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Taxing. An aging family member is a big energy expense. You worry. You watch them like a child. My aunt is doing a very selfless thing and putting her life on hold to take care of her mother. Major respect for that.

And its tough because she is getting more frail. This weekend was especially rough on her because a cat scratched her and she got sick because of it. Apparently cat scratch fever is not just an awful song. She was despondent and silent most of the time.

I did my best to remain upbeat but the time spent with her is less joy than it is stress. I don't mind of course but its just hard to watch someone so frail who is sick and depressed. Every move is slow and filled with potential danger. Getting into the wheelchair, going to the bathroom, getting down steps. Her back hurts a lot. Its just a heartbreaking and helpless feeling.

She got better near the end of my stay. I told my aunt to be more strict about forcing her to drink water. She hates it. The very thing that will help her, she is stubborn about. That sums up several people in my family. Stubborn about the stupidest things.

I also told my aunt to start alkalizing her body more. Green vegetables, wheat grass, not chocolate cake and lots of meat. She needs a delicate highly nutritious diet.

Anyway I wont blather about all the little conversations but I was exhausted today and slept a few hours before driving back home.

Today we went to church. This was not the regular church but my aunt was singing with someone for the service so we attended. The cool part... my aunt sounded fantastic. The service however was excruciating.

There is nothing worse than a dying congregation. A handful of mostly old folks. I was the youngest guy in the room. The preacher was an interim preacher until the new appointed preacher takes office (or whatever its called)

The sermon was rambling, pointless and just plain awful. More so than a typical sermon. I realized this was the first time I have been to church in years. The standing up and sitting down and repeating creeds with that droning, passionless church voice was a reminder why I don't enjoy organized religion.

We went to lunch with a few folks afterward and I had to bight my tongue when a lady said how great the sermon was. I sat in relative silence and just listened to them talk about things 60 something conservative Christians talk about. Very nice people though.

I did get to visit a couple friends in Plano last night. Never been to Plano but apparently the median income is something like 80K per year. So the bars were stocked with model-hot women waiting on dudes they could sink their claws into. Generalization? Probably. But more on the money than not, Im sure. But talk about a sharp departure from most of my weekend. Got a decent buzz and everyone was friendly and cool.

Met a couple new people. One guy was funny. But funny in a way that is more annoying to me now as I get older. He was probably 25 and had some very funny things to say but felt a bit like he was performing for us rather than connecting. Reminded me of myself in the bar scene at 25.

Plano is a strange scene. Very very different than Austin. They have weird apartment/condo communities where all below the living areas are just bar after bar after bar. We have the domain here in Austin which is similar but this was like a paper mache New York or the set of a film. The condos feel thrown together quickly, like there is nothing on the other side. Its "nice" but devoid of character and true class. Hard to explain but it stretched on and had a nightlife scene built directly into it.

Im glad I went to Dallas this weekend. I want to make it back to visit more. Its hard to witness someone I love aging but its also sobering and puts things into an important perspective. It makes me appreciate my life, the memories of our lives as a family and how awesome my aunt is.

Now Im back. Finishing the tracking on the album next weekend. Finishing Finishing. Then the media blitz planning stage.