Back home again

 So my train ticket turned out to be for like one of the two days the Texas Eagle was able to run; it was cancelled on the previous Saturday and Sunday because of the ice and snow in Missouri (I think everyone thought the ice storm was going to be worse than it was; at least the local-to-my-mom weather reporting seemed to think it was going to be bad. But the trains got back running Monday. And I'm glad I didn't panic and call to change my reservation for today or Friday because now WE'RE getting lots of snow and cold temperatures and apparently they cancelled the Texas Eagle for both today and tomorrow. 

So I got back on the one good day. The Kroger was kind of a nightmare but I managed to get food, nothing was TOTALLY out of stock (at least not the things I was buying, maybe frozen pizzas were gone), it was just really crowded and took a long time to get through the checkout. 

Now, today, we've had snow. Not as much as anticipated, and it seems like the lower layer, at least on my porch, was already melting. We're supposed to get more tomorrow, campus closed, so I didn't try to go into my office (the roads look very slick, and on cold days it tends to be cold in my office anyway)

But it wasn't the 9" they predicted

Use the right hand scale - that's my sock ruler. It's barely 2 1/2".

But anyway.

Once I was reasonably sure I'd get back as scheduled (and therefore didn't need to deal with a bunch of logistical issues), the last days of break were fine. 

I did only finish a few things. This is the first one - part of my Christmas present to my mom, so she has them now:

A pair of socks in West Yorkshire Spinner's "British birds" sockyarn; the color is called Kingfisher. I'm pleased with how well the two matched; even when you try often the patterning on the second sock is slightly off from the first.

I think she liked them. 

Anyway, the last day or two of break was spent getting ready to come back here: doing laundry, figuring out how to repack my luggage with the Christmas presents I received (mostly clothes:  a dress and a skirt and a pair of casual trousers and some new pajamas) and picking out things to send back (a couple of the older turtlenecks, and a box of books that I had bought/had finished reading while I was up there). 

And you know, the old sort of loneliness (not QUITE that, but similar - maybe incipient homesickness? Even though I only lived in Illinois, really, for not-quite 10 years, and I've lived here longer - 25 years - than I have anywhere) settled over me again - break was over, work would start up again, it would be back to making my own food (and having to DECIDE what to eat instead of my mom suggesting something and me agreeing to it), and dealing with bills and other people and meetings and everything. 

And also, yeah, I miss my mom's town. I have good memories of there; graduate school was in many ways the happiest time of my life and while much of the town has changed (Babbitt's bookstore is gone, the little "nature" store that used to sell small animal toys and birdfeeders and the like is gone, much of uptown has gentrified in a way that prices out many students and probably also many professors from the restaurants and shops), still, parts of it are still the same. The post office - it's not appreciably changed in maybe 30 years, and I think that was where I felt the nostalgia the strongest. 

My mom and I also talked, as we drove around town about things that were gone now - Bergner's, which is where a lot of my clothes came from, is long gone. (I think Kohl's and Von Maur are the only true department store type places left). The Golden West, a small steakhouse that was the sole survivor of a sixties-era chain, is gone - that one, especially hurts because it was a reasonably-priced restaurant but really quite good food (most things were made in-house, and they got good cuts of meat)

There have been new things that are good. I drank many bubble teas from Fusion Brew, which is a small shop I really like - everyone there is friendly, and the various drinks I've had have been good, and it just has a pleasant vibe. 

And I will say the small Jewel supermarket where my mom shops (less than a mile from here house) has a good selection, they have a better selection of things than any supermarket I have in town, at any rate. 

But anyway, all breaks have to end. So Tuesday my mom drove me down to the station and even though I told her to get home again before it got very dark out (she's had cataract surgery and doesn't like driving at night), she still stuck around until 4:30 or so when the train pulled out:

 And now I'm back here. Christmas is put away for another year, I've got clean sheets I COULD put on the bed this evening, I don't have to be anywhere tomorrow (campus is still closed; we're supposed to get more snow overnight).