Aunt Leah's Christmas Tree Lot Blues: Wednesday, December 11th

The luck of having talent is not enough; one must also have a talent for luck. -Hector Berlioz, composer (1803-1869) 

Hi, Patrick,

Sorry for the late reply, as I finally completed my final installment today in catching up with your email! 

Very sorry to hear about Maggie.  I hope Randy take notes – as I complain louder into my old age, it could be a good sign of my ever better health!  Hope Chloe is liking her new gig – 7 days a week!

Sounds like you got yourself a nice vacation home in Simi Valley!  The biggest news since we saw you last is that we bought a vacation home in Vail Colorado!  It was not planned, but timing and price seemed right.  We spent 3 weeks renting a house in the summer, with kids, their boyfriend & girlfriend, and had a great time.  Hiking, biking, boating, golfing and concert going kept us very well entertained.  So Thanksgiving was the first time we stayed at the house.  Kids both love it (seeing it for the first time), and we are going back Dec 26 – Jan 12 with their significant others to celebrate New Year on the ski slopes!  Driving from Dallas is 14 hours nonstop, and we will have a van full of kids and dogs.  So hopefully it will make a short trip …  We are excited about the house, about 3 miles outside the heart of the village.  It sits on the hillside, near the start of our favorite hiking trail Booth Falls, has beautiful views across the valley, and backs up to White River national forest.  It has an open and updated living/dining/kitchen floor; 4 bedrooms spread over 2 floors; and 4 very dated bathrooms!  (Plus the steps leading up to the house.  See photo attached.  Yes, you’ve got to be in good shape to stay in the house!)  We hope to get some renovations done after snow melts.

Randy’s new book “Asian Religions: A Cultural Perspective” is out and we had a wonderful signing party last Sat. in San Antonio, borrowing friends’ house.  (In fact, the house belongs to Emily Sano, who was the exec director at Young Museum until 5 years ago, when she retired and became Oracle founder Larry Ellison’s personal art buyer.)  Miranda and boyfriend Eduardo came in town, and we got their full attention for the weekend.  In addition to traveling between San Antonio and Dallas, Randy has also traveled a lot to Taiwan, helping a university there to start an international program.  He has sabbatical coming up next fall, and will spend a big chunk of his time in Taiwan.

My work is going well, with good assignments now that I’m located in Dallas.  Have a good rapport with my bosses, though retirement incentives and possible layoffs next year are the environment we’re in.  In 3 short years, I will be retirement and pension eligible.  So the question will be why I shouldn’t follow your path, retire young, and live the good life?

Adrian has 3 more semesters to finish, while Miranda is applying for grad school in psychology.  So there might be more moving van driving in the next couple of years.

I’ll sign off.  Send our love to Corinne, Chloe, Dusty & Clara, and the glamorous LA clan!

P.S. Please use my gmail as I don’t usually check my work email with att.com  Ruth

Patrick, We are very glad that you pointed out Cora Lee's gluten intolerance condition. We will ensure we keep her wheat flour free. You mentioned an ancient grain dish, - can we not offer an interesting or exotic rice dish? I often produce these including some wild rice to add a luxurious earthy flavour. At any rate, rest assured that we will design and source our foods accordingly. cheers, Bill.
 

ps: I didn't get the part about "the fewer glasses of wine for us" -you both will of course both eat and drink well, and we are but a short cab ride home.

Hi Wild Bill!

Thanks for being so accommodating regarding Cora Lee's gluten intolernace. I just didn't want you to feel that you should have to make any changes to your menu. Of course, I know that with your wonderful culinary skills, you can well prepare, in your words, "an interesting or exotic rice dish". Again, I just didn't want to to presume! So, thanks again for your generous understanding.

On the question of fewer glasses of wine I only meant that if Cora Lee wasn't able to eat some of the dishes then she would simply drink more while the rest of us munched, thus leaving less hootch for the rest of us!
 

At any rate, thanks again. Look forward to seeing you both on the 27th. Happy Christmas to you and Denise and family. Cheers, Patrizzio!

Young Patrick, I am sorry but I missed your birthday. I hope it was great and that you got to celebrate with some nice scotch and a bit of vino. 

I have been poor at writing for the past several months.  Now I am having serious vision problems,  so it might be some time until I am back in full swing. I have a new eye surgeon who is reputed to be the best. Hopefully she will be able to help. All the best my friend.. Happy belated Birthday and all my best to your family... Bill

Hi Wild Bill!  Grand to hear from you although I'm very sorry to learn of your vision problems! Do hope that things will turn out for the best. You've had a pretty rough go of things, of late, what with your back problems when last here on the coast. (Hope that you will able to read this message or at least have someone read it to you.) Thank you for the kind and thoughtful birthday wishes, especially when you are experiencing such difficult health issues. Much appreciated, dear friend!

Happy Christmas and a Healthy New Year, William! We send good wishes and thoughts for best possible outcome with respect to eye surgery.) Fondestos and Cheers from An Older but probably Not A Wiser Nor Kinder, Gentler Patrizzio!

dear pat and Corrine, well it was good hearing from you. it looks and
sounds like you had a really good holiday. you say you guys are a bit cold
right now, I look at your daily temperatures in the paper every day and it's
freezing well we have the opposite to you in perth . today is 36 and for the next 5 days it will be 38 plus the good thing is on Tuesday a cool change 37 so one is as bad as the other you can't do much anyway. 

sorry about maggie and its hard on the family as well. we got another pug last January and she is a terror. bev got herself a new car the other day so she is happy, I havn't driven it yet, she also bought herself another lounge suite, ibought myself a pair of socks. sorry about your hip giving you problems I was lucky mine isgood the bloke 2 doors up is having all kinds of probs too.

bev is good seems to go crook at me for no reason and lisa is going well she has taken up running ayear ago ran her first marathon in melboune a couple of months ago so was quite chuffed about that so has decided to enter another one. and to finish it off david well we haven't seen him since last xmas he gave us the boot, he lives somewhere in perth. so that's all in perth, I wanted to have
xmas down the beach but I was out voted. have a merry xmas to all cheers from bev and kev

Please VOTE for STORIES WE TELL!!

Hello to all,

Here's the background on this. My friends Carol and Terry Kline lost their daughter, Marlee, through illness many years ago. Her husband Joel Bakan remarried a Canadian actress named Rebecca Jenkins. She's really excellent, starring in the TV series Black Harbour, and several movies including Bye Bye Blues. Joel is a writer and filmaker as well. He did a scathing film about corporations several years ago.

Sarah Polley made a recent non-fiction film about her own life titled-Stories We Tell, starring both herself and Rebecca. It's widely available on the movie channels on TV. I won't tell you the plot as it would spoil it, but it is so heartwarming and forgiving that I'm sure you will enjoy it. So please watch and vote and afterward pass this along if you wish. Nancy

Please vote, Mom

Hi Chloë! We voted! Unfortunately, doesn't look too good, at least according to latest stat. Still, who knows! Love and Cheers, Dad! 

I agree it could well be part of a greater plan without your best interest in mind. I would watch out for suggestions now of upgrading to a more complex communication device where there are ever more distractions available.. all with “what’s best for you” being touted. Cheers!

Friends, Every Christmas, I see young moms struggle to create a celebration for their child. I see youth in foster care confront challenges with a resilience that comes from having endured too many trials in their short lives. But despite this, each holiday season I am inspired. Because each year there are countless stories of hope at Aunt Leah’s Place. And this hope only exists because you care enough to turn the season’s burdens into joy. You and I both know that the holiday season isn’t about the material things. But there are significant struggles that the youth we work with face each year. By giving a gift to Aunt Leah’s place, you’ll help young people overcome these holiday barriers. Your gift will help a foster youth feel cared for and a young mom feel capable. Whether it’s a Christmas hamper, a special Christmas outing, a bus ticket to visit an extended family member or the comfort of sharing a meal with the Aunt Leah’s community, your support will ease the struggle.  Your gift will lift the burden and provide an opportunity  for a young person to experience joy during this holiday season.. It’s not too late to partner with us. I always think of Christmas as another chance to extend the crucial feeling of family to vulnerable young people, and to equip young moms to make the most of the holiday with their own family. Thank you for sharing our vision. In the spirit of Leah, Gale Stewart Executive Director P.S. Please join me in giving generously. The more support we have, the more burdens we can alleviate.