May has been and will continue to be a very busy month for me. Can’t wait for June to roll around so I can relax some! For the most part, my hectic May has been fun, and this past weekend was definitely awesome.

Saturday, I went to visit my good friend Melanie, who I’ve known since middle school. Even though we went to different colleges and she got married and moved to NC for a while, we’ve kept close and in touch with each other’s lives. One of the reasons that I went to visit this weekend is because she’s pregnant, due on June 23rd. She’s gonna be a mom! Wow! It’s a girl and they’re deciding between two names - Elle (Ellie?) Neil or Meagan Sue. Those are all family names (both first and middle names), and they’ll choose depending on what the baby looks more like. It was remarkable seeing how well she can still move, including bending over and picking things up, considering she’s about 5 weeks away.

Unfortunately, the weather was all that great on Saturday. It stormed part of the afternoon, and started coming down really hard when her husband Mark fired up the grill for burgers and hot dogs. While it rained, we sat around and caught up on things (lots of baby talk ), ate, played some Uno and Skip-Bo and waited for the skies to clear up. Fortunately, the sun did come out later on in the afternoon. Mark suggested we go fishing, so we packed up the fishing polls and headed about a mile down the road to a lake at his parents’ place. Gosh, I can’t remember the last time I had been fishing. I’m thinking the last time might have been in middle school, though I may have been once since then. It’s been a long time, though. I always remembered it as boring, but I really enjoyed the experience this time. I managed to catch three 6-7 lb. catfish using bread balls as bait. Not too shabby! I might have to give this fishing thing another chance, especially since there’s a lake right across from my neighborhood. I have to say the company definitely made this experience even more enjoyable, though.

Sunday was the Ultimate day, as in Ultimate Frisbee! We finally were able to get a game on. When I tried to plan a game several weeks ago, it was cold, wet, muddy, and snow was in the forecast. Needless to say, we postponed the game. This weekend was much better, though. A little on the chilly side and windy, but I’m definitely not complaining. About 14-16 people showed up (thanks for coming everyone) and we played for two and a half hours. That’s a good work out! We just kept playing until we got tired and hungry. The teams were evenly matched and the game was close most of the time. Final score: 20-19. My team won! Weather permitting, I’m hoping to do this on a monthly basis.

After the game, those who could still move headed back to my place for a cookout. We had burgers and hot dogs from the grill and hung out until the Survivor Finale. Only a few people were actually regular watchers of the show, but surprisingly, even those who had never or rarely seen it stuck around. What a finale it was, too! I was rooting for Ian to win, but surprisingly, he threw an immunity challenge to save his friendships with the other two players. Not quite sure what to make of that… Crazy to throw away a chance at a million dollars, but very humbling and generous at the same time. In the end, New York City firefighter Tom Westman won the tenth season of Survivor. Though I was rooting for Ian, I didn’t mind Tom winning. He played a tough, smart game. He a little too aggressive and controlling at times, but he did provide a lot for his team and won a ton of challenges. This season had a lot of firsts, so I’m anxious to see what next season has in store. Next location? Guatemala, at the site of ancient Mayan ruins. Looks interesting!

Well, that was my weekend. My brother’s bachelor party is on tap for next weekend. Be on the lookout for pictures from that