I apologize for logging in just for this and not reading other posts. I love you all, but the war takes a serious time and attention toll.

I'm just so glad to see your messages and know y'all are still OK.

Hec, is there anything folks can do to help those girls? Money, gift cards for Target or DoorDash, etc.?

Fashion question, of a sort: Next week I'm flying down to Georgia for a week that will include visiting family, a luxurious personal writing retreat up in the mountains, and then back to Atlanta for Multiverse Con the weekend of the 21st. What I would like to do at the con is wear my dinosaur dresses, of which I have three. Here is one for a sample: [link]

The problem is my feet. Ordinarily when I'm wearing a dress like that for a few hours, say a church service, a party, or a dinner date, I wear it with sandals or ankle boots. The problem is that for an all day event with a lot of walking and standing around, the only way for me to avoid foot pain and probably a sciatica flare to go with, is to wear sneakers, and not cute fashiony ones, but my running shoes. The current pair is almost plain black, chosen in large part to be unobtrusive because I do wear them for almost every occasion, but they're still obviously athletic shoes.

So do I wear my fun dinosaur dresses with my running shoes, or will that just look too utterly stupid and gauche, so I should stick to jeans and geeky t-shirts?

Wear your sneakers and be happy.

Liking Dana’s post 1000 times.

Shir, I am so glad you are safe and Nilly &family also. Thank you so much for checking in. This is just awful.

Shir, thank you for letting us know you and Nelly are safe.

Plain, black, comfortable running shoes are good for any occasion.

Wear your sneakers and be happy.

Thanks--I'll do that. Every once in awhile the ghost of mean girls from middle school, and even more the way standards of what one should and shouldn't wear together have changed since I was learning them, around about when I was occasionally getting picked on by aforesaid mean girls, gives me self-doubt, and sometimes it's nice to have some help shutting up those voices.

Shir, wishing you and Nilly and your families continued safety. Thanks for keeping us updated.

Shir, thank you for checking in. This is so awful. Keeping you and Nilly and your families close in thought and heart.

Susan, first off, love the dino dress. In fact, I just love SAYing 'dino dress'. And, most importantly, what Dana said. Be comfortable.

If you feel like you have to justify your comfort, decorate your sneaks to match the dress of the day.

Shir, bless you and all your people. May you be protected on every level. Never feel guilty about dropping in. I am SO much worse at that than anyone else and am simply grateful anytime I see you here!

Happy birthday, JenP. You make it look great.

David, you are a kind hearted man. Those girls are blessed to have met you. Years ago, my husband called me in the middle of the night to let me know that 20 French exchange students were heading my way. He had traffic stopped their van and noticed that they were stacked like cordwood after being abandoned by their tour company.

We had a huge back yard and floor space, so they all piled in. It was a riot. I got to practice my deplorable French. What does one need, really, beyond "Le petit déjeuner est prêt"?

I hope, despite the heavy circumstances, you all get good stories out of this chapter.

What does one need, really, beyond "Le petit déjeuner est prêt"?

That's all one needs.

I've tapped into the network of Super Efficient Super Nice Elementary School Moms of Matilda's old school and they've already rounded up some supplies for the girls. So between that and some shopping tomorrow they should be provisioned.

I've done some research on the options and they'll have to go through the local Halfway House charity that mediates into Foster Care: [link]

I think as long as we can keep the sisters together that's the best bet.