Odds and Ends

My laptop is up and running again. I've nicknamed it Mr. Hyde because ever since I got it 2 1/2 years ago it has been wildly unpredictable. Just as I'm about to give up and pay someone to fix it, it will resolve itself or Tom will figure something out. This time Tom suggested reinstalling the operating system. I went looking for the disks and found instructions on how to do it without using disks. Tom had to find all my files, which were buried in Windows Explorer and it took several hours to get everything looking how I like it, but it works again! Hurray!

Ellen called the Missionary Department today and verified that she will, indeed, be speaking Spanish in Ecuador. The lady told her they sometimes have a computer glitch, but her call was correct which made Ellen very happy. She told the lady she didn't care what language she'd be speaking as long as she was still going to Ecuador.

Craig braved part of church yesterday. It was a big deal for him. He was a bit panicked by the thought of it. He hates people making a fuss when he's been sick so he was stressed over dealing with everyone asking how he's doing. He also was worried about riding in the car for 25 minutes, sitting through Sacrament Meeting, then riding home again. When he's up he's usually sitting in a recliner that supports his whole back and his head. I had told him he could leave after the sacrament if he was uncomfortable, but he was horrified by that idea. The last thing he wanted was to make a big exit. He made it to church okay, but he was hurting 15 minutes into the meeting so I asked him if he wanted to leave early. He must have really felt uncomfortable because he agreed to let Ellen take him home after the sacrament. People were really surprised he was even there and were impressed that he came at all. He really is doing quite well, just gets a bit sore if he's up for too long or sitting in the wrong seat. I told him we'll have to put the recliner on wheels for him when school starts and his buddies can push him from class to class. He laughed and said he wanted a foghorn on it so get could let everyone know he was coming.

Craig insisted on wearing a white shirt and tie to church. I had suggested a nice polo shirt since he can't wear his old church pants over his new brace and therefore wouldn't be able to tuck his shirt in. He did not want to be different so I bought him pants and a belt with a waist 5 inches larger than his current pants so they'd fit over his brace and he could tuck his shirt in. They are a little baggy in the seat, but he looked pretty good.