I know a while back you asked for no snow today, I hope the flurries were not a hinderance.



I hope you sent Tobin a pm to make sure he knows that you are indeed a man of your word. (not that it was ever questioned.)

Safe travels, DFW.

I so seldom use DU PM, that it totally slipped my mind as an option. Thanks for the reminder!

I flew over to the States yesterday, so the weather played along, fortunately!

And, yes, I do try to keep my word. It's the most precious commodity anyone can have, and is irreparably damaged if broken.

I'm only here for 4 days this time, have to be back in Germany on Monday. Will be back Stateside in late December, though, and will be here for 3 weeks, although never in one place long enough to get comfortable.

Sorry I didn't get back to you sooner. I was in class last night when you posted here. It's a part of my bid to do what is the subject of my question for Obama.

I really owe you one for doing this for me. It was a very kind thing to do.

When you first posted your question, I printed it out, as I knew I'd be at the White House in December. I did remember to keep it with me when I was inside yesterday and chatting with Paulette Askinoff, and she took it after I put my email on it. I told her it was from someone else, and mentioned DU, which she had heard of, but didn't follow.

....of writing President Obama a letter myself, only because I've always thought he's got a helluva job to do and is doing the best he can (which is pretty good under the circs, imo). But I always come up against two things, one of which is he gets a bajillion letters a day, which a hundred clerks have to open and sort, and well I'd just get a preprinted form letter like the ones my Congresswoman sends me.

So I never have, but I hope he knows there are people out here who have his back -- and somehow with you going to the trouble of passing along a note from Tobin, I think the message is conveyed. So thanks from me too.

Merry Christmas

They said that they really did go through it all to the extent physically possible, that they really do pick out ten letters a day, and that Obama really does read all ten of them, and usually does personally respond to at least some of them.

which I love. I wish I could thank the envelope stuffers for those!

Good to remember there's a good guy circulating near the top!

I still live in Europe most of the time.

But I do keep my hand in. You can't have enough friends, as they say

You are a treasure for us, thanks for being here.

Especially if I stop here long enough to catch my breath.

As for a treasure, I appreciate the vote of confidence, but on DU I've been called everything from a "corporatist (whatever the hell that means)" to a member of the 1% (not sure what you have to do to join) to conservative (I am personally conservative as defined in the dictionary, but I'm not "A" conservative as defined in Foxese). You might run up against some serious disagreement on that score