About twenty minutes after leaving the graveyard where we laid my father to rest, I stood in line at the nearby Starbucks. It's "my" Starbucks, the one I spent hours studying in during college, where I took part in Bible studies, discussed matters of importance and frivolity with Joscelyne, and of late, just go to get my order and split.

When it was my time to order, I got my usual- a venti soy white mocha- along with a frap for my nephew Justin and a chocolate milk for Zoe.  When the friendly barista asked my name, I said, "Larry's Daugter". She repeated it back to me with a slightly quizzical look on her face. 

Our poor little Civic. :-(

I started the week feeling frightened by my father's declining health. I'm ending it feeling shaken by a car accident.

"My dad is dying."

(Screenshot, "Boss") 

"I wonder what it's like to take the shape of the space you're in?" -Tom Kane, "Boss"

Long time no write. But I'm doing okay, staying busy with family. My dad was moved from a subacute wing in a hospital to a nursing home. This is progress- after having pneumonia four times and bronchial infections, needing to begin dialysis three times a week (which is continuing)- he has finally become stable enough to be released to a nursing home. He will now begin extensive occupational therapy and physical therapy. He has a tracheotomy and will have to learn to speak through it. On Tuesday, Zoe and I accompanied my stepmom Kathy as Dad was moved via ambulance to his new digs. Daddy got so excited when he saw Zoe. It was his first time seeing her in six months, and when she sang "Itsy Bitsy Spider", I had to calm him down because I'm pretty sure he was going to cry. Actually, the Big Softee almost cracked up another couple of times, and being that he hasn't gotten the hang of the trach, crying equals severe coughing spells. So I had to shut that down. 

He's got a long road ahead of him, so please keep him on your prayer lists. It was so good to see him out of a hospital, though, and in a pretty nice nursing home, to boot.

Zoe as Batgirl on Halloween