And that wasn't all...

I was pretty sure that my life was going to settle down once all the twenty/thiry-somethings cleared out and I could get back to something close to routine, until another message popped up on my instant messenger:

Does my sister still have my car?

Yes.

What's Prince Charming's phone number?

555.555.5555

A couple of beats later, my phone rang. Darling Daughter on the other end:

"I'm in Soldier Son's car and I've looked all over, but I can't find his meal ticket."

Meal ticket? Now we're looking for a meal ticket?

DD has borrowed SS's car on Monday so she and PC could visit his family and friends down the road, and SS was pretty sure he had left the meal ticket somewhere in it. I'm not too sure why the US military still issues badly laminated meal tickets to soldiers (our university has had swipe stripes on student ID cards for years for campus purchases), but sure enough, SS had left home without his.

I had seen it. Somewhere. I had been in his car, and it could easily enough have been in his console. I also had been in his room, which we had ransacked in the early hours of Sunday morning, and it could have been in there. One other place came to mind.

Text to Number One Son, who was home from class:

SS has lost his meal ticket. See if it's on the marble top dresser.

Seconds later, the response:

I've got it in my hand.

Ours may be the only university in the country with an airport on its property, although I suppose others may have fully functioning, stand-alone post offices. I swung by on the way into the office this afternoon to express-mail the lunch card.

I'm really proud of my soldier, but the one who forgot his lunch card? That one's still my son!