No tests to report this month

Apparently Dr Bishop (my doctor at NIH) feels confident enough about the durability of my remission to hold off on any tests until I return to Bethesda the beginning of February for my 9 month follow-up. That's good news!
Outside of the Election and the economic meltdown, November was a pretty uneventful month. My locums assignment fell through, too late to find another one. I've learned to appreciate these unanticipated "vacations". My daily routine consists of meditating 30-45 minutes, working out, cooking, reading, doing odd jobs around the house,...and flying whenever the opportunity presents itself. I got in some instrument practice, three scenic flights with friends, and an overnight trip to Lewiston for a party at Harriet's. Read three good books: "Consumption", "Sole Survivor", and Tony Hillerman's "Talking God". Put the studded snow tires on the Honda, new brake pads on my road bike, and helped out at the local Ski Swap...
Right before Thanksgiving we had a fun visit with my college roommate Ric and his wife Donna who were en route from Seattle to Ric's brother in Whitefish, MT. For Thanksgiving, Sarah, Ethan and his Mom (Chris), drove over from Seattle. We then all climbed into the VW Bus, picked up Natty and a friend in Clark Fork and enjoyed the scenic 90 mile drive to "funky" Syme's Hot Springs in Hot Springs, MT. (Bram is surfing with friends in Baja, Mexico!) The food was decent; Mary Catherine appreciated not having to cook for once. I'm hoping those "medicinal" hot springs reinforced my remission.
We have a Comanche Christmas Party Fly-in in Portland this weekend. I had hoped to fly to it, but typical for this time of year, a snow storm is forecast for our return on Sunday, so we'll be driving.
I return to work at the hospital in Auburn, WA later this month. Starting in January it looks like I'll be working a couple of weeks each month in Great Falls, Montana. Should be interesting.
Happy Holidays!

Phil