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The last ten days or so have been something of a blur. I didn't post on the weekend because I was at a medical conference leaving me little time to sit down and think things through. Work has gotten busier, and I did have some meetings and such to mess with my schedule, so I'm going with that.

The gentleman (Todd) that we've visited at the hospital recently has sadly passed. He fought a very good fight against his disease, lasting years longer than his doctors expected. In the end, he had family and friends at his side which I'm sure was a comfort to him. May his memory be a blessing to all those who loved him.

The classes at the medical conference were pretty engaging and they leave me thinking carefully about changes I'll be making in my patients' care. Of course, that's supposed to be what happens at such courses...

We had a chance to hang out with my college friend Gail who's recently moved back to California, though up north of here. It was great to catch up! I also touched base with a number of DO physicians with whom I've worked over the last several years, as well as running into some that I helped train (30+ years ago!!!).

We did leave the conference to go to Dungeonmaster of course. It was a good start to a new season, and there were a number of new folks who'd never seen the show before. Altogether a good evening.

When we got back yesterday our pets were overjoyed to see us, but when my beloved fed the equines, the newest beagle apparently slipped out of the back gate through a hole in the fence. For the next hour or so, we were searching the neighborhood for a little beagle in a red harness. Sleepy apparently managed to give us the slip (shouting for her is no use, because she's pretty deaf); finally as I was walking the trail again, I saw a tiny form in the distance go back into the corral from the trail. By the time I got to our property line, she was sitting at the gate into our backyard, barking to be let in, apparently surprised we weren't waiting for her. There was much rejoicing (and some chastising aloud at a deaf beagle)!

While I was away at the conference, I did waste a bit of time one evening when my wife went into the Valley for our friends memorial service. I had been in classes until pretty late; late enough that I couldn't make it to the service. I was punished, however, by eating at Tony Roma's in Anaheim (ribs were overcooked, badly seasoned; beans overcooked; what does it say when the best thing I ate there was the cole slaw???), and then the Creamistry next door gave me something forgettable to top it off. Finally, I streamed via Netflix the movie London Has Fallen which I'm delighted I didn't spend any money seeing in the theaters. Not the best evening.

I believe that I'll be finishing the week doing a variety of household chores that have been awaiting attention. Best wishes to you all for a better week!

(no subject)

Books! I finished reading several more books in the last ten days, but I didn't have time to post about it over the weekend.

Since I last posted, the first book I finished reading was Down and Out in Purgatory by Tim Powers. Powers has a real knack at writing eerie stuff, and this one is right in line with it. A man has been tracking down an old friend who married and then murdered a woman that the man had always loved, but by the time he found the friend/murderer, he was already dead, and so the man wanted to die to completely wipe the friend from the Universe. Strange and eerie. Worth reading, as is much of Powers' works for the last twenty years or so.

Next was My Guide to RPG Storytelling, another gaming guide for gamemasters. It had some good ideas, some of which are sparking thoughts that I may use at my next gaming session, whenever that'll be.

Then I read Osprey Raid #30: Red Christmas: The Tatsinskaya Airfield Raid 1942. In support of the destruction of a German army at Stalingrad, a large formation of Russian tanks broke into the German rear areas, and wreaked havoc at one of the airfields that the Luftwaffe was trying to use to supply the cut-off units. The brave Russian raiders ended up being cut-off themselves, and this book discusses the overall effectiveness of this particular raid. I found it very interesting.

Next then was Figs: A Global History, not bad. Worth a peek at the library.

Then, Osprey Campaign #21: Gravelotte- St. Privat 1870: End of the Second Empire. I found this one pretty hard to read. I think that was mostly due to my fairly limited knowledge of the events of that particular war. Unfortunately, I didn't find the author's work engaging, so I had to slog my way through the book. Not great.

On to the next book!