Back to Search for Haime's Mothership...

In September of 2013, I kidnapped Haime and took him to Marfa, Texas. I actually blogged about the trip so some of you may remember it, if not, please read the post at http://losborn81.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-stars-at-night-are-big-and-bright.html, it's kind of amusing.

For those of you who have already read it (or just don't want to go back in time...I getcha), let me give you a quick recap...First, you should know that Haime is a bit of an "astronomy nut" (yes, he is other kinds of nuts too but that's for another blog...). Second, Marfa is famous for it's "mystery lights." I first saw the lights about 20 years ago and was fascinated by them. Haime has never seen them; and third, Haime is also fascinated with the thought of "extraterrestrials" (yep, another sample of his "nuttiness"...) so, combine "mystery lights" and "extraterrestrials" and POW! perfect birthday present. Sadly, after driving about six and a half hours into the middle of west Texas, we found ourselves in the middle of fog, mist, clouds and occasional rain...and NO MYSTERY LIGHTS. We combined the "mystery lights" with a visit to the McDonald Observatory for one of their "star parties." Unfortunately, the rainy, cloudy weather followed us and we were unable to see anything through the telescopes...BUST!

Well, we decided to try again. This time we arranged to meet our friends, Jim and Kathy, to do another search for the lights and the stars. (Haime was actually hoping to have a "close encounter with the mothership"...wooOOOOooo). Kathy and I were much more methodical about our date planning for this trip. We looked for a springtime "new moon phase" and decided on the last week of April. So, we made reservations for lodging and bought our "star party" tickets and we were set.

Haime and I drove to Marfa...this is no small feat! For those of you not familiar with the drive to and through west Texas, let me try to describe it...its........LONG!!! There are gazillions of opportunities to look at the wonders of nature; the towns (most of which you don't have to slow down to go through), are about 100 miles apart; the speed limit is 75 mph for most of the drive, since there are no towns, and few other cars/people with whom you may crash. However, it is a LONG drive, oops, I just said that, didn't I? Anyway, we made it. In Marfa, Haime and I love to stay at the Paisano hotel. It was built in June of 1929, (terrible timing if you think about what happened four months later...look it up). The architecture and the decor are stunning. Their restaurant and bar are definite bonuses!

Kathy and Jim were coming from a business trip in New Mexico and arrived in Fort Davis a couple of days before us. They drive a MONSTER RV and tow a "scooter" (I use quotations here because their "scooter" is actually a "rice rocket" that is capable of exceeding the speed of sound!). ANYWAY, after we checked into our hotel, we drove to the Indian Lodge State Park, outside Fort Davis, to bring them back to Marfa for dinner, drinks and "mystery light" hunting. "In Real Life", they live about 25 miles for us but we don't see them nearly as often as we'd like. We all joked about having to travel over 350 miles from home to spend time with each other...sad. So after dinner, we went out to the "Mystery Light Viewing Park" (when I was there 20 years ago, you just pulled off the side to the road and stood in a field...). Lo and Behold, we all saw the lights. They were much more distant than my previous experience but there were more people so maybe they were scared off by the crowd...who knows? Anyway, Haime saw the lights, so scratch another thing from the list.

The next day, Haime and Jim decided to play golf, Tin Cup style! If you've not seen the movie Tin Cup with Kevin Costner, you must do so to really understand this reference. We had driven by the course the night before and spotted an antelope on one of the fair-ways...they guys had a great time!

While they were on the links, Kathy and I decided to explore Marfa. If you read the "travel" tourism sites etc, you might read things like "Marfa, the new Austin," or "Marfa, a mecca for the arts," or some other equally alluring advertisement. Well, after walking through the ENTIRE town, let me assure you this...I've been to Austin, I have worked and played in Austin, I know Austin, and Marfa is NO Austin. Now, to be fair, we were there on a Monday, of course, I thought Monday was pretty universally known as the first day of the "work week." Of course, I didn't take into account that Marfa is the home of the "mystery lights" so maybe the laws of this known universe don't apply to Marfa. Most of the shops/galleries/studios we tried to visit gave their hours as Wednesday through Saturday, noon to five. At least my bank account was happy with these odd hours.

So, since buying and admiring art wasn't in the cards for us, we decided to take a short drive out of town to see the "Marfa Maid" dairy and goat cheese company. We followed the directions given by a couple of locals and were assured that the proprietors were really nice people. Well, we turned onto the "dirt road" off of "Antelope Hills" and started looking for goats and hoping for a sign...we got several signs...not any of them warm and welcoming, in our opinion. The first one, we were on a DIRT road. Now, I'm really not a snob, nor am I a germaphobe, however, I kept thinking about the whirlwind of dirt we were driving through and looking at the "houses" we were passing and wondering about what "all natural ingredients" were really in the "all natural" goat cheese. The next sign was the "tumbleweed Easter Bunny" pictured here. I'll grant you that it is unique, some might say clever, BUT, given its juxtaposition with the surroundings, we took it as a sign that clearly read: "keep your eyes and ears open!" The final sign, whose meaning we heard loud and clear was the property where we found the goats. It resembled more of a commune than anything else. There seemed to be a "main house" with several "auxiliary houses" surrounding it; there were overgrown "vegetable" beds, goats, a couple of cows, an alpaca (or was it a llama?) that seemed to be purposefully teasing the horses across the road, and no sign of a "cheese-making" facility. OH, they had a bunny too. Theirs, however was a large stuffed bunny that they had tied around the neck and hung loosely to a fence post---CREEPY! We decided that we really didn't need to see what "natural ingredients" they put into their cheese and decided to go find a liquor store/bar instead...good call, I think!

After our liquor run, we went out to the course to collect the guys and sipped an adult beverage while they finished. We drove back to the state park and Haime and I checked into the lodge. Later that night, after a yummy dinner at a "Bar and Bistro" in Fort Davis, we had a successful star party, even though it was FREEZING!

The most fun part of the trip was getting to reconnect and visit with our friends. It's funny too how much faster time seems to go when you are with people you love and the trip back home also seemed to go so much faster, partly because Haime and I talked about our time spent with them. Thanks Kathy and Jim, and of course, it must be shouted: BTHO Arkansas! WHOOP!!! (Did I mention that they are big fans of the piggies?)


TTFN

Lois

 

Happy Mother's Day

I fully understand how blessed I am. One of my biggest blessings is the family into which I was born. It would be hard for many of you who know me as an adult, to believe that I could have been a challenge for my mom, growing up. You'd probably be surprised to know that I might have been a bit "strong-willed" and my sense of humor might have been, (still might be), a bit "warped" sometimes. For example, I bet you didn't know that when I was about 5(ish), I ran away from home...my sister cried for me to come back but I think mom probably secretly thought, whew, now I only have to worry about raising 4 girls rather than 5. HA, I bet she was surprised when I came home in time for lunch!

As I got older, it seemed that mom and I were often polar opposites about nearly everything. If she wanted to make me a pink dress, I told her I hated pink...oops, did you get that? Mom made all of our clothes as we were growing up. The thing is, even as we disagreed about nearly everything, I never doubted that I was loved and cherished...the same can be said for each of my sisters. Mom had a knack for making us all feel special. She managed a household, raised five daughters and maintained her sense of humor and her sanity throughout! She was/is a very talented lady. To this day, she makes designs and "hand-quilts" beautiful king-size quilts and decorative wall hangings, she is active in our church, volunteers her time at the local hospital, and spends time with her girlfriends.

Mom at one of the "antler arches"
at the entrances to the town square
in Jackson, WY

Since my retirement, mom has become my most frequent travel-buddy. I definitely got my "wanderlust gene" from her. In fact, she is often the first to question, "when and where are we going next?" I've decided to insert some of our travel pics here to illustrate some of our adventures.

Guess...

Mom on our
gondola ride in Venice,
Italy

with my sister Carol and my niece Hannah

Seattle Space Needle

at the Grand Canyon

Bar Harbor, ME

with mom's friend Doris & my sister Karen

Boston

By far, the most important thing in mom's life is her family. We are as close as any family can be and probably a lot closer than most. Sometimes, we might feel a little "too close" but I cannot begin to explain how comforting it is to know to the very marrow of you soul that you have a host of strong, intelligent and loving women in your corner. Our mom is our matriarch, our role model and our biggest cheerleader. All I can say is Thanks mom! We love you to the moon and back!!!

Happy Mother's Day!
TTFN,

Lois

Herding Cats

I think I've devoted plenty of space in this blog in the past, giving examples to support my grandson's exceptionally gifted status so I'll just cut to the point of this post...are you ready?....T-BALL! Yes, the "most amazingly gifted grandson, in the history of grandsons, is playing t-ball!!!

OK, just as a note of explanation to those not familiar with the sport...t-ball is "baseball-light." That is, the players hit a baseball from a tee. After that, the only obvious difference between t-ball and regular baseball is that each player plays every inning and each player hits every inning. 

I have to say, this is the single best hour of my week! The kids have a great time, the parents cheer for every player, (often on each team), the coaches are encouraging to the players and the overall atmosphere is one of excellent sportsmanship. (It's unfortunate that doesn't continue very far beyond the t-ball field!) Wait, I forgot to mention that t-ball teams are composed of 4-6 year old (mostly boy) players...

I have to tell you about the coaches. Before the season's games started, I went to watch Carter practice. It was one of the first practices and the coaches were trying to teach the boys some very basic, fundamental, aspects of the game. They spent a majority of the practice time with the idea of "catch (or run after) the ball and throw it to first base." They practiced "catch the ball and throw it to first, catch the ball and throw it to first, catch the ball and throw it to first..." over and over and over and over. The boys thought it was great fun! Each time the coach bunted the ball toward a player, all of the boys would run to the ball. ALL OF THEM! There was no concept of left field, short-shop, first base or right field. Literally, every player on the field ran toward the ball to throw it to first base. I laughed so hard, my sides were splitting!

The next "drill" involved two boys who were to stand at home plate, then, when the coach hit the ball, one boy at a time would run to first base. Got it? So, the coach hit the ball and....you guessed it, both boys tore out racing each other and all of the rest of the team toward the ball so they could throw it to first base. Hahaha! by now, I'm laughing so hard, I'm afraid I need to find a restroom! Pandemonium ruled the day!

The boys did get better, they actually learned what was going on pretty quickly and they continue to improve every week. But, there are several 4-year olds on the team, and being 4 years old means that you don't have a great attention span and if you don't keep yourself entertained, it might get a bit boring waiting for somebody to hit a ball near you; so, there is a fair amount of dirt drawing and pebble hunting and parking lot watching that goes on. BUT, let a ball get near any of the guys and they are all after it! 

I have to say, the coaches and team moms/dads are AWESOME! They are positive, upbeat and extremely patient with the players. I must confess, though, one of my favorite parts of the whole game is watching grown men try to control these little guys. It really is like watching them attempt to herd cats!

TTFN

Lois

Tripping on Gravestones...

You know the adage: "The best laid plans of mice and men..."? (Adapted from a 1785 Robert Burns' poem, the actual line reads "The best laid schemes of mice and men..."---yep, the geek is back). Well, my plan was to write this post about a month ago, so excuse the time lapse but it must be done!

Haime and I are all about celebrations and parties. Mother Nature is telling us that spring is here. Flowers are blooming, (just ask Haime's allergies if you need confirmation), birds are nesting, temperatures are perfect and all is right with the universe. At the time this picture was taken, Easter was about three weeks away. If you've been following this blog, you might recognize the place. Several months ago, they were having a sale and I wrote about my confusion as to what the heck one sells in a cemetery. ANYWAY, the latest strangeness involved an Easter Egg Hunt on the cemetery grounds. 

OK, I'll admit, maybe the "strangeness factor" is just with me. But I've got to tell you, it nears the top of the BIZARRE scale in my book. Maybe it's the way I was raised. When I was a child, I often went to the cemetery with my grandmother to lay flowers on her parent's graves. As we walked from the parking lot to the grave-sites, she would always remind me to be careful not to walk on any of the graves so as not to disturb the dead. Yep! I've been freaked out about being in grave-yards for decades! 

When I was doing my undergrad work, I took a class, (yes, smart-asses, I actually went to some of my classes...don't forget, I can actually read your minds while you are reading this!), with an assignment to do "gravestone etchings" of some early stones. We were to spend time in the cemetery checking out various things like looking at ages of the dead, earliest death dates, any years that seemed to have extraordinarily large numbers of deaths compared to other years, etc. Anyway, I was so freaked out about spending time in the graveyard, (graveyard seems to have a scarier gut feel for me than cemetery), that I really tried getting out of the assignment...several times...I finally decided that if I had a couple of beers before the graveyard trek, I might be able to get through it...it worked. 

Getting back to the Graveyard Easter Egg Hunt...as soon as I saw the sign, my (extremely visual) mind pictured children dressed in their Easter dresses and little suits, running to and fro across graves, and knocking each other into and over gravestones. All-the-while, their zombie-like parents just sat in lawn chairs and grinned at their little monsters as they ran around hunting and collecting plastic eggs. Seriously, my mind's eye saw some serious "disturbing the dead" happening! 

In all likelihood, it probably was a very tranquil affair, however, let's just say, if there is a Zombie Apocalypse anytime soon in our neck of the woods, Haime and I are sure it will have been the result of the Easter Egg Hunt at the cemetery!      

TTFN,

Lois

Treasure Hunting

Yes, I know, its been a while...life happens.

I LOVE adventures! For me, adventures come in all shapes, sizes, colors, locations, etc. Sometimes adventures come in books. I am an avid reader, so much so that I have to limit myself to the times I read. I can easily shut out life and spend an entire day starting and finishing a really good book. Other times, my adventure comes in my travels. My wanderlust is well documented and should never be discounted. I've actually surprised myself in that particular regard lately, as I haven't felt the "pull of the road" since August. (It'll be interesting to see how much longer that lasts!) My woodworking hobby is also adventurous. I've written previously about having learned my skills from my dad. He's been gone for almost seven years and to this day, I feel him with me every time I work on a project. In fact, I start each woodworking day with the same question (asked aloud when no one is around...just saying): "Well dad, lets make some sawdust, what do you think?" My relationship with him was/is one of my most sacred treasures.

Well, today I went on an adventure at/for our church. I went treasure hunting today and couldn't believe the booty! Our parish is scheduled to celebrate the 100 year anniversary of the "new church" building this month I went "treasure hunting" through some of the old storage cabinets and into "the dungeon." YES...DUNGEON! Okay, its not the dungeon that you might expect, given the chambers of horror we all associate with dungeons on television/movies and in books, but, I have been fascinated with the idea of the dungeon at church since I was a kid (yes, that's a LONG time!) While many of you would probably not react with the same excitement as I, over the treasures we rediscovered, for me, it was so much more than bringing long forgotten tools and artifacts to light. Our treasures represented a tangible connection with my history.

As we examined the pieces (and cleared decades of dirt and dust), I could not help but wonder about and imagine what the early worshipers were like. Did they attend mass out of a sense of obligation or were they "Christmas and Easter Catholics." Were they devout followers who defined themselves, in part, by their Catholic faith? My grandparents were members of our church, as was my great grandfather and my great-great grandmother. This knowledge is another treasure for me. You see, family, regardless of distances of time and space, is my greatest treasure.

TTFN,

 Lois

"Y'all Just Ain't Gonna Believe This..."

If you've read very many of my posts, you should have probably figured out at least a couple of things about me. First, that I have a bit of a warped sense of humor and second, I love stories, telling them and hearing them. Well, most of us grew up hearing fairy tales and bedtime stories that began with the words: "Once upon a time...". However, having grown up in God's country, our stories more often than not begin with: "Y'all just ain't gonna believe this, but..." Now, to be honest, some of the stories I have told, in some of my posts as well as in some of the tales I have told verbally, might have had a bit of "yarn" woven through them. However, some of the funniest, and most unbelievable, have been absolutely true. 

I wrote last time about some of the entertaining things I have seen while "people watching." This post is going to be about some of the other funny things I have seen during my wanderings..."Y'all just ain't gonna believe some of this" so I've included pictures to prove these things are all true (give or take a lie or two).

As we near the end of the Christmas season, we are all overwhelmed with signs that tell us of great savings to be had. In all honesty, I am guilty of "Christmas shopping" year round. My shopping, however, is not really promoted by promises of great savings, rather, I spot things, (usually during my wanderings) that just look like the perfect gift for ______________ so I snatch the item up and save it for Christmas, (or a birthday or an anniversary or...well, you know). This "Sale Today" sign, however, just cracked me up!

That's right, someone thought it would be a great marketing tool to have a sale in a cemetery. Now, I ask you, what the hell do they have "sales" on in a cemetery? Do they mark down the grave sites where bodies were formerly buried then moved? Do they have a section where there are additions to "mass graves" to which a loved one could be added, provided of course that no grave marker with particular names is required? Is there a section where caskets are buried vertically rather than horizontally so there is room for three to be included in a space normally reserved for just one? Really, what the heck are these people selling? This one is just too weird, even for me!

Then there are signs that just seem so different, (not that the one above doesn't fit that category too), that they definitely catch my attention. I saw this sign during a trip a couple of summers ago, as we were driving out of Washington, state. Apparently there is a problem with a particular insect larvae that causes disastrous effects on the Washington apple crop. I love apples so I'm glad they are actively fighting these little buggers, however, they really ought to find ways to warn us non-suspecting motorists that there are these types of signs along the roadways. I have to confess, when I saw this one, I started laughing so hard that I inadvertently left my lane then found it difficult to see through the tears gushing out of my eyes...I had to park on the shoulder until I was able to regain control...just too random!

Haime and I are carnivores. Oh sure, we'll include various greens on our plates too but that is not what we crave when we are satisfying our hunger. Now this sign, in the Houston area, is just too terrific to ignore. I wish I had a t-shirt with this on it when I lived in California. There were a couple of particularly bothersome people who worked for me there who were the most judgemental, obnoxious, and in-your-face vegetarians that I have ever met. I would have worn this shirt as a uniform as often as possible, just to "stir the pot." Sorry, as the restaurant chain "Rudy's" motto goes: "I did not claw my way to the top of the food chain to eat vegetables," just saying...   

I've put these two signs together and decided they should be categorized as "helpful hints." I don't think they need any additional explanation but I have a question about the one on the right...knowing there are large "cracks" in the roadway, wouldn't it have been easier, safer, more time efficient to just patch them rather than design, manufacture and install a sign warning people of these dangers? (As Arsenio Hall used to say: "things that make you go hmmmmmm).

Have a WONDERFUL, healthy, happy and prosperous New Year.

TTFN,

Lois

Christmas with Haime and Lois...

People CRACK ME UP!

Seriously, every once in a while, stop whatever you are doing and take some time to "people watch." This is a particularly excellent time of year for the people watching activity. Personally, I HATE shopping in "enclosed" malls, especially anytime there is any possibility of ginormous crowds of "bargain hunters." However, these are some of the best places to sit, enjoy a beverage and just watch the show! YES, I know, I have too much time on my hands, this however is a planned activity, not just something you can "fall into." Regardless, it's just one of the perks of retirement...don't hate!

First, the scenery is exquisite! GIANT trees, great music, festive decor and the temperature inside is perfect! Then there are the costumes...these cannot be overlooked (even if you tried). Sometimes the "costumes" are the best part of the show. Who knew "screaming" purple "skinny jeans" were latest fashion rage for twenty-something men...the things you learn. The interplay between the characters is always interesting. Especially if you are as lucky as I am and have voices in your head that only you can hear. (The voices really like to people watch...its just REALLY good that no one else can hear them)...just saying!

Now, lest you think that the holidays are just one long leisure-filled day after another for us, let me assure you that they are actually long "project-filled," sleep deprived weeks. For the last few years, I've made more and more of the gifts I give. My gifts vary from baked goods to furniture to hand stitched creations. Now, its not unusual for me to wait until the last minute to start on these Christmas projects, (maybe I need a little bit of stress in my life in order to perform at near peak...whatever!) Anyway, that was the case again this year...I actually felt like I was ahead of the normal curve because I knew exactly what projects I was going to do for each person. I started "working" on the first one in early November. Unfortunately, I did not realize the amount of time any of the projects would take, because I was a first-timer for most of them. That is, while I had done similar projects, for most, I had never done another exact "first run" of the specific project I had planned. Here are the end products...


The first thing I actually completed was a two-sided art easel for Carter. The fun part (for me...I'm a bit of a nerd) is that the only three things that I had to purchase were the chalkboard paint, the "wipe board" and the roll of craft paper. (OK, so I did also purchase some chalk and markers and dry erase markers and a couple of erasers, but well, you know). I had made a much earlier version (for Carter's daddy, when he was about 3), but this one was much more detailed...complete with chalk rail!

While I'm listing my projects in the order that they were completed, it does not mean that I started one, finished it then moved on. Instead, after completing Carter's easel, I had the remaining projects all going at the same time and in various stages of completion...I certainly didn't want to get bored working on just one thing!

The next completion was for Reece, two Adirondack chairs. I was a little bit worried about this particular project. Reece can be finicky. We were talking about some friends that he had come over to his house and they had bar-b-cued and visited and had a great time and I had mentioned something to him about my needing to build him some outdoor furniture, as I had done for Chip and Mallory a few years ago. Well, he went into one of his "no, I don't want you to build anything for me, I don't have the room for it", (he lives on a 100 acre piece of property), blah, blah, blah! Well, I built the chairs for him anyway and...yep, he LOVED them! His first two comments were: "Wow, these are so comfortable" and "They even have room for wide butts!" I think he had visions of more comfortable entertaining around the "Q" and having a place to sit-n-sip.

I was happy with the chairs and Reece is correct, I did make them a little larger than normal. My sons are big guys, (each over 6'3"), and I wanted to ensure that the chairs would be comfortable for them. The hardest part about building the chairs was, unfortunately finding suitable lumber. I say unfortunately because it's just ridiculous that the selections of boards for sale are of such poor quality. Each chair took about four 10' boards and I looked through and rejected about twenty boards to find just one that I could use. Maybe I was just buying this type of lumber during the wrong season but the pricing certainly did not reflect "out of season over-stocks."

I love working with wood. I also love seeing what others build and I love trying to figure-out how they did what they did. One of the things I have admired for years are the cutting boards that are built out of various species of hardwood. The colors and different grains are, in my opinion, works of art when put together for these cutting boards. So, this year I decided I was going to build one for each of the "boys." I used maple, red oak, "purple curly heart" and something called jaraboa (I think that's what it was called. I will tell you that it was such a hard wood that it caused my table saw to shut itself off because of the heat generated when I was ripping it!) Now, I'm fudging a little bit here. The cutting boards are really not completed yet. They are actually pretty much complete but I'm not satisfied with the sanding jobs and during the planing, (Thanks Lige for the use of your planer, it was a lifesaver!) some of the "curly-purple-heart" wood got some pits in it that I haven't been able to completely sand out so I took the boards back after the guys opened them.

This project actually cause a bit of drama! My dear sons did not believe me when I told them that I had made them...oh the heartbreak of being doubted by the one's you love! (Just kidding, it was really pretty funny watching their faces!) Of course, being the good (half)German that I am, I cannot let things go to waste so I also built a couple of trivets from some of the left-overs:

I think they turned out pretty well. I kept the one on the right for myself and the one on the left is on its way to my "sista" in California, I hope she likes it!

pic is larger than the others so you can see the shirt details

My final completion was a t-shirt quilt for Chip. A couple of years ago, I designed and help sew and quilt an A&M themed quilt for Reece but I had not done a quilt for Chip. Then I saw a t-shirt quilt that reminded me that I had always liked the design so I asked Mallory to save Chip's old A&M t-shirts for me rather than tossing them or putting them in a garage sale. Here is the result.

When I say it was the last project completed, I mean I finally called it quits at 2:00ish AM on Christmas morning! I had the quilt put together and it could have been called done a couple of weeks prior to Christmas but I decided to "quilt" around some of the designs in the t-shirts or, where the design was a little higher than center, I "quilted" some Aggieism or some other appropriate phrase into the square...Chip LOVED it! It was awesome seeing him discover some of these "old friends" that he hadn't seen since he as in college.

This year, I went a bit overboard. Haime and I have made it a Christmas tradition to give baked goodies to some of our neighbors. This year, we delivered a dozen to our closest (in proximity) neighbors. The goodies included apple bread, pumpkin/pecan bread, and 4-5 varieties of cookies. We also included some for other family and friends...I baked over 20 loaves of bread and honestly lost count of the cookies. They are always a hit and we enjoy doing it.

Did I mention that we also hosted a couple of Christmas dinner parties? Well, it should be no surprise to any of you that I love to entertain, in fact, I might have mentioned it once or twice. We had one small party with about 10 for dinner a couple of weeks before Christmas then our annual Christmas lunch with my mom, sisters and brothers-in-law and my nieces and nephews. This year, there were 18 of us. Next up is a Chick-Fil-A Bowl Game watching party...Gig 'em!

We sincerely hope all of you have as blessed a Christmas season as we are (it's not over yet...)

TTFN, 

Lois