Good things come in big packages.

Today I came home to see these packages on my kitchen floor: Those are mighty big, I think, and have an awful lot of bubble wrap in them. What could possibly have been inside? The new scratching posts that we ordered for the cats? Why no! Something so much more fun! A new guitar! In pieces!

Doug bought someone's stripped 1965 something or other (I should know this... it's either a Strat or a Tele... or no, maybe this is that Jaguar that he's been talking about. I'm going to go with that one. The Jag.) and it came in the mail today. Doug's as happy as a clam. The guitar is not broken, so don't cry (you'll notice that Doug's smiling in that photo of him and the bottom half of the guitar, and if it were broken he would not be smiling); it was shipped without the neck attached so that it wouldn't break or be damaged in the mail. Now Doug has to put it back together, or have someone else do it, and then we can hear why this thing is so special. I can't wait, because Doug's been on the prowl for this kind of guitar for a while. There was this red one that he wanted, but he didn't like red, and even though it's this coveted type of guitar, if it's red then he's not going to use it and it's going to be a waste of money. Trust me, I know, I do that all the time with shoes and things. So now he has this stripped one, which is better than red. I bet it even sounds better than a red one. I'm hoping I will be blown away by the sounds Doug can get out of it (but what I'm really hoping is that I can tell the difference between this guitar and his many others when he plays it. That's the real test for me, and I hope I pass.), and I know Doug is hoping that he's blown away, too.

Since this post is mainly about Doug, let's share another of Doug's accomplishments: At Brimfield this past July, Doug bought a whole bunch of postcards with forest creatures on them. The idea was to frame them. Doug chose to put them into this floating frame, and we recently put it on the wall in our art room. I think it looks wonderful, don't you? Doug has a flare for design, it seems. He'd be great at decorating a log cabin.

And, since I'm at two things already I may as well go for a third to round out my "three things" principle. The third will be New Orleans. Doug and I are going back to New Orleans after Thanksgiving. Just for a few days, but still. A few days of being able to explore the city together (you'll remember that last time we went I was there for a conference and Doug flew in on a red-eye and flew out within hours, more or less) will be a treat. These will also be a treat... authentic po'boys from places like Central Grocery. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. Can't wait!