Back in the Saddle

Recovering from a busy weekend with houseguests and activities. Eleven of us had dinner Friday at my sister's. Well done, Sis. The Bat Mitzvah was Saturday morning. It was very nice, except I was a little shocked to discover that I have turned into one of the clucking old hens, commenting on the atrocious behavior of all the children aged 13 and under, and especially the 5-and-under set.

To be fair to myself, they were appalling. I guess you can let your kids act like animals at home. And apparently no one can stop you from bringing your out-of-control beasts into places like public restaurants. But if they can't sit still for 90 minutes, why drag them to a religious service, and spoil the experience for everyone else? Do you think hiring a babysitter is some kind of child abuse? Or are you so eager to demonstrate your poor parenting skills?

Ahem. As I was saying, with that single exception, what a nice weekend. I'm lucky to have such a great family. They are all smart, funny and kind -- people I would choose as friends. My parents stayed here and everyone else was at a hotel. Saturday afternoon I went on a tv-buying expedition and bagged a big 'un. It's a shock to my system after years with a 19" but everyone assures me I'll get used to it. The Brothers got it hooked up to my DVD player and stereo, then Bro 1, Sis-in-law and Supergirl 2 headed home. Mom, Dad, Bro 2 and I made an appearance at the "kids' party" Saturday evening. This has become de rigeur: a themed party with a DJ, and music loud enough to make your ears bleed.

Sunday, Bro 2 helped out with some yard work. Mom and I did some shopping and then everyone came here for a cookout. Since my mother had brought it... BEEF made a rare appearance at the Villa! (My "situational vegetarianism" is such that I can eat beef if someone else cooks it; I just can't cook it, or touch it, or even look at it raw.) And then, I went down like a stone for a 2-hour nap, and never really bounced back. The rest of the family left Sunday afternoon and boy, was it quiet around here.

My new tv is almost this big.

I was back at the infusatorium yesterday morning for chemo; a marathon visit, partly because they were very busy, partly because I was also getting Zometa, which adds 30 minutes. No one really remarked on the fact that I was back again; I guess they see that a lot, and maybe it's easier for them, or they think it's easier for us, to just not say anything. I had a new nurse who wasn't dealing well with the volume of patients, and then got pissy because I refuse to have an IV in my hand. She settled on a spot in mid-forearm. I don't know exactly what she did, but it felt like a barbed harpoon, and I have an impressive little bruise today. Methinks Nurse Pissy will be looking for a new job soon.

Maybe it was the three-week chemo "vacation," making the steroids more of a shock to my system, but my blood sugar was spiking up and down for the rest of the day. Several long naps led to the inevitable sleepless night. Well, the good news is I managed to watch all of Australia. I enjoyed it, it certainly had lots of panoramic beauty (including Hugh Jackman's shower scene) but a good editor could have slashed at least 30 minutes without losing much. Tonight, I have Slumdog Millionaire from Netflix. I'm already appreciating the advantages of a tv the size of Montana.