blech well I'm back in Chicago now and sad that my family is once again so far away. my parents took me to the airport yesterday and when I had to hug them goodbye I started crying lots, which made me feel like a 13 year old unwillingly going off to summer camp. it was especially fun because the people at the Hertz counter were watching very closely. ah well. I just had a nice time at home and wanted it to last longer. and whenever I leave I always start worrying that something bad is going to happen and it'll be the last time I see my parents or sisters. which can tend to be upsetting.

my trip home itself didn't make coming back to Chicago any easier. I ate a bowl of bean soup before we left for the airport because I can lack foresight at times. I say this because it appears the task of digesting the (gas-inducing) beans and the fluctuations in pressure from the first flight resulted in some pretty hefty gastrointestinal pains, cramps, what have you. so much so that the question "have I burst my appendix?" kept running through my head. then I got stuck on the runway in Pittsburgh for two hours due to thunderstorms and subsequently didn't get in my door till after midnight. this made for a very exhausting first day back at work, especially because a pile of things were waiting for me. so I guess I'm not exactly ecstatic to be back, but oh well. back to the grind.

on a happier note, Kelly won American Idol, so that rocks a bit. did anyone else wonder why Natalie Cole was in the audience and why she felt compelled to congratulate Kelly's parents? I mean, flattering, but what an odd thing.

p.s. last night I had a dream that I was at a Jewish funeral and everyone was weeping uncontrollably. it was hyper-surreal. but then, most of my dreams tend to take on that quality...