Dear Friends:

    Buon Natale!

   My letter this year will be a bit shorter than usual.  Chris created a website describing our two week trip to Italy in September and  it is noted below.    We visited my two first cousins in Italy who both live east of Rome [perhaps 100 miles] in the region of Abruzze.

    One family is situated in a small mountain village called Capitignano, where my mother's parents lived.  The other town is called Giulianova, located on the Adriatic coast where my birthfather, Pasquale Bompadre lived.   I think you will enjoy the narrative and pictures of the trip.  It was really special and answered a lot of questions, especially how did this guy Green get the name of Bompadre!!  For those of you who don't have a computer and are unable to check out the website, I can only say the trip was great and allowed me to resolve some long standing mysteries about my Italian relatives.  Chris spoke some Italian and literally saved the visit.  The relatives loved him.
 
 

    Last December after Christmas,  I went to Southern California on a trip to San Diego with Tony D'Errico and son T.J., where we attended the Holiday Bowl, a San Diego Charger game, the Rose Bowl parade and finally the Rose Bowl game.   In early January went back to Ohio to visit Mom and sister Gloria. Back to Ohio in August for another visit.  Mother is 93 plus and is having severe mental problems.  From Ohio in January, went to Florida and Alabama visiting friends along the way. A second trip back to Ohio with friend Ned Cagle enabled Ned to view my home domain and to visit  the Midwest Rust Belt.  Recall that the previous year, we had visited Arizona on 2 separate trips.  We visited Dayton, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Detroit and Ann Arbor.  In June, Chris and I went back to the Washington D.C. area for the wedding of sister Gloria's youngest son, Tom. Then back to Ohio in August to visit mom and finally, Italy on September 20 until October 3.

     The kitchen project has encountered a delay but I hope to resolve several problems soon.  Actually the delay has been a blessing in disguise as it affords the real possibility for a real improvement over the original plan.  The kitchen appliances have been purchased and are on site.  The Tuscany stained glass door project is completed and has now become the rear door leading out to the deck.  The back yard is maturing and has a beautiful Angel's Trumpet bush blooming in December! There are also broccoli and cabbage plants that are bearing along with several herbs.
 
 

     Chris is still a tech support engineer for Tele Atlas - the company, like other high-tech firms, has had layoffs this year but is hopeful that an improving economy will lift their boat.  Lisa and Andre and the kids, Cole, 11 and Mady, 8, are doing well.  The family moved to a larger house this summer close by their previous home in nearby Benicia and the entire area around them has been razed as a small new housing development is being constructed a block away.   At this point, they have no yard or much of anything outside of their house!   However, by next year, the picture will be quite different with landscaping, sidewalks and roads and their home, once all of the planned remodeling is complete, should be a great house for a growing family.

     I am planning  to attend a  50th Air Force reunion of Ned Cagle's flight class in San Antonio in March.  Looking forward to visiting this historic area.  Several of the young flying officers who were in that class were assigned to Langley AFB, VA when I was stationed there in 1954 so I knew them from our being stationed together............50 years ago !!!
 

   SFO Symphony and Opera occupies a large amount of social time in the Fall along with attending performances with two different theater companies.  I do enjoy it although driving into SFO becomes more hectic with each visit.

    Hope you and yours are well.  The website access is below.  Hope you have a chance to view it.  Oh, by the way, we were about 40 ft. from the Pope in Vatican City.  Chris took several great pix.  The Pope looked terrible.   How he continues is beyond me.
 

The Italy Trip Website should be up just after Christmas and is at

http://www.netwiz.net/~rickg/ItalyWelcome1.html
 

      Rick
 
 

The National Security Advisor and her go-to man when she needs advice on Iraq!