That will be the worst.

~ma to all the ailing parents.

I am just back from a lovely day with my parents. Scene on the Straits in the morning, where my mom bought a miniature. It's the first time she's bought art at one of these, but it's also the first time they've had miniatures. Then delicious lunch, then shopping at REI where I found a Trisuit in my size on clearance, hooray! And picked up some Eagle Creek packing paraphernalia that will make my gym-going experience better. Mom got some cycling clothes that she will probably not wear to ride a bike, but which will work just fine for hiking and are really cute. Dad got a new hydration pack, also IIRC from the cycling department but probably going to be used on hikes. Then a quick trip to Petco for hay for the rabbits, and then Trader Joe's because we were right there, and then an hour or two at their house having some tea and chatting. And them loading me up with some of the too many peaches and limes they've recently collected from their backyard trees.

Very pleasant all the way around!

And now I'm having a frozen dinner and settling in for an evening of recorded TV, which I expect to also be very pleasant.

Is it my misconception that "prodigal" gets used pretty consistently to mean "returning" rather than "profligate"?

I am not sure. I would not be surprised that people are using it that way, but I can't actually think of any instances. The phrase that comes to mind is "the prodigal returns", although I can't think of recent instances of that either.

That sounds like a really lovely day, -t! I was surprised on first reading to learn that triscuits come in sizes, though...

Heh. Marketing opportunity!

The Eldergoth Halloween shopping trip, summed up in two photos: [link]

The phrase that comes to mind is "the prodigal returns", although I can't think of recent instances of that either.

In that scenario, do they usually mean someone who was profligate is returning, or just someone who left?

I've most often heard prodigal used to mean someone who was "lost" to the family, as in the prodigal son, whether returning or not, not realizing it really meant profligate.

So is "prodigal" related to "prodigious"? If so, then the element of excess comes into play again.

Someone who left under some sort of cloud, anyway. Although I probably make the assumption that if that does not seem to be what is meant, then "prodigal" is being used ironically.

I managed not to zombie! Went out to dinner with my friend and neighbor who's been AWOL for work as all summers, and then we went and caught the first set of our friend and neighbor's gig. And we left for once because she was pumpkining, not me (she'd been dealing with work emergencies in LA at 2am, so.)

I was chatting tonight in the pool with one of the regulars I hadn't seen this summer, and topic came up about the smallness of Baltimore and how complicated it is. I get so much satisfaction from what I can experience in a 3 mile radius, but even in that bubble,so much plays out. Turns out he lives closer to downtown, but had a similar perspective. "I spent the first half of my life in Ethiopia, where my town was my family, literally. Outside of early university in the US, I've never felt so much like I was back in my town again. Even with the troublesome kinsmen."

We also first greeted each other with, hey, you cut your hair!

I love my Y. And now I can place he& wife's accents.