Whew!

I'm two days back from ICYP in Oklahoma City. I spent most of yesterday dawdling in bed with the dogs and cats, and finally got up around 3:00 pm to run to the vet for flea medicine since I started accumulating flea bites. I splurged on the more expensive flea egg killing K9 Advantix since the biting had begun. I scarfed down some Mexican food and then, because I ate too much, fell back to sleep last night at 10:30 pm.

Spending the weekend with old friends and new ones had rejuvenated my program. I think the sense of community, purpose and "being a part of" is something I've been missing up here in Northern Virginia. Also, meeting up with the Louisiana, Florida, Texas folks showed me how much I had been isolating myself with the depression I've been going through for the last few years. Bu t things are turning around.

Sunday night I went to the National Memorial in OKC with some friends. The Memorial was beautiful, haunting, sad and hopeful at the same time. I got into photographer mode while I was walking around and taking pictures. Not until I walked over to the chain link fence that had mementos of items found in the rubble where I lost it. There were pictures, stuffed animals, wreaths with poems, and knick-knacks hanging in the fence. But the sheer number of key chains overwhelmed me. For every key chain I saw dangling in the (ever-present) wind, I thought there was someone who didn't get to go home that day. Someone who didn't spend the night in the safety of their house with their loved ones. I saw pictures of two adorable brothers who were 2 and 4, and couldn't imagine the loss of their parents from that terrible day.

I'll post my photos when I figure out where the cable is. I finished moving at the end of June, but I still have piles and boxes to sort through and organize.

That's about it for now. I'm avoiding rewriting my resume for the Army Corps of Engineers. As soon as I get the resume into construction terms, I can start working for them in about a month, so I have to get off my duff. I do enjoy having a significant chunk of time off though. If only I can figure out a way for someone to pay me for doing nothing productive ...