Flies on the windscreen

I'm thinking of becoming a professional flight-misser. Yes, this makes the FOURTH flight in a row that I have missed (by ten lousy minutes). When I called my friend to let her know I'd be a few hours late, she told me that she, too, has missed her last four flights! Serendipity, baby.

My slightly gross but perfectly legitimate excuse: I took the kittens outside to play before I left for Tallahassee, when I watched one of the them pooping in my flower garden, like he always does. As I grabbed the scooper, I noticed he had a butt full of long, white worms, squirming and making a break from his Alcatraz (Alcatr-ass?). I had to take him up to the vet, or I figured all nine cats would have them when I returned and that would be far worse to deal with. I was able to catch a later flight, for a slight fee of course.

There was no actual funeral while I was there - there had to be an autopsy since my friend's father fell while in a nursing home and the body hasn't been released yet. Apparently when you go to a nursing home, you sign over your assets, income, pension and everything you own to the blood-sucking bastards. He was there only one week before he died, but they now have everything of monetary value. And? If you don't have life insurance, think about getting some. It's an awful burden to leave on your family if you don't. While I can't say I'm "happy" I went, I feel relieved that I was able to go, mend our friendship and offer some support. It was one of the better decisions I've made.

My friend's entire family welcomed me, even in the midst of their mourning. Death's in German families seem to be similar to those in Irish families, with the addition of Mimosas for breakfast before the beer starts flowing at noon.