No blogging this past week while visiting my brother Blane (with ball) and his family. They live in Bandar Lampung, Indonesia, and are home for just six weeks. Two years since we last saw each other and likely to be two more before next visit. I went bowling for the first time in 45 years. Played putt-putt. What is more important than family?
Category Archives: Family
Barb’s new Lexus
Barb’s Camry died (after ten years) so it was off to St. Louis to shop for a new one this weekend. I spent two very comfortable hours in the waiting area of the Lexus dealership while Barb talked herself into buying an RX330. Hard to call something this nice a sport utility vehicle. I confess to being pretty impressed with the Lexus “experience.” A greeter met us when we arrived and introduced Barb to her “sales and leasing consultant.” Apparently, you don’t have to sell the Lexus. The consultant is there to “assist you with your purchase.”
Lots of nice touches. If you have a breakdown on the road, Lexus sends out a flat-bed truck (“…we don’t tow”), puts you up in a hotel and provides you with a loaner. I watched the switchboard operator for a couple of hours. When she paged someone from the parts department, they arrived as quickly as they could. If they tagged on “…for a customer” to the page, the person arrived immediately. Just lots of little things like that. The dealership provided lunch for all employees. So, we started with a Tercel, then a Corolla, a Camry, 4 Runner and now, a Lexus. Well over a million miles in Toyota’s.
Barb with Dr. Denton Cooley
Long before she became a loathsome lawyer, Barb was a nurse. Specifically, a Surgical Intensive Care nurse. Following nursing school, she spent a year in Houston working in the long shadow of Dr. Cooley. He was famous way back then and she had the good sense to get a picture and Denton Cooley letter of reference. (PDF)
“A world-renowned surgeon, Dr. Denton Cooley pioneered many techniques used in cardiovascular surgery. He performed the first successful human heart transplant in the United States in 1968. In 1969, he became the first heart surgeon to implant an artificial heart in man. Cooley and his associates have performed more than 100,000 open heart operations–more than any other group in the world.”
(Reuters) Dr. Cooley died on November 18, 2016, at the age of 96.
Tell your friends
Did I mention that Barb built a house in Destin, Florida? Well, she did and it’s for rent. Great for family reunions if you’re into that kind of pain. A better plan might be to get some friends together (there’s three bedrooms) and split the cost for a week. You can check it out at AmberjackLanding.com. I’m through with getting shitty service in over-priced hotels in places I didn’t want to go to in the first place. My vacations will all be “One cold drink from the beach.”
The only safe place.
Brother Blane writes from Indonesia: “Just wanted to let you know we are all OK here. Seems like Indonesia just can’t stay out of the news. We don’t feel at all threatened here, but then I guess you never do until the terrorists strike. It is total madness. As I read about the sniper in the D.C. area I am reminded that the only safe place is to be where God wants you to be.”