It's the day of the third annual Lovelace reunion. Gods, I dread it. Not so much because I don't want to see relatives, but because I just never seem to have any time at home. I worked last weekend, and they're pushing me out tomorrow, as well. So today is my day off, and I'll be sitting in Greenville trying to strike up conversations with people I don't know, as the saying goes, “from Adam's house cat.” I missed the second reunion, so I can't miss this one. But during the first we all essentially took turns talking to my uncle, Allen, who was the only one everyone knew. Hehe

Okay, some background is in order. Allen is my father's half-brother, and they never met. He got in touch with the family about a month after my father died in 1984, and then we lost touch with him again. About four years ago while doing genealogy research, I stumbled across a phone number in South Carolina for Allen Lovelace. Since he was the only Allen Lovelace in South Carolina, I figured this might be my guy and gave him a call. It was.

So, long story short, Allen was thrilled to hear from me. He had no idea me or my brother, Justin, existed. And he really opened his heart to us. We're largely the reason the Lovelace reunion got started, and they've all been kind and gracious. I've been lazy about staying in touch, but I hope my job is a decent excuse for that. My brother, Justin, is a party mogul in NYC, so he's not good at staying in touch, either. But Allen never lets us drift too far.

Anyway, we now have a small island of Lovelaces that get together every year to talk to Allen. Hehe. Well, that's not exactly true. We talk to one another, but Allen is the glue that makes the whole thing work. As for our branch of the Lovelace family, we haven't been able to connect to the larger tree, as it were. Our ancestry goes back to my great-grandfather, Richard Lovelace, and abruptly stops. So while there's a detailed history of the Lovelaces going far back into Merry Ol' England, we can't connect our group to it. So in a way we're the lost colony. Given the histories of my father and my grand-father, that's not a big surprise. Hehe

Anyway, today is all things Lovelace. I'm sure I'll enjoy myself. I'm taking a gaggle of Chaneys with me for moral support (my mother, an aunt and a cousin), and they could keep the conversation going while standing in line in Hell. I'm sure there'll be lots of uncomfortable questions about Mara and the breakup, but I know everyone will be respectful. And since before I found Allen I had never known another Lovelace relative other than my father, I'm going to enjoy being with family.

If I could find the digital camera I'd take pictures and post them. So ya'll consider yourselves lucky that I can't find it.