Windows Vista is the worst OS in the world.

I've made it through the worst of the week. I'm done with my work week (until next Monday of course), so for the next four days I can try to catch up on chores and give the animals tons more attention. I had a pretty productive day today--wrote lots of stored procedures, so I got to leave this afternoon on a high note.

My dad left last night for Uganda. I was able to get back into town in time to see him off at the bus station. My mom, Elijah, and my uncle Norm and his wife, Ruth, were also there. My brother, his wife, and his older boy also left for Africa today, but they are going to a completely different area. They will have a layover in London the same time as my dad's, so they will be meeting for lunch there. Elijah and their dog, Johnny Cash, are staying at my mom's for the next 2+ weeks. The poor boy is going to have to take the brunt of my mom and I missing Luciana and needing lots of extra cuddles. So far he seems pretty happy with the doting attention of the two of us.

M & L have been assaulted with rain and storms throughout the majority of their tent camping in PA. The tent withstood the first 16 hours of rain and stayed dry, but by the time they left this morning, everything was wet. Putting away a wet tent is the worst part of camping! L looks at everything as an adventure, so she still had fun. She got daddy to herself and lots of time to play their beloved D & D game. They took all of their D & D 'paraphernalia' with them. They arrive at his brother Mike's, in NJ this evening, and L was having a great time with her cousins when I spoke to her. I miss her so much!

When I arrived home from work on Monday, I was so sad to be entering an empty house. I was thinking to myself how much I missed having someone to talk to and share my day with. By the time I came home from work this afternoon, I was thinking how I loved coming home to a quiet, peaceful house. I love to come home and find things where I left them and I very much enjoy having the luxury to schedule my evening however I choose. I'm a quick adjuster, I guess. :D I'm a very organized, orderly person, but I live with three people who are most definitely not. It's frustrating, and this is my little vacation from that. I have plenty of reading material, thanks to PZ and his "Great Desecration" and my recent trip to the library. I've been hanging out at pharyngula trying to catch up on the thousands of very entertaining posts about the great desecration. I will continue to enjoy my next seven days of alone time, but I will be SO HAPPY to give it up when my family returns!
I'm in a very happy mood and feel like sharing some orchid photos (and a cool bromeliad) I took a couple of weeks ago at the Olbrich conservatory. I absolutely love orchids but have not had much luck with getting them to bloom...or keeping them alive, for that matter.