Wednesday news and notes

Glider (left) and Olustee (right)

How the pups got their names: Glider is named for the 1-325th Glider Infantry Regiment formed in WWII. It later became the 1-325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, in which Mark served for more than three years.

Mark's first dog was a golden retriever named after the Battle of Shiloh. She died more than four years ago and when our border collie arrived on the scene, Jon named her after the Battle of Olustee, the largest Civil War conflict in Florida.

Civilian life: Classes started at the University of North Florida today for Summer Session B. While Mark was waiting for classes to begin, he shadowed me to a couple of meetings, including one with the UNF president and the other with the St. Johns River Alliance.

Ironies:One of the bloggers I follow is named Lolaberly. Her husband is in the 10th Mountain Division in Afghanistan. However, he is currently on R&R and they had their reunion this weekend...in all places...at the Jacksonville International Airport. She thought I was actually on her flight because my name was paged in the waiting area in DC. I am guessing it's the third Mark Middlebrook in Florida, who happens to be a banker in Tampa and occasionally comes to Jacksonville. Ironic.