Christmas 2001 Special Edition

ALSO THIS ISSUE:

*THANKSGIVING IN MASSACHUSETTS (Terry Howlett)

*GOBBLE DAY HAPPENINGS (Ian Murdock)

*THANKSGIVING IN CALIFORNIA (Darrel Murdock)

*MEETING THE FAMILY (Lori Turner)

*LET'S DO IT AGAIN (Becky Murdock)

*THANKSGIVING IN MISSOURI (Roy Murdock)

*HOW I CAME IN LOVE WITH STORIES (Meredith Murdock)

*THANKSGIVING IN MARYLAND (Nancy Murdock)

*VETERAN"S DAY (Doug Howlett)

*THANKSGIVING PLANS (Claudia Lindsey)

*THANKSGIVING THOUGHTS (Maria Leary)

*AROUND THE NET (Bob Murdock)

~PLUS a FRIENDS page of E-MAILS and WEBSITES~

AND an EVENTS page of BIRTHDAYS and ANNIVERSARIES

Welcome to the online version of the Murdock Muse
for Christmas, 2001 and January, 2002

The Muse editors are Bob and Nancy Murdock of Baltimore, MD.

If you have any questions, or have some news for the Muse,
contact us at

murmuse@erols.com.

THANKSGIVING IN MASSACHUSETTS
by Terry Howlett

Steve and I celebrated with most of our children and grandchildren. Tim and Missi were the only two missing. We had a traditional turkey dinner with all the fixins. (stuffing, mashed turnip, mashed potatoes, boiled onions, mashed butternut squash, cranberry sauce.) Desserts included homemade pies, cheesecake, lemon lush, and a great ice cream cake that Michelle made, and assorted candies etc. We ate ourselves into a coma. Isn't thanksgiving wonderful! We also are truly grateful for our large and wonderful family.

GOBBLE DAY HAPPENINGS
by Ian Murdock

Thanksgiving found our house at the confluence of several Muser-types, including Murdocks Darrel (who just flew in from Minnesnowta); Sean, my previously prodigal progeny, recently reconnecting regularly; Meredith, my favorite younger sibling; and former and honorary Murdocks, respectively, my sister Valerie (Davidson) and her beaufriend Larry Smith. Darrel's new ladylove named Lynxette duMiao was our guest as well. Just kidding -- her name's Lori Turner!

So with the four of us (Ian, Becky, Natalie and Tim) we had ten people huddled around the turkey and ham (both of which Darrel cooked and carved while I napped -- thanks, Bro!). Luckily, with the pies and whatnot (we had a ten-pound whatnot) it seemed that everyone got a loaf and a fish.

Earlier in the day, we received unexpected e-greetings from my other brother Roy. This was very special, because it symbolically brought all five of us siblings together again after a long dry spell that I had feared was permanent.

The day went better than I had dared hope, and I truly found much to be thankful for. (Wait a minute, did we forget to say grace? Oops...)

The next day, we all loaded into two cars and journeyed to a foreign land to revel in an exotic marketplace at all the strange and wondrous offerings. It had been a couple of years since I had been to Tijuana, but I was relieved to find it much the same, with the exception of the apparent theft and reassembly in the town square of the St. Louis Arch. There was one other difference: It took two hours to get back across the border while we were scrutinized for signs of Arabness by the Border Patrol. We almost lost poor Tim, who at barely 14 is not used to the need to carry ID at all times (but especially there).

When Darrel, who stayed in town for a fantabulicious week, became on Monday morning the last guest to escape, the empty nest syndrome was palpable. I know, because I palped it personally. I'm already looking forward to the next gathering of the clans in my region -- hope all you Musers out there can make it!

THANKSGIVING IN CALIFORNIA
by Darrel Murdock

It had been more than a quarter century since four of the Robert and Nancy Murdock family's five siblings had shared a Thanksgiving meal together. So it was a special treat for me already, yet there was more to it.

I also had the honor of preparing the turkey and ham, which was enjoyable. I played Risk with brother Ian and nephews Sean and Tim. I met sister Val's long-time friend Larry, went to Tijuana, Mexico and spent a lot of time with my girlfriend Lori.

MEETING THE FAMILY
by Lori Turner

Darrel and I have a lot in common and do get along great. I will be going to Minnesota from 12/27 to 1/3, this way I can be there for his birthday and also New Years. Then he will be coming to Idaho in Feb for my birthday on 2/14. :) I am starting a scrap book as I love the scrapbooking stuff for Darrel and me as we begin - it will be lots of fun.

I also enjoyed meeting your daughters and Ian; they are very nice and we all laughed and had a great time.

LET'S DO IT AGAIN!
by Becky Murdock

We had both ham and turkey with all the fixins, it was yummy!!!! We agreed to all get together again real soon, because it was such a fun family time.

As for Darrel and Lori, I just love to play Cupid!!!!

THANKSGIVING IN MISSOURI
by Roy Murdock

We had Butterball turkey and dressing, mashed potatoes, green bean salad, rice, broccoli and cheese casserole, rolls, cranberry sauce, apple pie with vanilla ice cream and pumpkin pie with whipped cream. Yummmm. We are just stuffed!!!

HOW I CAME IN LOVE WITH STORIES
by Meredith Murdock

Writing is beginning to mean a lot to me. I checked out "Chicken Soup for the Writer's Soul" from the library and ended up crying through some of the stories.

Some of my earliest memories are sitting in the living room and listening to Mom read "Winnie-the-Pooh" and begging for "Just one more before bed-time" (like Roo) and begging Slim for one more bed-time story about his childhood or the navy. It wasn't long before I fell in love with "Ramona the Pest" and "Pippie Longstocking" and became a voracious reader. Remember "Meredith finished another book"? How could someone who loves stories so much not want to write them? It was inevitable!

THANKSGIVING IN MARYLAND
by Nancy Murdock

Here in sunny, warm Baltimore, we cooked for several hours yesterday and today - a traditional T.D. meal without the meat. The bean loaf turned out very well, as did the mushroom and onion gravy, creamed onions, baked yams, mashed potatoes, mashed rutabaga, mashed butternut squash (no, we still have teeth, but we were in the mood for old fashioned comfort food), cranberry orange relish, cloverleaf rolls (from scratch), apple pie (ditto), and cherry raisin pie (using sour cherries from a quilting friend's tree).

Lynda Brugge came to celebrate with us, bringing pumpkin pecan bread and cranberry orange nut bread. We had a really good time, and another friend stopped in to drop off a quilt block for a group project, and three pieces of crustless pumpkin pie from still another friend.

VETERAN"S DAY
by Doug Howlett

Heading for bed after a day of celebrating Carol's 60th birthday, I saw this on our bureau that she had cut from our paper. Reminded me that this is a day of remembering those who die for us so we can do things like celebrate our birthdays.

Veterans Day:

It is the soldier, not the reporter
Who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the soldier, not the poet,
Who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the soldier, not the campus organizer,
Who has given us the freedom to demonstrate.

It is the soldier who salutes the flag.
Who serves beneath the flag, and whose coffin is draped by the flag.
Who allows the protester to burn the flag.

By Father Denis Edward O'Brian USMC

Happy Birthday, Carol, and Thanks to all who serve.

THANKSGIVING PLANS
by Claudia Lindsey

Dennis & I will be going to his sister's house again this year. It is a 1 1/2 drive one way but worth it to see her. There will be only 7 of us this year as Marti has to work. She didn't have to at first but one of her co-workers wanted to spend the day with her husband and kids so Marti offered to work in her place. We are proud of her for doing this as the lady doesn't get to spend much time with her family as she works 2 jobs. Marti will not have to spend Thanksgiving evening alone, as her girlfriend's family has invited her to evening dinner at their house. Hopefully Marti will be able to spend Christmas with us, since she got promoted and has weekends and holidays off now.

It will be us, Dennis's sister, her son and his wife and their 2 kids, Nathan, 10 and Stephanie, 7. They are great kids and we love being around them. It sure gets quiet though when they leave. We will probably spend the night at his sister's house, go do a little shopping with her on Friday and then head for Disneyland, where we will meet some friends for the rest of the day. After the park closes or we get tired we will head for home, which is only a 30 minute drive, and hit the hay.

THANKSGIVING THOUGHTS
by Maria Leary

It's too bad we can't comprehend our future like it is really going to be. This life is a vapor of time compared to eternity. Just think, never ending excitement, love, fulfillment, adventure & perfect relationships all in the awesome presence of the creator of the universe. I think of it as going to Disney World every day with no lines, only a thousand times better.

Anyway, I want to wish you a Happy and safe Thanksgiving. I know we will always be a part of each other in God's family.

AROUND THE NET
by Bob Murdock

Cathy Howlett, Chichester, NH - 27 Oct 2001
Guys - A hearty and enthusiastic congratulations to all of you! This first on-line issue of The Muse is terrific. The articles are as interesting as ever and the links worked well; I can't wait for the other pages to be up and running. Your creation is tops!

Barb DiStefano, Liverpool, NY - 27 Oct 2001
I LOVE the Muse Web Site and the links. Good job!! Now I will put that on my long list of things to do when I retire; "that" being learning how to create a Web site.

Wendy Morgan-Littlefield, Ithaca, NY - 28 Oct 2001
I'd love to re-send pictures in jpg format if I knew what that was and how to do it! As soon as I figure it out I will send you some. It may take months or even years tho! I am excited to read the muse on-line! Thank you!

Polly Soberg, Webster, NH - 28 Oct 2001
Terrific job... This is really enjoyable as I get to see it first. Carl doesn't open e-mail as often as I do....Thank you.

Lori Howlett, Norwood, MA - 28 Oct 2001
I just checked out the new online Muse and it looks wonderful!!! You and your son have put a lot of time and effort into it and it shows. I look forward to updates.
I hope to have pictures done of all the kids before Christmas (which in my world usually translates to around Easter, but it's good to have goals) and once I do, I will be sure to send one to you for hopeful posting on the site.

Khendra Murdock, Joplin, MO - 9 Nov 2001
I've had a great day. I got a personalized birthday cake with 17 candles on it.
You can use my page logo for the Muse web site links section.
And here's the code for thumbnail pictures (an example):
[Ed. note - Khendra supplied an HTML example, but it's staying in her Email message! --RDM]
The height and width of the picture can be made any number you want it to be. 100 and 75 are what I used for my Lamar pictures.

~The Lynx~, St. Paul, MN - 31 Oct. 2001
My garden is still kept up daily, the dying back removed and the mums, dianthus, snapdragons and yes - pansies - watered and deadheaded. These plants can take temps below 20, and the pansies will spring back up in April. These are the Mighty Fall 4 in Zone 3. I make room for these babies, even tho they do nothing for summer. I want color March thru November!
My shrubline is beautiful now, too. The spirea turned ruby, and the barberry rivals burning bush in intensity.

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