August 2003

Sad News

We all have just returned from a wonderful visit to the States, but before coming to that, there is some sad news to report. Cousin Stu Greer died on July 5th. Words of condolence always seem so trite, but we would like to express our sympathy to Phyllis and the Greer family, and say that we share their sorrow at the loss of a loved family member.

For our trip to the States this year we wanted to visit Denver. My daughter, Janie, recently moved there, and cousin June, Victor, and family live there. The last time we had visited Denver was about 10 years ago when Tanya and I stayed at June and Victor's for a week after my throat operation.

Since there is no direct flight from Taiwan to Denver, we had to make landfall on the West Coast, first. Since the kids (including this kid) had never been to Disneyland, we decided to spend a few days in LA and take in the show, before proceeding on to the Mile High City.

LA

Here are some scenes of the Redondo Beach Marina, and the beach at Venice. Click on a photo to see an enlargement.

Disneyland

Disneyland was fun - but too crowded for my liking, which made it hard to do everything all in a day. We did get a goodly amount of fun stuff in, though, and the peanuts liked posing with the Disney characters. Click on a photo to see an enlargement.

On to Denver

Denver was great. We stayed at June and Victor's indescribably wonderful house - with its oddments and curios waiting to be discovered in every nook and cranny. Their daughter, Lizzie, and her childrem - Kristen, Levi, and Joann - stopped by, and it was really nice to get acquainted with the extended family.

Janie proudly showed off the nice apartment she recently moved into. She has a job at the zoo - one of the nicest zoos I've been to - and spent a wonderful day taking us around.

Nick flew in for a couple of days, and though the time we spent together was too short, it was great to see him again.

It seems as if we are always on the road for Mandy's birthday. No problem. June and Victor ordered up an ice cream cake and we had a great time celebrating it at their house.

Click on a photo to see an enlargement.

And so ends our trip. As wonderful as it was, we can't wait to see what next year brings. As always, if anyone has any family news and/or pictures they would like to put up, by all means email them to me.