Yeah. We aren't at that point, though. The problem is more in how she relates to other people, and a sense that her needs are more important than anyone else's, and that an apology makes everything okay. Which is a step up from refusing to ever apologize. She's always been a total diva.

I'm watching La Bamba. This is going to make me scared of planes for a while, isn't it?

This is going to make me scared of planes for a while, isn't it?

Do movies really do that to people? I mean, in excess of facts?

I'm not really good with reading either.

(please forgive me for skipping 1300 posts. it has been a freaky-deaky couple of weeks and some crazyass couple of days...see below.)

Merciful heavens, Zen. That sounds incredibly stressful. I mean head-splodey type of thing. Eek.

Did you find the van key? Sometimes, the littlest stressers can be the worst.

Take the fact that I had to use a crowbar to break into my house yesterday morning. No, I did not lock myself out. The security door latch, that I have been battling with for 6 years (seriously...kicking, banging, throwing my full weight against it...just to get in and out) finally decided to freeze in the you-are-screwed position. With clients coming any minute.

In the end, after myself and various neighbors beating on it for 90 minutes, the client helped me break the latch and now, the lack of latch is total bliss.

Then today, I was informed that one of the pet sitters did an unbelievably stupid thing and lost a dog...without id. It's such a sordid story, there should be a Lifetime movie. Parts include, Good Samaritan picks the dog up and does another incredibly stupid thing by handing him off to a random vendor on the street who professed to know the dog's owner.

When I questioned him, he lied like a liar and said that some woman had walked up and said it was her dog, so he handed him off. I could not crack this story, despite knowing it was bull.

I pressed the cops to press him and one must have done a really good job because, after we posted stuff all over town, on Pet Amber Alert and every listserv going, the little creep called and said that he had the dog. At his house in Virginia.

The company owner's husband went to get him and brought him to me. The vendor tried to spin some yarn and...mad props to the husband...was told that nobody cares, just hand over the dog.

I'm calling the DC police officers involved tomorrow with a gigantic, and totally ungracious, "I told you so." They were right that they couldn't arrest the guy but they kept saying that they believed his poppycock story. A Transit cop who helped us pushed much, much harder and agreed with me that something about the whole deal stank. He, however, did not have jurisdiction.

In the end though, I'm just grateful that the little guy is snoozing in my bedroom. Phew. For ONCE one of these stories turns out all right.

Zen, that is unbelievable... except that I can totally believe it, unfortunately.

bonny, I'm glad that story had a happy ending.

As for me, I'm off on vacation tomorrow! It's been over a year since I've had any serious, prolonged time off, and I am so ready for the down time I can't even begin to tell you.

YAY vacation

but you should have come to SF

but you should have come to SF

I really do need to make plans to go out there again! Now that I have three weeks of vacation a year (FINALLY), I should be able to swing the time next year.

Yay for that long-needed vacation, Anne!

bonny, I'm so glad the doggy is back safe.

Sister and I have managed to acquire, assemble, and install a storage cabinet on my front porch this morning for my tools, without killing each other. Now she's off with the girl to the bank to cancel the last credit card and I'm glad, because my back hurts (hello stress!) and I'm cranky and just about out of spare spoons for managing other people's emotions. I think I'll take a nap.

Scrappy, I am so glad you could be there with your mom. You and she are both in my thoughts.

Scrappy, so sorry. I'm really glad you could be there with her.