So Much Is Happening I Can't Decide On A Title

This has been a fairly busy time for me the past few weeks. Since getting home from Connecticut with Dot, we've gone through commencement exercises, moving everything out of my Dad's house which is now sold, and having other Malaysian students visiting who started their US education experience in Bloomington before heading off to other colleges. Two guests arrived last week. One of them goes home tomorrow, but, two more are coming tonight.

Needless to say, free time has been slim to none. I did make it alone to karaoke Saturday night over in Elletsville. It was great to get back out again. Tonight, we're going to one of our favorite steak houses for a dinner with a group of Malaysian students and one of the Indiana University staff members who was really instrumental in helping them through the first year.

Next week, Dot and I are going to take our second trip to Gatlinburg. The smokey mountain area is really beautiful. Last year, we stayed in a cabin up on a hillside. This year, we're going to be in a motel closer to the main downtown area and all the attractions. That will be nice because it's a very hard place to drive through and find easy parking. We'll be leaving Wednesday morning and coming home on Sunday.

Then, I'm going to be busy seeking ways to raise money. I'll be making my contacts with the local employment offices, but, I'm also going to start offering guitar lessons. I'm hoping that I get a decent number of students to sign up since it'll be summer time soon. I love the guitar and it'll be great to share my knowledge of the instrument with others. That's about it for now. I'll be back with more news later on in June.

Meeting Her Parents And Other News

As some of you who are also friends with Robin may know, my girlfriend was diagnosed with uterine cancer in April. She is totally cured of it now. I am so grateful to Yale University and Dr. Rutherford of the Yale OB/Gyn Oncology department for saving this beautiful lady. For those of you not in Robin's circle, here's a small recap.

On Good Friday, Dot left to go see a friend in Connecticut. She was checked into the hospital that evening after fainting. They let her out the next day and she was planning on coming home the day after Easter. That Monday, she started feeling dizzy again and she was taken back to the hospital. She postponed her trip home and they started searching for the cause. On Friday, she called me and gave me the news about the uterine cancer. They scheduled her for surgery on April 17. On April 15, I started driving to CT to be with her. We started driving home on Thursday, April 26. On Friday the 27th, this wonderful lady agreed to be my wife while we were driving through Pennsylvania. So, she is my fiance now. We got home Friday evening and went out to dinner with our friends here at Indiana U. Over the weekend, we started getting the apartment ready for company.

On Tuesday, her parents arrived in Indianapolis from Malaysia in order to attend her commencement ceremony. I was so glad to finally meet them. I hadn't talked to her Dad, but, her Mom and I had talked on the phone and communicated through IM's and webcams. Things have been going great with them. They are here until the 13th of May. I am so glad they will be here for her birthday (tomorrow) this year. It's going to make it so much more special.

That's all the news for now. I have other news to share from my professional side also, but, it will have to wait for another entry. Today is all about my wonderful fiance and her family who has embraced me so warmly. I'll talk to everyone more later.