All Hemmed Up

In Chicago again for a professional conference where we are interviewing people to fill my job; that's sort of surreal in itself. The environment is frenzied and alerts a dormant sense of anxiety in me about what will come next. Lots of go-getters and over-achievers who make me question whether I'm doing enough. On the other hand there are some familiar faces here at make me feel instantly at home. I have also been briefly tempted to go for a few jobs out in Arizona, even though I know our family is really committed to Milwaukee, at least for the time being. The idea of being back with some of those great folks, especially the idea of working with Gretchen again, and of living in a city with such awesome access to nature's wonder, is very alluring.

I was out of the office early this week for a medical procedure at Aurora Sinai Hospital, which struck a little bit of the fear of God into me. When I was rolling by on a hospital bed with an IV stuck in my arm, wearing an oxygen mask, I thought to myself, "I've got to get this stress and my health under control" so I don't wind up here again any time soon. My hubby and my mom took good care of me. Amazingly, even after being sedated I felt comfortable walking home, stopping by the realty office to drop off some paperwork and eating luch at El Cabrito (one of our favorite, authentic Mexian restaurants in town).

Ry dropped me off at my mom's before heading off to Chicago for a next-generation Grateful Dead show. I zonked out on my mom's couch instantly. When I woke up we chatted, she showed me how to hand-hem pants, and we ate a delicious dinner she had made. After I learned the first few basic hem stiches from my mom, I took over and finished the pair. It felt like an awesome accomplishment to learn such a practical skill, especially since I'm such a shorty. I think it will come in come in handy in the future and probably encourage me to purchase new pants instead of worrying about when I'm going to take them to a tailor. It's easy as pie. Thanks Mom!