Chico, Fen, Sweet Pea & Bubba

What I heard....8/12/09

2009-08-13T12:39:00.002-04:00

"Naturally, I'll say it's the wine." The Beastie Boys are soooo underrated. Listened more closely to Hallo Nasty. I've decided that as good as their rhymes are, the instrumental tracks are even better. But I never feel as though anyone ever credits them as an "influence" on current music, do they? I missed this though: apparently the new album and tour have been delayed because Adam has cancer in his salivary glands. Speedy recovery--looking forward to new stuff.

Started in on our Beatles catalog: Let It Be, White album so far. What could I possibly say that hasn't been said before? I do hear new things every time I listen, and imagine what the interplay between the group must have been like at various times. So here's the question: if John had lived, do you think they would have reunited or toured again?

What I heard....8/10/09

2009-08-10T13:05:00.001-04:00

Some violin and oboe concertos by Bach, then Bach's Mass in B Minor. While one of my all-time favorites, it was making me a little sleepy today after lunch.
Needed the Beastie Boys to wake me up. All I gotta say is Paul's Boutique. 'Nuff said.

What I heard....8/8/09

2009-08-08T15:36:00.002-04:00

Checked out a few B's yesterday...
A little Bauhaus to start out the day. I often think about the "quality" of an artist's music, or how much I like the music, and the "importance" of their music historically. Sometimes I really struggle to like something deemed important (say, Cream or Led Zeppelin, for example). I usually enjoy when there's a bit of balance. I think Bauhaus does this: I like tham a fair bit, and they're a fair bit important and influential (think about all the group and solo work that grew out of them!)
Also listened to Bach's Brandenburg Concertos. I know a bit about classical--not as much as many, more than some. I like what I like, in general.

What I heard....8/7/09

2009-08-08T15:31:00.002-04:00

On to the B's...here are the A's:

ABBA Arrival
ABBA Gold: Greatest Hits
ABC Absolutely
Abdelli Among Brothers
Abdelli New Moon
Ace Of Base Bridge
Ace Of Base Sign
Adderley Quintet, Cannonball Cannonball Adderley Quintet In San Francisco
Adderley, Julian & Coltrane, John Cannonball And Coltrane
Ade, King Sunny E Dide/Get Up
Ade, King Sunny Odu
Aerosmith Big Ones
Afghan Whigs Black Love
Afghan Whigs Gentlemen
Afghan Whigs What Jail Is Like
Afghan Whigs 1965
Afro Celt Sound System Release-Single
Afro Celt Sound System Volume 1 Sound Magic
Afro Celt Sound System Volume 2: Release
Afro Celt Sound System Volume 3:Further In Time
A-ha Hunting High And Low
Air Moon Safari
Aitken, Laurel Blue Beat Years
Alemany, Jesus Cubanismo
Alemany, Jesus Cubanismo Malembe
Alemany, Jesus Cubanismo Reencanacion
Alice In Chains Dirt
Alice In Chains Jar Of Flies
Alice In Chains Unplugged
Allen, Geri Gathering
Altan Runaway Sunday
Amadaun Legacy
Amos, Tori Boys For Pele
Amos, Tori China
Amos, Tori Cornflake Girl-Single
Amos, Tori Crucify
Amos, Tori From The Choirgirl Hotel
Amos, Tori Little Earthquakes
Amos, Tori Past The Mission-Single #1
Amos, Tori Past The Mission-Single #2
Amos, Tori Pretty Good Year-Single #1
Amos, Tori Pretty Good Year-Single #2
Amos, Tori Talula-Single
Amos, Tori Tea With The Waitress
Amos, Tori Under The Pink
Amos, Tori Scarlet's Walk
Anderson, Laurie Mister Heartbreak
Anderson, Laurie Strange Angels
Animal Logic II
Ant, Adam Antics In The Forbidden Zone
Ant, Adam Wonderful
Apple, Fiona Tidal
Apple, Fiona When The Pawn...
Arcane Arcane
Archer, Tasmin Shipbuilding
Armonias de Venezuela Musica Venezolana Y De Otros Lares
Armstrong, Louis Let's Do It
Armstrong, Louis & Friends What A Wonderful Christmas
Arrested Development 3 Years, 5 Months & 2 Days In The Life Of...
Arrested Development Zingalamaduni
Arthur, Joseph Big City Secrets
Arthur, Joseph Come To Where I'm From
Arthur, Joseph Nuclear Daydream
Arthur, Joseph Our Shadows Will Remain
Arthur, Joseph Redemption's Son
Ash, Daniel Coming Down-Limited Edition
Ashkhabad City Of Love
Assad, Badi Chameleon
Aurora Ordinary World-Single
Avery, Teodross My Generation
Aztec Camera Love

What I heard....7/27/09

2009-07-27T21:58:00.003-04:00

Lame. Lame Lame.

This listening project stopped in its tracks a few months back. I got busy and once I was out of the habit, it was hard to get back into it. But I'm back and ready to go.

Closing out the A's were Daniel Ash's solo effort Coming Down (held up much better than I thought) and the quirky Laurie Anderson. I once had tickets to a Laurie Anderson concert that I passed off to my brother. Strange Angels is actually one of my favorite albums of all time, with a huge, quality assist from Bobby McFerrin (sadly, he is less known for his massive talent and more for not worrying and being happy). She made a great album that was far more musical and less odd than her other efforts. Though, I gotta admit that "Sharkey's Night" on Mr. Heartbreak with William Burroughs, gruffly on "vocals," is a masterpiece.

What I heard....3/19/09

2009-04-01T21:58:00.000-04:00

Still a little out of order....listening to Alice in Chains Dirt, Jar of Flies and Unplugged. The first two are certainly an assault, and their hits are definitely my faves. But Unpluggled is actually quite good. I kind of miss the unplugged series and concept, and it's funny how some bands like Nirvana and Alice In Chains shined.

What I heard....3/18/09

2009-04-01T17:05:00.001-04:00

Back in the day, and even now, I've been a little obsessed with Peter Gabriel's REALWORLD record label. It's made up primarily of international music artists, so I watch carefully when a US artist is signed. So begins the collection of Joseph Arthur. I have 5 of his, and damn him, he's snuck a couple new ones in the last year or two that I don't have yet! His first, Big City Secrets, is raw, jagged and beautiful at the same time--songs like "Daddy's On Prozac" lead you that way. His next three albums, Come to Where I'm From, Redemption's Son, and Our Shadows Will Remain are nothing short of masterpieces: tightly written and played songs and thoughtful lyrics. You might recognize "In the Sun" from the movie Saved--a nearly perfect song. "Honey and the Moon," "Can't Exist" and "The Real You" are equally beautiful. But JA also still doesn't completely discard his early roughness, like "Stumble and Pain" and "Wasted." Nuclear Daydream represents a step backward in my opinion--a little too mainstream--so I will anxious to hear his latest. Final note: I listen to an Akron radio station, The Summit, online. That's where JA is from, and I can always count on them to keep me up to date on him.

What I heard....3/17/09

2009-03-23T20:27:00.000-04:00

At the risk of gushing a little bit, I also (re)discovered Fiona Apple. I knew a couple of her more prominent songs, most notably "Criminal." I also had a stripped down version of "Never is a Promise" on a Various Artists CD. I kind of wrote her off after her 1997 MTV video awards tirade as a kind of nutter. Clearly, the most brilliant minds are a bit "touched." Both Tidal and When the Pawn... just blew me away. Both are very, very rich, sweeping and textured, well written. What I'm finding in this project is that I've come to appreciate the complete, or nearly complete, album. It's a shame that she has produced so little, because this is good stuff.

What I heard....3/16/09

2009-03-23T18:50:00.002-04:00

I know that I mentioned the Afghan Whigs previously from an EP that is mine. Jen owns the rest of the full length albums. THIS....is why I'm doing this project. My God, they are just awesome. Black Love and Gentleman are truly their standouts. Extremely tight, well written songs with a great flow. I just don't know how I missed them for so long. Actually, some of my faves, like "I Keep Coming Back" and "Step Into the Light" don't really rock out, but are still great listens. Also listen to one of my favorite international cd's, Ashkhabad from Turkmenistan. Upbeat, funky good stuff.

What I heard....3/15/09

2009-03-23T18:28:00.001-04:00

Today, I took a day off....

What I heard....3/14/09

2009-03-17T22:24:00.001-04:00

Louis Armstrong Let's Do It...The Verve Years was on tap today, as well as a great CD that I bought in Venezuela from a group called Armonias de Venezuela. There's a story: while in Caracas recruiting, a group of us--20 university reps--had a looong day of school visits, college fairs, etc. We had been invited to return to one of the schools that night for a concert performance. All of us were beat, but it would have been bad form for us to ditch. It was one of those "things happen for a reason" moments. This group of doctors who play a huge variety of acoustic stringed instruments on the side just blew me away with their peppy, traditional, beautiful music! I know that some of my compadres could've done without--not quite the international music fans that I am. Actually, I think Mary puked when we got back to the hotel, so I suspect it REALLY wasn't one of her favorite nights. But I listen to this music FREQUENTLY and will hold that night as a very big one in my travels to South America.

What I heard....3/13/09

2009-03-17T22:08:00.002-04:00

After suffering through the second Ace of Base album....a slight improvement over the first one, which still makes it crap....I delved into the Tori Amos catalog. I remember when Little Earthquakes (and even Under the Pink) came out, it seemed like an explosion, something very ground breaking like a Nirvana. It just hit a perfect spot. It still does, and that's one of the things I've been looking for specifically in this project--whether an album holds up as time passes. The songs and styles of these two albums are solid. "Crucify" and "Winter" still blow me away, as do her hits from Under.... But as I said previously when I was working through her singles and b-sides, something went wrong-and Boys for Pele is a bloated horrible mess. I think that's what kind of turned me off her, and caused me to not follow Amos besides the singles that followed. And then I listened to From the Choirgirl Hotel. Wow. This is an *excellent* complete album. It has a flow and a mood to it that is really deliberate and thoughtful. I am now very intrigued by the albums that follow....

What I heard....3/12/09

2009-03-16T13:17:00.000-04:00

A-ha Hunting High and Low is quite good, and they put out that awesome, ground-breaking video in the heyday of MTV for "Take on Me." Back when MTV actually affected record sales. But the best song is "The Sun Always Shines on TV." All the songs are surprisingly solid though. They sold a ton of copies, though didn't really have a big catalog of albums. I think they go down as one of those bands that's probably more influential than anyone would want to admit.And Adam Ant. Another MTV staple. Who didn't want to be Adam Ant? Not as bad as I thought it would be, not as good as I wanted it to be. Antics in the Forbidden Zone is what it is: same general drum beats, same kind of naughty boy songs. But fun.

What I heard....3/11/09

2009-03-14T22:02:00.001-04:00

Another GH album, ABC _Absolutely_. One of the great things about this exercise has been discovering things out of Jen's collection that I wasn't aware of. I knew the big hits of ABC, but found some of the lesser known songs to be outstanding. I'm always very keen on artists and songs that can seem dated, but actually do hold up. Some of the things I'm listening to are now pretty old, and ABC is no exception. Though 25 years old, "The Night You Murdered Love" and "That Was Then But This Is Now" are really standout tracks of their own. Also listened to Arrested Development's second album. Much less popular, but a far more steady musical effort than their first one.

What I heard....3/10/09

2009-03-14T20:00:00.001-04:00

Today I listened to the very opposites in pop music. After starting this little project, I've decided that I'm going to try and determine the worst albums I listen to. There might be as many that I have to do that by letter. So we'll start with Ace of Base as an early front-runner. _The Sign_ is awful. I am absolutley astounded at how musically un-interesting this album is. There is *nothing* there. Did they really need 4 band members? At the other end, I am not too proud to admit that ABBA _Gold_ is actually pretty good. (Still sticking with the theory that GH sets fall off towards the end, but that's a quibble...) There are at least a couple of songs I haven't heard since I was about 7. and I'm amazed how certain things like a song itches this corner of your brain that hasn't been itched in 30+ years. And who knew those years of listening to Erasure's "Gimme Gimme Gimme" WASN'T actually theirs!

What I heard....3/9/09

2009-03-09T21:57:00.001-04:00

So let's just get this out of the way. I listened to an ABBA album today. And will tomorrow as well. Today's lineup brought _Arrival_. At least tomorrow I'll listen to the GH album. But damn if that s**t didn't stick in my head all day....Mixed in were a few albums by Geri Allen, Altan, and Jesus Alemany's Cubanismo, some very serviceable Cuban big band stuff. Nothing spectacular, just solid.And the first/best album from Arrested Development. Of course, they got the Best New Artist Grammy, aka, the kiss of death. Who knew that their songs were on the charts way back in '92?? The thing is, they are kind of a riot. Rap with a message, I guess? Didn't get to "Tennessee" yet, but "Mr. Wendel" is always a good one to make you feel guilt about.....well, everything.

What I heard....3/8/09

2009-03-08T21:56:00.000-04:00

Again, not much time to listen to anything today. Heard some of ABC's greatest hits album. Kinda forgot how good their songs were. (For some inexplicable reason, I always think of Maya when I hear ABC, which is odd: I don't remember listening to them THAT much together in college. I think it's more of a "sound" or feel that does so.) But what I noticed was that the first 80% of the songs were great, and then the last two or three fell off. Why do GH collections do that......?

What I heard....3/7/09

2009-03-07T20:26:00.000-05:00

Not much time today to listen to anything, but on the way to pick up dinner, I went back to Laurie Anderson's _Mister Heartbreak_. An acquired taste in many senses, but I was reminded that Peter Gabriel played a big part, as well as production by Bill Laswell, of whom I am a fan. But, the album is so worth it just to hear William S. Burroughs reading for the final cut, "Sharkey's Night." Brilliant.

What I heard....3/6/09

2009-03-06T12:28:00.001-05:00

Listened to Laurie Anderson's _Strange Angels_ driving into today, though I probably should have listened to _Mister Heartbreak_ first, chronological order and all that. I had forgotten how much I like this college-era album. Way more accessible and musical than previous outings, though still a bit quirky. Really liked the Bobby McFerrin backing vocals. The title cut is beautifully textured and wonderful. I also discovered this morning that the 3rd Afro-Celt Soundsystem album is my favorite--the one that includes "When You're Falling" with Peter Gabriel's vocals. As I write, Laurel Aitken is giving me some nice late 50's/early 60's ska, appropriate for the warmest day this year.....

What I heard....3/5/09

2009-03-05T12:31:00.001-05:00

Besides continuing with a litte Cannonball Adderly with John Coltrane, and some King Sunny Ade, I have found myself square in the middle of some Tori Amos. Now, don't get me wrong: I think she's done some brilliant stuff. But some of the rest of it, especially B-sides, well....did we really need a T.A. version of "Humpty Dumpty" or "Home on the Range?" When she's good, she's good. Her cover of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is the example of the good stuff. But some of her stuff feels like she was going through a checklist: dramatic solo piano intro? Check. Quirky and/or shocking lyrics? Check. It just seems like she found some success and an audience, and then got a little ahead of herself in the "I have a bit of an ego and can do anything" department. This coming from someone blogging about his music listening and thinking people will read it. But I digress. Done with her singles, moving onto her albums, and we'll see if anything else comes up....

What I heard....3/4/09

2009-03-04T12:34:00.000-05:00

I started out listening to an EP from the Afghan Whigs, "What Jail Is Like." I have never really known much about this band, though Jen has a couple of LP CD's. Though I like the title track and live version, the song "Mr. Superlove," blew me away. Might have to pull out Jen's LP's. Cannonball Adderly Quintet in San Francisco. Wow.

Clare's Birthday at Chuck E Cheese

2008-08-01T16:03:00.003-04:00

Conor Walks!

2008-07-21T11:41:00.002-04:00

Our Backyard

2006-05-20T11:24:00.000-04:00

After the house buying episode (for those that don't know, we were going to build a house, and then decided not to), we have been particularly appreciative of our backyard. While we dream of a larger house that will come sooner rather than later, we love our backyard. In the summer, there's a great canopy of dense green. The fall is awesome and multicolored. Snow in winter makes it perfect and white, and Spring is full of all the blooming trees and shrubs.

We have had more than a few brushes with woodland wildlife lately. We always have the regular assortment of squirrels and chipmunks and a lot of different species of birds. But recently, we met a vole (above). We had gone for a walk, only to return to practiaclly every neighborhood child standing around our front flowers. For more about voles, visit: http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7439.html. Apparently, they are a bit destructive, but as we are not growing crops, no harm no foul.

A few days later on a quiet, sunny Sunday, I glanced outside to see just about the largest woodpecker one will ever see, a pileated woodpecker. He spent about an hour just popping about looking for food or whatever he does.

Sadly, there is a clash of cultures in our woods. There are no less than 6 cats that roam our woods, no doubt wrecking havoc with the ecosystem. Our cats have supervised visits outside only. Today, while walking on the side of our house, I noticed one of these cats and shooed him away. When I got closer, I realized he was about to attack a baby bunny that could fit in the palm of one's hand. We've noticed the parents around a lot lately, so we're certain there's a family to be found. After trying to protect/guide the little thing back to safe areas of cover, we're hoping that a parent will soon return after we have cleared out. But we suspect the bunny's outlook will not be good with the cats "circling."

Your Government At Work

2006-03-07T16:08:00.000-05:00

Now, don't YOU feel safer?!? (Sarcasm intended)

Scientist's Visa Denial Sparks Outrage in India
By Shankar Vedantam
Washington Post Staff WriterThursday, February 23, 2006; Page A01
A decision two weeks ago by a U.S. consulate in India to refuse a visa to a prominent Indian scientist has triggered heated protests in that country and set off a major diplomatic flap on the eve of President Bush's first visit to India.
The incident has also caused embarrassment at the highest reaches of the American scientific establishment, which has worked to get the State Department to issue a visa to Goverdhan Mehta, who said the U.S. consulate in the south Indian city of Chennai told him that his expertise in chemistry was deemed a threat.
In the face of outrage in India, the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi issued a highly unusual statement of regret, and yesterday the State Department said officials are reaching out to the scientist to resolve his case.
"It is very strange logic," said Mehta, reached at his home in Bangalore early this morning India time. "Someone is insulted and hurt and you ask him to come back a second round."
The consulate told Mehta "you have been denied a visa" and invited him to submit additional information, according to an official at the National Academy of Sciences who saw a copy of the document. Mehta said in a written account obtained by The Washington Post that he was humiliated, accused of "hiding things" and being dishonest, and told that his work is dangerous because of its potential applications in chemical warfare.
Mehta denied that his work has anything to do with weapons. He said that he would provide his passport if a visa were issued, but that he would do nothing further to obtain the document: "If they don't want to give me a visa, so be it."
The scientist told Indian newspapers that his dealing with the U.S. consulate was "the most degrading experience of my life." Mehta is president of the International Council for Science, a Paris-based organization comprising the national scientific academies of a number of countries. The council advocates that scientists should have free access to one another.
Visa rejections or delays for foreign academics after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks have led to widespread complaints by U.S universities and scientific organizations, but the new incident comes when things are improving, said Wendy White, director of the Board of International Scientific Organizations. The board was set up by the National Academy of Sciences and has helped about 3,000 scientists affected by the new policies.
"This leaves a terrible impression of the United States," said White, who has seen a copy of the consulate's form letter to Mehta. In an interview yesterday, she added that top scientists had worked with senior State Department officials to reverse the decision before Bush's visit next week. "We want people to know the U.S. is an open and welcoming country."
Mehta's case has especially angered Indians because he was a director of the Indian Institute of Science and is a science adviser to India's prime minister. He has visited the United States "dozens of times," he said, and the University of Florida in Gainesville had invited him to lecture at an international conference.
State Department spokesman Justin Higgins denied yesterday that the United States had rejected Mehta's visa and said the consulate had merely followed standard procedure in dealing with applicants with certain kinds of scientific expertise.
In his written account, the scientist said that after traveling 200 miles, waiting three hours with his wife for an interview and being accused of deception, he was outraged when his accounts of his research were questioned and he was told he needed to fill out a detailed questionnaire.
"I indicated that I have no desire to subject myself to any further humiliation and asked that our passports be returned forthwith," he wrote. The consular official, Mehta added, "stamped the passports to indicate visa refusal and returned them."
Higgins declined to address why the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi had taken the unusual step of saying it "regrets" that Mehta was "upset by the visa interview process."
In its statement, the embassy said: "At the United States mission in India, and to varying degrees at every U.S. mission worldwide, certain cases involving high technology issues are among those that require review before consular officers in the field are authorized to issue a visa."
White said that issuing a visa would solve the immediate problem, but that it would be more difficult to undo the damage caused by the dispute. Mehta is a high-profile example of the hurdles imposed by the new visa procedures. They require all applicants to appear in person for interviews that are done in only a few locations in large countries such as India, White said.
"If you tell an American, 'If you want a visa to go to India, you have to go to Dallas, Chicago, L.A. or New York, and while you are there, you are going to be fingerprinted, photographed and asked about everything you have done in your research for the last 40 years,' we would find this procedure untenable as Americans," she said.
Mehta said in his written account that he had been invited by the University of Florida, where he has previously been a distinguished visiting professor. White said she expected the International Council for Science, also known as the ICSU, to issue a statement today about the case involving its president.
White and William Wulf, president of the National Academy of Engineering, acknowledged that young American consular officers in foreign countries have been under tremendous pressure since the Sept. 11 attacks.
"Making the wrong decision would be career-ending, so they play it safe, not really understanding the macroscopic implications of their decision," Wulf said. "Denying a visa to the president of ICSU is probably as dumb as you can get. This is not the way we can make friends."

2,608

2006-01-09T12:12:00.000-05:00

Two thousand, six hundred and eight. This is how many CD titles Jennifer, Clare and I have. To most, this seems like a lot. A few years ago, this seemed about right to us, but has increasingly felt like too few. After both working large portions of our lives in music stores, we have been out of the business for about 7 years. Jennifer and I have worked at: Believe in Music (Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo), Borders Books & Music (Novi and Charlotte), Music City (Grand Rapids), Media Play (Grand Rapids) and Schuler Books & Music (Grand Rapids). The last of these was Jennifer at Borders, which she left in early 1999.

As hard as we have tried, it's tough to keep up with the latest. Jen does it with the current pop stuff (which I still cannot for the life of me figure out how she knows the latest top 40 stuff given our lives' time contraints right now). I keep up a little bit, trying stuff somewhat on the fringes. Icelandic groups Mum and Sigur Ros are some of my tenuous threads to being on the ball. And for 7 years now, the promo fairy has not visited. Working in music stores means battling (pushing? deceiving? stealing?) for the promo copies that record companies dole out. The free stuff made growing a collection easy. It's harder now that we have to pay, and have yet to find an adequate used store in Indianapolis. (Is the used CD store going by the wayside due to downloads?)

So, 2006 has begun with a purge of old, unrecognizable (and in some cases unlistenable!) promos and purchases from the past. 2006 will be the year that, through smart purchasing of used CD's, the collection reforms and reshapes itself, filling in the blanks of the last seven years.

Happy Holidays From the Dueweke Family!!!

2005-12-08T17:02:00.000-05:00

May your holidays be bright, and snow-filled... if you're lucky! (Michiganders talking here). As I type these words, the snow is blowing in, wreaking havoc on mostly unprepared Hoosiers. We giggle at the sudden closure of schools and businesses in the anticipation of 5-6 inches of snow. What do they know??? Growing up in Grand Rapids, MI, schools and businesses only closed after an all-out ice storm! And driving, forget about it!! Best thing I ever learned was how to drive and brake in the snow. That and being able to adeptly drive a stick shift are things I am very proud of. Lord knows, some of us out on these roads should know how to drive in this stuff.

I admit, snow has its downfalls, but as unforgiving and inconvienient as it can be, it's also beautiful in its ability to quiet the roar of car engines, barking dogs, and inconsiderate neighbors. It blankets the bruised and shorn grass and makes the struggling, tiny trees of our neighborhood look like Charlie Brown's Peanuts-gang-decorated Christmas tree. Very pretty indeed. Speaking of Christmas, I think as far away as we have lived from guaranteed December snow, from here to Charlotte, NC, and how often we have rejoiced in escaping bone-chilling and eternally cloudy weather, I think there is always going to be a part of our family that misses a good snowstorm going into the holidays. It just doesn't seem right without it. So, again, to those we may not send cards and pictures to, Happy Holidays where ever you are! And be safe!!!

MASH Forever!

2005-11-18T09:05:00.000-05:00

In honor of the start of the hunting season, which I am told coincides with my birthday, here are some classic quotes about guns from Jerry's and my all-time favorite TV show, MASH:

Hawkeye: I will not carry a gun, Frank. When I got thrown into this war I had a clear understanding with the Pentagon: no guns. I'll carry your books, I'll carry a torch, I'll carry a tune, I'll carry on, carry over, carry forward, Cary Grant, cash and carry, carry me back to Old Virginia, I'll even 'hari-kari' if you show me how, but I will not carry a gun.

Col. Potter: Where's your gun? Hawkeye: Sulking under my cot. We're not at speaking terms. Col. Potter: Go kiss it and make up. You're taking it with you. Hawkeye: Colonel, if I touch that gun, I'll trigger another argument. Col. Potter: Pierce, You're taking your sidearm. Hawkeye: [Holding up each arm in turn] Correct, I'm taking along my right side arm and my left side arm.

[both drunk, under fire, in a foxhole] Col. Potter: I said fire that weapon. Hawkeye: All right. [to the gun] Hawkeye: You're fired. [to Potter] Hawkeye: I did it as gently as I could. Col. Potter: That was an order, Pierce. Hawkeye: [Snapping his fingers] Oh waiter, would you take this man's order, please?

Margaret: Who the hell are you supposed to be? Charles: This is the latest in hunting attire from Ambercrombie & Fitch. Margaret: Well, you look like an overgrown bagpipe.

And a couple of others in honor of Jerry who made me a delicious meal for my birthday yesterday as well brought home a yummy ice-cream cake and pretty flowers! (these are just a couple of our favorite quotes, I wish I could find some of the others we love):

Father Mulcahy: "Now I lay me down to sleep, a bag of peanuts at my feet. If I should die before I wake, give them to my brother Jake."

[a chopper is carrying Lt. Col. Blake's desk away] Hawkeye: Pardon me, Henry, isn't that your desk? Henry Blake: Yeah, that's my genuine antique desk. Trapper: Sending it out to be waxed? Henry Blake: I'm not sure what it's doing up there. Just keeps going up... up... up... Hawkeye: To a far, far better place, I'm sure.

[Klinger goes hang-gliding past in a housecoat and slippers] Hawkeye: Did you see that? Nurse: What? Hawkeye: A big red bird with fuzzy pink feet. Trapper: Hawkeye, did you see that? Hawkeye: What did you see? Trapper: A big red bird with fuzzy pink feet. Hawkeye: [to the nurse] See?

AND THE GREATEST QUOTE OF ALL...Fr. Mulcahy: "Friends, let me tell you something, however compulsory it may be. There's no film. I'm live. Now back to where we were when you last heard from me. It was with Leviticus on the 10th I believe. Drink thee not nor thee thou sons, lest ye die. Nor congregate at the corner tabernacle. I'd like to take a short sabbatical. Or a cup of coffee. Or I wonder is there a doctor in the tent?"

The View From Our Backyard...

2005-11-06T10:11:00.000-05:00

...is typically very nice. People comment on how pretty it is with the trees, the bench, the bird feeders, and the stone pavers that lead back to the woods and the end of our property (just to the right of the big tree and out of the view of this picture). The previous owners also added woodchips to the ground, making it a picturesque little area. We have to admit that it is one of the things that sold us on buying this place and hopefully will be a selling appeal for someone else when we eventually get around to selling it. Yesterday, on a beautiful fall day, with the fall colors peaking and the leaves still on the trees, the backyard looked like this:

Then the winds came through fiercly last night, blowing all the colored leaves and peices of branch into the windows of our bedroom (this is the view from our bedroom and kitchen as well). It howled so loudly that we were awoken immediately. We have always had a fear that the top of the big tree (to the right) would snap off and land on our house in a bad storm. The trunk leans forward a bit and it is a very tall and relatively thin for its height. So, last night we decided we should move out of the bedroom for just a little bit. Fortunately, the winds subsided, the same winds that caused tornados in the southern part of Indiana and Kentucky, and we felt fortunate that the only mess we had to clean up was a pile of leaves carpeting the entire lawn which we both had raked earlier last week. Here is what it looked like this morning:

As you can see, there are considerably less leaves on the trees and though you can't see it here, A LOT of leaves all over the lawn. Fortunately, we have a small backyard, as the woods takes up most of it, but we have two large side yards and a medium front yard to rake as well. This, to me, signals the end of a beautiful fall and the beginning of the dreary winter days ahead. We don't get as much snow here as we did with the winters we experienced in Michigan, and we get more sunshine, but as long as its cold, it might as well be snowing. At least it makes the backyard look pretty.

Baby Elephant Walk

2005-10-30T09:35:00.000-05:00

The Indianapolis Zoo made national news in the last week or so with the birth of a baby elephant to mother elephant, Kubwa. It was noteworthy because she conceived the calf by artificial inseminationm and that she is the only elephant in captivity to conceive a baby that way twice. However, her first baby died from an infection a short time after birth. Everyone has high hopes for this new one, who has not yet been named, but is apparently doing well, and up for public viewing for about two hours a day starting yesterday. So, today we are going to the zoo to see the baby elephant and to give Clare another pass at all the animals and maybe make a connection to all the animal books we read at home. Given her last visit was at age 10 months, this time she should be more engaged and aware than last time. It's supposed to be a beautiful day and the Indy Zoo is pretty nice. The elephant environment at the zoo was recently renovated and offers a lot of space for them. You can view some pictures of the elephant with his mother by scrolling over the title of this post and clicking to the link!

Our Car

2005-10-14T15:53:00.000-05:00

Our car. Thankfully, 5 weeks and $9,500 later (thank you insurance), it is fixed. We'll see how it holds up over the next few weeks. But here's what it looked like before. It's a little hard to tell in 2-D, but for reference, the tow hitch on the back is about 2-3 inches from the ground.

The Good Thing About Travel Is...

2005-10-04T12:15:00.000-05:00

being able to partake of new foods, AND those long forgotten. The McDonald's at the airport in Sao Paulo, Brazil still serves the fried apple pies. Granted, the new ones are tasty treats, but it's always good to go back to the old school...and into the world of pie appreciation: http://www.ccytsao.com/friedapplepie.htm.

The 80's Rule!

2005-09-27T13:04:00.000-05:00

I found this quiz a long time ago and scored very well I might add. Give it a try, but heed my warning that it is entirely pop culture and entertainment driven...

I am a true child of the 80's. I have always been a pop culture junkie and my recollections of that era are centered around, well, mostly pop culture. I can't tell you about Reagan's foreign policies and what the price of gas was then, but I can tell you what the first song played on MTV was, how to solve a Rubik's cube, and all the words to the theme song to the television show "One Day at a Time". You know, lots of very useful things like that. But I have a fondness for that era, when my primary mode of transportation was still a bike, when a trip to the movies was a good Saturday night, when rollerskating was innocent and fun. I was stylin' in my Dippity-Do hair gel; dayglo, fingerless gloves; and oversize shirt and stirrup pants. My life centered around my friend Dee, our love of MTV, the bands INXS, Duran Duran, and Wham, and writing really bad poetry about boys whose names we can hardly remember now. Of course, there was all the drama that goes with an adolescent to teen girl and a family life I often edit and re-edit in my head, but those memories, and the sensation of simple, schoolgirl joys, are like precious jems to me. It's just this great little place I go to in my head and often get lost in.

Maybe I am feeling this way or thinking about these things because its fall and school has just started and we just had that first cool day, the kind when the wind is just slightly more chilled and the air smells like crumbled up leaves, but I found myself revisiting some good memories from 8th grade. It must have been touched off by Clare investigating the jewelry box in the closet and opening a tiny drawer that houses my old Swatch Watch and an *original* black rubber bracelet--the only one I have left (most of the stack of them have been given to undeserving boyfriends over the years). I started to wonder what Clare's adolescent memories will consist of, what world events will have shaped her youth, which friends were the center of her world, what family events impacted her life forever, what singer or movie star she plastered her walls with, and most importantly, whether she remembers feeling loved and happy and cherished as she is now.

The Lord of the Rings Exhibit

2005-09-22T13:24:00.000-05:00

I am beginning to panic. Jerry and I have not yet decided on a date to see this exhibit and they keep emphasizing tickets for it are timed, meaning we have to buy advanced tickets for a specific date and time. If the date you want is sold it, tough luck. Tickets are on sale now! It starts 10-6 and runs to 1-3-06. Surely we can come up with a day we can go and get a sitter lined up for then!?! No doubt the weekends will be crazy busy, so perhaps we can take an afternoon off during the weekday, which would also allow us to take advantage of daycare instead of trying to get a sitter. Yes, that sounds better.

We absolutely need to see this exhibit, because, yes, I am a geek and have dragged my husband into geekdom with me. Or maybe we entered geekdom together, I don't know. We recently watched the extended DVD of 'Return of the King', which we also own, as do we the extended special editions of the two other movies in the trilogy. One day I hope to sit and watch all the "extras". It's been a bit hard with The Peanut around. I also recently got over a prolonged obsession with Aragorn (although he is cute, Orlando Bloom didn't do much for me as one of the blond haired Elves), whose picture once graced my screen saver but has since been replaced with pictures of The Peanut. Anyway, if we get a date to go and actually get to go, I will surely post the highlights of the event here.

A Fall Poem

2005-09-18T17:46:00.000-05:00

I like this, I just do...

The Fall
Russell Edson

There was a man who found two leaves and came
indoors holding them out saying to his parents
that he was a tree.

To which they said then go into the yard and do
not grow in the living room as your roots may
ruin the carpet.

He said I was fooling I am not a tree and he
dropped his leaves.

But his parents said look it is fall.

Independence

2005-09-15T07:18:00.000-05:00

I awoke this morning to the sounds of bands in the distance outside my hotel room here in Costa Rica. We are amidst the independence celebrations here. Costa Rica and other Central American countries all gained their independence from Spain in September of 1821. This celebration is marked by a torch-run that goes the length of Central America, carried out largely by groups of high school students. We were fortunate to be among those who stopped at 6:00 last evening for the national anthem while in San Jose. While driving home we saw fireworks to commemorate independence, and the lantern, or "faroles," parades that are done by smaller children. Throughout the day, we saw many school children in long, traditional dresses special for the celebrations.

The news story from this morning:

The symbol of liberty gets an official blessing
By the A.M. Costa Rica staffThere will be parades and civic ceremonies all over the country today as the nation celebrates its 184th year of independence. Today, of course, is a national holiday.As a tribute to the Antorcha de Independencia, President Abel Pacheco declared it an official symbol of the nation. However, the 17,000-plus high school students who carried the torch from the PeÃ±as Blancas border crossing all the way to Cartago already knew that.The torch reached Cartago about 8 p.m. Wednesday where Pacheco and some of his cabinet waited with the new decree.In San JosÃ©, municipal and educational officials turned out to receive the torch and ignite a larger flame at Parque Central precisely at 6 p.m. Wednesday. After the torch arrived, the national anthem was sung and patriotic speeches were delivered. As the torch left, first for a short stop in Zapote, fireworks lighted the sky.School children will march today in nearly every community with a school. At 9:30 a.m. the ceremony at the Monumento Nacional will be the official national independence event.

One of the Few People I Have Always Hoped to Meet...

2005-09-08T22:44:00.000-05:00

Is Bill, or rather, former president William Jefferson Clinton. And I will get as close as I ever will to meeting him when he comes to Butler University. In conjunction with Butlers 150th Anniversary, they have brought both Bill Clinton and former president George H.W. Bush for separate speaking engagements (http://www.butler.edu/150/).

Jerry was told that he and his colleagues are guarateed two tickets to each event. Bill will be here on November 6, and George will be here March 2, 2006. Jerry said he still would like to see George just for the "event" of it and I agree. Plus, I have a new found respect for George; he has done some good things together with Bill. There are also other speakers scheduled who Jerry said he wants to see, most of them from the political realm and not as interesting to me as they would be to him. I just want to finally see Bill! But despite this feat for me, Jerry will still have one up on me since he got to shake Bill's hand once at one of his early election rally stops in Michigan.

There are only a few other living persons I really want to see in person/meet and those include Oprah, Sen. Hillary Clinton, and british historian/writer Alison Weir, whose every book I have read. Being a pop culture junkie, there are others I would love to see or meet including lots of musicians, actors, and entertainers. Meeting Johnny Depp, for example, would make my year (I am such a girl). Unfortunately, I have not had many good "star sightings". Jerry teases me because I am always looking for famous people at the airport. But hey, just two months ago, I saw Subway spokesperson, Jared Fogel, there and he promptly swerved to avoid me when I chirped loudly, "It's Jared from Subway!". Can't blame him really.

Let's see, my close encounters with famous people: When I worked at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel: Gerald Ford (passing through), Andrew Dice Clay (in the restaurant and a total jackass by the way), the Black Crowes (passing through), all 4 Baldwin Brothers (staying there for a wedding; I actually got coffee for all of them, what a day that was).

Um...in Ireland, Jerry and I saw bald, ex-MTV VJ and alternative music guru Matt Pinfield in a Dublin record store buying up cd's. We were too chicken to go up and talk to him, although we wish we had.

While working at Schulers Books in Grand Rapids, MI, I saw Red Hot Chili Pepper's singer, Anthony Keidis, wandering around in the music section. I huddled around with my other co-workers, watching him and whispering and giggling from a nearby office. What makes us act that way?

While working at Border's Books in Charlotte, NC, I saw the guy who played tortured soul "Richard" on the TV show "Caroline in the City". He was much shorter in real life.

Jerry and I also had a strange but true encounter with Death Row Record Prez and eternal parolee "Suge" Knight, but that's too weird to go into and we aren't even sure we believe it ourselves. Otherwise, I can't remember any other good sightings; I am sure Jerry will chime in with any I have forgotten. Anyone have any good famous people encounters?

Another One for My Missal

2005-09-04T04:34:00.000-05:00

I don't know if ironic is the best word choice, but I am going to say that I find it ironic that I recently wrote about 9-11 and hoping no world event would ever be so horrific as that day and then Hurricane Katrina happended. Though clearly different in that Katrina was not a man-made tradgedy as was 9-11, it appears to be as horrific as 9-11 in its scope of damage and expected total loss of life. I find myself compelled to watch the on-going coverage and feel extreme sadness and anger for those suffering there. Mostly, I can't help but wonder about the political, economical, geographical, societal/racial impacts of all of this.

I find that as this tragic event has unfolded, people have varying attitudes on what has taken place there and what to do about it. At the 4-day training I recently attended, many law enforecment types were there. The Indy PD guys were anxious to head out on a media-announced, planned Task Force mission there this Monday. It was evident they were hoping to help in any way they could. Others, mostly I noted from more rural Indiana area police departments, expressed disdain for those stuck in the area, saying things like (and this is true) "it's their fault they chose to live there; break the levees and let the whole place flood out. It would take care of all the drug users that place (New Orleans) is loaded with".

Jerry told me about his reaching out to a displaced Louisianan college student who is now going to attend Butler Univ. and is currently residing in our town. He and I agreed we would help her out with transportation or meals or whatever she may need, if she calls on us. I would like to do more, especially if in some way I can help the babies in need. I have things I can donate and can buy additonal supplies to donate and am trying to figure out how best to do that.

I have a "Sunday Missal" given to me by my maternal grandmother, Victoria Hensley, when I was 16 years old. She "stocked" it for me with funeral cards from extended family members who passed away long before I was born. Over the years. I have added letters my grandmother wrote before she died, tokens from my life events, such as the ticket to my college graduation commencement, and added other funeral cards. Years ago, I also began adding newspaper clippings of notable historical events and tradgedies. With Hurrican Katrina, I now have another to add to the long-folded pages of newsprint that include the stories of: Hurricane Andrew in 1992, the LA riots of 1992, JFK Jr's death, the start of the Iraq war, Clinton's election in 1992, (my political preferences are beginning to show) Princess Diana's death, Dale Earnhardt's death, the Columbia tradegy, the London bombings, the first day of 2000 (No Y2K problems, hurray!), and other things that maybe don't deserve a place in a Missal, but are significant to me in some way.This includes my Graceland Tour ticket stub and a ticket stub to John Lennon's biographical movie "Imagine". Go figure. And if you are wondering, all my 9-11 newpaper articles are saved in a box. I saved too much to put in my tiny Missal.

Accidents Happen

2005-08-31T03:30:00.000-05:00

So, yesterday, I was driving back from a job-training seminar in downtown Indy in our Hyundai Sante Fe and was rear ended by an un-insured, no-license-having mope (I love that word). Yes, it's a gas hog and we have considered replacing it with a minivan despite my initial resistance to that idea, but all in all I really like driving the Sante Fe. But now the vehicle's fate hangs in the balance as we await the assessment of its damage.

I was driving in a less-prosperous area of Indianapolis, near the Indianapolis Speedway, in the Katrina-induced pouring rain at 2 ish in the afternoon. As I approached an intersection, I heard emergency vehicle sirens. Being a substantially more aware driver since the birth of Clare, I slowed down, as did the other drivers coming into the intersection, despite the green light. I saw the ambulance coming from my left and stopped, watching to make sure all the other cars coming into the intersection had stopped too. However, I didn't think to check my rear-view mirror to see if anyone behind me was stopping too. Good thing. At least that's what people keep telling me. Because if I had seen the car barrelling at me from behind, I would have likely tensed up in anticipation of the hit and probably suffered more muscle injury. I had no warning he was going to hit me either; I did not hear squealing brakes. He just plowed right into me probably at 35-40 miles per hour.

That doesn't seem very fast, but given the condition of both of our cars, I guess it was fast enough. At first, I sat in the middle of the intersection for 30 seconds or so, where the impact relocated me. The ambulance passing through the intersection saw the whole thing. I saw the passenger EMT looking at us as they drove by and watched her radioing in the accident. In the meantime, the other drivers, being generally good-natured and sympathetic in rain-drenched traffic, started honking at me to move out of the intersection. The driver who hit me turned right and I panicked, thinking he was going to take off on me before the police came. So, I started the vehicle, which forturnately worked, and limped behind him as I listened to the horrible grinding noise coming from the back of the car.

The guy, a mid 20's black male with a bandana on his head and jeans hanging off his rear, exited his 80's era , sedan-style car, which had little left of it's front end. He asked me if I was okay as he limped over. I said yes, but didn't ask him if he was okay. The only thing I said to him was ,"didn't you hear the sirens?". He said, "no m'am (he called me m'am the whole time)...it was wet out there". He then proceeded to tell me that he didn't have insurance and his license was suspended. In fact, he said, "I left my license and my wallet at home". Great, I thought.

A firetruck pulled up and a fireman asked if we were hurt. I did a short self-assessment: no bleeding, no broken bones. So I said "no, but I think I might be a little whip-lashed". He said they were going to leave then and police would be coming soon. I was pretty hopped up on adrenaline and shaking. I got back in the car and started looking for all the typical vehicle-related documents in the glove box and called Jerry. He was not immediately available, so in my frenzied mode, I started calling random numbers in his office until I got someone who I told to find him for me. He said he'd call the insurance agent and be on his way.

The cop, a female, pulled up as I was finishing my conversation with Jerry. She again questioned us about our physical health and asked for all of our legal documents. The guy, Curtis I think his name was, told the officer about his plight. She took his name and went back to her car to write up whatever they write-up, leaving us standing in the rain. Curtis hung around my car door and I started calling people. I called Jerry back on his cell phone and called my boss; I just didn't want this guy to talk to me. But he kept talking. He halfheartedly apologized and said things like "I gotta get me a whole new car" and more notably, "I got cash, about $130.00, I can give you, but that's all I got". Yeah, $130.00 should cover the damages.

The cop came back and I was standing there, soaked to the skin by now, and she tells him his license is "suspended with a prior" and that she has cited him. I was initially flabbergasted that he wasn't going to be taken to jail, but having a job in that field, I also realized that it was common to just issue a summons for traffic offenses such as these. But I was still mad. In my opinion, the guy had no business being on the road. The cop gave me my instructions and Jerry pulled up. We went ahead to the dealership we asked the tow-truck driver to take the poor, injured vehicle to. We got even more soaked going back and forth from place to place at the dealership. We rescued our personal belonging from the car, and removed Clare's relatively brand-new, car/booster seat from the back.

Jerry and I then went across the street to rent a car. From there, Jerry went to pick up Clare from daycare and I went to the hospital. As my adrenaline stopped rushing, I began to feel more soreness and tightness in my neck, shoulders, and upper back. I was sure a neck brace was in my future, but fortunately, the doctors determined that it wasn't necessary. However, I was giving some pain medicine and was informed I was going to "hurt like hell tommorow".

It's 4:15AM right now and I have not slept very much. Granted, I was not in a horrible, life threatening car accident, but it was the worst one I have ever been in and the sensation of being hit and the sound of the impact keep reverberating through my head. As I reveiw the last few hours, I find I am very thankful for the following: 1) Clare was not in the car-enough said- 2) I wasn't seriously injured, 3) I have a loving and competent husband who took care of all the phone calls and got soaked in his business suit making sure I was okay and everything was taken care of, 4) I have a wonderfully generous father who offered to help out financially in any way he could 5) I have a caring mother who was ready to hop on a plane to fly from Florida if I had been injured 6) I have supportive friends and boss/coworkers, and 7) I was in an SUV rather than the Saturn Wagon I could have been driving this morning; I may have been more seriously injured. In addition to its size, the Sante Fe has decent crash ratings, as indicated in the link.

The SUV's back end is mushed up against the back tires. The impact caused the rear doors, which cannot be openend, crunch into the front doors, making them hard to open too. The bumper obviously is caved in and under, leaving the tow hitch about an inch off the ground. We are hoping it's written off as a total loss. Jerry was going to try and take some pictures of it and if he does, we will post one or two.

As for Curtis. How I would like to sue him, but the only thing we would get out of that is attorney fees and court costs, an expense that we don't want to take on. Hopefuly, he is now without a vehicle and cannot drive, which I think is a good thing.

Tell Your Story and Read Others

2005-08-25T14:48:00.000-05:00

Its getting to that time of year again when the television networks start airing the 9-11 retrospectives, mercilessly forcing us to relive the horrors of that day over and over again. Some include images so graphic (people jumping from the building), that I cannot watch. But some, like the story of the people stranded in grounded planes in rural Canada (or was it Newfoundland?) who were embraced by the community and given beds, food, and toiletries by locals until they could resume flying, give me a sense of hope. And the firefighers and law enforcement, whose bravery and courage was overwhelming. There are others like that too, and those are more of the kinds of things I want to pass on to my daughter when she inevitably asks me and her father, "where were you and what were you doing on September 11, 2001?"

It's sometimes a cliche' thing to ask people where they were and what they were doing during some of our most notable historical events. We know the other events from our parent's generation (Kennedy) and our parent's parent's generation (Pearl Harbor) and at that time, those events joined a nation together. For my generation, it was "where were you when the Challenger exploded?" or less fortunately, "where were you when the OJ Simpson verdict was announced?". The Challenger explosion was an intangible thing for me, since I was only an adolescent, and it took place in space, more or less. The loss of life was not observable, but you knew it happened. However, it was still a tragic loss of life and still impacts us today. The Simpson case, well, that actually divided our nation. Not much more to say about that. When it was announced, I was working at Media Play. The black folks cheered and the white folks were angry. It was a sad day for different reasons.

But as much as those events, and my thoughts and surroundings at that time, are imprinted in my memory, none can edge out the incredible fear and sadness I felt on 9-11. And I hope none greater and more horrific ever will.

The link takes you to the 911 digital archives, which as it notes is "no longer posting new contributions to the public website, however your contribution has been accepted (if you post) and will be preserved in the September 11 Digital Archive collection at the Library of Congress". After posting, you can opt to have what you posted sent back to you as an email, and if you like, you can copy it here. We certainly would like to read your story...We will post our story on September 11, 2001.

Painting

2005-08-24T08:49:00.000-05:00

Some things you may not know about painting an airplane.

Indy Children's Museum

2005-08-15T10:58:00.000-05:00

We went to the Indianapolis Children's Museum on Saturday to expend some of Clare's energy. This museum is the largest of its kind in the country, and rated as the finest in the country by some of the Parenting magazines. We spent about 2 hours there, and really only saw maybe 1/3 of it.

It also has the largest water clock in North America.

This Blog Thing

2005-08-13T09:15:00.000-05:00

Yeah, so we're on this bandwagon too.

Actually, we do have a purpose for this: Clare's got her own webpage http://claredueweke.aboutmybaby.com, and we don't want this one to specifically be about Clare. One of the things Jen and I are always talking about is keeping a running commentary, history, whatever, for us and for Clare. Inspired by Amanda--who is not shy about asking questions of Jen/Brian's family history--we want to throw stuff out there. There's SO much that we don't know about our families, what things were like, how you remember certain events, etc. And we want ourselves, and Clare, and anyone else who's interested to be able to have a forum for this. So that's what we're doing. I know that for my family, there's such an age difference/life experience difference that I'm going through all this stuff that my brothers did 10-20 years ago!! But even for the short visit that Dave's family made in June, it was still pretty enriching to share stuff back and forth.

We're the ones who moved away from Michigan, and it's doesn't look like we'll move back there anytime soon, if at all. So, the responsibility is on us to make sure Clare knows her family and friends. We hope people take this somewhat seriously and check, post, respond, comment etc. routinely.

Oh, and the title. It might change, but Jen liked this one a lot. Reference to Tom Hanks in League of Their Own, but sort of translates to: we're sort of here for now, and reasonably ok with it.