I held off saying anything about this until my sister wrote about it and she now has. My nephew, her eldest son, was jumped by three strangers last weekend while walking a very short distance to the hotel he was staying in with his girlfriend’s family. They’d all been together for a family wedding in Columbus, which is where my nephew lives while attending Ohio State University. The three attackers appeared out of nowhere, beat him up, and left. It all happened within a minute. Maybe less. He was punched repeatedly in the face and kicked in the ribs. He’s okay. But his face is swollen, he has two black eyes, and very sore ribs.

He had been planning on coming home for a visit this week and he arrived the other day. Now Meredith can take care of him and make sure he’s recovering.

Attacking someone just to do it. Just for the thrill of it. That’s what happened. They didn’t take his wallet, they didn’t steal his phone. They just beat him up.

I’m sure you can imagine the words I have been using when speaking of the attackers. I won’t use them here. I’m furious and outraged and sad. My sweet and funny and kind nephew; I hate that he’s had to experience something like this. But thank God, he’s okay. There’s no lasting physical damage.

If you have the time, go on over to Meredith’s blog and give her a virtual hug, won’t you? She could use one. And send some love and healing to my nephew. Thank you.

I went to the eye doctor and had my eyes examined yesterday. After many years of needing no glasses for distance, my eyes have changed and now I should wear glasses for driving and watching a movie or a play. I could still pass an eye test for driving and recently did. But the fact is, I need them. And I also need glasses for reading, which I already knew. I got a nicely worded lecture on NOT using readers, which I have been wearing for a few years now. Guilty, as charged. I already knew I shouldn’t be wearing them, but budget constraints kept me from ordering real glasses. So, while the constraints are still holding us firmly in their grasp, I knew I had to get glasses. My eyes were getting tired and were not making the adjustment to distance after working online. And I’d noticed that I wasn’t seeing quite as clearly when driving.

Thankfully, they have different options there and I’ve order two pair in what are called Value Packs. So, while they aren’t completely inexpensive, they are much less expensive than a trendy frame, etc. They’ll do.

We talked about progressive lenses, but they’re much more expensive and you have to change the way you read, which is something I didn’t want to do. I decided to go with one pair for reading and one pair for driving. I did ask the doctor about computer screens and if they were seeing a whole new category of eye strain due to people spending hours on the computer and she said yes. Some people get glasses specifically for work at the computer and have another pair just for normal reading. Welcome to the 21st century.

It’s a beautiful day out there. I think it’s time to mow again.

There’s a book review up on Just Let Me Finish This Page – the first book in a great new series. Stop by.

Happy Friday.