ND has headed out to a 24-hour pharmacy (which, apparently, Pasadena no longer has) to fill my Percocet prescription. Friends are bringing food, and I am back on the couch with critters. I’m doing all right, all things considered.

Dana, I’m sorry to hear about your grandmother.

Ryan hit another milestone today; for the first time, he posed the question, "Why?" In fact, he asked it repeatedly. He is preparing to graduate from toddlerhood to fully-fledged little boy status. Behold my child's newfound maturity! (The statement which prompted his question was "Ryan, don't stick your spoon up your nose." Maturity, I say!)

So sorry, Pix!!! Hope you feel better, soon. I'm glad you've got ND, and good friends, and pain meds, and critters.

Aw, Ryan. What a cutie.

Pain relief~ma, Pix. I'm sorry you have to feel that way.

I'm a little homesicker than I realized.

I'm sorry, smonster. It's hard, especially around the holidays. I've been feeling waves of homesickness too, and although we're going back to MA for Thanksgiving it's only going to be for four days -- nowhere near long enough. Will you be in NOLA for Christmas/Hanukkah too?

Road Food. You don't have to have Dennys.

I just checked that site for places near Bloomsburg, since that's where I generally stop for lunch, and everything it lists is at least 20 miles away from the highway.

We have a couple of Road Food guides, but it's not that easy to find places they recommend that also have decent vegetarian food -- they're all about the barbeque, hamburgers, ice cream, and pie. I'd imagine they wouldn't be much help to you, Hil.

Pix, yikes! I'm so sorry, but glad you are being well cared for. I don't know much about ovarian cysts -- will you have to have it removed? Whatever the treatment is, I hope it goes smoothly and works like a charm.

Pix!! Scary and not fun. I'm so glad you went and got it checked out when you did.

Kate, I am going home for five days at Xmas/Hannukkah. And then my sister is flying back with me for New Year's!! Which will be great, both of them, but I'm coming to terms with the fact that there's no way I'll see a good chunk of the people I'd like to see while I'm home.

::smishes Ryan::

I envy you people who have remained close to your families. My blood family is more an interesting adjunct to my existence rather than an ongoing presence. Granted, I didn't put myself too far out to maintain connection, but I never got the impression that anyone felt the loss of my presence too strongly either.

Oh my, leaving my blood family in the rear view ended up being a fantastic relief to all involved.

I sometimes share that envy, Connie, but more often than not, I relish my chosen family and feel like I've dodged a bullet when I see them having to deal with their families.

Yay for going home, smonster! I'm so glad to hear it, and that's awesome that your sister will be spending New Year's with you.

Yeah, it's hard to figure out how to see everyone you want to see. I'm finalizing our Thanksgiving plans now, and it's going to be pretty exhausting, except maybe for T-day itself. Fly in late Weds. night, spend Thurs. with my family, see friends for brunch on Fri. then drive an hour and a half north to see another group of friends, then lunch with M's former "host mom" on Sat., followed by visitors from Boston, then brunch with another big group of folks on Sun., then fly back to Nashville. Good lord.

It looks like I will be holding "office hours" at a bar on the 27th in Chapel Hill, and I'd like to have dinner with a smaller group of friends, maybe. IDK. Because my chosen family is as important to me as my blood family, and it's vital that I see some people. amyth, Calli, my bellydance peeps, my former boss, R & C...