calm before the storm

No literal storms. Just company, but they might as well be family. They've seen my house at its worst. In fact, they've contributed to the worst, so it doesn't really matter if the house isn't perfect.

Good Stuff:
- I lined up two story-telling gigs at nursing homes in mid-July. I'm working for experience right now but told them that may not always be the case. I haven't forgotten the CD, Stephen. I've been pestering Eric to burn it. Tammy and Jean, if you want a copy, you might want to speak up quick!
- I'm just about ready for Danny to get here, and his flight arrives several hours later than I thought it did. He gets in late enough that Eric can come to the airport, too! Bonus!
- Went to a book signing for Tosca Lee and Ted Dekker. They've released Sovereign, the 3rd book in their trilogy. They were super nice and insisted on having their picture taken with everyone. It was so inspiring to meet them. They write Christian fiction like I want to write. If you haven't read their work, you're missing out. I'd recommend starting with Tosca's "Iscariot" and Ted's "Blessed Child."
- The book signing bonus was that I got to have dinner with Vicky beforehand.
- Little Eggs (aka Khan) seems to be adjusting well to his new home, and Jeli hasn't beaten him up as far as I know. He's an 'in your face' kitten, or as The Boyfriend calls it, 'all up in your Kool-Aid.' He apparently picked that up at work. It makes me giggle.
- Fenced yesterday. Some of the bruises have developed, but the outside of my left knee and thigh are still very tender, which is a shame. It's cool enough to wear jeans but they rub against the tender bits. Want to see pictures when they do develop? :-)
- One of my fencing friends is going to the same Ren Faire we're going to next weekend. Hopefully we'll find him and he can meet Vicky and the Boys.
- Kids are doing great. Alex is working and doing research hours at school this summer, and the doctor he's working with may have some influence on getting him into a good PhD program. Vicky got all A's last semester and is thriving in her clinical training. She's at St Louis Children's Hospital for another couple of months, and then hopefully she'll be back at St Louis University Hospital until she graduates. They loved her there and she hopes that and her work ethic will get her a job there. Both kids will be on their own after Christmas. (In theory, anyway!)
- We got the lawn mowed this afternoon, and an hour later it was raining.

Not So Good Stuff:
- I didn't come close to my word count goal. Not that I expected to, but it would have been nice.
- Alex's plans changed and he won't be home until next week, so it's Danny and me all week. Eric is working 10-hour days so he can leave early Friday. I have some stuff lined up to do and I'm hoping Vicky will come hang out since she's on her one-week break from school.
- The military has started shifting things around again, and some contractor positions are moving to other bases. So far we're safe because the base the IT jobs are going don't have the facilities or infrastructure to do what Eric does, but he's expanded his search area East to Chicagoland. Not thrilled about that, but it does have a few advantages. It's all so fluid right now there's nothing to do but pray and wait. The thing that bugs me the most about having to move for the job again is that I figured the next time we move, we'd go someplace we want to go and I'd be excited about it. Whatever the case, I'll keep you posted.
- No positive movement on the weight. I cleared out a bunch of shorts that are too small and put them aside.

Grateful Stuff:
- That we have this safe place to vent. There are things I can talk to y'all about that I don't talk about with local friends or family because I don't want them to freak out and ask me every week about it. If I told my mom there was a possibility that we'd be moving to Chicago, that's exactly what she'd do.
- Temps are supposed to be unseasonably cool for the next couple of weeks. That will make Chad (from WI) much more comfortable.
- Despite that stormy weather and local flash flooding we've had, our house is standing and dry. So is Vicky's.

This Week:
- Hang out with Danny.
- Get ready for the Ren Faire next weekend.

Have a good week, y'all!