Met a young man yesterday who was at a baby’s christening celebration. It came out during our conversation that I was going to France for the D Day remembrance and he told me that he really wanted to be there with his 90 year old dad but his status as a new father (to a two-week old boy) prevented the trip. They had gone to Normandy in 2008 for a tour of the beaches. His dad was in the 29th Infantry back in the day; that outfit was hit hard in the invasion. He mentioned the St. Lo breakout…my dad’s bunch took part in that, too. Funny, these connections life tosses at you. Thank you, Mike, for sharing some of your stories with me. Also enjoyed meeting your pretty wife, Jordan.

Still tying up loose ends here on the home front: checking the weather forecasts for Bayeux for the rest of the week, and it looks like a little bit of everything. Friday, June 6, apparently will be dry and kind of warm. Good news for sure.

Also picking up a few euros at the bank. Better exchange rates than at the airport. Good to have a little cash in hand.

My wonderful son Mike and my ‘baby’ brother Jim are house sitting for me. Check. Making copies a passports and credit card info in case of disaster. Check. Gathering all the charging devices for the electronic gadgets. Check, I think.

I’m taking my Ipad, cell phone, digital camera….and the implements needed to charge them overnight…..plus gizmos to give them a fast jolt. If I forget one of these, I’m doomed. Gotta stay connected, right? I figure that at some point I will just put all this stuff away and be in the moment!

Tomorrow’s liftoff is @6 pm. Let’s see how the travel experience goes…..from scanning vouchers for boarding passes to having the approved size and shape luggage to getting through security without setting off alarms by carrying more than one ounce liquids. It ain’t your grandma’s way to travel, that’s for sure!