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      My niece is at home again. The hospital didn't help much. She will see a specialist on the 27th, which was the soonest he/she/they could see her. Until then, she will survive on pain meds and willpower with occasional trips to the hospital. It's bad, but that seems to be the best that can be worked out. Health care in this country is expensive, slow and discouraging. If you're poor, you don't ever get the care you should. Somehow I'm going to get some money and rescue my family. Don't know how yet. Maybe selling kidneys and other organs on the black market or robbing banks or selling national secrets to ... well, does anyone still want our national secrets? Our media seems to tell them all anyway. There are reasons beyond greed that make people turn to crime.

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      Got told again that I'm "surprisingly dark." I was having lunch with a friend who said that my writing was filled with "joy, life and laughter," which was nice, and she found that odd since I have such darkness in me, which wasn't that nice. I wanted to know what she found dark about me. She said it was that it was because I was sad a lot.
      Well, that made me feel like I was a whiney hiney, and I told her that I didn't think I was that dark.
      "You are," she said. "You just hide it very well, and most people don't ever know to look any further. You're very good at keeping people at a distance. Answer me this honestly, have you ever trusted anyone enough to be completely open and share your deepest thoughts and feelings?"
      "Of course not," I said. "I'm a guy!"

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      A friend of mine shipped me a bottle of liquid vitamins. (Thanks ... I think.) Apparently his mom is either selling it or pushing it. It's loaded with hundreds of minerals, vitamins and plant extracts. In fact, it's so loaded with nature's goodness that it looks like river mud. Tastes somewhat like it, too. That's an understatement. It tastes BAD. You could follow it with a chaser of battery acid, but you'd still be able to taste its terrible health. There's a reason they don't carbonate it and sell it in the soft drink aisle.

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      I pulled a muscle or something in my left side. It's been giving me a lot of problems. Well, really just one problem. It's hurts! Thank goodness for Advil. And aspirin. And morphine ...

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      It's cold here. We've had unseasonably warm weather until now, but it was in the teens last night and only in the thirties today. Of course, for those up north, that probably seems mild, but I don't enjoy it. I dream of warm beaches and clear skies. I miss the green grass and the leaves on the tree and the flowers in the fields.
Do not tarry, Spring.
Winter holds so hard ...

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      Have I ever mentioned how much I admire people who can walk away and start a new life? They cut their ties, they set sail, they head for a far-off place. They may look back but only to make sure they aren't drifting off course. I always wonder if they find what they're looking for or do they just find more of the same.

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      Two of my blogging friends have declared war on each other. I don't expect this will end well. I've been on the Net for a long time, long enough that I remember when Prodigy and Delphi were the thing. I've seen these email/chat/bulletin board/comment/post battles over and over. The Net will always be inferior to face-to-face communication and interaction because we lack the visual cues and tonal inflections that can defuse the most incendiary statements.

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      I've been better on my diet this week so I'm expecting a loss when the next WWIN takes place. See The Great Slim Down for details. Our fearless leader Crystal has returned and will doubtless lead us all on to slimness. (Yeah, the pressure is on!)

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      I need a nap.

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      I should be doing housework, writing, errands, but I think I'm going to go back to bed and nap some. Talk to you later.