I know many of you check Danny's Diary on a regular basis for a new entry and if you've been trying to do that over the past several days, you kept finding the entry of May 23rd. Long story short, I have moved.

I moved to a new house a few days ago and since I do many of the Danny's Diary entries at home, I've been a little behind.

Actually, it's more accurate to say I've been greatly hindered.

I won't name names, but my family and I moved into a new home and we thought we were all set to go. The telephone and internet provider installed our service the day before we moved in and left us a nice note that said they had a dial tone at the box that is attached to the house. Thus, they had completed their job and to call them if there were any problems.

The next day came and when we started moving in, my wife plugged in one of our telephones and ... nothing. She then took the phone to each of the other six outlets. Dead as dead could be.

Remembering the note, I took the phone outside, plugged it into the outside box and there was a dial tone. Which meant only one thing: the problem was in the house's wiring.

I have come to the conclusion that there is no such thing as instant service.

Speed ahead to today. After a chain of cell phone calls that resulted in yet another chain of phone calls to the builder who forgot a little thing like the inside wiring, we finally have phone and internet service.

But you should have seen me yesterday. Remember the TV show "Green Acres" and how Oliver Douglas had to climb to the top of the telephone pole to make a call?

I hate climbing poles.

I didn't have to actually climb the pole, but I did stand outside and make a call or two. I will admit, however, it was unnerving to stand outside, next to the house, holding a laptop computer trying to check e-mail. It was unnerving because people kept walking by, pointing and staring. All I could do was wave at them.

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About two years ago, we received a letter from a subscriber who related one of those "do not try this at home" stories. It seems as though a reader's house was engulfed in flames and a lady ran back into the house to retrieve ... her issue of Singing News that had arrived earlier that day (no, I'm not making this up). A few days ago, we got an e-mail from a long-time subscriber who shared his appreciation for the quality of paper stock the magazine is printed on because he was able to salvage his issue after accidentally dropping his magazine in the, well, in the, well, you know (I'm not making this up, either). Now. I love Singing News and I'll be the first to admit it's been good to me and my family. But...I think I would have asked for a replacement copy.

Anyway, over the years, Jerry Kirksey and I have seen extreme cases of loyalty to Singing News. I cannot tell you the number of times someone has told me that when the latest shows up in their mailbox, he or she stops what they're doing and reads it from cover to cover. Here's what I want you to do...

If you have a funny story about yourself, relative or friend concerning Singing News, we want to hear about it. With the two examples above, you should know the kind of thing we're looking for. In a few weeks, I'll share them here on Danny's Diary - and we might even consider it for a future issue. The only thing that I ask, though, is that the stories be true. I understand that in most cases we'll never be able to verify the information, but I'm trusting YOU to tell us what actually happened.

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At the beginning of this entry, I mentioned that I had moved into a new house. I probably dislike moving more than anything except the possible exception of rattlesnake handling. It amazes me how much junk can a person can build up over time - and believe me, it built up in the Jones household.

But as I was going through some boxes earlier today, I found an envelope with a Stow, OH, address on it. A familar handwriting was in the corner of the mailing label. It was from George Younce.

As you'll recall, George had a tremendous love for cowboy boots. He probably kept boot makers in business for many years. No one is willing to take a guess at the number of pairs he owned during his lifetime.

George also had a memory like an elephant. And, if you ever made the mistake of letting him hear that you liked something, he never forgot it. Here's an example: Attorney Russ Farrar once told George that he liked the running shoes George had on at the time. A few days later, several pairs of running shoes showed up at Russ's office.

I made the mistake of telling George at a concert that I really liked the boots he had on that night. The next week, a boot catalog showed up at my office, with a note from George to order the ones I liked and send him the bill. He also wrote to make sure I order the ones with the biggest heels I could find because I needed all the help I could get.

I never did take George up on his offer because I didn't want to take advantage of our friendship. But I kept that catalog.

I'm glad I did. Because, you see, when making a move in life, it kinda helps to know familar ground is not that far away.