Well, it has been a long time since I wrote in here and a lot has happened. I have been very busy but the thing that has overshadowed everything else was the sudden illness and death of my Mom's sister, Lisa Locken. My brother and sister and I have always been very close to Lisa (who never had children of her own) so it was very sad. In January she was in Acapulco along with her and my Mom's brother Bob, my Dad, and others, on their annual retreat from the winter, when she became so pained that she could not walk. They got her on a plane back to Minneapolis and then straight to the hospital where a CAT scan revealed she had late stage, fully mestastasized cancer. On the phone from her hospital she at first sounded fairly strong but the pain got worse and further scans revealed the cancer had spread further than even at first thought. About 2 weeks in she asked me to do the eulogy at her memorial, in the event, as she joked, "that you should happen to outlive me." Kathy and Sue and my brother Eric and I flew out to Minneapolis to see her shortly thereafter. It was so good and sad to see her. Oh my God. She was in a lot of pain but very glad to have visitors, to connect with friends and family in what she knew was likely the closing time of her life. After a couple days we got her moved into a very nice hospice called the N.C. Little Hospice in Edina. Experiencing the hospice environment was extremely moving and rewarding. People go there to die, but the point is comfort and support for both patient and family in that time of final transition. After a couple of days there Lisa passed away in her sleep on a Saturday morning. I'm so glad I was able to be there, along with Eric and Kathy and my Mom (as well as Bob, and my wonderful cousins Caddie, Becky, and Jen, and others), to be with her in her final days. A lot of times she would just have us hold her hand. I can't believe she's gone. She was always extremely youthful. She turned 70 last July. She enriched our lives in so many ways. Once I write her eulogy I will post it here too. The service will be on March 10 in Minneapolis.