Well, I'm back.

As much as I like to single-mindedly dive into projects, I realize that I can only handle about thirty minutes of combing through old photos at a sitting before I have to stop and process. And, just like in Oaxaca, what beter place than in a blog?

Remember these? If you're under, say, 45 you probably don't. Google "viewmaster."

Where have I been? Well, hanging out a lot on Facebook. If you're there, too, you probably know that G-man had open-heart surgery last September to replace a defective mitral valve. That was wildly successful, and he has mostly mended in the year since.

About the time we were hunkering down for his surgery, though, we found out that the dizziness and jaw-pain my mom had been experiencing since shortly before my June visit was not TMJ, Bell's Palsy, or an old lady's heart as had been floated. No, it was salivary-gland cancer. Have you ever tried to deal with cancer long-distance? Doesn't work so well. Normally my cousin JoAnna, who lives ten minutes down the road and is a nurse to boot, would look after her. But her husband, my cousin Stephen, had congestive heart failure about the same time, then a stroke and another, smaller, heart attack, so she had her hands full. We got a home healthcare nurse to stop in once a week, then added an out-of-work nurse's assistant. Then my brother made the big sacrifice and moved back home to oversee her care and finances.

Come January of this year, though, and I knew I needed to go out there myself and assess the situation. My step-son moved back to Arcata so I felt like I could leave G-man and head to Texas. I decided to drive so I could take the dog for support. Glad I did! Not only was it a rad road-trip, but when I got to my mom's and saw the situation myself I knew it was time to start making the big decisions. Then my brother had a stroke.

I could go on, and I'll detail some of this in another post. I put my mom in hospice care at the tail end of March; she passed May 3rd. My brother was--and still is--in the same care facility as she was, so she had family with her right to the end, for which I am eternally grateful to my brother, as that was not easy.

So I have been zoning out on blogging and life, but I think I am ready to slowly come back. But man, it's hard to wear the big-girl pants sometimes.