Hil, if you get desperate, you might also try Bed Bath and Beyond.

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm not positive that I can fit a week's worth of clothes and stuff into a carry-on, but I really don't want to have to check a suitcase, so I'm trying to see if this will work. I might go to the mall and see if I can buy a cheap carry-on bag somewhere, since the one that I have is smaller than the maximum size allowed.

Target isn't a bad source for cheap luggage either

I have no idea if you are near one but REI should have all kinds of travel bottles.

I feel like the chorus to the new Muse song should be my new anthem:

They will not force us
They will stop degrading us
They will not control us
We will be victorious

Tons of support~ma, P-C. Stay strong!

They'll be pricier than a drug store, but The Container Store has an entire aisle devoted to that sort of travel stuff.

Is Muse what the kids are listening to these days?

Huh, the song "Uprising" sounds cool - P-C, do you like that album?

I haven't heard much from it, but it sounds kinda weird. I'd recommend Absolution or Black Holes and Revelations instead, which are both pretty great.

My brain hates me. I had a nightmare last night …… It was so realistic I woke up shaking and I still feel like I am going to puke.

Me too, sj. I had a really compelling and horrible dream that my dad broke my glasses, and then everything was about how we had to move, and I wanted to break some flowerpots out by the side of the house and I just didn’t dare, so I woke up all sweaty frustrated confusion.

...a corset and a floaty skirt in shades of moss, pink, purple and silver.

Ooooh. Purty! I recommend going two-piece with the bodice and skirt. That skirt sounds appropriate for wearing to Buffistaville. Squeee! Engaged! SO exciting!

What should I do if other family members bring it up?

Behave graciously and absentmindedly. Do not refer to the Issue, for it should die mercifully without further input. Walk away from combustible conversation. Tell yourself you are entitled to boundaries, and your parents are obligated by politeness to fight fair (they won’t, but you can feel superior about their misbehavior.) And then buy Katie a pony for her solid advice, dawg.

I could have done so much worse. So much worse.

Sometimes I like to remind my dad that although I have never finished college (oh, the shame!) I have also never left a crack baby on his doorstep, stolen his TV or asked for money, and I have never moved back in with him. I have never had to go to rehab or declare bankruptcy and he’s never had to talk to the police because of me (since that teenage chalk graffiti incident, anyway). He always has to agree that those are all good things for him.

I had a weird experience today. I was frustrated by the pile of kitchen implements jamming the utensil drawer. Suddenly I looked at the drawer next to the silverware and realized I didn’t have a clue as to what was in there. It turned out to be packed with Echinacea capsules that had expired somewhere between 2001 and 2008, and all kinds of cheap packaged spices that barely had aroma any more. It’s like that valuable little chunk of kitchen real estate suddenly reappeared for me when I wanted to use it. Alternately, it is like I have verifiable problems with my memory and probably should not be allowed to run around loose.