Keeping a sense of humor.

Mike commented the other day, "We sure are having our mid-life crisis, aren't we!"

We sure as hell are!

I'm just grateful mine doesn't involve red sports cars or adultery.

Sailing through the reefs.

Our attempts to emigrate to Canada are resembling nothing so much as a great quest, in the style of the Odyssey. Sail here, sail there, run into monsters both expected and unexpected.

My father has decided to pretend the bizarre conversation I wrote about earlier never happened. With the number of the rental company open on my laptop, I told him my infertility fears about the vaccine straight-forwardly. He said "Makes sense!" So... whatever possessed him (he claims he was suffering from allergies, has no idea how that conversation went off the rails!) is gone, for now.

Moving is still on the table - we almost certainly will, this summer at the latest. But to move right now in a panic, we would be sitting on cardboard boxes. And the money for emigration is not quite secured. So... I have concluded that prudence should rule the day, as a rule. So we will not move. Yet.

In a panic, I fully admit, at the thought that vaccination coercion was in my life NOW and that the future life of my second child was potentially at stake, I barely slept 2 hours that night.

At one point, a million thoughts racing, I closed my eyes and prayed. I descended into that zone you get into where there is light sparkling around the black edges of your vision. I asked silently, "Please protect me. Protect me from that man in the next room. Please protect me." I did not have a name to use, so I used no name.

Did it work? Was I protected? This isn't a scientific question - I can't have a clear answer. But for now, at least... relations have returned to the old normal. And we have bought a little more time to save.

I am watching, though. Watching. And starting a daily banishing ritual up in the kitchen.

This adventure is only getting started.