The Long Lost "Sister"

Yeah, it's been awhile. It's been real crazy, since I took this (second) job. Now, I wonder if I have stepped over the line as far as what I am capable of. I have never been quite so tired in all my life. I once went through a tough period when I had to have three jobs, but I am *several* years older and I am afraid that having two jobs is going to kick my butt. We shall see...

But I didn't come to whine. I came to tell you a story about the Long Lost "Sister". When I was 7 or 8 years old, my parents took in a newborn cousin of mine to raise until her mother became able to care for her again. When she was 5 1/2 years old, her mother came for her and I never saw her again. My brother recently found a reference expressing her sympathy for our mother's death on an abandoned weblog of hers. I posted a comment--even though the blog was obviously not being actively maintained--and was really surprised when she emailed me! I had always wondered whatever became of her. It's been really weird. Like finding a long-lost "sister" after more than 30 years!!! I can't tell you how happy I am to have made contact with her! She lives in Missouri and has four children--one of whom is the same age as my daughter.

The link I provided in the title will take you to her current website, Antiquated and Obsessed, where she has posted some photos I sent her from the time she lived with us. Check out her Feb. 20, 2006 entry. (Don't laugh too hard at my glasses--remember the photos were taken in the early 1970's!!)

Now What?

I got the job...NOW WHAT? My rational mind knows that without this second job, we are never going to make it. My heart says "What the hell have you done???" My hubby is in college full-time and spending around $90/week to commute. My salary pays our cellular bill, his probation and parole costs, our storage unit costs, car insurance on three cars, and two credit card bills. Last month, we also had to pay a speeding ticket. This month, no speeding ticket...but a car repair bill and a tire replacement. And prescriptions to the tune of $100/month.

I need this job. But can I handle it? When I was younger, I once held three jobs. I know for a fact I wouldn't be able to do that, now.

I'm very tired. And I still have laundry to fold/hang up from the dryer and the dishwasher to unload. Please remember me in your prayers.

In Small Town, 'Grease' Ignites a Culture War

In Small Town, 'Grease' Ignites a Culture War - New York Times

I read this story with great sadness. I was sure I lived in the very last "head-in-the-sand" community in America. I was wrong.

Wake-up, Fulton! Banning this play or that stage production is NOT going to prevent teenagers from experimenting with drugs (including your basic legal ones, cigarettes and alcohol) and it isn't going to stop them from what we used to call "fooling around", our generation's outdated term for having sex. It's going to happen, unless you cloister every teen until they reach the age of majority. (Resourceful ones, though, would still find a way...)

So, here's what I suggest. Encourage this teacher to continue to produce high-quality productions. Then, in the privacy of your homes and churches discuss why certain behaviors depicted in movies, plays, and on television should be avoided. But don't fall into the trap of trying to prevent undesirable activities by limiting what can be presented through creative outlets. Because, guess what? Those activities are going to happen ANYWAY. And, trying to ban the activity by banning the productions that portray it is evidence of what a truly small-minded community you really are. (Not unlike the rural Louisiana town where I live. I would expect that from parent groups and religious organizations in my area.)

Get over it. And get your collective heads out of the sand!

What a LONG, STRANGE Trip It's Been...

Crazy...that's me!

Now I will fill you in on what's been going on. I just came from a job interview for a part-time job after work. (Go ahead and say it. I'm crazy and I know it.) I think I got the job, as an after-school tutor. It will only be for a couple of hours each day, so it won't be too bad. And the pay is out of this world. $15/hour! That's more per hour than I make at my primary job--I make $9.25/hour there, but I'm not about to give up that job. I worked too hard to GET it!

The reason I seem to have taken leave of my senses is that spouse has gone back to college full-time. Fully paid for by Vocational Rehabilitation. (Did you know that drug addiction is a disability? And he found out last summer that he is a diabetic, also a disability.) He is working on finishing his Associate of Science degree, so that he can become a certified medical laboratory technician. He only has about a year to go, with the college credits he already had on his transcripts.

But that leaves us in dire straits financially, especially given the fines and probation costs we now have to pay every month, hence my needing a second job. Also, it goes without saying that we will be living with his parents awhile longer.

I can do this, I know.

So, the roller coaster of life makes another twist. (I always hated roller coasters, though.)

And that line from "Truckin'" by the Grateful Dead is stuck in my head:

WHAT A LONG, STRANGE TRIP IT'S BEEN...