I am so envious of you that have Autumn. Here in Montgomery, Alabama, we have two seasons. Hot and Hotter. My father was in the Air Force and when I was a child, we moved around a lot. We lived in Nebraska and I remember going outside in Autumn and just smelling the crispness in the air. It smelled to me of apples and hayrides. We lived for a time in Upstate New York and it was glorious in the fall. Those red, yellow and orange leaves that painted the ground. I still remember the sound of them crunching under my feet. I want to live somewhere that you can wear flannel shirts or at least sweaters. Do you know that I don't even own a coat? I don't need one. I realize that some people want to move South as they get older. I am just the opposite. I want to move north or to the mountains in the West. I want to see the tree limbs heavy with snow. I don't want to make a fire in my firelace and have to turn on the air conditioner. Sadly, I'm serious about that. I want to drink hot apple cider and watch children make snowmen. Anyone want to swap houses for six months? I could stand the change.

Tucker is 8 months old now. He is a smiling, beautiful gift from God. Tuckers mother had a couple of brief email conversations with his father today. The bottom line is that his father can't afford to help out and has no desire to know him. I can't believe that any man wouldn't want to know his child. Tuckers mother will tell him one day about his father. About how much she loved him. She will tell him that she hoped that he would be in his life. That he has a brother and sisters. She will tell him that his dad loved to sing, and read and run for miles every day. Tuckers mother has a boyfriend. A good man that loves her. That loves Tucker. A man that wants to be his father. Tucker will grow up to be one of the thousands of children that won't know his real father. A statistic. A boy that will grow to be a man and not know how to father his children. Because his father doesn't care. It is tragic for Tucker but even more so for his father. There will always be a part of him missing. Always.

True friendship is a gift, a miracle really. All of us have had friends and acquaintances, people that come into our lives and just as quickly leave. Some last for years and some last for days. At differant times in our lives, we cling to differant people for the needs that they meet. If we are really lucky, really charmed, we have a friendship that lasts for decades. I have been that lucky. I met Sharon ( Sharona) many, many years ago when we were working in a medical residency office. I can't remember how or why we bonded but we did. We have raised our children, seen each other through heartbreaks and joy, marriage and deaths. We tell each other secrets but most importantly, we keep them. She is the only person that has never, EVER betrayed me. I don't think that she could. There was a period of a couple of years that we were out of touch. A third party said a horrible thing and we didn't stop to see if it was true. The most important thing is that we drifted back together. She is my confidante and my champion. She is my hero and my friend. She is many, many things to me. All of them genuine and all of them from the heart. I can't imagine not having her in my life. I am so very lucky. I am blessed.

Hi Gang, I'm back and I cleared my head a little bit. I used to belong to another board that shared a lot of things. We asked questions of each other and really got to know each other better for doing that. So... Name a relative or friend, who is no longer living that touched your life the most, and how? My answer would have to be my great grandfather. His name was Conrad McClarnon. He came over from Ireland as a child. I will never for get his brogue and the stories that he would tell me. He would sit me on his knee and talk about lepracauns and Ireland. About the legends and the myths. I had black hair and blue eyes and he called me his little Irish colleen. I felt perfectly safe surrounded by my Poppy's love. I've never felt as safe since. He died when I was about 12 but I have never stopped missing him. How about you? Who touched your life?

Hi friends, I will be out of pocket for a few days. I'll probably be back Monday. Take care and see Ya'll later.