I would agree, Gud, and without namecalling(Although I do have some nifty Milchy ones in the chamber, as it were) that what happened to Em is likely not just her problem, right? That the family has an issue and needs help to sort through it.(Although I really believe everyone has something to talk about in counseling, because life is hard, and we don't always learn how to think things through constructively)

So, reporting back on the baptism. The church service pinged all the reasons I have a problem with organized religion. My deal and I did my best to just bow my head and stay as neutral as possible. This is the church Kelly's ex-I-don't-even-know-not-quite-boyfriend-but-not-quite-not introduced her to. Her current bf goes to a community church that he says is much more chill. At the end of the service the pastor announced there were two people who were going to be baptised and everyone was invited to come witness.

We went to a local hotel that had an indoor pool and while Kelly was changing clothes, the bf and I discovered who the other person being baptised was...the ex. Bf and I had to take a walk around the parking lot to get out our frustration at him being there and his stopping at nothing to be manipulative. Sure, it could be pure coincidence, but knowing him...not so much.

A large percentage of the congregation came and the actual baptism itself went great. Kelly got to have her time with the pastor without the ex, which made me happy. After it all CJ, Kelly, the bf, and I all went out to a nice lunch...nummy oysters and mussels and such. She seemed happy with her card and lunch. The two gifts she received were basically identical fancy journals. All in all, lots of awkwardness for me, but I think I hid most of it from her.

I am Calli wrt Kate McKinnon.

I really believe everyone has something to talk about in counseling, because life is hard, and we don't always learn how to think things through constructively

Oh, man, so true. Although I am not wanting to work on myself that much, there can't be much doubt that there's work that could be done.

Huh, that is a weird situation, Suzi. Sounds nice other than the ex, though. I presume that K likes the church enough to choose it despite the ex, so good for her.

Kelly and the bf are going to his church next Sunday and I know that bf hopes she will be happy attending there, which is actually closer to home.

I am crashing hard at work. I got up early this morning. Have decided that however long Mac stays on his electronics after he is supposed to be off (9:30) he is woken up that much earlier than 7. Today it was 20 minutes.

If he would get up on his own we wouldn't have this issue.

Despite tired, I AM going to the gym tonight.

Damn, Rebecca, that was an awful dream.

and in depressing news, birth control pill strongly linked to depression, especially in teens.

Not a surprise to me either. I've always been depressed, but I went off the deep end taking BC pills, and didn't realize until way later, when I ran out of money for them, that they were the trigger. My depression still ebbs and tides with my cycle, it's clearly hormonally influenced for me.

I am crashing hard at work.

hoo boy, I laid down to take a quick nap during my lunch break and slept for two hours. Geez. Luckily no one was looking for me. I feel extremely much better, though.

Despite tired, I AM going to the gym tonight.

Despite no longer being tired, I'm not! I have a massive backlog of work that's starting to attract attention, and I've got deal with it.

Political analysis is the gossip of the self-proclaimed intellectual elite. Policy wonks go after every phrase and gesture the same way small-town gossips do. Intellectuals like to think they're (we're) above mere petty gossip. But no, we're just turning the fur-grooming nit-picking on different people.

Just had a conversation with my sister about politics (see above post, re: wonk and gossip). hahaha I love my sister. She's bananas and she drives me crazy and I'm sure the feeling is mutual, but I love her. She's smart as hell and she doesn't put up with anybody's BS.

So, without actually GOING to either city, the Dude and I are now thinking more seriously about moving to Portland, OR than Detroit. It's a cool place with good weather and, more importantly, we each already know people there. Plus I think there are one or two Buffistas there, too, right?

It's more expensive, but the gamble on whether the house will lose value after we buy it is not there, plus when we decide to retire, we have always talked about living on the Oregon Coast. This way, we'd just be starting a decade early.

Portland is a great city, I've been there two or three times. It's on the short list of places I'd be happy to move to if I left here.