CHRISTMAS TIME IS HERE

It's been 19 days since I last updated, much has been going on and it never seems like I have time to update. But I'll do it now. So here goes...

Merry Christmas!! May the miracle of Christ's birth provide you with hope, joy and peace!

Jill and I will be spending Christmas at home in Hillsboro with Jill's parents John and Judy. We'll be joined by Lisa and Marianne, two family friends. Marianne will be staying at our house; she lives in Southern Oregon and will be arriving later this afternoon.

Mom and Dad will be spending Christmas in Baggs, Wyoming on-location where Dad is drilling a series of wells through March. Sounds like a great gig, except that it's in Wyoming. They'll get to spend much more time together now that they're footloose and fancy free after the sale of the house - more later...

Tom and Kate will be spending their first married Christmas with Kate's family in Sacramento. Big family gatherings can be a lot of fun.. and who knows, they might all go skiing.

Me-ma is spending Christmas in Tempe with Melissa and Gary. We'll be sending her gifts to her at Sue and George's house in Gallup, NM. We're late sending out presents, so we apologize profusely!

Charlotte is spending her Christmas with Art and Lorrae's family and Diana's family (from Indiana) in San Antonio, where the weather will undoubtedly be warmer and sunnier than here. But it's Texas...

Grandma and Grandpa Reid will be in Farmington, but I have no idea who will be visiting until I call them tomorrow. Likely Grampa Gus and family, provided he gets a little time off.

And just remember: if you don't get what you want for Christmas or you find yourself feeling down tomorrow, you don't have it as bad as this KTUU (NBC) reporter in Fairbanks, AK reporting from Santa's house at the North Pole! (from the Associated Press)



JOHN'S EYE SURGERY APPEARS TO BE A SUCCESS

John's eye surgery this past year appears to have done (part of) the trick for him according to a recent doctor's visit. According to their prognosis, they're within striking distance of getting his eyesight back to where he can drive again. He has cataracts, but they're apparently (relatively) easy taken care of, so all of this is positive news. More updates as we learn more ourselves!

JILL RECOVERS FROM THE FLU

Jill's flu virus appears to have nearly all cleared up now after knocking her down pretty hard for the better part of two weeks. The whole week Mom and Dad were in town to look around Clark County, Washington, Jill was laid out completely and not able to interact much or go and do things. She did go back to work last week but was very weak and had to take it very easy.

But, she is feeling better now and is getting around much better doing what she needs to do. However, the upshot is that we have done very little to decorate the house for Christmas between her being sick and me taking care of her and being busy at work. We don't mean to be grinches! The Christmas tree is up, however and looks great.

MOM AND DAD VISIT

A couple of weeks ago, when Jill was sick, Mom and Dad visited us and checked out Clark County, Washington for possible home sites. They're looking for a little bit of forested acreage on which to have a cedar house built. Clark County, Washington is just north of the Columbia River from Oregon. Vancouver is the largest city nearby.



They also met with some home builders and they're forming their opinion as to what they'd like, so it was a productive land hunt. Unfortunately for them, the piece of land they liked most has a really unpleasant neighbor.

Mom and Dad would like to visit again in February to check out the area when it's at its coldest.. you know, in the 40s. Doesn't hurt, anyway.

MAD COW DISEASE IN PACIFIC NORTHWEST

What on Earth is going on with Washington's agricultural sector?! It was reported that yesterday, the Yakima Valley has distinguished itself as being the first location of a case of Mad Cow Disease in the United States. Unfortunately, it looks like the meat of the animal passed through a Portland packing plant.. so the Feds are all over the place like Teamsters on a box of Krispy Kremes.

This is why Jill and I spend a little bit more money and shop at the healthy food store on organic/no-hormone/no-mass produced groceries, most grown here in Oregon. We double-checked the origins of our dairy and beef.. no worries! We're what you call Granola Conservatives!

But really.. Washington has been the origin of unpasteurized apple juice (e. coli outbreak) deaths, hamburger e. coli deaths at Jack-in-the-Box, and now this. What on earth are those people doing up there? Have Washingtonians not yet discovered the joys of handsoap? Make a trip to Target, people!

CHRISTMAS AT BAYLOR

My alma mater, good old Baylor U., produced a Christmas music special that's being broadcast on PBS stations nationwide. The link to information about the show is here.

It was very well done and highlighted the excellence of Baylor's School of Music. It was also fun to watch the locational shots of various places around campus.. heck, the music was so good it put Jill right to sleep!

The above link will let you know when it will be on TV where you live. I encourage you to watch it!