I haven't been able to write about this much yet because although it seems silly, but it's still painful to talk about. On the flight back from the DICE Summit, I lost my DS--which had sentimental value for me because my boy gave it to me for Valentine's Day. But more crushingly, the DS had in it my copy of Animal Crossing: Wild World, and my town, to which I had become greatly attached.

After all, I was about 10,000 bells away from paying off my third mortgage.

I had caught all the fish for winter, including the rare one that shows up only when it snows or rains, and had selflessly donated them to the museum. I had bred the purple tulip and was on my way to getting the rare black tulip.

I had collected the "exotic" set of furniture. I had decorated my cozy little house with bonsai trees. I had a "music room" with my favorite gyroids. I had I had gotten pictures from my dearest animal friends, Aurora and Pompom and Dizzy and even the snobby Maelle and Baabara. I'd made a killing on the speculative turnip market. I'd carefully cultivated friendships, writing flattering notes like clockwork twice a day.

I won the fishing tourney.

And most of all, I had the satisfaction of watching my town grow over the winter, with new flowers blooming and every kind of fruit dripping from the trees in my orchards; I loved my town theme song, I designed my town flag; in every way, I had made it my town.

I only hope that somewhere a sympathetic stranger has picked up my DS, turned it on, and has marveled at the fact that I have a golden watering can. Perhaps that kindly stranger will act as a guardian of my town, picking weeds and watering the flowers, posing as me to my animal friends to keep them happy.