Glad to have some time off! I don’t have to be back at work at UNCG until January 2nd; am looking forward to some time off to recharge. Family holiday stuff early in the week, and then taking the scouts on a winter backpacking trip in the Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. We’ll hike the northern section of the park, from Thornton Gap to US522 near Front Royal. It’s about 30 miles; we’ll spend 3 nights on the trail, getting back on New Year’s Eve…

Look for some pictures in a couple of weeks!

Jeff, my youngest son (17 now) had a big week. On Saturday the 15th, he passed his karate Black Belt test, and then on Tuesday the 18th he received his Eagle Scout award. Jan and I haven’t seen him at karate much since he started driving himself, and we were pretty impressed with his skills. His Eagle award is the culmination of several years of hard work (but a lot of fun too!). Only about 2% of boys who start in scouting get their Eagle. Jason, my other son, received his Eagle award as well, back in 2002.