October 2014 Round-up

I think this is the longest I've waited to write one of these round-up posts, but as many of you know, October was a difficult, unusual, confusing month for my entire family. While there were many highlights — my trip to Chicago chief among them — the most significant event was my dad's heart attack on October 2. The early-morning phone call from my brother signaled the end of life as I knew in and ushered in the new normal of ICU visiting hours, perplexing medical terms, daily text conversations with my family, and several long drives between Austin and Tyler. Fortunately, my dad is on the mend now, and while we know there is still a long road to recovery ahead, we're all so glad to know there is a road ahead — a way forward after this crazy October.

It seems silly to write anything else about this month, but at the same time, I don't want to forget that good things did happen. Over the past few years that I've been writing these posts, I've enjoyed looking back on these short recaps to see what was taking place in my life (even if it's only to see what I was reading or watching at the time). These are a few of the highlights:

• Spending the evening of my birthday (that fateful October 2) with my mom, Paul, and Esther. We ate at Shogun's and enjoyed Esther's wonderful birthday cake. I also received some nice presents.
• Watching the U.S. women, especially Simone Biles, dominate at the World Gymnastics Championships. It was a bright spot during the early days of the month.
• Buying a one-way ticket to Tyler so I could see Dad one weekend. I flew up on Friday after work, and Paul and I drove back to Austin the following day for the UT-Iowa State game. It was a less-than-24-hour turnaround, but I'm so glad I did it.
• Meeting my friend Michelle for dinner one evening. It was wonderful to see her and catch up a little bit.
• Traveling to Chicago for Skate America. On Friday, I took the train into the city for a few hours and then spent the rest of the weekend at the competition. Watching live skating always makes me happy (and meeting Meryl and Charlie was a definite bonus this time).

Books I read: Persuasion (Jane Austen), The Dressmaker (Kate Alcott), Call the Midwife: Farewell to the East End (Jennifer Worth)

Movies I watched: Gone Girl

TV: Dancing with the Stars, Castle, Forever, Parenthood, Grey's Anatomy, college football, World Gymnastics Championships, figure skating (Skate America and Skate Canada)

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About My Monthly Round-Ups
At the end of each month, I take a look back and write a post about the month's highlights, as well as what I read and watched. To see all of my round-up posts, visit this page.