Hockey Night in Bemidji

Sounds like real January weather is on the way the way so I spent this morning banking up the backside of our house and filling the woodbox with some really fine white oak. We had lunch with our friends Kate and Scott and their kids Cole and Ada. We had an enjoyable visit in spite of James being in "Mine!" mode. Ada and James are about the same age so it is always fun when they get together. Tonight, Grandma Norma is taking care of James while Lenore goes out for dinner with a group of girlfriends. After dinner, Lenore and James are going to try a "sleepover at Nanu's house." James is excited! So, I could stay home and work... I do still have some catching up to do plus dissertation work is always there...or I could go over to the the BSU vs. Air Force hockey game. Tough call. It should be an interesting game since the respective head coaches are Tom and Frank Serratore, brothers who grew up playing hockey on 'da raynch' -- I usually try to take in at least one game a year and the Beavers are starting to play pretty well so I think tonight is the night. On the other hand, I could stay home and read another hundred pages or so on theories of education...hmmmm???

Changing the subject, we had a couple more reminders in recent days about the fragility of life. Fortunately, both cases were just near misses but it still really gets your attention. Lenore's sister Kathleen went for a walk with a friend on the long-frozen Mississippi New Years Eve and both ended up falling through thin ice into deep water (in a strong current). They were able to pull themselves out but then had to walk a quarter mile back to the house and by that time their clothes were frozen solid. Kathleen prides herself on swimming in Lake Marquette before her birthday in early May but starting in January is carrying things a bit too far! Then last night, my teenage nephew Brendon -- who I hear is generally pretty good about wearing a helmet -- was driving a friend's four-wheeler helmetless and rolled it over. He landed pretty hard directly on his head and ended up losing consciousness and visiting the emergency room. They even did a CT scan to make sure there was no fluid buildup with his cranium. Quite the memorable way to start a new year in both cases. Anyway...

"Let's play hockey!" (I'll come home and work in my cozy, warm basement after the game!) /dps

Later: BSU 3 Air Force 1