My Family Is So Much Nicer Than Me

Update on the home folks in New York:

My sister still has her house guests and no kitchen, and even though her power is back on, she has to do her laundry at the laundromat because there’s a hole in the kitchen floor where the washer and dryer used to be. So is she whining and crying? No, she’s making new friends at the laundromat.

I’ve decided to give her a Williams-Sonoma gift card so she can buy goodies for her new kitchen, once she has a new kitchen.

My niece who had power was doing childcare for another niece who did not. When asked why she didn’t just go to my brother’s house, second niece replied, “Because he’s busy with Mr. B”. It turns out that my brother’s next door neighbor and long-time friend was dying, and my brother had been given power of attorney to handle medical bills and care decisions, because the family is MIA. B died a few days ago, at home with hospice care and at least one very good neighbor.

Meantime, my cousin D has been whining about the lack of gas, but that’s only because she wants to get out and volunteer somewhere. She finally got her power back on and her furnace fixed, so she’s gone on feeding whatever family can make it to her house.

Finally, my cousin S, whose son was murdered last year, and who lives away from NY, has been collecting donated items and shipping them to her old home town, at her own expense, despite the fact that she is also caring for a new baby boy. (Yes, happy news.) 

I donated to Red Cross. Does that count?