For Denise

A few days ago I found out that my friend Denise, also a colleague of mine at Lumigent, has had a bone marrow transplant. She was diagnosed with MDS see http://www.mdstreatment.org/about-mds/), a pre-cancerous blood condition. She is being treated in Boston by Dana Farber. Since finding out about her situation, I have been closely following her progress on a special website that her daughters and sister have created.

Denise is an amazing woman, and she is bravely getting through a very tough treatment process. To bring awareness to the disease and as a special shout out to her, today's blog is for Denise and her family.

Many of you know that, for many reasons, Denise's story touches a place in my heart that makes me want everyone I know to root for her recovery.

Blayney, if you're reading this, I'll ask that you say a few extra prayers for my dear friend.

Margaritas in Dordrecht

This past weekend we were invited to a Margarita party at the home of my friend Rachel, her husband Barry - and their dog bordeau, Ruby. Dordrecht is a lovely town near Rotterdam, and also the home of my friend Elizabeth and her husband Wim. Dordrecht is also the oldest town in Holland (this is where you need to understand the difference between Holland and the Netherlands) and Rachel and Barry live in a gorgeous home right in the center, with the Rhine on one side, and a canal which serves as a marine to some pretty nice looking boats on the other. They've renovated this property (and it has since been listed as a historic building) and it is quite different than most of the traditional-style buildings in Wassenaar.


I didn't get any shots of the city (although we plan to return to explore a bit further so I'll get them then) as we had to get to our party, and the weather when we arrived was a bit blah. Imagine just a lovely European village with cobblestones and canals, and very well-maintained homes on either side of the canals, and along the Rhine.

We had a lovely afternoon of Margaritas, great food and great company.

It's Official

On Thursday of this week the incoming 2009-2010 Executive Board was installed in a formal ceremony, including the passing of the gavel from the outgoing President to the new. The event was hosted by Martha Gallagher, wife of the U.S. Charge d'Affairs at their beautiful home in The Hague.

This year's visit to Keukenhof

Wow - tough to keep up!

Many of you will remember that I visited Keukenhof twice last year. This year the in-laws were here during tulip season and a visit to Keukenhof was just a must. Although we were there just a few days later than last year, a number of the flowers had already peaked so some areas of tulips had already been headed, but it was still just gorgeous.

If you want more details, see last year's entry for more explanation about the place (or visit http://www.keukenhof.nl/). Enjoy!

The Royal Greenhouses in Belgium

Last month I took a day-trip with the AWC to Brussels. The first part of our day was a visit to the Royal Greenhouses which are open to the public for about three weeks each year when most of the flowers are in full bloom.

'nough said, really - enjoy!

Subsequent to this visit, we had a chance to spend a bit of time in Brussels proper at the Grand Place -- I'll be publishing pics/film about this and our recent visit back to Keukenhof with my in-laws soon!

A Senseless Tragedy in Holland

Queen's Day, normally a day of joy and celebration, was turned into a day of sorrow this year. During the celebration in Apeldoorn, where the royal family's procession took place on the day (this past Friday), a 38-year-old man drove his car through the crowd, killing six people and injuring at least a dozen others. He died of his injuries on Friday. According to several reports I have read, before he died he indicated that his actions were aimed at the royal family.


Speculation continued on Saturday about the man's motives for the attack. He had recently lost his job as a security guard and had given up his flat because he could no longer pay the rent. He had no criminal record, nor any history of mental illness.

Dad's 65th and Kidwelly Castle films

Here is the film showing some of the highlights of my father-in-law's 65th birthday...and another from the day we visited Kidwelly Castle. More pics from the Wales trip forthcoming, as well as some new pics of Keukenhof (in-laws are in the Netherlands this week!)

Cheers and enjoy.