We had a great visit with Marya and Rosendo in RWC last night. Godfathers & Antone (a local dive bar right down the street from their home) made for a fun opportunity to reconnect after way too long. I'm hoping we'll see them again in Jan in LG, and maybe even get them to stop by while we're in Paso. The "dive bar" experience was interesting and intriguing. They are "regulars" there and they know the owner and many, many of the patrons. It was such a "cheers" like experience. It also brought back memories of past times of less judgment and more acceptance of people I might otherwise dismiss with no real insight, compassion, or humanity. It was a good reminder of our diversely individual yet typically sincerely well-intended paths and natures. I awoke and learned this morning that my mom had such a serious wheezing attack last night that she had to call 911 and get taken to the ER. She was treated, tested and found to have Covid. They attended to her and returned her in the early AM. Jen and I tested negative. I went to help with pharmacy needs. I ended up staying. I'm there now, in my old room, the same I spent my teenage years getting fat, thin, high, and laid, listening to all those records I recently recollected, having shag carpet and orange furniture and Farah Fawcett, Susan Polis and motivational posters. It's wild being back here. I'm confident she'll be ok, but her earlier wheezing attack was concerning enough that I wanted to ensure I stayed for this 1st night so any further issues were not as traumatic and I could be of help. It means I'll miss the opportunity to send Tommy off to Tahoe, but given the tensions of late, it's likely better for both of us to have some room to reconsider our options and approaches. Loving your child and understanding their possible emotional struggles and needs and the basis for them does not excuse abuse. It simply explains it. I've been worn to a raw nerve over the years myself, and I hope 2023 affords me an opportunity to recover and recenter myself to be more conscious and aware of the futility of attempting to control or be controlled by anything other than my reactions. It's a "stoic" practice I want to incorporate deeply into my core thought process.