The cold, it lingers.

And there have been many times I’ve wanted to blog lately but had no access to a computer. When I have access, I don’t have the time. It really is aggravating.

To keep with the new tradition of crappy in 2007, I spent last night at our local courthouse. Seems my vehicle inspection expired back in October and I never noticed. Even though technically the vehicles are someone else’s “area”. Still, I drive it and I didn’t notice. The policeman did though. The good news is that I got off with just the mandatory fee. The judge let me go on the actual fine. Still, FEE.

The other thing was it was intermittently interesting. The kids (and they were definitely kids) brought in from prison because of parole violations. The kids with lawyers and parents that were obviously not there for simple traffic violations. It made me realize that “Dear God, may I never have to accompany my child to court.” It is an experience I never want to have. Now, I’m sure some of those cases were childish misbehaving and some, I’m sure, were more serious. Ugh, I’m so not ready for the boys to grow up.

DJ was pleased that I did not have to go to jail. He was a bit worried.

In other news…
There has been discussion about getting me a NEW and IMPROVED camera. I’ve been asked to do some photography for actual pay but I need better equipment. No really. I can’t do what I’ve been asked to do with what I have. The other side of it is that I won’t be making enough to cover the cost of a new camera & lens. If I did then I’d say, “let’s do it!” But no. I don’t know how much I’ll be making but I do know I won’t come close as they are more in the “favor with some compensation” area.

I’d also like to ask for a raise. A big raise but I’m scared. I don’t really know how to go about such things and I don’t know how to figure out what I should be getting for where I’m working and what I’m doing. This is mostly because I don’t have a specific “job”. I do a bit of many different things. I’m not a web designer but I do web design. I’m not in accounting but I do the budget reports. I’m not an administrative assistant (what do they do anyway?) as I’d have to be full time and salaried. My official title is Special Projects but it’s not something you can look up online and say, “Oh, here is what other people doing what I do make.” I don’t even know if there is anyone else in this company that does what I do.

When I was hired the salary was discussed and it was decided that after we figured out what my responsibilities were to be and if I could do what needed to be done (remember, never had a “career” and had been home for 5 years) that it would be renegotiated. The thing is that my immediate boss is the one who did my 6 month review and is not the same person who discussed my salary when I was hired (she wasn’t even my boss then). So who do I talk to? My new boss isn’t comfortable hiking my salary and I don’t know if I should jump above her to the original person who discussed it with me. Suggestions?

Accepting all suggestions, advice, donations for a new camera etc.

So much news.

So little time. Ok, really: So much laziness.

So much for the truth. Now onto facts…

Fact #1: I now have Fridays off. OFF. O.F.F.
I added an hour to my work day Monday-Thursday and have Fridays OFF. I’m giddy with the freedom. Same # of hours a week only 4 days instead of 5. Well, I was working 6 days a week because of my other job but now it is just Sun – Thursday. Two whole days off! Whooohoooo! A day to do laundry and dishes, schedule appointments and shop. Today was my first Friday off, actually, last Friday was my first Friday off but it was before I asked to change my hours. It was just suppose to be a one time deal because of Fact #2 (see below). It worked though and now it is permanent. Unless it doesn’t work out. Then it is un-permanent. But for now, it’s happening. And I am giddy. I actually feel like I’m playing hooky or something. Like I’m skipping out even though I put in my hours this week. A day off! For real! Giddy, I tell you.

I stayed in my pj’s until 2 and did laundry and dishes and picked up the house a bit. My God! I had forgotten the loveliness that is being alone.

Fact #2: TJ had his adnoids out last Friday.
I wasn’t really going to write about it because:

A) Respecting his privacy and all.

B) It is very minor surgery that I was anxious about (because I’m a mom). That and the fact they give you a month to entertain every horror you’ve ever heard about and some you just make up in your head. A month! Why, oh why, can they not just schedule surgery for the day after it is decided the child needs it? Why? My anxiety would have not had a chance to gather its forces and strangle me with fear.

So now you are asking why? Why am I writing about it. Well because. The child asked me if I was going to and when I said no he said I should and he wanted me to. So… there you have it.

Now for the fun part of fact #2: My son was drunk and seeing double and it was FUNNY.
They gave him some medication to take the edge off before the surgery and watching it take affect may have made me forget a bit of the anxiety… until they rolled him away. He told us the ceiling was pulsating and we looked weird. And then he giggled. When the anesthesiologist came by to check on him he giggled some more and pointed at him. Then he told him he had 4 eyes and 2 noses. Then more giggling may have occurred. It was really very entertaining. There was also a moment when my husband took off his baseball cap, held it out next to him and said, “Meet my friend.” TJ made a horrified face. Then we all collapsed into a fit of giggles. Or maybe that was just me. It was funny. Trust me. Possibly the second best part of the whole day. Or maybe the third. The first being TJ making to the bathroom and back without throwing up or passing out. The second being spending the day on the couch with him watching movies we’d rented just for the occasion.

Fact #3: I’m a terrible, no good, very bad parent.
As an early Hanukkah present we took the older two to a concert. Their first concert. TJ’s favorite musician.

First, we walked a half mile in the rain, stood in a very long line in the rain before getting in and then power walked back to the car (in the rain) after the show. All this the DAY AFTER TJ’s surgery. In our defense, we bought the tickets a couple of months ago and promptly forgot all about them. I scheduled the surgery about a month later and STILL did not realize about the concert/surgery coinciding until the week before when my SIL mentioned the show. At which point I shrieked, “WE CAN NOT GO. My baby is having SURGERY.” And there was much eye rolling for all the drama by the other family members. And to be fair, the Dr. okayed it if he was feeling up to it. It was not decided until the final moments whether or not we really were going to go but he insisted he was ok, so go, we did.

The other reason I was the T,NG,VB Parent was the show was Ben Folds. Tell me, have any of you seen Ben Folds in concert?

I am so not up with things. (Also known as Fact #4)

It was at a local college and it was a good show. It was fun and BF seemed to be having fun and I was enjoying myself until… until the major swearing started and I got a bit uncomfortable seated next to my 10 & 11 year olds. And then, the inappropriate song (**warning: not work or kid safe**) started. The inappropriate song was being sung in good fun and all – but to quote my sister-in-law, “I was very uncomfortable during that last song.” To which I replied, “Try being their mother and listening to that while sitting next to them.” To which my husband replied, “I pretended I was somewhere else. What else could I do.”

I was sure CPS would be waiting at our door when we got home. Fortunately, so far it has not seemed to harm TJ’s health any and as far as “the song” goes, we have decided to never speak of it again.

And that is all. For now.

I must get back to my Laundry! and Cooking! and caring of the children! for now they are home again and I am no longer alone.

I bet you totally thought I was dead this time. You did, didn’t you? Well, I’m not. So, HA!

Guess I’m feeling a bit feisty. That and it’s past my bedtime and I’m tired. So instead of sleeping I’m blogging and feeling feisty and feeling a bit like a zombie with the tiredness.

• The job? Very cool. I still feel like an idiot more than I’d like but my bosses seem happy. Things are moving along.
• The house? This kids are cleaning it. Yes, you read that correctly. THE. KIDS. ARE. CLEANING. THE. HOUSE. I did not say well. Or all. But they are cleaning things like their rooms (Whooo! Never done before!) and the toilets & bathroom sinks (better than me not getting to them) and even dusting and swiffering the living and dining room. No, really. I’m not lying. How am I getting them to do all this? I’m not. The people caring for my children while I’m at work are. That and bribery. No electronics until chores are done. Oh, and if you’re thinking I’m some mean ogre making them slave away? Realize that there are 4 of them. One day’s chores? 2 kids clean 2 toilets (1 each), 2 kids clean 2 sinks (1 each). Another day? One kid collects garbages from around house. One empties them all into kitchen garbage. Two kids take them & recycling to curb. Selling my kids into child slavery? Not so much. But the results are stunning. (comparatively speaking)
• The sports? GAH! The never ending baseball has ended. The all-day/every-day soccer has started. The summer rec and tennis lessons and golf lessons and gymnastic lessons and scout camp have started. Soon summer school starts. At least it keeps them from killing each other. Although, that to has started. Hmmmm, I thought it would hold off until August at least but really? No. It has begun.
• My sanity? Eh. Feeling sane but realizing a few things about how my brain works and how that may not be exactly normal. I shall save this for another post. Ha! I just made myself laugh. Another post. Guess I’m feeling optimistic.

And with that I shall go to bed. (After I clean the kitchen. Note to self: add kitchen duties to children’s to do list.)

So it isn’t my best day. Or my worst. But it is definitely on the low end of the scale.

What? You say you are having a worse day? Huh? Huh?

Well, maybe you are. So, if that is the case, I hope this day ends soon for both of us.

Why has today been so crappy? Well, let me tell you. You don’t care? Then go. Somewhere. Else. I must vent.

So I got up late. And would someone please tell me if a bad day has ever started when you got up on time. Where was I? Late, yes. I then proceeded to spill coffee down my front while driving to work. Genius, I know. But then, THEN, I remembered that Tide pen thing I bought forever ago and have never used. And it just so happen to be in the purse I was carrying. What good fortune. Except when you spill coffee on a light blue shirt and then put whatever chemicals are in that pen on it, you look like you were trying to enter a wet t-shirt contest by the time you get to work. So yes, I was driving down the expressway drawing all over my shirt with a bright orange pen that was making my shirt see-through. Ah, good times.

For the rest of the morning I hid in my office trying to cover myself every time someone came into my office. The stuff did dry but let me tell you something – the pen? DID. NOT. WORK. I’m not quite sure that spreading the stain around is a success. Apparently the pen just uses the liquid in it to spread the stain into an ever widening area. Pretty.

Then I realized I published a page on our intranet earlier this week that should not have been published and the existing pages are GONE and they only publish on Tuesday and Thursday nights and Tuesday is a holiday so I’m betting it won’t be fixed then and besides that I have nothing to replace the horror with. Oh, and I’m still not sure how the damn system works there. MY GOD I AM AN IDIOT. And now they will all find out and fire me. See? Not a good day.

Also, the banking fiasco is still going on and I came home to yet another child with a fever and we are suppose to have errand day today and buy things like groceries so we can do things like eat but we need to use cash and I hate cash with a fiery passion and if we do not buy my 7 year old cleats today it will be the end of the world and I CAN NOT FOCUS ON ANYTHING.

Maybe I’m dying. Dying of a shitty day.

I got the job!

The one with the perfect hours and the cool job responsibilities (computer woman!).

It doesn’t seem quite real yet.

I also found 3 pairs of pants, 1 skirt, 1 shirt, 2 pairs of shoes and a new purse. It was a good shopping day! I’m thinking the planets finally aligned.

Tomorrow I’m off on a field trip with the oldest (the last one for at least a year for me ) and then Friday is paperwork, physical, drug screening day. I’m thinking it will seem more real then.

Oh, and I need to go through my calendars and reschedule a half dozen appointments scheduled in the mornings for the next couple of months. But YAY! a job. And I will reschedule anything to get out of having to look for a job one more minute.