As much as July feels like it didn't really happen, I'm mentally preparing myself for August to be hard. My dad is going to Philadelphia this coming Tuesday and having his left hip replaced, which means a replay of April. It sucks most for him, no doubt about that, but my mom is already freaking out because she can't handle stress at all, and I'm just waiting for the chaos about to descend. At least this time my sister will be around for the whole time to take some of the brunt, and I can keep using my earbuds to drown out the shouting.

I'm seeing a lot of winter rentals coming up now, but I'm just going to have to bite the bullet and look at getting a car and an apartment regardless since another winter with four of us in this house is not happening unless absolutely necessary. I really don't want to go through the hassle of moving but it is the best option. In the meantime, I'm going to hope my dad's surgery goes well and the recovery is faster since it's being done with a different method than his right hip. Fingers crossed.