Have You Started Your Shopping Yet?

Exactly six months from today is Christmas!

Elementary, My Dear Readers!

I've always enjoyed Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories. When we were first married Tom gave me a thick book with small print that contained all the stories and I read it cover to cover. I loved that book. Saturday I got to see the great detective work his magic in the flesh when Tom and I traveled to the Erie Playhouse for "Sherlock Holmes, the Final Chapter." And there he was, Sherlock Holmes in person, complete with deerstalker cap, mershaum pipe and violin. He cut a magnificent figure in period costume including a floor length cape. And of course we got to hear him utter those famous lines "elementary, my dear Watson," and "the game's afoot!"
The play was narrated by an elderly Dr. Watson just as in the book. The only woman who ever got the better of Holmes, Irene Adler, figured prominently in the play as did his nemesis Professor Moriarity. As in any good piece of fiction, the ending was delightfully twisted. We had a great time.
On Sunday afternoon we went to University Hospitals in Cleveland to visit Tom's dad who had undergone surgery for an abdominal aortic aneurism. Much to our pleasure he is doing quite well. Monday he transferred to a nursing home for a couple weeks of rehabilitation. We're planning to visit him today after Tom gets off work.
All in all, a nice weekend.

Blogging is Good for You

In the June 2008 issue of Scientific American an article written by Jessica Wapner states that blogging is good for one's health. She says:

Self-medication may be the reason the blogosphere has taken off.
Scientists (and writers) have long known about the therapeutic benefits of
writing about personal experiences, thoughts and feelings,. But
besides
sserving as a stress-coping mechanism, expressive writing
produces
many
physiological benefits. Research shows that it
improves memory
and sleep,
boosts immune cell activity and reduces viral
load in AIDS
patients, and even
speeds healing after surgery A study in
the February
issue of the Oncologist reports t6hat cancer patients
who engaged in
expressive wwriting just
before treatment felt markedly
better, mentally and
physically, as compared with
patients who did
not...Some hospitals have
started hosting patient-authored
blogs on
their Web sites as clinicians
begin to recognize the therapeutic
value. Unlike a bedside journal,
blogging offers the addid benefit
of
receptive readers in similar
situations. Nancy Morgan, author
of the
Oncologist explains: "Individuals are connecting to one
another and
witnessing each other's expressions--the basis for forming
community."

So improve your memory, sleep better and cope with stress---BLOG ON!!

Look Up!

I read this motto at one of my clients' homes:

Sorrow looks back

Worry looks around

Faith looks up

I need to concentrate less on looking around and more on looking up.

Babies in a Tub

Douglas recently sent us the cutest picture of Lakyn and Lani in the bathtub. They'll be seventeen months on June 16.

A New Baby At Our House

I had forgotten how much fun a new baby is. Toby is a nine week old Chihuahua puppy who came to live with us on Memorial Day. I'd been wanting a small dog for quite a while so when I saw him advertised in the newspaper I was delighted. He weighs all of 2.4 pounds and is much smaller than his best friend, Tigger the cat.

He's grey with brown markings and has blue eyes. His home is a cat carrier. It took a while but now he sleeps there quite contentedly. Housebreaking is our current project and it will probably take some time since I read that puppies aren't really aware of their need to eliminate until they're twelve weeks old. Mom says he is training us to take him outside rather than the other way around.

Today Toby got a baby shot and spent the afternoon lying in my lap being miserable. I finally had to convince him to lie on the couch so I could get something accomplished.

As an added bonus, we'll never forget his birthday since it's the same as Douglas', April 3.