Replete

Ants come in many varieties; honey ants are particularly interesting because among their various forms is a type called repletes. The repletes have extra large capacity abdomens that can swell to several times their body size. This anatomy allows them to transfer nectar. The workers are repletes because they are replete--filled to capacity and seemingly beyond. Our lives can be replete, too. On any given day, responsibilities, opportunities, and commitments can pile up and overflow the 16, 17, or 18 hours allotted by the day/night cycle and the need for sleep. Today is replete with good things. My mother is visiting from San Bruno, arriving yesterday afternoon on a flight from SFO. After dinner last night we drove to Irvine's Great Park (under construction, therefore only semi-great) to dance to a live swing band. This morning we will head to Laguna Beach where Stephanie and my mother will sensibly set up chairs on the beach at Shaw's Cover, sip hot coffee, and watch two mad men submerge in scuba gear and re-emerge 45 minutes later. After lunch we will meet up with Hilly and Allison and drive to La Jolla to enjoy the company of Kiely, Bob, Amy and James. I'm told that barbecued steaks are on the menu. Replete, indeed. The honey ants got one thing right: They filled up on nectar.