A brief explanation...

It's been serious around here lately, I suppose. Even the laughing baby post was more about lightening the mood. As many of you know, there's an actual reason for my mood: a health crisis involving a family member. I won't say too much specifically about that now, except to say that your prayers are appreciated more than you can know. Adding to the stressful environment? Two conferences in three weekends. Last week (March 20-21), I was at PAC, presenting my paper on "The Black Cat." It went well, but unfortunately, I had to leave early to drive from Asheville, NC to Martinsburg, WV, to meet my sister the next morning so we could drive up to New York. If you're into numbers and schedules (and really, who isn't?), I'll run some by you:

• 9:00 a.m. on Thursday: Head to Asheville (via Greensboro, to pick up a friend)
• 5:00 p.m. on Thursday: Arrive in Asheville to present my paper on Friday morning.
• 7:00 p.m. on Friday: Get the call from NY saying, "Yeah, you should come home" and hop in the car.
• 2:00 a.m. on Saturday: Arrive in Martinsburg, WV, repack my bag, attempt (unsuccessfully) to sleep for a few hours.
• 7:30 a.m. on Saturday: Meet sister, who's driven in from about an hour away, and head up to NY.
• 12:30 p.m. on Saturday: Arrive at my parent's house in NY. Spend the next 27 hours or so visiting the hospital, babysitting, running errands, and attending church on Easter Sunday. (In retrospect, I am so glad for that last item--it really made a world of difference.)
• 3:30 p.m. on Sunday: With the moment-of-crisis having passed us by, we feel okay enough to leave and head back to WV.
• 9:00 p.m. on Sunday: Arrive back in Martinsburg
• 9:00 a.m. on Monday: Back on campus. "Good morning, class. How was my Spring Break, you ask?"

Incidentally, the un-official hero of the weekend was my car, which carried me over some 1600 miles in four days, not bad for a 1996 Maxima with over 180,000 miles. Next up on the schedule: 4Cs in New Orleans. I've spent all weekend finishing my paper and am just about done (thus, having the time to post this message). My hope is that a week from now, I'll have both conferences successfully under my belt (a weird expression, right?) and some good news from home. I'll try to keep you all posted regardless.