September 2, 1991

“You have such great friends,” JoAnna tells me as we leave Renee’s cottage in the middle of a Labor Day afternoon.

I certainly agree with her. It has been more than four years since any of the old group have spent any time together. This time it’s the same four as last time: Renee, Mardi, Barb, and me. It’s a brief reunion. I can only spare four hours of the holiday. The picnic at Lar and Kim’s is later the same day.

Renee looks as though her weight has plateaued. She’s still big, but not as massive as she was, say, in 1978, while I stopped for a visit in Columbus while on the move from Springfield to Oshkosh. I think the problem then was that she had just started to get into the catering business as a sideline. Morrey looks as though he is continuing to lose weight very gradually, but noticeably. They both still smoke, and I would guess they are easily pack-a-day smokers. I ask Renee is she still sings and she answers no, not in years. It’s a shame. She’s the only person I know who could sing along to “Mrs. Robinson” and make the song sound like an aria.

Renee’s dad has remarried. Her name is Carol and she seems very standoffish. Of course Renee’s chumminess would make anyone seem like a wallflower.