A day of rest

Dear Family, Friends and Casual Readers,

8:45 for those of you who like to go to bed early. Our weather has been very warm today but house and car cooling systems keep it comfortable.

Nikki had Keanna all dressed and ready to go this morning when I arrived and we made an on time arrival at Sabbath School in Tracy. The leaders / teachers do such a great job for children her age and slightly older. Wes, Rod, Pat and Sylvia run a excellent program and I really think it helps the kids get the message from the bible stories. With Sylvia teaching Keanna's group that really helps Keanna overcome her shyness. When I stop to think about it Keanna hardly knows any of the kids, its a strange world for her. She does know Joanna and today both Joanna and Sydney were there which helped. After Sabbath School was over she stayed and played for awhile and then we met Nikki and Kallie for lunch at the Olive Garden. Today they informed us that they are offering the unending pasta bowl again. That's nice as you can select the type of pasta and the type of sauce you desire. So I had whole wheat linguine with 5 cheese sauce. It was a great meal and a total delight to observe Kallie as she make eye contact with a table of little grandmothers nearby, attempted to eat her food actually keeping some on the table while there was quite a bit on the floor. It was great to see they all again.

I've taken it easy this afternoon and this evening drove to an aquarium store in Dublin which sells salt water. My reef tank needs a water exchange so now I have 25 gallons to use to freshen the tank and give the fish a new lease on life. Its not easy work as the process involves my pumping out 5 gallons at a time into an orange bucket, taking it to the curb and dumping it, then repeating the process until I have 25 gallons removed. Then I introduce new salt water into the sump which is below the tank 5 gallons at a time. Each 5 gallon container weighs about 40 lbs so I get a nice workout.

It feels sort of strange to actually be home this weekend. We have had such good times on the trips we have taken, first to Weed to spend time with the family there and then last weekend to MBA to spend time with Jason, Jo and Timothy. The motorhome allows for a quick trip with a minimum of effort as most things are already on board. We just load the frig, take a few personal items and off we go. It appears that now that we have the tires up to the right psi, thanks to neighbor Ken and his faithful compressor, that we are getting about 11 mpg. That is not bad considering we are taking the motel room complete with kitchen and bathroom along for the ride.

I've had the chance to talk with Jason, Nikki and Jerry today, family is so important and fills an important gap in my life.

Our friend Marilyn Bitzer who lives in a Del Webb retirement community near Barb and Gerry emailed me this morning and attached an email she had received years ago from Nan. It was pure joy to read Nan's words as she wrote a newsy note about her future plans, trips, medical visits to City of Hope. It was a real blast from the past and I loved it. Nice to make contact and be reminded of precious times.

So now I wish each of you a good evening,

love

tim

ps The photo was captured as Marilyn was helping Keanna with a game on the little laptop. Marilyn will be so pleased that I have shared this with all of you. She loves to have her photo taken and shared!