Because of all the zooming around that Rick and I have been doing lately, I have a lot of catching up to do. Yes, there have been some extremely happy occasions in our lives lately. Among them:

* Meeting up for a quick lunch with friends in Columbus, and then spending a few days with a great couple in Maryland (longtime friends of Rick's) while Rick attended a conference and I kept buzzing over to the Smithsonian museums and the National Gallery of Art. Thanks, Paul, Helen, and kiddos, for the hospitality, not to mention the continuous intellectual stimulation and the awesome Korean food!

* Having lunch in D.C. with Tim, Tricia, and Justin. BTW, guys, I am going to TrashMasters, due to a last-minute invitation that was way too good to turn down!

* Helping my mom get some long-needed home improvements under way.

* Watching my niece actually enjoy experiments with the chemistry set that we gave to her and her brother some time back.

I'm trying to get back to work now, on some projects that need to be wrapped up soon. The Bug House is now so chaotic that I actually briefly mislaid my hardcover copy of this book. This is a bit like forgetting where you parked your Humvee. It's just too damned big to get lost!