Le Hiatus Officially Terminated

          Sorry I may have unintentionally lead readers to believe that I never made it back to the USA alive. I would say that there's no excuse to post so little, but in fact I have tons of excuses: there was my little brother's birthday, my mom's birthday (read: free champagne), my birthday, and a new addition to the family, a puppy who looks so adorably like a stuffed animal that it is surreal:

World, meet Baxter:

The English teddybear goldendoodle with soulful puppy eyes, and a ferocious determination to eat all my pajama pants.

          Overlooking general laziness (simply because it makes me look bad) I also had a period of intense illness, starting with when I boarded the plane and ending a week and a half later, after several boxes of tissues, one heavy-duty antibiotics prescription, and roughly a million instances of my boyfriend trying to cuddle me while I flung him away to have a spastic coughing fit during the best part of a movie we were watching. 

          "I'm um. So glad you're back. So we can be together again," Boyfriend offered weakly while watching me cough up phlegm, retch, and wheeze through my enfeebled nasal pathways. I nodded, sweated profusely, and then fell asleep with my mouth open. He really liked that. 

          I fear all my sexiness may have remained in France. 

I feel the need to end on a health-related comic: