AUSTIN, Texas, Feb. 26, 2005 — My sister is visiting. Well, really, she is visiting my dad. But certain things like going along to the airport will fall to me.

I get up and fool around with my computer and with the bookkeeper's (which keeps giving me trouble). Then I go to the gym. I only do three sets of weight things but I ride the recumbent bike a long time. Then home to shower up.

Dad comes over, early as always, while I'm fixing buttered toast and jelly and a grapefruit to eat. I offer him something and he says he will take a piece of toast and I make him one.

We head out to the airport, have a coffee, sit around waiting until my sister arrives. She is unsure about which is her bag but I pull one she thinks might be it off and, sure enough, it has her name on it. I go get the van and Dad waits with her while I pull the van around, get out of the garage and loop back around to the pick up. I head to my house first and Dad takes my sister onward. I send e-mail to her daughters and husband in Colorado that she arrived safely. She's disabled, you see. She had assistance to get to baggage claim but she walked to the curb with her cane. She seems to be doing pretty well. She's had her trails and tribulations since December 14, 1998 when an aneurysm ruptured in her brain. She's endured surgeries, strokes, rehab and problems getting drugs right and then falls and broken bones and infections.

I go out to my dad's and check up on them. She's drinking a Dr. Pepper and they are watching TV. We talk a little and I remind her to take her pills and she says that one is due and takes it.

We go to a Zach benefit tonight. We've been kindly invited by the American Airlines people who had a big sponsorship. We made friends with one AA marketing director who sort of passed us on to the next one when she moved to San Francisco. Both fabulously nice ladies. We are deadly early. We register to bid in the auction and start milling around, finding our table smack against a corner of the stage by a bank of speakers. I toss my umbrella under the table and we wander the auction a few minutes and then get a drink. We look around some more. We 'guarantee' a couple of restaurant gift certificates (they call it 'buy it now' on ebay) and bid on one other and FFP bids on tickets to the Capital City Men's Chorus. I notice they have two full producers badges for the Austin Film Festival on offer. We bid on those. While I wouldn't mind watching sixty hours of mostly awful film submissions to garner a badge I also wouldn't mind getting badges for both of us for a slight discount and donating to another charity at the same time. [We get into a little bidding war with someone but we end up with them at about a 40 percent discount.]

Our hosts arrive and we meet and greet people, look at auctions, eat some of the food, drink some more, dance. We watch the silent auction without much being tempted. Big parties (which sound great and there was a time when I might have bid a few thousand on same) and those 'T' airline tickets that aren't that easy to use. The auction goes well for Zach, though, with each item having enthusiastic bidders. Our hosts leave to relieve a babysitter and we queue up first to pay out the auction and be on our way. I haven't been feeling that well. I've enjoyed the party but am also happy to leave.

At home, FFP gives me a foot rub while we watch King of the Hill off the DVR. He falls asleep and I lie there looking at the TV playing stupid stuff until I find sleep, too.