I arrived in Detroit on Saturday afternoon. This was to be a different stay in Detroit than I've ever had before. Since residency, whenever I've visited Detroit, I'd always stay with my friend Diann. But a couple of years ago, Diann moved to Charleston, South Carolina. So this time, I planned to stay with Tim, an old boyfriend turned good friend. He's married now, with three daughters, and several years ago he made me the godmother to his second child.
His wife, Rachel, had taken the kids up to the UP for the weekend, and so Saturday evening and most of Sunday, I had Tim to myself. Which was really nice. Now that everyone I know is married, it's rare for me to spend quality alone time with one of my friends, but that is the gift I was given that weekend. Tim and I went out for Mexican food and margaritas that night. Then we came back to his house, played video games, and watched Road House until late into the night. Not a highbrow night, for sure, but definitely fun.
On Sunday, we each slept late, then we got up and listened to music for a long time. Tim has always loved music, and over the years, he's introduced me to lots of bands I'd never listened to before. He made me a large iMix before I went on this trip, as well; you can find it on iTunes under "Emily's Traveling Medacine Show". Anyway, he played me lots of music, and we again caught up, laughing about funny things we had done years and years ago. That afternoon, I went to his neighbors' home for an 8 year-old's birthday party, and met one of Tim's oldest friends and his family. They were warm and welcoming, and I had a really nice time there.
I also got to see the coolest thing while I was there -- the father has spent the last 10 years completely rebuilding a 1934 Ford hot rod. And it is an absolute work of art. It's painted a black cherry color, with hand piping on the sides, beautiful leather upholstery, chrome trim on the inside, white-wall tires, and a greyhound headpiece on the front. It's absolutely stunning.
Rachel returned from Escanaba, and met up with us at the party with the kids. I couldn't believe it to see them -- the last time I'd been to Detroit, the middle daughter was an infant having her Christening -- now she's three years old. There are three of them: Olivia, almost 5; Lucy, 3; and Sara, 9 months. They're super-cute, and obviously love their Daddy very much, which was great to see.
On Monday, Rachel went to work for the day, and Tim and I took care of the kiddos. We watched Kung Fu Panda and Avatar, played video games, sang karaoke while Tim played the drums, wrestled, rode bikes, and drank lots of chocolate milk. I was reminded that it's pretty great to be a kid, I have to say.
The next day, I was originally supposed to go to Ann Arbor, but I had an appointment to take my car in for an oil change, and that ended up taking much longer than I had thought it would, so my plans were thwarted. Instead, Tim and I had another day with the kids while Rachel worked. She came home early, though, and that night, all of us went to a Tigers' game!
I haven't gone to a Detroit Tigers baseball game in many years. It was terrific fun for me. I loved being in the park, eating peanuts and singing and cheering, and the Tigers won, 9-1 over the Royals. But the most unexpected and pleasant surprise was that, sitting two rows in front of us, was Tim's brother Rob! Tim had told me that Rob was going to be at the game that night, with some clients from work. But Tim didn't know where Rob would be sitting. And we hadn't prepurchased tickets, either, but just bought random tickets at the gate. Our seats weren't all that good. We tried to see if we could find better seats that were just unoccupied, and completely randomly, the seats we picked out were two rows behind Rob and his clients! We realized it two innings into the game. Rob and Tim had lived together during my residency, and I got to know him well at that time. He's married now, too, and has three kids. But he's such a great guy, and it was really wonderful seeing him after such a long time. It made for a completely perfect evening for me.
Wednesday, Tim spent the morning making me some CDs to take on the journey, and then I left their home around 1pm for a day in Ann Arbor. It was a really nice few days in Detroit. It was wonderful to catch up with Tim and to get to know his children. The only imperfection in the trip was the fact that I hardly saw Rachel at all, other than for supper Monday night and at the game on Tuesday. But I I got to catch up with Tim AND had the chance to know his family, and I'm grateful for both of those opportunities.
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