Oh my, this the way to travel. I'm laying in bed, cool air is blowing through the open windows, and Mark is driving. We'll be in Fargo, North Dakota in a couple of hours, and we'll make a Walmart stop for supplies. Minor problems so far, boys had to tighten a loose radiator hose, the fridge wasn't kicking in, and the water pump isn't working. Hope it's just a fuse.

It’s 9 p.m. and I’m waiting for my sister to drive up my driveway, with my nephews and their boys. We’re going to try to get as much stuff out into the RV tonight, and then tomorrow morning the boys will put the toggle switch in for the radiator, and Christian will get Lukas’ computer set up, and I’ll finish getting last minute things packed.

I am so ready to go!! I will miss Christian, my home, my ferrets, my books and computer, gardens, and especially my torch.

We were dodging tornadoes again tonight. That’s why my sister is running so late. They had torrents of rain down there, and the streets were flooded. Amazing!

I had to post some home photos before we left, so here’s some of my favorites. The pet photos are from before we got the AC fixed. Poor babies were all so hot, except for Squeak, Lukas' chihuahua. She doesn't even have hair on her tummy, so she didn't mind the heat at all.

And here’s my RV, just about ready to go:

And my flower gardens. I really expanded them this year. I needed the extra color.

And raindrop photos:

Oh my, I love spring/early summer so much...

It’s been 5 months since David collapsed and died. I miss him terribly. I miss my friend, the man I fell in love with, I miss the sense of being a partner, of belonging. No matter how bad things got, I always knew that he would be there. And now he’s not.

David’s death was sudden and traumatic. I thought I was coping until the end of March, when Lukas had a horrible seizure. After that the depression came back full force plus some. I have never been so close to falling into the black hole. But with lots of prayers and the help of God and a good therapist, I’ve been able to push it back on a back burner again. One of the ways of finding joy in life again has been to follow Bible principles, which precludes dwelling on bad things (Philippians 4:8 is a good one to follow).

So I am posting the announcement of dropping the defamation lawsuit against Ullja Kuntze, and I hope that this is the last time you’ll see her name in my blog. She is a small, petty person who doesn’t deserve the time and energy so many of us have spent on her.

“The Plaintiffs in the defamation case Liz Putnam et al v. Ullja Kuntze have filed to withdraw their motion seeking relief against Ullja Kuntze for defamation (libel and slander per se) and fraud.

The Plaintiffs arrived at the decision to withdraw after Ullja Kuntze, with much delay, finally complied with court-ordered disclosure and provided documents confirming that she publishes the blog “handmadeartisanfraud.blogspot.com” and has made false tax evasion reports specifically naming the Plaintiffs and many others to the IRS and state revenue offices around the country.

During the legal proceedings, the Plaintiffs attempted settlement with Ullja Kuntze and requested that she remove the blog, but Ms. Kuntze refused. The high cost of pursuing the case to completion has been weighed against the satisfaction of her admission that she is the publisher of the blog and the person behind the spurious reports to local authorities against artisans around the country. The investment to date resulted in obtaining evidence of her acts, an ample and welcome reward.

However, to pursue the case to completion and obtain an injunction against Ullja Kuntze ordering her to take the blog offline would be very expensive, given her lack of cooperation to date. With proof of her wrongdoing, the Plaintiffs and others targeted by Ms. Kuntze have the needed evidence to protect their professional and personal reputations individually.

The Plaintiffs wish to thank everyone who contributed to the legal costs and to assure their supporters that with proof of Ullja Kuntze’s guilt, a win in civil court is not necessary. Thanks to the support of the artisan community, the evidence of Ms. Kuntze’s acts is now a matter of public record for all to see.
Case information is available online at the Harris County Clerk’s website. The case number is 200966253 and can also be located searching for Defendant name “Kuntze, Ullja”.

The artisan community spent $14,000 on this case. Her lawyers filed the vast majority of the documents with the court. You do the math. We simply couldn’t justify spending any more money, especially considering the way the economy is now. A lot of the lampworkers have been hit hard, with losing or their husbands losing their day jobs. There’s abundant proof of Ullja’s guilt and the type of person she is. Just Google her name, or go to ulljas.com.

The End!

Now to the joy. My RV sits out on my front lawn, my flower gardens are just beginning to burst with color (and I’m going to miss it!!!), it was a wonderfully cool night last night, and the birds are singing. Oh, and only 2 more days before I start the song ‘Me and You and a Dog Named Boo’ on my iPad and drive down the driveway in my RV, heading out west to Yellowstone and the mountains.