frustrating morning

I didn't have much time and I ended up spending it on worm fixes. The university got hit badly by this one, essentially anyone who turned on their computer yesterday got it.

Former Episcopalians

My husband and I thought this was very funny, that the choice of people who want to leave the Episcopal church would be this run-down storefront church. (If you want to use this picture you are welcome to--a large version is here.) The Bishop of Upper South Carolina, who to my regret voted against Robinson, did write an excellent letter about how these issues sometimes take hundreds of years to work out and the church can survive heresy but perhaps not schism.

weakness and strength

Last week was very stressful--leaving Philadephia after a month, picking up my kids from my family, and returning to Clemson. This week I got several messages and letters from my family complaining about things I didn't do while I was there picking up my kids. I thought I was doing well to get through it all and get to the airport with all our luggage. Am I strong as I thought I was or weak that I can't do all the other things too? Should I try to defend myself now or is that just getting enmeshed?

peace and quiet

vacation!

We are leaving this afternoon for a week of real vacation at Kanuga. I will be checking my email but I won't have internet access.

Connecticut marshes

This is an example of the views I love riding Amtrack through Rhode Island and Connecticut, taken as I rode from Philadelphia to Providence on Wednesday. It was frustrating trying to take pictures from a moving train with a digital camera with a significant delay between pushing the shutter button and when the photograph is actually taken.

home safely

We're back home in South Carolina. My kids are in excellent shape, though my daughter found the two weeks staying with their grandparents, aunts, and cousins somewhat difficult. Partly it was having to compete with a slightly younger cousin as hard-headed as she is. Partly it was the expectation that everyone would do the same things. I don't think she got pushed too hard, but when I got there to pick them up I got a lecture about how I was a bad parent because I won't push her to play tennis, which is such an important life skill. Then after we left I found an angry message from my mother on my cell phone about how I had missed saying goodbye to one sister and her kids properly (there were 10 people in the family group there and four guests around at the time I was saying goodbye, not to mention two second-cousin families I was told it was important that I spend time with before we left at noon). I don't think my kids got hit with too much of that kind of thing; I suspect that it had been held back and that was why it got dumped on me so hard.