Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Dear Friends and Family, December 2024
 
  Greetings from northwest Arkansas! Another year nearly done and gone. But it has been a pretty good year and we hope yours was even better. These letters are more and more difficult as we age. Year 2024 seems to have been pretty dull and uneventful, but on the other hand we didn’t spend much time watching soaps. There is nothing for us to complain about so that’s the good news. Hopefully your year was pleasant, full of wonderful times.

  Looking back the year passed quickly. We had our usual “big” trip as well as the annual family visit to England, but no hospital overnights nor doctors with scalpels. We did our usual bits for our community—Sylvia & Phantom do their time at the local hospice and weekly visits to the airport. Jerry tinkered and otherwise kept out of trouble. Weekly he keeps travelers at the airport informed and pointed in the right direction for flights and luggage. The “Burger” tradition continues.

  Speaking of time flying, it's hard to believe we're both coming up on our 80th birthdays—Jerry's in March and Sylvia's in August! Where does the time go? Sometimes, when we talk with young people, we're reminded of just how much the world has changed. There are so many things that are commonplace to us that they've never heard of, and vice versa! When telling my young airport boss of a highlight in Buenos Aires, the grave of a former Argentinian first lady, she had no idea of who Evita Peron was, had never heard of the musical “Don’t cry for me Argentina,” or even knew of Andrew Lloyd Webber and his music.

  We are both doing well healthwise, except for Sylvia’s back pain, which unfortunately seems to be a constant companion. Jerry is doing better than ever since his bypass. Phantom is the healthiest of the three of us, although with his monthly vet visits for allergies and all his pills & potions, he is certainly the most expensive to maintain.

  We had two major projects this year. The first was by design and the second by an act of nature. We had our kitchen completely remodeled to make it a little easier for the two of us work there at the same time. Cupboards are now white and mossy green and the floor gray. The other project was cleanup after a minor tornado swept though. Had to re-roof and replace gutters as well as all the trim on the west side of the house due to hail damage. Four of the neighbor’s massive oaks ended up in our yard. The fence had to be replaced and the lawn reseeded. And this fall we worried enough that we had three of our own trees removed. In the end, we were safe and had less damage than most of our neighbors. Fortunately, insurance covered most of the damage.

  Our trips...had two good ones. In May we went to Argentina, stopping at Rio de Janeiro, the Pantanal wetlands, and Iguazu Falls. The highlight of the trip was spotting several jaguars. We ended up with a few days in Buenos Aires. In September we returned to England visiting Sylvia’s son and brothers. Instead of taking son Paul to a country estate for an upscale weekend, we visited Krakow, Poland—maybe the cleanest city we’ve seen. We specifically went to Krakow so Sylvia could visit Birkenau and Auschwitz death camps..enlightening, but a sobering experience.

  And so, life unfolds in northwest Arkansas and at our humble abode. As always, our open door invitation remains: "If you find yourself in our neck of the woods, please stop in." And so, life unfolds in northwest Arkansas and at our humble abode. As always, our open door invitation remains: "If you find yourself in our neck of the woods, please stop in."

Again Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year – Keep Safe
Sylvia, Jerry and Phantom

12 Stonehenge Dr, Bentonville, Ar 72712
Cell: Jerry: 479-340-2741 // Cell: Syvia: 479-531-2997
E-mail: jerry@argets.com or sylvia@argets.com
website: https://argets.com/