| What's Happening Now January 2008 |
| Jan. 1: Charlotte writes that Roger Furnace (Class of 56) died shortly before Christmas. He was married to her cousin, Ree Nell Wallace, for 49 years. There were quite a few members of the class of 1956 at the funeral. |
| 07: Charlotte and Hal on Christmas Day. |
| Lookin' good, Charlotte! |
| Jan. 2, from Nancy D: Happy New Year to you too! Thank you for this, and for all your messages. And thanks for the reminder that I need to do more than just sit here and enjoy what you send. I will apply myself to getting some pictures of our house before and after the remodel, as that is what we have been doing, pretty much nonstop, for over six months. How are Rob and Paul doing with theirs? How about an ongoing item on books and movies we recommend? I just finished a couple of good books: 1) A Land of Ghosts by David Campbell: This account (nonfiction) of an ecologist's work in documenting the diversity of life in the huge Amazon basin is beautifully written and combines information on botany, ecology, history and anthropology. It gave me lots to think about without requiring a lot of technical scientific information and without drum- ming up a lot of guilt about conservation or lack thereof. 2) A Girl Named Zippy by Haven Kimmel: This memoir of growing up in the 1950s in the mid-West brought many smiles of recognition and was fun. 3) Dusk on the Campo: A Journey in Patagonia by Sara Mansfield Taber: The author and her husband spent several seasons in the bleak world of southern Argentina and Sara took it upon herself to interview the women who lived that isolated life, asking them how they kept their spirits up while living a life of hard physical work with little social contact. It's a stripped down commentary about what is really important in life. I'd love to hear about what others are reading and/or viewing. It's back to teaching full-time on Monday, so I'm going down to organize my office today - sigh! Nancy |
| Jan. 3 - Linda WB writes: Our first grandbaby - Deanna Lynne - was born December 31, 2007. Mom and baby doing fine, even though the baby was evicted from a comfortable home about 3 weeks early! So we are having a great New Year's celebration. |
Jan. 4 from Dewey: I first want to thank all of you
who sent me things on the net in 2007. However
this year it will work out better if you send Money,
Gas Vouchers, or things which I can convert to
cash. I wish you all the best in 2008. Dewey
who sent me things on the net in 2007. However
this year it will work out better if you send Money,
Gas Vouchers, or things which I can convert to
cash. I wish you all the best in 2008. Dewey
Jan. 7 from Sue:
Jan 8 is Elvis' birthday. I must admit that I'm kind
of nuts about Elvis. I was fortunate to get to see
him three times. One year at Christmas my
grandson, Blake, gave me a life-size cutout of him.
My granddaughter, Brittney, just recently
presented me with an Elvis lamp. Brad and I have
been to Graceland twice. My granddaughter
MaKenna has turned into a huge Elvis fan. When
she spends the night we always watch the 1968
comeback special. So as you can see----Elvis is
not dead---LONG LIVE THE KING!!!
Sue
Jan 8 is Elvis' birthday. I must admit that I'm kind
of nuts about Elvis. I was fortunate to get to see
him three times. One year at Christmas my
grandson, Blake, gave me a life-size cutout of him.
My granddaughter, Brittney, just recently
presented me with an Elvis lamp. Brad and I have
been to Graceland twice. My granddaughter
MaKenna has turned into a huge Elvis fan. When
she spends the night we always watch the 1968
comeback special. So as you can see----Elvis is
not dead---LONG LIVE THE KING!!!
Sue
Jan. 8: Judy PS writes: I love the page today - I
have original pictures taken of Elvis while
stationed at Ft. Hood - seen only by my family!
Favorite song "How Great Thou Art."
The jumper of course is Joe Henry Brown...
have original pictures taken of Elvis while
stationed at Ft. Hood - seen only by my family!
Favorite song "How Great Thou Art."
The jumper of course is Joe Henry Brown...
| Jan. 17 from Jan: We're having our second snow today here in Arlington, Virginia. Hoping it won't stay long! |
| Dec. 07: Linda M looks on as Fred listens to a friend's engineering talk. Many of us can identify with Linda as she cares for her 87-year-old mother, now at a care facility. She says, "Taking care of an elder is a lot like having a toddler again, only I have less energy than the first time around! Mom has not been able to walk well enough to go down to the dining room for quite some time now. I spend afternoons & evenings with her Monday though Thursday, providing assistance with ADLs (that’s activities of daily living, in case you have not been exposed to social workers – bathing, dressing, toileting, transferring, transportation to appoint- ments and so forth) and spend about 12 hours on Sundays doing the same. I also do her shopping, laundry, ironing, financial and medical record management and miscellaneous “honey-do” items, so I estimate that altogether I probably put in 40 hours a week or so...." Jan's note: Bless you, Linda. |
| Jan. 19: Our site broke 6500 page visits! |
Jan. 20: Rob writes AT LAST! (I've been bugging
him for photos of the interior of his new house.
More to follow.)
Hi Jan Bee...Hope all is well up East. We are about
95% complete. Living in the building and slowly
working our way through the moving boxes. The
Kohler "Slipper" soaking tub is well, a conversa-
tion piece for the guest bath.. It is an exact copy
of the 1879 model reprised on the Company's
100th anniversary. The fixtures are gold plate as
in the original. It must have been popular in
California's Gold Rush Mansions as well as
Eastern society of the period. We found it used
on Craig's List for a fraction of the original
$6500.00 list. The living room is shaping up. The
LR picture orientation give some idea of the view.
The pix ids are living room, hallway, guest bath.
Will follow when additional rooms go on line. xx
R and P
him for photos of the interior of his new house.
More to follow.)
Hi Jan Bee...Hope all is well up East. We are about
95% complete. Living in the building and slowly
working our way through the moving boxes. The
Kohler "Slipper" soaking tub is well, a conversa-
tion piece for the guest bath.. It is an exact copy
of the 1879 model reprised on the Company's
100th anniversary. The fixtures are gold plate as
in the original. It must have been popular in
California's Gold Rush Mansions as well as
Eastern society of the period. We found it used
on Craig's List for a fraction of the original
$6500.00 list. The living room is shaping up. The
LR picture orientation give some idea of the view.
The pix ids are living room, hallway, guest bath.
Will follow when additional rooms go on line. xx
R and P
Jan. 28, Unhappy news from Jeanne:
Good morning Jan, and as always thank you for your
update............my computer has been in a "sad"state
for the past few weeks, but I think that we are finally
up and going again second time in the past couple
of months....really enjoyed the picture of the guys
and gals who had lunch on the 27th....no doubt as to
who they were!.....I have not been in touch with
anyone as I should have been after the first of the
year....has certainly not been because a lack of
interest....just circumstances..... so hope that all is
well with you and yours and that you are managing
to stay nice and warm!....
My daughter Kim has another medical problem and
one that she did not need nor does anyone.....she
has been diagnosed with Myesthenia Gravis, a
muscular/neurological disorder that also affects the
immunological system as well.....while not curable,
over the past few years has become more treatable
and at the present time her neurologist is
continuing to run more tests to pinpoint the exact
type that Kim has......the course of treatment is
determined by those factors.....many of the
medications have very specific side effects, some of
which are not good, and it is very important that she
be tested extensively......she will be having a muscle
biopsy at UTMB witihin the next couple of weeks and
I will let you know what is going on with her...Kim
continues to recover from her Arnold Chiari surgery
last May.....the recovery period is pretty much right
on target in that her neurosurgeon had said 9
months to a year.....while many many of her
symptoms are so much much better she continues
to have many headaches and pain IN the area where
the surgery was targeted....all in all she is doing well
and she is amazing that with everything that she has
had and gone through she continues to be
extremely positive and move on "daily" with her life
as a very busy mom with 3 children still at home,
ages 13, 11 and 9, a college freshman and a married
daughter all the while continuing to work although
fewer hours.....thank goodness for that blessing!....
Did not mean to get quite so long winded, but
playing catch up does take time...thanks again for all
of your hard work on the website and look forward
to being able "once again" to catch up with
everyone.... my best to you, jeanne
Good morning Jan, and as always thank you for your
update............my computer has been in a "sad"state
for the past few weeks, but I think that we are finally
up and going again second time in the past couple
of months....really enjoyed the picture of the guys
and gals who had lunch on the 27th....no doubt as to
who they were!.....I have not been in touch with
anyone as I should have been after the first of the
year....has certainly not been because a lack of
interest....just circumstances..... so hope that all is
well with you and yours and that you are managing
to stay nice and warm!....
My daughter Kim has another medical problem and
one that she did not need nor does anyone.....she
has been diagnosed with Myesthenia Gravis, a
muscular/neurological disorder that also affects the
immunological system as well.....while not curable,
over the past few years has become more treatable
and at the present time her neurologist is
continuing to run more tests to pinpoint the exact
type that Kim has......the course of treatment is
determined by those factors.....many of the
medications have very specific side effects, some of
which are not good, and it is very important that she
be tested extensively......she will be having a muscle
biopsy at UTMB witihin the next couple of weeks and
I will let you know what is going on with her...Kim
continues to recover from her Arnold Chiari surgery
last May.....the recovery period is pretty much right
on target in that her neurosurgeon had said 9
months to a year.....while many many of her
symptoms are so much much better she continues
to have many headaches and pain IN the area where
the surgery was targeted....all in all she is doing well
and she is amazing that with everything that she has
had and gone through she continues to be
extremely positive and move on "daily" with her life
as a very busy mom with 3 children still at home,
ages 13, 11 and 9, a college freshman and a married
daughter all the while continuing to work although
fewer hours.....thank goodness for that blessing!....
Did not mean to get quite so long winded, but
playing catch up does take time...thanks again for all
of your hard work on the website and look forward
to being able "once again" to catch up with
everyone.... my best to you, jeanne
| Jan. 7 from Gary: Prosperous New Year! Prior to the Holidays, I closed my office in Austin and relocated to Biloxi, MS. I'll continue to operate the Texas business in a somewhat limited manner by telephone and computer. We had all the immediate family and a few outlaws in for the holiday feast and swag swap. Good spirits, times, food and familial affection were had by all (or so they said once bail was posted). I'm opening boxes and settling in for a week or so before cranking up a new development project associated with the gaming (read casino) industry here on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. I tried to explain to Alex about his Christmas card being perceived as too precocious for a two year old. He was so upset he wanted to sue but we don't allow him to associate with lawyers. He decided to submit it to Hallmark and see if they could use it for next season. He wants to put his own money into his college fund account rather than just depend on the generosity and affection of family, friends and admirers. He also under- stood that most of the other artwork entered indicated the creators needed some encourage- ment to practice a bit more. |
| Jan. 9: Rob writes: Happy new year! We did have a tree in the living room. As soon as things are a little more organized and complete, will send some interiors....Still living out of boxes and some finish work is to be done. At least we are in and pleased with the results. |
Jan. 28 from Walt:
We're staying near Haleiwa,
on the north shore of Oahu
for 2 great weeks.
Jan's note: I've asked for a
picture of HIM in a hula
skirt.
We're staying near Haleiwa,
on the north shore of Oahu
for 2 great weeks.
Jan's note: I've asked for a
picture of HIM in a hula
skirt.
| Jan. 29 from Cecelia: Ewell is doing really well. There is no more sign of melanoma in any of his body. However, the surgeon was surprised at the return of the melanoma after four years. He recommended that Ewell take Interferon shots as a precaution. We will meet with the oncologist here this afternoon to get the details. The surgeon said it would three shots a day for 30 days then three shots a week for a year. At least, he can get those here in San Angelo. We are wondering about side effects because Ewell has a really sensitive stomach, and these could do him in if they affect the stomach. I'll let you know what we find out today. Note from Jan: We're praying for the best, Cecelia. |
| Jan 29 follow-up from Cecelia: We met with the oncologist today and he did not recommend the shots of Interferon for Ewell. He said the side effects were too great and he would have a year of NO quality of life. He said he recommends them only for people from 20 to 40 or so. Instead, he recommended radiation for the site of the two occurrences of the melanoma to try to prevent its return on his arm. We still don't know if it has gone to any other part of the body, but it was stage 3, meaning it was into the subcutaneous tissue, rather deep. The oncologist said we would just deal with any recurrence if it happens. Of course, with melanoma, when it moves from the original site, there is no cure, just treatments to alleviate symptoms. Anyway, we will meet with the radiation doctor next week. Ewell has a good attitude about the cancer--he has irritable bowel syndrome so has lots of misery with that and so far the cancer hasn't caused any problems. We can pray that the melanoma won't show up again in his lifetime. The oncologist, Dr. Rahman, is an interesting little man. He is originally from India, of course, and Ewell, being very hard of hearing, could understand almost nothing Dr. Rahman said. Ewell apologized for not being able to hear well. Dr. R said, "Well, you have a man who can't talk well and you can't hear well, so of course you can't understand." He was funny. His first question to Ewell was, "You have been to a classy doctor already. Are you sure you want to come to a small-town doctor?" His reputation around here is that of another classy doctor, so we are glad to be with him. Thank you for your words of encouragement. I think we can put this out of our minds for a while and get on with life, even while he is getting the radiation. Love, Cecelia |
Jan. 28 follow-up from Jeanne: I feel really bad
that I have been out of touch and of course the
computer problem(s) do not help.....all has not been
bad at all...lots of good things going on as
well.......we celebrated Coach's 80th birthday on
January 17 with a dinner of about 30 very close
friends....it was great, we had a wonderful time and
Coach was his usual happy, healthy, charming and
smiling self....he really is amazing! Our dear friends
from Charlotte, NC were here for several days and
that was just so special. I don't think that I have
shared with you that Coach and our ole Marching
100 Band Director, Pete Peters are very old friends.
Pete and his wife Sally live in Boerne.....although we
have not seen Pete in a while they are in touch
often.....indeed a small world. As for myself, I am
very blessed with Coach, my children and many dear
friends who never let me get out of touch with the
TLC that not only I need, but everyone needs. My
life has been very abundantly blessed with good
and special things....... health, happiness, peace and
contentment and while Kim has certainly had more
than her share of physical problems she as well has
been very blessed and will continue to be happy
and grateful for family, friends, life, joy, peace,
happiness and good health dealing with some
bumps along the way....she is truly an inspiration for
many. I must scoot for now, but thank you so much
for the kind words and I shall really keep my fingers
crossed that happy computer days are "here"
again!... with my best and warmest regards, jeanne
that I have been out of touch and of course the
computer problem(s) do not help.....all has not been
bad at all...lots of good things going on as
well.......we celebrated Coach's 80th birthday on
January 17 with a dinner of about 30 very close
friends....it was great, we had a wonderful time and
Coach was his usual happy, healthy, charming and
smiling self....he really is amazing! Our dear friends
from Charlotte, NC were here for several days and
that was just so special. I don't think that I have
shared with you that Coach and our ole Marching
100 Band Director, Pete Peters are very old friends.
Pete and his wife Sally live in Boerne.....although we
have not seen Pete in a while they are in touch
often.....indeed a small world. As for myself, I am
very blessed with Coach, my children and many dear
friends who never let me get out of touch with the
TLC that not only I need, but everyone needs. My
life has been very abundantly blessed with good
and special things....... health, happiness, peace and
contentment and while Kim has certainly had more
than her share of physical problems she as well has
been very blessed and will continue to be happy
and grateful for family, friends, life, joy, peace,
happiness and good health dealing with some
bumps along the way....she is truly an inspiration for
many. I must scoot for now, but thank you so much
for the kind words and I shall really keep my fingers
crossed that happy computer days are "here"
again!... with my best and warmest regards, jeanne
| Jan. 29: Cecelia's Christmas photo just received; "happy together." See Cecelia's page for "who's who." |