Qapla'

N: Qapla': success

possibly derived from Qap:

V: Qap: [win|operate|be in operation]

V: Qap: succeed, win

V: Qap: work, function

it is an all purpose "good bye" "farewell" kind of thing. But also a shout of triumph....

U of M
So I just got back from my first class. It's going to be pretty cool. The professor is really cool and so are all the students, one is even a senior at Central. :)
----Livvi'i

Some times the only word is Qapla'!

Today we got a new letter from the state after they talked to Como:

....According to M.S. 124D.09, Liv may take five courses this semester at the high school and one course at college in the PSEO program and all will be covered with state funds. ...It is to the district's advantage by over $400 to allow her to take five courses instead of four at the high school. ....

We have been having quite a stressful time the last few weeks, dealing with Liv's school and the school district about their interpretation of the PSEO law (for you non-Minnesotans, that's how Peter, Tom, and Norris got to take college classes for free when in high school). We had made no headway by the start of school so I contacted school board members, one of whom, Anne Carroll, really came through for us. On Tuesday, she called me for at least six long telephone conversations, including one at 9:30 pm. She set up a meeting for us with Como's principal and head counselor and several district people, including the Area Superintendent. We ended up giving in some just to make it through the school year, but we did get a schedule we can live with and the A.S. did promise to actually contact the people at the MN Dept. of Education and modify their policy if indicated.

Anyway, yesterday was a crazy day as Liv had also temporaily enrolled in more classes at the 'U' in case things didn't work out at Como, so Joel went to her first class for her in the morning and I picked him up from there to race to the meeting. Now he is sad because he has to drop out! And he was the teacher's pet, in his tie and all! Then in the evening, Joel, Norris, and I drove to St. Francis for our first rehearsal of "The Sound of Music," which lasted from 7:00-9:30. Florian was urging people to have a more upbeat tempo... I think we three were half asleep.

Anyway, all's well that ends well (I think).

The fair isn't too bad as long as you don't let the bad parts get you down. Like what do you do when a dozen bees invade your booth? (And I'm not exaggerating I actually counted.) Just keep working and smiling and just pray they won't sting you. And they didn't. I also tried to kill the maximum number possible. I felt like I was in some weird horror flick because although I had killed over twenty of them, there were always the same number buzzing around. They were definately defying a few laws of nature.
----Livvi'i

That's too bad Maria! It must be especially bad coming as such a surprise (when I was laid off from NCR I had known it was coming for a long time). We'll all be praying this turns into a good opportunity for you!


I've been logging way too many phone hours this week trying to resolve Liv's class schedule. Her school is insisting she drop 2 (out of 6) classes because she is taking one class at the U. The State is pretty clear that this is not the way it should be done, but her Principal and counselor don't see it that way. Who knows what her schedule will be come Tuesday evening? Nancy and Mark - we may be calling on you for home schooling advice.

My colleagues and I were happy to see someone get arrested for the Blaster worm - though it didn't happen soon enough. We've been pulling a lot of long hours fighting to clean up the Univerity's network, and now those students are coming back, probably bringing thousands of infected computers to bring new waves of infections!

Hi Everyone,
Well, I have some bad news. I think Tom gave me the unemployed virus. After being sick and missing work on Tuesday, I reluctantly went back to the grind on Wednesday, eventhough I was still feeling crummy. I was asked to go the Eden Prairie location sometime that afternoon for a meeting. I was a little nervous, but was absolutely sure that I wasnt going to get fired. To make a long story short, I got laid off. The company was losing business fast and couldnt afford all of their employees, so they had to lay off five people and I was one of them. I was so taken by surprise and I am still in denial about the whole thing. I have never been fired or laid off before. I am not really looking for another job yet because I have jury duty coming up, plus I am so burned out. So, keep my job search in your prayers. I am not even sure if I am going to look for a similar job in the title business. Maybe I will do something different. I guess I cant be too picky. It's been kinda nice, however, being home during the day. I have gotten a lot of errands done that I have been meaning to do for months, but I know sooner or later I am going to get pretty bored not working.

This weekend Pete and I are going up to my parents cabin, so that will be a nice getaway for both of us. Hope you all have a wonderful labor day weekend!

I was just reading on Tom's address, so this will say it was posted by him... but it's not (It's Nancy)
We have had a student with us for a week from Switzerland (Simon). He was at our Free church Camp Shamineau for 5 weeks and needed a place to stay until his flight home (this morning). He's going to be a teacher and is starting his school year on Monday at U of Zurich. Because of the time change he won't get home til 9 a.m. Saturday morning.
I have been back and forth to Illinois this summer 3 times. My sister, Jan, has sold her condo and is just about ready to move into her new house. My parents are doing pretty good being on their own for 10 days while Jan is in Connecticut visiting our cousin Tom & Betsy Hammerberg. A very kind woman is coming in every day for a couple hours to help my parents with cleaning, exercises and companionship.
Tom is outside visiting with some Mormon friends and I have been applying for jobs... I have an interview next week, but I won't tell you where, as I don't think I'm qualified for it, so... I'll let you know when (if) I get hired anywhere! Mark is back to Roosevelt. Stevie was giving tours the other night at South High to incoming freshmen... He wasn't assigned the task, but he and his friend John Robert just started doing it and folks followed along. They had found a sign somewhere that said "Tours." Well, I gotta run. I want to see if the U will still let me use the Med. Library. It's really fun reading all of your posts. Nancy

Congratulations, Tom!

And Peter and Maria, no, we won't try to top your fat-eating frenzy.

Hey everyone- Today I was hired at a charter school in Brooklyn Park as a teacher aid. My job is to be with a special ed student all the time, helping him to understand the assignments and process the information. I guess he is "cognitively delayed" and I will be doing some outside of class teaching of reading and maybe math. I'm happy to have a job and got the connection through a friend.

I was at the fair today, but didn't see liv (but in all honesty didn't really look)
bye all,
Tom.

Joel, all we can say is Qapla'!

Crazy Uncle Joel...
Apropos of nothing....





I've been contacted by the American Bible Society regarding a CD of Bible software they are putting together for the Society of Biblical Literature (SBL) annual conference in Atlanta this November.

I'm sharing my UTA software and "Bible translator," and this prompted me to go nuts with my relexification methods, and now I have a complete Klingon Language Version of the World English Bible:


http://klv.mrklingon.org
Click http://klv.mrklingon.org/klv.html for screen shots of this
integrated in the Crosswire Bible Society's "Sword Project"which you can find at www.crosswire.org.

Liv, sorry we missed you on Sunday at the Fair, we didn't get there until 5pm.. We stopped by your barrel in case you were still there, but of course you weren't.

We had a great time at the fair, on the hottest day of the year! We ate the following fatty foods: Mini Donuts, Cheese curds, french fries, corn dogs, pork chop on a stick, milk shakes, all you can drink milk for 50 cents, deep fried candy bars and ice cream. See if you can beat that!

Here we are getting out caricature done. We've always wanted to do it, and we finally broke down and got one..

Thanks Pete for the compliments, as far as the novel goes, I'm working on it.

chapters to come: Cuban Adventures starring Marco and the Cuban cigar black market, drunk dentistry students wanting to fight me and then inviting me to go drinking, gustavo the drunk car wash owner and my Mexican little brother ashing cigarettes and spilling tequila onto my bedroom floor, street preacher, orphanage, and the events leading up to the Mexican wedding in uruapan.

peace ya'll.
Tom.

Yesterday we drove past a car wash that advertised "Touchless Tunnel!" Joel said, "Is that the Tunnel of Love for Swedes?"

We love to read your posts, Tom--don't apologize! I will go to read your epic work soon.

Peter and Maria--Liv is at the fair EVERY day, never fear!

My trip to Omaha went well and Liv helped drive (7 hours each way). Unfortunately, the presentation went so well that I have been invited to return to Nebraska... not exactly my dream come true! Maybe I can write an epic novel about traveling to and from Omaha...

Tom,

I've linked your blog on the right hand side of the family blog. I remember you telling me all about those experiences before (I think at my bachelor party camping trip) but reading them here made them very real. Your writing has made those experiences come alive, I feel almost like I was there with you! I especially liked the part near the end where you waxed philosophical:

"There's this thing about waiting- it's like you stop living and wait for life to begin again, and when it begins, when you pull out on to the open road, you breathe again because you have life to live- it's not just survival, it's life.
Life is divided into two categories, waiting and living, not only in literal ways like stop lights and grocery store check out lines, but in spiritual or abstract ways- emotionally and intellectually."

Awesome writing, keep up the good work! I'd like to see you write an entire novel about those experiences sometime.

p.s.

liv, we'll see you at the fair on sunday if you're there!

I know I've been a little "posting crazy" the last couple of days, but just one thing. I have my own blog where I'm going to post some writing I've been doing- I just put a chapter from my up coming epic true life adventure tale "Stories from Mexico"- It is an early draft mind you and I welcome suggestions or harsh discouraging insults, as long as they're true. I will also accept adulation and praise, and money as well. (for what I'm not sure)

Tom.
brokendownheroes.blogspot.com

So, today, the hip-hop band I play guitar in (a fairly new development, yes, but well in line with my life goals) will be playing at a block party in North Minneapolis. It's the first time I've played with them so we'll just have to see how it goes. Maybe I'll bring a camera and take pictures. alright, peace. Tom

A Fair Day

Thanks for the congrats - it was fun to see our efforts be rewarded. And not just the boys - Teresa got a 2nd place for her bird - apolitical as it was!

I went early for breakfast at the Salem Lutheran building (near the fine arts) - only place (I think) with Swedish egg coffee! I had biked in, and wandered around a bit, then ran home (after seeing Teresa, Norris, Jerry and Russ checking out the Seed Art) to collect our instruments. Our spin around the fair was good, though I could barely blow my trumpet by the end. A nice touch was Joe, our director's son, playing crash cymbals while riding a unicycle - that got a lot of attention.

Liv was surprised to have one root beer customer ask "are you Paul Anderson's niece?" Not because of the resemblance - he was a neighbor that Paul had told about her gig at the fair.

Congratulations to Joel and Matt for winning prizes at the Fair! :)

JTA

Barrel #3 by Andy's Grille and Adventure Park. Same location as last year. 9-4.
Livvi'i

Hey everybody, this is Tom- here's the update:

No job,
No girlfriend,
No money,

But I'm happy. So I've been working on a paper about Assyrian History and while I think it's pretty interesting, I'll only post my thesis paragraph just so you don't all think I'm just lazy and good for nothing. Also, if you know any cookie factories that are hiring, let me know and i'll send in my resume.

Assyria from Restoration to Fall: Military Might and the Atrophy of Culture

In the history of Assyria we perceive the emergence of this pattern: the values of dominance and power trump the values of culture and faith. The system required for the expansion and the maintenance of an empire by its very nature pushes a nation or people group away from the cultural values that may previously have given them identity and significance. Faith, religion and worship are likewise subjugated to the self-exultant system of empire and its expansion. As the system strengthens, the culture atrophies; and as the grip of power tightens, so stiffen the forces of resistance and division that lead to the destabilization of the empire.


Peace to all, Tom.

This weekend Maria and I participated in our friends', Nate and Tiffany's wedding. Maria was a beautiful bridesmaid, and I was an usher. It was an outdoor wedding at the Earl Browne Heritage Center in Brooklyn Center (if you've never been there you should check it out, its a very interesting place). The weather was unbearably hot, so all the groomsman/ushers didn't wear their suit coats. The guests were all using their bulletins for fans. The ceremony, luckily, was very short, and we were enjoying refreshments within 35-40 minutes. The newlyweds are heading to Banff for their honeymoon. Have fun guys!

Liv,

once you know where you're going to be, let us know. Maria and I may be coming out this weekend.. Have fun with the bees!

Unfortunately I don't have a photo to enter for the virtual MNSF, but then again, who wants to look at a picture of me covered in pop and bees with a disgruntled look on my face?
----Livvi'i
p.s. If you do visit the MNSF, be sure to drop by my root beer barrel, I'm not sure which location I'll be at, but once I know, I'll be sure to let ya'll know!

I thank everybody for the news. As part of our virtual Minnesota State Fair (a service for out-of-staters), here is my crop art entry:





There is a "novice" category for anyone who has not entered before. Look for "Bird Seed" in the horticulture building.

Norris and I have walked through the fairgrounds a couple times recently, even though it is off-limits to cars now. Last night, we went to church because it was a holy day, and then had Joel drop us off on Snelling so we could walk through the grounds before it got totally dark. It was very interesting, as a lot was being set up, but I don't really think we were supposed to be there. Patrol cars examined us closely and we had to walk by several police officers. They just said, "Hi," but I guess we'll stay away until Thursday.

BTW, we will not be doing anything for Liv's birthday as she is gone at a retreat this weekend, will be going to Omaha with me on Tuesday and Wednesday, and then starts 12 days in the root beer barrel on Thursday. Say "Happy Birthday" to her there!

We have been having a difficult time with Kokomo this week as he has been in pain and hiding under the dresser for several days. We brought him to the vet yesterday and he has a ruptured disc in his back, with partial paralysis of his back legs (Liv said, "He's just like Uncle Paul"). He is now on steroids and a muscle relaxant and is feeling much better. However, he is supposed to be on complete "bed rest" for 3-4 weeks, which is impossible, especially as he is cage-shy. We are supposed to carry him up and down stairs and keep him from jumping on furniture, etc. Not easy! The worst part is, although he has a 90% chance of recovering from this episode without further treatment, he will be prone to further injury in the future and may have permanent damage.

Here is the picture that I submitted in the State Fair competition.


My friend George tried to submit a picture today, but he was too late.
I guess Joel will have some competition this year.

I am so sorry to hear about the death of Roberta. It's very interesting to hear all about your previous wife, Mark. I had no idea that's how the two of you met. I wish I knew how to play an instrument. I feel like the ugly duckling in this family of musicians. :)

Well, just this last week I was transferred to a different position at work. I am still at the same company and doing the same closing assistant job. However, I am now dealing with closings in Iowa rather than Minnesota. It's very different being here in Minnesota and preparing all of the documents for another state. There is a lot more work to do for Iowa, which is something that I was looking for. My other position was very slow and my previous job at Edina Realty Title was way too much. I can never find a job that is in between busy and slow. Why is that?

Mae in NY (as reported in email by John):

Mae spent the night with a friend from work who lives near the office --
when last heard from they were eating peanutbutter sandwiches for dinner.
Maybe she can be persuaded to recount her experiences in the Blog. She kept
calling home last night to find out what was happening in NY.

I'm sorry to hear about your mother-in-law, Mark. My deepest sympathies.

Has anyone heard from Mae in New York? My brother called me on his cell phone, and said he was stranded on a bus. Poor New York City.

Janelle

Roberta Worrell my mother-in-law from my first wife Jan passed away in Colorado Springs on August 1 at the age of 89. She had outlived her husband Joe, daughter Jan and son David. During the last ten days of her life she was being given hospice care in her own apartment. In addition several women from her church took turns staying with her. I was notified a week before she died and was able to speak with her and played cello music for her over the phone several times. String music was what initially brought us together. Jan (cello) and I (violin/viola) played together in the Roosevelt high and University of Minnesota orchestras. Over the years chamber music was frequently a part of family gatherings when they lived in Minneapolis, when they would come back for visits and when we went to Colorado Springs . In addition to Jan and I, musicians included (not all at the same time) Roberta (violin/viola), Joe (flute), David Worrell( violin), Roberta’s sister Betty(cello) , Betty’s daughter Karen (viola) ,Nancy (voice) and eventually Peter, Tom and Stephen on their instruments. Joe and Roberta enjoyed many years of retirement in their adopted home of Colorado Springs where they had many friends through their church. Peace be to their memory.

Emissary from the Future

I just dropped off my entry in the State Fair (remember-columbia.mrklingon.org). THIS year I may have more competition as Matt threatens to enter something... (but has he? Time is running out!)

Whenever I bring in my "computer art" to the fair, it seems the volunteers are 90 years old, and baffled by the notion that they have such a category as "computer-generated art." I feel like some spandex clad Jetsonian who has come bearing greetings from the world of tomorrow.

"Yea, verily, long have I labored with punch card and my Multivac computron to
create this wonder. You denizens of yesterday, BEHOLD !

EasyJet and RyanAir are giving some stiff competition to European rail:

Article

Maria, that's just what I wondered. However, it seems as if a lot of people in Europe use them and they are advertised heavily over there. The same company also owned the huge Internet cafe we used in London. We'll have to get Norris to write more about his friend's experience... whether EasyJet cuts back on food and drinks or mechanics.

Liv that sounds like a great idea, but how safe are these "cheap" planes??

Planes, Trains & Automobiles
Well, I know that trains & busses (fun!) have already been recommened for your European voyage, but I would like to make a unique and new suggestion---a plane. EasyJet is an awesome company that has planefares from about $40 dollars. (From London to Barcelona, for example is about $51.99). EasyJet is, according to a friend of Norris's, very cheap and low budget, so don't expect anything too plush.
----Livvi'i

Very interesting, Peter. We often drive by that complex on our way to my parent's farm. My parents went on a garden tour there once. Did you know that when they rebuilt the church brick-by-brick they had some left over, which they used to build the little shrine on the lawn outside?

As far as Europe, my advice would be to avoid the trap of visiting only large, famous cities (London, Paris, etc.) Of course, they all have some sights you shouldn't miss, but every big city is quite a bit like another big city! I have enjoyed my time in small towns much more, as one gets much more of the regional flavor.

You can buy rail passes tailored for your travel plans: http://www.railpass.com/EURAIL/PASSES/

Rail passes are not always the cheapest option, though, unless you're doing a lot of traveling. They also are not as convenient as I originally pictured, as one still has to check in to ensure seats are available. People in Europe also take buses a lot, especially between smaller towns. Even if there is rail service, it is sometimes faster and more direct to take a bus. Liv and I did that to get to Annecy, France from Geneva: we would have had to transfer two times to take the train, so I followed some stranger's advice on the Internet and we took a coach bus instead. It was direct, comfortable, inexpensive, and had about five runs each way every day.

I forgot to mention one thing.. Maria had a good time.. this picture attests to that:

Over the weekend Maria and I, along with her parents, went on a "Date Night". It was for a men's church group that Maria's father and I are a part of. We are going through the book and video series for "Wild At Heart" by John Eldredge. The book talks about how men long for adventure, and how they can take their "beauty" or wife along for that adventure. Our date night on Saturday was to be one of those adventures.

We met at the little log house show grounds near hastings. It is an old restored village with an old saloon, post office, blacksmith, general store, church and house of ill repute. It was a very interesting place, and I'd recommend checking it out sometime if you get a chance. They had a bunch of people from the "old west society" there to do re-enactment of a gunfight, complete with real guns (shooting blanks of course). Some of those guys were pretty scary looking!

The grounds had several areas, one of them was a garden with all sorts of beautiful flowers.



There was a little log house (thus the name of the place) next to the garden that was the original building on the grounds. (see picture below)


There was an old church on the grounds that had been moved from another city in Minnesota. Inside they had a bunch of life size statues of Jesus and Mary. They were very life like. I can imagine that it would be a bit spooky in there if you were all alone at night with these statues...




All in all we had a good time!

Hi all!

It was great to read all the posts that occurred in our absence. It's been a long time since I've been in a place where there's no Internet access, cell phone coverage (at least for T-Mobile), or even a public phone!

Our trip was organized by YouthWorks, an interdenominational Christian group that has summer work camps in many poor areas of the U.S. We left on Friday and spent the first night in Wall, visiting Wall Drug and hiking in the Badlands a bit. The next day we drove through the Black Hills, saw Mount Rushmore, hiked around Sylvan Lake, and spent the night in two cabins at Legion Lake in Custer State Park. The next morning we had to get up early as the only Catholic church within driving distance (in Custer, SD) had one service at 8:00 a.m. We made it in time and had a memorable experience. They were getting ready for their big fund raiser... serving a spaghetti dinner to some of the half million bikers attending the Sturgis Rally the next weekend.

Sunday afternoon we arrived at our mission site in Wanblee, SD, on the Pine Ridge Reservation. There were about 10 adults, 56 kids, and 4 staff members. Our group slept on the floor of a big classroom with the women and girls from a Lutheran church from a small town near Rochester, MN. The other groups were from Duluth, and three churches from Elkheart, IN who traveled together.

As Liv said, each day we either worked with kids or on houses. The kids have no supervision and wander around day and night. For "Kids Club" one drives a van through the housing project yelling, "Kids Club," and picking up kids off the street! The little kids are starved for attention and hang on anybody, but the teens and adults weren't always too friendly... giving people the finger was an art form! (for them, not us) We weren't allowed to walk anywhere off the school grounds. A tribal lawyer who spoke one evening claimed that there were only six people on the entire reservation (three counties) who weren't addicted to drugs and/or alcohol.

We had some interesting evening activities, including a walk in the Badlands and a softball game/weiner roast in the community. After five days of hard work, uncomfortable sleep, and inspiring worship we drove home in 10 hours.




Click here to see more pictures from our trip

Hi, Peter and Maria,

I just wanted to give you tips on Europe. I went to Spain and France in 1989, and went to London, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland in 1992.

Make sure you wear a money belt that you can hide in your shirt! Get the Let's Go Europe book, it's great and it tell you things to do for low prices. Bring good walking shoes, cause you'll be walking and getting lost a lot! Bring a backpack and pack lightly. Stay in hostels, you'll find that they are inexpensive, and you'll meet interesting people. Travel by train, it's so easy. When you stay in some hostels, however, some only have one bathroom down the hallway! And some bathrooms don't have showers, just bathtubs. People smoke a lot in Europe, too, beware.

But you'll have a great time! They sell lots of chocolate at almost every street corner. Go see Juliet's balcony in Verona, Italy! Go to the Eiffel Tower. Go see cheap theatre in London and go see the Tower of London, with the jewels, and Lady Jane's room. And take the Sound of Music tour in Austria.

Have fun and good luck! :)
Janelle

Outrageous
I got back this evening from my week long mission trip to Wanblee. It was amazing and lifechanging. I felt like we actually made a difference with at least the children there. I spent my first two mission days working in Kid's Club, a fun atmosphere for the kids of Wanblee to hang out in for two or three hours, and my last two days painting trim on a house there. It was amazing. I will continue to write more about this experience but as I was going home, I listened to Audio Adrenaline and the lyrics to "Dirty" really struck me.
Tired of being clean, sick of being proper
I wanna live among the beggars and dig out in the dirt
Step outside the walls we built to protect us
Don’t be afraid to get some mud on your face.
Come on, come on everybody.
Come on, come on and serve someone

Let's get dirty, let's get used
No matter where you come from
If you're beaten up or bruised
Let's get foolish, let's get free
Free to be the one thing
We were meant to be – let’s get dirty

You might get a bruise or some blisters on your fingers
You might start a question, and wonder what it's worth
You may slip and fall from the burdens that you carry
But you can't have this treasure, till you dig it from the dirt

Let's get dirty, let's get used
No matter where you come from
If you're beaten up or bruised
Let's get foolish, let's get free
Free to be the one thing
We were meant to be - Get dirty

Come on, come on everybody
Come on, come on, serve someone

Let's get dirty, let's get used
No matter where you come from
If you're beaten up or bruised
Let's get foolish, let's get free
Free to be the one thing
We were meant to be - Get dirty
Peace!
---Livvi'i

I'm VERY tired after 7 days of driving and work but will just report quickly that we had a great mission trip to Pine Ridge Reservation and are back safely. Lots of sad sights, but very rewarding. We'll post more and some pictures tomorrow. Teresa

Stevie and I treated ourselves to another one day human powered vacation today. From our house we went due east, crossed the Lake St. bridge, continued a few miles up Marshall , switched to University and eventually ended up at the trailhead of the Gateway Trail which is at Cuyoga and 35E a few blocks north of th MN State Capitol. This is ten miles from our home. We went on the trail which goes through suburban and countryside Ramsey and Washington counties and ended up at Pine Point Park which is the original site of the Washington County Poor Farm. We had are lunch there then went into Stillwater where we stopped for ice cream before starting for home. We considered going to downtown by the
St. Croix but realized that it would add four miles (half of it up hill) and we were running out of gas. We made it home without incident traveling 64 miles on a beautiful summer day. We had the cell phone, a couple of spare tubes and enough tools to make most repairs but fortunately we didn't need them.

Travelers

Nancy - I think the John & Lynda, Mae & Ingrid exhibit isn't on display anymore in England. The dollhouse (and clothes and furnishings and cars) ARE at Windsor. And Hampton is very interesting [note: they have the same kind of Audio guides as Norris used to sell at the MIA).

Very sparse news from Pine Ridge (Communications with France, Switzerland and England are much easier). Teresa called Friday from Wall Drug, and I missed a call yesterday (Monday) from Teresa (all I got was voice mail :( ).

Today I got a call at work, just an "all is well" call from the Church secretary -
they're doing fine and coming back on Friday was the extent of it.

However I got to experience a moment of panic when she called:

    "This is so-and-so from Corpus Christi,

        I'm the secretary, and I

             just talked to Alisa and

                 she

               wanted me

            to

             let you

                   know

            that

                              everything is fine, and they'll

                        be home on Friday."

I don't know if that gives you the idea, and there wasn't anything wrong
with her message or manners - but my imagination was leaping ahead to
anticipate WHY they were calling ME!?!!

And Koko is in Red Wing - but HE doesn't call when he's down there!

Hi Everybody!
I'm not the expert in the family on world travel, but I really enjoyed the Windsor Castle... I think that is where the doll house is. (?) It was fun riding on the trains to Salisbury, Eastbourne and into London and staying in a bed & breakfast.
(I especially enjoyed seeing John & Lynda, Mae & Ingrid!) I thought the Kew Gardens were very lovely... and Hampton Court was interesting. That's the extent of my experience.
Tom and Stevie went to Illinois for 2 1/2 days to help their Aunt Jan clean, pack and move; She's doing it gradually. They're probably on the road even as I'm writing this, heading back to Minnesota. We haven't had a chance to hear from Tom about Colorado. I hope he'll put info. on the blog. I've really enjoyed the pictures and descriptions of places all over the world.

Maria and I have been talking about taking a 2 week trip to Europe this fall. We're planning on going in September or October and hope to see several countries including Italy, France and England. i know many of you have been to Europe in past years, or in recent months, so any advice you can give us on travel, accomodations, tips, etc would be very helpful.

We're thinking about possibly flying on Iceland Air through Iceland to either London or Paris since they have some rather attractive round trip fares ($400-500). From there we're not quite sure how we want to get around.. most likely by train.. And we haven't planned out an itinerary, so any suggestions on what to see would be great too..

Wish us luck!

...more coherent nightmares....

Years ago (hm - 21, actually), Paul described the sermon at Norris's baptism by saying "I've had more coherent nightmares."

I can only steal those words in order to describe the show that Norris, Jerry, Russ and I saw last night: Andrew Lloyd Webber's Starlight Express.

This is a show that combined roller skating, 3D movies, music and special effects to tell the story of... uh, a boy playing with his trains - racing them to see which is fastest. It's the love story between a steam engine and a railway car. It's the competition between Diesel, Electric and Steam... It's all that and more. The only stage show where I've been instructed to put on (and take off) 3D glasses.

Very talented skaters, good singing, and extremely athletic dance/skate-ing. I can't imagine how Andrew Lloyd ever sold anyone on this bizarre show. I don't expect to ever see anything like this again.

The power of the written word

no, I didn't do this one.....

Great story and illustrations, Peter and Maria! I have been famous for my flat tires in bad weather and bad locations, but now I see there are worse things than flat tires.

One in the hubcap is worth two in the bush....

Today Maria put a slightly different twist on this old saying....

Maria was driving back to work after going home for lunch. While driving she heard a THUMP THUMP THUMP sound coming from her tire. Thinking that her tire was going flat, she was concerned, but decided to drive the rest of the way to work since the tire didn't seem to be completely flat. She got to work and discovered the source of the thumping sound. It appeared to be a rope of some sort dangling out of a hole in the hubcap on her tire. She went to pull the rope out of the hubcap when she realized, horror stricken, what the "rope" actually was. It was a SNAKE!

Maria was too horrified to actually remove the snake herself (understandably), and so she drove all the way home with that sickening THUMP THUMP THUMP noise in the background. When I got home I jacked up the car, took the wheel off, and surgically extracted the snake.. Wow, that sure gave me the willies.. ewww.

pictures of our slithering friend to follow - >

Letter from Bloomington

Hi Andersons,
It's great reading what everyone is up to! I've been having a fun summer in Bloomington, doing my research and taking some time off for fun activities:



(Minnesota isn't the only state with lakes)

I'm also moving to a new apartment at the end of July and will have a new address:

809 S. Henderson, Apartment #2
Bloomington, IN 47401

I'm having fun with my new Apple iBook and its wireless connection that I bought off the remnants of my grant. The future is now!
Happy rest of the summer! It's great hearing about everyone's trips--
Ingrid

Thanks for the pictures and report of the trip, John and Lynda. It looks fabulous! And, Mae, we certainly hope you can come and visit in August. We always have an extra bed.

Norris worked until 3:30 am this morning, helping to rearrange the store. Local people might have read about Marshall Field's reinventing itself in the Saturday Mpls. paper. They are adding a lot more trendy brands, even to the extent of leasing space within a store to other companies.

Liv worked at another car show this weekend, but it was not nearly as popular as the "Back to the 50s" one, so they closed up shop early on Sunday. They had lots of breakfast biscuits 'n gravy left over.

Liv and I are leaving on Friday for Pine Ridge Reservation. Three adults, seven girls, two minivans, Wall Drug, Mt. Rushmore, and the poorest county in the United States!

Hi everyone,
Thanks again to Ingrid for posting our photos. Well, it was the most complicated vacation I ever organized, but it was worth it. A really beautiful area as you can see, and we had outstanding weather (sunny in the 70's) which is not the norm. The islands are great, and you can ride those ferries for free if you walk on or bike. We had an afternoon in Seattle on Fri. visiting the Dusty Strings music store where I got to try th Fluke ukulele, and the Pike Place public market. Then it was flying back to Atlanta on Sat. arriving home about 10 pm. If anyone has a chance to visit the San Juan Islands I recommend it.

John

Wow
I was just gearing up to say something about summer doldrums and how little there was of late on the blog, and then those pictures were added! Beautiful!

Three Pictures from John & Lynda's trip to Washington




"The first picture is a beach area we stopped on Lopez Island while biking."



"The view of the ferry boats shows one leaving Orcas (where we stayed) and one arriving early in the a.m."



"The final one shows us on top Mt. Constitution the highest
point on Orcas. We drove up and walked the last mile to the top."

AP Scores
I got my AP scores in the mail finally! I got a four on both Biology and European History! (The scale is 1-5. 4=Well Qualified. 3 is the lowest passing score.) A four on an AP test is equivalent to an E (Exceeds Expectations) on an OWL in Harry Potter.
----Livvi'i

Hey everyone, it's John here from the Lopez Island public library -- couldn't find a cybercafe. Lynda and I have had a wonderful day biking on this island. Now we have some time to kill before our ferry back to where we're staying on Orcas Island. Very beautiful vistas of water and mountains and island farms everywhere. Had lunch at a place called Agate Bay -- picked up a few rocks, but rock collecting and biking don't really mix that well. Taking a few digital pictures so maybe we'll have some to share.

John

Hi:

Here is a photograph of Koko as an orphan mutt on the doorstep. It's a joint effort: Norris posed him, I took the picture, and Joel adjusted the color electronically as the flash hadn't gone off. And of course, Koko looked cute. Do you think he can be the next Mr. Winkle?

happy birthday norris!

July 9, 2003
Happy Birthday, Norris! I hope your birthday is full of adventure! We're looking forward to seeing you on Saturday.
Maybe your dad will show me how to make those nifty pictures.

/\
( _ )

(This is Norris with a birthday hat on his head!! ) I guess I don't need any help after all, Joel... Nancy

Happy 21st, Norris!

  ------              ------------           /-\  

  \     --------------            ------    | //|

   \\                      _            -----\+/

     \\     |_| _.._ ._     )/| __|_         ||

       \\   | |(_||_)|_)\/ /_ |_> |_         ||

         X   _    |  |  /                   ||

        /   |_)o.__|_|_  _| _.              ||

        /   |_)||  |_| |(_|(_|\/            ||

       /                      /             ||

       /    |\ | _ ._._o _|                ||

      /     | \|(_)| | |_>o          ----  ||

      /                        ------    --||

     /  ---------        ------            ||

    ----         --------     _           ||

                             ( \          ||

                  __         _)_\_        ||

                 ' \;---.-._S_____2_      ||

                   /   / /_/       (______|

                __(  _;-'    =    =|____._'.__

               /   _/     _  @\ _(@(     |'--.\ 

               (_ /      /\  _   =( ) ___||   \\ 

                 /      /\ \_ '.___'-.___~.    '\ 

                /      /\ \__'--') '-.__c` \    | 

               |     .'  )___'--'/  /`) ||  \   / 

               |    |'-|    _|--'\_(_/  ||   '.' 

               |    |   \_  -\          ||

                \   |     \ /`)         |

                 '._/      (_/         ||

                                       ||

                                       ||

                                       |

                                      ||

                                      ||

Hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July! Maria and I went up to Hayward, WI to the parent's cabin on Round Lake. It was a beautiful weekend up there, and we had a great time fishing, going to flea markets, eating at the original Famous Dave's restaurant, and watching fireworks on the 4th at the Casino. And the sunsets both nights were beautiful! Here's one of them!



I hope the rest of my family had a good trip to Illinois for Pete and Diane's 25th anniversary! Happy Anniversary guys!

Tom- Have you ever considered joining the Peace Corps?
Liv

Bloomin' Hostas!
From a picture that John passed on - a blooming "Fried Green Tomato":

From the Buford Avenue Missile Agency: Independence Day!
Independence from gravity! At least for a moment or two, I went down and launched three rockets - my small contribution to the black powder industry of the USA!

Earlier today, we watched the parade down Como in St. Anthony Park (marchers included an "Anaphylaxis and Food Allergy Support Group") . At the park Teresa and I played in the band (I got to sing, too) for the festivities. Especially notable is the fact that Kokomo got to come with us! He doesn't get out much, at least to such exciting places - but he was very well behaved. He sat on Liv's lap during our concert - finally he understands why Teresa practices those crazy drums (he usually hides around the corner from her when she is practicing).

Great to see more activity here! We're looking forward to hearing more! John and Lynda, I bet there are E-cafe's in Washington!

I must admit I impressed myself still being in 4th place of the posting stats while not having posted for a couple months or something like that. Here's the deal- I have two bachelor's degrees and no jobs. I might have some work coming up with a friend of mine who does construction work and so I'm hoping that works out. Otherwise I'm writing a novel about a man named Jack who has never left Pittsburgh but has a great National Geographic collection in his basement and he reads them and learns all about these far off countries and distant lands and then he goes around to dinner parties and lies to people about all the adventures he's had in foreign lands with the finest mysterious women of the world's cosmopolitan urban centers and lost corners.

Then, I meet Jack and we go on a trip to Mexico City and climb the pyramids and he cries.

That's the climax.

Well, without a job, I figured I might as well spend my time productively. I've also been helping a friend of mine record an album. Get all the details at www.jeremyerickson.com.

okay, hope everyone is well. Tom.

It's great to have so many new posts! Happy 4th of July!

Hay everybody - I'm back from almost 3 weeks on the farm - My folks are doing pretty well, but get discouraged sometimes. Mom has Paget's disease in her left shoulder... chronic pain, bone structure changes, etc., but no treatment decided upon at this time. Dad's femur has a fracture in it right below where his hip replacements were done, so has a lot of pain some days. He does a lot of reading and is very patient and never complains!
My sister Jan's house is almost ready for her to move in. It's really lovely. I'm so happy for her!
Mark, Stevie & I will be going down this weekend for my brother Pete and Diane's 25th anniversary celebration. It was fun catching up on each of you. Everybody in this house (except me) have been doing a lot of biking. I enjoy hearing about everyone's travels and trees. Happy Independence Day! Take Care! Nancy

Hey everybody -- John here,
I notice from the statistical analysis prepared by Teresa that I haven't been posting very much, so here goes.

Thanks to Ingrid for posting the pictures of the tree that fell into our side yard -- that should be all grass in that area. It was half of a double tulip poplar that fell from the yard across the creek. It missed our house, but damaged a crabapple tree and a cedar tree. It is actually a pretty massive trunk that fell, but it's hard to see in the picture because it was covered with ivy, so it just looks like a bunch of greenery. We have a lot of ivy in our yard and I always keep it off the tree trunks. Down here it will grow up and completely cover large trees. We have had tree services out to look at this -- our neighbor will pay for removal, but she has moved out of state and has the house for sale, so everything is moving slowly.

Lynda will be heading out to Port Townsend, WA next week for an early music workshop. I will join her for a vacation on Orcas Island in Puget Sound the week of July 13. I just shipped our bikes out there via UPS yesterday, so I hope they arrive. We should be back home the evening of July19.

I think we have made up for 5 years of drought in the past 2 months, and we are getting hit by the remnants of Tropical Storm Bill right now. Hope everyone is having a great summer.

John

Hi Everyone,
Sorry it's been so long since I posted anything. I've just been extremely busy with finding a new job and getting situated. It's much better at my new job. I am still doing the same things, just less work, more pay and the people are a lot nicer. The building is also beautiful and brand new. However, on my first day I found out that someone from my old job had called the vice president of my new job and told her all sorts of untrue rumors. Thank God she didn't believe them, otherwise I could've gotten fired. I was so upset and hurt. I couldn't believe someone would have the nerve to do that to me, especially when I worked so hard for them and did absolutely nothing wrong. I am in the process of finding out who exactly it was and getting to the bottom of it before it gets any worse.

Anyways, thanks everyone for all your anniversary wishes. Joel, I love that picture that you posted for us. Well, tomorrow evening we are going to Mark and Nancys for dinner. It will be nice to see Nancy again. Seems like she's been gone forever.

So does everyone have plans for the fourth of July? I think Pete and I may be going up to my parents cabin. It will be a nice getaway. My parents found out a couple days ago that the sale of my parents home fell through. It's tragic for both parties. I guess they recieved a letter in the mail stating that the Mr. of the family got cancer and that they can't afford it anymore since he will be undergoing chemo and they need to use that money to get him better. My parents are just devastated for him, but now dont know what to do since they are building a new house. Now they own two homes and arent sure if either one will sell. Please keep them in your prayers.

Hope it doesnt take me this long to write again. Take care everyone!

Anderson House Chronicles, continued. Chapter 2. The Tree.

Hello,

Dad wanted me to post these pics of a tree that fell in our backyard. More comments by Dad to follow!

Ingrid

Whoosh
Last day of June (I'm trying to fly a rocket every month

and almost missed out on June!), and a great day to fly!

Beautiful picture Peter!

Ok, here's a report on what Maria and I have been doing..:) We went to a Saints Game yesterday with others in our church small group. It was a beautiful day and perfect for being outdoors. We were in the sun at the hottest time of the day, and all ended up getting sunburned. Ouch!.. The Saints won 5-3!Here's the field from our seats:

| |

Stats
I get carried away (or should be) - here's a graphic to encourage MORE posting!

Each horizontal tick represents an archived week of postings. The vertical axis is number of posts.

My analysis is that warmer weather yields less time at the computer. But that means you all should have more to report! Let us hear more about what y'all are doing out there!

The Anderson Blog is now six months old! Thanks for starting it, Peter. I thought it might be interesting to count how many times each Anderson had written. Lousy epidemiologist that I am, I was planning on doing this manually, but Joel wrote a quick program and had it done before I could start. This is NOT to criticize anyone for blgging too much or too little (but it would be nice to hear from everyone once and a while!)

The envelope, please...

Peter 108
Joel 74
Teresa 42
Thomas 26
Mae 25
Nancy 24
Liv 23
Maria 19
Matt 11
Ingrid 10
Mark 9
Janelle 8
John 8
Lynda 3
Norris 3
Paul 0
Stevie 0

Baby Shower
Today Janelle, my mom and myself attended a baby shower for a co-worker, Robin. Robin and her husband Mike adopted a baby, Dylan Mario, from Guatemala. Dylan is 9 months old and "cute as a button." He was a very calm baby.
Hasta luego,
Livvi'i

Expecto Patronum*

Well, not much going on here - at least no trips farther than Forest Lake. Teresa is doing her final show tonight at Seven Brides for Seven Brothers tonight. We're all - except for Norris - reading Harry Potter this week. Liv got it first, then me, now Teresa. (I know one family that was doing this simultaneously with FOUR bookmarks). Thursday Liv and I parked cars for the Saints games (this is a fund raiser for the youth group at church) so we had a nice hour or more of Harry Potter discussion time. We can both recommend Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix highly. It is a lot darker than the earlier books, and you do need to read the others first.

I'm eagerly waiting for my copy of The Hidden Key to Harry Potter, a book which is supposed to show how JK Rowling is literary kin to CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien (they all have initials for first names!).

*Latin: "I expect a defender" - the spell that conjurs a defender; You have to read the HP books to get that. Artwork from a Russian website about Harry Potter.

Well its been a while since anyone posted anything so I thought I would just take a moment to say thank you for all your anniversary wishes. We had a great time this past weekend at the aurora stapes inn in stillwater (for more or our own pictures, Click Here). We stayed in the "Peacock Room" which was done in a peacock motif.



The wallpaper, chairs, rugs and everything else had peacocks somehow involved. The room also had a big whirpool to soak in, which was wonderful after a day of walking around stillwater. In the morning we had a big breakfast with the other guests, and they were all there to celebrate anniversaries or birthdays. The older married couples were happy to give some advice about marriage, kids and other topics..

Maria started her new job this week at Signature Title in Savage. If you could all keep her in your prayers as she adjusts to the new situation. I'm so proud of you Maria!

Welcome home MOM! Mom has been in Illinois for the past several weeks helping out her folks, and while we're glad she was able to help out, we're to have her back. It was good to hear your voice again last night! Have a great rest of the week everyone!

    _  _

  __| || |__         mMm  _[_]_       ____

  \   __   /        /(")\  (")       /_   |

   |  ||  |        //)^(\\//:\\       |   |

  /_  ~~  _\      /(/&@&\\/|~|/       |   |

    |_||_|       / /-~`~-\ |||        |___|

                 `/       \|||

                 `----------'--

    ,--------------------------------------Y

    |  Happy Anniversary Peter and Maria!  |

    '---------------------------------------

Happy #1, Peter and Maria!

For any Andersons interested, the St. Anthony Park Community Band is playing at Lake Como Tuesday, June 24, at 7:00 p.m. As John B. has not shown up this year (yet anyway... he could still show up after missing all the rehearsals), I am the senior drummer with the director's 14-year-old son, Joe, breathing down my neck and telling me what I'm doing wrong. Our friend Lili from church (the alto who sang at the nursing home with us in December) wanted to play in a band so she is our bass drummer now--the first time she's played an instrument. I also volunteered her to sing on an number.

I am playing accordian for "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" in Forest Lake this week and next. Florian Keller is the musical director (same as for 'Fiddler'). Kind of crazy thing for me to do, considering I just got back from Europe on Sunday and started with tech rehearsal on Monday night (in fact, I have never mentioned this to my mother, so keep it under your hat). It's a very lively performance with lots of dancing if anyone is interested, but don't come to see me as I don't play much. Because the pit is so crowded, the harp player and I sit outside of it and so have a very good view of the stage, although we can't wriggle around or pick our noses.

Happy Anniversary, Peter and Maria! (one day early)

Have a great day!
Janelle and Matt :)

Log this under the "what not to do when you're fishing" file.

local6.com - News - Paramedics Pull Bluegill From Fisherman's Throat

After receiving some feedback on the blog, I've decided to go back to the old layout for now. When I receive some photos of family members that I can use, we'll set up a new banner for the top with some better quality pix. Have a great thursday!

Hey everyone, hope you're all having a great week!

Just a note about the blog.. i've changed the look a little bit.. let me know what you think!

I would like to make a new banner at top with pictures of everyone in it. The only problem is I don't have good pictures of everyone. if you could send them to me at onebigswede@hotmail.com, that would be great. thanks!

Stevie and I went on a parent /child adventure too. We didn't make it to Europe or California but all the way to Carver Park, 27 miles from our home. We packed our tents, sleeping bags, food etc. onto our human powered vehicles and headed to our favorite campground on thursday. The weather was great and our trip out there was uneventfull except for the fact that I had to pump up my back tire a few times because it seemed to be losing air. We fished, we swam, cooked foil dinners over a wood fire , had s'mores and fought off hordes of the minnesota state bird( aka mosquitos). Everything was fine until minutes before our departure friday my back tube gave up the ghost. A spare tube was the one thing I had plenty of back at home. So here we were stranded 27 miles from home on a very warm but beautiful June day. I called home and left a message for Tom to come and get us. I had no idea where he was or when he would get the message. Then while Stevie went swimming again I borrowed his bike and rode a couple miles into Victoria to see if there were any tubes there. I verified that there were no tubes for sale and returned to the campground. Repeated calls to our house confirmed that Tom was not there which meant that either he had'nt heard the message yet or else he had heard it and was already on his way to rescue us. Then I thought of Carsoup.com. They help people resolve their transportation needs . Why not us? When I called Carsoup and explained our problem to their top problemsolver he agreed to help. A short time later this professional delivered the required tube plus a spare and graciously hauled or camping gear back to civilization. With the bike repaired Stevie and I completed our ride at 9:00 P.M. Thank You Peter!

This is our last night in Geneva. It seems we've been gone forever! We look like we've spent the time on the beach instead of at conference in a big city. I have never been so hot in my life (including Disney World in July). Today we toured the Red Cross Museum and the European UN among other things. Our English-speaking tour guide for the UN was from Argentina and some of the people on the tour spoke something other than English as their first langûage, so it was interesting. Liv had the idea of buying all day bus passes so we spent a lot of time commuting back and forth. Nothing is air-conditioned except for our hotel room, but everyone else looks cool and collected on the buses and in restaurants. Home to Minnesota!

Bonjour ya'll. Mom and I had a very uneventfull trip to Annecy, France. It was very nice there. Everything was a lot cheaper than in Geneva. It wasnt cooler there, but I liked it more. There was a big market when we first got there and everyone had there little foofy dog and was buying fruit, veggies, meat, cheese and bread. We walked around the lake and saw some swans. Then we ate lunch at a good Vietnamese restaurant that was sort of in an alley/courtyard thing. We spent a lot of the day in a park. We sat in the shade and read. It was fun and uneventful.
Love,
Livvi'i

My presentation went okay, but the whole thing was strange--kind of a cross between a conference and a camping trip. I had to take a bus up to a beautiful pastoral area and then walk down a road to find the meeting which was held in a kind of old barn or garage! I was wearing a black dress, nylons, and dress shoes and sweating like crazy. We ate lunch first in another old building--neither was air conditioned. And after my talk, the committee pretty much decided they didn't want links to other websites on their site anyway, so to heck with criteria for choosing them!

HI! It continues to be very hot here. This morning I went and saw the University, it was very pretty. Then I went on a boat tour, that was very fun. There were very few people on board except for a whole class of seven year olds on a field trip. The man who sold me my ticket was very funny and nice, he told me where I could get the cheapest pop in Geneva, too! Then I got some lunch and went back to the room. I didn't do too much after that, but I found a very nice (and VERY cheap) clothing store across the street, H&M.
Livvi'i

Hi Everyone,

It sure has been a long long time since I visited this site. Lots has happened to you all and to me. I have been extremely busy with work lately. The last week of May I worked till 11:30pm almost every single night. I had been thinking about quiting for a long time because they work me too hard, yet I love my job and what I do. So, I started to look for a different job. It didnt take me long to find lots of title companies interested in hiring me. So, I have a new job working for a company called Signature Title. They pay me much more, it's a lot closer to home, it's in a brand new building and I am an a assistant to only one closer instead of two at Edina Realty. So, hopefully that will mean less work. They also promised me that I would never ever work past 7pm. So that will be heaven compared to my other job. My last day at Edina Realty is on Thursday June 19 and I start at Signature Title on the 23rd. I am excited, yet nervous at the same time. If you could keep me in your prayers, that would be a great comfort.

Pete and I are also approaching our 1 year anniversary. We are planning on staying at a bed and breakfast in Stillwater since I have never stayed at one before. It should be a fun time.

Glad to hear everyone is doing well. Take care.

It's Just One Harrowing Experience After Another
So we were on the bus to the international part of town and then suddenly the driver applied the brakes and we just barely didn't hit this womans car that was also applying the brakes and spun around and hit a fence. This old man in the back of the bus near us was lying on the floor, and we thought he was dead. They finally got him up and then he was standing and wasnt responding to anything that anyone was saying in French, English, German or Italian. So ....it turned out his hearing aids had been thrown across the bus and the driver almost threw them away. Then we got off as they were calling an ambulance. Well, that was it. Bonsoir! Livvi'i

Here's what Liv was writing about)

Thanks for the pictures of California. No sweatshirts needed in Geneva! Actually, we are quite sunburned after walking around all yesterday... again today it is sunny and will be in the high 80s.

Our biggest experience yesterday was the Jet d'eau, the 450' jet of water going up in the lake, seen in all pictures of Geneva. We were surprised to discover one could walk right out to it on a long pier and since we were very hot, we did so. The pier was narrow and made out of uneven rocks and once we got out to the end, gusts of wind drove sheets of water over us and we couldn't get back! There were other stranded people out there, hanging onto a metal fence. We finally made our way back, but it was scary and we were absolutely soaked. But we dried out quickly in the sun and wind. Afterwards, we said it probably SAVED our life, as we might have died of heatstroke otherwise.

California Dreaming....
A few pics:



Some Heroes!

Driving down the California Highway!

At Laguna Beach

One Magical Night at Disneyland

Hi from Liv and Teresa in Geneva. Our flights went fine, and we only went a little out of our way to find our hotel from the train station. Unlike California, it is hot and sunny here. The internet cafe (called "Internet Cafe"--catchy) is right across the street, but not as cheap or big as in London. Also, only has French keyboards.

Right now we're going to get lunch and visit some parks, including a skate park.

We're Baaaaa-ack!
Norris and I have returned - everything went smoothly, including the sun which went AWAY for a week. But we had a nice time at Disneyland, San Diego, Hollywood, and Laguna Beach. More reports to follow....

Our home away from home.

Bon voyage, Liv and Teresa!

Eat lots of chocolate and croissants!

Janelle :)

Norris and Joel have been in Anaheim almost a week and have seen the sun for ten minutes. It has also not hit 70. They went to San Diego one day and L.A. another day. Disney offered a five-days-for-the-price-of-two ticket, so they anticipated spending parts of several days in the two parks with plenty of time to lie around the pool at the Alpine Inn. Instead, they've been going on ride after ride and say they will be wearing the same sweatshirts on every picture.

Liv and I are leaving for Geneva tomorrow afternoon. My stint as a WHO "Temporary Advisor" is on Thursday, so we should have two days to sightsee on either side of that event. Hope we have better weather than the boys!