We heard from my relatives in Thailand, and they're all fine over there. Nobody was near the hard-hit areas--most of my family is in Bangkok, which is on the other side of the long peninsula from Phuket and the other devastated areas of the country. I do have an uncle who has property in Phuket, but they were not vacationing there because of the holidays.

Another uncle of mine (by marriage) is from Sri Lanka and was over there when the tsunami hit. Again, he was on the other side of the island and was not in danger. It's going to be hard for a lot of people, whole countries even, in the coming months and years--please give to a relief fund if you can.

Happy New Year everyone.