Solstice 1994

Seaford, DE
December, 1994

Dear All,
So another year has passed, another breathless whirl, another click in the ratchet, and I find myself facing the blank page again. It is actually fortunate we have occasion to become introspective, else it would all fly by without notice. Not that anything we do is worthy of much notice, but here goes...
We're still in Slower Delaware, settling in and beginning to discover the obscure charm of the place. Like the single stoplight I have to traverse daily on my one mile commute to and from work. Like weather in the 70s through November. Like our secluded spot in the woods by the river, with the tides, the otters, the kingfishers, and the herons. Like the near-zero property taxes, the zero sales tax. On the other hand, we are up to our asses in giant oak leaves, and have been forced to break out the heavy iron to make mountains of mulch. We trek thirty miles to the nearest shopping mall, and we have no bookstore, a two-day wait for the NY Times, and no movie theatre in town. Nevertheless, we find the trade-offs worthwhile, and wish a few friends would become fed up with their fast-lane lives, and join us here in the land that time forgot. Then it would be COOL. If a Delaware address in not your taste, perhaps I could interest you in a beautiful house in New Haven, CT. I still own a nice example, that I could let you have at a great discount. We had a year as landlords to lawyer tenants from hell, complete with rent strike, clogged toilets, unplowed walks, and severe negative cash flow. And that was enough.
The Kids are doing great, sprouting up into little people. They are going to a wonderful little school in Berlin, MD, learning MacIntosh computers and getting heavy emphasis on the four Rs, Reading, Riting, Rithmatic, and Republicanism. The bus ride back and forth is a bit of a bite out of their day, but not too bad, and definitely worth it. There is homework every night, which means parental homework every night. Hardly any time left for Super-Nintendo, thankfully. Hannah is now 8, loves to roller blade with Dad, and hopes for a hard freeze for some real ice skating this winter. She "soloed" on a two wheeler this summer. Everett is in first grade, age six, and working hard on staying a little boy, but growing up despite himself. He is learning to drive a piano, and was the little ham-bone leading off the recital this fall. Nathanael has been with us for his senior year, and has made some friends, so he's finding it a bit more tolerable. He's, uhh, seventeen...what else can I say. If there is anything at all you do not know, and want to know, write him here, while he still knows everything. We are fortunate to have him around, since I now know nothing, and am constantly in need of guidance. Michele is off to University of Rhode Island, having the time of her life, (we hope). She is doing nursing, the little chip off the old blockette. Dorje the dog became a daddy this year for the first time, (that he's admitting) so we wound up with two of the eight pups, Gilligan, a male who looks rather like his dad, and Maya an all fawn female, who will be the fierce one. We had quite forgotten what a P.I.A. having puppies about the house can be, but they're coming along, and if they're half as good as their Dad at running off encyclopedia salesmen and evangelists, they'll be well worth all the times I stepped into warm puddles in the dark.
Catherine's clinic is becoming busy, and she's still enjoying being a country midwife. We have taken to skating together every day in the afternoon, schedule permitting, and it usually does. We are getting pretty fair at it after 900 miles skated this summer, though we are still regarded as eccentric by the neighbors. Catherine is playing the piano a lot and making great progress on some beautiful pieces. The house is awash in Debussy, Gershwin, Beethoven, et al. It is quite amazing to hear someone you know make "Rhapsody in Blue" come out of a piano, but she does. Wish I could do that...
As for me, I am over the first year in my new job, a little more confident, and looking around for ways to do it better, beyond merely surviving it. Being in the ER in a small town is rewarding and fun. I'm there for all the local dramas and tragedies, and get an interesting feel for the gritty texture of the area. I am doing almost exclusively night shifts, sleeping while the kids are in school, and skating in the afternoons waiting for them to get back. We get the late afternoons and evenings to pal around , and then I'm back at it. It may sound strange, but it actually leaves much more time for the family, and I even get whole days off! (Gasp) I have had the time to get most of the way through flying lessons, and expect to get my license this January or so. I have to page Catherine the minute I get back from a lesson, to tell her "I cheated Death again," but eventually she will figure it out that flying is not as risky as open-class motorcycle racing. I hope to make some visits to friends and family once I get some flying hours under my belt. The world is a really small place, when you can fly straight lines over it at 150 knots, watching traffic jams crawl backwards beneath you. Why did I wait so long to do this?? I fully expect to win a plane in one of the three sweepstakes I have entered, and may already have won. Ed McMahon is holding out on me so far, but he'll come around... it is only a matter of time and postage.
The recent events on the political landscape reached here by pony express a few weeks late. How fortunate we were spared the up-to-the-minute reports out here on the peninsula. Two fewer weeks in which to grind our enamel down. But we are cheered by recalling the words of Harry Truman, who took his midterm reversal with great aplomb, and reminded us that we must have faith in Democracy, and in the will of the people, and somehow it will all work out. Even if we are forced to get by without the help of Joycelin Elders, and must endure the constant presence of anyone named "Newt".
And so, Dear Friends, I will close, with Solstice wishes to you all for Peace which passeth understanding, for happiness in small things done daily, for success in steering your offspring onto the paths of righteousness, (call us with the directions) for the time to self-actualize, whatever that means, for freedom from insecurity, for diversification in an uncertain market, for time to read a really moving work of fiction, or better still, to write one, for adequate intake of anti-oxidant factors and regular exercise, for freedom from dependency and addiction, for computer literacy, for continued grasp of the proper use of an apostrophe, for civility maintained in the face of an uncivil world, and for an overweening desire to maintain contact with old friends, especially us. Call, write, fax, or visit.

Love, Warm Regards, Yours, (as Appropriate)