Diva update and other random shit on a Friday night

So, Diva. She was here for two nights, last Sunday and Monday (I think. Time runs together, becoming meaningless). She was supposed to have a job interview at Burger King on Tuesday, but she didn't go. It was snowing outside, but the weather wasn't too cold and no snow was sticking to the pavement. And I told her that if she was here tomorrow (which would be Wednesday in this version of time) I would take her to school to enroll. Son of a gun if she didn't have somewhere for her Daddy to take her on Tuesday night. She went to stay with some man (early 20s, Superman guesses) in Edgefield, about 45 minutes from here. I have no idea who this character is, whether he's a decent person or not. I suppose I should care, or should have checked, but as independent as Miss Diva wants to be, it seems improper for us to interfere.

In related news, her birth mother Janice told me she thinks Diva will be back in jail eventually, probably sooner than later.

Superman heard from Diva the other night. She texted him she wanted him to pick her up from Edgefield and take her to a friend's house in Saluda. You can look those places up on a map if you want. They are both about 45 minutes from Greenwood, one to the southwest, the other to the southeast. And not close to each other. Superman didn't reply and we haven't heard from her since.

Maybe we should be more diligent, but honestly, I have no energy to do so. I have not been a good mother to her. I tried, did the best I knew how, but it didn't work. My attitude now: oh well.

In Other News-
Superman took me out to dinner tonight. McAlister's. Decent food for a franchise deli. When I sat down at the table I KA-WHANGED my elbow on the ledge beside the chair. O.M.G. that hurt! I hit it hard. Not on the funny bone nerve, but on the bottom of the elbow. I've had ice on it since we got home. I'll take a pain reliever eventually. And yes, I can (almost) type while keeping my elbow on ice.

More Other News-
We bought a birthday present for Twitch tonight, only two weeks after his birthday. It came to me. I didn't know what to get him before. We got him a super big beach towel. Did you know Wal-Mart has put beach towels on display? At least they have in Greenwood, South Carolina. The young man has wanted a large beach towel for a while now.

Next News-
I have read a lot recently. Books on my Kindle. Have I mentioned that I really like my Kindle? I also watched some movies on TCM (cable movie channel). I watched two Frank Capra offerings yesterday, "Meet John Doe" and "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington." Frank Capra had a type. Evidently he was an optimistic soul. Indigo (Ashen Grey on facebook) says the movies, which he has never seen, would be improved with the addition of monsters or zombies. But that's Indigo.

I am still taking it easy and recovering from the surgery. It gets kinda boring. Thankfully, I like boring.

Superman turned me on to a new artist and song today. Well, he's new to me. It's Hozier, with Take Me To Church.


His explanation of the song is really good, too. Check it out.

Hello

I keep thinking I should write something, but nothing sounds interesting.

Manny, my truck, is in the shop. The passenger window came off its track today, so they'll fix that, and I told my guy to go ahead and fix the bad oil leak. Maybe then the truck will be ready for a nice long road trip. Unfortunately a long road trip isn't in the budget, especially after paying for the repairs. Oh well. I do hope to get to the mountains of North Carolina for a camping trip this summer. Probably not going farther than that, unfortunately.

My life is boring.

Superman and I have been going to the gym almost every day, doing the weight machines and treadmill (me) or elliptical (him) on alternate days. Did that make sense? Every other day it's weight machines, the other days it's treadmill/elliptical. Tomorrow is a treadmill day for me. This is a boring topic.

I had an argument with Sproing today. Nothing new. We were in the truck (right before he knocked the window out of its track) on the way to his doctor's appointment, arguing, when I got pulled over by a state trooper. Why? Because Sproing wasn't wearing his seat belt. HA HA HA!!!  He got a $25 ticket and a lecture from the state trooper. I got to watch it all. We were only a little bit late for the doctor's appointment and it wasn't a big deal, thankfully.

I've been sewing some more. I made a dress that doesn't fit right but have an idea of how to adjust it to make it work. The arm holes (it's a sleeveless jumper) are too tight in the front. I'm going to have to hack up the bodice a bit. I'm making this shit up as I go along. I really don't know what I'm doing.

Which leads me to my current theme song.


And that's about all I got tonight.

I'm surviving

OK, so I had a bad weekend. I don't know that things have gotten better, necessarily, but I'm handling it better. One of the problems I had last week was a severe lack of sleep. Have I slept better this week? Well, not necessarily, but when the shit has hit the fan, it's been a relatively small amount of shit and I've had sufficient sleep at that time.

Last night Sproing was being a little shit. He argues about everything. We cannot have a simple discussion without him turning it into an argument. I was in the kitchen cooking dinner, Superman was also there helping me and just being close (he's such a sweetheart!) and Sproing was arguing like a madman. It would have been funny if I hadn't been the target of his anger. I stuck it out, got a few hugs from Superman, and carried on. Maybe I'm partially detached from the whole shebang. That's how I survive. Some days it works, some days not so much. I got through it without any pharmaceutical or alcoholic assistance.

So I downloaded an interesting little book for my Kindle yesterday entitled How to Drive Your Family Crazy for Fun and Profit. It was one of the free books offered yesterday. I read it in half an hour or so. The author has some good things to say, much of it she learned from Al-Anon. She applies most of this to her siblings. I of course considered how I could apply the concepts to these teenage hangers-on, and the applications, though limited, are available. When I was reading the book I thought of you, Rox. I recommend it specifically for you. Her family reminded me of your descriptions of your extended family.

Returning to the subject of sleep: my sleep patterns are acting kinda menopausal. Most of this week I wake up around 3:30, give or take half an hour, and I'm HOT. Especially my feet. The soles of my feet get really hot sometimes. I can't get back to sleep while it's still dark, but get irresistibly sleepy around 8 or 9. Had some caffeine this morning (a little bit) so managed to avoid the morning nap, but got the runs instead. That'll keep me awake!

I also seem to be making my monthly quota of Facebork postings today. Usually I scan, "like" a status update, maybe make a comment or two, but don't post much. Sometimes I'll read an especially interesting (to me) article and post a link. Occasionally I'll share something really good. I rarely actually make status updates as such, but have today. As I write this paragraph I'm getting more and more bored. How can you read this boring crap? I obviously have nothing worth saying. At least in this paragraph.

One of the things I like about Facebook is that the first half of the word I type with my left hand, the second half with my right hand. That's what I like about the word "facebook." Really? Is this all I can find to talk about?

I had a dream yesterday during my morning nap. (Damn, that's pathetic.) Tom Hanks lived in my neighborhood, drove a red pickup truck, and dropped by my house to hang out. The neighborhood and house in the dream were nothing like where I actually live, save the brick on all the houses. My house was a two storey affair, but the stairs between the floors were somehow unavailable so I couldn't get from one floor to the other. A bunch of people came by for a party (so unlike me!) which we held in the basement rumpus room. We played bingo? Or something like that. There was a young man who was trying to act like Tom Hanks, but was only successful at being annoying. He was trying to charm me, make me fall in love with him. He thought he was second in line for my affections when Superman abdicated his role as my husband. Superman got angry at him, but don't remember if he decked the guy. The Tom Hanks/husband pretender was at the party and everyone else found him annoying. Also, all the other party guests were old folks in dowdy clothing. Damned dream has been invading my awake life for two days now. I'm ready to forget the thing.

That seems to be all I have to say today. I know I'm smarter and more interesting than this, but damned if I know how to access it today. Perhaps I'm rotting away, bit by bit.

Oh look, it's a blog.

Perhaps I should write something on this blog, as it's been a while since I've posted anything.

I am not sure what to write, though. There is too much stuff and nothing running around in my head all at the same time. I have no idea what that looks like.

I'm trying to move on, to accept Daddy's death and carry on with my life. Sometimes it works well, sometimes I'm a mess. It's getting better. I will be back in Florida in a couple of weeks for the Life Celebration Party to honor his life. I'm sort of looking forward to that. There will be way too many people at the event, most of whom I do not know. You know that makes me uncomfortable. Maybe I can find some place to hide out in case it gets too overwhelming.

The children have been on spring break all week. What a horror. OK, it's really not that bad. They've been loud and argumentative (what's new?) but haven't gotten into serious trouble. No law enforcement involved at all, no fire fighters, EMS, or other emergency vehicles have come to the house all week, so we must be OK.

Baseball season started Monday! Yay Braves! They won two out of three games in their first series against the Phillies. I saw the first game, forgot about the second game until it was over, and was out with Superman at our favorite hangout during the third game. There's another one tonight, Atlanta hosting the Cubs, which I may watch. I'm very sleepy right now, so I might put on the game and fall asleep to it. I love falling asleep to the sound of Chip Caray and Joe Simpson calling the game. Baseball can be such a peaceful game.

Seriously, do I have anything to blog about? I'm putting myself to sleep with this boring chatter.

I bought ink for my printer today.
Saw my doctor this morning about pain in my left heel. He diagnosed tendinitis.I'll live.
We're almost out of beer. Someone needs to make a beer run soon.
I brought home a couple of six packs of local Florida beer. Good stuff! It's all gone. I'll get more when I return for Daddy's life celebration in two weeks.
I am boring.

Thursday miscellany

It begins to make a bit more sense, especially the statistics. I credit the book and its supplemental teaching tools for most of that success.

On the other hand, economics is quite tedious. I'm not sure what the heck is going on. I have a paper due by 11:00 tonight, and I'm wasting time right now. My heart isn't in it.

Speaking of my heart, I'm sick. I was up until 3 this morning, and only slept five hours. When I got up this morning I did not feel well. My lungs felt slightly icky, and my skin was sensitive. My stomach was off, too. Class didn't start until 10:15, so I went back to bed for an hour. I felt worse when I got up. Superman took the day off today, so he was here to help me get to school. I was so weak and dizzy and achy. I managed to make it through class, but as soon as I got up from my seat, a headache attacked me. I came home, took some Naproxen, and went to bed. I slept for about five more hours. I don't feel as bad as I did. I'm not as achy, but my muscles are weak and shaky. My headache is holding back, waiting to spring again. I can tell it's there, but it isn't bothering me yet.

All of which is very boring to read about.

Indigo is here! He drove all day, arriving at 5:30-ish. He'll stay through the weekend. It is so good to have my dear friend here!

I must get back to my economics homework. TTFN

Ramblings and Ruminations

So, Daddy sent a response to the Father's Day message I sent him.

"Correct"

He's not a very demonstrative guy. He also isn't comfortable with email and/or the internet. Eh.

Everyone is back home now. Light spent the last two weeks house sitting for a friend, Superman was with his family over the weekend. Of course the kidlets are here, though Sproing goes to school five days a week. Praise the zombie baby Jeebus. In two and a half weeks I take Twitch to college. For the next two and a half weeks we are all of us. After that, I'm not sure what the household will look like. Sure, Twitch will be home for vacations and such, just as Light is. But Light turns 20 next month, and is a junior now. I'm not sure she will be home next summer. She might, but she also might get a job somewhere else for the summer next year, or stay at school to take summer classes. Now that she's been in college for two years, it feels more like she's visiting over the summer rather than home for the summer, if that makes any sense.

And I'm OK with that. It is time. She is ready. Twitch is ready to make his first real break from home, too, though he will be home when he's here, at least for the first year or so. But he will establish his own domain outside of home. It's all good. It's time. I'm ready.

We were supposed to meet with the psychologist about Diva's test results. The meeting was scheduled for last night, but the secretary called yesterday to reschedule for next Monday. *sigh* I'm impatient. The doctor wants us to get our copy of the results and have a chance to look over it before we meet. Makes sense. The secretary said we will be getting those results in the mail this week. I'm eager to see them. I'm hopeful for useful answers. I want to get this child into some kind of treatment program, preferably one that involves her living somewhere else for a while. Is that horrible of me? Yeah, part of me says it's horrible, but a bigger part says that it's a rational and reasonable thing given the circumstances and situation. I'm going to listen to the bigger part.

I'm getting tired of writing about the kids and the family. Don't I think about anything else? I have been blog surfing this morning, enjoying myself immensely. Warrior Scout has a thought-provoking post today. He talks about "pride" and what it means to him now that he's clean (off drugs). I have some thoughts about the issue, the different definitions of the word, how it relates to gay pride, what it means to be proud of myself in the larger scheme of things. I would wax poetic on the subject, but I've just typed the only thoughts that are clear enough for words.

And speaking of words, as you may know, I am taking a composition course this summer. I've been writing a good bit. I like to write, though sometimes I get so wrapped up in the technical aspects of writing that I don't know what I'm saying. Which is weird, because part of the technical aspects of writing is to clearly communicate the message. Once again, my brain is chasing its tail, going around in circles, making no sense.

It's been hot and muggy here. (Oh, look! Now I'm talking about the weather.) I have not been out of the house in days. Superman took the little car away this weekend, so the only vehicle here was Manny. Dear, dear Manny. One rainy day last week Superman drove Manny, and forgot to turn the lights off when he got home. Yep, dead battery. He plugged it into the charger thingie he has, the thing that's supposed to charge a car battery using the electric current from the house. It didn't work. So when I got in the truck to take Sproing somewhere, it gave me no response whatsoever when I turned the key. Oh, well. Sorry, son, but we can't go. I wasn't broken hearted, to tell the truth. He was, but I don't care. All that to say that I haven't been more than 20 feet from the house in four or five days. It's too damned hot and humid to be outside. And it isn't even wickedly hot. Poor ol' Jackie, in Texas, says they've got temps over 100. We will probably see temps that high for a few days before the end of summer.

Which brings me to what Superman said to me last week. He mentioned something about the possibility of living in Vermont. As a matter of fact, Light said pretty much the same thing. She wants to come visit us in Vermont. When I first started looking at colleges I was attracted to the University of Vermont in Burlington. OK, I know it gets really cold up there in the winter, and I don't know what that means because I've never lived north of the Mason-Dixon line. But I feel up for an adventure, you know? And I want to get the hell out of South Carolina! So there. I hear Vermont is beautiful. The political climate looks pretty good from here, too. I've never been. Not even visited. I'd like to. The predicted high temperature for Burlington (per weather.com) is 78F. The predicted high for this area is 92F. I like 78 better.

OK, having just looked at the UVM website, I don't see any kind of master's degree program that looks applicable. PhD, yes, but I don't want to take that big a leap. I may go on to get a PhD, but probably not, and anyway I want to get a master's first. So, there we go. Does anyone have any recommendations for a master's degree program in clinical psychology, or even better, a graduate program with an LGBTQ emphasis? I've heard good things about UMD. It's in the D.C. area, which doesn't improve my weather conditions any, but what's the most important thing here, anyway? (I honestly don't know the answer to that question.)

This is the final week of class for the first summer term. I'm nearly finished with my composition class. It's been fun. I like the online format. Beginning next Monday I start my Summer B classes. I'll have another online class (Econ. 101) and I will be sitting in a classroom from 10 - noon Monday through Thursday learning Statistics. I think this is the only math class I'll need. I hope so, anyway.

I'm rambling on about absolutely nothing. How can you stand it? I'm going to do something else now, as I'm boring myself half to death here.