woohoo! success!

today, i got some background on a fifth branch of the family. djoke got on the phone with one of the dutch speaking relatives and spent some time talking with her. djoke knows what sorts of things i am trying to find out about, because of the hours she has spent with me talking about her memories and also because she has been with me during my talks with other relatives. she understands what sort of book i am writing, and what sort of information i am including. so, she took it upon herself to do this for me.

the stuff i have for this fifth branch is limited and sketchy, but it is something and it brought a new angle into the story .... highlighting the drastic difference between the characters of two sisters. that is a nice angle, and will lend itself perfectly to the character of the book.

now, djoke and i are off to the downtown area. we will pick up the disc i am having made with scans of old family photos. then, we will go to a second/hand store to hopefully find a cheap suitcase for me. i am buying dozens of dutch kitchen towels for gifts. all my friends and family love the ones i have given them in the past, so i want to bring home a big load of them. i will give some as gifts to my customers, because i expect the ladies will like them. the rest will be for friends and family, and a few for myself. i also want to bring lots of wonderful, young gouda cheese. i need to check with us customs to make sure i will be allowed to bring this home. ``crossing my fingers`` on that one!

`Groetjes!`` that means ``greetings`` in dutch, but here, they use it when saying goodbye. dont ask me why!