1. I think it's pretty funny that I like to cook different and creative things when all my family wants is meatloaf and sloppy joes. Ha! Joke on me, right? It's all good. Callum really will eat anything I put in front of him (the spicier the better), but we had both meatloaf AND sloppy joes this week, and the gusto with which both my men gobbled up those dinners, not to mention the glee? Well, lesson learned. When they're happy, I'm happy.

2. I think I've been thinking some about how outsiders see us lately. Outsiders? Wrong word. For the next few weeks, we'll have a young woman living with us while she's in Virginia working on efforts for the gubernatorial campaign. She's a recent graduate of the college Neel and I attended (where we met, actually), and she found us through the alumni directory. She needed a cheap place to stay for a short amount of time (just through the election), so we had a family meeting and decided, why not here? She got here Tuesday, and she's been nothing but a delight ever since.

You can't help but wonder, though, how someone new will see you. After Neel told her to be sure to have cash for the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, I said, "Okay, Dad..." Are we fuddy? Are we mainstream? Quirky and fun? Does she even give us a second thought? Only time will tell, I guess. At least the guest room was ready for her. I hope she's cozy.

3. I think I really appreciate the nudge that Christine gave me with this post about shooting in black and white. I tried to do it for most of the week, and I'll share some of those photos on Tuesday if you care to have a look. I'm not sure I'm getting it yet, but I'll keep trying!

4. I think I'm still not completely out of my funk. I'm getting there, but two of my classes didn't go (not enough students), and even though I've been reassured left and right that it's not personal, it's hard not to feel it, you know? Baby steps, I guess. Perhaps I need to read more of those articles about jumping back from failure. Or not. I've been thinking about friendship too. I'm enjoying some deepening relationships very much, but I've been hurt lately too. How do you let go of a thrum of anger when you feel you've been let down by someone you love?

5. I think it's good that I was "off" these last two weeks. Well, "off-ish." I'll tell you more about what I did next week. I wasn't offline as much as I wanted to be, and I didn't get things straightened out quite the way I wanted to, but where things were slipping into chaos, they're now merely busy. I guess that's a good thing, right?