the morning after

Happy January Day! We're all here hanging out in the Ghali's kitchen. Cecka is strumming on her guitar. Dena is adding her beautiful vocall melodies to Hotel California. Marcia and Claire are looking at Cecka's scrap book from Turkey. Kroese and Lindsay are playing mancala (I'm jealous--one of my favorite games.) Bethany is somewhere making a thankyou card. Liz is carefully packing her clothes, and Bethany and Jenna are somehwere in this huge welcoming Egyptian house. I've elected myself honorary blog poster since no one else has done it yet, and it seems you all deserve an update.

It's been a wonderful weekend full of good food and hilarious memories. I think we've recalled each and every one of you as we told story after story. Highlights of the weekend:
- Cooking foul and falafel and mehshe with Marcia's mom
-smoking the shisha
-coffee shops
-buying ice cream at Hy-Vee between picking Dena and Claire up from the airport, and eating it from the carton in the parking lot
-playing dress-up in Atomic Garage--a vintage store in West Des Moines
-watching _Empire Records_ the extended version!!!!!!!!!
-talking to Barrett, Josiah, and Andrew U. on the phone when they called from California (we had at least 8 phones here at the Ghali household.)
-Bileela!!!!!!
-meeting Liz's fiance, Andrew (yet another--Andrew, I mean)

Soon we'll all pack ourselves into our three cars, and head off in different directions. It's been good to fellowship together, although I often looked around at our group of ten survivors, and felt like we were missing people. And we were--all of you who could not be here. We missed you all and wished you could be here. We love you all. Reunion II at Chris and Heather's wedding? Or Liz's. Or both.

Later, dudes.