One from Patty

Hi all:

It's Patty this time. Brian has told me that since I'm not providing really juicy material to share these days, I should at least pop in and say hello. Brian encourages me to write more often, but I like to read his entries every day, so I don't want to give him too many days off.

Are we the only household stuck in the winter doldrums? My guess is no. Over the last week or so, it just feels like we've slipped into a slump. Each day, it seems to get colder and colder, which has effectively eliminated my ability to bundle up enough for a walk. When I'm at my most blue, it seems like each day is simply bleeding into the next, with little other than irritations (e.g, misunderstandings with pharmacists and school nurses) to stand out as milestones. For so much of my time, it seems, I'm painfully aware that I'm just waiting and waiting, and wondering and wondering, like an impatient, confused and bored laboratory mouse. I try not to be too bleak in my thinking, but I feel discouraged when I can't commit to any activity even in the near future, particularly if it involves travel.

How's that for a gloomy outlook? On the positive side, we continue to be blessed by the caring of our friends and family, and sometimes even strangers. For that, I am and will always be grateful. In just a couple of weeks, Brian and I will have been married for five years; it seems like the time has moved so fast, even though so many things have transpired in that time. I hope we have many, many more years together. The kids are doing great. Sue's visit was a delight. Each day, I am enjoying my Christmas present -- the flooring a friend and Brian installed in our family room (for both aesthetic and health reasons.) Now, if we could just get these antibodies down, I'll really be enthusiastic.

Today, I'm feeling pretty good. In fact, most days lately I've been feeling pretty good -- tired a lot, but good. Please stay in touch. I love to read comments, and actually get excited when I see there are some there. Sometimes, they turn out to be ads someone has hacked into the blog, so I get crabby because of the letdown. Let's tip our hat to Kevin, who has cracked us up several times in the last couple of weeks with his comments. If some of you would like to keep in touch, but don't feel comfortable posting a public comment, please send us an email, at omara_croft@yahoo.com. I'll try to get back to anyone who writes.

Love,
Patty