Joy and Strangulation (not really)

I went to the Cathe Road Trip in Houston this weekend and loved it, loved it, loved it. I got to workout with my idol 4 times. It would have been 5, but my bum shoulder acted up that last morning & I had to skip the class. She is such an inspiration to me (check out www.Cathe.com). I've been doing her workouts for 11 years, and I completely owe my body, my health, and (actually, most importantly) my sanity to her. It's also such a relief to be among like-minded women who are just as obsessed as I am and not get strange looks when I reveal that on workdays I get up at 4:00 am to squeeze in a workout with her first.

Another interesting aspect of the trip was that I stayed in Ken's apartment in the museum district. And it's quite cool; great location, great security, great pool. We walked to the Houston Museum of Fine Arts and saw their German Impressionist exhibit - very good (http://www.mfah.org). I ate at an Indian restaurant where I finally (finally!) got a meal that was spicy-hot enough. It did say "for only the brave" and they weren't kidding. Excellent.

The only problem was that when I returned home, I found out that Dani LOST her New Jersey driver's permit. Now, if you've read my previous posts, you know the ungodly rigmarole I've had to go through to get her to the point of almost getting her Texas license. In fact, on Wednesday she is supposed to be taking her road test and turning in that permit (lost, I think forever). What the hell do you suppose we do now? (oops, anger leaking out, just can't help it -- sorry) You think New Jersey will gladly replace this permit for a driver who's no longer a resident? You think we can just tell the Texas DMV "oops, we can't turn it in - it's gone!" No, obviously. I think we're basically screwed and now she really has to start all over to get her Texas permit. And yes, I dearly wanted to strangle her but I did not. I did cry because I was really looking forward to her being able to driver herself and Nile to some activities. Now Mom still has to be the taxi.

So one bright spot: my favorite cable show is getting ready to start its new season. It's In Treatment on HBO, staring the very hot Gabriel Byrne (something about dark, handsome & with an Irish accent that I can't resist). Debra Winger is in this season. Each episode is one of 4 clients' actual therapy sessions and it's really ground-breaking. It's amazing to see what unfolds. You should check it out, it starts October 25th (see http://www.hbo.com/in-treatment.) Some of the best writing and acting I've ever seen. A dream show for a psych nurse!