Yah Yah Brotherhood/Sisterhood Dinner

Yesterday's round 2 of family reunion weekend went off well and again I felt accepted as the "boyfriend" by my partner's mother's family. The event was held at the hunting cabin near the top of a mountain that provided a panoramic view across the valleys below - much like in the photo above. Also attending the reunion was the boyfriend's cousin and her partner of 25+ years. In talking, it was both noteworthy and sad hearing how much more difficult it is for her to be who she is in the rural/conservative area of Southwestern Pennsylvania as compared to our home in Tidewater Virginia (which is not exactly a hotbed of liberalism). I truly enjoyed the event.

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The finale of the reunion weekend was a dinner hosted last night by the owners of the Inn at Georgian Place for the LGBT guests who have come to the area to attend family reunions. We had four gay couples and one lesbian who attended and enjoyed each others' company and wit and humor. They refer to the event as the "Yah Yah Brotherhood Dinner" since a number of the attendees have been coming for years and the dinner provides an annual opportunity to reconnect after all the reunion gatherings are over. One of the attendees - Douglas - is the individual who loans us his apartment in the West Village when we go to New York City as we did last January (he and his partner live north of Philadelphia and he uses the apartment in NYC only a few days per week).

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All and all, it was a terrific weekend and I am glad that I went - even if we had to head out at the crack of dawn to drive back to Virginia.

Family Reunions Weekend

Thanks for those readers who have inquired to make sure that I am OK. Thursday evening and yesterday were insane as we prepared to travel to the Somerset, Pennsylvania area (about 80 miles southeast of Pittsburgh) for the boyfriend's family reunions. Between juggling work issues - why is it that clients come out of the woodwork when one wants to leave the office a little early? - and the drive up here there was simply no time to blog. In any event, we arrived safely and have spent the day running out to see Frank Lloyd Wright's "Falling Water" - I will do a separate post on the experience - and all afternoon at his father's family reunion. We are now back at the Inn at Georgian Place (pictured above) which is owned by friends of the boyfriend and are going to have a quiet evening with another gay couple the boy friend knows who come here from Philadelphia each year for their family reunion which always take place the same weekend.

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The Inn is beautiful and actually very reasonably priced since the rates include a top notch breakfast as well as beautiful rooms. A brief description of the Inn is as follows:

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[T]his twenty-two room Georgian mansion has been lovingly and magnificently restored to its original grandeur. Beautiful oak paneling, ornate fireplaces, gold leaf chandeliers and an expansive marble foyer recreate the standard of living known to Mr. D.B. Zimmerman, a local coal and cattle baron, for whom the house was built in 1915.

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I will talk more about the Inn in later posts and Jon and David, its gracious owners, and the wonderful staff.

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As far as reunion No. 1 goes, it was a fun event with four generations of the boyfriend's family represented with about 65+ in attendance. On the way we stopped at the temporary memorial for Flight 93 which crashed a little more than the site of the reunion. In fact the boyfriend's aunt heard the tremendous explosion as the plane bored itself into the ground and exploded. It was a very moving experience. Currently, the set up is a bit makeshift, but in time the site will be completed as a national memorial.

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At the reunion, I was a little nervous at first since many of the family members of quite religious (they don't drink so I had to go without any self-medication to ease the nervousness) and being introduced as "the boyfriend" certainly puts the issue out there. Much to my pleasure, everyone was totally accepting and by the time we were ready to leave, I received many hugs and kisses. Tomorrow we will attend my "mother-in-law's" family reunion in a small town named Berlin.

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In any event, I am alive and well and readers have no need to worry about me.