Day 98: Dec. 11, 2007

day98
Originally uploaded by budandmary

I've been up for just less than 20 hours, on about three hours of restless sleep. In other words: Beware! Nonsense and rambling ahead.

No official word yet on what caused Rusty's death. The preliminary autopsy was today; apparently more detailed exams and tests will follow. His family plans to make arrangements tomorrow, I think.

Krissy, Rusty's sister, is holding up remarkably well. As shocked as we are as Rusty's friends, I know our pain and disbelief don't even register compared what she's experiencing.

Calls and e-mails of concern and condolence poured into our office from around the state and country all day after our company president sent a memo to our sister publications. Concentrating on pages and deadlines was practically impossible. Not that it would have been easy anyway.

In much happier news, our friends Laura and Louis are just days away from parenthood! Laura could deliver their baby boy by C-section as early as Thursday. We can hardly wait to meet him!

When I finally escaped the office this evening, Bud and I ate our fast-food dinner in the new garage. Gary, Jimmy and Bud installed some of the old kitchen cabinets in there today. They look great.

Also, the garage now has a functioning bathroom. The vanity, toilet and heat are all operational. Bud bought supplies tonight -- paper towels, soft soap, toilet paper, a small trash can. He's nesting.

Inside the house, Suri continued upstairs demolition. I'll never be able to show you the "before" bathroom, but this picture should give you a pretty good idea. Just picture plaster on the walls and a mirrored medicine cabinet above the sink.