Christmas is coming

For the past several years, I have done little in the way of decorating for Christmas.  This trend was started with Sally who over the years became a minimalist holiday decorator. But I have some old stuff in a box in the garage. This year, however, Val convinced old Scrooge to do something to liven up the place.  So we bought a (very) little tree and some lights. I put some lights up on a couple of trees outside.  The string said 100 lights (per tree) but it looks pretty sparse. Oh well, better than nothing. All the neighbors have stuff up and, although they haven't said anything in the past, today when I was putting up lights, one said that she was happy that I was doing it this year.

Val's mom (93) has finally moved out of her home into a care facility. Val's stepdad recently died at 94 after years of failing health and blindness from macular degeneration. Until recently they were living unaided in their home and Dorothy (mom) was still driving. For the past year or so, her memory has been deteriorating and she now has clearcut dementia, probably Alzheimer's disease. So Val has been very busy cleaning out her mom's house and getting ready to sell it. There is 93 year's worth of stuff in it and so it is a major undertaking. Val's children (2 "girls" and one "boy"--now 50) are taking what they want and the grandchildren (7) are also seeing if there is anything they want as a memento. They are making a dent and soon anything that is left will be donated.

My back is still a problem. I think (hope) the physical therapy is helping. Some days are pretty good and others are not. So far I have avoided surgery, but I am thinking that it still may be necessary. 

My newest ailment of aging is a problem with a tooth. For a number of months, maybe as long as two years, I have intermittently had a feeling of sensitivity in one tooth--an upper right molar. It seems to come and go and sometimes for weeks or months there is no apparent problem. The dentist has taken several films but has never seen anything. The tooth has previously had a root canal and a crown. Well, this fall the sensitivity returned and he thought there may be a low grade infection. A course of amoxicillin seemed to help but he wanted me to see an periodontist for an opinion. Well, the periodontist took a digital x-ray that had much more clarity and could be blown up. When he looked at it he just shook his head and said that the tooth had to come out. There was evidence of erosion of the bone under the tooth probably due to infection. So I went this week and had the tooth extracted (interesting experience--seems like your jaw is being fractured with all the cracking going on), but I didn't have any pain at the time. Even when the local wore off, the pain wasn't bad. I had some Vicodin but haven't needed much of it and now the pain is nearly gone. After the extraction he put in a bone graft (freeze dried bone, he said) and then sewed it all up. In a few months the bone will be incorporated into the jaw and an implant can be placed followed by a crown. This all happened so suddenly that I didn't see it coming. But so far so good.

Val has been looking for houses since her house was sold. Her furniture is in storage and it is costing a fair amount of money just sitting there. This week she found a home and made a bid that was accepted. Closing will be in a couple of weeks. The house is in Sugar Land where I live and is only a few miles away. We plan to still spend most of our time together, but this gives her a place to have her own space and a garden that she really misses.

Last week we went out to our favorite park near here to see the wildlife and birds.  It was good day to go and we saw at least 8 alligators and a variety of interesting birds. If you want to see some of the pictures you can find them here. One of the interesting ones I will post here of an alligator stalking an anhinga.

Finally back in Texas for a while

Well it has been a long time since the last post, but that doesn't mean that nothing has been happening.  Val and I drove to Panama City Beach to stay in the condo that is in the Sally Family Trust--I call it Sally's Condo.  We were there about three weeks, but I had to fly back to Houston for a couple of days for a board meeting at Lexicon, the small biotech company that I have been associated with for the last 10 years or so.  The condo was in good shape after a year of rentals, but there were still a lot of "chores" to do to make it perfect in our eyes. But the weather was gorgeous in 70's and low 80's and the water was about 80 degrees.  The beaches in the panhandle of Florida are so beautiful.  Don't get me wrong, I love the Pacific and the So. Cal beaches, but the beaches at Panama City Beach are so pristine white, the sand is so much finer that in Calif and the water is very clear.  Since there is little or no surf, depending on the weather, you can see fish and other critters in the water.  I saw one pretty good sized shark, lots of dolphins and rays and of course many birds.
After replacing some stuff, repairing a few things and having one wall painted, the place was perfect.  We ate lots of fish and shrimp and Key Lime pie.

Jimmy and Teresa Goode came down to their condo during the time we were there and they had visitors from England--Teresa's niece Sara, nephew John, John's girlfriend and their two children.  It was very fun meeting them all for the first time.

We left the condo and drove back through Lake Charles, LA and Beaumont, TX where we celebrated Val's 70th birthday with her children and grandchildren.  We got back to Sugar Land on Halloween.

It has become clear to me that my back has not improved as much as I had hoped after the last epidural steroid injection--but at least I did not get fatal fungal meningitis.  It is somewhat better, but I decided to see another surgeon for another opinion--this time an orthopedic surgeon.  I saw him on this Monday and he confirmed the diagnosis and we discussed several options.  I was encouraged by his comment that there is no urgency or medical necessity to do surgery for the degree of spine slippage that I have (grade 2 spondylolisthesis).  Since I have not really had physical therapy recently, I am going to try that and see if I am improved enough to avoid surgery.  I will be going today to get taught the regimen.

We heard good news yesterday that Craig and the boys will be coming here for Thanksgiving--arriving next Tuesday and staying until Saturday.  They will stay in my condo in Sugar Land.  We will be having dinner at Lorrie's.  Val will be going to celebrate with her family but will be back in time to have another dinner with us, I hope.  

October 8

Yesterday was Sally's birthday.  She would have been 71.  I thought about her a lot.

Well we are back in Texas--flew back a week ago.  We had a lot of stuff lined up to get done--Dermatology, Dentists, and another epidural steroid injection.  Had the injection a week ago and things are better but not as perfect as after the first injection 6 months ago.  I hope it will improve over time.  But, Yikes, the day after the injection I heard about the increasing cases of fatal fungal meningitis that had just begun being reported in several southern states.  Apparently some clinics use a steroid from a compounding pharmacy in Massachusetts and some vials were contaminated with particulate matter--fungi I guess.  Texas apparently had some of the vials but no cases as of now (we're all dying of West Nile virus).  However, I panicked and called the office to find out the source of the stuff they injected into me.  I was assured that they use a different steroid and that it was sourced from an ethical drug company.  Whew!  I find it hard to believe that any clinic would be using stuff that isn't regulated by FDA--maybe it's a few cents cheaper?  I guess the FDA is not allowed to regulate these pharmacies--the consequence of a Republican Congress and a Conservative Supreme Court.  And they want to get rid of even more regulations.  Dietary supplements are already exempt (thanks to Orin Hatch) from FDA oversight.  Such is life in these United States. Well--enough of that.

Val and I are driving to Panama City Beach, FL on Thursday for a couple of weeks.  As you may remember, I purchased a condo there in Sally's Family Trust and it has been renting well all year.  We are headed down to make sure it has all the stuff that is needed and to replace or repair any damaged items. We will be heading back at the end of the month and stopping in Beaumont where Val's children and grandchildren will be giving her a 70th birthday party.  She is a halloween baby.  So this is a busy time for birthday's.  I think we are all somehow indebted to New Year's eve or thereabout for the action.

Getting ready to go back to Texas

Since the last post, we have had a pretty quiet month.  We have caught up with family and friends. We've had lunch with Boyd and Helen at Thornton Winery in Temecula, my Orange HS gang in San Clemente and next week we will have lunch with Ken and Mo in Laguna. Part of the time was spent here with workmen fixing our upper deck that had developed a lot of dry rot over the 30+ years since this place was built. They did a great job and we now feel safe out on the deck.  

Today we went to the San Diego Zoo for the first time this year.  I always enjoy that and it is so large that you can see something different each time you go. We spent about 3-4 hours until we got tired and came home.  Next week, we hope to get out to the Wild Animal Park, which is owned by the zoo, but gives a different experience, a little like seeing the animals in the wild.

We will be flying back to Sugar Land on October 1. I will be having an epidural steroid injection again and Val has several doctor and dental appointments set up.  She is also looking to purchase a house sometime this fall or winter.

We plan to go to Florida for a couple of weeks in October to check out the rental condo that is in Sally's Family Trust.  We will be driving and we will overlap with Jimmy and Teresa who will be coming to Florida at the end of the October.  

Another busy month

August began quietly as Val returned to Houston to help with some of her grandkids.  After she returned, we had one more trip planned to the Pacific Northwest.  So on Friday, Aug 17th we flew to Seattle and 3 days with Len and Alansa Bates. Len was my college roommate and he was in my wedding.  Had a great time there - pike place market, Space Needle for Brunch, Chihuly museum (a glass artist of some renown, apparently), the salmon latter and the Ballard locks from Lake Union to the Puget sound, Anthony's for seafood, and, of course, great food and wine at Len's--really better than any restaurant.

We then rented a car and made a slow drive along the water up to Vancouver, BC to see Bob and Karen Rangno, who are old, dear friends from our time in Nashville at Vanderbilt U.  We spent a lot of time catching up, seeing the sights, and eating well. Bob is a very talented sculptor (now mostly wood, but some stone as well) and he has many of his creations in his house.  It was great seeing them and I hope they will visit us sometime in the near future.

We ended our trip with a visit to Jimmy and Teresa Goode, Sally's brother and sister-in-law.  They live in Port Ludlow on the Olympic peninsula at the mouth of the Hood Canal with a gorgeous view. Jimmy has a boat and sets out crab traps and so he has a supply of Dungeness crabs--we had a lot of crab and good wine and brought 5 frozen crabs home to Carlsbad where we shared them with Craig, Kathie and the boys.  While at Jimmy's we explored Port Washington, a very nice little town, and drove up to Hurricane Ridge in the Olympic National Park.  We loved seeing them again and hope that we will get together with them in October when they are going to be in Panama City, FL.  We hope to spend a couple of weeks there in the condo that I purchased last year as an investment. 

Health wise, we survived the trips but Val's knees and my back are still problematic.  I have scheduled another epidural steroid injection for the first week of October when we get back to Houston.

But it has been a fantastic summer.  Busier than any I remember, and everything worked out as planned. If you want to see any of our pictures of the trip, they are here.  And if you want to look at some of Bob Rangno's sculptures, they are here.

More trips

Since my last post, we have been on the go (still).  We took a short trip to Central California for a "reunion" with my Stanford Eating Club (Kinda like a fraternity only better).  We then went to Pinnacles National Monument for some hiking and then to Carmel for a couple of days.  Then when we got home, we turned around and went to Princeton where I had a meeting (part of my retirement plan) and then a few days in NYC.  We had a great time.  Val had never spent much time in the City so we did touristy things--major museums, a show, Carnegie Deli, and around the island cruise on the Circle Line.  The first night there we had dinner with my good friends Barry and Laura Gertz, who live on the upper west side.  We stayed in a hotel on the upper west side adjacent to the Museum of Natural History.  We had a great time.


Val is now back in Houston for a couple of weeks taking care of a few things and taking care of some grandkids for a while one of her daughters has a break.  She will be back just in time for us to take a trip to Seattle, Vancouver and Port Ludlow.  We will be visiting Len and Alansa Bates, friends of mine for over half a century.  We then will see some friends in Vancouver whom I haven't seen since forever.  Finally we will go and visit with Jimmy Goode, Sally's brother.  I love the Northwest and am looking forward to this trip.  It is the last big trip this summer, I think.


With all the traveling and walking around, my back has gotten worse.  The effects of the steroid injection seem to be waning.  I hope I can tough it out until I get back to Texas where I may get another injection.  Or maybe it will get better on its own (optimist). 


Here are some links to the photos from the above trips.
Carmel, Pinnacles, Big Apple.

It has been a busy month

A lot has happened since my last post a month ago. Val arrived from Texas and we have been busy! We took Christopher (Craig's oldest) to look at Stanford.  I hadn't been back to campus for a long time and it has expanded tremendously.  My old chemistry building is now all surrounded by chain link fencing and inaccessible for some reason.  There are new science and engineering buildings in a new quad adjacent to the old quad, which is still the same.  Stanford has an impressive art collection, particularly sculptures by Rodin.  It was fun to see.  I also saw some old friends that are in the Palo Alto area--I hadn't seen them since about 1968 so we were all a little older.


After that trip we went to the 50th anniversary of good friends Judy and Joel Bedford.  They live in Denver and the anniversary was at a rustic resort in Saratoga, Wyoming.  Sort of smoky in Denver but better in Wyoming when we arrived.  Val and I had decided that we would go on the Grand Teton and Yellowstone after the anniversary.  We got a place at Jackson Lake Lodge in Teton and it was just great.  We took trips up to Yellowstone and also explored the Teton area.  We are now back and recuperating before the next trip to Carmel next week and then NYC at the end of the month.  So it has been a summer busier than any I remember in recent years.  Val has never seen anything in the west so it has been fun to introduce her to the wonders.  Here are a couple of pictures.

In Carlsbad

Made it safely to the West Coast where the weather is as beautiful as always--actually a little better this year so far with little June Gloom. Have been trying to get reoriented to the condo here and getting it ship shape.   I love being back in California.


Yesterday I went to a memorial service for Virian Sturdevant who was a contemporary of my Mom's.  She died peacefully at 104 years young.  Virian was my Cub Scout leader.  She was a sharp as a tack until the end.  Those who spoke at her service indicated that when they saw her shortly before she died, she was reading the sports page of the LA times and she could discuss what she had read.  Virian was the mother of Don and Sara.  Don was my best friend from about 1st grade through high school.  A lot of my high school friends were at the service and it was fun seeing them all.  I think we will be getting together with several of them this summer.


Tomorrow Val arrives from Texas.  She will be here most of the summer.  Next week we will be driving up to Stanford to introduce my grandson, Christopher, to the school.  I would love for him to apply.  I haven't been back to the campus much since 1959.  I understand that it has expanded tremendously with many new buildings.


Here at the condo, a family of bluebirds has made a nest in roof tile of the adjacent condo.  I see the parents making continuous trips back to the nest with mouths full of worms.  I got a couple of pictures I want to share here.

Bringing Home Dinner

Heading for Home

Off to Carlsbad

I leave on Saturday to fly to Carlsbad. Val will follow in about a week. I'm just about packed and ready to go. It will be good to see Craig and his family.  Kathie was in a bad car accident and broke her leg and ankle in multiple places requiring surgery initially to stabilize things and then will require additional operations to make the ankle functional. The car was totaled and all the airbags deployed. She is lucky to be alive and we are all thankful for that.


Today was Stephen's graduation downtown Houston. This is a milestone. He is the oldest grandchild of all the Nies brothers (tied with Will, Boyd's grandson). Stephen has attended Stephen F. Austin high school, a good public school in Fort Bend County west of Houston. His HS class is about 600 students and the diversity of the class is quite amazing. I have heard that his high school is one of the most diverse in the country. As an example, Stephen went to senior prom last week with six other "kids" and he was a minority of one. The others were all the other colors. It is a reflection of what is happening nationwide, but here it is accentuated.  I think it is great.


I'm going to post a few pictures taken of my condo from across the lake and also to show a neat sculpture that we got at the local street art festival "the bayou city art festival" that is held twice a year in Houston. It is a wind sculpture and the slightest breeze will send it spinning. It is up on the top terrace and is quite mesmerizing. 


I will continue to post occasionally since several people have said that they appreciate it and it is an efficient way to communicate.

These are the condos. Mine is the second from the near end

This is the condo 

Fourth Floor Terrace with sculpture

Here it is on a SS curving base

Still Doing OK

When I wake up in the morning (or more often than not in the middle of the night) I always wonder whether the back pain that radiates to the left buttock will return that day.  So far it hasn't. I am not pain free, but the really awful pain has not returned.  I'm hoping that the steroid has calmed the inflammation and that the cycle has been broken. So if I'm lucky, maybe I can have a summer free of that pain.


I'm starting to think about getting out to Carlsbad. I will be flying out this year on June 2nd. I'm looking forward to being there and spending time with Craig and his family. Val will be coming later in June and spending most of the summer, but she has to come back at least once. We have several things planned for the summer.  Joel and Judy Bedford are celebrating their 50th anniversary a the end of June. They are having the party in Saratoga, Wyoming. So we are planning to fly to Denver and rent a car to drive to Saratoga. Afterword we plan to go to Grand Teton and Yellowstone parks for a few days. We were unable to find any lodging in Yellowstone and will be staying at the Jackson Lake Lodge in Grand Teton and make day trips up to Yellowstone. Val has never been up there and I haven't been to Yellowstone since the fire.


I'm also hoping to take Christopher up to tour Stanford this June. I would like him to apply and continue a family tradition. My mother, Boyd, and I went there.  I don't think legacy helps much, but it can't hurt. 


Toward the end of July there is a Board of Directors meeting for Lexicon Phamaceuticals, a company based in the Houston area. I am on the board and the July meeting will be held in Princeton, NJ where Lexicon has an office. I'm hoping that I can extend that into a trip to NYC for a few days--still tentative.


And then in August I would like to take Val up to Seattle to see my special friends Len and Alansa, my brother-in-law Jimmy and Teresa, and possibly get up to Vancouver to see my friends, Karen and Bob Rangno, whom I haven't seen forever. No real plans yet and we'll need to coordinate with friends, but I hope it happens.


So a busy summer. I've been debating whether to keep writing this blog, but I do hear from folk that they look at it once in a while, and I feel more comfortable with this than Facebook that I haven't figured out and not sure I want to. So I guess I will continue my infrequent notes.

Two years

Yesterday was exactly two years after Sally's death. It has gotten easier to handle the loss, but on the actual day, it was still hard. I try to remember all the many years of good things and to not dwell on the last few days or weeks in April/May, 2010.  Lorrie and Craig share my feelings, but I think that we are all doing pretty well.


Val and I went up to Austin last weekend to see some of her friends.  It is a fun city to visit--maybe the best in Texas.  Their motto is "keep Austin weird".  And it is--in some ways.  Just before leaving, I noticed a dent in the tailgate of our SUV and I can't figure out what happened.  I think it may have been damaged in the hotel garage somehow.  Anyway, the car is now in the shop being healed.


Speaking of healing, my back is still improved.  In the past two weeks since the epidural steroid injection, there has been some return of back pain on the left, but the bad "nerve" pain radiating into the left buttock has not returned. So I am still pleased and hope that it will remain as is for a while.  I am not doing anything that might bother it, but I do use the recumbent bike and take some walks on our lake.  Spring is clearly here with newborn ducks in the lake.

You Talkin to Me?

Epidural Steroids

The epidural steroid injection to the left lumbar nerves 4 and 5 was complete on Tuesday at an outpatient surgical center in Houston.  It was performed by Dr. Doctor! He is a spine pain specialist also trained as an anesthesiologist.  They injected the steroids and local anesthetic while I was heavily sedated, so I don't remember a thing.  When I woke up, my left lower quadrant was paralyzed, from the anesthetic.  Over a couple of hours, I got so I could at least walk as long as I didn't bend my knee.  If I tried to put weight on anything but a stiff leg, I would collapse.  But there was no pain.  By about 6-8 hours post procedure, I was moving about pretty normally. The next day there was no more affect of the anesthetic, but there was still no pain.  Today (Saturday) I remain free of the type of pain that I have had for months.  It is really exciting.  


I asked him about physical therapy and he discouraged that.  He said that what physical therapists do is often not good for spondylolisthesis. I need to avoid extension of the back, which is one of the common things done in PT and in Yoga, which I am also going to stop for now.  I can use a recumbent bike but not swimming (extension again) and moderate walking is ok.  No heavy lifting, twisting.  Anyway, so far I feel better than I have in a long time.  Hope it lasts--duration of relief is variable they say, but the procedure can be repeated. 


On target for June 2 travel to Carlsbad!  Val will come out and join me a little later.  She is selling her house and hopes that will be done soon.  Her neighbor wants to buy it (without a realtor) so it looks like a done deal. Keep fingers crossed that the pain stays away.

Update

Right now I'm in the mountains with Craig, Christopher and Gavin. Kathie injured her foot a couple of days ago and could not come. It is very warm here and the snow looks marginal. I guess that may be typical for spring skiing. I have decided not to even try to ski with my back bothering me so much.

I saw the neurosurgeon on Friday who looked at my MRI and said that I have spondylolisthesis (a slipped disk) that was causing a compression of the nerves at L4-L5. He suggested a conservative course of physical therapy and epidural steroid injections and to only think about surgery if this failed. If surgery were needed, the approach would be a laminectomy (to remove bone that is compressing the nerve) followed by a fusion of the lower vertebrae to realign and stabilize the spine. This is major surgery and takes a long time to recover from. I am going to start the conservative approach as soon as I get back to Sugar Land and will delay any decision about surgery for a while. I still plan to go to California in June and if all goes well, I will be ok for the summer and then tackle that issue in the fall.

The trip to Fredericksburg was quite wonderful. I have a few pictures posted here. We were most enthralled by Hamilton Pool, which is in the last several pictures.

Away for the weekend

Val and I decided to take a weekend trip to Fredericksburg in the Hill country of Texas. The bluebonnets are in full splendor with all the rain this year and the sparse showing last year. Turns out that Lorrie is also here in an art class. We may not get a chance to see her since she is so busy. This is an old German town in central Texas with a lot of restaurants and tourists. And it is a very pretty part of the state.

Still plan on going to the mountains this next weekend to spend a week with Craig and his family. As I said before, not going to ski much until I get my back issue sorted out. I see a neurosurgeon on Friday and will be very interested in his analysis. The data from the neurologist and the MRI indicate stuff happening in the lower back, but I don't know if anything is reparable. Probably the old back injury in 1958 plays a role. Will let you know what he says.

The condo in Florida that is in Sally's Family Trust seem to be renting well. I hope this means that there will be some profit and that this will turn out to be a good investment. I like the idea of thinking of this as Sally's condo. I think she would like the idea.

Had a good time

We're back from Colorado and although not much skiing, we still had a good time. Val and I went to Lorrie and Craig's condo at Winter Park--arriving on President's day. Most of the people were leaving at the end of the day and the rest of the week was pretty deserted up there. On Tuesday we went to the slopes, got Val outfitted and in a class, and I went up to the slopes. We were worried about Val's knees and rightly so. After a while in a beginning class doing mostly snowplow, she had to stop. I think she would have been better off not taking the beginning class and maybe just playing around on her own since she has skied before. Anyway, my back was also giving me grief so I was happy to quit after 5 or 6 runs. The next two days up there were partly blizzard conditions and we stayed inside most of the time. Winds were up to 80 miles per hour and the power kept going off and on. On Friday, the day was nice and I went back up to the slopes and Val stayed in the condo. I skied for about 2.5 hours and then quit as the back was bothering again. On Saturday, we went to Denver and stayed with Joel and Judy Bedford and had a very nice dinner.

So even though we didn't do much, it was still nice to be there. I plan to go back next month with Craig's family, but still will not ski much. Now that I'm home, I decided to see someone about the back. I went to a neurologist this week and had an MRI. No report yet, but we shall see. I go back on March 20 to see him again. I have been putting this off for quite a while hoping the back will get better as it has in the past when it acts up. But this time it is more persistent and associated with clear nerve problems in my left leg.

Houston has had a very warm and wet start to the year. The drought is officially over here and the temperatures have frequently been in the mid 70's. Trees are leafing out or flowering and it really looks like spring. If you are growing tomatoes in this part the country, the plants should already be in the ground.

Going to Winter Park next week

Val and I are going to go to Winter Park, Colorado tomorrow--maybe to ski a little. I'll see how my back holds up (it's a little better) and Val will see if her knees can stand it. She hasn't skied for quite a while. She has a bionic knee, so we will see. Anyway it will be fun to get up to Lorrie and Craig's condo. I still hope to go with Craig and his family in early April.

Today was interesting. First Val and I went to a restaurant in town called the Breakfast Klub. They have stuff that you don't usually associated with breakfast. We had the Waffle and Wings (a Belgian waffle with fried chicken wings surrounding it) and the Katfish and grits (which also includes 2 eggs). Very busy place and a very mixed crowd. Sally and I had been there several years ago before it had been "discovered". There have been a couple of articles recently and it is 5 stars in Zagat's. Fun, and we won't need to eat again for a few days.

After the breakfast, we went to the Houston Museum of Natural Science, one of the really good museums here. They had a traveling exhibit on "Discovering the Civil War". It came from the National Archives and included a rare look at the original Emancipation Proclamation. It was on display for only a few days and was fascinating and a bit overwhelming.

Now home and getting packed to go tomorrow.

Sally's Trust Condo rented

We got Back from Florida and working on the Condo a couple of weeks ago. It is two bedrooms and two baths. The pictures I took of the place are here. It is on the rental program as of Feb 1 and it has already been rented for the month of February and March rentals are coming in. This condo is in the Sally G. Nies Family Trust and I think she would like it. You can see how Lorrie and Kathie furnished and decorated the place. We're hoping that this will rent well and the property will appreciate since the selling prices are now quite low. The rental agent is here. The unit is 2108 Treasure Island and you can look it up. Rates are very variable depending on time of year.

Since being back, I am still trying to get the Sugar Land condo more organized. Anytime you move it is a slow process to get stuff put where you want it and so you can find it. Val is helping me in this process.

Just had a colonoscopy for the first time in 10 years. From what I have heard, it was ok. No polyps but some divirticuli that are present in most people of a certain age. So that means I can wait 10 years again for another one of these. Most of you have had this done so you know the drill with the prep being the worst part of the procedure. At least no one can say I'm full of it (at least this weekend).

Unfortunately my back is still giving me problems. I want to go skiing this winter and may give it a try, but will probably not do much. I usually go with Craig's family to Winter Park. This year Christopher's spring break isn't until April. So it will be spring skiing, which isn't my favorite. It's possible I may go up earlier with Val, but we haven't yet decided.

I'm amused by the Republican presidential primaries and debates. The republicans claim to have a big tent for all types of people, but it seems that this year it is a circus tent with a variety of clowns. Why are people surprised at Mitt Romney's tax rate? That is the whole point of the Bush tax breaks to make the wealthy people wealthier. It seems to me that Obama is very vulnerable to being defeated this year because of the economy and perhaps other things that people are upset about. But it looks like the Republicans may self destruct--a process usually reserved for the Democrats.

Enough of that.

Happy New Year!

It has been another busy, but great couple of weeks. I closed on the condo in Panama City Beach on the 19th and it has been repainted and cleaned since then.

Craig and his family arrived on Christmas Day and we went to Lorrie's for Christmas dinner of prime rib, mashed potatoes, asparagus, Yorkshire pudding and a couple of pies. Val had dinner with us since her family gathering is after Christmas.

Craig, Kathie, Christopher and Gavin stayed with me in the Sugar Land Condo. There are two bedrooms and a bathroom on the first floor so there was ample room. The week was filled with the cousins all doing stuff together like movies, laser tag, and of course video games on their computers and other gadgets. The weather has been mostly nice after a cold Christmas day. But now it is about 70〫although it is supposed to cool down tonight. Craig and the boys flew back yesterday (New Year's eve). Kathie stayed on and we celebrated New Years in some far off land so that we could get to bed early.

This morning, Lorrie and Kathie are flying to Panama City Beach to begin furnishing and decorating the condo that we hope will be rented as soon as we get it ready. They haven't seen it so I am anxiously awaiting a call from them to see what they think of it. Val and I will drive to Florida on Thursday and arrive on Friday. We plan to stay until the place is ready to rent--I hope less than a week. I'll post some pictures next time.

Last Thursday, Val had her family's Christmas celebration at her house in my old neighborhood. There were about 40 people there. I went as did Craig and Kathie. It was fun. While we were there we went to sit on the bench that the neighbors dedicated to Sally. I've shown you this before, but it never fails to grab me when I am there. Since Sally was cremated, there is no fixed memorial spot except for this bench. However, Sally's ashes are scattered at some of her favorite places coast to coast.

I'll report back after the Florida trip. I'm excited.