Two New Photos

Yesterday, Belly crossed fruit punch off her Life List. She went to Coney Island with PD and it was love at first sight for them both. Her dad is deciding whether or not to enter Belly in the hot dog eating contest this summer.

It was a relief to find these photos, especially since Plot had just watched Hotel Rwanda. It was a mistake to watch that movie again. So much cruelty, and above all so much stupidity.

It was probably not too smart either to have a discussion with Ducknik about where that line is between now and 'old.' When do you stop being you, the person you have always been, and become You 2.0, a worse update, with half the energy and twice the complaints?

Before he saw the Belly photos, Plotnik read an email from his partner D-Blue, who is having what seems (to Plotnik) to be a minor flareup of his prostate cancer problem, but is reacting in a frightening way. He is about to undergo an eight-week radiation therapy treatment, knowing full well all the side effects, temporary and lasting. Maybe if Blue's son Jasper hadn't died of cancer he wouldn't react like this, and maybe if Plottie hadn't been listening so intently to The Great Domin-Nik for the last several years, he could have more faith in Blue's course of treatment.

He wants to have faith in his friend's judgment, but he knows how random that judgment can be at times. Plotnik knows this is not his issue to offer uninformed advice about, but he is worried about it anyway.

After reading Blue's E-Mail, Plotnik turned to Facebook. There he found these beautiful photos of Isabella, the first one taken at the beach at Coney Island yesterday, the second from an unknown location.



He should have seen this coming. You did, probably. One look at those two photos and he was practically overcome with longing to see his kids, so far away and in some ways getting even further.

It's that last part, the inevitable part, that's the worst part. Plotnik has been there, he remembers being so busy it seemed like he had no life to share, let alone the time to share it.

He also knows this is life. And he is not only a dad, he's a son. So he called his Mom.

How's Mummy P? She's tired. Her head hurts. She's old.