Marcel Marceau Dies Quietly at Home....

to honor his work, let us all observe a moment of silence...

Come on...am I the only one who thinks the obit writers have missed a great opportunity?

Long Time, no Post
mom and Dad are back from their brief foray into New England. Lots of fun and productivity. Dad and I (OK, mostly Dad) have changed our exterior lighting, hung new shutters, put up blinds, changed more interior lighting. There are a couple of other little things I'd to get done before they go but I think Dad is kind of losing enthusiasm.

Almost time for Vancouver...!
Of course I didn't get my passport renewed in time to do it the easy way: by mail. Today Mom and I went downtown and processed the renewal throught the passport agency reserved for people who are travelling in less than 14 days. Man, they had armed security OUTSIDE the joint and plenty inside. But it was a very efficient process; I stopped in a photo place next door to get my mug shots, that took five minutes (and 25 bucks---that's robbery!) and I swear I was out of the passport agency in less than ten minutes. I can pick it up on Wednesday which I'll do while Dad and I are downtown to see the "original" Air and Space Museum at the Smithsonian on the mall.

I can NOT wait to go to Vancouver!

Project Room
The reorganization of our house to create my "project room" is nearly complete. I'm psyched in a very big way. Its way comfy and its nice to have everything in one place and to be able to be doing my thing downstairs where most of the family hangs out.

Knitting
I haven't worked on the Traveler's Stocking in a couple of days, mostly because I've been on the run. I've needed really simple stuff to work on and so I'm making good progress on my youngest nephew's cardigan. It is really going to be cute as it can and he will be amazing in it. He's a great kid.

Music
I've been playing a lot. I recently broke a bridge pin while changing strings and so was browsing the music shop. I almost allowed myself to buy a new flute since my trusty Bundy is so hold and really needs major overhaul. Instead I opted to buy a good method book and see how far I want to take this. In the end, I don't think I want any other flute. My grandfather bought it for me in 1976, used, in a pawn shop on Washington Street. Without it, I wasn't going to be able to play that year. We'd just moved to Indy from Spain, Dad was on remote assignment in Alaska and the money for a musical instrument was *nowhere* on the priority list. I've always been grateful beyond words for that act of kindness and generosity on his part. I suppose if I keep playing after a while I'll have it reconditioned for about the fourth time.

But guitar...that's been a lot of fun lately, too. I've made some progress and I really do love to play it. When I return from Vancouver, I'm signing up for lessons. More excitement...