The Thing From Another World

When I was a kid, I loved staying up late on Saturday night to watch Creature Feature with Count Gore De Vol on Channel 20 here in DC.  I saw a lot of classic movies, but also some really bizarre movies, as well.  Between these late night viewings and the weekly Saturday afternoon sci-fi classics, I quickly became a big fan of these movies.  THEM! is a favorite, as well as WAR OF THE WORLDS (which led me to read the H.G. Wells novel...wow, what a book!), THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL, INVADERS FROM MARS, THIS ISLAND EARTH, FORBIDDEN PLANET, INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS,  CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, THE BLOB, and, of course, GODZILLA, KING OF THE MONSTERS, which started my love affair with Japanese giant monster movies.

My absolute favorite movie from the era, though, is THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD, from 1951.  The movie, directed by Christian Nyby and produced by the great Howard Hawks, starred James Arness, who is best known for playing Marshal Matt Dillon on the TV show Gunsmoke, as the alien title creature.  The acting is very crisp with great, fast dialogue, a trademark of Hawks' films.  The movie is based on the book "Who Goes There?" by James W. Campbell, though it only loosely follows that story, and was remade twice, including another classic movie by John Carpenter, THE THING, in 1982, which actually followed the book much more closely, and is known for it's incredible special effects and make-up.

THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD is so atmospheric and eerie, set at a military outpost in the Arctic.  The remoteness of the facility and the cold, snowy weather make the actors appear to be secluded and even captive to their environment.  The base is used primarily for scientific research, so there is a mix of scientists and military types, along with one lone female who assists one of the scientists and provides a romantic interest for the military leader of the base.  The script provides a nice contrast of seriousness and concern with some comedic relief at the appropriate times, and this provides the movie with a good amount of charm.

Early on in the movie, an object is discovered stuck in the ice some distance from the base.  After measuring its size and shape, the scientists conclude it can only be a UFO.  While attempting to free the ship from the ice, it accidentally explodes, but then they discover a humanoid shape also trapped in the ice.  They cut out the block of ice containing the creature and take it with them back to the base.  You can probably guess what happens next.  The creature thaws out and goes on a rampage.  For the remainder of the movie, it becomes a game of cat and mouse, with the creature repeatedly attacking the base from outside, proving also that it is quite intelligent.  It is also discovered that the creature is part vegetable, though it feeds on blood, which is why it keeps attacking them.  A group of the scientists of course wants to protect and capture the alien creature for study, and they debate with the military types who want to protect everyone by destroying the creature, if necessary.  The alien seems to solve this dilemma by his continuous attacks, and the climax of the movie is epic.

The special effects for the time are very good, but it is the atmosphere of the setting, and the feeling of terror as the creature hides then attacks which makes for an intense thriller.  Watching the movie as a kid caused a few horrific nightmares, I'm sure, but it never diminished my love of this movie.  I can still watch it whenever it's on and not get bored with it.

The movie has been on my mind this week since I discovered it was playing at the AFI's Silver Theater in downtown Silver Spring last weekend.  I only found out after the fact, however, and I'm kicking myself for missing an opportunity to see it on the big screen.  My daughter recently discovered the movie during a recent trip after coming across it on my Kindle Fire.  I'm curious to see if she'll hold the movie in the same regard as her Daddy.

Anyway, if you're a fan of these types of movies, then check it out.  It's a classic!

Good night, everybody!

Wanderlust - On the Road With God

One of my favorite moments in my roller coaster life was in November 2004.  It was just over six months after my wife passed away, and I had just received a promotion into my first management position at work.  Before I started that job, I had planned a get-away vacation to Southern California so that I could drive the last bit of Route 66 that I hadn't driven yet and basically clear my head of all of the grief that had flooded my life since Teresa's death.  I was by myself, and I had rented a convertible for the drive across the Mojave Desert.  Following that, I had planned to spend a night in Las Vegas, see a show, then head right back to Los Angeles the next day before flying home.

There is something to be said for getting away from it all, especially if you have the luxury to get away from not only "the things of man", but man (all people), himself, too.  I had taken similar trips before I ever got married, and found them to be some of the most profound times of my life, and, at least for me, it provided the opportunity to spend some time just with God.  I found that I could actually have conversations with Him while I was driving down the road, and that feeling of just the two of us, cruising down a ribbon of road in the middle of Nowhere, USA, had quite an effect on me.  Whenever I want to have that feeling, which comes over me at obnoxious, sometimes stressful, times in my life, I just want to be out there again, and I start planning a trip.  I call this feeling The Wanderlust.  It's a longing to be out on the road, heading to somewhere possibly unfamiliar, and enjoying the stress-free moments of getting away.

Though the sun was beating down on me that day, there was still a slight chill in the air.  I had the top down, anyway.  I had paid a little more for renting the convertible, so I was going to use it, as long as it wasn't raining.  I had just left the town of Barstow, which is kind of a crossroads at the western end of the Mojave, and I headed east on old Route 66.  The first chunk of the old road paralleled the interstate, so the sounds of the 18-wheelers were fairly prominent.  Also, the road itself had a bit of a patchwork surface to it, and the car, a beat up Chrysler, didn't seem to like the bumps very much.  The shocks were very springy, and it felt like I was actually bouncing down the road.

Things eventually smoothed out as the road began to drift southeasterly away from I-40, just outside of the village of Ludlow.  I was really out in the desert at this point, and there were no other cars on the road.  There were train tracks that roughly paralleled the old road, and I saw the occasional train pass by, horn roaring its approach.  But as I drove further down the road, the familiar feeling of God's presence came over me, and while I was all by myself out there in the middle of the desert, and at times I knew I must be the only living person for miles around, I never felt like I was truly alone.  God brought such a peace to me, and I actually felt a tear or two as I looked around at the beauty of the desert, mountains way off in the distance, the blare of a train echoing across the valley in front of me....  It was truly one of those God-moments.  I stopped the car right in the middle of the road, got out and stood on the useless double yellow line separating the opposing lanes, since there were no other cars in either direction.  I could see for several miles in every direction.  I turned in a circle to take in the moment, experiencing the beauty of the American West, God's creation, inhaling the fresh air and embracing my aloneness (not loneliness).  I took several pictures, hoping to somehow capture this profound moment, knowing a picture could never capture what I was feeling just then.  I sat back down in the car and thanked God for that moment, for my family, for my friends, for my career, for my health, for my wonderful little daughter who was about to turn 1 year old just a week later....for my life.

I headed back down the road again, continuing to my turn off, just past the little town of Goffs, CA.  I had completed all of Route 66 at this intersection.  The same intersection I had reached from the opposite direction with my wife only 4 years prior.  Then I headed north on US 95 towards my next destination, Las Vegas, a thing of man.

Exploring Stress-Free Home Remedies

I haven't decided whether it was a good or bad idea to have told my boss about the anxiety attacks I had been experiencing over the past few months.  The bad thing is I'm afraid it might appear that I can't handle the job I was promoted into last month.  The good thing is the exchange I had with her during a staff meeting this morning, when she proclaimed that I should not be shouldering all of the responsibility for the work associated with a chart we publish, and that she would take on some of it herself.  That's great, and it does keep me somewhat less stressed about it than I could be, but this is pretty minor stress compared to some of the other things I've been dealing with.

It hasn't all been dread, though.  The weekend, as full as it is, should be a lot of fun, especially our first trip to the drive-in this season (an all-night show with ESCAPE FROM PLANET EARTH, STAR TREK, and 42 being notable).  It's also my mother-in-laws birthday on Saturday, and we'll get a chance to celebrate with her and about 40 of her friends on Sunday.  There's the exciting Grace Adventures Camp Flapjack Fundraiser at Applebee's in Columbia on Saturday morning.  The weather looks to be pretty good, too.

I was talking to Kay, my wonderful Office Administrator, and who seems to be able to sense when I get a bit stressed out, and she suggested I needed to go to a spa for a manicure, pedicure, and massage.  Now, I've never experienced any of these, and I don't know that I'm really comfortable discussing these things for myself.  I occasionally treated my wife to a day at the spa, but never myself.  Kay said they're great!  It's relaxing, feels great, and it's good for your fingernails and toenails.  Plus, the massages are incredible.  I just can't talk myself into doing it.

So I'm trying to think of some other things that could help me relax.  Maybe I can get one of those wooden beads seat cushions like what taxi drivers always use.  Faithful Pup Scout loves to lick things, so maybe she'll lick my toes for me.  If I can keep from being ticklish, that might relax my feet.  Cruising around in my 2-seater with the top down is a good way to relax, as well.  And reading a good book just before going to bed is enough to put me to sleep in about 5 minutes, so that's restful, as well.

I think I've convinced myself that there are any number of ways that I can find to relax myself.  I don't need a spa, or someone else picking at my toenails, or even some stranger rubbing alcohol all over my back.  Home remedies are the way to go!  Right?

Have a great evening, everyone!

Oklahoma

What happened in Oklahoma over the past few days is a tragedy.  It's a natural disaster of incredible proportions.  The deaths of so many, especially the kids, is hard to comprehend.  My daughter took it hard, the news of children dying.  This one is harder to explain compared to the tragedy in Connecticut, which was caused by an individual; an evil bad man.  This time it was Mother Nature.  Some may even say that, since God created the world, and He made the tornadoes, then He killed all those people.  As a Christ-follower, I know better, but kids find it hard to understand.  It's more black and white.

I passed through Moore, OK, several times over the past 6 years or so.  I remember it just as a bunch of exits off the interstate between Oklahoma City and Norman, the location of many car dealerships, restaurants, and a really cool movie theater.  I never stopped there, though.  My business was in OK City and in Norman.  Then I would fly home.  But I have colleagues and employees who live in Moore.  Some have had their lives altered forever.  One died, a contractor in our organization.  Another broke both legs.  Four others lost their homes and everything they owned.  Those are just the ones I have a connection to.  So many others, especially those poor parents who lost their children in the school, also experienced loss.

I used to date a young lady who lived in Oklahoma City.  Our relationship was quite serious.  Romantic.  Passionate.  We were truly in love.  Both of us had a personal relationship with Christ, and we felt He was directing us towards marriage.  Except.... I told her early on that I could not live in Oklahoma.  There are a myriad of reasons why, most importantly because I didn't want to take my daughter away from all or our family, but also because it was so far from everything I knew.  I grew up on the East Coast.  I had no desire to live in the middle of the whole country.  Besides all that, it was in the middle of Tornado Alley.  I had always been fascinated by tornadoes as a force of nature, and that fascination led to a bit of fear, as well.  Tornadoes are dangerous.  I just couldn't move there.  The only way our relationship would work is if she moved to Maryland.  She agreed.  She was originally from Nebraska and though Oklahoma felt like home to her, she told me she would move.  I wish she had been honest with me.  Seven months later, we had a nasty breakup due in part because she lied to me about moving here to Maryland.  Oklahoma was her home, she said, and she just couldn't understand why I didn't want to live there.

I've been trying to stay positive today in the face of this tragedy.  It's a lot easier to say, "Look at all of the lives that were saved."  Yeah, it could've been a lot worse.  But that doesn't make anyone who experienced loss on any level feel any better. It was a tragedy, plain and simple.  I will be praying for all of the families and colleagues in Oklahoma impacted by this disaster.  May God's blessings be on them all.

Grace Camp Flapjack Fundraiser

If you live in Central Maryland, come on out to the Grace Adventures Day Camp fundraiser this Saturday, May 25!  Here's all the info:

Each year Grace Adventures Day Camp is able to bless several families in our community with scholarships to attend camp. This year, over 30 campers have requested scholarship assistance. We would love to have your assistance in bringing them to GADC for an amazing summer camp experience!

On May 25^th from 8am-10am GADC will be hosting our annual Flapjack Fundraiser at Applebee’s in Columbia. In previous years, camp was able to raise over $1,000 to go towards the scholarship fund. Join our directors, counselors and Impact Team members as we serve an all you can eat pancake and sausage breakfast. See your previous counselors, meet new counselors and have a whole lot of fun with us while supporting a great cause.

Please reserve your tickets in advance by emailing graceadventures@gcconline.org. A limited amount will be sold at the door. Adults $7.00, Children 12 & under $4.50

Location: Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar – 8335 Benson Drive, Columbia, MD
When: Saturday, May 25^th 8 am – 10 am

If you are unable to make it to the Flapjack Fundraiser and would still like to donate to the GADC Scholarship Fund, please visit gcconline.onthecity.org/give and select the Camp Scholarship Fund option.

We can’t wait to see you there!

Come on out and support a wonderful cause!

Have a great evening everybody!

In Search of Great Pizza

I consider myself a bit of a pizza connoisseur, and I'm always looking to find good pizza.  I tend to prefer the New York style, with thin crust, slightly sweet sauce, and good mozzarella cheese, with ample toppings (veggies preferred over meats).  That said, I have yet to meet a pizza I didn't like, and will eat all types, and all toppings.

My favorite pizza is something I made for myself and my family when I was a kid:  Chef Boyardee's homemade pizza kits.  I learned early on how to make the crust (something that I don't have the patience for anymore), and the sauce was almost perfect.  I then added lots of cheese (usually a combination of mozzarella and provolone), and mushrooms were the favorite topping.  I think that the pizza one has as a kid is what becomes one's standard pizza as they get older, and all pizzas are judged to that standard.

My favorite pizza that I didn't make was from the Dino Restaurant in Suitland, MD.  It was a square pizza, thin flaky crust, sweet sauce, and ample cheese.  Sooooo good!  Unfortunately, the Dino was in a very bad neighborhood, and disappeared by the time I reached my teens.  By that time, I had also discovered the Ledo Restaurant (thanks to my mom), over near the University of Maryland in Langley Park/Adelphi.  This pizza became famous on a national level, and was eventually franchised.  Now there are Ledo's restaurants all over the area, but they are not quite as good as the original (or its twin, T.J. Elliott's in Bowie).  The original Ledo recently moved to a busier and much safer College Park location.  Ledo's pizza is much like the Dino's, square with a thin flaky crust, sweet sauce, and lots of provolone cheese.  It truly is unique.

But I really want to find a great pizza in Howard County.  I've tried quite a few, but I'm still searching.  All are good, but not great.  I try to stay away from the chains (Ledo's notwithstanding), since I've learned that the holes-in-the-wall tend to be the best.  I've tried Coal Fire in Ellicott City, and it was okay.  I've tried Facci in Fulton, which didn't impress me.  Three Brothers, a local DC area chain, is pretty good, a nice thin-crust, NY style pizza.  But I still can't find a great pizza.

Tonight, my daughter and I tried out Pub Dog in Columbia after reading a recommendation for it.  Pub Dog is basically a bar, which takes away a few points since it doesn't have a family-feel at all.  Service was good, though I couldn't help noticing that the three servers were all cute young ladies with blond hair who looked barely legal age, which bothers me only because it tells me that the folks doing the hiring are looking for a particular look.  I may be wrong, but I think that's wrong.  The pizzas are all 10-inch personal pizzas, and we were told we could customize them, if desired.  My daughter had a basic cheese pizza (called the Cheese Dog).  I had a Veggie Dog, which had mushrooms, spinach, red onions, and green peppers.  Ample toppings and the pizzas were good (though I didn't get to taste the Cheese Dog), but the size didn't appear to be enough to fill up either one of us.  I finished mine fairly quickly, and my daughter, who almost always saves a slice of hers for me, finished off hers in record time.  That was disappointing.  Overall, it was good pizza.  But not great.

So I'm looking for recommendations, though I'm guessing the size of my audience isn't going to help me much.  If you care to comment, though, please do.  Thanks!

Have a great evening, everyone!

Gosh Darn It, #%@&!!!

I just read about a study on profanity and found out that Maryland ranks 2nd in the nation in cursing, behind only Ohio.  Personally, I don't like cursing, and I have never cursed on purpose in my life, believe it or not.  My parents never cursed around us kids as we were growing up, and most of the adults we were around didn't, either, and in the days before cable TV and VCRs, there really wasn't anywhere else where you might hear curse words.  So, as I grew up, I just didn't pick it up, though many of my friends did.

I don't have a problem with cursing, necessarily, and am actually around it quite a bit in my daily office setting.  There are a few colleagues who seem to recognize that I do not curse, and they purposely keep it clean around me.  Most, if not all, of my colleagues and employees know that I'm a Christ-Follower (which I guess means to them that I don't like profanity), and respect my preference not to curse.  But there are others, even some who know me well, who can make a sailor blush and really could care less what I think.  And I have never even discussed it with anyone at work (or anywhere else, actually, except with my daughter), so their actions really have to do with their perception of me, which I find interesting.

I don't think cursing is a big deal, if used in moderation and at suitable times or situations, but certainly not around children of any age.  My daughter has heard pretty much all of the "standard" curse words, and understands that she should never say them, and always points out situations when she hears them.  She is mature enough to handle seeing some (not all!) PG-13 movies, which seem to always contain some profanity.

What does the Bible say about cursing? There are a few verses, and two in particular, that I think are relevant:

• James 3:10 - "From the same mouth come blessing and cursing.  My Brothers, these things ought not to be so." (ESV)
• Ephesians 4:29 - "Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear." (ESV)

I do not believe Christ ever cursed.  I believe he heard profanity fairly often, and he didn't judge others for doing so, but I also think that he probably didn't care for it.  That's enough for me to not use it.

Home, Sweet.... Somewhere Else

I've lived in my current home for over ten years, which is the second longest of any place I've ever lived.  And it feels like home.  I've had the itch to move, though, for a couple of years now, but it's hard to imagine living somewhere else.  It's a nice community, kind of a United Nations, as there are many people who speak languages other than English.  My daughter has close friends who are Indian, Pakistani, Hispanic, Korean, African, Hungarian, and Filipino, and that's just on our street.  And we're all Americans, and love our country and our freedoms.

My home is starting to not feel like much of a home, though, as there are things going on around the community that have not been seen much before.  Like murder.  Armed robbery.  Theft.  Violence.  Vandalism.  Howard County is a great place to live, overall, but we live near the extreme southern part of the county, very close to Prince George's County (which, ironically, is where I grew up), and these types of crimes are actually more prevalent there than here.  But these things are happening more and more in our area, and I'm not very happy about it.

Three years ago, my sister's car was parked in front of our house.  Shortly after she arrived at our house to watch my daughter, between 5:45 a.m. and when I left for work, at about 6:15 a.m., someone had shattered the driver's side window of her car and stole three CDs off of the front seat.  About a year later, my own car had the passenger side window shattered and my GPS was stolen.  To me, these are such stupid inconveniences, and it makes me angry that people feel the need to do these things.  You begin to feel violated, especially because you feel like you're safe, then, in a moment, you're not.

Just the other day, a liquor store about 3/4's of a mile from our home was robbed by armed and masked gunmen.  Fortunately no one was killed.  But over the past month, there have been other crimes committed that have me thinking twice about wanting to raise my daughter in this environment.

I know that where I live is probably one of the best places to live on the entire planet.  The Lord has blessed us so much.  But my faith in humanity is diminished every day as crime and violence hits closer and closer to home.  Where do you go to escape it?

I've decided my next move, which will be soon, probably within the next 2 years, will be my last move until I retire.  There are a few neighborhoods that I will explore, probably not too far from where we are now, but certainly much safer, I hope.  I know only too well that there are no guarantees in life, but I'm hopeful that God will protect us no matter where we live.  It's about quality of life, and I want so much for my daughter to have a quality life, and be happy.

And, when it's time for me to retire, which will be right around the time my daughter finishes college, I'm moving out of the area completely.

Have a great evening, everybody!

Happy Days

My all-time favorite TV show is HAPPY DAYS.  It aired at just the right time to become a major influence on my life.  In fact, the setting of the show, which was during the mid-50s, convinced me that perhaps I grew up in the wrong generation, though I know now that the show had a very simplified and innocent version of the era.  However, it was the cast that really made an impact on me.  Ron Howard's lead character, Richie Cunningham, became quite an influence on my life.  He was a good kid who honored and respected his parents, was always the voice of reason and always did the right thing, and was looked at by his friends as a leader and role model, except when Arthur Fonzarelli - The Fonz (Henry Winkler) - was around.  The Fonz was the cool guy who had it all together, was respected for his toughness, and got all the girls who would do anything for him for a date, or even a kiss.  And all the guys, including Richie, would go to Fonzie for his advice.  The truth, though, is Richie was really the one who Fonzie respected, and their mutual respect led to a deep unlikely friendship between the two characters.  This dynamic made for a great show.

The supporting cast is what made the show awesome, though.  As much as Richie and Fonzie garnered all of the attention, it was their gang of friends and the Cunningham family that rounded out the show.  Potsie Webber (Anson Williams) and Ralph Malph (Donny Most) were Richie's friends.  I wish I had friends like them.  Richie's parents, played by Marion Ross and Tom Bosley, were the parents everyone wanted as their own, and were as involved in their kid's lives as they could be.  Erin Moran, as Richie's sister, Joannie, was the typically bratty kid sister who tried to live up to the example of her brother but never could, and looked up to him anyway.  HAPPY DAYS also had several adult characters who the kids respected overall, but enjoyed making fun of when they could, like Arnold (the hilarious Pat Morita) and Al (Al Molinaro), the proprietors of the main hangout, Arnold's Drive-in.

HAPPY DAYS also introduced a boatload of other characters who became stars in their own right, like Chachi Arcola (Scott Baio), Laverne DeFazio (Penny Marshall) and Shirley Feeny (Cindy Williams), who went on to star in their own highly rated show, LAVERNE & SHIRLEY, and one of the funniest comedians of this era, Robin Williams, who played the alien from another planet, Mork from Ork, and who would star in another spin-off, MORK & MINDY.

HAPPY DAYS remained a highly rated show for most of its run, despite losing it's main character, Richie, about two-thirds of the way through it's 10 year run.  Ron Howard wanted to pursue film-making, and, in my opinion, HAPPY DAYS lost its main dynamic.  Fonzie had surpassed Richie in stardom and fan appeal sometime before this happened, but after Richie left, the show changed, and not for the better.  Fonzie had lost his best friend, the character he could bounce off of.  The show was fortunate that it had such a large following and such rich supporting characters, because it remained a hit until it ended.  But the episodes after Ron Howard (and Donny Most, who left at the same time as Howard) were not as good.

The show continues in syndication on a daily basis, so I get my HAPPY DAYS fix, and I love that my daughter, who I exposed to the show when she was two years old, will watch it with me.  We had the great honor of meeting Donny Most and Anson Williams in 2005 at a promotional appearance, and enjoyed the opportunity to talk to them about the show.  HAPPY DAYS remains such a sweet-hearted show.  There's nothing on TV nowadays like it.  And, as popular as Fonzie was with viewers, I didn't want to be like him.  I wanted to be like Richie.

Have a great evening, everyone!

Writing Is Contagious

I love it when the first game of an NHL playoff series ends in a win for my Pittsburgh Penguins, and that is just what has happened.  The Penguins have beaten the Ottawa Senators 4-1 in their first game, and it appears that the Sens will be a much easier opponent for the Pens than the New York Islanders were in the first round.  The Islanders were just so fast, and aside from game one of that series, I never really felt like the Pens had control of it until about halfway through game six, the clincher.  The Sens are nowhere near as fast, and once again the Pens power-play has been incredible and really the difference maker.  I am so much more calm than the first round.  That's a good thing for my heart and my stress-level.

In fact, today was stress-free in a lot of ways.  I had a close-out meeting with my former boss (our acting director for the past six months), and she was very complimentary.  I don't take compliments well, because I really feel like they are undeserved, but something she said really caught my attention.  She said that I was a good writer, something that she felt was missing with so many people in management.  I thanked her, but it was a take-away that stayed with me all afternoon.  I've never really thought about it much, but it's true.  There are so many people who just can't write very well, and in our increasingly mobile and short-hand culture, there is less and less incentive for people to know how to type and spell, let alone write.  And that's kind of sad.  But it also explains why a former girlfriend made fun of me for my long texts, finally telling me that they're "texts, not emails!"  I still can't intentionally misspell words, even in a text.

While I don't consider myself a great writer by any means, I do feel like I can put my thoughts into my writing and get ideas across to my audience, if that's what being a good writer is all about.  And I've tried to do that with this blog.  It has provided an outlet for me to write, much more and better than anything that I have to write in my job, and I believe it's a great way to exercise those creative muscles.  In fact, I made a conscious effort to update the blog on a(n) (almost) daily basis.  If anyone is actually reading these words, and there must be a few of you out there, thank you for your support.  I'd love to receive any feedback, if you'd care to comment.

Apparently this writing stuff is contagious, because my daughter has picked it up and is writing daily.  She is writing a couple of different fictional stories that are downright adorable, and I'm really impressed with her creativity.  I hope to foster this budding talent, because she definitely has that gift.  I think she gets it from her mother, who was a high school English teacher.  Maybe she'll be a teacher someday, too.

Have a great day, everybody!