If you came here looking for your daily laugh - you might want to just move on - to another blog. One that's funny. Because it won't be found here - not today.
Today I met my mom for coffee. We stayed at the coffee shop for 2.5 hours. Talking. Like two adult women. Admiring each other and the words that rolled off our tongues. Equals. (and she gave me a Satin Hands set - which was very much needed!)
Today I talked to my dad on the phone. About artichokes. And his upcoming birthday.
Today I drove the brunette to her first "job". And released her to the care of someone, who 3 years ago, I did not even know existed. Someone that has, in time, grown to be my sister. Even the blonde says "you two are sisters."
Today I missed the prodigal son. And I prayed he was okay and would make wise decisions. And when my dad asked me about buying the prodigal son something, I respectfully replied with, "that's between the two of you - he is an adult now - I am not going to determine what his needs are."
Today I made dinner for my husband and the blonde. And we enjoyed that dinner - just the three of us. Talking. And the blonde asked me to tell her stories about when I was a little girl, her age. And I told her that I remembered everything about the house in which we lived when I was her age. And she eagerly asked me to tell her all about it. And I did. (she was seemingly unimpressed, by the way). But I am still breath-taken by that time in my life.
The times when everyone got along. Laughter filled our home. Friends were abundant. My parents were filled with youth, and hope, and friendship.....
And it occurred to me - today - I could NOT be happier with the decisions we have made regarding our life. Where we live. The friends we have made. The journey we are on. The memories we are making. The home we have created.
It's not a full moon. And I don't think I have PMS. So I'm not sure why I'm so reflective today. But I am. I am not regretful of the past, but instead happy about where the path has led me. To this place. The place where the blonde serves as frisbee dog to the husband and I isolate myself in the house to write this post. Okay wait - that's fucked up. I'll put that on my list of shit to work on.
But I do remember the day we drove back into my home town - to take possession of our house. And it hit me - total sadness. Here I am. Back. To the shit hole town in which I was raised. Never in a million years did I dream I would be back - owning a home here - raising my family here. And NEVER in a million years did I dream I would meet the beautiful people I have met and kindle friendships like those I've come to have in such a short time.
I am blessed. And I am happy.
UPDATE: Just listening to The Talking Heads and the song "And She Was" came on. The husband gets teary eyed (because it's a sappy song, right) and says to me, "This song reminds me of you." Ummm - WHY? "Because - 'the world was moving and she was right there with it...'" Funny. To hear how other people perceive you. But I'm flattered. And I'm again blessed. I wonder if he's the only person that sees me this way? I don't see myself that way. "right there with it" - I see myself as running to keep pace. Fighting the demons that plague me. Swallowing the guilt of a past that threatens to ruin me on a daily basis. Maybe I should just listen to the husband and be "right there with it."
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Still in the running.... for Mother of the Year!
I survived Homecoming last week. If you recall, I was putting my foot down against bullshit plans that involved 10+ girls, their parents, their dates and their dates' parents. I won that battle and in the end it worked out just fine because the brunette's date had to clean up the football stadium after the game anyway and therefore couldn't retrieve her until after 10:00. Yes. That's what I said. He had to clean up the football stadium.
See, our high school puts that task out there to extra-curricular and athletic groups as a fund raising opportunity. And I have NOTHING against that at all. What I do NOT understand is WHY the sponsors make those groups tackle that chore ON Homecoming night. The game ran late (10:00 I think), then they had to clean the shit up, then change into their good clothes and THEN pick up dates and THEN try to get to the dance before lockdown. So they were at the dance for what? And hour? Maybe 1/2 hour? The brunette went through this shit last year on Homecoming. So I sent a lovely letter to the cheerleading sponsor regarding the entire ordeal. It's stupid. Those stands can be cleaned up the next morning. As a parent who spends money on dresses and things FOR dances - I'm less than appreciative of the fact that they don't get to wear them or stay at the dance for very long. When I did some prying, I found out it's the wrestling coach I need to go after this year. And I intend to do so. Dumbass.
Anyway - I'm pretty sure I'm going to get mother-of-the-year afterall! Because even though I told the brunette, "no" to her Homecoming plans, yesterday she asked me if she could sleep in a box on the football field this coming weekend and quickly replied with an affirmative answer. YES! Get ready at your friend's house and take pictures? NO. Sleep in a box on the football field? YES. You may. What all do you need? Tell me all about it! It's part of some class or something - to teach themto be homeless what it's like to be homeless. She handed me some information from school on the event and as I was reading through it - it really sounded like a lot of fun! They're going to build box mansions and decorate them. Then they'll have a contest to see who can put ont the most layers of clothing and still walk. And also, wait for it..... dumpster diving! Oh! And a scavenger hunt - for food hidden around the stadium. They're so smart! It will be JUST LIKE BEING HOMELESS!!!
Because being homeless and living in a box is just that much fucking fun! Every minute is like a game - a contest to see who can have the biggest box, and wear the most clothes and dumpsters are only filled with wadded up newspaper. And sometime during the evening, a guest speaker will arrive - once one is found. What.The.Fuck. Are they going to just walk the streets and find a homeless person that night and bring them over to speak to the kids? What the hell does that even mean? Once one is found. I'd like to know when the shopping cart races are going to be held, personally.
In the end though, all the money and canned goods they collect will be donated, so it's all for a good cause. But I really think they're just glorifying and in some ways mocking the whole homeless issue. Why not put them on a bus and just cruise the streets of our town at 10:00 at night? Drive down by the river. Let them see for themselves how these people have to live. A real dose of reality.
Oh well. What do I care? I'll be busy admiring my trophy because I said YES to the plans!
See, our high school puts that task out there to extra-curricular and athletic groups as a fund raising opportunity. And I have NOTHING against that at all. What I do NOT understand is WHY the sponsors make those groups tackle that chore ON Homecoming night. The game ran late (10:00 I think), then they had to clean the shit up, then change into their good clothes and THEN pick up dates and THEN try to get to the dance before lockdown. So they were at the dance for what? And hour? Maybe 1/2 hour? The brunette went through this shit last year on Homecoming. So I sent a lovely letter to the cheerleading sponsor regarding the entire ordeal. It's stupid. Those stands can be cleaned up the next morning. As a parent who spends money on dresses and things FOR dances - I'm less than appreciative of the fact that they don't get to wear them or stay at the dance for very long. When I did some prying, I found out it's the wrestling coach I need to go after this year. And I intend to do so. Dumbass.
Anyway - I'm pretty sure I'm going to get mother-of-the-year afterall! Because even though I told the brunette, "no" to her Homecoming plans, yesterday she asked me if she could sleep in a box on the football field this coming weekend and quickly replied with an affirmative answer. YES! Get ready at your friend's house and take pictures? NO. Sleep in a box on the football field? YES. You may. What all do you need? Tell me all about it! It's part of some class or something - to teach them
Because being homeless and living in a box is just that much fucking fun! Every minute is like a game - a contest to see who can have the biggest box, and wear the most clothes and dumpsters are only filled with wadded up newspaper. And sometime during the evening, a guest speaker will arrive - once one is found. What.The.Fuck. Are they going to just walk the streets and find a homeless person that night and bring them over to speak to the kids? What the hell does that even mean? Once one is found. I'd like to know when the shopping cart races are going to be held, personally.
In the end though, all the money and canned goods they collect will be donated, so it's all for a good cause. But I really think they're just glorifying and in some ways mocking the whole homeless issue. Why not put them on a bus and just cruise the streets of our town at 10:00 at night? Drive down by the river. Let them see for themselves how these people have to live. A real dose of reality.
Oh well. What do I care? I'll be busy admiring my trophy because I said YES to the plans!
Monday, September 27, 2010
I'm FAMOUS!
Or something like that. Almost. Sort of! Well, in a way.
You see, I submitted one of my past blog entries to Mushroom Printing & it was published!!! You can find it here:
http://www.mushroomprinting.com/author/givethewomanherxanaxnow
I posted under a different name so as to not be able to be tracked back to here - although I don't exactly remember the reason why. Likely fearful that the editors of Mushroom Printing would trace me back to here, read all my horrendous entries and determine I was unworthy of being published on their amazing blog!
Although now I see that there is a comment and the commenter said she was laughing - but NOT because it was funny. Fuck her. It was too funny. At the time. When I wrote it back in March. It was hysterical. But now, maybe not so much.
You see, I submitted one of my past blog entries to Mushroom Printing & it was published!!! You can find it here:
http://www.mushroomprinting.com/author/givethewomanherxanaxnow
I posted under a different name so as to not be able to be tracked back to here - although I don't exactly remember the reason why. Likely fearful that the editors of Mushroom Printing would trace me back to here, read all my horrendous entries and determine I was unworthy of being published on their amazing blog!
Although now I see that there is a comment and the commenter said she was laughing - but NOT because it was funny. Fuck her. It was too funny. At the time. When I wrote it back in March. It was hysterical. But now, maybe not so much.
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Dances with Wolves
YO! I'm here! Sorry to leave you hanging again. I seem to go in spurts with the posts. My apologies. I get side tracked. By life. And as I'm actually living my life, rather than blogging about it, I see funny things along the way and think, "I'm going to blog about that!" and then I contrive a story in my head and it's funny as hell and I know y'all will be entertained. And then life keeps going and I keep getting in the midst of it all (life and living) and when I find the time to actually sit and write, I forget all the stories I was going to tell you. None of it seems that entertaining anymore.
This week has been filled with drama. It's homecoming week. The brunette actually has a male date for the dance. Her first. (male date that I'm aware of, not dance). I'm familiar with the bloke as he's been here before and I've seen him at other people's houses. He's a nice kid. Race car driver. I try to make that into a positive thing - ya know - he knows how to handle a car at 114 mph, surely he can transport my daughter safely around at 40 mph. And he's been driving since he was 2. And now he's 16 (or maybe 17) - so he's got tons of driving experience. Right? (Just nod your head so I'll feel better please and thank you.)
Well, some smart ass 15 year old gets the brilliant idea to have 10 girls out to her house to get ready for the dance. And then ALL of the boys can retrieve their dates from that house and ALL of the parents can come out there to take pictures. HUH? No. The boy can retrieve you from YOUR house. That's the way it works. And besides that, it's asinine to have that many girls getting ready at one house. I don't give a shit how huge the house is. And I should likely call the mother and cuss her out. Well, because I like to win battles and knew I was going to lose this one due to the fact that I was the only person on my side, I quickly rallied my troup and called for back up. Fortunately my troup was feeling the same way I was so we devised a different plan for our two girls. A compromise, if you will. And we delivered it - amazed at our brilliance and touting our leniency and flexibility... and.....
we got tears. door slamming. book throwing. hateful tones. But we got on our cell phones and texted until our fingers bled and our eyes went crossed and gave each other strength and in the end - we had stood our ground and the forces of two became greater than the forces of 10 and we won. It's homecoming. It's their sophomore year. It's not freakin' prom (which by the way has the pomp and circumstance which is 12 times greater than all my weddings combined). I'm not driving around for 2 hours to get a damned picture of the brunette on her way to a dance that will last all of 90 minutes if that. I paid $100 for the dress and accessories (they don't yet wear shoes to these dances or that bill would be higher yet), I want a picture of her in it. Without having to clamor over 30 other parents to get it. Without having to park in the back 40 and walk 5 miles to get it. And I want to be able to give that boy "the look" without him being distracted by 10 other pretty girls in short dresses while I give it.
That's all I want. The brunette accused me of making a big deal out of it. Seriously? I'm not the one who wants to travel the earth and back with 10 friends to put on some make-up and a pretty dress and go to a dance. She told me the whole point was to get ready together. Really? I thought the whole point was to go to the damned dance. That's why I forked over the money for a dress. If I'd known the whole point was to play dress up with friends all night, I'd have just offered to have a slumber party, purchased 180 pizza rolls at Sams and been done with it. Who knew.
In my day we didn't travel in packs (at least I didn't). If we had a date for a dance, we got ready at our respective homes and our dates retrieved us. Our parents took the one obligatory picture in front of the fire place and we left to meet our friends. I don't even think my parents knew who my friends were and they certainly never met any of the other parents. (oh and we NEVER wore pretty short dresses to Homecoming - we wore WOOL SUITS).
I don't necessarily agree with the olden day approach, and prefer that my kids allow me to be involved in their lives and even feel special when they want me to meet their friends' parents and socialize with them. It's like a message of "hey! you're pretty cool! meet the fockers!" But there are just some times when I don't feel all the extravagance is necessary and they're getting ahead of themselves. This was one of those times. And I will forever be hated for it.... Until the brunette has a 15 year old daughter of her own- and then she will likely question my judgment for even letting her GO to this dance with a boy. And I will become that mother - the one who didn't even give a shit enough to know that it was a bad idea to begin with.
This week has been filled with drama. It's homecoming week. The brunette actually has a male date for the dance. Her first. (male date that I'm aware of, not dance). I'm familiar with the bloke as he's been here before and I've seen him at other people's houses. He's a nice kid. Race car driver. I try to make that into a positive thing - ya know - he knows how to handle a car at 114 mph, surely he can transport my daughter safely around at 40 mph. And he's been driving since he was 2. And now he's 16 (or maybe 17) - so he's got tons of driving experience. Right? (Just nod your head so I'll feel better please and thank you.)
Well, some smart ass 15 year old gets the brilliant idea to have 10 girls out to her house to get ready for the dance. And then ALL of the boys can retrieve their dates from that house and ALL of the parents can come out there to take pictures. HUH? No. The boy can retrieve you from YOUR house. That's the way it works. And besides that, it's asinine to have that many girls getting ready at one house. I don't give a shit how huge the house is. And I should likely call the mother and cuss her out. Well, because I like to win battles and knew I was going to lose this one due to the fact that I was the only person on my side, I quickly rallied my troup and called for back up. Fortunately my troup was feeling the same way I was so we devised a different plan for our two girls. A compromise, if you will. And we delivered it - amazed at our brilliance and touting our leniency and flexibility... and.....
we got tears. door slamming. book throwing. hateful tones. But we got on our cell phones and texted until our fingers bled and our eyes went crossed and gave each other strength and in the end - we had stood our ground and the forces of two became greater than the forces of 10 and we won. It's homecoming. It's their sophomore year. It's not freakin' prom (which by the way has the pomp and circumstance which is 12 times greater than all my weddings combined). I'm not driving around for 2 hours to get a damned picture of the brunette on her way to a dance that will last all of 90 minutes if that. I paid $100 for the dress and accessories (they don't yet wear shoes to these dances or that bill would be higher yet), I want a picture of her in it. Without having to clamor over 30 other parents to get it. Without having to park in the back 40 and walk 5 miles to get it. And I want to be able to give that boy "the look" without him being distracted by 10 other pretty girls in short dresses while I give it.
That's all I want. The brunette accused me of making a big deal out of it. Seriously? I'm not the one who wants to travel the earth and back with 10 friends to put on some make-up and a pretty dress and go to a dance. She told me the whole point was to get ready together. Really? I thought the whole point was to go to the damned dance. That's why I forked over the money for a dress. If I'd known the whole point was to play dress up with friends all night, I'd have just offered to have a slumber party, purchased 180 pizza rolls at Sams and been done with it. Who knew.
In my day we didn't travel in packs (at least I didn't). If we had a date for a dance, we got ready at our respective homes and our dates retrieved us. Our parents took the one obligatory picture in front of the fire place and we left to meet our friends. I don't even think my parents knew who my friends were and they certainly never met any of the other parents. (oh and we NEVER wore pretty short dresses to Homecoming - we wore WOOL SUITS).
I don't necessarily agree with the olden day approach, and prefer that my kids allow me to be involved in their lives and even feel special when they want me to meet their friends' parents and socialize with them. It's like a message of "hey! you're pretty cool! meet the fockers!" But there are just some times when I don't feel all the extravagance is necessary and they're getting ahead of themselves. This was one of those times. And I will forever be hated for it.... Until the brunette has a 15 year old daughter of her own- and then she will likely question my judgment for even letting her GO to this dance with a boy. And I will become that mother - the one who didn't even give a shit enough to know that it was a bad idea to begin with.
Monday, September 20, 2010
Stalkers Crash My Party
Saturday we celebrated the blonde's 8th birthday. The prodigal son blew into town and blessed us with his presence. For all of about a total of one and half hours. The blonde called bullshit on his visit and proclaimed her irritation with him and that he really wasn't here for her at all but instead was out running around with his friends. She's mature beyond her years in that regard. We took her to play putt putt - but she didn't want to play just any old putt putt - she wanted to play Goony Golf. So off we went, to the Goony Golf place -where we were greeted with about 1,000 or more Latinos. Which was fine - I don't mind Latinos - I really don't. But clearly there was some type of private Latino party going on - big tents off to the side, a band, raffle drawings underway, etc. And 700 non-English speaking Latino children - all of whom had been given a ball and a putter and left to their own to run free on the Goony Golf course.
The whole "I want to play at the place with the animals and obstacles" really took on a new meaning that day. Just as one of us would get ready to putt our ball, up would run a little child and putt it for us. Just as we would walk down to the hole to see how shitty great our initial putt was, up would run another child and steal our ball. If we were eyeballing the course's intended obstacle and getting the timing down on the pendulum, the next time we glanced up - a child would be swinging from the clock instead. Pretty soon our patience was running out and we had no choice to start taking control and barking out orders at these children - "It's NOT your turn - it's OUR turn - you get to the end of the line" and the husband would stand back and say, "You're AFTER ME". And the little defiant children would just stand there - sad. And then run up and hit one of our balls and then run on to terrorize some other family in the place.
The blonde was horrified. And I was pissed. I think I might write a letter to the owner of the place. Clearly it was a huge private party - which was fine - but they really ought not to have also had the place open to the public. Greedy fuckers.
We then retired to the comforts of our own home and set out to have dinner and the blonde was having her BFF over for the night- Litte Miss "Can I Have". But then, all of a sudden, the party was totally crashed by a group of my fans - stalkers:
Yep. There they are - my fans. I couldn't get them to sit still long enough to take their actual picture - so instead I had to put my crazy awesome Doodlebuddy skills to work to draw this portrait of them. And they're all "We brought you a present." And I thought they meant it was a present for the blonde since it was her birthday - but when I looked at it and saw it was a bottle of booze, I was all What.the.fuck. The blonde is only 7 still - she can't drink this booze. So I had to drink it. Another let down for the blonde on her birthday. Not only did her beloved brother totally skip out on her - her mom drank her present.
3 of the 4 sat nicely in the chairs we provided them in the garage, but they had been out drinking all afternoon and clearly those 3 had been taking advantage of the other and serving her god knows what because she was totally fucked up and was all "look at me!" - And when I looked over, I'm like What.The.Fuck:
You cannot do fucking majorette tricks in my garage on the blonde's birthday. And why the fuck did you bring all those Latinos over here? That's bullshit. I don't care if you do have the boots for the gig - sit your ass down and stop doing tricks. So she did and just kind of stood there in her chair the rest of the night looking like this:
But with blonde hair. And a cigarette in her hand. Oh and just as quickly after the stormed the place and totally took over my show, they decided to leave to go to iHop for some pancakes. Because nothing sounds better than a giant stack of fucking pancakes and syrup after you've been drinking for 8 hours. Fuck that. I made them some nachos instead and insisted they just eat (because you see - I'm the fucking hostess with the mostess) - but one kept crying for pancakes so I grabbed a stack out of the freezer, warmed them up and served them to her. But she didn't really want the pancakes afterall because she had her face planted in the bowl of nacho cheese and was lapping it up like rabid dog.
So the plate of pancakes really became more of a game of hot potato. Who would eat the pancakes? And around they went - from one stalker to the next - finally one started eating them but then the other yells out "you can't eat that - you're allergic to sugar. Do you have any benadryl on hand?" Seriously? Just what I need is a stalker with anaphylaxis laying on my garage floor. Hold on - I keep an epi pen right here in this drawer JUST FOR OCCASIONS like this. I kept begging her to just put the fucking pancakes down - my feelings would NOT be hurt if they weren't eaten - seriously. It wasn't that big of a deal. It was like 2 rubbery pancakes that I'd zapped in the microwave for 2 minutes. Not a big deal. Crazy assed stalker-fans. Willing to risk their lives to spare my feelings. I felt honored. Yet somewhat like a dumbass that I'd even served her that plate of death. Somehow she survived though - so I'm guessing that her "allergy to sugar and alcohol" was likely some contrived bullshit story she put together at some time when it served to benefit her to feign illness.
We somehow managed to talk shit on everyone and everything - even each other. In front of each other. It was very cathartic. And once we all felt amply cleansed, the wild ass loaded back into their car and leaving their booze behind in my fridge, they took off down the road. Just like that. Gone. Leaving me to just sit there and wonder what.the.fuck had just happened. I bet this is the kind of shit that drove Britney Spears to her insanity. All this fame from writing this blog - it makes people hunt you down and seek you out and clearly at first you feel all special and glamorous from the attention - and then one day - you just fucking snap. I suddenly had an urge to shave my head, but then found the inner strength to resist and instead just called it a night. I'm pretty sure the blonde will forever be scarred by the memories of her 8th birthday. Which is good - because it will help her heal from those she got from her 6th &; 7th birthdays.
P.S. I totally had a blast and loved seeing my fans!
P.P.S. - I totally accidentally posted this entry on my OTHER blog - you know -the nice one. I can only imagine the look on the face of the 3 followers of that blog when they read this. Oh wait - y'all are one in the same.
The whole "I want to play at the place with the animals and obstacles" really took on a new meaning that day. Just as one of us would get ready to putt our ball, up would run a little child and putt it for us. Just as we would walk down to the hole to see how shitty great our initial putt was, up would run another child and steal our ball. If we were eyeballing the course's intended obstacle and getting the timing down on the pendulum, the next time we glanced up - a child would be swinging from the clock instead. Pretty soon our patience was running out and we had no choice to start taking control and barking out orders at these children - "It's NOT your turn - it's OUR turn - you get to the end of the line" and the husband would stand back and say, "You're AFTER ME". And the little defiant children would just stand there - sad. And then run up and hit one of our balls and then run on to terrorize some other family in the place.
The blonde was horrified. And I was pissed. I think I might write a letter to the owner of the place. Clearly it was a huge private party - which was fine - but they really ought not to have also had the place open to the public. Greedy fuckers.
We then retired to the comforts of our own home and set out to have dinner and the blonde was having her BFF over for the night- Litte Miss "Can I Have". But then, all of a sudden, the party was totally crashed by a group of my fans - stalkers:
3 of the 4 sat nicely in the chairs we provided them in the garage, but they had been out drinking all afternoon and clearly those 3 had been taking advantage of the other and serving her god knows what because she was totally fucked up and was all "look at me!" - And when I looked over, I'm like What.The.Fuck:
You cannot do fucking majorette tricks in my garage on the blonde's birthday. And why the fuck did you bring all those Latinos over here? That's bullshit. I don't care if you do have the boots for the gig - sit your ass down and stop doing tricks. So she did and just kind of stood there in her chair the rest of the night looking like this:
But with blonde hair. And a cigarette in her hand. Oh and just as quickly after the stormed the place and totally took over my show, they decided to leave to go to iHop for some pancakes. Because nothing sounds better than a giant stack of fucking pancakes and syrup after you've been drinking for 8 hours. Fuck that. I made them some nachos instead and insisted they just eat (because you see - I'm the fucking hostess with the mostess) - but one kept crying for pancakes so I grabbed a stack out of the freezer, warmed them up and served them to her. But she didn't really want the pancakes afterall because she had her face planted in the bowl of nacho cheese and was lapping it up like rabid dog.
So the plate of pancakes really became more of a game of hot potato. Who would eat the pancakes? And around they went - from one stalker to the next - finally one started eating them but then the other yells out "you can't eat that - you're allergic to sugar. Do you have any benadryl on hand?" Seriously? Just what I need is a stalker with anaphylaxis laying on my garage floor. Hold on - I keep an epi pen right here in this drawer JUST FOR OCCASIONS like this. I kept begging her to just put the fucking pancakes down - my feelings would NOT be hurt if they weren't eaten - seriously. It wasn't that big of a deal. It was like 2 rubbery pancakes that I'd zapped in the microwave for 2 minutes. Not a big deal. Crazy assed stalker-fans. Willing to risk their lives to spare my feelings. I felt honored. Yet somewhat like a dumbass that I'd even served her that plate of death. Somehow she survived though - so I'm guessing that her "allergy to sugar and alcohol" was likely some contrived bullshit story she put together at some time when it served to benefit her to feign illness.
We somehow managed to talk shit on everyone and everything - even each other. In front of each other. It was very cathartic. And once we all felt amply cleansed, the wild ass loaded back into their car and leaving their booze behind in my fridge, they took off down the road. Just like that. Gone. Leaving me to just sit there and wonder what.the.fuck had just happened. I bet this is the kind of shit that drove Britney Spears to her insanity. All this fame from writing this blog - it makes people hunt you down and seek you out and clearly at first you feel all special and glamorous from the attention - and then one day - you just fucking snap. I suddenly had an urge to shave my head, but then found the inner strength to resist and instead just called it a night. I'm pretty sure the blonde will forever be scarred by the memories of her 8th birthday. Which is good - because it will help her heal from those she got from her 6th &; 7th birthdays.
P.S. I totally had a blast and loved seeing my fans!
P.P.S. - I totally accidentally posted this entry on my OTHER blog - you know -the nice one. I can only imagine the look on the face of the 3 followers of that blog when they read this. Oh wait - y'all are one in the same.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
I'll Pick Your Friends from Now on Sweetie - Trust Me
So the other night I came home from a stressful afternoon at work the mall, only to discover the husband had allowed the blonde to invite the Branch Davidians over to play. It's odd, them being Branch Davidians and also being allowed to leave the comforts of their compound home and come to ours to play - but they must be a new age of Davidians that allows such things or something. But I know they are because the first time they came over to play, one of them hunted me down outside to grill me about my wicked ways.
I was standing on the side of the garage, casually smoking a cigarette, out of their sight. Or so I thought. And then - that's when it happened - AMBUSHED by the youngest.
"Why did you just put fire in your mouth?"
HUH?
"Fire. Why do you put fire in your mouth?"
It was clear to me at that moment they were Branch Davidians incognito. I mean fuck. What 5 year old isn't familiar with smoking? The blonde has been lighting my cigarettes for me since she was 2. Had she really never seen anyone smoke and does she really think I'm putting fire in my mouth? Clearly I'm not - I'm inhaling deathly poison into my lungs - but it has nothing to do with putting fire in my mouth. I had no choice but to enlighten the poor little thing and fill her in on the truths of life. "Well sweetie, We're in the circus - I'm a flame thrower and I'm currently practicing - now please - back up out of the way - you're in the path of the midget being shot of a cannon."
She ran off, back into the house - completely mortified.
The next time I had the pleasure of seeing the Branch Davidians, the husband had invited them along to a softball game. Only they had no interest in the game and instead wanted to whine and beg for shit. Odd behavior for the Davidians, I admit. But clearly this is how Davidians behave whenreleased from their compound allowed to travel with non-Davidians. And then I lost one of them. Gone. In a flash. Fucking Davidians. Always have been a pain in my ass. Remember when the fuckers locked themselves down and allowed themselves to be gassed by the government in 1993. Genius. So I had no choice but to go look for her, I didn't want her mother calling in their moronic leader and gassing me. Finally I found her. On a different ball diamond. Sitting on the bench, looking very melancholy. I can't stand a melancholy 7 year old, so I did what any caring, motherly type would do.
I turned to the blonde and said, "What.the.fuck. is wrong with her?" The blonde informed me that the older Davidian was sad because she used to play T-ball and now didn't and she was just sitting on the bench - thinking back on her T-ball days. Oh fuck me. She's fucking 7 years old. Are you fucking kidding me? So again, keeping in the spirit of mother-of-the-year as always, I turned to the blonde and said, "I don't have time for her shit - you tell her to get her ass off that bench and get back to our field STAT and furthermore - tell her there is going to be a lot more shit in her life that she mourns for and eventually she'll forget about her one fucking season at T-ball." I rock at motherhood - and nurturing children. I should totally write a book to help others who aren't as fortunate in these natural talents.
So you can only image my delight at finding them in my house after returning from theseventh depth of hell mall the other night. I got out of the car and found the husband standing in the garage chugging down a pounder of beer and looking very frazzled. Because I not only am a nurturing mother, but also wife, I obviously showed him the sympathy he deserved. "Really? You're the one that invited the fucking freaks over here - not me. When are they leaving? In about 3 minutes?" Nope - he had agreed to let them stay until 7 p.m. FUCK. That meant dinner and me acting like I gave a shit about their needs. So I trudged into the house - and was met by a fucking band of wild banshees - screaming and whooping and hollering - and swilling back soda pop. I receded back to the garage - "WHAT.THE.FUCK. YOU LET THE DAVIDIANS DRINK SODA? JESUS H. CHRIST MAN - WHAT.THE.FUCK ARE YOU THINKING?"
They were like those goddammed Gremlins that got fed after midnight. They were crazy asses - jumping on my furniture, screaming and doing cartwheels around my house. Clearly we had to quickly reverse this unforgiveable error made by the husband. So we quickly threw together some boxed orange food and chicken lips stuffed in casings, threw some fruit on the plate for good measure and brought them to the table to eat. Well this one likes ketchup AND mustard and this one likes her hot dog plain and this one doesn't like blueberries and that one is allergic to blueberries. And Shut.The.Fuck.Up and just EAT. And so they did and all of a sudden - it was like eating with a group of wildebeast. The lip smacking that proceeded throughout the meal was overwhelming. The husband was laughing so hard at one point that he damned near choked. I kicked him hard under the table and he stopped the outbursting - but continued to laugh to himself and had tears running down his face. The brunette almost threw up and I could tell she was taken aback and totally grossed out because she ate her food quickly and dismissed herself from the room - which is very unusual for her. I was with the brunette. I just had to get the fuck out of the room.
At 7:00 sharp, I looked at the husband and announced - "7:00 - better load up your friends and get their asses home before they come looking for us - and please - try NOT to practice your circus tricks in front of them - it confuses them."
We asked the blonde recently who she wanted to have over for her upcoming birthday - she started to say the name of one of the Davidians - uhhhh- HELL NO. How about that one cute little thing who's parents we were drinking beer with the other night? She seems fun! Let's have her over! She's easily convinced - so no Davidians will be at the birthday celebration - THANK GOD.
I was standing on the side of the garage, casually smoking a cigarette, out of their sight. Or so I thought. And then - that's when it happened - AMBUSHED by the youngest.
"Why did you just put fire in your mouth?"
HUH?
"Fire. Why do you put fire in your mouth?"
It was clear to me at that moment they were Branch Davidians incognito. I mean fuck. What 5 year old isn't familiar with smoking? The blonde has been lighting my cigarettes for me since she was 2. Had she really never seen anyone smoke and does she really think I'm putting fire in my mouth? Clearly I'm not - I'm inhaling deathly poison into my lungs - but it has nothing to do with putting fire in my mouth. I had no choice but to enlighten the poor little thing and fill her in on the truths of life. "Well sweetie, We're in the circus - I'm a flame thrower and I'm currently practicing - now please - back up out of the way - you're in the path of the midget being shot of a cannon."
She ran off, back into the house - completely mortified.
The next time I had the pleasure of seeing the Branch Davidians, the husband had invited them along to a softball game. Only they had no interest in the game and instead wanted to whine and beg for shit. Odd behavior for the Davidians, I admit. But clearly this is how Davidians behave when
I turned to the blonde and said, "What.the.fuck. is wrong with her?" The blonde informed me that the older Davidian was sad because she used to play T-ball and now didn't and she was just sitting on the bench - thinking back on her T-ball days. Oh fuck me. She's fucking 7 years old. Are you fucking kidding me? So again, keeping in the spirit of mother-of-the-year as always, I turned to the blonde and said, "I don't have time for her shit - you tell her to get her ass off that bench and get back to our field STAT and furthermore - tell her there is going to be a lot more shit in her life that she mourns for and eventually she'll forget about her one fucking season at T-ball." I rock at motherhood - and nurturing children. I should totally write a book to help others who aren't as fortunate in these natural talents.
So you can only image my delight at finding them in my house after returning from the
They were like those goddammed Gremlins that got fed after midnight. They were crazy asses - jumping on my furniture, screaming and doing cartwheels around my house. Clearly we had to quickly reverse this unforgiveable error made by the husband. So we quickly threw together some boxed orange food and chicken lips stuffed in casings, threw some fruit on the plate for good measure and brought them to the table to eat. Well this one likes ketchup AND mustard and this one likes her hot dog plain and this one doesn't like blueberries and that one is allergic to blueberries. And Shut.The.Fuck.Up and just EAT. And so they did and all of a sudden - it was like eating with a group of wildebeast. The lip smacking that proceeded throughout the meal was overwhelming. The husband was laughing so hard at one point that he damned near choked. I kicked him hard under the table and he stopped the outbursting - but continued to laugh to himself and had tears running down his face. The brunette almost threw up and I could tell she was taken aback and totally grossed out because she ate her food quickly and dismissed herself from the room - which is very unusual for her. I was with the brunette. I just had to get the fuck out of the room.
At 7:00 sharp, I looked at the husband and announced - "7:00 - better load up your friends and get their asses home before they come looking for us - and please - try NOT to practice your circus tricks in front of them - it confuses them."
We asked the blonde recently who she wanted to have over for her upcoming birthday - she started to say the name of one of the Davidians - uhhhh- HELL NO. How about that one cute little thing who's parents we were drinking beer with the other night? She seems fun! Let's have her over! She's easily convinced - so no Davidians will be at the birthday celebration - THANK GOD.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Hi! My name is Dipshit and....
I'm an addict. That's right. An ADDICT.
There. I said it. Now I believe I can get on the road to recovery.
I'm not a drug addict (although I do find comfort in a Xanax here and there). Instead, I'm addicted to all things that divert my attention away from my family responsibilities. Oh. I get on the road to recovery now and again. About once a week, actually. Then immediately, I'm derailed. By work. Or blog reading. Or recipe browsing. Or texting. Or staring at the wall.
I'm especially fascinated with creeping on other people. Through Facebook. Through their blogs. Through other people. I once spent an entire DAY - ENTIRE DAY - look at Facebook photos of people I do not even friggin' know. Seriously. I don't lie people. It's sick. It's sick and it's wrong. It serves absolutely no purpose. And during that time, the blonde must have asked me the same question 12 times and each time I would respond, "What's that baby?"
It happened again last night - there I was browsing recipes. And she asked a question.
--Little child's voice in the background---
Me: What's that baby?
--Little child's voice in the background--
Me: Do what now honey?
--Little child's voice in the background--
Me: Goofy nonresponsive giggle
You get the picture - this went on for AT LEAST 10 minutes. Finally, she yelled: "MOMMA! I'm talking to you - LISTEN TO ME!"
I responded in my typical mother-of-the-year manner, "WHAT IS IT CHILD? I'M SO BUSY!" (read: sitting on my ass staring at this computer screen, creeping on other people and their recipes)
"I SAID, can I borrow a blanket and hang it up and make a tent and play under it?"
Negatory - it's bedtime now child. You should have asked momma that question earlier.
There. I said it. Now I believe I can get on the road to recovery.
I'm not a drug addict (although I do find comfort in a Xanax here and there). Instead, I'm addicted to all things that divert my attention away from my family responsibilities. Oh. I get on the road to recovery now and again. About once a week, actually. Then immediately, I'm derailed. By work. Or blog reading. Or recipe browsing. Or texting. Or staring at the wall.
I'm especially fascinated with creeping on other people. Through Facebook. Through their blogs. Through other people. I once spent an entire DAY - ENTIRE DAY - look at Facebook photos of people I do not even friggin' know. Seriously. I don't lie people. It's sick. It's sick and it's wrong. It serves absolutely no purpose. And during that time, the blonde must have asked me the same question 12 times and each time I would respond, "What's that baby?"
It happened again last night - there I was browsing recipes. And she asked a question.
--Little child's voice in the background---
Me: What's that baby?
--Little child's voice in the background--
Me: Do what now honey?
--Little child's voice in the background--
Me: Goofy nonresponsive giggle
You get the picture - this went on for AT LEAST 10 minutes. Finally, she yelled: "MOMMA! I'm talking to you - LISTEN TO ME!"
I responded in my typical mother-of-the-year manner, "WHAT IS IT CHILD? I'M SO BUSY!" (read: sitting on my ass staring at this computer screen, creeping on other people and their recipes)
"I SAID, can I borrow a blanket and hang it up and make a tent and play under it?"
Negatory - it's bedtime now child. You should have asked momma that question earlier.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Blogging Along
Before I started this lame excuse of a blog, I followed one blog. ONE blog. And talked about having my own - until I was blue in the face, actually. Now - somehow - I don't even know how - I have just "tripped" across some of the most amazing blogs. These people are witty. They are clever. They are hysterically funny. And they're awesome writers. And I feel small. And inept. And totally powerless against their amazingness.
So I read their blogs. And read them. And read them. I'd share them with you - but then you'd see how amazing they are and would never come back here because you'd know just how shitty this blog really is. Sorry. I'm selfish like that. These other bloggers have hundreds - maybe thousands of readers. I have like 10. I'm keeping you. All to myself.
Anywho - the big stink in the blogging world recently has been that this one blogger was found to have been stealing content from other blogs and posting it as her own. STEALING. And the amazing bloggers were pissed. TOTALLY pissed. They commented on every one of their blogs about the wretched thief. They banded together (because they are not selfish and stingy like me) and they attacked the plagarizing liar. Many of them would not provide the link to the falsified/stolen blog because they didn't want to drive up her traffic and give her the satisfaction - but finally I found the link (the whole ordeal was sort of like Real Housewives of the Innernets) - and I dug through her material - reading it - reading the comments where she was being called out on her thievery - and I was pissed. Infuriated.
NOT ONE SINGLE POST OF HERS HAD BEEN STOLEN FROM MY CONTENT. Bitch.
So I read their blogs. And read them. And read them. I'd share them with you - but then you'd see how amazing they are and would never come back here because you'd know just how shitty this blog really is. Sorry. I'm selfish like that. These other bloggers have hundreds - maybe thousands of readers. I have like 10. I'm keeping you. All to myself.
Anywho - the big stink in the blogging world recently has been that this one blogger was found to have been stealing content from other blogs and posting it as her own. STEALING. And the amazing bloggers were pissed. TOTALLY pissed. They commented on every one of their blogs about the wretched thief. They banded together (because they are not selfish and stingy like me) and they attacked the plagarizing liar. Many of them would not provide the link to the falsified/stolen blog because they didn't want to drive up her traffic and give her the satisfaction - but finally I found the link (the whole ordeal was sort of like Real Housewives of the Innernets) - and I dug through her material - reading it - reading the comments where she was being called out on her thievery - and I was pissed. Infuriated.
NOT ONE SINGLE POST OF HERS HAD BEEN STOLEN FROM MY CONTENT. Bitch.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Shitty Friday
So I got up at 5 a.m. because the dog was heaving - getting ready to barf - - - in the bedroom. I just stayed put - and said, "There goes YOUR dog - BARFING - just like I said he would." So the husband had to get up and deal with it. But of course - that woke me up and then I was wide awake and just decided to get on up out of bed and start my shitty assed day. I TOLD him LAST NIGHT when that dog showed up with a bone from Lord knows where that he should take it away from him - otherwise he chomps on them, and swallows giant pieces of bone and barfs. "Oh - but look how cute he is - he is so happy he found that bone." Whatever. How fucking cute did you find him this morning as he barfed on the bedroom floor and you were cleaning that up? HUH?
I felt like shit when I got up - I'm stiff - I used my Wii Active yesterday for the first time in MONTHS - I typically have just been walking and think I'm pretty damned funny stepping off my 10,000 steps a day! Look at me! I'm the picture of physical fucking fitness!!! Well - I turned that Wii Active on and I told it to give me a hard workout. And it did. It kicked my ASS - literally. And my upper legs. Now I'm so damned stiff I can barely get off the couch or around the house. I should likely go walk it off - but it's easier to just sit here and bitch. So that's what I'll do.
I also have about eleventy nine hundred fever blisters on my lower lip. Thanks to the fun in the sun I had on Sunday at the Lake. I'm 4 - I cannot be blamed for failing to continually apply sunscreen to my lips. This is my mother's fault. I went to Walgreens and got a $700 tube of Abreva - that shit actually works pretty well and while I know I had a tube around here - I couldn't locate it and had to purchase a new one. If you've never purchased it - it's ridiculously expensive. The tube is about the size of my pinkie finger fingernail. It's like gold. And I've misplaced my new tube already. FUCK. But these things make smoking and drinking damned near impossible. Terribly painful. And cute, too.
THEN I decided to work on this fucked up project for work that I've been putting off forEVER. Let me tell you - this is the shittiest project EVER. And it has left me in such a foul mood - I'm not sure how I'll recover my otherwise pleasant demeanor. I'd walk it off - but see the paragraph above for explanation of why that won't be happening. I've been slothisized AGAIN. I have things I need to do - I really do. Like go to the bank. But now my neck hurts because I have to sit on the couch to work because my desk isn't "cured" yet. Whatever the fuck that means. It's been a long fucking time since the husband painted that desk. I'm sure ample time has passed and it's safe to use. Maybe he'll get off his ass and get it assembled for me this weekend so I can start using it.
Ever since I started working from home - he hasn't done SHIT. It's like he's on a perpetual damned vacation as it pertains to the house and the family. I made a note on my To Do list to cuss him out later this weekend about the whole situation. Oh - and he just keeps adding to his cause too. Yesterday there was this horrible smell upstairs. He tried to blame it on the brunette, but I'd seen him exit the bathroom most recently. He said it smelled like that before he went in there. Then, ALL day I kept smelling it and into the evening. Finally - it dawned on me - that fucking fish tank he bought the blonde last year for her birthday - or maybe it was 2 years ago - I don't really remember. All I know is that it has NEVER been cleaned out. So I just followed my nose - and sure enough - there it was - the little cess pool in the blonde's bedroom.
So I yelled downstairs and told him to come smell HIS fish tank. The blonde wanted a fish. I kept begging and pleading for him to just get a bowl and a goldfish. - Nope - he's got to do it up BIG - so he gets her this giant tank and a shit ton of fish and spends like $400 on the whole thing. You know where it is now? Sitting out on the fucking deck (where he puts all the other shit he doesn't want to deal with) - stinking up the entire neighborhood. The thing about him is this: He has NO concept of time - and doesn't grasp that shit takes time to take care of. You get big shit? You better have big time to care for it. Otherwise - it ends up on the deck - until he comes around to clean it up. He said he would clean it up today - I'll bet you that doesn't happen. I bet you I have to bitch at him sometime over the weekend to get him to get it off my fucking deck. And whenever one of these issues comes up - it just reminds me of all the other shit he doesn't take care of - and Lord help him - it ain't gonna be pretty. This NEVER ends well.
Yesterday he pointed out a toy in the bathtub - stated that it was really getting on his fucking nerves. Seriously? That toy? In the bathtub? That has NEVER been used. Yes - that toy in the unused bathtub is really getting on my last fucking nerve too. NOT. But that cess pool of a fish tank - that's on my nerves. Those two outbuildings full of SHIT - they're on my nerves. Or the 67 hoses on the deck - pretty fucking annoying. Or the tree you fell last winter and never chopped up and moved out of the front yard- THAT is annoying. Or that 40' bus you hauled over here to store shit in - that's annoying. And all the other shit you've accumulated from every remodel job you've done - and piled in my garage and in my yard. I find THAT annoying. But that toy? In the unused bathtub? Just go to fucking work. Please. And leave me to work on my shitty project for the day. Thank you.
I felt like shit when I got up - I'm stiff - I used my Wii Active yesterday for the first time in MONTHS - I typically have just been walking and think I'm pretty damned funny stepping off my 10,000 steps a day! Look at me! I'm the picture of physical fucking fitness!!! Well - I turned that Wii Active on and I told it to give me a hard workout. And it did. It kicked my ASS - literally. And my upper legs. Now I'm so damned stiff I can barely get off the couch or around the house. I should likely go walk it off - but it's easier to just sit here and bitch. So that's what I'll do.
I also have about eleventy nine hundred fever blisters on my lower lip. Thanks to the fun in the sun I had on Sunday at the Lake. I'm 4 - I cannot be blamed for failing to continually apply sunscreen to my lips. This is my mother's fault. I went to Walgreens and got a $700 tube of Abreva - that shit actually works pretty well and while I know I had a tube around here - I couldn't locate it and had to purchase a new one. If you've never purchased it - it's ridiculously expensive. The tube is about the size of my pinkie finger fingernail. It's like gold. And I've misplaced my new tube already. FUCK. But these things make smoking and drinking damned near impossible. Terribly painful. And cute, too.
THEN I decided to work on this fucked up project for work that I've been putting off forEVER. Let me tell you - this is the shittiest project EVER. And it has left me in such a foul mood - I'm not sure how I'll recover my otherwise pleasant demeanor. I'd walk it off - but see the paragraph above for explanation of why that won't be happening. I've been slothisized AGAIN. I have things I need to do - I really do. Like go to the bank. But now my neck hurts because I have to sit on the couch to work because my desk isn't "cured" yet. Whatever the fuck that means. It's been a long fucking time since the husband painted that desk. I'm sure ample time has passed and it's safe to use. Maybe he'll get off his ass and get it assembled for me this weekend so I can start using it.
Ever since I started working from home - he hasn't done SHIT. It's like he's on a perpetual damned vacation as it pertains to the house and the family. I made a note on my To Do list to cuss him out later this weekend about the whole situation. Oh - and he just keeps adding to his cause too. Yesterday there was this horrible smell upstairs. He tried to blame it on the brunette, but I'd seen him exit the bathroom most recently. He said it smelled like that before he went in there. Then, ALL day I kept smelling it and into the evening. Finally - it dawned on me - that fucking fish tank he bought the blonde last year for her birthday - or maybe it was 2 years ago - I don't really remember. All I know is that it has NEVER been cleaned out. So I just followed my nose - and sure enough - there it was - the little cess pool in the blonde's bedroom.
So I yelled downstairs and told him to come smell HIS fish tank. The blonde wanted a fish. I kept begging and pleading for him to just get a bowl and a goldfish. - Nope - he's got to do it up BIG - so he gets her this giant tank and a shit ton of fish and spends like $400 on the whole thing. You know where it is now? Sitting out on the fucking deck (where he puts all the other shit he doesn't want to deal with) - stinking up the entire neighborhood. The thing about him is this: He has NO concept of time - and doesn't grasp that shit takes time to take care of. You get big shit? You better have big time to care for it. Otherwise - it ends up on the deck - until he comes around to clean it up. He said he would clean it up today - I'll bet you that doesn't happen. I bet you I have to bitch at him sometime over the weekend to get him to get it off my fucking deck. And whenever one of these issues comes up - it just reminds me of all the other shit he doesn't take care of - and Lord help him - it ain't gonna be pretty. This NEVER ends well.
Yesterday he pointed out a toy in the bathtub - stated that it was really getting on his fucking nerves. Seriously? That toy? In the bathtub? That has NEVER been used. Yes - that toy in the unused bathtub is really getting on my last fucking nerve too. NOT. But that cess pool of a fish tank - that's on my nerves. Those two outbuildings full of SHIT - they're on my nerves. Or the 67 hoses on the deck - pretty fucking annoying. Or the tree you fell last winter and never chopped up and moved out of the front yard- THAT is annoying. Or that 40' bus you hauled over here to store shit in - that's annoying. And all the other shit you've accumulated from every remodel job you've done - and piled in my garage and in my yard. I find THAT annoying. But that toy? In the unused bathtub? Just go to fucking work. Please. And leave me to work on my shitty project for the day. Thank you.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Rainy Thursday
Hurricane Hermine is making her way into the midwest. I don't even understand that. But that's what they said on the news. We need the rain - no doubt about that - so I suppose it's a blessing. We haven't had any rain since July. And then we had like 48" in 2 days. So it's a rainy Thursday and I'm glad that I have the freedom to choose to work from home - there's nothing I hate more than going into an office and working on a gloomy day. Or a sunny day. Or a snowy day. Okay fine - I admit - I HATE going into an office to work. I suppose one day in the future, it will strike me that I WANT to go into the office to work. But so far - I'm not lonely. I don't feel the need to see anyone there. I don't miss the face to face interaction and I most certainly do not miss the interruptions or the bullshit that accompany the cramming of people into an office and forcing them to sit there all day doing work. (or pretending to work).
We were supposed to go watch the prodigal son play for his college team for the first time today. It isn't his first time playing in college - it was just going to be the first time we got to go see him. It was quite the ordeal - the planning of this adventure. The girls would have to miss most of the day of school - so we had to get homework ahead of time, and get that all cleared. We wanted to take his GF with us - so she had to get permission and figure out her schoolwork,etc. Then Hermine started making her way into the midwest so we started keeping an eye on that - life threatening flash flooding in that area - do we dare attempt it? So we started setting the stage with all the girls - it MIGHT be raining - they MIGHT not play. But we kept plowing forward with our plans. And then - it happened - the dreaded text from the prodigal son: "Don't bother coming to the game - I won't be there."
WTF? Why? What is going on?
It was a long story (of course) and laden with excuses - but at the end of the story it basically boiled down to - he missed a class this week and when you miss a class -you don't travel or play. WAHHHHHHHHHHH.
I, of course, got to break the news to the girls. Who, of course, threw fits. Hey - take it up with your brother - HE is the one that let you down - NOT ME. Damn that kid. I hope to hell he learned his lesson and figures out how to wake the hell up and live his life. I would hate to see that he doesn't get to stay down there a 2nd year because he was too busy sleeping to ever prove his place on the team. Not to mention, he'd end up back here and I've already cleaned up his mess and am enjoying the cleanliness of the whole place. And the $50 grocery tab. And the lack of 899 cars in my driveway. Oh please - son - please - start waking up and going to class!!!
So, I guess I'm taking the brunette to the thrift store instead. Yay. Thrift store. Looking for a Catholic school uniform. Or something like that. Our high school plays the Catholic high school tomorrow night and evidently - our kids mock their kids by all dressing in uniforms. How fun! And yet - how archaic and stupid. But whatever. I wonder how the other schools mock our school?
I bet I can get some great pics at the thriftstore though - because ohhhh - I can already imagine the people. And maybe I'll find a GREAT dress and go-go boots! I'm optimistic!
We were supposed to go watch the prodigal son play for his college team for the first time today. It isn't his first time playing in college - it was just going to be the first time we got to go see him. It was quite the ordeal - the planning of this adventure. The girls would have to miss most of the day of school - so we had to get homework ahead of time, and get that all cleared. We wanted to take his GF with us - so she had to get permission and figure out her schoolwork,etc. Then Hermine started making her way into the midwest so we started keeping an eye on that - life threatening flash flooding in that area - do we dare attempt it? So we started setting the stage with all the girls - it MIGHT be raining - they MIGHT not play. But we kept plowing forward with our plans. And then - it happened - the dreaded text from the prodigal son: "Don't bother coming to the game - I won't be there."
WTF? Why? What is going on?
It was a long story (of course) and laden with excuses - but at the end of the story it basically boiled down to - he missed a class this week and when you miss a class -you don't travel or play. WAHHHHHHHHHHH.
I, of course, got to break the news to the girls. Who, of course, threw fits. Hey - take it up with your brother - HE is the one that let you down - NOT ME. Damn that kid. I hope to hell he learned his lesson and figures out how to wake the hell up and live his life. I would hate to see that he doesn't get to stay down there a 2nd year because he was too busy sleeping to ever prove his place on the team. Not to mention, he'd end up back here and I've already cleaned up his mess and am enjoying the cleanliness of the whole place. And the $50 grocery tab. And the lack of 899 cars in my driveway. Oh please - son - please - start waking up and going to class!!!
So, I guess I'm taking the brunette to the thrift store instead. Yay. Thrift store. Looking for a Catholic school uniform. Or something like that. Our high school plays the Catholic high school tomorrow night and evidently - our kids mock their kids by all dressing in uniforms. How fun! And yet - how archaic and stupid. But whatever. I wonder how the other schools mock our school?
I bet I can get some great pics at the thriftstore though - because ohhhh - I can already imagine the people. And maybe I'll find a GREAT dress and go-go boots! I'm optimistic!
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Boating and Waltzing
Wow. Where does the time go? I have no clue. Sorry to leave y'all hangin'.
So anyway - the other day we were invited to go boating. Like on a boat. On a lake. That's how boating is done. So after I asked a million questions and the gal was likely dreading she'd even mentioned it, I decided we would go. Why not? We don't get out of the house much. It would be fun! And this was a group of people with whom we have never really socialized - we know each other through the brunette - and we text all the time - but this would take our friendship to a new level. And we'd be naked. Well almost.
And we had a ball! I don't think I made an ass out of myself. Although I find that VERY hard to believe. I can normally make an ass of myself sitting in my living room alone. But get this: SHE LEFT HER CELL PHONE IN THE CAR. Shit. We had no choice but to actually converse with one another - since texting was now out of the question. Conversing. In person. Face to face. It almost seems foreign to me anymore. And that's just pretty darned sad. Because I like to talk. And talk. And talk. And who the hell even knows what the fuck I talk about. I doubt that any of it is terribly interesting. But I do know I never shut.the.fuck.up.
And the next morning, I woke up and my knees hurt so bad I could hardly bend them. So I woke up the husband:
Me: Did you hit me in the knees with a stick?
He: No.
Me: Did those people we were with kick me in the knees to get me to shut.the.fuck.up?
He: No.
Me: Well then why.the.fuck do my knees hurt so damned bad and why does one of them have a giant ouchie on it? Explain that if you didn't hit me in the knees with a stick and they didn't kick me in the knees to get me to shut.the.fuck.up....
He: You fell off the cooler dumbass.
Me: Fell off the cooler? Was I dancing on it? On their boat? Dear Jesus, help me.
He: No. We were at home and you were sitting on the cooler in the garage and you just fell off onto the floor.
Me: Nice try fucker. People don't just fucking fall off coolers onto the floor. Was I having a seizure?
He: No. You were drunk.
Me: No shit. Nothing new there. But that doesn't explain this falling off the cooler while sitting on it. What the fuck was I doing?
He: Getting up to make another drink.
Me: Whatever - nice try fucker.
I'm pretty sure he hit me in the knees with a stick. Because honestly - you just don't fall off a cooler while sitting on it. Perhaps I should start wearing a helmet and using a seat belt while I sit around on coolers in the garage? I think I will. It will give people who drop by something new to talk about. It's been awhile since I've given them any new material. This should be a good one!!!
Getting up to get more to drink. Good God. I'm pretty sure I was getting up to give him some dance lessons. I've been trying to teach him to two-step and waltz for 10 years now. Dude has two left feet and cannot get it. I was trying to teach him to waltz - it's easy - it's 3 counts - 1-2-3. And I would try to move him backwards and there he would stand like a damned redwood in the forest. "It's a WALTZ - 2-3." And he'd just stumble backwards because evidently you cannot waltz in flip flops.
"Take off those damned flip flops - you can't waltz in flip flops - you're not that fucking good yet - I am - I'm a professional - now WALTZ -2-3" (because if you yell the name of the dance as one of the counts - it really makes the other person understand how the hell to do it). Fuck it. He can't move backwards. Maybe if I go backwards and he goes forward - just MAYBE his feet move that direction. WALTZ-2-3 - nope - all he did was step on my feet. He sucks at dancing. He really does. And that's likely why I fell off the fucking cooler (supposedly, but I still doubt that's what happened) - I was likely exhausted from teaching him to WALTZ -2-3.
So anyway - the other day we were invited to go boating. Like on a boat. On a lake. That's how boating is done. So after I asked a million questions and the gal was likely dreading she'd even mentioned it, I decided we would go. Why not? We don't get out of the house much. It would be fun! And this was a group of people with whom we have never really socialized - we know each other through the brunette - and we text all the time - but this would take our friendship to a new level. And we'd be naked. Well almost.
And we had a ball! I don't think I made an ass out of myself. Although I find that VERY hard to believe. I can normally make an ass of myself sitting in my living room alone. But get this: SHE LEFT HER CELL PHONE IN THE CAR. Shit. We had no choice but to actually converse with one another - since texting was now out of the question. Conversing. In person. Face to face. It almost seems foreign to me anymore. And that's just pretty darned sad. Because I like to talk. And talk. And talk. And who the hell even knows what the fuck I talk about. I doubt that any of it is terribly interesting. But I do know I never shut.the.fuck.up.
And the next morning, I woke up and my knees hurt so bad I could hardly bend them. So I woke up the husband:
Me: Did you hit me in the knees with a stick?
He: No.
Me: Did those people we were with kick me in the knees to get me to shut.the.fuck.up?
He: No.
Me: Well then why.the.fuck do my knees hurt so damned bad and why does one of them have a giant ouchie on it? Explain that if you didn't hit me in the knees with a stick and they didn't kick me in the knees to get me to shut.the.fuck.up....
He: You fell off the cooler dumbass.
Me: Fell off the cooler? Was I dancing on it? On their boat? Dear Jesus, help me.
He: No. We were at home and you were sitting on the cooler in the garage and you just fell off onto the floor.
Me: Nice try fucker. People don't just fucking fall off coolers onto the floor. Was I having a seizure?
He: No. You were drunk.
Me: No shit. Nothing new there. But that doesn't explain this falling off the cooler while sitting on it. What the fuck was I doing?
He: Getting up to make another drink.
Me: Whatever - nice try fucker.
I'm pretty sure he hit me in the knees with a stick. Because honestly - you just don't fall off a cooler while sitting on it. Perhaps I should start wearing a helmet and using a seat belt while I sit around on coolers in the garage? I think I will. It will give people who drop by something new to talk about. It's been awhile since I've given them any new material. This should be a good one!!!
Getting up to get more to drink. Good God. I'm pretty sure I was getting up to give him some dance lessons. I've been trying to teach him to two-step and waltz for 10 years now. Dude has two left feet and cannot get it. I was trying to teach him to waltz - it's easy - it's 3 counts - 1-2-3. And I would try to move him backwards and there he would stand like a damned redwood in the forest. "It's a WALTZ - 2-3." And he'd just stumble backwards because evidently you cannot waltz in flip flops.
"Take off those damned flip flops - you can't waltz in flip flops - you're not that fucking good yet - I am - I'm a professional - now WALTZ -2-3" (because if you yell the name of the dance as one of the counts - it really makes the other person understand how the hell to do it). Fuck it. He can't move backwards. Maybe if I go backwards and he goes forward - just MAYBE his feet move that direction. WALTZ-2-3 - nope - all he did was step on my feet. He sucks at dancing. He really does. And that's likely why I fell off the fucking cooler (supposedly, but I still doubt that's what happened) - I was likely exhausted from teaching him to WALTZ -2-3.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
I'm Charles Frickin' Ingalls
I am. I'm a pioneer. And it's exhausting. Absolutely emotionally and physically exhausting. I wish someone had told me that ahead of time. But I guess nothing fantastic comes easy, and I'm up for the challenge. Once I get rested, that is.
See. Here's the thing. I come from a long line of pioneers. So do you. You likely have just never thought about it much. But I did. I gave it quite a bit of thought after my mom posted on my Facebook that she was proud of me for being a pioneer. But you know what? Had it not been for women like my grandmother, who forged their way into the workforce when women just didn't do those kinds of things, then I would have never gotten the opportunity to even be on this blazing trail.
And if it weren't for women, like my mother, who continued to push and work and fight and prove that women deserved a right in the workplace beyond basic typing and fetching, then I also would not be on this blazing trail.
See, those women were TRUE pioneers. And there are many others - they are not the only two, nor do I mean to imply they are. They are just the two I'm using as an example. They blazed a trail for me. The one on which it was norm for women to achieve great things in the workforce. The one on which it wasn't unheard of for women to hold high positions in the workforce. The trail isn't for everyone to travel - it's a personal choice. And that's okay. We are all individuals and have the right to make our own choices based upon our individual needs and desires. I chose this path.
When I first started walking along the path they'd blazed for me - it was awesome! Clear and smooth. Easy to travel. Then... I had the prodigal son. And all of a sudden, the path was cumbersome and bumpy and all sorts of unpleasantries were attacking me. I remember when I told my boss (a COMPLETE bitch - yes a woman - single mother, no less) that I was pregnant. She laughed with hysteria. Then she became quite somber. Irritated with me. And from that point forward she did everything in her power to make my life a living hell. Sending me out on audits that lasted for weeks and months upon end, which required I board a plane on Monday morning at some unGodly hour of the morning and not return until late Friday night. Hauling around a 75 lb auditor's bag, dressed in a suit, toting a suitcase and 6 months pregnant. 7 months pregnant. 8 months pregnant.
When I was about 7 or 8 weeks along, my placenta detached. Afraid to tell her I had a serious medical condition, I kept it a secret and just continued to plow through my duties, risking the life of my unborn child and myself. Must keep this job. Cannot mention medical complications. Too risky. Too taboo. (Everything turned out fine in the end and I won't bore you with the full details of the entire pregnancy - I promise).
I took my 6 weeks of maternity leave. When the prodigal son was but 10 weeks old, he contracted viral meningitis. But at the time, we did not know it was viral - we had to wait 48 hours to see if the culture would grow and determine if it was viral or bacterial. I called the bitch in the evening and alerted her to his sudden illness and hospitalization and that we were told that if it was bacterial, he would likely die. Do you know what that bitch said to me? "So, will you be in the office tomorrow or not?" I vowed right then and there I would immediately start looking for a new job. And I did. And within weeks I had found one and left.
The new job offered a bit more flexibility and since it was a government job, I was fairly well protected from any more antics like what I had experienced with the bitch. And it helped that one of my bosses was suffering with a terminal illness. (And I don't mean that in a bad way - he was empathetic). During this job, I became pregnant with the brunette and I was treated fairly and justly and not placed under undue scrutiny or assigned to horrible punishing projects. Again, being a government agency - I was protected. And through their amazing leave donation program, I was able to take a 7 week maternity leave and get paid through the entire absence!
Later, that post ended and I moved back into the private sector. And I had very little wiggle room. I soon found myself as a single parent with two very small children. I had a 30 mile commute to work and was always strapped for time. I remember one time, I had issues with the prodigal son that resulted in numerous morning melt-downs and screaming and spankings and just the most hideous sight I'd ever seen. And even after a 30 mile commute - my heart was racing so badly I thought I might have a heart attack - but I was panic stricken that morning - he was misbehaving and I was at risk for being late to work. I drove 90 that morning. To get to work on time. To sit in a room full of people and transcribe their words to paper so that the conversation could be logged for eternity.
And then one of the kids might get sick, so I would scramble to find someone to watch them while they were ill. Fortunately the local hospital had a sick child program on their pediatric ward and if they had the space - they would take your child for the day. It was such a Godsend. But then the brunette was hospitalized. And then she got chicken pox - TWICE. And at my next performance review - I found myself scoring in the top 5% of all officers across the national organization - yet written up - for shitty attendance. I remember being so sick, personally, one time that I could barely function. But I HAD to drag myself into the office - I could not risk missing a single other day. Driving, 30 miles, in a fever-induced fog. Praying I wouldn't pass out somewhere along the way. Sitting at a desk, so ill that my entire body shook. But by God - I was THERE. And they saw my dedication! And they approved.
When I first started at Company X - they were rigid. Most of the execs came out of banking and we pretty well adhered to banking ways of conducting business. Because we are a technology company, though, most of the staff started pushing for more freedoms and over time the ties were loosened some. But we would be chastised for wearing funny hats while working on Fridays. We were having "too much fun" - and certainly we couldn't be getting a damned thing done - what, with that silly hat on our head. You can't work, or think, or be creative with a hat on your head. And then, they decided we needed to push through more work. And soon many of us found ourselves at the office for 80-100 hours EACH WEEK. At one point, Company X paid for me to have a nighttime nanny. So here were my babies - under 10 years old - being shuttled to a daycare during the day - retrieved by a nanny at 6:00 and the only time they saw me was in the morning when I would wake them to shuttle them back to daycare. 80% of the employees of Company X were on some type of anti-depressant medication during that time. Gee. I wonder why.
Then we got a new boss and he was nuttier than the prior boss. And the reins were tightened again. He would retrieve me from my house in inclement weather - to make certain I got to work safely. He would play with us like puppets all day and when he grew tired of us - he would throw us aside and we'd be left lying there - wondering what in the hell just happened. I spent most of my day entertaining him - keeping him away from the staff so they could actually get some work done and achieve something. I shopped with him. I went to lunch with him. If he had a whim to go buy a vase - I'd go with him. He loved me. I was present. And yet, because I am a responsible adult, I was STILL working endless hours so I could get the results we needed to survive. When the blonde was born, I also got to take 7 weeks of maternity leave. It was paid time off also - because the nutcase had found that "in his experience, women in my condition have a propensity to sue employers and it was just less costly to pay me and appease me." Nevermind the entire issue was a matter because when he took over, he wiped out everyone's accrued vacation and I'd not had a day off in years.
I hated to see him go. I really did. I miss him every day. NOT.
For the last few years, we've been pretty loose at Company X. We have incorporated flex time; comp time; floating holidays; remote work; compressed work week. We have tried them all - trying to find something that made sense for EVERYONE. Yet we could feel it - we could sense it - the morale was dropping and getting lower and lower. What could it be? And it took us MONTHS to figure it out - people were sick. Sick from trying to balance their lives. We were offering what we thought were viable solutions and options - but it wasn't helping. Finally, I tripped across ROWE. And it made sense. It just had to work - it had to be the answer. And you can go read about THAT journey at: http://www.icangetback.blogspot.com/ if you haven't already.
And as I sat yesterday, in our ROWE Implementation Workshop. I regained my hope. I looked around the room - at the young people - with young children and those that don't yet have children. And I felt PROUD - PROUD to be a progressive thinker and willing to take risks - so that THEY can have a different life than I had when my older kids were young. I felt sad for those of us that didn't have this opportunity and lost time with their children. And sent our kids here, there and everywhere - hiding them - keeping their existence virtually mum - in hopes of keeping our jobs and not being overlooked for bigger things because we had kids. But my happiness and pride FAR surpassed my sadness for what I had lost. Because I knew in my heart - I was on the bleeding edge of a new movement in the workplace - and the inertia will build and this thing will take off - across the world. And I was a part of the movement in the early stages - I got on board when fewer than 100 companies in the US have adopted it. We are likely the FIRST company in Kansas to migrate to ROWE.
When I got home, I told the prodigal son and the brunette that I had just joined a movement that would forever change the way they worked and that they could thank me later. They just looked at me like I was nuts - which is pretty typical. But I did. And it will.
And so for those women that blazed the trail ahead of me - each generation widening the trail and changing its shape and direction - THANK YOU. And hopefully you will view what I've done and what I've stood up for - LIFE BALANCE - as keeping the flame alive. I proudly accept the torch you passed on to me and I hope you are proud of what I've done with it. And for those of you who have not yet embraced ROWE - follow it - watch it - join it - get on the bandwagon with me - because TOGETHER we can move this giant old rusty wheel much quicker and with much greater ease!!!
See. Here's the thing. I come from a long line of pioneers. So do you. You likely have just never thought about it much. But I did. I gave it quite a bit of thought after my mom posted on my Facebook that she was proud of me for being a pioneer. But you know what? Had it not been for women like my grandmother, who forged their way into the workforce when women just didn't do those kinds of things, then I would have never gotten the opportunity to even be on this blazing trail.
And if it weren't for women, like my mother, who continued to push and work and fight and prove that women deserved a right in the workplace beyond basic typing and fetching, then I also would not be on this blazing trail.
See, those women were TRUE pioneers. And there are many others - they are not the only two, nor do I mean to imply they are. They are just the two I'm using as an example. They blazed a trail for me. The one on which it was norm for women to achieve great things in the workforce. The one on which it wasn't unheard of for women to hold high positions in the workforce. The trail isn't for everyone to travel - it's a personal choice. And that's okay. We are all individuals and have the right to make our own choices based upon our individual needs and desires. I chose this path.
When I first started walking along the path they'd blazed for me - it was awesome! Clear and smooth. Easy to travel. Then... I had the prodigal son. And all of a sudden, the path was cumbersome and bumpy and all sorts of unpleasantries were attacking me. I remember when I told my boss (a COMPLETE bitch - yes a woman - single mother, no less) that I was pregnant. She laughed with hysteria. Then she became quite somber. Irritated with me. And from that point forward she did everything in her power to make my life a living hell. Sending me out on audits that lasted for weeks and months upon end, which required I board a plane on Monday morning at some unGodly hour of the morning and not return until late Friday night. Hauling around a 75 lb auditor's bag, dressed in a suit, toting a suitcase and 6 months pregnant. 7 months pregnant. 8 months pregnant.
When I was about 7 or 8 weeks along, my placenta detached. Afraid to tell her I had a serious medical condition, I kept it a secret and just continued to plow through my duties, risking the life of my unborn child and myself. Must keep this job. Cannot mention medical complications. Too risky. Too taboo. (Everything turned out fine in the end and I won't bore you with the full details of the entire pregnancy - I promise).
I took my 6 weeks of maternity leave. When the prodigal son was but 10 weeks old, he contracted viral meningitis. But at the time, we did not know it was viral - we had to wait 48 hours to see if the culture would grow and determine if it was viral or bacterial. I called the bitch in the evening and alerted her to his sudden illness and hospitalization and that we were told that if it was bacterial, he would likely die. Do you know what that bitch said to me? "So, will you be in the office tomorrow or not?" I vowed right then and there I would immediately start looking for a new job. And I did. And within weeks I had found one and left.
The new job offered a bit more flexibility and since it was a government job, I was fairly well protected from any more antics like what I had experienced with the bitch. And it helped that one of my bosses was suffering with a terminal illness. (And I don't mean that in a bad way - he was empathetic). During this job, I became pregnant with the brunette and I was treated fairly and justly and not placed under undue scrutiny or assigned to horrible punishing projects. Again, being a government agency - I was protected. And through their amazing leave donation program, I was able to take a 7 week maternity leave and get paid through the entire absence!
Later, that post ended and I moved back into the private sector. And I had very little wiggle room. I soon found myself as a single parent with two very small children. I had a 30 mile commute to work and was always strapped for time. I remember one time, I had issues with the prodigal son that resulted in numerous morning melt-downs and screaming and spankings and just the most hideous sight I'd ever seen. And even after a 30 mile commute - my heart was racing so badly I thought I might have a heart attack - but I was panic stricken that morning - he was misbehaving and I was at risk for being late to work. I drove 90 that morning. To get to work on time. To sit in a room full of people and transcribe their words to paper so that the conversation could be logged for eternity.
And then one of the kids might get sick, so I would scramble to find someone to watch them while they were ill. Fortunately the local hospital had a sick child program on their pediatric ward and if they had the space - they would take your child for the day. It was such a Godsend. But then the brunette was hospitalized. And then she got chicken pox - TWICE. And at my next performance review - I found myself scoring in the top 5% of all officers across the national organization - yet written up - for shitty attendance. I remember being so sick, personally, one time that I could barely function. But I HAD to drag myself into the office - I could not risk missing a single other day. Driving, 30 miles, in a fever-induced fog. Praying I wouldn't pass out somewhere along the way. Sitting at a desk, so ill that my entire body shook. But by God - I was THERE. And they saw my dedication! And they approved.
When I first started at Company X - they were rigid. Most of the execs came out of banking and we pretty well adhered to banking ways of conducting business. Because we are a technology company, though, most of the staff started pushing for more freedoms and over time the ties were loosened some. But we would be chastised for wearing funny hats while working on Fridays. We were having "too much fun" - and certainly we couldn't be getting a damned thing done - what, with that silly hat on our head. You can't work, or think, or be creative with a hat on your head. And then, they decided we needed to push through more work. And soon many of us found ourselves at the office for 80-100 hours EACH WEEK. At one point, Company X paid for me to have a nighttime nanny. So here were my babies - under 10 years old - being shuttled to a daycare during the day - retrieved by a nanny at 6:00 and the only time they saw me was in the morning when I would wake them to shuttle them back to daycare. 80% of the employees of Company X were on some type of anti-depressant medication during that time. Gee. I wonder why.
Then we got a new boss and he was nuttier than the prior boss. And the reins were tightened again. He would retrieve me from my house in inclement weather - to make certain I got to work safely. He would play with us like puppets all day and when he grew tired of us - he would throw us aside and we'd be left lying there - wondering what in the hell just happened. I spent most of my day entertaining him - keeping him away from the staff so they could actually get some work done and achieve something. I shopped with him. I went to lunch with him. If he had a whim to go buy a vase - I'd go with him. He loved me. I was present. And yet, because I am a responsible adult, I was STILL working endless hours so I could get the results we needed to survive. When the blonde was born, I also got to take 7 weeks of maternity leave. It was paid time off also - because the nutcase had found that "in his experience, women in my condition have a propensity to sue employers and it was just less costly to pay me and appease me." Nevermind the entire issue was a matter because when he took over, he wiped out everyone's accrued vacation and I'd not had a day off in years.
I hated to see him go. I really did. I miss him every day. NOT.
For the last few years, we've been pretty loose at Company X. We have incorporated flex time; comp time; floating holidays; remote work; compressed work week. We have tried them all - trying to find something that made sense for EVERYONE. Yet we could feel it - we could sense it - the morale was dropping and getting lower and lower. What could it be? And it took us MONTHS to figure it out - people were sick. Sick from trying to balance their lives. We were offering what we thought were viable solutions and options - but it wasn't helping. Finally, I tripped across ROWE. And it made sense. It just had to work - it had to be the answer. And you can go read about THAT journey at: http://www.icangetback.blogspot.com/ if you haven't already.
And as I sat yesterday, in our ROWE Implementation Workshop. I regained my hope. I looked around the room - at the young people - with young children and those that don't yet have children. And I felt PROUD - PROUD to be a progressive thinker and willing to take risks - so that THEY can have a different life than I had when my older kids were young. I felt sad for those of us that didn't have this opportunity and lost time with their children. And sent our kids here, there and everywhere - hiding them - keeping their existence virtually mum - in hopes of keeping our jobs and not being overlooked for bigger things because we had kids. But my happiness and pride FAR surpassed my sadness for what I had lost. Because I knew in my heart - I was on the bleeding edge of a new movement in the workplace - and the inertia will build and this thing will take off - across the world. And I was a part of the movement in the early stages - I got on board when fewer than 100 companies in the US have adopted it. We are likely the FIRST company in Kansas to migrate to ROWE.
When I got home, I told the prodigal son and the brunette that I had just joined a movement that would forever change the way they worked and that they could thank me later. They just looked at me like I was nuts - which is pretty typical. But I did. And it will.
And so for those women that blazed the trail ahead of me - each generation widening the trail and changing its shape and direction - THANK YOU. And hopefully you will view what I've done and what I've stood up for - LIFE BALANCE - as keeping the flame alive. I proudly accept the torch you passed on to me and I hope you are proud of what I've done with it. And for those of you who have not yet embraced ROWE - follow it - watch it - join it - get on the bandwagon with me - because TOGETHER we can move this giant old rusty wheel much quicker and with much greater ease!!!
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