Not according to plan

Big A is still in Denver, so I'd cobbled together some childcare for Nu on my long teaching day. Nu would take the school bus home, walk to L's, help her plant a tree and hang out, and we'd both have dinner at L's before coming home, and collapsing in pajamas for our "sleepover" in the rumpus room with Scout and Huck.

Instead I started receiving texts on family chat from At while I was on my way home telling me that the "sprained" finger I'd asked him to have looked at ten days ago, was actually a dislocated finger, and Dr. H at our family practice couldn't get it to stay in place despite a couple of times of "popping it back" (™) because his muscles and tendons had knitted wrong in the intervening days. Big A told him to go see a colleague of his at the E.R. in Lansing, so that's where we spent the rest of the evening.

It took several tries of Lidocaine and people tugging on his finger (and At making the inevitable fart jokes) before they could get the joint positioned and splinted. It was actually pretty traumatic. There was so much numbing agent that the base of his finger started to bleed, and despite his general good humor and inability to not be a sweet smartassy jokester, it was clear that the pain was getting to be too much. Not to be outdone, I somehow lost my insurance card despite putting it back in my wallet. And Nu having somehow ingested a peanut butter chip in a cupcake earlier, vomited repeatedly--but elegantly--into a plastic bag at the E.R. All in all, we made quite an impression at Big A's work.
_

Peak Color

L said she was taking her Californian houseguest on a color tour of Fenton, because we're at peak color right now.

Everywhere is so beautiful, that I was almost late to class this afternoon because I had to keep stopping to take pictures on the way.

I can barely see trees or sky. If I keep looking, I won't think of anything else. We're that golden.


_

Divali!

I mean I'd strung up the lights already, and Divali was the perfect time to turn them on. It felt like my own version of Kusama, was our trip just last year?

When Nu and I wished my parents in the morning, they seemed a bit sad for us that it would be just the two of us for the biggest holiday of the year (At is at college; Big A is at a conference). But I reminded them that Scout and Huck would be here too, and that seemed to help some.

As it turned out, there was a teensy Divali celebration at UU and then EM came over for dinner bearing sweets from Dusty's--it was a Michigan Divali!






-

A Tower of Sugar

Nu accompanied me on a Target run (I needed eggs) and came away with this tower of sugar.

Big A said he could tell I wasn't feeling ok, because I've never even looked at a PopTart before in my life? 😆











_

A day

 A strange day... I got touched all day long. I was remembering Nu's amazement when they discovered me wearing tights when they were a baby and how they kept running their hands down my shin bone--"so silky, mama, so silky." So Nu enacted the strange thing for old times sake. I also got a a very tender kiss and good wishes when I dropped them off at school.

The ultrasound was, of course, a lot of awkward and uncomfortable contact. Although less awkward and uncomfortable and painful than a mammo. But goopier and with more prodding. I can't win this. I was asked to make a biopsy appointment, so I did, but now I don't want to go to it. It's the week before NWSA, I have an important meeting at school the day after, it will be At's Boss Day that weekend,... etc.

I ended the day with the international potluck that CP was organizing in town, and I had my hair touched a bunch of times all day by the nurse and late dinner guests? I don't know, I give up. As I was walking in to the ultrasound building, I got all these texts--from LB, MZ, and others, and that gave me a little boost. I'm going to think about that now.

_

Uh-Oh

I'm waking up better every day

Oh, no. I'm not healed, I'm just 

growing into to a better person.

Magic. Just one more day to go;

getting some answers tomorrow.

-

Wednesday/Birthday

I headed to the Broad after class
for a few last-minute birthday things...

and then we celebrated Big A's 4* birthday...
We're getting up there!

This year's candles sit atop the requested cinnamon muffins
Nu learned to make in a delicious "Food Science" class.
_