just wait until the shine wears off

I'm having a little bit of a hard time today -- I don't have a lot of work to do, so I've been trying to keep myself busy other ways. This means a lot of looking at back-logged Google Reader, which means a lot of Royal Wedding photos on Wedinator. Hah.

A man who was basically my uncle, who I've known since I can remember being aware of other people, passed away last weekend. My mom called me around 10AM on Sunday to let me know. He had a heart attack and it was a huge shock. He was fine one minute and gone the next. And what makes it even harder is the person who is affected most by this is the Aunt with which I'm the closest. She lives in Tallahassee, so she was always there for everything when I was growing up -- birthdays, Christmases, Thanksgivings. She's seen basically every show and concert that I've ever done. And in the past few years, she has lost a woman who was like a Mother to her, that woman's husband and her partner (as a sidenote: I hate that word, partner, but they weren't married and Florida doesn't have Commow Law marriages, so I'm not actually sure what word is appropriate.)

It's hard, getting news like this. I only sort of understood why a lot of people don't move far from their families, if they can help it, until now. I love my family, and I wish I were closer to them, but I don't talk to them terribly often, and didn't visit that often when I was still on the same coast. But if I was on the East Coast now, it would have been more feasible to go to Tallahassee for the memorial service today. Even driving from Boston you can do in less than 24 hours. But not from Seattle.

I'm trying not to think about it so that I'm not sitting here at the desk crying. Because I can't cry and answer the phone.