middleofthepond: What a great story about your parents. I really like what you said about counting "ourselves lucky when we succeed in letting a reader in on what we see," and also your point about "inadvertent confusion" not being "inherently a failure." Watching real dialogue emerge from the mess is indeed the most gratifying part of blogging—and one of life's most gratifying experiences, too.

Chuck: Thanks, as always, for being a faithful reader and encouraging friend in my blogging endeavor.