Waiting at the gate on standby for a less-delayed flight. Severe winds at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport have reduced capacity to TWO runways (from four). The flight to Chicago before mine just got cancelled, and it remains to be seen if mine will be able to leave the tarmac at all!

This update brought to you via mobile picture messaging and iPod Touch. (I wish I’d brought my computer.)

Sam, Nadja, and Neesa on Centre Island, Toronto

Look deep, deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
- Albert Einstein

I had to erect this makeshift barrier out of drying racks on the landing because Xena and Beano were BOTH repeatedly peeing at the bottom of the stairs. Twice while I was away last weekend and once after I got back!

Bad kitties!

Hopefully they won’t look for new spots to pee on.

An ambitious nomad, spotted in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania. Maybe his goal for today is to eat, and tomorrow it’s world peace. Some things can wait until tomorrow, right?

Me, I’m on a steady diet of Ricola (green tea with echinacea), orange juice, and whatever I can pull out of the fridge and eat without cooking. Last night my neighbour gave me some Tylenol cold remedy for nighttime, and it knocked me out cold — which is one way to deal with it, just sleep through it!

Thanks to all for your well wishes. At least I can communicate with you without passing on any of my nasty germs!

… because I’m a miserable sick person. I woke up yesterday morning in Philadelphia with a throatful of nasty. Swallowing was unpleasant, but apparently it didn’t kill my appetite because I was looking forward to brunching with Addie and Seuss at our usual spot in West Philly.

Addie and Seuss in Ocean City

I tried to sleep away some of the nastiness and head it off at the pass — I napped for over an hour before we headed to the shore (thanks for driving, Addie!), slept in the car enroute to Ocean City, NJ, and part of the way back to Philly to rest up for the additional two hours of driving north afterwards, but it still didn’t feel like enough. I knew it was the onset of illness fatigue.

When I arrived at Helma’s last night, it was nearly 1am thanks to construction along the northeast extension of the Turnpike and I went directly to bed after a shower. There was an opportunity for me to go flying again this morning, but last night I got the word that Alan was still in New Jersey, which was actually a bit of a relief for me because that meant I could drive straight home without the disappointment of missing another chance at flying this weekend. I woke up with the aid of the mobile phone alarm sometime after 5am and was able to hit the road not long after 6 o’clock. All I wanted to do was finish my long drive before the cold got full-blown. For six hours I sneezed, sucked on cough drops, and drank orange juice and lots of fluids.

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