Dear Friends,

I will be going in for heart surgery on October 29^th.  It’s a little scary, but I think I’m pretty tough (some of you know this first-hand!). I should be in the hospital for 5-6 days, and then recuperating at home for awhile.  This will obviously cut into my social life a bit, but I expect I will be my usual rambunctious self at some point in the near future.  For my flying buddies, don’t worry, others will cook and feed you.  For my uke buddies, don’t worry, I will be up and playing (and maybe even horrifying) people in the usual manner.  For my other music and drumming buddies, it may be just a little bit longer.  My guitars are a bit heavier than my ukes, and drums will be a bit hard to hit.  And for the rest of you in other clubs I belong to and rely  on me for food at events, well, you will just have to find another source or just go hungry!

In any event, it will be awhile, but I should be back in full regalia at sometime in the near future.

So the REAL reason for this missive is………..

Please understand that I will not be able to respond to emails for awhile.  I appreciate all the humor and info, but I will not be able to deal with all that I usually get over the course of a day (20-30 pcs!)  I know you want to brighten my day, and I really do like the stuff, but please curtail your enthusiasm for a few weeks.  I will keep you posted at to my progress.

Thanks, and wish me luck.

Ricc