Farewell Bobby

We lost our dear friend Bob Lindgren last month. He touched our family in so many ways, it seems inconceivable that we won't see him again when we got back to Bend in November. Bob's wife Lisa is one of my best friends, and a charter member of the GS club. JB and Bob spent many a wonderful day on the course at Bend G&CC and Broken Top. Tyler and Conor honed their slam dunk skills on Bob's new sport court on Rimrock Road, with Reggie cheering them on. Bob did Lasik and RK surgeries on me and JB, and lifted my eyelids when I was but 35. We will always remember our good times, and be thankful for the times we spent together.

This week marks 2 years since we all made the trip to Aotearoa to do the research for our impending adventure. It seems like a lifetime and a nanosecond all at once. What we didn't know then! I remember dropping the boys off at the airport on November 3 and turning on the radio to check the election results. Gobsmacked we were when we heard that Bush & Co. had won. JB had just crossed the US on his motorcycle trip and was certain that middle America had seen the light. I was ever the optimist and believed that the progressive movement would make their voices heard. Maybe next time, if people can tear themselves away from their prurient obsessions and focus on civil liberties.

What do I miss after nearly 2 years of self-imposed exile in an island nation in the South Pacific? Costco and Target, of course. Real broadband and ketchup. Dryer sheets. Tylenol PM (although you can buy codeine without a prescription). Jon Stewart. My friends. My sisters. And I'd give anything for an In-n-Out burger.

What's better? LAMB! Juicy, succulent and very cheap. Kumara and spring onions (puts our green onions to shame). The view from our beach house. All Blacks rugby. A truly egalitarian society. The continued success of Maoridom and its lessons for the rest of the world. Bro Town and Outrageous Fortune. Seeing my husband succeed again as only he can, and watching my boys come into their own using the skills they didn't really know they had.

For me, I am in awe of what we have accomplished in such a short time. We had so many strikes against us: starting a new business in an industry where 97% fail in the first year, in a country where quesadilla and tomatillo was not part of the lexicon, and as a family business no less. Oh My!

As JB and I approach our 20th wedding anniversary tomorrow, we contemplated a quick trip to Aussie for some golf in the "lucky land." However, we decided we could not ever find a nicer place to spend some quality time than right here, watching the ferries go by, looking out at the Southern Cross, and lifting a glass to our friend Bob.