December 25, 2008: Christmas Day at My House
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Ron Mathis' House in Plano  

If you've already been to an album page that describes Ron's house in Plano, you might as well skip this section, because it is essentially the same information. Ron and Jay live in Plano, Texas, which used to be one of the northernmost suburbs of Dallas, but which is now considered moderately close-in. Plano, Ron tells us, has as many people as Tulsa when, as recently as 1965, there were only 5,000 people living there. Anyway, we go to Ron's house frequently, sometimes coming from Fred's, sometimes coming from my house. Now that Fred has retired, we will usually be making the trip from my house.

From my place, one goes south a bit on Inwood to Mockingbird and then over to the Tollway headed north. At I-635, one goes east about four miles to US-75 north. About twelve miles north there is an exit for Parker Road, which goes east to the town of Parker, where Southfork Ranch is. Parker is one of the east-west mile streets in the North Dallas grid.

We head west on Parker, and after a couple of miles turn into the area between Parker and Spring Valley- multiple neighborhoods of neat single-family homes. Ron and Jay have lived in this area for a number of years, and it is hard to count the number of times that we have visited them there.

Ron and Jay's New Year's Eve Party  

Unlike some years past, this year we'd have just a small gathering at Ron's house. Of course, Fred and I were there; Ron and Jay probably see us more often than anyone else. Steve and Mario were also there; we are in our second year of friendship with Steve and Mario, and Ron and Jay seem to like them as well. Usually, we would have had Lou also, and he was invited, but he didn't want to get out as there was some bad weather around this evening.

Jay outdid himself yet again in the hors d'oeuvres that he prepared and the meatballs and veggies that he cooked. The rest of us brought some desserts and drinks, but Jay did most of the work. There was plenty of really delicious finger food and nobody lacked for anything to eat. I made frozen drinks for three or four of us and Ron and Jay drank their usual. During the evening, we played pool, did some group surfing on the Internet, and played a game or two.

Of course, we also watched the ball drop at midnight (well, eleven, actually, since New York is an hour ahead). We had a great time; but then I freely offer Ron and Jay a well-deserved compliment in that Fred and I have had great New Year's Eve gatherings at their house, whether it's just us or with a bigger group, for almost ten years now, and we thank them very much for that.

Fred forgot his camera, so I took pictures for the both of us this evening. Steve also brought his own camera, so we had two photographers. Below are thumbnails for the candid shots that Steve and I took. Take your pick of the thumbnails; just click on them to view the full-size pictures:

Our thanks again to Ron and Jay for a very enjoyable New Year's Party.

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	December 25, 2008: Christmas Day at My House
	Return to Index for 2008