back home

Ah, the familiarity of a dark, drippy Sunday morning in Portland.

We landed around 11 pm and were home before midnight. The dog and cats were happy to see us - the house was in pretty good shape - just a pizza box, a slightly-disheveled guest-room bed, and other assorted debris to let us know that teenagers were here.

Mom was to spend Saturday night in the hospital and should be released this morning. She was obviously improving by the time we said our goodbyes, Saturday afternoon.

Although we did have about an hour in the Minneapolis airport, I didn't go seeking the Larry Craig bathroom. I guess the novelty has worn off. I did use the facilities there, but did not accidentally touch the foot of the guy in the next stall.

One moment from this trip stands out. We went for a very brief walk outside Mom's facility. Next door to it is a children's DayCare, and there were a bunch of very energetic little kids, running around the play structure, jumping around, and squealing.

With us watching from across the fence, I flashed on the end of '2001 - A Space Odyssey', where we cycle through a human life, young to old, with the constantly shifting perspective. That's Life, I guess, except for the part about being reborn as a cosmic baby - the jury's still out on that.

Cleaning the house, going thru the mail, talking to the still-pregnant-and-enormous cat, doing laundry, preparing a shopping list - all the domestic chores for today. It's somewhat reassuring.

Scanned my calendar for October - lots of events coming up in the next few weeks, culminating in our next trip - a flight to south Florida for a week-long Caribbean cruise. Still, I put my duffle-bag in the attic - don't need to think about repacking it again for a little while.

Wondering when, and under what circumstances, I will be seeing my Mom again.