Right. So. I know that I said I was done here and for my own reasons based on months of feeling I ought to let go and stop writing here as best course of actions,  etc etc. And I do intend to stand by that. But I would just like to say, this has been the strangest visit/holiday ever.....  Just sort of continuous testing of patience....

Firstly, the day I got here, Jack was sick coming down with who knows what something miserable. So far, in my two weeks here, everyone else in the household (and I think the dog too) has had a bad bout of it except me. If my sister is right and it's an adenovirus, I may have had mild symptoms over the weekend because I had a brief span of my eyes not focusing at Oona Tooba for lunch on Saturday and I've had weather headaches whenever pressure systems shift -- but nothing like the brain fog, exhaustion, fever spikes, constant chills, excessive phlegm production, lingering coughs, almost complete lack of appetite, loss of voice, etc of everyone else. Right before Thanksgiving, Jon tested to verify he doesn't have COVID, but who knows.... I mean, across these two weeks, it's knocked down one of them after the other with none of them quite recovered and my sister and Elliot (the baby) the most recent to get it and the sickest right now. Lots of concern about Elliot and watching her closely. Coin's still in the air as to whether I'll get it.... I have no symptoms like theirs and I often beat off infections even when I ought to get very ill like the times I definitely made out with exes back in high school and college when they had what later was tested as strep and the other mono and I got neither of them. I don't typically make stupid choices around infectious diseases, and I've not yet caught COVID (based on lack of symptoms and testing after known or probable exposure risks) but it's typically a once in seven year event for me to even get a cold.... I haven't had the flu in nearly 20 years. I get migraines and I have a glass stomach for stomach bugs, but it's always been quite rare for most upper respiratory infections to affect me....

Anyway. So everyone but me is sick, which means lower energy and spoons and increased irritability in the kids which has made for significantly more squabbling and behavioral issues compared to usual. Which has tried my patience significantly -- though he's gotten better since the time I told Jack to stop doing something dangerous on the bunk bed and he didn't listen right away so I bopped right above his nose but didn't touch it told him "Bad Pikachu! You could seriously hurt yourself or Mo!" (he's super into Pokemon right now) and a static electric shock visibly and audibly arced from my finger to his nose. 

There was the night terror that woke me up alert protective and soon after I went to sleep, Monroe woke up screaming  from a nightmare she couldn't remember. (she is an empath and gets precogs, though so far only little ones) 

Jon's garage door opener fried it's circuits and we had to switch the pads (his is the three row family suv with all wheel drive, my sister's car is 4 seats and summer tires) and until the replacement comes in my sister's garage door only open by touching two stripped wires that used to lead into the garage door opener base.... 

Then,. Because of the winter storm slamming Seattle area, we've been uncertain if my flight will even leave. And Cathy and I agreed not worth her driving here in dangerous conditions today (it snowed heavily here all day, before changing to mixed precipitation and high winds) or her going to Port Angeles and Sequim tomorrow. So I'm at my sister's family house tonight -- which should make watching the France game easier in the morning. EXCEPT that at 10:36pm a winter storm warning (not just the watch) was released for all of Seattle island until morning, many roads closed as impassible, due to sudden heavy wet snow overnight. And the lights which have been flickering all afternoon and evening, had a rather lengthy really rolling brownout around 9ish, turned into a blackout at 10:45 right after Miche and Jon headed to bed and while I was waiting in the kitchen for the electric to boil for my chamomile tea. I got annoyed When it first went out and surged the power back into this house long enough for my water to finish boiling (everything nearby even streetlights we're out for that minute) then released it when the boil started so the kettle. Licked off and calmly turned on my phone flashlight to pour the water. My sister and brother-in-law came out brushing their teeth to grab flashlights and my sister looked at me really hard the way she gets when she can't deny my gifts or how they scare her and she said, "That was you held the power on here after it first went out, wasn't it?" I shrugged said, "I wanted my tea." She snorted said, "you would. Was that worth using up the last electricity in the grid for the entire county?!" I shrugged again said, "I thought so." Jon said awkwardly, "Well thanks. Our phones were on the chargers while we were both in the bathroom where it's pitch black without power and you gave us time to safely finish up get to the bedroom and then follow the glow from your phone flashlight to get to the actual flashlights out here." They're both atheists but too many improbable and wyrd things happen surrounding me so I'm their "inexplicable to science" exception when it comes to witchy gifts. 

Anyway. Weird visit. My phone is currently at 70% and it's not worth me using up the flashlight battery or phone charge to read or fritter time on my data plan (no power = no wifi) because who knows when power will be back to charge it (due to the mountains and super tall conifers, power outages from wind or ice can be frequent and last 12-36hrs. I've been here before in dangerous windstorms taking our power, but never when it's hovering around freezing. We pulled down all the blinds just in case and I have the blankets from the rumpus room in case it get cold tonight with no heat.

So I guess I'll sleep now. Wyrd wyrd time of the world and strange visit this time. Good, but arrange. 

Anyway. Bonne nuit.