Or the Christian method.

And on the 111th day, God rested....

Poor C. She is lucky to have you, MG.

{{{vw}}} Get better~ma.

Lots of dealing-ma for MG and C.

I so wanted to close the door in her face when she showed up, but that wouldn't have been good for C.

What's up with the boyfriend dragging C into it anyway? "My GF is drunk, let me call her teenage daughter and see if she can manage her better than I can" ??

So, I need a reality check: Mallory's nanny has a roommate, also female, also middle-aged, who I know sort of. She got Mal a small gift at Christmas, and when the nanny babysits in the evening, the roommate comes over also to keep them company.

This evening when we got home from work, the roommate was here. That in itself, no biggie. But she and the nanny showed me that the roommate had brought her camera to take photos of Mallory. They showed me the photos as they were all proud of them.

Is that weird? We've been trying to make the nanny feel like part of the family, but the roommate of the nanny taking photos of someone else's baby?

I hope she's not planning on selling him via the Internet. At least not without cutting me in on the proceeds.

{{{MG and C}}}

So, it's official. It's pink eye.

Nora, you have e-mail.

Raq -- I think the roommate picture taking is weird.

Oh, Suzi. There's no good talking to a drinker when s/he's drunk, anyhow. Can you call this boyfriend, and tell him not to put her in that position, again, and remind him she's a child, and how unhealthy and hurtful that all must have been?

oh, I don't know... sometimes a cute baby can bring some joy and inspire affection when you wouldn't expect the same for a grown up person. If she hangs out with Mal on a semi-regular basis, I can see her feeling all proud of him. I mean, it's your comfort zone that dictates how to deal with it, but I don't think that her behavior in and of itself is necessarily telling of something strange and inappropriate.

{{{MG & C}}} Those parents of hers, so not fair. I hope she thinks of all that drunken drama as a way not to be and makes a better life for herself.

The thing about dramatic sorts in the habit of saying awful stuff to their loved ones is: as soon as it's over, they're all done. They never think that any damage carries over to later. Sort of like, if you are a drunk, you always get to start fresh the next day, like nobody will hold them to account for toilet mouth. I say, pfui.