AUSTIN, Texas, Feb. 10, 2005 — I get up and take a shower, dry my hair, put on clean clothes. I get my aunt's clean clothes from her daughter-in-law and I have an envelope of important cards and IDs and powers-of-attorney and stuff to take to the admin people. I go over to get Dad, we have some coffee and take off to the rehab center.

When my aunt goes to rehab or something which will be followed by lunch, we walk to Panerra and have a bagel and cream cheese and then Dad goes back to visit and read his book and I walk over to Northpark, just to walk.

Just walk I do. All through the mall, walking through some stores, buying nothing. Northpark was the ultimate mall, years and years ago, when I lived in Dallas. Neiman's is still there and Foley's and Dilliard's and many high-end spots like Coach and such but it seems somehow seedier. Nordstrom's is building a new place there, though. I walk back across Park to the retirement deal.

We play some Skip-Bo with my aunt and listen to her roommate mather on. She talks so much that everyone else falls silent. There are other sad sacks on the floor. A woman on a motorized scooter that has two teeth and an interest in everyone's business. Every time I'm in one of these places, I get sad about the way we all end up. I hope I can avoid these places, either temporarily or permanently. But who knows? My aunt has all her faculties...she just has a leg full of metal. She wants to get home and I think she will.

They hold a meeting where all the different departments are supposed to come in and talk to my aunt and her caregivers. But they don't all show up and they don't have all the stuff they are supposed to have. Typical. The PT person says she'll get the maximum minutes of PT allowed by Medicare. Well, I bet they at least bill them. I'm such a cynic.

When my aunt goes to dinner, we walk with her down there and then go back to my cousin's house. We go with my cousin's wife and son to EZ and eat. I never go to the store for this chain near my house but it's not bad.

We go back and my cousin's son goes off to study with friends and my cousin's wife goes to work on her taxes. Dad and I go to my aunt's apartment and watch TV. And read. I crank up my computer and do a few things (sans Internet although there are a couple of secure signals flying around). We watch a cable movie with Ronald Coleman (Random Harvest).

I go back to my cousin's house and the wife's niece and a friend (who doesn't introduce herself) are watching Napolean Dynamite. I comment that I rented it but couldn't finish it. I go to sleep after checking my e-mail.

I finished the book Because They Wanted To. These stories are all about relationships, people bouncing off each other romantically and in other ways. Always recoiling, sort of.