Home again—and to stay, for awhile, thank goodness. I love travelling, but eventually I need to come back to the familiarity and comforts of home.

The cats, alas, didn’t fare well whilst we were gone. Charlie and Grimoire managed to lock themselves into a bathroom together—with no food, water, or litter, and remember that Charlie despises Grimoire. We don’t know how long they were in there, but at least one of them did pee on the floor (which we can’t fault them for, of course). Meanwhile, I’d been wondering before we left if Eostre was developing a swollen lower lip, which has happened in the past (granuloma). It was definitely swollen by the time we got home today, so I called the vet, got squeezed into an almost immediate appointment, and off I went. Turns out her teeth really need cleaning, too, but the vet felt she should have her heart murmur checked more thoroughly first, so they did the ECG and heart- and bloodwork. $300+ later…

As a result, all of the cats are being very clingy tonight. I don’t have enough hands, or lap space, for this!

Winter Weekend was fun, ‘though very mellow. I was rather surprised to see people playing modern games like Uno, reading modern books, etc. It sometimes had the feel of a random get-together in garb, rather than an attempt at a noble’s hunting lodge. (Granted, I don’t know if that’s the goal of the event, which it used to be, and may still be, at Black Oak Lodge.) We went to bed early both nights, snuggled together in the lower bunk of our set of bunk beds. The cabins were heated, which was a blessing. We had a dusting of snow on Sunday night; I went outside and looked up at the flakes drifting down. I haven’t had the chance to do that in so long. I love how silent it is, and how the white flakes seem to appear out of nowhere from the blackness of the sky. Then I think about Thread falling on Pern, because I am, and always will be, a complete and utter geek.

While I was at the vet today, Ken left to go on a bike ride with a BMW list friend. Some bike guy was giving a talk in Santa Barbara tonight, so they planned a route of fun roads—almost no freeways—to go up. He called before the talk, and left me a message afterwards, and he should be home by 11 p.m. I would’ve loved to have gone with him, but it’s sewing night, and we’ve cancelled the last four due to holidays and our trip, so I couldn’t justify cancelling it again. (And hi to Helen, who confessed to reading this journal. ) It was a small turnout tonight, but folks got things done, and that’s what’s important. Plus, nobody needed a regular sewing machine, which is a good thing, because ours is pretty much dead and Ken’s mom wasn’t home so I could borrow hers.

I’m not getting tons done today, alas. I’ve got the second load of laundry in the dryer, and my stuff’s all unpacked. I’ve answered a little e-mail. I’ve puttered. I don’t have a lot of energy, so I’m trying to focus on the crucial stuff; the rest will follow.

Tomorrow we’re off to the Valley to have lunch with Donna Lettow and Lori Pelentay. We should run a few errands, too. Then it’ll be time to buckle down. I should write—AETW is a priority, unless I get struck with an idea for the zeppelin anthology. (I know zilch about zeppelins or that time period, alas.) I have other projects to get back into motion. And we need to work on house stuff, too.