End-Of-Summer Party 2007

 When I decided to call this the end-of-summer party, it was not actually my intention to have the party during a rain storm.  Next time, we'll have an "almost-the-end-of-summer" party!  We had a great time despite the rain, and had plenty of rain-free time for a couple rounds of Mondo Croquet and Bocce ball.

A Rainy Day Picnic at Manchester State Park

The group enjoyed a great meal of cheese burgers, chicken and ribs, grilled by a Hefty-poncho-clad Eric.  Not everybody can carry off this look but Eric does it quite well!  Hanna helped out by cleaning up the hot dogs that fell on the ground and the ones that got a little too charred.

The food was great despite the primative tools. 

There was just a little rain, so Bonner's umbrella was just the right size 

Mondo Croquet was a blast.  We did have to modify the rules a little as we played, which of course is totally in the spirit of the game!  The field had a tiny cross-slope, and there wasn't much grass left by this time of year, so balls tended to roll sideways off the field at the end of each shot.  The modified rules are that you can stop a sideways rolling ball after 3 seconds or longer - letting it roll until it lines up with the next wicket was definitely encouraged.  Next time, we'll make sure there's some grass on the field!

None of the balls broke in two, but several did show battle scars!  The green ball shown to the right in the picture (my dad's bowling ball!*) was the first casualty, losing a big chunk.  This was actually an aid to the game as the ball would stay put when it stopped.  There's a smaller chunk out of the green ball on the left but it was leaving a trail of smaller pieces on every hit. 

The Winner of the First-Ever Gay Mondo Croquet in Kitsap County - Bonner

 * Dad last bowled in the early 70s, so I don't think he'll mind.

 A big thanks to everyone who joined in the fun.

Kitsap County Fair and Stampede 2007

 Award winning brownies?  What award winning brownies?

Blair does his best to hide Eric's award winning brownies at the Kitsap County Fair.

A group from OWS enjoyed the Tough Enough To Wear Pink Rodeo and had a great time at the fair.  In addition to Eric's 6 ribbons for baking, Duane got 2nd and 3rd place ribbons for his paintings and Kelly got two 1st place ribbons for his quilts.  Good job!

 Here's a picture of Eric and the award-winning brownies before they were savagely attacked and eaten by Blair!

They are really awesome brownies.  Even the tiny remnants  that Blair didn't scarf-down were still great when the fair was over...not that I would know :) 

Thank you Zaq and Gene for these pictures. 

 Kitsap Pride 2007

Bainbridge Island Grand Ol' Fourth Parade 2007