We've started celebrating birthdays now. With one just past, and two more in our home, plus family and friends, we're going to be busy with cards and stuff between now and the end of the calendar year. It's going to be fun, that's for sure.

Speaking of fun, we've begun the final phase of preparation for the annual Teddy Bear Toss hockey game. If you're not familiar with this, it's possibly the best promotion I've ever seen. The fans bring new and almost new teddy bears and other stuffed animals to the game. When the home team scores their first goal, all of the critters get tossed onto the ice. Then, all the critters all get collected and donated to various charities in town. Here in Portland, they go to places like the kids hospitals',  the police and fire departments, and other places that help kids during the year. This year alone, my family and friends have collected about 800 critters. We start in the spring, hitting garage sales and such. When we tell people what we're doing, and why we're collecting them, they almost always give us a volume discount.