I have a feeling my life's going to get pretty hectic again, very soon. (Bring it on.)

I was just getting ready to walk out the door this a.m. on my way to another product study ($40) when i look down my stairs and through the open front door to see someone's legs sitting in my outdoor chair on the front porch.

It was my dad, who made an "impulse" visit after 3 hours of driving!

Actually, he stayed the previous night at my sister's and had stopped by to say hello before heading back home. He usually stays there because I don't have a second bed anymore, and while I was happy to give him mine last time he stayed over, I don't think he wants to do that again since I slept on the floor.

He will have to put his cat Louie down very soon. The cat is showing signs of kidney failure. He had a vet appt. booked for next week but said he wanted to see if he could move it up. The cat is 16 years old.

My dad will need time to deal with that, but after that, I want to encourage him to come up for an extended visit of 3 or 4 days; usually I see him a half day up here and then he's off. I'd like to have my dad hang out with me here; I've never really had that kind of time with him, and I'm very conscious of the fact that he is getting older and may soon be unable to drive. I was always working f/t or just too busy, but now it's just freelance work and I can work around that, at least until and unless the PR agency tells me they want me in the office 2 days a week.

Speaking of DREAM jobs, I applied for one yesterday. It was a company that had created a Facebook app that allows users to create a memorial page for loved ones. As the writer, I would write engaging testimonials/bios based on input they provided. The job was full time WITH benefits but 100% work from home. This really would be my dream job.

Back to dad: he doesn't really like to sleep in a bed anymore cus it bothers his back. He sleeps every night at home in an old recliner.

I'd like to take him to La Z Boy and buy one with him. We could take it home in his pickup and then he'd be comfortable. Since I sold a large teak cabinet and rearranged things a bit on the first floor, there'd be plenty of room for the armchair in my family room.

So I'm going to call him tonight and propose that.

So, after giving my dad a full pound of string beans from the garden and helping him load the firewood I'd saved for him in my driveway, we said goodbye and I did my product study.

On the way over to it, I stopped at the landfill and shoveled a large container full of mulch for my latest landscaping project (front of house). On the way home, I dropped off 7 or 8 books to donate to the library book sale (decluttering in the works).

Back home, I found that after a full week's delay, the client finally got back to me (and the PR agency that's hired me to write the brochure) with edits/comments on my 2 paragraph positioning statement. I reworked it and sent it back to the agency in about a half hour.

The whole process reminds me of why i don't really like working for agencies. I'm used to working in a corporate environment where decisions are made quickly and copy reviewed or edited quickly by an authorized decision-maker without the use of outlines, positioning statements, etc. Sigh. It can be like doing a high wire act trying to figure out exactly what the client wants, and it can also be frustrating, depending on how articulate the client is in communciating what their issues are. Sometimes they make vague statements and you're left to wonder what you should do.

It just seems much easier writing for your own employer instead of a client becus then you can simply ask pointed questions, whereas with an agency, you have to go thru the agency people first and vet things with them before going to the client.

I am not sure I am cut out for this, but all i can do is do my best and see how happy the agency is with me.

So the NY agency brochure is "on" again, and so naturally, I've heard from the guy with the powerwashing business, who is now anxious to finish up the manual (after being unavailable the last 2 weeks) AND I also am getting phone calls and emails from my #1 real estate client, an exec who after several false starts in years past, is again trying to write a huge paper that will qualify him for a very prestigious and coveted real estate designation. He wants me to edit and polish it.

It's nice to be busy, but stressful to be TOO busy. Let's hope I can strike a balance between the two.

Tomaotes are ripening gangbusters. I'm picking 5 or 6 daily. And I'm behind in freezing the current pile sitting on my kitchen island.