Charles Goodyear would be 201 years old today! "Natural or India rubber, as it was then known, was of limited usefulness to industry. Rubber products melted in hot weather, froze and cracked in cold, and adhered to virtually everything until the day in the mid-19th century when inventor Charles Goodyear accidentally dropped some rubber mixed with sulfur on a hot stove. Goodyear's discovery of what came to be known as vulcanization strengthened rubber so it could be applied to a vast variety of industrial uses, including, eventually, automobile tires." Happy birthday Charles, so much is riding on your tires!

In related news, John Westhoff, (who has not contributed a lick to the advancement of the american rubber industry), was born on Goodyear's birthday back in 1971 (that makes him thirty today).

The Truth Beyond Memory: Tolkien’s Conservatism. By John J. Miller, NR national political reporter, from the December 31, 2001, issue of National Review. "The proclamation of any novel as the greatest of the 20th century is as much a burden as an accolade; it sets up the book for all kinds of sniping, lots of it undeserved. Yet it is impossible to deny the extraordinary fondness millions of ordinary readers have shown for The Lord of the Rings over the last five decades, and very difficult to disagree with the simple judgment of W. H. Auden: 'If someone dislikes it, I shall never trust their literary judgment about anything again.'"

In the Shadow of Perfection: The new Lord of the Rings movie. By Jonah Goldberg, NRO editor. "Yes. Yes, it's cool. Yes, it's as loyal to the book as a movie can be. Yes, it's loyal to the Tolkien spirit. Yes, the Orcs are awesome. Yes, I will be seeing it again. And, yes, it's cool. Or did I say that already?"

This Christmas we were happy to be joined by the Kansas City Westhoffs.

Those of you that have not heard from us since our last Christmas letter (shame on us) will be pleased to hear that you have not missed much except that we have been bitten by mosquitoes many thousands of times in the past year.

Matt and Stephanie arrived today from Kansas City. We're looking forward to spending Christmas with them.

CNN.com - Globes The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring receives 4 Golden Globe Nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director.

I saw Fellowship of the Ring today with Rachel. Awesome. I would have done the casting/costuming of Elrond differently, and the Rivendell/Lothlorien sets were a little campy, but that's just being picky. It was terrific.

Color combinations and hexadecimal color-pickers for web design.This is an awesome tool for web-site design! (As you can see my color scheme needs some attention.)

For those of you that may not already have heard, we recently got word that I have been selected for Emergency Medicine Residency at Madigan Army Medical Center/University of Washington starting July 1, 2002. We'll be moving from Arkansas probably a month before then. Not sure where exactly we'll be living, but somewhere near Tacoma.

The film "The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring" opened in the UK this past weekend and the major British papers have exceedingly favorable reviews. Don't read them if you don't want to pre-judge the movie. BBC, Guardian, Telegraph, Official Site.

Prepared Statement: Senate Armed Services Committee "Military Commissions" Dod explains military tribunals.

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Christmas Devotional 2001 First Presidency Christmas Devotional Internet Broadcast Held: Sunday, 2 December 2001

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church recently launched www.mormon.org, a new Internet site for anyone interested in learning more about the Church and its beliefs. It is a wonderful place to send friends and family members who are looking for answers to their questions. Visitors can learn more about the Church, families, the nature of God, and the purpose of life. They can also view answers to frequently asked questions.