I see that Red's artwork found a prominent place in the "Deep" ... that was a great con. How is your WWII friend doing these days ?
As a matter of fact Mr. Bird and his wife joined my wife and I (and one other couple) for dinner just after Christmas.
Great evening. He's doing really really well and was really happy to *see* Red's drawing up there. We had him and his wife to the house before dinner so they could see all the changes we made to their former house.
I never ended up changing the name of the house. I had put up two knights helmets with lights inside them in anticipation of that, but they really didn't suit the house and when they rusted, which I knew they would, the helmets made a mess of the pillars. I got rid of 'em and just put some traditional lights up instead.
We kept the old name "La Pajarera" which mean avairy in Spanish (a reference to Mr. Bird obviously) and when people ask the significance of the name I have a few great stories to tell.
Thanks for asking about him though...I will tell him you did so the next time I see him.