Is 80 years young today! Happy Birthday, Mom. I wish I could be there with you to celebrate.

My mother, Hazel B Lael, is one perky lady. You’d never guess she’d hit the big 8-0 to meet her–she’s sharp and funny and always busy with her many projects. She has one of the best senses of humor I’ve ever run across, and still does the crossword puzzle every day–probably in the flowing turquoise ink she has always favored. She reads and reads and reads–I got my love of books and my ability with words from her. When I was young,

I’m in Billings, Montana, and got up EARLY this morning to appear on two different TV news shows. I’m enough of a ham that I really love appearing on TV–even when it’s still dark outside!

I only got a few hours of sleep last night, because I was so charged up after seeing Steve and Terry Miller, two very dear friends of mine. Steve is a sort of shirt-tail-relation-by-ex-marriage; he works for Montana Silversmiths as their marketing guy and is also a gifted Western sculptor–I’ve given away several of his pieces on the monthly website contest, and there will be