Lately I find myself preoccupied and the result is silly little things. On Saturday mornings I take my bone pill. The routine is you must take it when you get up, you can’t lie down afterward for at least half an hour, you must drink a full glass of water with it. And you mustn't eat anything afterwards for half an hour. Sometimes the thought of delaying coffee and toast is so daunting, that I put the pill off for a day. All of this is tiresome, but I make myself do it. The packaging is open-proof so I use a razor blade to release the pill. I can’t drink a full glass of water in one go so it takes me a few minutes to get it all down. I did that. Guh. Then I noticed the pill sitting on the counter. I had done the water without the pill. More water. @#$%^%%$.

I have a slice of pumpernickel toast every morning with my coffee. I will get the butter and no-fat half & half and bread out at the same time. I am eager to put things away and sometimes I put things away when I haven’t used them . This is getting annoying.

Ed and I got invited to Thanksgiving dinner at my ex-boss’s house in Sarasota. He was director of the News Service at The New York Times and hired me away from another division (Times Books). This was great because it was more money and rescued me from a toxic boss. His daughter, Mallory, is coming in from Connecticut to be with her dad and make it a gala day for him. His wife is flying to Connecticut Thanksgiving morning to spend the day with her favorite – you guessed it, the son, who is married and has, gasp, grandchildren. I hate it when a mother favors one child over another. This has been going on since they were little. I met the kids when they were pre-teen.

I am looking forward to this. Since Mallory is flying in the day before, Ed and I offered to bring a Publix cooked turkey and she took us up on that. I also offered to bring stuffing. I will use a prepared mix and am looking for a recipe to add stuff to it. Ed and I had already decided not to do an at-home dinner because the people we would invite aren’t available and because I have neglected the house. It now needs a remedial cleaning or will have to go on life support.

Anyway we are all in agreement on the election -- how refreshing. Rob cast an absentee ballot from the hospital where he was recovering from g.b. surgery. He is a voracious follower of politics and government and reads as many newspapers as he can get his hands on every day. So I expect the conversation to be really interesting. How nice that Mallory called!

xx, Teal