"I'm gonna tell you a story..."

...debris from the space shuttle Columbia missed ABQ by 7 miles...pieces in this area may be bigger than laptops...

...4/28/03: I was picked up by my landlady @2nd & Copper...the 5th & Gold bus stop has returned...the 5th & Copper stop has moved to 6th & Copper...these changes make it easier to transfer from one bus route to another...but, ABQ water rates rise 4.5% on 7/1/03...and a wall @John Brooks in Edgewood ripped off due to the wind...add Mongolia, S. Korea & New Zealand to SARS infected countries...on the good side, Toronto is no longer on the list of places not to travel...

...4/29/03: gas drops to $1.45/gal...Captain does not like cheap kitty litter...was there a skunk in the complex this AM?...finally, work flows from the Clinic...Cassandra & I had the hardest time to locate the clinic Residents' Conference Room, site of one of our 2 meetings on 4/30/03, one scheduled @noon & the other @2...the location, you ask?...it is across the hall from Doris' office (the details & directions are not important)...for more details, follow the trail to...

...4/30/03: the good news is that Cassandra's husband, Patrick, has been offered a new position with better benefits...the bad part is that he may start next Monday...Cassandra wanted to take some time off to spend with her family through the month of May; and, specifically after Mother's Day weekend [the second weekend in May]...prior to this, her husband had Mondays off...I told her to take tomorrow off...5/1/03: she came in,and found out later in the day that Patrick got the job and starts on 5/19...which means she will be out on 5/12 & 5/13/03...he also told her that a truck with a trailer that had no lights cut him off...he went over the median strip and into oncoming traffic...he gained control of his own truck, but one of the side mirrors broke...the tires & axles will be examined by a mechanic...the other driver's company will pay for any damages...the extent of the mirror repairs is less than previously thought...

...4/30/03: I am unhappy because Brad goes traveling when I'm at work & then we stay home during the weekends...well, one last try!...I left work at noon on 5/2/03...

...4/30/03...tasted Brad's first strawberry!...more are appearing...

...4/30/03: 58 degrees @4 AM...there is a fire warning across the state...low humidity, windy & warm...the president has a moral calling to the AIDS crisis in Africa & the Carribean...he wants to send them generic medications to help curtail the virus...this is not making drug companies happy...SARS has caused the Beijing stock market to close for 12 days...a school that was to be converted to a hospital was torched...people in villages are preventing outsiders from driving through their cities...they claims their towns are disease free...

...4/30/03: Brad made tropical salsa & almond crusted pork loin...delicious!...

...what happened to the boy groups or the Latin sound of Ricky Martin, Enrique Iglesia or Marc Anthony?...now I drink cool liquids in the morning to stop me from sweating...

"Silence & I!"

...4/30/03: because of our crazy schedule, I had a "3 part" lunch...a little @11:15, more @1:15, and the rest @2:30...Cassandra left @3:30...GPU & PSAC are full!...wait until the Compliance staff realizes the amount of forms they have to understand in order to audit correctly...will they need to be trained...who will be doing the audit during that period of time [I will give you 3 guesses!]...

"Silence speaks in volumes!"

...I have to keep telling myself It doesn't bother me, when it really does bother me!...I think I should take the hint that I am not wanted at home...instead, I take a deep breath, and continue...

...an earthquake in SE Turkey traps children in dormatory...it registered 6.4 on the Richter scale...this is another country where tectonic plates meet and are shifting...a $15 billion world AIDS package is approved by Congress...a US Terrorist Threat Center has opened, which will house & analyze pertinent data regarding possible attacks on America...the humidity was 8% today...the fire danger threat is high...in Durango, CO, a blaze erupts near the Missionary Ridge area...named the WILD fire, it was a controlled burn that got out of control!...but, it was quickly contained and only charred 10 acres...the fire danger is very high statewide on 5/3/03...winds could gust to 50 mph...

"Everything old is news again!"

...a UNM junior, majoring in business, appears as a model in the summer Abercrombie & Fitch catalogue...he was discovered at an ABQ 7-11...the photos are racy, but not risque...on 5/5/03, the streets around the Santa Fe plaza will reopen for traffic...

...5/1/03: saw a woman waving her R arm and appearing to talk to a steel sculpture outside the E/R entrance @UH...a closer look revealed she was talking on a cell phone, but being very dramatic!...5/2/03: peace talks resume between India & Pakistan...the Boston Celtics win the NBA Eastern Conference...NM GOV Richardson strikes a balance with the mayors of towns surrounding Elephant Butte Lake...1/3 of its water will be shipped to TX by then end of 2003...the next street to become 2-way in downtown ABQ will be 3rd ST on 5/12/03 (maybe)...

...5/2/03: tried to eat @New Chinatown on Central...couldn't find it...but we found the Bangkok Cafe, and gave it a second chance...2 strikes & it's out!...the hostess was more concerned about her baby...the waitress had to work in- & outside...the decor was tacky, and the service was slow...the manager finally decided to help clean tables that were piled with plates...at least the food was OK, but nothing to rave about...

...5/2/03: not as warm as forecasted...worked on PEDS E/R & Urgent Care E/R...5/3/03: cloudy day, again, not as windy as predicted...the fire watch became a fire warning across the entire state...a mjor problem would be blowing dust & sand...the SE US had very severe T'storms, hail & tornadoes...we took a ride on the entire Route 36 [Rio Grande/12th ST], and stopped at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center...it appears to be successful, as the gift shop is in the process of expanding in size...and we watched 4 children perform native dances...we also saw areas of the city never before explored, such as Candalaria & Griegos...

...private companies are competing to build sub-orbital rockets...the future goal is to create cargo ships that could travel between planets...

...5/3/03: the 129th Kentucky Derby (aka The Running of the Roses) @Churchill Downs...the first gelding to win since 1929, Funny Cide, came in at the head of the pack...the horse had 12-1 odds...the favorite, Empire Maker, finished second...

...the SARS virus keeps mutating...analysts feel the worse is over for the stock market with regards to the SARS scare...however a country cannot stay ill...it would affect the global economy...sick buyers & sick workers will not do!...

...5/4/03: cool & very windy...there were dark & forboding skies over the Sandias...at the top, the wind was gusting to 40 mph, and the temps were below freezing...another wind advisory for the state...a high wind warning in SE NM, with gusts reaching 70 mph!...drivers should beware of blowing dust, sand & smoke...in the AM there were snow showers in the mountains S of Los Alamos, and rain near Espanola...this type of weather will help fight the Brush fire in the Jemez MTNS...the blaze is located in the Santa Fe NATL Forest, and has burnt more than 60 acres...16 acres burned in the Estancia fire...located in Torrence CNTY, the cause was a truck backfiring, igniting dry brush...no property damage or injuries...Denver may get 5-10 inches of snow today...3 years ago today, the Cerro Grande fire began...in the end, 200 houses were destroyed and the property damage loss reached $1 billion!...

...5/4/03: Soyuz spacecraft safely delivered a three-man, US-Russian crew to Earth on Sunday in the first landing since the Columbia space shuttle disaster - touching down nearly 300 miles off-course in the steppes of Central Asia...

...2 separate accidents shut down I-25 near Tramway for a total of 3 hours...and some things never change...a tractor trailer tipped on its side, spilling its contents & closing the ramp from I-25 S to I-40 E...

...the San Juan River is one of the 10 best areas to catch trout in the US, per Field & Stream magazine...during the first three months of 2003, NM casinos took in over $108 million...the Old Man of the Mountain in NH crumbled due to time & erosion...it had been featured on the state coin & numerous tourism brochures...no one was hurt by the rockslide...X-2: Xmen United started 5/2/03; it took in $85+ million in its first weekend!...that is the fourth highest weekend earnings, just behind Spider Man & the 2 Harry Potter movies...5/4/03: Brad made B-B-Q PORK w/baked beans & cole slaw...everything was very tasty!...the Beach APTS have 100% occupancy!...next year's insurance premium & co-pays will increase...there is a new option which will cost less, but one can only go to UNM doctors...I fought depression caused by lack of sleep...

...5/4/03: it was a bad night for weather in the central US...there were 90 tornados, touching down in NE, SD, AR, KS, MO & TN...Kansas City & Springfield, MO were badly damaged...more storms are expected through the week, slowly heading east...AL, MS, GA & NC were added to the list of battered states...some said it sounded like a bomb went off...many disaster sirens did not work, so people were caught unprepaired...the twisters were quick to strike...these were categories F2 & F3 in strength & wind...this was the worse night for storms since 1997...over 20% of all tornados per year occur in May...snow is falling in Grand Junction & Denver, CO...the same can be said in Missoula & Great Falls, MT...

...5/5/03: Cinco de Mayo...we had hot chili w/tortilla shells...the KOAT-TV news truck was parked across the street from our complex, near the bike path & botanical garden...Kiet Do spoke about the fire danger and its affects on the Bosque...later that day Brad saw an accident near that same area...hmm?...the Cajetee fire burned between 30 & 55 acress near Jemez...2,000 acres burned in the Bosque during April this year...the weather is expected to stay warm, dry & windy...the fire danger remains high!...a NM Repub. wants to repeal the law that prevents gays & lesbians from being discriminated against...we need a ledger to enter checkbook transactions...5/6/03: we got one...

...in the dark, you can only tell that Captain is sitting in my black leather chair when he opens his eyes, or meows softly...5/5/03: gas drops to $1.43/gal...so far, no negative response to the signs in the Coding area...they explain that, due to HIPAA regulations, billing sheets should be in a locked cabinet during the night...nothing can be left in the open...we received billing sheets that had been coded by Geri & Roxanne...the morning was quite cool; the afternoon, quite stale air...GPU & PSAC are full...there was a person in E/R needing to be admitted, but there were no beds available until at least mid-morning!...as of 5/19/03, my UH friend Margaret will work from 8 - 4:30 (new boss)...SARS can live outside the body and be spread by touch or contaminated objects...summer internships to Asian countries are cancelled; the same is true for Asian students who want to study in the US...