Back. Not yet in the groove, but back.

We just returned home after an eight hour journey up I-5.  Whew!  It wasn’t too terrible, though, despite the long drive.  We didn’t get stuck on the Grapevine, where a storm was brewing; the car performed perfectly; no one got sick; we had no scary traffic moments; and the kids watched the old Dick Van Dyke show, which is fun to hear, even if you can’t see what’s going on.

Barring a few glances here and there, I pretty much stayed away from the news for the whole five day weekend.  It seemed important to me to focus on family and take a break from my news obsession.  I returned as obsessed as ever but definitely feeling mentally refreshed.

I’m getting the house ready now for re-entry into normal life, and I’m assiduously avoiding the news now too.  Tomorrow morning is soon enough to break away from the Thanksgiving spirit and become acquainted again with all the ickies out there (including the Wikileaks garbage).

Until I get up and running, please feel free to treat this as an Open Thread.  Or better yet, if you haven’t already done so, enjoy reading the wonderful posts that DQ and Danny did.  I can’t thank them enough for taking the time and energy to make such thoughtful, erudite and enjoyable contributions to this blog while I was away, dining decadently on delicious turkey and other beautifully prepared Thanksgiving viands.