This week's short list of items. Optimist and Mexico

Optimist, 19 November. Stan Lee, artist and crime fighter, comic book legend. A child's remission, a very good reason to be thankful. The terror of finding out your12-year old's sore knee is not a fracture -- it is a tumor. Wally-isms and other words of wisdom. Wally Richardson is 95 years old and every school day "his" young middle schoolers love his fist-bumps, witticisms, and quote him to anyone who will listen.

 Mexico. A week in a small, spotlessly maintained hotel in Puerto Vallarta was a nice way to prepare for the upcoming wintry ski season. Like many venues, the Flamingo hotel (on the Marina) can be enjoyed either as an all inclusive or simply a restful hotel. There are so many tasteful restaurants that it is a shame to be tied to the hotel's restaurant.
     We did spend one day with friends in Nuevo Vallarta at their very new, modern multi-story, all inclusive resort. As you look around the surrounding countryside, it is obvious that there is a very large disparity between these areas and the much humbler every-day life of the Mexicans in the area.

Thank you for reading.