September 9, 2008. Chevy Chase, Md. Friends.

Tonight we had dinner with Fred and Phyllis, at their home. Fred is a good cook, and loves to make pasta, so we always eat a pasta as a first course. No, actually, our first course is to nibble on vegetables and cheese. Tonight Fred cooked Greek Risotto, which was delicious. Main course was T bone steak and chick peas, followed by salad. Peach crisp with ice cream for dessert. We were full. The food is always delicious when we eat at their home. On the other hand, at our home we almost never serve appetizers, we often serve soup, the main course is usually meat with one vegetable, with a salad to follow. Fruit and cookies are served for dessert. Fred always knows what he served to us in past years too. All very impressive. I must remind him to keep track of the meals we serve them in our home, so we don't repeat ourselves. Certainly Ken and I will never remember.

They have just returned from Switzerland where they spent the summer in a small village up in the mountains, right at the end of a long valley. The town is charming, and when we visited them several years ago, we got to know the town and their friends. It is always interesting to catch up with everyone in their town. When you are away for ten week, many things happen. While they were there, after one hundred years without a rock slide, a house was demolished by a rock the size of a room that came rumbling down the mountain. Fortunately, no one was hurt, but it was very frightening for all in the town. The homes are designated as a zone of danger, either red, yellow or green zones. If your home was designated in the red zone, and the house is damaged in the rock slide, the home can not be re-built again, so obviously, the houses designated as red zone are much cheaper. The homes are still sold though, because remember, one hundred years ago the rock slide demolished homes, so the designations were put in place. The house that was demolished was just purchased one year ago, fortunately for an in-expensive price. The good Swiss have rules for everything, even the color of your house.

The really interesting question is why Fred loves Switzerland? There is so much about the country not to like, especially their attitude and treatment of money in the Second Wold War. I have read a lot about it, but Fred will not hear of it, and no argument makes sense to him. I think he likes the stability and the sameness in the life style of the Swiss. Of course, he loves their little town with the mountain air and the Alps in all direction, but it is really the life style that he favors. I suspect, is he were not married to an American, he would live there all year. It is all very interesting, the choices people make.