Still no word

We haven't heard anything on Irene's health, so I don't know whether she's improving or no one has bothered to call. Of course, my mother-in-law will call when she has news, but she's likely to be too upset to say much.

I had physical therapy yesterday morning. The drive there was horrendous, thanks to the snow, and to make matters worse, I got there half an hour early, thinking my appointment was at 8 a.m., but it was 8:30. My new PT is a lot less gentle than Jeff, forcing my arm into extremely painful positions, but my impression is that he's more competent and less distracted. Jeff is apparently the boss there, and it seems that he gives only partial attention to the person he's working with. John really put me through my paces, and my arm hurt for the rest of the day, but today it feels better than it has in a long time. I slept better, too.

After therapy I drove up to Big Rapids. I stopped to get a hair trim at Boric's and was once again impressed by the competence, talent, and skill of the woman there. It feels good to get a great haircut. My husband finally got his hair cut yesterday, too. I guess I shamed him into it. I trimmed around his ears and cut off the curly gray hairs that grow down the back of his neck before he started classes on Monday, but getting a real haircut shows off his beautiful bone structure. He's got a perfect head shape (unlike my own lumpy head).

I worked on my syllabi at school and attended a presentation given by my mentor, Ruth, someone I'm growing very fond of. I admire her. She's smart, unassuming, and genuinely a good human being. Then I drove back to Grand Rapids and met a former student for coffee at the bookstore near where I live. Maggie is about my age, maybe a bit older, and she is just a great human being. In fact, despite the weather in Michigan, I do enjoy the people I've come to know up here. It's nice to have friends again, especially since I miss seeing my friends who now live in other places.

Speaking of those friends, the Christmas card photos were once again impressive. Mike's two children hardly seem like children now. His daughter is a sophisticated young lady, and his son is a bright-eyed happy young man. Was it so long ago that Andy was in a baby seat in my living room? And Jackie's little boy Calvin is adorable. How did he get to be five years old so quickly? We also got picture cards with photos of my husband's great-niece, who is now two years old. She looks a lot like her daddy.


They grow up so quickly. Today's photo is my niece Elizabeth. She's almost sixteen years old, but she's got a lot of strikes against her. My impression is that she may have dropped out of high school. Her mother says they are home schooling her, but since my brother didn't finish eighth grade, I doubt that's true. I suspect that Elizabeth will fall through the cracks, despite being pretty and intelligent. She'll be an unmarried mother in a year or two, working at a fast-food place and "hooking up" with various men, unless something drastic happens. I wish I could take her in and educate her, but with us so far away, how could we make that happen?

I need to get to work. It's supposed to snow heavily until noonish tomorrow, so it's a good day to do lesson plans.