Valley of the Gods                                                       click to enlarge

Alright, the holiday is over, and if you’re like all of us here at the Institute your place was filled to the brim with family and friends, some of which came from great distances to partake of our steam-boiled, flash-fried, double-cooked Emu with Cattleya orchid dressing, and Polynesian watercress soup garnished with Sand Crab eye stalks, there was cream of Gecko Étouffée and blackened leg of lion, (we occasionally help out some our neighboring zoos when their residents check out) and pigeon egg ice cream, and more and more and more, the menu was endless but I’m sure many of you out there had the same thing so I won’t bore you with the repetition.

As our guests left, some of which we transported directly to their neighborhood weight loss clinic, we waved a fond farewell but wheezed a small sigh of relief, because now the holiday was over and we could get back to work again, solving some of the worlds most critical problems. The Institute rarely shuts down for even a moment but family takes precedence and they all enjoy plucking the Emu so much we have to relent. We did keep the phone banks open though, just in case, something dire happened and we were needed.

Our one regret was we couldn’t have the staff manning the Institute’s satellite operation in the great white North here to join in the festivities. We want to give a heavy gravy laden, but crisp salute to our Assistant Director in charge of snowflake manipulation, his able and superior co-worker in charge of all operations and I mean all of them, and the young but beautiful intern who is on special assignment until this spring a heart-felt “Sorry you couldn’t make it, the Emu was fantastic” shout out, but remember, there’s always next year.

Our visiting family members that have begun the arduous trek of hitchhiking back home, laden with leftovers and good wishes, called from Oklahoma to say it was cold but they were getting rides fairly easily and should be back on the East coast by March. We loved seeing them and we look forward to being at their place for the next holiday. They’ve told us that they have planned a meal we’ll never forget to pay us back, I mean, return the favor next year. We can’t wait.

But when all the frivolity and jocularity and vomiting are over a person needs some time to decompress, to regain their equilibrium and find their center again. That’s why we have chosen “A Quiet Place” for your viewing pleasure this morning. Go there, at least in your mind, and sit at the base of the monolith and contemplate the rest of your life, or at least what you’re going to do for the rest of the day, and be at peace. We don’t have another major holiday coming up for 22 days, a lifetime away.