I'm taking a hiatus from the show biz memoir because there are other things on my mind. Lady Lucia left, yesterday afternoon, for another Florida visit to care for her very sick mother (Alzheimers, heart troubles, brittle bones; too much for one, tiny 85 year old woman!) Her mother has been bouncing back and forth between hospital and rehab for the last five months (a cycle that started after she had a serious fall and couldn't get up). Lady L is planning to either find a nursing home for her mother or arrange to have her live at the rehab facility long-term. Sadly, it's clear that she can't manage in her own home anymore, and she never wanted to come back to New York (not liking cold weather). Meanwhile, since she is not yet ready to sell her mother's house, she is taking steps to safeguard it by putting in an alarm system. These are all very hard, sad tasks for her. I wish I could be there to help or at least give moral support, but she's already going into debt with all the plane fares for herself and I sure as heck don't have the money. Never mind the time off from work (at least Lady L has a real job with some paid time off, so she's not losing pay while doing this mission).

Lady Lucia will be back late Saturday night. It's really hard for me, being all alone here, with no friends or family anywhere near. I get creeped out by the isolation, especially at night. I've never lived alone and,'though I can enjoy some solitude, this much is more than I'd ever want, especially since (unlike when I lived in Manhattan) I can't just decide I'd like some company and get together with a friend. They are all at least a couple of hours away by subway and bus...

Yes, Alice and Trixie are a comfort. They are sweet cats. I know they really miss Lady Lucia, too, though. An hour or so ago, the downstairs door opened and closed; they ran to our kitchen door, hoping that sound meant that "Mum Number One" was finally home!

Meanwhile...my bitchy boss gets bitchier (and harder to work for) by the day. She has ordered me to change my activity schedule three times in order to make more time for the idiotic wii games, with which she is obsessed, for some reason (I guess because they're "trendy") even though my clients have almost no interest in the games, and find them frustratingly difficult. I'd be more willing to put up with this crap if I were paid decently, given benefits and had paid time off, like a real grownup professional (which I am, dammit!) But for $9.25 per hour plus nothing...she can kiss my heinie in Macy's window. Except that I can't tell her that yet because I still haven't found another job...

I do have an interview, tomorrow afternoon, for a publishing sales gig. (Renewing subscriptions to business magazines.)Nothing great but it's somewhat more money and has flexible hours, which would make it easier to continue my search (as well as having something of a life). I just hope and pray that Bitch Boss keeps the promise she made to me some months ago and allows me to continue the Sunday church services at the Home (which I volunteer to do) after I leave the week day job as Recreation Director. It would break my heart (and my clients' hearts) if I had to truly say goodbye and not be their pastor anymore either...

And so I am striving to get through these hard days. Lady Lucia will be making her nightly 'phone call to me in about half an hour. It's wonderful to hear her sweet, warm voice, even though I feel terrible when I hear about the hard, depressing tasks she's doing for her mother. This is no vacation time for her either!

In between her calls. I work, exercise, meditate and pray. I snuggle the cats and read mystery novels. I peruse the job search web sites. And somehow the hours pass and life happens.

Onward...

Blessings and well-wishes as ever,

Eva T.