So here's the short of it, 
Kentucky's going to the finals!

And here's the long.

I'll have to admit I'm not much of a sports fan.  I don't really follow much ball of any kind -- any time. But what Kentucky girl could miss this match up!  Mom even came up and watched the first half with us.

I know just barely enough about basketball to understand why they run up and down the court and throw the ball into the goal - which, by the way, doesn't look a thing like a basket any more!  If you are interested you can look here at this link to see how it all started!

I don't really know if the game had other Kentucky Wildcat fans on the edge of their seats, but I had 10 or 15 minutes there when I thought they were going to let it just slip out of their hands.  I suppose that if they are going to win the championship they'll really have to "get their game on".

And yes, I imagine I'll be watching that game as well.

So here's the short of it, 
Plato is missing...

And here's the long.

 Mom's cat, Plato, has been living a dual life for several years.  He divides his time between her and the small office complex down on Brainerd Road where Joan McNew Flores has her home appraisal business and her husband Attorney, Robin Flores has his office.

At Mom's he's pretty much an outdoor cat. He likes to sit on the outside window sill while Mom works in the kitchen.  He also likes to sit up on the shed roof out back.  But he also loves to go down the road and help out with home appraising and lawyering.  I've heard that he has his own chair and his very own bed.

While Mom was gone to Destin, he stayed full time down at his "other house.

Yesterday Joan called to say that he hadn't been to see them for several days - and he hadn't been at Mom's either.  So she started a big search for him - scouring the street between them and Mom.

The story continues...

Today they learned that a woman who had been fired from the office next door to Joan and Robin had decided that she needed to take him with her as she left.  So he's been in Varnell, GA since Tuesday - in a home where there are two pitt bulls on short chains in the front yard.

Robin went down and accompanied by deputies, went to reclaim Plato. (They call him Greybeard).  They got him, but as they were walking to the car, he became frightened of the dogs and got away, running into a wooded area.

Joan's daughter has been down there this afternoon - she's set a trap and gone door to door.  Tomorrow they are going to keep trying.  Mom is worried about him.  This afternoon she told me "I'll bet he's awfully scared".  I'm worried about him too!

I sure hope that this story has a happy ending for Plato, Mom, and his other family.

So here's the short of it,
I'm watching Nova - 

And here's the long.

Genetic Code at Wiki

I'm watching "Cracking Your Genetic Code" on PBS.   This is so fascinating.

It's so interesting to me because they are talking about how drugs can be tailored to the genetic make up of the diseases.  It is like my HERCEPTIN which is called a monoclonal antibody - it interferes with the HER2/neu receptor that allows it to grow aggressively.

One scientist said something very interesting - "we are going to begin to think of ourselves more in terms of genetics" - from the people we hire to the people we choose to date!  They referenced the film Gattica which I remember seeing. Wow, I hope we aren't really headed in that direction!

So it seems that everywhere you go you leave a trail of genetic debris. If someone wants to check out your DNA it's not that hard to grab a sample.  Another wow!

And then I think - we just have to trust because it's not any different than humans taming fire or electricity.  It can be used in good and just ways or in immoral and horrific ways.  We'll have remember that educating our kids has to include helping them to understand choosing the good and just ways!

So here's the short of it, 
Nice surprise tonight. 

And here's the long.

Liga worked an early shift and got off by 7 tonight so she stopped by to have some of our leftover dinner.  She got a quick dinner that she didn't have to fix and I got a chance for a nice visit.  So I think that was a win-win! And a lovely surprise.

Sophie and I spent a bit of time this evening working on her fetch the ball trick. She loves to play catch... but when she brings the ball back to me, she doesn't want to let it go to have me throw it for her again. She wants to gnaw on it while I'm holding onto it in her mouth. I want her to learn how to bring it to me and then drop it on the ground so I can pick it up!  Well, this evening, I accidently dropped a piece of the turkey bacon we had for dinner so I tore it into little pieces and took it outside to use as a training treat for dropping the ball.  Sophie could not focus on the task at hand.  She knew I had that bacon, and she did not want to do anything for it but sit and look pretty.  Well, she was really ready to go through the "sit", "shake", "high-five", "lay down", "speak", or even the "wait" tricks that she already knows, but she and I had to have a real conversation before she understood that she was going to have to fetch the ball and bring it back to me and then drop it before she would get the bacon. She was even running around behind me when I put my hand behind my back.  Oh what fun it is to have this wonderful dog!

So here's the short of it, 
Mom is home from Destin. 

And here's the long.

It seemed like the sisters (and Bob) really did enjoy their time at the condo. It's really so lovely that Steve and Pat have such a nice place and are so generous about sharing it with family.  I think Mom had a good opportunity to have a visit with Russ as well.

Here's a picture of them enjoying their last evening on the beach.

I'm glad to have Mom back home. It's always strange to wake up in the morning and know that she's not there in that house down the street and around the corner!  So tomorrow or the next day when I drive by and see her lights on and her car in the driveway it will be a comfort.

So here's the short of it, 
Tomorrow is Monday...

And here's the long. 

Then comes Tuesday and then of course then Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and then SPRING BREAK!!

I am so excited that we are only a week away from Spring Break. I haven't made any plans at this point, but I've got a whole week to take care of that!

I think everyone ought to have a Spring Break - not just educators.  There is something so wearying about the winter months.  Well, for me anyway.  Maybe I have a touch of Seasonal Affective Disorder.  I don't really get depressed or have awful struggles, but it's hard to slog through those months.  Work just seems so much harder during that time.  By the time the days are warmer and longer, I just really look forward to a few days to not do the work thing and enjoy the sunshine thing!

Maybe I'll be getting some gardening done!

So here's the short of it, 
I'm going to take a good lesson from my Friday sitting in a bad chair day. 

And here's the long.

I've still got a really achey back and I can for sure trace it to that experience on Friday.  I'll just have to be more cautious and be sure to ask for a different chair when that happens again.  I'm not too shy to do that, I just had no idea that sitting for a day on a bad chair would still be impacting me more than 24 hours later!

I also still feel like I must be trying to come down with something.  I stayed close at the house except for a couple of trips to Mom's to check on things. And this afternoon, I took a nap.  I think that's what makes me think I've got something going on -  it's so unusual for me to be able to nap during the day.  And it's just after nine and I feel like I might be able to go to sleep a little earlier than usual tonight.

I'm so glad it's the weekend.  Now that is just what I needed.