"Skip the present..."

...6/22/03: all the fires in NM, except for one [Virgin], had been 100% contained...a fire near the Santa Fe watershed is 100% containined...the Aspen fire near Mt. Lemmon, AZ has been declared a Federal Disaster Area...6,300 acres have burned...12,500 acres by 6/23/03...the fire is only 5% contained...there is plenty of underbrush due to the lack of fires in recent years...the Aspen fire grows to 12,000, then 25,000 acres by 6/25/03...6/23/03: we have the Virgin fire...100 acres have been burnt NW of Jemez Springs...while it approaches 2 summer camps, there are firewalls which will protect those structures for now...110 firefighters are battling the blaze...hot, windy (30+ mph) conditions have prompted a code red fire alert...6/25/03: the Virgin fire has burnt 325 acres...300 firemen are fighting that blaze...cool night temps help them...at 5 AM, the humidity was only 18%...and it was only 39 degrees @Grants...

"Uhn-uhn, Darlin'..."

...worked for 2+ hours on 6/21/03...the hospital is still quite busy...2 people were admitted while I was on my Rounds...enjoyed lunch, not dim sum, at the Ming Dynasty...very good food, and leftovers for 6/22/03...treated us as if they knew us, or that we had been going there for years!...the Red Hot Chili Peppers played at the Journal Pavillion...our fellow penthouse dweller has returned to work after spending months recovering from a leg injury...
"That is so cool!"

...6/22/03: 63 degrees @6:36 AM...a $5.7 million dollar contract has been awarded by the US Army to Honeywell in ABQ...homemade waffles for breakfast...I was slightly dizzy during most of the morning...went away with sleeping pills & Cyclobenzaprine...remained blah the entire day...my clumsiness resulted in breaking a glass...the Hulk landed in first place with over $62 million earned...

...Grotesque comes from the word Grottoes...

...are model rockets & airplanes a threat to national security?...some people think so...explosions on the Iraq-Turkey pipeline...sabotage is suspected...several of these incidents have taken place in the last 2 weeks...the good news is that no one has been injured...some politicians feel the US should remain on patrol in Iraq for 5 more years...6/22/03: Hong Kong is now considered SARS-free...6/24/03: WHO removes travel ban on Beijing...

...there is cool, wet weather in New England...flooding in FL...in Lake Manatee near Bradenton, FL, a dam gate got stuck...it was finally opened 5 hours later...tornados in NE...and dry in the SW states...the tourist areas are suffering because of the nationwide threatening conditions...but is that true for the casinos in Atlantic City, NJ?...Holy Guano!...there is a BATcave in a downtown ABQ parking garage...these creatures can soar up to 10,000 feet...they get rid of moths, and get rid of guano!...a natural habitat will be built for them on top of the structure...

...6/23/03: we finished Brad's avocado soup...but then we dined on his stuffed mushroom caps, consisting of Cremini mushrooms, finely chopped red onion, garlic salt, garlic powder, ground thyme, chopped tomatoes, tomato paste, pinch of salt, ground pepper, parmesean cheese & olive oil...heavenly!...

"That is not an option!"

...a person known as the Comic Terrorist appeared at Buckingham Palace, scaled its wall and reached the stage at Prince William's Out of Africa themed birthday party...the man came as Osama bin Laden in drag...the royal family wants to know how he breeched the tight security force around the area...

...Cassandra had Patrick's truck keys...she also forgot her cell phone so found a gas station to call me & her husband...discovered the mistake blocks away from work...6/23/03: Natalia having surgery grafting veins from her ankle to her arm...this will be followed by skin grafts...she is cheerful, watching TV in her room...when asked what happened, she says Chico ran over me!...wants to be with her mother all the time, and cries when her mother leaves the room...both mother & expected baby are doing well...she does not like nurses because they give her needles...and she does not like doctors because they put her to sleep with anesthesia...6/26/03: after reading the Operative Report, it appears that the grafted veins are functioning...skin grafts will be next...

...what about the new, independent Iraqi GOVT?...rumors are that Coalition forces may have to stay & protect Iraq for 5 years...the oil is starting to flow, and $$ are in many people's eyes & dreams...including the people of Iraq?...

...here, escape from the heat is as easy as walking under a tree...

...Dr. Bashir worked only 11 days in May...those charges have been posted recently...why so late? who knows?...6/26/03: saw him in the kitchen...just small chit-chat around the coffee machine...Rosanne produced another report for him (but not requested by him) on 6/20/03...

...6/23/03: Creations! Creations! Creations!...Brad prepared vegetable stock a la Emeril & Brady...then he added Portuguese sausages...then he fixed a summer drink blending watermelon, lemon juice, water & sugar...refreshing!...6/24/03: a summer treat when he baked peaches w/sugar, lemon & orange juice, combined with raspberry sorbet...Emeril had a special program about Fall River, MA...then he did Boston & prepared lobster salad sandwiches...

...6/24/03: phone service was disrupted through the hospital & the outlying clinics...the problem was corrected before 1 PM...

...6/24/03: I closed the door to the office, so Captain makes fewer bathroom visits...the Corvette is 50 years old...

...the Ten Cow fire had burnt 14000 acres...the Morgan, 5000 acres...then there are the Capula & Molina in the SF NATL Forest, the Barro & Monument near Ft. Union...the Powell fire has burnt 630 acres at the north rim of the Grand Canyon...no structures threatened yet by the Virgin fire...

...$12 million have been raised by Mr. & Mrs. Bush with the VP for the 2004 campaign...saw a woman smoking, drinking coffee & talking on her cell phone...

...there will be a UPA Coders Picnic on 7/11 @Lomas & Carlisle from 11:30 - 1:30 (Friday)...Cassandra is off for her birthday...Rosanne is trying to change her mind...it's not working!...the head nurse in GPU loudly stated that she does not want to talk about the GPU-PSAC merger until it goes in effect on 7/1/03...

...6/25/03: I am tired this AM...I did not get to sleep until after 9:30...and now, there is record heat along the Atlantic seaboard...but it is only 28 degrees @Yellowstone NATL Park...50 tornadoes struck in the Mid-West...one leveled the town of Manchester, SD...one tornado was as wide as a highway...Finding Nemo is popular in the movies & the pet shops...however, the character is based on a salt water fish...an aquarium to house them would cost $500+...the damp weather in the East has meant an increase in the mosquito population...it's lease renewal time!...

...one for the books!...John Sullivan has rehired Ann Leathem!...the Suicide Lass will work in Medicine...you should have seen the expression on Cassandra's face!...Ann only saw her back since the event was blocked out by Cassandra's ear phones...besides, I wasn't going to introduce Ann...I continued working after I found out that she was rehired...I mention it to Rosanne in an E-mail & got no response...6/26/03: saw Ann wheeling her mother in the Cancer building, as I headed to a PEDS meeting...Ann was rehired because she does not need to be trained...6/26/03: received documentation on salary increase from Rosanne...I have yet to read what it says...

...Brad replaced the color cartridge in my printer...

...6/26/03: the prime interest rate is the lowest it has been in 45 years...

...6/27/03: 62% humdity @5 AM...for supper, enjoyed 3 tomatos from Brad's garden...both Cassandra & Brad have asked me if I was working all day on Friday, 6/27...my reply was (and remained) "Yes"...Strong Thurman, dead at 100...he was the oldest & longest running member of Congress...speaking of which, a Medicare prescription drug progarm has been approved by Congress, will go into effect by 2006...Captain was sick, crapped on the Prayer rug, this was followed by loose bowel movements, plus some heaving...started to feel better on 6/28/03...lets out a howl before he vomits...J K Rowling is the creator of Harry Potter...

...I have also not felt well this week...cannot shake this blah feeling...my L shoulder has been sore, and my sinuses have ached...

...now, New England is faced with 90 degree temps and 70+% humidity...it's time to sizzle!...with all the focus on national, state & local problems, the people & the media are not as interested or concerned about Iraq or the Middle East conflicts...they have to deal with their own problems, such as fire, tornados or the economy & the job market...not to mention the roller coaster stock market...6/27/03: gas drops 2 cents to $1.37...

...Natalia is feeling better & getting better...her health has improved, and the second grafting of veins was more successful...next week she may begin skin grafting...after that she ill have a cast and be relased...the doctors wanted her to leave her hospital bed...but all Natalia wanted to do was watch cartoons...they finally persuaded her & her mother to visit Pete's Playground...when Natalia got there, she went inside, propped her left arm, and began having a good time...some of her cousins were there...in the end, she did not want to leave...when she is discharged, her mother will return to her job in the family brokerage office...it also serves as a daycare center for the grandkids...Natalia will be with her mother...and so far, the pregnancy is proceeding smoothly...

"6/27/03: a semi-day of defeat!"

...6/27/03: there was a double shooting in ABQ at Alcazar ST SE...a soldier was shot in the neck while shopping in Baghdad...others were victims of grenade fire north of the city...the second Democratic Presidential debate will take place in Albuquerque on 9/4/03...the woman, who struck a man & let him die as he lay lodged in her windshield, will be jailed for 50+ years...6/28/03: enjoyed a decent meal at Casa Grande...

...6/28/03: the Virgin fire has charred 400+ acres, but is 100% contained...caused by campfires...130 firefighters are still battling the blaze...the Aspen near Tuscon has destroyed 32,000 acres of forest & consumed 345 homes...it is 50% contained...this blaze was also started by human carelessness...

...there is still a slight chance of T-storms thru the weekend...and it will be very hot by the end of the week...

...during the previous week, a golf ball landed on our porch...this event was seen by both Captain & Brad...Captain is feeling better...now we serve tuna in a separate bowl...he nibbles at the dry food then the tuna & finally quenches his thirst with some water...