I got in to Chicago on Saturday, and then proceeded to make a series of mistakes.

1. I left “Jailbait Zombie” on the plane. I had finished it, so that’s good, but I had promised it to like five people, so that’s bad.
2. I put my train pass into the dollar slot on the bus. As soon as I did it, I noticed, and had a very nice “nooooooo” slo-mo voice to go with the slow mechanical taking of my card. The bus driver didn’t make me pay again.
3. I left the bowler hat I brought for Anton at Abby’s. I put it on the coat rack above my stuff, so I wouldn’t forget. On the upside, I cannot think of a better place to leave a bowler.
4. I left for the train an hour early. My computer clock said 10:15, but it was on East Coast time. At least I wasn’t an hour late.
5. I left my gloves in the cab. The cab was whisking me to the train station because I thought I was going to be late. There is no upside on this one.

I’d been having this quandary about how to locomote myself once I got to the suburbs, since there’s no car for me here. I’m staying at my grandma’s house, but she’s at a nursing home three miles away. That’s not *that* far, but it’s cold. To rent a car would have been $300. I was all set to borrow a bike (actually, three different friends all had bikes to lend, and a fourth friend was willing to go fetch and pump up tires, and this is how I know I have good (and bikey) friends) and in the middle of the night, I woke up and realized that I didn’t have proper gear for cold-weather biking, and that it would be miserable. I promptly fell asleep, and slept till morning.

I called my brother, because he’s logical and could help solve the puzzle. He talked to my mom today and came up with a brilliant plan. He and my mom are coming up tomorrow (since they have the day off for President’s Day), and I’ll drive back with them. There are a whole bevy of upsides to this: I get to see my other grandma, my sister and her baby, and the farm. Then, I’ll take one of their cars back up to Chicagoland later this week. I’ll still get plenty of days to hang out with grandma. My parents will both come up together, and then they’ll be able to drive me to the airport on Tuesday, then drive the two cars back home.

I feel like a weight’s been lifted. Too bad I can’t reward my brother with the bowler yet.

That made me thing, might the lack of retirement funds drive retirees to living with their families? Might this crisis make separate parts of families merge? Instead of living in a summer home in Arizona, will retirees volunteer part time at their public library, and hang out with the grand kids after school?

I know not everyone has a good relationship with their parents, but I would love it if my parents lived with me. They’re smart, funny, and good company. They have solid genes, and should stay in good health for a long time. We can watch old movies and talk about current events, and we’ll all be happy.