Happy New Year (our annual family newsletter)

What a great start to the new year of 2012. Wow, never imagined when I was amazed at Hal in '2001: A Space Odyssey', that I would be writing out a number bigger than 2001, and now it is 11 years past that. Am I that old?  (don't answer that Travis and Falon).

Anyway, back to the great start. Quiet house this morning. Only grandma was up when I went to make coffee at the crack of noon, and then took my laptop to the Florida Room (the pool patio that has a covered area and roll down sun blinds). When I powered up the portable computing device and the really portable computing device - aka Android phone - I was drawn to the incessant alert sounds on both that Facebook had a new comment or like or post. Obviously I would not have a complete educational day if I did not immediately check FB, G+, GMail, Outlook and read the blogs that I follow. Obviously!  :)

So, I set aside the reason for taking the laptop to the outside glass table - the making of our 2011 in review video - and took up the important stuff of checking all my friends' status updates, and witty photos, and links with useful information. After all it would make writing this blog much easier if I did some "research." Soon I found myself lost in FBLand. And I wasn't the only one. Friends who hardly ever have anything to say - thank goodness - were posting their New Year's greetings, and I soon found myself really enjoying the 2012 version of the annual Christmas/Holiday/Family newsletter. Strains of "We are family" were going through my head after I read post after post. So thoroughly enthralled with what I was seeing, I made my only New Year's Resolution - I need to do some of this same kind of sharing, and so I started posting, and before long I discovered I was hungry. Which should not have been a surprise, because it was now 2 p.m. on a warm 81 degree day in South Florida. Did I mention I was sitting next to my pool?

All seriousness aside, Cheryl and I have been blessed by all of you Facebook Friends, as well as our contacts on Google+, GMail, Live Messenger, WoW, Yahoo, Blogger, Words with Friends, MyFitnessPal, BodyBuilding, and did I mention Facebook? Okay, let's just lump them all together as the "Collective Facebook," or what the experts call social media.

If I left you out - well, get with it. I realize that I am probably the only one in the world that only uses the Collective Facebook to stay in touch with family and friends - yes, some of you can pretend to be my friends, just like I pretend to be yours - but, gee whiz. It's 2012. I don't care if you use pen and paper, but that is so 13 seconds ago that you probably won't read this and realize that I just dissed you.

Happy New Year from Doc and Cheryl - the modern day "keep in touch" happily married couple who enjoy each of you that read this, and we are glad that you "friended" us on whatever electronic media you use. For the rest, look up the word "computer" in the dictionary, and then buy one.