Dear Kids,
      Conference weekend was so much fun, I’m still recovering. I mean, trying to get back to my normal ordinary boring routine. But wasn’t it great while it lasted? Tom said it was the most fun conference weekend we’ve ever had, and I agreed. It was certainly the best weather, if that’s possible. Maybe Tom will put up a new slideshow with all the great pictures he took. And that’s not counting the bridal pictures of Donna, and the engagement pictures of Donna and Bevan. They’re going to have a hard time choosing from so many good pictures!
      Monica is moving ahead with her wedding plans, too. She talked to Tom about checking out some barbecue food from Gateway Grille. (You know, that restaurant at the main intersection in Kamas, where you turn left to go to our cabin.) So Tom’s assignment is to go to this restaurant and sample their barbecue. Maybe he’ll have to go two or three times! If the food is good, Monica is going to have them cater her wedding! So we’ll have really great food we can sink our teeth into, not just frothy punch and little nut cups. Oh, and I forgot the most important detail: The date will be July 7th. That’s 2007. So the official date is 07-07-07. Funny, my lucky number has always been 7, so I’m sure the wedding will be a fabulous affair.
      I’ve been working hard on my outside cabin projects, trying to get as much done as possible before winter, so I’ll be that much further along next spring, so it will look as good as possible for the wedding. Dad and I finally got some more siding, and Tuesday we were working at the very top of the cabin, around the chimney. It’s the part the neighbors have been wondering about, how we could possibly get up there! Several of them slowed down to watch us, and one man walking down the street just stopped and stared. We had set up ladders on the balcony, resting them on both sides of the chimney, and we were up at the very top, clinging on, handing the nail gun back and forth. Finally we had to climb onto the top of the roof, to work around the chimney. The wind was blowing, and we tried not to look down. I’ve always been afraid of heights. Dad, too, it turns out. But we were both very brave. There’s only one little spot left. I’m hoping to finish it tomorrow.
      I signed up dad and myself to be poll workers at the November election. The new voting machines are all computerized, so we had to go to a training session this morning, and practice setting them up, checking in voters, voting ourselves–it was all lots of fun. Except that the trainer started getting really rude to me. I kept asking questions, and he kept getting more hostile. (These were really ordinary questions! Nothing ridiculous.) Finally, he said if I interrupted him one more time, he was going to have to ask me to leave. Hello? He was being paid to train us. I told him he was supposed to be helping us learn, not barking at us. He said he wasn’t barking. The rest of the group said, yes, he was. When it was over, we filled out evaluation forms, and several of us said he was rude. I even called in a complaint. Dad is worried the guy will lose his job. I couldn’t care less. And in spite of all that, Dad and I are looking forward to the election. Dad gets to “encode” voter cards. I’m a “receiving judge.” We’re assigned to work at the Redwood Miltipurpose center. It should be an intersting day.
      I can’t think of any news. We just saw most of you. We missed the ones we didn’t see.
      Lots of love, Mom