It seemed like a good idea at the time—my decision to not send Christmas cards this year. After all, many of my friends had chosen not to do so—mostly to avoid a time-consuming task. I would, instead, telephone a Christmas message—more friendly, more meaningful, more personal, I thought. What a good idea!

Am I happy for having done so?

No!

First: Phone messages do not follow traveling friends about the country.

Second: Phone messages saying, “Call me so that I can say, ‘Merry Christmas,’ are a bit tedious.”

Third: Multiple busy signals are time consuming and frustrating.

In short, it was a bad idea. Next year I will resume the old discipline and send Christmas cards.

But this column is supposed to be about classmates, from whom I have not received volumes of news.

Jack and Jill Harned have shared the good news that treatment of his lung cancer has stopped its growth and that a newly approved drug offers great promise for the future. We look forward to seeing them in Vero Beach, Florida, next winter. Don’t forget the hat, Jack.

Alex Hoffman has written a moving memorial to his great friend, Bob McIlwain, who died in October. Please read it online at dartmouthalumnimagazine.com, checking under the “Class Notes & Obits” link.

—Nev Chamberlain, 1835 N. Garden Grove Circle, Vero Beach, FL 32962; (772) 569-2892; ranevero03 @gmail.com