Well, I've been home for a week now. It was great to see my family and friends, but my emotions about being here are very mixed. The weather has been awesome--the temperatures have been perfect. Because of all the rain we had earlier this summer, everything is still green and lush--a feast for the eyes. People are still mowing their grass and as I drive around, the scent of new mown grass is wonderful. However, winter is on the way, and in January and February, I'll be thinking a lot about Hawaii.







The day after I returned home, Sunday, we had a church picnic at the Rulison home. There were a lot of people there, it was a beautiful day, and it was great to see everyone in a casual atmosphere. We played some great volleyball--unfortunately there are no photos of it because I was playing and no one else was photographing.









One consolation is that in just about 4 weeks, some friends and I will be leaving for a 10 day trip to western Ireland. We're very excited, this trip has been planned for almost a year, and it's finally just about time to go... There are some concerns about taking our equipment on the plane, but after the experience of traveling to Hawaii, I don't think there'll be much trouble going the other way, as long as we adhere to the regulations.