Daisy Jane (and Omnis--if you're going to be in Dallas at the end of the month), I will be in Dallas for a conference June 22d through the 26th. Most of the day Sunday and Monday evening look to be free. I'm staying at the Hilton Anatole, and there's no guarantee I'm going to have wheels. DJ, if you think it would be easier, I can make a business case for renting a car.

Congratulations to Lt. Col. Joe, USA and Stephanie! That's fabulous news!

Home is where my family is. My parents moved into their house 5 days after I was born, and still live there. My childhood room is still intact and ready for me anytime I choose to visit. It's still home. Our place in Italy is home, too. And finally, the house that DH and I bought is home, although it's taken some time for it to feel that way. It finally clicked when we painted two months ago, but now it's the first place that comes to mind when I think of "home."

edit: Laga, I hope the assholes are gone soon, and with a minimum of drama.

That hotel is not too terribly far from the bar. I could totally come get you. You may want to rent a car though if you plan on doing anything on your own. We're not a very non-car-having friendly place.

ETA: Just looked and it is literally 5 minutes away.

That hotel is not too terribly far from the bar.

Woot! Awesome! We shall plan soonish, via email?

I'll have to figure out if there's anything I want to do in Dallas. I'd love to hear any suggestions of can't-miss attractions. It's my first trip, but this conference tries to pack in a buttload of stuff in a short amount of time. Most of the days are going to be spent on the exhibit floor and Tuesday and Wednesday evenings have receptions and/or dinners.

Good lord. We just heard a commotion of the something-large-just-got-dropped variety, and some shouts of dismay. It's embarassing when I drop something or trip and the whole WORLD runs over to ask if I'm okay, thus ensuring that I can't fade into the woodwork to hide my shame. Because of that, I didn't run over to see what the ruckus is, but I dispatched Chatty!co-worker.

Big!Boss fell. Didn't drop something; knocked stuff over on the way down. Gash on head. That's all we know right now. People ran hither and yon to grab some ice to prevent (or forestall) a goose egg. Head wounds bleed profusely even when they're shallow, so it's probably no big deal.

Don't know why he fell (I personally am a klutz and have missed the chair when sitting) -- I hope it's as innocuous as being klutzy, rather than something like "The alien baby in my skull made me dizzy, so I fell." Like, I hope it was garden-variety oops, and not an oops that's indicative of a bad cause.

I worry b/c he's 76 (77?) years old. Granted, he survived flesh-eating bacteria at the age of 73, so taking a tumble is small potatoes, comparatively, but still. He's old enough that I can't help but to worry.

Stay upright, people!

Granted, he survived flesh-eating bacteria at the age of 73, so taking a tumble is small potatoes, comparatively, but still.

How much do I love that every word of this sentence is true? A lot.

I hope BB remains ambulatory with no further incidences of gravity-aided landings.

I don't want Ellie and Frisco to eel like they aren't from anywhere

Yay for Joe!! DH grew up all over the world and US while I spent 18 years in the same house. He thinks it is just horrible that our poor children have only lived in one city their whole lives. I think it is great that we live in such a diverse community and their experience is richer than mine was. To all kids, what they experience is the normal.

I know that DH has a clear advantage over me in communicating with people from other countries, if for no other reason than he is great at understanding them. I'm jealous of his childhood experience of world travel and he is jealous of my sense of roots. Grass greener and all that.

eta: vibes for simple fix for BB

I hope BB remains ambulatory with no further incidences of gravity-aided landings.

Apparently he knocked a bunch of stuff off a cabinet when he tumbled, and then hit his head on the cabinet, so that was the noise. He was feeling well enough to joke about it ("Look at the damage I did to that door!"), so it sounds like he's fine, but his daughter (who works for the company) just hustled him out the door about 3 minutes ago to the ER for stitches.

I didn't see him, but Chatty did, and he says it looks fine but probably warrants 5 stitches or fewer. Still, that's one tough noggin.

That's a bird on his shoulder now, right? Congrats!

Actually, that's colonel, which is next. His new rank is a silver oak leaf.

Thanks, everyone!

Congratulations, Joe! Stephanie, that's really cool.

I will probably be arriving in Dallas around July 10. So it looks like I will miss that adventure.