Do you ever notice that life seems to go in "spells?" By this I mean that there are long stretches where things are sunny. I don't mean weather-wise, I mean all is well, life is good. Then there are other times where back luck rules. For me lately this is how it has been. Some of the clouds are trivial (such as my computer crash or the consulting non-payment annoyance) while others are devastating (such as Sophie's death) and still others are not trivial, but also not too ominous (sinus / tooth problems again!). A long-ish preface to this: Bob is on Long Island, his mother is quite sick and in the hospital.