On A Personal Note: Why My Blog Will Be Quiet For a While

In my post last week, I mentioned that my grandmother died recently (thanks to all who sent condolences). I just got back from her funeral and learned that one of my best friends has fallen into a coma-like state at the age of 41-- doctors originally thought it was from encephalitis, but now have no idea what's causing it. So I'm headed out of town again, this time to the intensive care unit to be with my friend -- a wonderful writer, teacher, and friend (that's us in the photo; she's on the left).

This is why my posts have been so brief (instead of my usual more detailed ones listed under recent favorites below and to the right). It also explains why I'll be offline for a while again. More when I return ...