And Our 48-Hour of Bonding/Summer Celebration Is Over As Fast As It First Began. We Are Home Safely

The good news is we had a fantastic time, great meals, time with wonderful people, and gorgeous scenery wherever we looked. The bad news is Chitunga's internship ends tomorrow and he has to put in his final day, so we booked the 9:45 ferry. That meant we also had to leave the Hoops4Hope Benefit at half-time, just as the sun was setting and the air was cooling off.

Getting to Orient Point can take anywhere from 80 - 120 minutes and if we missed the last ferry, it would mean we would have to backtrack 4 hours to go through NYC around to Stratford.  We made good timing, and also got on a ferry a 1/2 hour early (which we celebrated all the way until we go to the other side of New Haven), and they tried to push 4 lanes of traffic into one. It was a parking lot (and so frustrating being so close to home).

In the meantime, we packed a lot in during our 48 hours there and the Hoops4Hope Benefit was a tremendous success. I was excited that people already bid on my Literacy4Life basket before I left, but also have to give Mike Lupica credit, who donated 4 autographed books to add to those of Matt de la Peńa, Rose Brock, Kwame Alexander, Jason Reynolds, Jacqueline Woodson and Jerry Craft. In fact, the bid was double what we put down for a minimum when we left, which is great support for my cousin's program and also makes me feel wonderful - I donated copies of the books we used all summer.

My Uncle Milford and Aunt Sue were also in attendance and I wish I could have spent more time with them. We had the privilege, however, of having dinner with them the night before - a delicious evening of pasta, salad, margaritas and their company.

Mark, the Super Cos, however, deserves the most round of applause. The setting for the benefit was extra special this year and the crowd seemed to double in size. There was awesome art work, music, food and much to gaze at in the short time we were able to stay.

I think the greatest part of the two days was having time to spend with Chitunga: talking, planning, looking ahead and reflecting. He wouldn't jump in the ocean with me, but we had a great time eating out together, meeting with people, and taking in the beauty of the region.

The hosts for the party? Well, I thought their house was beautiful before I learned that all their windows, front and back (that is, to the outside world) could roll into the framework of the house, so that that the insides were totally open to the outside for parties such as this. It was an architectural pleasure which was exactly the point of the party - to showcase a new design.

We got home around midnight, and today will be another day. The laundry was started and Glamis crashed quickly on the couch. I'm just thankful to have a quick break away from the grind. I'm so happy and proud for my cousin, too. It truly is amazing what he's accomplishing on a global scale.