Myrtle Beach 2006 – The Fun Begins with Passing the Hat
Sunday, December 17th, 2006
Although we are only a week away from Christmas Eve, temperatures are expected to reach the 60’s today. Already it is 53 degrees and it is only 8:30 a.m. Last week the temperatures went from the sixties to nine degrees and back again. This is easier than bearing the extreme cold, mind you, but this crazy weather is making me long for Summer again. And that means it’s time to begin my Myrtle Beach 2006 series of photos!
One of the reasons I voted in 2004 to have the convention in Harlem was because it gave me the opportunity to visit Oliver Hardy’s birthplace. Often I had considered making the trek to attend the annual Oliver Hardy festival in October but it never panned out. Since the town is somewhat off the beaten path, I knew it would be difficult to swing into Harlem during any of our frequent trips through Georgia to Florida. 
Bob’s mother Sandra Lee Chandler passed away last week on Wednesday, November 29 after a lengthy bout with lung cancer. In the end, she was ready to go and made the decision not to prolong her belabored breathing with artificial means. Although I was never what you would call close with Sandy, my family did have occasion to celebrate various holidays and events with her over the years. She was always supportive of Denise and me and made it a point to be involved with our weddings. 
Following the great Pee-Wee victory and day in the sweltering Georgia heat at the Golf Hall of Fame, we were all ready for some indoor activity. That afternoon saw the Grand Council meeting, a gathering of Sons to discuss ‘business’ matters at hand. For the second year in a row, there was no business – as most of the Sons are too bored, complacent, or old to care about much any more. So we voted on the next convention. Our choices were Sacramento, Detroit, and Amsterdam. Since Amsterdam promised to be an extremely costly trip, I voted for Sacramento.