A happy ending to a perplexing problem ...

A huge thank you goes out to, Mr. Bill Skags of AT&T Wireless. He resolved our customer service problem with the telephone to the satisfaction of all concerned. He placed a credit on our wireless phone account far in excess of the value of the telephone we purchased - in order, he said, to make some reparation for our trouble. He didn't just go outside the box, he set the box aside to do his thinking.

AT&T Wireless should be proud of an employee who puts customer service above matters of policy. I am glad we persisted until we found someone who listened creatively. I asked Mr. Skags if he minded my using his name to thank him here. He didn't mind at all. So I repeat:

Thank you, Mr. Bill Skags.

Of the best ...

Thinking back over the year ... never mind. I don't want to do that. I just want to remember the highlight for me, which was the wedding. It was so special, for two special people.

This year, we are having steak and blackeyed peas for New Year's. No ham. This is not because we are superstitious. It is because we really do like blackeyed peas when they are not capable of singing.

Most importantly: We wish a Happy Anniversary to Zeta and M, with many more to follow!

Customer Service ...

AT&T is making a distinction between telephones bought as Christmas gifts from bricks-and-mortar stores and those bought from the AT&T internet site. In November, we ordered, via the AT&T web site, a Motorola KRAZR which was destined to be opened December 24th. It gets a strong signal and sounds great. The interior display works just fine. The exterior display, however, is so dark that it can be seen only indoors while tilting it to a light source. I say "seen" advisedly because it certainly is not possible to actually read it.

A customer service representative at AT&T told us that if we had bought it at a local store, AT&T would replace it with another new phone through their "buyers remorse" plan for Christmas purchases. Since it was ordered via the web more than thirty days ago, it can only be replaced, under warranty, with a refurbished phone. Refurbished? Hello, it was activated on Christmas Eve!

What wonderful customer service ...

On the way, a detour ...

Big Ed had a routine medical test after which he had some complications. He is mostly recovered, now, but spent some time in the emergency room on the route to this recovery. He is a good patient, and I have this on excellent authority.

Thank you, Zeta, for all your help with the ins and outs while he was waiting and afterward. Your parents must be so proud of you. I can testify to that! It is such a relief to have "inside" help which is so freely offered.

Big Ed and I actually spent 30 hours awake with two/three hours of sleep tucked in somewhere, not a planned activity. We also spent from before midnight until noon the next day without eating. I lost one pound. He lost ten.

Life can be so unfair.

Inadvertent gifts are good, too ...

This box was destined to be put in the trunk of the car to corral groceries and keep them from migrating beyond reasonable reach. It was raining when I opened the door to take it out, so I put it down on the couch, temporarily. When I returned for it, a life form had taken occupancy. Evidently, it was the nicest thing she got for Christmas and was excellently placed for maximum feline satisfaction.

The Eagle has landed.

I have been reliably informed that the stars of the recent family wedding are back in town, this evening. Merry Christmas and welcome home!

I can't wait to see the tropical tans they have acquired. Or not. They are used to the tropical sun and so may not have changed skin hues.

Pictures will be welcome, too.

Bits 'n Pieces from earth ...

The quiet issuing from o1 doc's direction is due to a knee injury suffered in a bad fall. She has to stay off her feet and keep it elevated. As our brother told her, the fall wasn't bad but the landing was terrible.

The wedding pictures are up at zeta's. I still get all clouded up and tend to rain over them. I was determined not to cry at the wedding but I surely am making up for it now. May need a new keyboard if this keeps up.


Where's Waldo Mew? Still helping, in a supervisory capacity.

The Big Day finally arrived ...

The wedding cake was stunning; the red flowers between the tiers are roses. The filling was dulce de leche. Yum. Note the photo in the silver frame ...








Each table bore candles and flowers like the centerpiece at our table.




There were dulce de leche cookie-shaped candies in keepsake containers marked with S and E's names. Votive candles were wrapped with netting and personalized with their names. And the food was the best I have ever had at a wedding, including my own.

This was a wonderful wedding, with perfect weather for it and was truly a joyous time for us.

Zeta will have pictures up soon, I am sure.

One large step for man ...

We're taking our digital camera to the wedding for sure - it is hanging inside the front door on the handle. I am so excited that the pictures may reflect it ... blurry springs to mind. If I get any that are semi-recognizable, I will post tomorrow. Zeta will probably do much better.

We are leaving two, or two and a half, hours early - just in case. Jams, accidents, etc., are being allowed for and we know that no one will be allowed in after the bride's processional.

Let me shout it: may God Bless S and E on this special day, and always!

C-napping on the job ...

Turn your back for a few minutes and the helper goes to sleep. She has been helping at every step of tree-dom except for the actual setting the tree in the stand. That looked uncertain enough that she watched from the safety of the hallway. Smart kitty didn't get any sticky sap on her paws.

It appears that she may have been in charge of arranging the lights and retired without finishing. Sometimes efficient help is difficult to find, at Christmas.

Coconut info

The coconut palm, that Big Ed brought home and J planted, has twelve or thirteen developing nuts around the crown. This makes the two that we already took from it look less valuable for planting and more edible. This palm believes in feast or famine. Feast is on the way.

It just has to get ripe.

Thank you ...

It says something about J and I that both of our grown children thought of some form of food as a gift for our anniversary. Big Ed took us to dinner at the Roadhouse and we pigged out on steak, appetizers, baked potatoes ... It was a lovely evening. Not having to cook is always a thoughtful gift. Good food, not cooked by us, is even better!

The following weekend, we received a visit from M and a recovering Zeta who, thoughtfully, had not wanted to be near us while she had a horrible cold. She and M brought a beautiful gift basket filled with our favorite things: Russell Stover chocolates (sugar free), Starbucks coffee, Flora pasta sauce and three kinds of Dreamfields pasta. We were astounded at the appearance of the Flora which we had been looking for with no success. M found it, they said. What a mission that must have been.

I would claim that we unwrapped the basket so as to photograph it, but that's not exactly true. We wanted to get to the good stuff.

Thank you Big Ed, Zeta, and M, for a lovely remembrance.

What fun, real tears ...

Good thing we're almost finished with Christmas shopping because this week there is something on our schedule every day. It is either eye checkups, medical checkups or stuff to put out for the Salvation Army.

The wedding is just around the corner. Zeta told the tale of what we did listening to the music. Instead of a tissue, perhaps a bedsheet might do ...