Alex and Onita's ship Visions of the Seas docks this morning in San Pedro, back from 3 ports in Mexico, and they will drive back to Sacramento today...bienvenido...I'm sure their temperatures were much warmer than ours. We've been a one-truck household for a week. My Honda SE needs a new $3,500 transmission, but the Honda dealership is going to install a new one for free under a technicality they discovered in my warranty. I'm hoping to get it back by the 23rd or 24th. We saw WAIT UNTIL DARK last night at the Woodland Opera House, after cocktails and a buffet at Dean's house, both were terrific. Carol, Richard, Trisha, Jack, and Mary also attended both. It was Dean's directorial debut and I think he agonized over every detail during the play, while the rest of us just sat back and enjoyed it. The lighting (or lack of it) is an indispensable part of the play. Afterwards, we went backstage to see and learn the tricks of staging a play, and congratulated members of the cast. We finally got Ryan's Christmas ping pong table over to his house (big and heavy, but a lot of fun when it is assembled). Lindsay was supposed to speak at a "roast" of her ex-boyfriend Cam last night, we'll see how she says it went. Hope to finalize vacations to Maui and Santa Cruz this week, and possibly start the dreaded tax returns.

weather weather weather

Weather and its resulting effects have impacted our lives this month. At my office, we have had ongoing telephone problems that remain unresolved. At home, regular power outages have caused problems with our DirecTV, computer, clocks, and other electric services. The meteorologists claim it was the wettest December in our area in 50 years. And, of course, our rivers and creeks swelled to dramatic levels. It makes for a lot of inside time and, of course, cars and trucks never receive their proper washing and waxings. It also caused detours and delays in the mountains. Alex and Onita were diverted on their way from Reno to South Lake Tahoe, and my brother Glenn's trip from South Lake Tahoe to Sacramento (with his family and my Mom), after a week's vacation, ended up taking over 8 hours. They arrived on New Years Eve and stayed the night at our house before heading out to Sunnyvale to visit Beth's mother. There was even a power outage at Gerry Gollihur's wedding reception on 1/1/06. We have had storm-free weather the past few days and it has allowed us to actually spend time outside cleaning up the assorted debris from the weeks of wind and rain. We took down all of the Christmas lights and decorations over the past few days, and our house looks very ordinary. Cindy has completed her series of knee shots, we'll see how successful it turns out. Hello new year!!