Shrimp and Cocktails

Or: Once More with Peeling

All I wanted was an hour or two of normal for my parents, so I called our family friends, Don and Susie, and invited them over for drinks, a few nibbles, and a bit of conversation one Sunday afternoon, just like my dad and stepmom used to do before everything fell apart.

The weeks leading up to our little party were a chaotic cocktail of fear, hospitali…