terribly, but we know that they're going to love their new home in Greensboro and that they'll find great happiness there.

Our best wishes go out to them.

Posted by Jeff at June 13, 2005 07:13 AM | TrackBack