My youngest sister drove up to spend a couple of days with us. She had a fairly long drive and arrived at mid-afternoon yesterday. She settled in, we had a light supper, and then the two of us hopped in the car for a trip into Chicago.
It makes her sound like a glutton for punishment, right?? Traffic was bearable until we got to where the Tri-State Tollway crosses I88. I88 becomes the Eisenhower Expressway, the first Expressway built in the U.S. From that point to Harlem Avenue, the pavement looked like a parking lot. Youngest Sister did a fine job driving in, and soon we were on Lake Shore Drive.
We were driving to the Lincoln Park area of Chicago to see “Menopause: The Musical.” We were both looking forward to a fun night out. As we drove into the parking area, a valet walked up to the car and said, “The show has been closed for the night. The air conditioning is broken.”
Talk about dismayed! They gave me a refund for the tickets, and a coupon for 30% off our entire bill at a restaurant down the street. We found the restaurant and had an appetizer and a glass of wine, before heading home.
Perhaps this is a good thing. We hope to lure another of our sisters to see the production with us. This gives us more time to wage our campaign. And, it gave us some uninterrupted time to enjoy each other’s company.
All’s well that ends well!

I’m delighted to announce that my youngest sis is blogging. We set up her blog tonight and she’s posted her first message to the world.
YS is a teacher and she hopes to have her student use blogs to journal. Obviously she needs to have a little experience with a blog before she attempts to work with the kids in the classroom. I hope you’ll go visit her blog. It’s called Just My Opinon.
As she toddled off to bed, I heard her comment that she needs to get her daughters started blogging. Doesn’t that have the sound of “Guinea pig” to you???

My opening gambit in the “Who Will Be Cooking Dinner?” war, was “Dear, do you have a taste for liver, or would you rather order Italian beef tonight?”
As gambits go, I thought that was a pretty solid one.
I’ve been trying to decide what to do about dinner tonight. I had a bad night, sleeping fitfully, and got up at 5:00 so that I could go to a 6:30 physical therapy appointment. What I’d REALLY like to do, is just go to bed and forget about dinner.
Popcorn, anybody???

It’s been quite a week. It started out calm and picked up speed, rather like an avalanche!
Elegante Mother is doing a little better. She still has pain from the shingles, and probably will for some time, but she seems to be dealing with it better. Tomorrow we will try our fourth medication in an effort to tame the pain. Night time seems to be the worst for her, when it’s difficult to find a position to sit or lie that doesn’t hurt.

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There’s a bank of six tall windows behind the antique trestle table in the living room where my computer sits. I was working on e-mail this afternoon when I heard a rap-rap-rapping on the window behind me.
A young blackbird was standing on the sill outside, tapping at the bird he saw reflected off the window. Silly bird.
As I returned to the computer there was a rustle in front of me, and then SPROING!!!! Ed flew over the couch to land in a hunting pose at the edge of the table. The window sills on the inside of the window are too narrow to hold him. He crouched and watched the silly bird…..following it as it moved from window to window. I thought I might hear the “ick-ick” that my Siamese cat used to make when he was hunting, but Ed was silent. He grimaced a bit when he realized that he wasn’t going to be able to get closer, but he never gave himself away.
Concentration at it’s best.

We have certainly had our share of doctor’s appointments this past week. You’d think that I’d be doing my best to avoid any more visits. I had a 6 month physical scheduled for Monday when all of this stuff came up with Elegant Mother. Added to that, Ed, the cat has a vet visit on Saturday.
The darned cat has a cold! Normally, I’d let him wait it out, but we spent most of April and some of May treating him with antibiotics for toxoplasmosis, and I think he may need a check up.
Pretty soon we will reach the “Enough is ENOUGH!” stage. I know I’m getting close.

We had an unusual day at the Buffy Bed and Breakfast, today. As you know, I am the caregiver for my mother. That’s a bit misleading, actually. At 88, Elegant Mother is still pretty much able to take care of herself. We provide her home, and meals and transportation, and she does most of the rest.
Today, things shifted a little bit in that strange swap of positions that aging parents and their children endure. I had to take on a little bit more of the “in charge” position, while EM relinquished it.

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We’ve had a really lazy day, today. The boys came early this morning, probably expecting that I would work them into the ground again. I wasn’t quite ready for the CPA’s assistant, who was supposed to visit today, so I sent the boys off to snooze for a bit while I finished up.
I was just about ready to leave the office when the assistant called to let me know that she was ill and would have to reschedule. I stepped into the living room to find that both boys were sound asleep, even though it was about 8:30. I went back to work for a bit. At 10:00 I checked on them again….and they were STILL sound asleep. I bet you can tell I haven’t raised a male teenager.
Rather than wake them, I made a quick trip to the grocery store. They heard me bring the groceries in, and their stomachs must have suggested it was time to get up.

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I was astonished to find today that my blog has had over 17,600 visitors in the two years that I have had a site meter. Of course, some of those visits are from me, but if even half the number comes from other readers, then I am blessed with kind friends, especially since I have been in a rut, and not posting lately!
Thank you, thank you, for stopping by. *G*

MEME SAVES THE DAY
This is from Cop Car