Holiday Update

Things have been a bit hectic lately, so I haven't gotten around to updating for a while.

On Friday, the twelfth, I visited my friend Natasha, who had just finished her last exam.

That Sunday, Natasha came over to Malibu, and we hung out a bit before going over to a Chuck-E-Cheese, where we saw the twins. We came at about the same time as my aunt, uncle, and cousins did; my sister and her boyfriend Matt arrived a bit later. Looking after the twins can be tiring sometimes, but it's good to see them when I get the chance.

I went along with Chrissie, Matt, and a couple of Matt's friends to a midnight premiere of the Return of the King. I hadn't fully realized that we would have to wait in line, since the tickets had already purchased, but we ended up in line for at least an hour. This was a little problematic for me; although I had brought a sweater, I hadn't prepared myself to wait in the 'chilly' California weather. I finally made it back to my room at around 4 in the morning. Naturally, my schedule was completely messed up for the next few days.

Friday (Dec. 19th) was very busy. That morning, the family had to drive out to Redlands for my grandfather's funeral. Along with the other grandchildren, I was a pallbearer, and stood throughout the ceremony. Although I think that most of my emotions had already come out when he had died, the ceremony was naturally a bit emotionally difficult as well. After the funeral, we went to a wake at the nearby home of a relative. My sister and I had spent most of the time chatting with our cousins before leaving.

OBITUARY: ROBERT ALEXANDER WEATHERUP
Passed away at his home in Portola Valley on December 6, 2003. He was born on December 19, 1916, near Champion, New York, and grew up with his parents and sister on dairy farms in Northern New York. He graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1940, and later earned graduate degrees from the United States Naval Post graduate School and from the California Institute of Technology.
During more than 20 years as a Naval Officer he served in various roles. In World War II, Mr. Weatherup participated in the rescue of survivors from the aircraft carrier Wasp. He was also involved in two night battles off Guadalcanal. Awards associated with that service included a Commendation Ribbon with Combat "V" and a Purple Heart. Flight training on the east coast followed Mr. Weatherup's duty in the Pacific, and later he was Executive Officer of Fighting Squadron 46. The awards from that deployment included 2 Distinguished Flying Crosses, 4 Air Medals, and a Navy Unit Citation. During the Korean War Mr. Weatherup was Commanding Officer of Air Anti-Submarine Squadron VS-892. He was later Operations Officer of the aircraft carrier Boxer, Captain of the icebreaker Burton Island, government engineering representative to a manufacturer, and Professor of Naval Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. After retirement from the Navy in 1961, he worked for Douglas Aircraft Company, McDonnell Douglas Company, and Lockheed, as an aerospace engineer.

In 1943, Mr. Weatherup married Kathryn Hesser of Redlands, California. She passed away in 1997. During their 54 years of marriage, the Weatherups lived in Massachusetts, New York, Maryland, Washington, Missouri, and several California cities, including Redlands, Chula Vista, Rolling Hills Estates, and San Jose. They had three children, and were involved in many community and church activities.
In recent years Mr. Weatherup lived in Portola Valley with his daughter, Ann W. Gage and her husband Stanley. In addition to his daughter and son-in-law, Mr. Weatherup's survivors include two sons and their wives, Roy and Wendy Weatherup of Northridge, California, and John and Carolyn Weatherup of Lincoln, California. He is also survived by six grandchildren, Chris and Sarah Gage, Jennifer, Christine, and Kathryn Weatherup, and Rebecca Moore; and one great grandchild.

After getting back from the funeral, I quickly made my way across LA for the screening party for Party Wagon, a TV movie for Cartoon Network (I know the creator of the cartoon, and he invited me). Unfortunately, I got a flat tire, but it happened very close to the venue (the Gene Autry museum, to go with the Western theme of the cartoon), so I could afford to deal with it after the event.

Though I had plenty of work to do, I finally made it back to Northridge late in the afternoon of the 24th. That evening, the family put presents under the tree, ordered pizza, and got ready for Christmas.

Christmas went well. I think everyone got presents that they liked, and the celebration itself went smoothly. That morning, we opened the presents under the tree, including the special 'Santa' gifts (in this case, a breadmaker and an Adobe suite) which we have to search around the house for. Since we were hosting the family festivities this year, we cleared out our presents before the guests came. Guests included my mom's parents, my aunt and uncle, the twins, the twins' godfather, and his girlfriend. I spent most of the day looking after the twins. One of my cousins (James) has chosen me as his 'favorite' and constantly asked if I had finished with my dinner so we could play. Although the day was slightly tiring, it was enjoyable, and I think everyone was happy with how it went.

I had originally planned to go back on the 26th, but I stayed around for an extra day. I spent most of the day with Chrissie; we went to a late lunch and watched a movie (The Triplets of Belleville, which I had wanted to see for a while).

I now have to concentrate on my paper for the Administrative Law Journal, as a rough draft is due shortly after classes start again. I only hope I have enough time and willpower to do a good job on it.