as true as taxes

One always hears about the calm before the storm, but our personal little disaster seems to have happened in reverse order. As described in my last post, I had a panic attack (followed by several others) at the thought of impending financial doom, replete with gasping, shriveling up on the kitchen floor in the throes [...]

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breathe upon the changing dust

The last few weeks I’ve been doing a pretty decent job of pretending my world isn’t about to become unglued. I’ve been patient and loving with the kids, focused on getting work done, trying really hard not to snap at my husband, to stay upbeat and positive and encouraging to those around me (and let’s [...]

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hope for better things

I’ve never thought of myself as a yeller. In fact, I’ve mainly been a pretty meek and mild person, only becoming outspoken with people I’m close to or at cocktail parties after one too many “just to relax” drinks. When we were first married, arguing with my husband was impossible, because he would yell or [...]

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in great aims and in small

I totally botched the school drop off today. I took an extra two minutes to finish my coffee, then proceeded to get stuck behind a lumbering garbage truck for an equal two minutes. So far, ok. But then I hit a couple of poorly-timed lights, one of which completely flummoxed a driver trying to make [...]

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in the weeds

Today I have:

A) Fever
B) Migraine
C) Period
D) All of the above

Today I also have:

A) Kid struggling with control issues
B) Kid struggling with aggression issues
C) Husband struggling with job security issues
D) All of the above

Today I am supposed to:

A) Clean the house
B) Pay the bills
C) Look for work
D) All of the above

Today I will instead:

A) Have a [...]

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thorns or flowers

I may have to abandon NaBloPoMo. I’m in a flurry of job-seeking and pitch-sending, and in addition to the time suck this entails, I’m so stressed I think I’m running purely on cortisol fumes at this point. I honestly don’t know if sticking out NaBloPoMo would help me honor my creativity through discipline or just [...]

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this broken mortal

What do you do, when you lay out the cards that are your life, and realize there is not a single decent hand among them? That there are no good options, there’s no chance of breaking even, nevermind winning the game?
It’s just not in the cards for you.
Do you tell yourself it’s only a bad [...]

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great expectations

Yesterday our house was a supernova of misery, with me struggling to get work done, the kids struggling to make the world’s largest umbrella out of popsicle sticks and tape, and my husband struggling to not lose every last shred of patience in his possession. The rain keeping us all inside plus the few hours [...]

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my constant visitor

Well, this NaBloPoMo business sure has me rubbing elbows with my dear old friend Guilt quite a bit. “Not now kids, I have to write my daily blog post!” has been uttered more times than I care to admit and the month isn’t even half over. Honestly, I’m only writing this measly, whining post now [...]

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a most precious rascal

I just dropped Shriekeuse off for the first day at her new school. For someone who is usually skittish about change, she was about ninety-nine percent enthusiasm and one percent nerves. She met her teacher, got in line, started chatting with the kids, and marched away to class without a backward glance. I stood there [...]

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