I've had a busy and somewhat stressful week that is finally coming to a close. Nothing to do today but relax and watch some recorded TV shows. DH and I had nail and hair appointments on Wednesday, having brunch in between at Shine Cafe near the hair salon. DH had a corned beef hash omelet while I had the Eggs Benedict Florentine (English muffin with ham, tomato, and spinach, two poached eggs, Hollandaise). After our hair appointments, we went to Nino's for a few grocery items and to order flowers and balloons for a gathering at our home yesterday following my late brother's military memorial service. After our stop at Nino's, we went to Picano's to pay for our small catering order and confirm delivery time.
I lost one of my brothers last November. He was a Vietnam veteran who served as an Air Force jet mechanic in Thailand. He was entitled to full military honors with inurnment at Great Lakes National Cemetery in Holly, MI. Since all committal services are held outdoors, I thought it best to wait until spring for the ceremony. It was absolutely gorgeous yesterday - a picture- perfect day with glorious sunshine, blue skies, upper 60s, gentle breezes. The ceremony was brief and included a lone bugle playing Taps, a three-gun salute, ceremonial folding of the flag that was presented to me as next of kin (my brother never married) along with a Presidential certificate honoring my brother's service in the Armed Forces. I was also presented with the three spent casings from the bullets fired in my brother's honor, but I gave them to my surviving brother.
We were so glad that it was a beautiful day for our guests to eat outdoors. As always, Picano's food was delicious, and everyone enjoyed the salad, garlic rolls, mostaccioli w/tomato sauce, pizzas with ham or pepperoni, and chocolate cake. There are leftover rolls and mostaccioli for DH and me over the weekend. Ordinarily, Picano's would not deliver such a small order, but since we are respected regulars, the manager agreed to have our order delivered as it would have been inconvenient for us to drive 35 miles north to the cemetery then drive 45 miles south to pick up the food, then drive home. One of our favorite waitresses agreed to come into work early to deliver our catering order. After our guests departed, DH and I cleaned up the kitchen, deck, and patio. We were exhausted and off to bed at 9:00PM.