Letters and emails and faxes, oh my! Behind the "Letters to the President"

Those who love letters and communication might be as intrigued as I was by this cool video from the White House about the 10 letters President Obama reads from the public every day to stay in touch with America's issues and concerns.

According to the site: "Letters to the President" is an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the process of how those ten letters make it to the President's desk from among the tens of thousands of letters, faxes, and e-mails that flood the White House each day.

The video has several neat factoids, such as, each week, the president receives about:

• 65,000 letters
• 100,000 emails
• 1,000 faxes
• and 2,500-3,500 calls per day

Video runs 5:54 - http://www.whitehouse.gov/video/Inside-the-White-House-Letters-to-the-President/

Major project complete, rest ahead

Just over 48 hours after it was proposed, a big
media event I was tasked with organizing has taken place.

I worked the phonea and wrote many, many documents and e-mails to coordinate w/a cast of thousands behind the scenes to make it happen: reps from our county including two councilmembers, three cities, one govt. entity, attorneys and others.

In the end, the rain held off and it was a success! Lots of TV and radio coverage, great video and audio (why yes, driver of the loud, beeping backhoe/sandbag mover, it would be nice if you paused for six minutes while they speak. Thanks much!).
I'll be celebrating with a large, hot beverage as I head home to focus solely on my daughter instead of dividing my attention between her and my Blackberry for the first night this week. I know: the glamour overwhelms, doesn't it? ;-)
Sent from my Nokia phone

Heaven: thy name is quiche

Disappointed by yet another over-priced, under-flavored, flaccid slice of quiche at a coffee shop, I set out tonight to make my own low-cost, tasty version for breakfast tomorrow.

This one has sauteed mushrooms, onions and shredded zucchini layered with diced cooked breakfast sausage, sliced grape tomatoes and grated gruyere cheese. And a partridge in a pear tree. Ha! Kidding on that last part.

It's pretty hearty but I need protein, iron and calcium these days. And instead of half and half and five eggs as called for in the recipe I used as a basis for it, I used whole milk and three eggs, so it's not a total heart bomb, but I'll see how it turns out when I cut a slice in the morning.

Update: it was all meaty, cheesy, protein- and veggie-filled perfection and just what I was hoping for.

Park playtime

We're enjoying the mild fall weather at a local park that's been taken over by a local bilingual preschool class. Ava is fascinated by all the kids but doesn't want to get too close. Kinda like seeing wildebeest on safari.

Post-birthday superstar!

This little girl is a hoot! Here she is modeling some of her birthday finery. The glasses are her own special addition. Gift she squealed the loudest about? The stuffed pink pony. What occupied her attention the longest after the gifts were unwrapped? The tangle of colorful ribbons. Of course.