Foreign Relations and Construction Estimates

I feel so relieved today and at least half of it is because Euna Lee and Laura Ling are being freed from North Korea. I have thought of them each and every day since they were captured by the North Koreans and I've been so worried that there was a possibility of a tragic outcome. I don't believe for a second that these women crossed the border on purpose and I think our apologies were made to appease their very psycho leader, Kim. Still, I understand why the apology was made. We had no choice.

Obviously, our President gave the go ahead to Bill Clinton to get involved and this has been in the works for a long time. He is a great diplomat and I don't believe there's a living person more qualified and charismatic than Bill when it comes to negotiations and statesmanship. I apologize to all of the Bush fans out there, but I think when it came to foreign relations he was a disaster. He just didn't have that skill set. I think Laura had it, but he did not, and a lot of our foreign relationships suffered as a result. It's one thing to snap your teammates on the ass with a towel. That's what I think of when I think of Bush reaching out and building relationships. It doesn't work like that in foreign cultures.

I have spent some time thinking about the fear and despair Laura and Euna must have been feeling. North Korea has always been so unpredictable - I mean what country sets off nuclear weapons and then laughs in our face. It will be very interesting to see the news coverage of Bill and these two brave women coming home.

On another positive note, We got the estimate for the building of our house today and it was and is a great estimate. It includes nearly everything (except the pizza oven) and we are thrilled. Our contractor is a good communicator and has tons of experience. His three daughters all work in his office and we like them. It's like night and day compared to our first contractor. We should break ground this month. It is a huge relief. Oh - and if anyone reading this has pizza oven advice or experience please let me know. I know it can be built and I want it in the kitchen!