There are so many things that stir the memories. I knew Niels and Bodil were planning to come in September, but we hadn't finalized it all. They had both been during the late summer of 2012. Here we were talking arrangements for 2023.
When I was confirming that the bus was the bus to Cadrieu, Niels wrote: "I still remember catching the bus in the early morning when we were leaving the last time!" I wrote back:
"Isn't it great we have so many wonderful memories to share?"
Niels and I became friends through our blogs. Both overalls enthusiasts, we had a lot in common. He and some other "enthusiasts" began International Overalls Day that was celebrated at the end of November 2009 for the first time. It eventually grew to International Overalls Weekend.
My village still talks about our first overalls celebration here that November of 2009.
Niels and I became fast friends. Once he and Bodil came here in 2012, we became a trio and even faster friends.
They even came to New Orleans to celebrate my first New Orleans International Overalls Day.
Having that International Overalls Party on Columbus Street was a big deal for me. Almost everyone wore their overalls. It was a chance for me to make new friends and reconnect with the old. I remember telling John that having that party made it feel like Columbus Street was being reborn after the storm. It was important.
Now, with the return of Niels and Bodil, I am having similar feelings about the Chatette. Each visit made by friends and family, brings new life and more magic that we've so needed to be able to feel again since the fire and the pandemic.
We are coming back around.