::knocks wood for Tom::

Go, Erin!

whoo hoo Erin!!! I think you'd be good at it too.

WE shall see. Bad side: it's 8K less than my teaching gigs. But hey, it's a lot more than zero, which is what I'm making now.

ION, I helped a friend move her WHOLE house yesterday (yay recession -- first-time home owner who just got foreclosed and told "You'll have no eviction notice -- they can come and lock your house at any time.)

I am SORE. Yeowch.

I actually liked what they did on the House premiere re; grief. Cameron, who lost her husband, is telling Wilson, whose girlfriend died in the season finale, that the pain is never going to go away. Wilson says he just spent an hour staring at his girlfriend's old locker and he needs to get away from the place where so many memories are. Cameron, who's husband died years ago, tells him she saw someone just that morning whose scarf was the same color as her husband's eyes and that it doesn't matter how far you run, the memories will still be there.

I'm so sorry Vortex. Losing a parent is always hard.

it doesn't matter how far you run, the memories will still be there.

Well, yes and no. The memories are always there, but they don't always cause heartache. Sometimes the memories are very comforting. Sometimes the tears are too.

Sometimes the memories are very comforting. Sometimes the tears are too.

I find I still dream about my father a lot. Very very weird dreams (as is their wont), but I still for the most part find it comforting to see him (especially since they often involve the house I grew up in).

I find memories of my grandparents and uncles comforting. I almost always have my grandfather's lighter on me during LSU games because it makes us win (I know it doesn't really, but I still kinda think Arkansas should thank me for having to leave it at home for the game last year) which brings back a flood of memories.

It's more the missed opportunities that slay me.

ETA: This is how much of a fanatic I am about that lighter. It lives on the mantle next to my grandandy's picture when not in use, and I accidentally left it at home Saturday for the Auburn game. I made my friend K drive me all the way back to the house during the second quarter because we looked like ass so we could make it back for the second half in which we mostly dominated. (Note to Les. I think we've figured out which one it's gonna be. K?)

Since there just are no words, I hope it isn't trite to sincerely {{{Vortex}}} I know from DW's experience that there isn't really any response that she's looking for when talking about her dad. I'm just glad we are breaking her family's cycle of not talking about family members who have passed on. We talk about Jack all the time, usually remembering funny things.

I often find myself thinking silly shit like, "I hope Josie (my beloved recently departed cat) found Jack." Then I feel like a moron, but it still gives a little comfort.

Sorry for the totally disjointed post. My mind is all over the place today.

Vortex, would it help to tell us stories? I'd love to hear them if it would. He sounds like a wonderful man.

Kara may bring a smile to your face. Last year she was at the nurse's office at least once a week. It got so bad that the nurse promised to give her a sticker on every Friday that she didn't come in with a bumped head or a scrape or some other minor owie, and I think she earned two stickers. Of course, she's the Kara who cries wolf, so the one time she cracked her little finger the nurse thought she was just being Kara-ly dramatic.

The nurse always calls, and she always starts with, "Kara's fine..." though I've gotten to the point I don't even need to hear that anymore. She bumped her head today, and told the nurse, "Aren't you proud of me? I haven't been here yet this year!", which the nurse relayed to me when she called, and that she'd told Kara she was very proud of her.

So, Kara just now asked me if I got the nurse's call, and how she was proud of herself. I told her that I was glad she was learning to shake it off.

Kara: Well, this is the first time I got hurt this year.
Me: Okay, but you know that you can shake it off if it's just a little scrape or something. You don't need to go to the nurse for everything.
Kara: Uh... I'll just try not to get hurt this year.

IOW, "yeah, right."

edit to fix line breaks.