{{{Emily}}}

Short message because I'm almost flat on my back on the couch.

Shooting pain went through shoulder and neck when I flipped the towel over my head to dry my back after the shower this morning. I iced, took ibuprofen, and tried to go about my business, but driving to church it hurt so bad I was almost crying with pain, so I told the choir director I couldn't do it and had to go home.

It's OK lying down or standing up if I'm careful, but there's no comfortable way to sit. On top of the shoulder and back pain I get shooting pain up that side of my neck and all down my right arm.

Hate this.

Susan, hope you feel better soon!

Jen, insent

Susan, good to *see* you! Hope you feel better soon.

Emily and I just went and got dinner at the Fair. I love our neighborhood. Emily and I got very diverse dinners - Tibetan food and a hot dog.

Susan, I hope the pain goes away soon.

Emily, Cash and Cass -- you and yours are in my thoughts.

I have otherwise been a skippy reader of the past week's messages. The funeral in Dallas went fine, and my DH is now in KC sorting through material objects. I've been sick with an ugly cold for the past few days, and have come in to work to try and get something (anything) done.

Punctuation for you, Sparky.

Welcome back, Sparky. I hope you feel better soon.

{{{Sparky}}}

Susan, what a bummer! Keep up with the ice and ibuprofen.

Ben and I went to see Corpse Bride today, since I'm taking his brother to see Serenity next weekend, and we loved it. A complete delight. And then I napped with the baby when we came home, and I'm feeling very lazy and relaxed now.

The parents had hired a clown, Buki, to keep the many kids in attendance entertained. Monica came by later and pronounced, "Buki's the bomb! Buki killed!" The children were no match for Buki's hypno entertainment powers.

I found out only this weekend that my younger brother did a stint of part-time clown work when he was about 19. It seems the reactions from the kids wasn't as good as the one he got from the other motorists on his way to a gig. Apparently the low point was when one partygoer complained, "You're not a real clown! You smell like beer and you have a beard!" He did, however, have the agreement of his high school teachers. And he could ride a unicycle and juggle, which counts for something, I guess. The agency made him return the suit.

For billytea: [link]

Nice! I shall keep an eye out for it.

It seems the reactions from the kids wasn't as good as the one he got from the other motorists on his way to a gig

I have a friend who is deathly afraid of clowns. She nearly wrecked her car when she saw a clown, dressed in full regalia on his way to a gig driving in a car along side her on the freeway.

I have a friend who is deathly afraid of clowns. She nearly wrecked her car when she saw a clown, dressed in full regalia on his way to a gig driving in a car along side her on the freeway.

She has my full sympathy. It may look suspiciously like shaking with silent laughter, but we all express emotion in our own way.