while my guitar gently weeps

I'd say the techno-jinx is back, but actually it's Iburst's fault. Their Dashboard, the little utility that connects the wireless modem, does an auto-update when they release a new version. Monday's new version was buggy - it auto-downloaded, auto-installed and promptly crashed, meeping plaintively about missing vital components. So their clients can't connect to the internet in order to download the unbuggy version, which they released very hastily on Tuesday, presumably after a frenetic night spent flogging their engineers with scorpions. I find the whole thing rather amusing, it's one of those beautifully inevitable Catch-22 screw-ups over which some hapless developer has probably committed ritual suicide, and it's reassuring to think that I'm not the only person who achieves those. It also means, of course, that I haven't had internet at home all week, which is strangely restful.

I am very, very, very stressed. Vibrating like an over-tuned guitar string stressed. Flick me with a finger and I go "twanggggggggg!" and then bite your hand off before bursting into tears. This means that I went to book club last night having not read a single one of my book club books, because I've been obsessively-compulsively re-reading my Sookie Stackhouse collection. When under stress I seem to revert to repetitive comfort reading, something deeply undemanding which I know very well. Besides, hawt vampire sex is pleasantly distracting.

It's been a mad week of socialising, too, in between packing up my dad's flat and moving him out of the hospice and into the frail care place, which my mother and I managed this morning. Tuesday evening was extremely pleasant dinner with mac1235, tngr_spacecadet and strawberryfrog - thanks, guys. (tngr_spacecadet, please don't forget to give me the link to that academic blog!) Wednesday was game (we continue to be mean to the DM), last night was book club (until midnight, so I'm a tad frayed this morning). Tonight the Salty Cracker Club hits Masala Dosa for hipster Indian. Saturday night is d_hofryn's birthday. Sunday we give jo&stv supper. I figure I may approximately survive next week if I crowbar about an extra three days of doing absolutely nothing into the weekend. Actually, you know what? I'm going to knit. A lot. I still only have about fifty rows of a Ravenclaw scarf, but 2x2-ribbed bamboo is very soothing.

Sudden random thought: I shall attempt to harness the power of Teh Internets for good, not evil. Does anyone in my approximate vicinity happen to have a small/old TV set they're not using? Watching TV is one of the few things my papa can do in his current weakened state, and his room isn't large.