It can't be almost Thanksgiving..... but it is. This very coming Thursday.

           HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO EVERYONE!!

     Vern and I have been invited to celebrate the day, along with Paul, Liz and their kids and John and Nan, at Betty Abbott's home in Issaquah. Betty is Liz' Mom, so we will also probably see Liz' brother, Rob, and his family. She says this is her "last hurrah", so she especially wanted us to be there. I issued my "last hurrah" for fixing a big, family dinner a very long time ago when it got to be too much for me. We all get to that place, eventually. Betty has been able to hang in there longer than most of us.

     Last Monday was Vern's 86th birthday and many of our large family were here to help celebrate the occasion. Hildy made what she called a "dump cake", which sounds awful, but tastes delicious. You dump a can of crushed pineapple into a pan... then dump cherry pie filling on top of that..... hence the name. There's more to the recipe than that, but that's all I can remember. Vanilla ice cream and pineapple sherbet went well with it.
      Many good wishes, mostly funny cards, thoughtful gifts and lots of laughter made for a good party.

     HAPPY 86th BIRTHDAY and MANY MORE, VERN

     We are getting lots of wonderful pictures of Baby Skyler via e-mail. He is a real cutie and a whole month old now.

     Ta-rah..boom! (drum roll) Vern now has a story on www.HistoryLink.org It is the one titled "B-17 Tail Gunner Turret". They found some great pictures in the Boeing Archives to go with it and still plan to put up one of the actual turret.

     November issue of Nostalgia Magazine gave my story "Tiger Tale" a beautiful coverage, using both old and new pictures. That is a charming periodical, with its homey-looking brown cover and old-fashioned look. They divided the story into small segments, each with its own headline. It is the nicest way that story has been presented. I am so pleased.
     Going fishing for salmon out of Ray's boathouse in Ballard when I was about 13 made publication in Ballard News Tribune this month.
      My story about Roosevelt High School (along with pictures of those of us who went there over the years) is now up on www.HistoryLink.org as well as being part of the History House celebration of Northeast Seattle. As usual, Nancy did a lovely job of assembling my stories and pictures into a display of which to be proud. She spoils me.

     John and Nan took a couple of days away after the opening of the new show at History House. They stayed at a wonderful, old B&B near Gig Harbor called the Olde Glen Cove Hotel where they indulged in some R&R after the big push to get the displays up and ready for the Grand Opening on November 6th.

     Liz wrote to tell me she is into the "observation" portion of her studies toward becoming a speech therapist. She's had some sessions at Wonderland School and hopes she might do her internship there.
      I remember going with Hildy and Heather to Wonderland School many years ago when Heather was just learning to speak. I think she was about 18 months old at the time. Being deaf, she needed special ways to help her learn the sounds. The day I was there, her teacher was using a lit candle to show her how to make the "puh' sound for the letter "P". Seeing the flame bend away from teacher's breath soon had Heather putting forth the sound perfectly. A series of such dedicated teachers are the reason Heather speaks so very well.

     Zoe (Paul's youngest daughter) just won her tryout for First Chair violinist Concert Mistress on Everett's Youth Symphony. Wow! That's very impressive.
      Many, many years ago, my Cousin Elaine's husband, Gene Gunther was violinist on the Everett Symphony and remained with them until the end of his life. It is a prestigious organization.

     Sailorman John-Robin (everyone else calls him John, but I guess he will always be John-Robin to his grandparents) seems happy with his assignment to Bangor, whch is about as close to home as he could hope to be. He was named Junior Sailor of the Quarter for the Third Quarter of this year and received a letter of commendation from his Officer in Charge, so, as he says, "That is cool".

     I heard from Lee Stark of the Tiger Store. She and Curt will winter this year in Metaline Falls and move onto their property on the Pend Oreille River in the spring.
      Oh, that beautiful river. Our visit there in October of 2003 is always fresh and lovely in my mind.

     Dixie/Dorothea, Senior Editor

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