I miss home.

I want to be around my family and my house and dog. They make me happy and I am missing them terribly.

Still, I think it's done us all good to have me away. I am definitely difficult to live with. It's also nice to know that we're all okay even though we've experienced this unusual family situation. That's a sign of a strong family. I am so lucky to have what I have.

I don't really think absence makes the heart grow fonder. I think absence just reminds us of what is important in life. It's so easy to take the important stuff for granted. I am grateful that I've been given this opportunity to experience what I hadn't experienced before. Living on my own and doing what needed doing is important. When I go home I will do so with the realization that I can do a lot on my own. I know now that I have the courage to do what needs doing without getting help from others.

If I stick it out for the duration of the school year, I will have overcome the biggest obstacle I'd ever faced in my professional career. Moving out here helped me deal with the nutty phobias I'd started having.

But I'm finished with this stint. It's time to go home to the place that is like me. I'm tired of trying to fit in. And I don't ever want to live in a republican state again.