Buzzed around being busy. Went to The Home Depot and got bug spray (for me, not the house) and the Miracle-Gro you attach to the hose. Dropped some things off at the thrift store. Made a loaf of banana bread. Washed several loads of clothes. Stripped and re-made our bed. Mopped the master bath and washed and replaced the rugs. Vacuumed the living room and our bedroom. Washed Pat's hair and gave him a sponge bath. After dinner, I attached the hose thing and watered my poor little yellow flowers on the side. Of course, all this was aside from my everyday caregiver chores, but it gave me a sense of accomplishment--I ain't just spinning my wheels here, folks.
Talked to Betty to try and arrange a meet-up with old friends from elementary school. Talked to A., who will give me another "respite weekend" shortly.
Wider: My rant for the day: I wouldn't dream of watching the "memorials" to Michael Jackson, but saw on my home page a video of his 11-year-old daughter saying he was "the best father in the world." I'm not suggesting he wasn't a good father--who the hell knows?--but the stomach-turning idea of coaching a child to "pay tribute" for an audience, then break down in tears, can be described as nothing but "unseemly." She was surrounded by her aunts and uncles, all of them decked out in the most somber of black clothes, looking remarkably like African-American Mafia. She was encouraged (oh, of course, she was encouraged) to cry, then turn to Auntie Janet (I guess it was) to be photogenically embraced while the others assumed the doleful, zombie-like expressions the artistic director must have thought appropriate.
Boy, it makes you wonder--yet again--where we're headed and raises lots of questions: Is there no honest emotion left that's experienced behind closed doors and that doesn't rely for its authenticity on hordes of witnesses? Is there such a thing as GOOD TASTE, anymore? Is there any rock-bottom low that television won't explore? How many people actually watched that garbage? How many children took concious or unconcious notes on "how to act when your daddy dies?"
Okay, I'll stop. I'll go out and get the newspaper, which will cover the whole charade at length, I'm sure, and will surely list some of the most prominent celebs at the "memorial." Just one more question:
How much did the ever-so-bereaved family realize from the television rights? A bundle, huh?