We went up north for the weekend and had a tire explode on us on the way up. We replaced all 4 on Sunday because we didn�t trust the other 3 as far as we could throw them. We learned the night before going up that Luke�s great grandma�s farm is going to be repossessed by the government for nonpayment of taxes. M says she can�t remember them paying taxes on that place ever, so all those many acres of land will probably be auctioned off at some point. We�re left to wonder why they won�t sell at least a third of it to Luke�s grandparents because, by rights, it�s her only worthwhile inheritance. The house is a ramshackle tinderbox, but the land is worth something. Sadly, while we were there, his grandma was sick, so she was sleeping in the bedroom we usually have. That meant sleeping in an entirely strange bed in the back bedroom that was too hard, the pillows too flat and too few, too much light in the room, and a fan too quiet to drown out the noise from the dueling snorers on either side of us. In short, I didn�t sleep well.

Yesterday we called the jeweler and they said our rings haven�t even come in yet, so we�re still waiting on those. We did shop for some food and so that Luke could get some stuff with the Christmas money his father gave him. He ended up buying an older Outkast album, GTA: Vice City, and more jelly beans than I care to think about. We also had plans to do something with Andy, so we went over there, only to have the car�s electrical system cut out just as we parked. We were dreading having to replace the alternator after just paying $200 for tires, but G�s dad came over this morning, took me with him, and replaced it. He even paid for the thing, which I wasn�t expecting at all. C gave Luke a ride to work mere minutes after cleaning up after the overflowing the upstairs toilet and I get to get him tonight so that we can go to knitting circle. (I�m working on a cardigan at the moment and just now coming up to a difficult bit, so I can consult the more experienced among us and ask about how to go about it.)

Luke was dreading going to work today, but I spoke to him when I got home and he seemed in fine spirits. He actually had to get up extra early this morning so that he could get our car situation squared away, but while he was out of the room I had a near impossible time getting back to sleep. Luckily, he soon returned and I fell back asleep, but I was surprised to wake up and find him gone. He happened to come downstairs just as my eyes were fluttering open to tell me that Phil was here so I had better dress and get ready to go.

Something I forgot to mention last week was that Planned Parenthood has apparently stopped carrying my old brand of pill and switched me to Levlen28. I don�t know how I feel about that just yet because chances are that my already too-large breasts will get even bigger (and right after buying a ton of new bras over the past couple of months) and they�re harder to take than the Ortho/Novum was. I don�t take my BC pills with a beverage because it�s not convenient and because they�ve always been hardy enough to go down whole even when I have trouble working up sufficient saliva. These, though, dissolve at the mere hint of moisture, so I�ve had two almost completely dissolve on my tongue. I doubt it�s a big deal because they�d dissolve before hitting my stomach if I took them with liquid anyways, but they don�t taste good. I guess I should call, though, and ask about it. I�m sure they�ll tell me it�s fine, but it�s best to actually know.

And so I go.