no place like home

I notice I haven't posted for a while. Big surprise. It's not exactly a valid excuse (as I've been on the internets a bunch), but I am up in Washington visiting the folks for Christmas. Good thing I enjoy their company a bunch cuz I've pretty much been ditched by the niecelets. My brother left for California the day before yesterday (his traditional Christmas locale), though rumor has it I will get a visit on the rebound as they drive back home. Meanwhile my sister is working a bunch (I knew she'd be) and she's currently planning to spend Christmas with friends who live closer to her clinic. I'm trying to lure her to the homestead, but things aren't exactly warm and fuzzy between her and my mom so I don't blame her for staying away. Besides, she got it pretty rough in the family Christmas letter (that I write). Once she gets her copy things might not be so warm and fuzzy with me either... Sadly, she's also dealing with some unexpected kitty drama. She came home to discover a bouquet of poisonous lilies nibbled on by at least one of her six house cats. No word from the roommate yet about which cat might have done the snacking or when, so my sister took her two favorite cats to the ER. Even with intervention, there's no guarantee of survival. Now I'm feeling kinda bad about giving her a hard time in the letter...

So the grown ups took advantage and did the adult Christmas thing - exchanging unwrapped gifts early, over take out and/or leftovers. Dad reluctantly accepted his present yesterday - a new TV. It's twice the size of his old one. (That isn't saying much as the other was a mere 20".) The problem was that the new TV required considerable furniture rearranging. Poor Dad came home in the middle of the project. Plans had been drawn (on graph paper downloaded from the internets - I hope to scan them so you can share in the hilarity), couches were askew, girls were out spending the money... To his credit, Dad stepped up and participated in the shuffle. Mom's Amish armoire suffered a pretty significant ding on its way through the front door, but I reminded her that those who don't lift can't really bitch. Anyway, he missed a nap and has had to throw away a bunch of clutter, but he's admitted to being pleased now that the big items are in place and functioning (thanks to a last minute trip to Radio Shack). He doesn't buy our logic, but Mom and I feel that the TV was essentially free since we saved a thousand bucks by repurposing the armoire instead of picking up a new entertainment cabinet as originally planned.

Turns out installing the TV was easier than the learning curve on Mom's new coffee maker. Two of the first three pots she brewed resulted in a flood. It's actually kind of sad...

The highlight of my trip so far? A new "old tape" from my quotable Mom. After sinking into a chair after a particularly thankless night (the one time all three girls were here), she confided, "Being a mom sucks. And it just keeps on sucking."

There's no place like home.