Thanks, guys. I've been stressing about this a lot, but I had a hilarious call tonight with my mother ...
She was terrifyingly abusive to me and my 3 sibs all through childhood/adolescence - the source of my bear phobias. She's a narcissist and now lives alone, secure in her view of how everyone has treated her badly.
So I called her to let her know, and she was totally perky and upbeat. It can't be anything, because no one else in the family (read: her) has had this; so it can't be anything major. Her mother had a benign tumor once, so this won't be anything either. More narcissistic stuff that I really shouldn't make public.
Anyway ... a little humor from unexpected (or expected) sources never hurts, right?
On the upside, I'm trying out some new healthy recipes. Made a fantastic Thai soup tonight. Yumm.