The museum job sounds so interesting, and it's surprising how many people in the world have heard of the history of the American West and of the Prairie lands, the world shrinks, doesn't it?

westgardener, I'm staying temporarily in what I refer to as the Santa Rosa Outback. Totally beyond the edge of the city limits in the mountains, so far back I have no phone reception or internet connectivity. It totally, totally sux. But when it gets to me I do one of two things: 1) Grab my labtop and my phone and lumber down the twisting, curving highway to my local Starbucks (a.k.a. My Office), or 2) I close my eyes and think back to the days when I could see Chicago's NBC Tower from my living room window. Ahhh civilization. You will be mine again someday soon. Or at least when my 3-month lease runs out. Back to George for a minute. I have to say that meeting him was truly the highlight of my entire journey. I am SO glad I took the extra time to stop at the museum. George, you are one in a million and that's a very good thing indeed! Karen

Cameroon. Ah yes, I've met some really kind people from there, more than once. So what do you do to pass the time in winter? Farming is over so no helping in the son, no museum. Oh, I know! You blow and freeze bubbles. What else? Here is a link that might be useful: Is this it George?

OK, everyone kind of ended up in different spots on this one, so we're going to go with for Bobbie, for Laura for Cynthia and for Nancy. The answer is the Pony Express ended the very next year in 1861. That is surprising, yes? The only thing more surprising, to me, at least, would have been if it had ended in the same year it began. That's the way I was thinking, anyway. The Pony Express people were hoping for a government contract to carry the mail, but that never happened, so the company closed up, having never made a dime in profit. This is in spite of the fact that the original rate for a 1/2 ounce piece of mail was $5! (That was going to be my followup question.) The completion of the telegraph certainly put more than one nail in the company's coffin. Thank you all for playing trivia with me, and I wish you all the best of weeks, or at least a better than average one. TM