A Brother Abroad

My husband is spending the week as an Ivy man, taking part in a program at Penn's Wharton School of Business where he attends seminars presented by various bigwigs in the world of business.

To kickoff the week's seminars, Sunday night hosted billionaire oil and gas executive (and one of America's best known entrpreneurs), T. Boone Pickens.

At 80 years old, my husband was struck by both his vitality and his very simplistic and intelligent sense of direction in taking the US off foreign oil dependency. His ideas are fresh, reasonable, and compelling, which is also why he's been called upon by anyone working toward alternative fuel sources, most notably President Obama.

But here's what my husband enjoyed the most.

Every year, this Wharton conference donates a portion of its tuition to a program known as "Wall Street Warriors", which helps military veterens carve out a career in finance after their service is done. This year marked the first time that two beneficiaries were in attendance of the conferece. One man, a Marine had lost both legs in service, while the other had put his financial business on hold after he was called back to duty in Iraq.

These men were recognized and applauded before T. Boone took the stage.

When the billionaire did appear, he again sought to recognize the two men for their service. He thanked them before saying:

"Before you guys leave tonight, get my info to contact me in Texas. I'm in a position financially to help you with your business."

Not a bad client to have.....


This is Day 55.

To learn more about the "Pickens Plan", a real plan for America's energy crisis, click HERE.

Daylight Savings

As much as I bemoan the bi-annual disruption of my children's schedule, Daylight Savings also presents a new opportunity to reset their clocks so that maybe, just maybe, I can have those kids that sleep until 8.

Never happens.

We are a six o'clock, "hello world!", family.

I Love Warm Weather

Every year I am surprised by the effect those first beautiful days of the year have on me. The sudden burst of energy, the unexpected clarity, and the sudden motivation to clean, play outside, and (dare I say it?) exercise.

On Saturday, as the thermometer crept toward a balmy 70 degrees, the Maid and her family headed to the zoo where our year membership gives us an all day pass, free parking, and access to normally pay per use activities (shout out to Lawyer Beth for the referral). The highlights included O's declaring the hippo's "tush to be too big" and Joseph roaring at the lions, as well as other unsuspected toddlers near by.

The rest of the weekend involved grilling, putting the swings back on the now weathered swing set, and realizing how sedentary and dreary our days have been.

I usually believe March is the cruelest month, but with weather like this, it may be okay.

Having said that, I should probably plan for the next Nor'easter soon.

Guess Who?

Last week's Guess Who? proved to be the first that no one was able to identify, which completely shocked me since others (e.g. the girlfriend from Back to the Future and Jenny from Kate and Allie) were quickly picked out.

Anyway, the above little lady is none other than Alisan Porter, who's most known for her role in the 1991 James Belushi movie, Curly Sue. Alisan, now 28!, is a busy Broadway musical actor, starring in productions such as the A Chorus Line revival and Footloose.

She is also making me feel supremely old.

Quote of the Day

"When he came up two days short, he didn't get a dog. That was harsh. It was wise, but harsh."

-Chris Affleck, on how she dealt with her son Ben Affleck wanting a dog as a boy. (She made him walk an imaginary dog for seven days.)

Picture of the Day

If you were among the millions of people who

basked in this weekend's fabulous weather,

please direct your thank you letters to Zachary,

who effectively showed Mother Nature what to do with all her snow.

Please send your favorite kid pictures to: dalessandrochristine@gmail.com

A Brother Abroad

PBS ran a series about "War Letters" and the American experience through war. The series features actually letters, galleries, and the follow-up with the letters' original authors.

It is powerful, compelling, and heart-wrenching. A history not left to lofty historians, but to the people who lived it, saw it, and even died amid it. Click HERE to view the site.

And now, an excerpt:

"Dear Sir,

For twenty-two years I have carried your picture in my wallet. I was only eighteen years old that day that we faced one another on that trail in Chu Lai, Vietnam. Why you did not take my life I'll never know...Forgive me for taking your life, I was reacting just the way I was trained..."

Resolution Luttrell wrote this letter and left it at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. along with the photograph he'd kept. In March 2000, Luttrell travelled to Vietnam to meet with the daughter of the man he met on the trail in Chu Lai.

This is Day 54.