10-10-10, good buddy.

Among the many travesties our government has perpetrated upon its citizenry is its recommendation five years ago that CB users cease to utilize the official Ten Code, "in favor of regular language."

I can't help but wonder, "What do they think a code is?"

Alas, we bid farewell to "10-4" (affirmative), "10-30" (danger), "10-26" (estimated arrival time), and "10-20" (location, as in "What's your 20?")

Sadness.

But I would rather light a bonfire than curse the fog.

Today, on the unique and estimable date of 10-10-10, in honor of my dad, a classical scholar and lifetime Libra (staunch advocates of the number 10), on whose birthday this once-in-a-lifetime date falls, I hereby announce, in defiance of the administration, the creation of the "10-10-10 Code."

Here's what I have come up with so far:

10-10-10-1: "Huckleberries are ripe"



10-10-10-2: "Dogs on a hill"



10-10-10-3: "Flippers on Market Street"



10-10-10-4: "Spaghetti day"



10-10-10-Niner: "Free tater tots at Trader Joe's"



10-10-10-465: "Box of corn on the street"



10-10-10-6: "Owl cups"



10-10-10-50: "Sleepy doggy"



10-10-10-32: "Weekend in Napa"

(Use: "Honey, we're gonna need a 10-10-10-32 pretty soon or I'm gonna pop.")



And of course my favorite, and the most useful on this particular day...

10-10-10-72: "Happy Birthday!"



Please join me in celebrating the birthday of a great man, Bernard Francis Barcio, and also in expanding the very useful and intriguing 10-10-10 code!

With your assistance we will extrapolate the full potential of 10-10-10 in order to amuse ourselves, and yes, also to undermine the civil authority by communicating brief, coded outbursts of emotion and information over electronic devices.

10-10-10-72, Dad! See you soon!!!

Some Words About the Fallen

The earth shook Tuesday and the sun burned out. All the trees fell down and the ocean dried up. The sky went black and my heart broke.

Now I enter into the official record the name of a great spirit.

Pico Barcio.

Kitty Boo Boo, Tumbleweed, Boo Boo Kitty, Shabu-Shabu, Snookums, Boo Boo Snookums, Cuddly Wuddly Boo Boo Snookums, Sneaky-Sneak, Pico Boo Boo, Stinky-Binky, Princess, Sweet Baby.

Favorite Things: Stretchy-Stretch, Sunny Spot, Poofy-Poof, Comfy-Cozy Spot, Lap Time, Bweky-Bwekfast, Munchy-Crunchies, Crunchie-Munchies, Back-and-Forth, Up the Stairs, Outside, Bewy-Wub, Foot Rub, Sleepy Sleep.

Best Friends: Audrey, Elijah, Phillip.

Remember May fourth. Pick a purple flower on May 4th and give it to a true friend. May 4th is Pico Day. The last day I got to spend with my friend.

We took a walk together in the park with Audrey. We cried together and hugged each other. We slept on the floor side-by-side with Eli.

We looked out at the bay together and wondered how it was possible to hurt this much inside.

Now there is a sadness in me, and in our home.

I get up to give you your vitamins but you're not waiting for me anymore on your little pillow. I see you in my mind's eye looking up at me, purring. I see you at the door trying to get outside. I see you curled up in a ball in the sunny spot on the couch, on the bed, on the table. I see you looking out the screen door back on Prospect Street in Indianapolis. I see you sitting in the grass back on Gunnison Street in Chicago watching the bugs whizz by. I see you purring on the rug in Marcy Village. I see you flipping in the air trying to attack my hand back in Houston. What a Globetrotter you were, Pico. You always went along with me. You were a true friend.

Thank you for accompanying me in this life and on this journey. Thank you for coming out here with Audrey and Eli and me to California. Thank you for visiting the Salt Flats with us. Thank you for walking on the beach with us in Monterey. Thank you for your gentle, loving presence every day. Thank you. I love you.

I'm sorry we didn't have more time. We were not ready to say goodbye. But I know you were in pain. I see your face in the stars looking down upon me and smiling.

You were a good kitty.

Give a hug to Dweezil. Jump up on Lillian's lap. Rub up against Bob's leg. If you have a chance, look up Rudy and Patches and Heathcliff and Olive and Nemo. Tell them we all said hi.

And remember this Pico: I will never forget you, Princess. I am thankful for your companionship, and I am devastated by this loss.

Tell My Wife I Love Her Very Much

When there isn't as much time as I would like

for roses and champagne

I rely on poets to explain

to my lover that I adore her.

That I miss her.

That we work too much and kiss too little.

That I think about crawling around with her on the floor, rolling around with her in the sand, running around with her in the hills, spinning around with her in the waves, and it makes me smile to see her face in my mind, her eyes looking into mine.

I want to tell her I love her, but I've told her so many times. I want to make it different this time, in some small way.

Remember this song, baby? My sister sang it to us at our wedding reception in Key West.



Remember the song I sang to you? My mom, laughing and crying at the same time, told me not to quit my day job. (I don't think I even had a day job!)



That was a smart thing I did, asking you to spend your life with me.

Thank you for saying yes.

I love you!

La Vita Nevosa!

On the heels of yesterday's Snow/Journey post comes more pictures from more of my loved ones in various places tenaciously enduring the blizzard of 2010.

This is my cousin Kathy in Virginia:


That shmoo to Kathy's right is actually a Toyota Prius, believe it or not.


My sister Cyndi in Dallas who started yesterday in disbelief that a tiny dusting of white would keep Texans out of their trucks, off the road and away from work watched helplessly out her office window as the city received 9.8 inches of snow before day's end. Here's more on that story. And here's a photo from Cyndi from the front line of the biggest snowfall in Dallas history:


All I can say to you cold souls is you have my respect.

And better you than me.

We'll keep an eye on all of this as long as we can...


...and if you can dig an airplane out and get enough ice off the wings, come out for a visit. I'll get you the friends and family discount at Starwood!