...speaking engagements...

He laughed it off when he told me on the phone, "oh you know, we just have nowhere to sleep tonight".

"What? Why not? I thought the insurance company got you an apartment".
"They did", responded my dad, "but it isn't ready yet".
"So where are you going to stay?"
"Oh, you know - with Mehrdad, or with Abbas. We have people, you know".

We have people. Thank god for that - my thoughts drifted to Sri Lanka and other people who's homes have been destroyed. I never could imagine what they had gone through, and now I have a little bit of an idea. But like my dad said, we have people. My parents, though their own home was ruined, have a place to go. How many are there in Sri Lanka who can't say the same?

I called into the Red Cross, made another donation.

This hasn't been a good year so far. This hasn't been a good week. I'm very tired, of everything. I'd like to stop now, okay?