Another Tradition Broken

The last day of the month and except for missing the day of the accident and blogging twice the next day, I have blogged every day. I think I am going to take a breath and relax, although I have to admit, the subject matters came to me more easily than I expected. I have a friend who blogs 5 days a week, others once a week, and others whenever the notion comes ~ like I do. Back to that random routine I think ~ though maybe more often now that I realize how easy it is. 

Re: Black Friday shopping. I can state very clearly that I have never shopped on Black Friday ~ except . . .. Yesterday we did something we do almost every Friday: we went to our favorite Mexican restaurant for lunch and then took donations to the Hospice Thrift Shop around the corner where we almost always bring home about the same amount we donate. Yesterday it was a little more crowded than usual as it was a holiday and the last two days of the month which meant everything was half off. By “a little more crowded” I mean there were maybe 10 of us in the shop at the same time. Dean did what he always does and found four wonderful shirts and I found a lovely, snuggly, soft fleece robe and a little glass bowl. 

Then we stopped by the pharmacy and I found two pair of fuzzy socks and a red ear band to wear on my cold morning walks. So ~ I guess I have to admit to shopping on Black Friday. There is at least a once-a-year advantage to living in a very small resort town that doesn’t have large department stores: Black Friday looks about like every other Friday for us. 

Still Giving Thanks!

One of the nice things about being our age is that we have lots of traditions and are old enough to understand that if we break one or two no one is really going to turn over in their grave. And so we had fun planning our “just us” Thanksgiving day. 

After various conversations centered mostly on my need to keep it simple and easy, we ended with the perfect day. It started with a lovely long walk around the loop ~ Oso running so much further than we walked. Then we sat in the hot tub. During the day we talked to my family in New Orleans and Skyped with those family in Ashland. We sat down to dinner about 1:30. 

I set out the good silver and china. Dinner was smoked turkey ~ smoked last Saturday as we had company to dinner. I think we have learned that smoking the turkey and letting it sit for several days makes for a more delicious turkey. It doesn’t yell “Smoked!!” at you. Rather there is a subtle flavor that permeates the meat and makes it really delicious. Because I can only make dressing in Huge amounts, we let the dressing go this year. Mashed potatoes, roasted veggies and Dean’s good gravy made up the rest of the meal. And because I really was about easy this year, I requested being dismissed as pie maker. Instead we had brownies from our really good bakery and ice cream. Traditions broken, no one turned in their grave and we had a Wonderful meal and a delightful day. Many thanks for many blessings ~ 

Happy Thanksgiving ~

And here’s my list: 

My wonderful family ~ large, boisterous, 5 kids and their respective spouses, 12 grandchildren, one dog, great memories of my first husband, and a second husband whom I love and who is responsible for a good portion of this large and delightful family.

~ plus, wonderful cousins with whom I am still in touch and whose kids I know and love ~ Family. Thanks be. 

Friends ~ those close at hand and those farther afield with whom I am in touch by email, phone, even in a couple of cases letters; and of course Facebook friends ~ people with whom I would not be in touch except for this form of technology. I am continually blessed with posts of daily doings, recipes, pictures of kids and grandkids. I don’t pay a lot of attention to political or cat postings. I do enjoy learning about life. 

My country ~ based on a Constitution and in spite of all the turmoil, all the contention, all the anger and disagreement, is still a country of basically decent people who live by the laws and turn those laws over by vote not by coup. 

Our military ~ wonderful young men and women who say “yes” to defend and protect and go into harms way for you and me.

A Bunch of Little and not so Little Stuff ~ clean sheets, indoor plumbing, anesthetic, modern surgical techniques, airline travel (remember I have a college granddaughter in the Czech Republic this year and a tiny one in China visiting her other grandparents for a while), insurance of all kinds, a morning fire, our pressure cooker, Skype for video chats with that far flung family, a beautiful forest around our home, chipmunks, bears, and birds, and . . . and . . . and ~ and you for stopping by and reading and being in this wonderful world. Blessings and Thanks ~ 

I'm Part of the Problem

From the time you are a baby grandchild of Mama Susan's you know what you are getting for Christmas. No surprise. The only surprise, what are the titles this year. You are getting books. Always and forever.

Last week I received a letter from our local bookstore. It had had to move from Tahoe City because of high rents and now resides only in Truckee. Sales were going down. They needed help to stay open. The town of Truckee gave them a banner sales day on Saturday. I went in this morning to buy some  of those Christmas books. I was a little embarrassed because, you see, I am part of the problem. 

I fell in love with my Kindle and although I still love books, I read almost exclusively on my Kindle now. I have two grandsons who read almost exclusively on their Kindles. The brother of one has decided he really likes a gift card so he has his own money and can buy the books he likes. The father of two others told me three years ago that they have never read the books I have given them. He has a hard time getting them to read what they need to for school so if I'd like to give them something they will actually use it would probably be better. I'm offering a Kindle to another one although he may choose to have books instead. But you see the problem. Even in a basically book loving family, we are moving steadily toward electronic reading.

I don't want to see bookstores disappear. Bookstores are Wonderful. Books are Wonderful. I am So Grateful the grands are reading even if it is electronically. I would just like the best of both worlds so that the bookstore can remain in its own little corner of the world.

Self Awareness?

== not sure I am up to multi-tasking any more. Or at least not more than one Big Thing in a day.

I guess I shouldn't be too hard on myself as each day starts with an hour's workout at my gym. I don't consider that a big thing. Yesterday after gym,  I was going to do A & B, doing C today. Instead yesterday I did A and b, c, d, e , f and today C and saving B until Wednesday. Phew. 

It's all those little letters that get me: groceries, post office, unloading and putting away groceries, walking out back with Oso. By the time I get through all the little ones and get around to the Big One, I have energy for only one of those a day. So I adjust and am grateful I am able to do that. Take care ~ and regardless of your age and energy level and how many Bigs and littles there are in your life, be aware and enjoy. 

Popcorn It Is!

What is there about a Sunday afternoon that brings on this incredible craving for popcorn? I don’t even think about popcorn most of the time. Even if I see the box in the cabinet, I just see the box. I don’t desire, want and certainly don’t crave it. I just know it’s there for another time. And this doesn’t happen every Sunday afternoon. But when the craving hits, it is a Sunday afternoon and it is a Craving. 

As my daughters were growing up, their father and I had what we called “stuff” for Sunday supper. My father had always taken us out for the Sunday noon meal. Because Rex’s father was a pastor and his mom taught Sunday school and sang in the choir, they would go out to eat for Sunday lunch. It was therefore natural for Rex and me to do the same when we married. So - we had a big lunch. What to have for dinner? Oh let’s just have stuff: pop some corn, put out some peanut butter and crackers, some slices of fruit and maybe have a little ice cream ~ stuff. And Stuff it became. 

Popcorn was always the center of the spread, no matter what else went with it ~ popcorn to start, ice cream to finish. Which may be the reason why the popcorn craving comes, it comes on a Sunday afternoon. I don’t know. What I do know is: I give in to the craving. Yum! 

Random Sunday Musings

We had a delightful time last night. We had another couple come to dinner. Dean smoked our Thanksgiving turkey which we will eat more of on Thursday - but with just the two of us here, we don't need a presentation. We will just add traditional Thanksgiving sides to this delicious turkey.

I refreshed the candles as this was the first time we had had people to dinner since we could eat on the deck. The house is lovely with candle light. I intend to light them for myself now as I sit here in the living room a lot at night. And then soon after Thanksgiving I will add the Christmas candles to the mix. 

It has also been cold enough that a fire was quite in order and it blazed cheerfully for the evening. 

Although this couple is younger than we are, he has an early morning job and had a hip replacement about 3 weeks ago, so they were ok to come early - at 5:30 - and left shortly after 8. Yesterday was our son-in-law's birthday and he was being taken out to dinner at a very nice New Orleans' restaurant. At 8:30 I received a text of the handsome birthday man, dressed for his evening out. Meaning - I think - their reservations would have been for 9 o'clock. They started just as we were winding down. I don't think it has to do with age as much as their being night people (good to be if you live in New Orleans) and we being morning people. 

Oh my - next Sunday is the first Sunday in Advent. I need to prepare my Advent candles and wreath. The last few years it has looked rather non-traditional. Have to think about that and mainly buy some more candles. And with those musings, the day begins. 

Still Smiling ~

When my daughter Michelle was pregnant with Joshua, my first grandson, a friend of mine was almost late to a rehearsal and she apologized because her 3-year-old grandson had wanted to call her. 

I gasped. “They want to Call you???” I got so excited to think that one day this baby who had not even been born yet might one day want to call his Mama Susan. And of course, he did. And then of course he didn’t. They become involved in their own lives and grandparents are once removed and so we don’t hear from them even when they hear from us. 

The other night I was starting to prepare my dinner when the phone rang. It was Joshua. He too was preparing dinner and his girl friend had read my letter to him while he cooked. He decided to call. Delightful!!!

We talked about one of his college classes and a movie I had recently seen. Ordinary stuff. So Special to hear his voice and know that even now, once in a while, he still wants to call his Mama Susan. Made me quite happy.

My Memory of Today

Fifty years ago today President Kennedy was killed. We all remember where we were when we heard the news. I also remember where I was just before. 

I was in a college government class. I had been fortunate enough to get the only Government 101 class taught by the chair of the department. He was funny, intelligent, wise, inspiring ~ all the things you want a professor to be. He let us read the text for ourselves. He taught out and beyond what was written on our pages. 

On that Friday morning he had been lecturing on the peaceable transfer of powers. He ended his lecture with these very ordinary ~ and for that morning ~ amazing words: Remember, in this country we change governments every four years, by the vote, not by guns and assassinations.

I left class, walked the two blocks to my husband’s office to meet him for lunch and as we got in the car, the university church bell began to toll. As we looked up wondering, a colleague ran out to stop us and told us the news, “The President has been shot.”

We went home and spent the weekend as most did, glued to our tv set, crying, upset, speaking in muted tones to each other and friends. 

On Monday morning I was back in government class. The professor walked in. He had no notes. He stood in front of us and he spoke. He spoke of freedom, of peace, of the greatness of this country even in times of trial. He spoke with eloquence about a country founded with a system of government that spread the power across all the people; a government of, by and for the people. He spoke with the passion of a man who loved his country. 

When he was done, he turned and walked out. We sat, muted, moved and more wise than we had been when we walked in an hour earlier. And then we too left the classroom. And somehow life was never quite the same. 

It'll Play in Peoria

Josephine Tey is a mystery writer extraordinaire. She wrote during the Golden Age of British mystery (c. 1930 -1950) and yet she followed no formula and even broke some of the rules. She has an Inspector Alan Grant in several of her books and I like reading those mysteries. Imagine my delight and amazement to come across this sentence in the book I am reading at present:

“ . . . an alliance between one of Britain’s best-known personalities and one of America’s most admired photographers would produce a book that might, with luck, have equal interest for Weston-super-Mare and Lynchburg, Virginia.” (Tey, To Love and Be Wise) 

Reflections on The After Dinner Nap

My first husband had a rather endearing habit of an after dinner nap. These were the days of the “Nightly News” and he would declare his intention of watching Peter Jennings to see what was happening in the world. He would settle down in front of the television, his head would drop slowly to his chest and for the 30 minutes that Peter told us about world events, Rex would nap. When the news was over, he would get up and be about his business, grading papers, loading the dishwasher, meetings, choir practice, whatever the evening held for him. Often it was one or so AM when he finally came to bed. 

Now that was endearing in him, but I certainly didn’t understand it, really understand it, until last night. I haven’t been sleeping well. Several nights recently I have been awake and restless and pacing and . . . and . . . and . . .

It has been very frustrating. So I decided to relax and (in the words of my present husband) turn that frustration into fascination. 

So last night when I dozed over my book, turned out the light and slept for less than an hour and woke just as Dean was turning off his light, I decided to let it be. I got up, pulled on a robe and slippers, took my book and came out of the bed room. For a couple of hours I puttered. I unloaded the dish- washer, usually my first task in the morning. I read. I turned on my computer and wrote and played a game or two. Checked a couple of blogs I haven’t read  recently and even planned a blog of my own. I even had a cup of hot cider to ward off the chill of the night. 

Then I took my book back to bed, read for a little while longer, went to sleep and slept. Had a really good night’s sleep actually and feel fine this morning. Even though I got up a bit later than usual, the dishwasher was already unloaded so one task down. I feel fine. And ~ no frustration for not being able to sleep. I was awake so I did wakeful things and then I slept. It works. 

Life Is Good

The morning of Dean's birthday, we all three walked to the Point. 

It was a beautiful morning and life was and is good. 

Comparisons are Good

I have a friend who is the mother of twins and she posts a lot of pictures of the girls' activities. Once in a while she will post pictures from various years and we get to see how the twins have grown, changed, and developed from 4 to 5 to 6.

Taking a page from her book, I couldn't resist. I don't think we have changed as much as the twins do and maybe at our age that's a good thing. 

Dean's 70th birthday dinner with friends, 2012

Dean's 71st birthday dinner with friends, 2013.

I can't believe I wore the same sweater!!

We had a delightful time: good atmosphere, good food, good conversation and a drive to and from under a full moon over the lake. Perfect! I'm you glad you keep having birthdays, Dean. They provide a lot of fun and good times.

The Varied Faces of Dean

Last year was Dean's 70th and his family threw an amazing celebration in his honor. We all gathered close to Yosemite for a weekend and ate and talked and partied. 

This year, 71, is back to being normal. He has remembered it is his birthday when I wished him happy first thing. He has read his card. We will go for a walk with Oso later in the morning and tonight we will go out to dinner with a couple whose husband shares the birth day. 

Here are some pictures to celebrate this year in Dean's life. Not in any order ~ just snippets showing who he is as he went about his daily life for another year. 

He works in the yard.

He likes camping and cooking over an open fire. 

He was surprised and honored by the Alumni Association of Drucker Business School.

He loves exploring out of the way places, 

and taking amazing pictures. 

He gardens.

He loves to wander the woods with Oso.

He finds a way to eat on the deck as soon as the temperature allows even if there is still some snow on the ground.

He likes having his picture taken in front of interesting scenery.

And he dresses up well when the occasion warrants.

Happy Birthday, Dean! 

Do what works for you ~

One more comment about food planning, dieting or whatever. You do what works for you. I have a friend who is in a group of women working on appetite control. She is doing very well and almost immediately it was obviously she was beginning to lose weight. We talk about our food plans and there are two things that differ dramatically as far as I’m concerned. 

The nutritional part of her plan contains a lot of don’ts. Don’t eat starch. Don’t eat sugars. Don’t eat . . . don’t eat . . . don’t eat. Mine says, nothing is off limits As Long As you put it in your point count. Just knowing that is helpful to me and along the way I have found myself eating a lot less starch, sugars, etc because I choose to put other foods in that point count. 

Secondly, they are learning portion control through eyeballing the size of the portion. Eat a golf ball sized portion. Oh, friends, do you know how fast my golf ball would be come a tennis ball under that plan? I need the discipline of the 1/2 cup, the weighed 2 or 3 ounces. I do judge well for one meal staying close to the amount if I am eating away from my cups and scale. In the long run, I need the discipline of measurement. 

Moral: we are both losing. We are doing what works for us to make us healthier. Continued luck to us both and to you in whatever you are doing to be the healthiest you can be! 

It's a Good Problem to Have

I have been silent about my weight loss program because I needed to prove to myself I could do it. Frankly, I didn’t want to feel “accountable”. It started as a health issue: my body mass was only 1.3 over what was normal and given my high cholesterol, and because I asked him about weight, the doctor suggested if I wanted to lose 5 to 10 pounds, it might be good. So I went to Weight Watchers on line and signed up. 

At some point the losing went from health to vanity as my jeans and capris started needing belts to be comfortable and finally to keep them up. Then the other day as I celebrated Much Better cholesterol numbers with my doctor, it went back to health again. Twenty pounds down with only a couple more to go for a nice round number before going on maintenance. 

So what’s the “good” problem? 

1. Twenty pounds less fat to keep me warm this winter. I have been So cold as the temperature has begun to drop. Thank goodness for fleece! 
2. The delightful need for new clothes. So far I am getting by on too big jeans by tightening my belt and wearing the one pair in the new size for “dressier” occasions. Really nice dressy slacks - worn out to dinner and to Tahoe holiday parties - had to be replaced for this season to be comfortable and look good. 
3. Age: at my age maintenance is going to require the continued help of Weight Watchers, gym 5 days a week, and being almost as disciplined as I have been in the losing process. After all ~ although there is vanity involved, this started as a health issue and will now continue to be one. Keep those cholesterol numbers in line! 

All in all ~ good problems to have! 

We're Still Cooking ~

Help in the kitchen starts young in this clan. Even the small but necessary jobs, like shredding cheese, are important and by the time she was a teen, this grand was very proficient at many of them. 

The professionals still cook in their own homes of course.

Although not as active since her move to Oregon, Michelle still has dreams of Mama Bear's Kitchen once again selling delicious granola, pies and cookies. 

And speaking of cookies ~ the students become the teachers. When British friend Gill said she had never made cookies (they are only now discovering what we call cookies), Trinity decided she needed to teach Gill how to do it. As you can see, teaching how to make chocolate chip cookies is exhausting work. Phew. 

This has been a fun series to post. I hope you've enjoyed the pictures. I certainly enjoyed going back through my archives and remembering all the good times and stories from the various kitchens of our clan. 

Cooking as a Clan

The last two blogs have shown you various members of the clan cooking their individual dishes in their individual ways. We also cook together when the chance presents itself, usually at a holiday but sometimes just because we are all together and ~ we cook. 

We consult,

we help,

we teach,

we learn. 

Clan cooking is a lot of fun!

Still Cooking

Yesterday we grilled. Today, we stir!

Mindy

Amanda

Sometimes we stir over an open fire while on a back-packing trip. 

Susan

Yes, I too noticed that it is the men who grill and mostly the women who stir. Not always though. We’ll see who is cooking tomorrow. 

We Cook!

After I posted the son-in-law blog about Marc, I realized that although he cooks professionally all of the sons-in-law cook. So I started looking for pictures of them cooking ~ and came across numerous pictures of the whole family cooking. We cook! Everyone of us ~ including many of the children. And so here we are ~ cooking! 

First of all we Grill! In rather traditional ways, the men in the family grill. Here are 4 of them. 

Dave

Dean

Marc

Rob 

And that will do for now. I said I had Lots of pictures and because I still have a number of days to go blogging every day, I will save some fodder for later. 

Sons-in-law 4

Last but certainly not least in the sons-in-law list, Cam, our Olympian. OK - the 1992 Olympics were over 20 years ago, and Cam was captain of the USA Soccer Team and that is worth mentioning, he being the Only person I know personally who has ever even Been in the Olympics. 

He stayed with soccer though and has risen through the ranks to be the men's head soccer coach at Santa Clara University and the only member of the family with his own Wikipedia page.

More importantly, within the family he is a terrific husband to his high school sweetheart, and a great dad to their two sons, very willing to jump into a canoe and rescue a ball that escaped from a lively game. 

In spite of all his energy and athleticism, when Cam is around there is a sense of calm. He is grounded and centered and offers his wisdom with a deep serenity. 

Sons-in-law 3

Son-in-law three, Dave. Now we all know that most fathers are heroes to their children, standing taller and stronger and wiser than it is possible for any human being to be. Dave, because he is a good dad, became a hero in the real sense of the word to his five-year-old not long ago. You may have seen the blog about the car that crashed into the house, breaking the gas line and setting everything on fire. Dave's house. He made sure his family was out of there and safe. And made a Great Story for show and tell the next few days in school!

He works in financial management and planning and not only reads to his children but also participates in a business program in which he goes into the elementary schools to teach about money and saving and, to the very young ones, the difference between "want" and "need".

True to his stereotype, the red-headed Dave is passionate about his family, his extended family of nieces and nephews, ideas and possibilities. Whether in a bank building, a school building or on a couch with a book and two-year-old, Dave is interested and interesting and a good man to have around. 

Sons-in-law ~ 2

Next on the list of sons-in-law is Marc, a gentle, quiet man with opinions when finally spoken are wise and full of understanding of the world.

Professionally, Marc is Manager of the Pizza and Pasta Station in the food court of Southern Oregon University. Below is his oven, a picture taken as the brand new facility opened. Now it has been up and running and feeding crowds of students for almost a full term. I've eaten here and Marc makes great pizza! Of course he does ~ he got the job because he has training as a cook and everything he makes is tasty and wonderful.

Marc is also a terrific dad ~ able to oversee homework, make his way up a climbing net in the park to join his children, offer up good advice on everything from the latest video game to career options to his older son. I sometimes think of Marc as offering ancient wisdom as a modern day samurai. 

Sons-in-Law ~ 1

We have four terrific sons-in-law and I thought it might be fun to use some of my daily blogs to tell you a little about them. First up: David, the helicopter pilot. 

He is also the newest addition to the sons-in-law part of the family. The most important thing about him is the way he treats our daughter. He thinks she is the most wonderful woman in the world and acts accordingly. What mother doesn't like that in a son? 

Secondly, he is indeed a helicopter pilot. Not military - just decided a long time ago that he wanted to be a helicopter pilot and became one. And now is at the top of his industry, one of the best. He fights fires, carries fire-fighters to fires, logs, and works construction projects. He goes where the company sends him making for a rather gypsy life-style which our daughter loves. Being a writer, she can work anywhere and does in some very isolated, back country places. 

This is David at work this week, on a construction project in the Utah desert. Somewhere I have a wonderful picture of him up close and personal at the controls of his helicopter but I couldn't find it. You will have to settle for knowing he is the chief pilot at the controls flying over that gorgeous red hill.

The Light at Emerald Bay

Turned around yesterday morning and there was this beautiful halo of light surrounding Emerald Bay in the painting hanging on our wall. Practically I think it came from the glass candle holder you can see in the first picture. Sun strikes glass, reflects to painting. Artistically who cares? Beautiful addition to an already beautiful painting of a beautiful place.

Yes, the signature in the corner is McKay. Our grandson, the artist, painted this for us when he was 18. He knew it was his Grandpa's favorite place. 

Tuesday's Blog

One morning last week, I came downstairs in the dark ~ and saw a pile of something on the ottoman. Thinking the last folks up had left a pile of clothes, I flipped on the light and Ta-dah! Two year old had wandered down in the night, on her own, climbed on the ottoman and gone back to sleep. Too precious.

Missed Monday

Yes, I missed my intention to blog every day in November. At first that was ok - we were up early and on the road a couple of days sooner than we expected to be. I was going to have plenty of time to write my blog when we were home.

And then - wham! Bumped around. What was that??? Dean checked the rear view mirror and a motorcyclist had run into us. Thank God, we were all in the far left lane so he was thrown out of the stream of traffic. He was OK. EMTs left with an empty ambulance and he was close enough to home that someone came for him. After all the paper and police work, we drove home. Phew.

And ~ I was jumpy if anyone was behind us and jumpy if Dean was "too close" (in my head) to the car in front of us. I think I told him every time the speed limit changed even when he was already slowing down. We hadn't had breakfast yet and I was hungry. And then I had no appetite at all. And by the time we stopped I was Hungry. Ate a Huge breakfast ~ and drank three cups of strong sweet tea. OK.

Another hour or so down the road and suddenly I Needed Chocolate!!! Not just a bite of chocolate - Chocolate!!! A rest stop provided a store with candy and we both loaded up - for us. It really wasn't much but to us it was. Next stop we dug into the brisket in the cooler for protein and then I ate some more chocolate. Dean's treats were a little more healthy - yogurt covered raisins. He ate a lot of them though.

Still - I had blog fodder for when I got home. Home ~ and I was Tired. Dean collapsed in front of the tv and looking at our analogue clocks I prepared for bed, realized it was an hour earlier, re-set the clocks and went to bed to read anyway. There was just no energy to turn on the computer and write. Before 9 I turned off my light, laid my book aside, and was out. Slept well and here I am. Blogging and ready to unload the car, do laundry, put away Costco purchases and get on with life. And life over-took  my daily blog intention. Maybe I will post two today just to catch up.

My Husband the Rock Star

Several months ago Scott called Dean. Scott is director of alumni relations at the Drucker School of Business at Claremont where Dean received his PhD. He wanted to take Dean to lunch. Dean said, "well that's great and I live in Tahoe." No problem for Scott who came to Tahoe, took Dean to lunch and asked a lot of questions about being a PhD alumnus from the Drucker School. Scott went back to Claremont, a new Dean of Business arrived in August and said he wanted to re-activate the Executive PhD program. Scott said, "well, I have met this guy . . . "

Dean called his PhD friends and said, "If we meet together to share ideas for re-activating the program, would you come?" The answer was a resounding Yes!

Result: Dean pulled together a brief agenda to encourage folks to talk about their experience at the Drucker School, many of them in the presence of the great man himself; the school invited all their PhD folks out there in the world of management; fifteen of them gathered and shared wisdom for 24 hours with Dean facilitating. Dean became a rock star. 

At lunch during Drucker Day, an annual event on campus, Dean was asked to sit a the table with Doris Drucker, Peter's wife. This lady, extraordinary in her own right as a physicist, is 102 years old ~ still with her sharp mind and delightful wit.

Later in the lunch time, they surprised Dean with the first annual Drucker Alumni Appreciation Award "In recognition of your significant engagement with the Drucker School and its alumni community"

The award has a quote from Peter Drucker:

Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work.

Dean and Scott and Judy had great intentions and they immediately went to work and had a terrific event which resulted in a core group of graduates willing to help their school move forward into an amazing future.

Congratulations, Dean! You deserve it!