Welcome to this week's edition of the POB eNews ...

Every year when my birthday rolls around, my husband asks me what I want. Every year, my answer is the same: Write me a poem. While this scenario has happened way too many times (we've known each other since I was 15), I'm still waiting for that darn thing to materialize. He is an artistic fellow, but--admittedly--writing is not the medium he chooses for expression.  

During my somewhat shorter time with POB, I've grown to recognize and appreciate the creativity and artistic talent of land surveyors and mappers. And I am proud that POB dedicates a page of our magazine to feature our readers' talent whether drawing, painting, photography, or, as it is in the April issue, poetry, in recognition of National Poetry Month (reprinted below). 

In addition to POB's featured poet, Robert A. Dyer, a quick search of the Internet will produce a treasure trove of land surveyor poets, including Englishman Richard Lower (1782-1865), Scottish poet John Morrison (1782-1853), and American Frank Stanford (1948-1978). Even NOAA has a page on its Web site that asks, "What do poetry, engineers, and scientists have in common? The NOAA Poetry Corner , home of weather poems, survey poems, and ocean poems written by the men and women who served in NOAA or its ancestor agencies."  

No matter what your medium, I invite you to submit your works of surveying-related art so we can feature it on our Fun & Games page in future issues.

Speaking of the future, when my birthday rolls around later this year, the birthday-present scenario will repeat for the umpteenth time. Hey, one can always hope-or, as poet Alexander Pope (1688-1744) so eloquently put it, "Hope springs eternal."

Wendy Lyons
eNews editor

He keeps us on line, on track to the inch
His work's no big deal; to him it's a cinch
A writer of fact, a cartographic purveyor
A man for the ages known as the surveyor

©rad120401. Used with permission.

The 2008 Surveying & Mapping Industry Software and Equipment CLEAReports indicate fewer plans to purchase CAD and data collector software, data collector controllers, tripods, and robotic total stations in 2009.

Learn more about future purchase intentions, highly desired brands, and software/equipment trends by contacting Sima Patel at patels@clearseasresearch.com or 248.786.1626.

What is the best way to make continuing education more effective?

• Increase the number of CE hours required for licensure.
• Create more national CE courses and require state boards to accept national credits.
• Develop more independent resources that offer CE courses. 
• Create more online and distance learning opportunities.
• Reduce state board restrictions and allow more personal responsibility in CE course selection. 

Take a moment to vote at www.pobonline.com.  

SALE!  

Construction Surveying and Layout, 3rd Ed., by Wesley Crawford $75.00, now $67.50 (with coupon code)  

Construction Surveying and Layout is a unique instructional textbook designed for land surveyors and construction professionals. This hardback text contains over 700 pages of step-by-step information and over 1,000 detailed illustrations to help you perform construction surveys and layouts successfully. Learn solid techniques that have been proven in the field.  This book will make you a better construction surveyor and also assist you in making the next step into the office side of construction operations. 

CLICK HERE to purchase or for more details.  10% OFF - at Check Out enter COUPON CODE POB0409 (sale ends May15th).  Visit  AECstore.com to help increase your knowledge, skills and profits!  Call 248-244-1275 with any questions. 

The Four Corners
The Four Corners is the only place in the U.S. where four state boundaries come together--or do they? Check out these stories, including images and video.

Surveying museum delayed
Opening of the National Museum of Surveying in downtown Springfield, scheduled for this summer, will be delayed because of a drop-off in donations.

Border could be retraced between Indiana and Michigan
Missing markers along the Indiana-Michigan border could lead to some big changes.

To read the latest Surveying in the Headlines, click here.

Disaster Response Sessions Provide New Business Opportunities

The just-announced seminar program for the National Disaster Reconstruction (NDR) Expo & Conference offers business-expanding options for contractors, consultants, distributors and facility service providers. The event, co-sponsored by Imago Trade Shows and BNP Media, takes place June 17-18 in New Orleans at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center.

The NDR Expo & Conference features 75 exhibitors and more than 30 sessions covering a range of disaster-related topics, including prevention, remediation, restoration, and rebuilding. Session topics include:

• FEMA's Change in Direction Under New Leadership: What This Means for Private Disaster Contractors
• How Disaster Response Professionals Can Secure Government Contracts
• Opportunities for Contractors in the Gulf Coast Rebuilding Efforts
• After the Disaster - Incompetence and Fraud: The Importance of Using Experts
• Facilitating Economic Recovery: Enhancing Insurance Cash Flow
• The Disaster Experience
• Satellite Communications Throughout the Four Stages of Emergency Management

To register or get information on the NDR Expo & Conference, visit www.ndrexpo.com, call 770-645-0046, or email jumouton@imagotradeshows.com.

Joke: Fishing in a Frozen Lake
It was a cold winter day. An old man walked out onto a frozen lake, cut a hole in the ice, dropped in his fishing line and waited patiently for a bite. He was there for almost an hour without even a nibble when a young boy walked out onto the ice ...

Problem: Land Boundary Law Problems: Boundary Law Terms 
A grantor and grantee are in the closing stages of the transfer of real property. A third party holds a grant that will be delivered only when all the conditions for the transfer are complete. Which of the following terms describes the third party?

A) a scrivener
B) an escrow agent
C) a disseisor
D) a remainderman

CLICK to access the rest of this week's Fun & Games.