A really great suggestion, Mortimer! Maybe I can work that in sometime.

Quite often, I can twist the conversation in some other direction -- I just didn't have the energy for it.

We talk about once a week. 2 of my gf lost their moms last year and were really affected by it -- and it hit me that I don't know what I'm gonna do when my mom isn't around anymore. I'm 56, and she's always been here for me. Always. Whether we are on good terms or bad at the moment. Even if I haven't seen her for 3 years, as I did at one point (but I was in touch by phone). I was not in Antarctica -- I was a 6 hour drive away (but, in my own defense, very poor to spend money on travel).

Writing this stuff makes me see how much I love my mom, and maybe need to express that to her instead of here. Now, that's a thought!