76 Trombones in the Big Parade

TGIF!

This week has dragged so freakin' slowly. I'm not sure why. I am doing the job of two people -- and suddenly, things have slowed down. I'm not complaining about the unexpected (though much appreciated) break in my workload -- I'm just stunned. And worried about what next week might bring.

My parents are coming to visit tomorrow. It's my dad's 76th birthday and I'm making them dinner. Well, dinner for them is at 2. I'm not sure when this happened. When I was growing up, Sunday dinners were always mid-afternoon affairs -- but the other six days of the week, dinner was at 5:30/6:00.

I have to take Casey to the vet in the morning for her annual shots. My dad told me last week that they'll probably be down about 12:30 or so. An e-mail from my mom yesterday says they'll be here about noon. By the time tomorrow rolls around, they will probably be at my house before I'm home from the vet.

I always look forward to visit with my parents. And then am disappointed when the visit actually happens. My mother says something to annoy me, or does something to annoy me. I always try to go into it with an open mind, but in the end, I wish for my old mom back, the mom I had growing up, the one before her breakdown, the one who wasn't self-centered, the one who actually listened.

So lucky me, I have dinner with them tomorrow and then again next Sunday for Easter. And that, for numerous reasons, I am trying to think how I can get out of it. But that's an issue for a different day.