visitors

Anna spent the day cleaning her apartment with her two roommates, in anticipation of the small new roommate to come. Her brother came over here last night after work, to check on the old homestead, he as glad as she to come home once in a while. He can even crash, if he wants - which he often does - in the bedroom where he spent the first 18 years of his life. It's a lot neater now.

John the handyman arrived on this beautiful sunny Saturday to deal with various disasters, including a blown fuse in the kitchen. He went down to the breaker panel to check, and everything went wrong; when he left, two breakers were broken. There is no power at all at the front of the house. Luckily there's electricity in the kitchen and my bedroom, so I don't need to go to bed by candlelight. Never dull, this house. The new breaker panel was only installed in 2006; how can it be kaput already?

Anna's dad has written that he's coming from Washington D.C. on Thursday, for a 3 day visit. He has a two year old at home, a marvellous little girl who looks just like him, and he is recovering from surgery - recently he donated one of his kidneys to his wife. But he's flying in to be with his other family, and will stay here, at this house which was once partly his. He and I will greet our first grandchild together. What a great gift this child has given us already.