good days, news is sadder

I swapped my days off at the beginning of this week.

Yesterday, I was home. I wrote to a friend, opining about a board of directors that he's on and that I'm on the periphery of. (I help with strategy, but don't attend board meetings. I think the board is in a transition period from operational to strategic, and it's done well at moving away from most operational issues, but hasn't quite figured out the strategy part yet.) I went swimming, managing to get in a mile. Then I went to visit a friend at his office to do a needle exchange (I got clean needles; I offered him a dirty cat, but he refused my end of the bargain.) But I also got some great hugs -- at that tiny place (ten employees?) I know three guys.

On to Bolton to pick up cat food and get a tour from Matt the fabulous vet tech -- what a magnificent place. And then to Waltham to visit a friend who was in the hospital last week. Dang. She now knows that it is ok to call me from her hospital bed and let me know where she is. Or to put me on her mom's "call list." Fortunately, she's doing much better. Then home (and to my friend's great amusement) to make dinner for the hubster. One year, two and a half weeks, and counting.

And today, work. People seemed relaxed from the long weekend. I used a specification (this is the first job I've had where people write them!) to write about a new feature, using our new style. It felt good to do some original writing. I started to receive some reviews for a long paper (short manual?) that I agonized over, not for writing reasons, but for technical ones. And I worked with the two other writers to solve problems they were encountering. Good, solid, productive day.

Late today, there was news that my friend E is actively dying. They're saying "hours, not days." I hope he is comfortable during this time. He is certainly surrounded by people who love him.