Why hello, dear readers. I apologize for the delay between blog posts. I’ve been sending letters, messages, etc. so I assume most of you are caught up. If not, you missed some pictures on facebook, but other than that, well, I’m doing pretty well. Ten bullet points to catch you up:

• The Chicago trip went very well…I have pictures all over and will probably post more here soon. I was busy the entire stretch, saw elementary school friends, then Colleen, took pics in my old library and neighborhood, etc.
• Work is going well, not particularly busy, some stress-laden due to the university culture as far as the budget and economics are concerned. Some infighting but nothing unexpected. If you get along all the time you’re probably not moving forward.
• I’m not in the mood for Ellroy lately…I’ve switched Down the Rabbit Hole and should finish this afternoon.
• Did I mention I watched Rear Window last weekend? Grace Kelly…yeeha. I’ve snagged a few other Hitchcock movies from the library but I haven’t had a chance to watch yet.
• T has been busy lately…he’s almost a teenager. At least his football season is over…I felt like we hardly saw each other between his nightly practices and weekly games. Then last night he stayed over at a friend’s. Today we’ve hung out some, anyway…this morning he and I switched out the kitchen screens for storms and vacuumed out my car.
• Yesterday N, S and I hit the Lion’s Den. Beautiful day…we walked all the way down to the water…sometimes I forget this beautiful resource is five minutes away from our house.
• I’m in the mood travel. Maybe next summer I’ll take an extended road trip. Maybe the first week of January I’ll fly off somewhere. I’ve got the time.
• The dogs still chew anything within their reach but they’re part of the landscape now. And every now and then they calm down.
• I realized earlier this week that I haven’t had serious insomnia for a long time, at least a year if not longer. That’s a great sign, I think. I attribute some of the sleep improvement to working out so much…I think they’re connected in how they reduce stress.
• I’ve got a little more cleaning to do then I’m done for the night. Have a good one.