Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.

[job]

hrm,
Your h isn' crazy, but he's growing up! The terrible teens are very difficult on parents because it's a time when the children are trying on different personas to see which one will be the final fit. Your h is doing the same thing. For example the beard...he stated that he had never had one and wanted to try it. The next thing will be a different hair style, tattoos or something more drastic. So, it's his way of trying to determine what persona is best for him. I'm sure he looked funny as heck.

Have you noticed how he's starting to sit in the room and watch tv w/you and have normal conversations? That is because he finally got off his chest what had been building up for months, i.e., divorcing/leaving you. Since you've not hounded him about it, he feels safe in being around you. He tested you and you passed! LOL!

As for friends and co-workers, he compartmentalizes the various areas of his life and eventually, people are going to figure him out and come to realize that he's in crisis. They can't hide the emotional behavior for very long.

I'm sorry about your FIL, but I think it's a good idea for him to move closer to your area. At least someone will be fairly close to check on him, if need be.

I love Once Upon a Time. Did you see the episode Sunday night? It gets better and better each week with the storybook characters.

I hope your friend doesn't attempt to over do it. No matter how simple the surgery, you still need recovery time for your body to heal.

Please take care of yourself.