Today, my husband and I visited my folks to celebrate  my dad’s belated birthday. Mom put in all of the leaves in the dining room table so that Mike and I could  sit at one end, and she and my dad could  sit at the oher end. We had  carryout  lunch from a barbecue  joint close to my folks, ate it in the well-ventilated  dining room (patio door and window were both open).

We spent most of our time on the deck outside, with us at one end, them at another. We just chatted about current  events, ogled birds and wildlife and speculated about how businesses  will have to adapt to a germophobic world. My mom said estate sales are being done virtually now, though  it takes the fun out of it for her. And would that thrift shop she works  in start offering curbside  pickup? “So you want the size 8 pink stretch pants with the chocolate stain? Great just drop a quarter in the bucket and we’ll  run those to your car.”

Peter Finch in Network. What does this have to do with this blog? Read on! He is one of two posthumous acting Oscar winners, the other being Heath Ledger.

We also told some  bad  jokes! When we were watching  a finch, I pretended  the finch’s name was Peter. “How are you  doing, Peter Finch?” The response, of course  was  “I’m  mad as Hell and I’m  not  going to take it anymore.”

A little joke referencing  Peter Finch’s quote from the 1976 movie Network. My dad  said he’d never seen the movie, and my mom said  she recorded  it on the DVR but hadn’t  seen it.

When we left, we picked up some things from their front porch and I “hugged” them from a distance. I could  tell they  wanted  more than a socially distanced  hug!

“Soon,” I said  to them.