Y'all are great!

Thanks again for all the expressions of sympathy regarding the death of Carol's Aunt Dorris.

It seems to me that I wrote in this space a few months ago something about my family being non-dysfunctional. As I read back over my posts of the last three days (especially yesterday), I begin to wonder.

Then I remember. My original reference was to MY parents and family experience during my formative years. All this stress and anxiety I've been talking about is within CAROL'S family. So maybe my daughters have been exposed to some, too. Gee, I guess few of us are truly perfect, huh?

And speaking of my family and my daughters, did I mention that Carol and I are leaving in a few weeks to go visit family and friends on a long, round-robin driving vacation? Like last year (hey, it was so much fun we just HAD to do it again!) we're driving from South Texas to Chicago (daughter), then to Grand Rapids, MI (good friend), then to Virginia (my mom and sister), then to Georgia (a little golf!), on to Tampa, FL (other daughter and grandson), and finally back to South Texas. Then I can return to my job to rest up from all that fun.

The planning actually began several months ago (for as others have reported here, Earle family vacations are a true science). But now, in the final few weeks of preparation, things are getting serious. We're putting things in a pile in a spare bedroom. What things? Well, things that just HAVE to be taken along. Such as, things our girls have asked us to send them from home, but which have never yet been sent. ("Oh, we can just take it to them when we visit.") Things for the car or camper. ("It's too early to pack the car yet, so just put it in the pile and that way we won't forget to pack it when the time comes.")

There are even notes in the pile telling us not to forget such-and-such. ("We'll be using such-and-such between now and when we go, so it's too early to put it in the spare bedroom. Just put a note there to remind us so we don't forget it.")

Then come the reminders to put notes in the pile to NOT forget something. No, we've not yet written down reminders to check the reminders list. But that may be next.

Can you say, "O.C.D.?" (If you don't know what that stands for, look it up. Use Google. I'll wait.)

So, one man's perfection may be another man's dysfunction. It's all a matter of perspective.

None of YOU does anything like that, right?