August 23, 2015
4:01 p.m.

Wow, it has been a long time since I last checked in. I would say I'm sorry, (okay, I am sorry) but I have been really hitting the books, while at the same time going slightly crazy due to reasons. Maybe more than slightly. It is no fun being peripherally involved in a situation you have no control over. Many can relate, I'm sure. Nuff said.

July was a busy month. I got to go to the doctor. Whee. Started some new medication. Double whee. After my hospitalization and a bunch of tests, I have an ulcer. Triple whee. Was I surprised? Not really. I knew it wasn't a heart attack. I have acid reflux disease, I've had it for years, and my stress levels have been...well, not low. So, ulcer. Such fun.

On the good side, we had our family reunion! It was awesome to see all these people I haven't seen for years--in some cases, decades. It was my second road trip in less than a month, but this time I traveled with a different daughter and grandchildren. Variety is the spice of life!

We posed for family pictures at the same time my daughters decided it was time to make a visit to their father's house. (!!!) So above you see me with my youngest granddaughter, parents, siblings, aunts, uncles and cousins, but not my kids or other grandchildren.

Here I am with my siblings and cousins. There are a few people missing, but this is the biggest gathering of my mom's generation's offspring in decades!

My family--minus my kids and grandchildren. All my siblings together with my parents! It's a big deal to be all in the same place at the same time. Awesome!

My mother with my daughters, and some of the grandchildren.

Me and my Daddy!

My daughters and my Dad.

The girls actually managed two family reunions with one trip. Here their families visit with their uncle, aunt and cousins. 

Somehow, there is no photographic evidence of their visit with their father. I'm told it went well, and I'm so glad they did it. 

No matter what else goes on in life, family is important, and precious, and we're not going to live forever, so I am so grateful for all the memories we made in July, 2015!

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4:57 p.m.

To business: I just read a book. Yeah, me! And I have to say, I liked it enough to tell you about it. 

There's a little background required here, I think.

I don't think I can be called a Gamer. I don't have the cred. I do play online games, but they are single player puzzle-type games. 

My son, however, is a gamer. A few years ago he was quite actively playing an MMO called World of Warcraft. (Oddly enough, this is how he met his fiance; but that's another story!) Through this world, he ran across a web-based series called "The Guild", created by and starring Felicia Day. He invited me to watch it with him one day, and I was hooked. 

Felicia Day is very much a woman you can relate to. Her "weirdness" makes her. Reading her book is much like sitting down with her and saying, "So, tell me about your life so far," and she does. Breathlessly. 

An unconventional upbringing and a neurotic need to please everyone led her to take chances and be herself at a time when women were seriously underrepresented in the internet world. Her journey makes for an entertaining read. 

And Felicia, I'd be happy to sit down with you, eat some pancakes and drink a latte and just dish. 

For more information, click the link below. You're welcome.

http://www.amazon.com/Youre-Never-Weird-Internet-Almost/dp/1476785651/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1440367030&sr=8-1&keywords=you%27re+never+weird+on+the+internet+%28almost%29%3A+a+memoir&pebp=1440367031942&perid=0FDB82C46VVMAZGT8BJF
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I'm going to cook dinner now--fajitas!--(yes, ME!!) You may now faint.

Thus endeth me thinks for now.

Chow!