These are highlights from our year. I start with Christmas 2009, because it was so snowy! The winter of 2010 was way too snowy. The threat of bad weather and delays caused Dan to extend his Christmas stay in Kansas, almost to New Year’s as he waited for important papers in a very secret process. With the New Year the secret was out – The Burton Group was sold to The Gartner Group!
Dan has continued on as an employee with Gartner, specializing in information and cloud security. Gartner has their headquarters in Stamford Connecticut, and he’s sneaked in some visits with Scott in New York and the Holmes/Browns in New Jersey/Rhode Island after occasional trips to Stamford.
We had more excitement in early January as we headed to Rhode Island to help Aunt Leo celebrate her 90th birthday. She and Dan share a birthday so this has always been a special time. This year it was made even better by all the cousins and a huge slide show with many photos of Leo and Dan’s mother Olive in their youth.
After too much snow Dan and I sandwiched a spring trip to Red Rocks park in Las Vegas before he attended a Symantec conference. I’m hoping for another opportunity to go there, I’d really like to see the new Hoover Dam bypass bridge!
Summer was good to me – my employer of many years struck a deal so that I could continue on as a sub-contractor. I’m sure the followers of Natural Gas Supply and Transmission all breathed a sigh of relief that the Software Engineer was still there.
Besides Christmas I had several visits with my folks over the year. My Dad, who has been ailing with Alzheimer’s Disease, was always happy to have company. He was frail, but mobile and mostly able to get his TV channel tuned to Fox News.
My father took a turn for the worse in September, and was hospitalized and passed away on September 20. Leslie, Dan and I were with him and my mother during his final days. We know that he’s with us in many different ways and we’re grateful he’s not suffering anymore, but his absence is large. Thanks to my mother he was in his familiar home throughout his several years decline.
Looking out to 2011 our boys are moving along – Jack will be a third year law student; Scott will be graduating and looking for a nursing job, likely in New York. With luck we may get our leaking shower fixed.
We had good and bad events this year, and know that you and yours did as well. We’re grateful for your support – happiness and sympathy and hope we can be there for you over the coming year.
These are photos from this fall.
