STRAW THAT BROKE THE CAMEL'S BACK

Problems expand so as to fill all the emotional space available.

And I fully acknowledge that this past year I have had as unproblematic a time as humanly possible.

(Well, if you don't count adding six horses, four different dogs, a broken nose and sixteen stitches on my skull)

But right now I have just one too many dilemmas in my life.

I am adjusting to having a husband back from a war zone.

We now also have my diabetic, partially blinded older brother living with us.

My church organization is beginning a new year of youth activities with absolutely NO plan in place.

And my mother-in-law had surgery this morning in Oregon, draining fluid from her brain following a stroke this weekend - so my husband is agonizing as to whether he should immediately fly out there, caught between his duty as a dutiful son and the presence of another family member he does not live already being out there.

It could be worse - it could be much MUCH worse - but I am suddenly having daily headaches, trouble breathing, and rapid heart beat.

Any chance we could at least eliminate one of these problems?

HOW LOSE YOUR SANITY IN SIX DAYS OR LESS

There are worse ways to spend a week than to be stuck in the small farming community your mother-in-law lives in, with her, your husband, your niece-in-law, her seven-year-old son, and 'husband.'

But it just isn't coming at the moment.

I learned more about NASCAR than I ever wanted to know... which wasn't anything to begin with. I still don't understand how people can spends hours watching cars doing laps - when you watch athletics run, you can at least admire their legs, not their tobacco and auto parts logos.

I ate at two, TWO, of the most outstanding restaurants in my husband's hometown on the main street.


And oh my, yes, there are only two restaurants there, how did you ever guess?

We did have lunch with a high-school buddy of my husband's who is just a sweetie - the only person he's really kept in touch with since high school, to my great relief.

I did get to know Kitty, a Siamese-Persian-almond-eyed feline-cross of some sort, extremely well. Well enough that my own cat hasn't forgiven me yet even after washing every single bit of clothing that might have come in contact with him.

My heart-strings were tugged like a chinese jump-rope over a huge, loopy lab/pit mix that was tethered in the back yard until a home could be found for him (did you know it costs $175 to ship a pet in cargo one-way?).

(And how old do you have to be to remember chinese jump-rope? Do kids play that anymore?)

So I've come home six pounds heavier, my complexion amazingly clear (maybe humidity is good for something), and with more dirty laundry than I care to admit.

But at least I am HOME.