It seems I've been out of the office a great deal this week today was no exception. I got back a few hours ago from the annual UILC's annual summer picnic. Picnic is always held at a place called fits Park at 3100 S. 500 E., Salt Lake City. The summer picnic hotdogs, hamburgers, chips, number three red dye punch and watermelon. If you are staff it's one of those mandatory things that you are there and you participate even if it's just speaking to other consumers. So, the summer picnic is a free meal, much as the Halloween party and the Christmas party are all free meals in these events bring out the consumers as no other events seem to do. It's a sure thing. Over the years I've fallen out of attending many of these old events for one reason or another, just another thing in the day to do. And if attendance wasn't mandatory I begin to blow off the event. I sort of promised staff at the 30 year open house last week that I would attend today and the promise made is important so I went.

It was a good day for travel, dry warm southerly breeze and best of all I could pick up the bus I needed halfway down the block on second South second best of all was that the headways for buses on second East is every 15 min. Now this is important right now since I have no faith in my batteries with what soever, the charger I have the office is kinda worthless but, I came in and charged and I made it to duck park without issue or problem. The picnic is a laid-back event nothing serious goes on just people talking in the good picnic stuff we've been doing it so long now I think it's also a place where consumers can look around and see who still live and thankful that made it to one more picnic. Today I got my mandatory hamburger and hot dog, potatoes salad and runny beans potato chips and pickles meant to the far side of the covered picnic area. With me in line of sight it when my old clients/consumers Tommy. Tommy has MS, is having since I've known him just 30+ years and is in the and stage of the disease process now. Tommy is still verbal and fairly alert, looks pretty thrashed but who would after 30 years with MS? Seems like Thomas respiratory system has been negatively impacted with the disease process every time I see them now expect this the last time I see him. But there is that the next function not Mr. wood chipper but he's there. I think, could prepare a lot better for the endgame, fuses a group that I facilitated for a number of years and I rode Tommy pretty hard to be more independent, to better prepare for the endgame did take to heart and sure enough his attendants seem a little spooky and questionable. As I said Tommy's breathing is labored makes it difficult to hear me speaks even more so in and out of doors setting like a picnic. But he was asking me a question today that I really want to hear so I leaned closer and he asked if I'd seen Steve, fellow trees to see Tom's company a lot 20 years ago I thought they knew each other from school and they were both in University. Steve was affiliated with a local low income food gathering program lost track of them over the years. But Tommy is asking had I seen Steve recently and I had seen Steve about a year ago and he left me with the idea he was going look Tom up and I guess it never happened. Of this meeting with a commitment to myself that I was in the fine Steve Johnson given meeting up with Tommy for Tommy passes away. It won't be long you can hold out much longer but then again I've been wrong before.