Category: Junk Drawer

There’s a rhino in the room

~ Lenore Diane ~ 2 Comments

*Cough* *Cough*
*Sniff* *Sniff*
*Cough* *Cough*

Ah, the sounds of the season. Cold and flu season, that is. As parents try to cover up their sick child by saying, “It’s just allergies”, or “He/she is teething”, truth be told, your kid probably has a cold. Dun dun duuuuun! Lock the doors! Bolt your windows! God forbid you take your cold suffering child out in public. What will the neighbors think?

Don’t mind me, I’m just a working parent with kids in daycare and school, currently dealing with the shunning that comes to cold suffers. I’d like to think I run a tight ship; but in reality, I think at least one of my sails is not tied down properly. I’d call a repair man, but I have a cough – and I’d hate for him to catch my cold. Then again, I send my kids off to school and daycare when they have a cold, so I suppose I could invite the repair man onto this laden ship.

I think I will attached a scarlet colored letter ‘C’ on my chest and the chests of my boys, letting the world know we have colds. Better yet, just for me, I’ll attach scarlet colored ‘B’ and ‘M’ letters on my chest for ‘Bad Mom’; yeah – BM – I’m sure that would go over well.

Before I go too far on my rant (or have I already reached that point?), I’ll share some verbiage I found on WebMD:

“A little sniffle. A slight cough. “I don’t feel good,” says your child. Should this kid stay home, go to school, or go to the doctor immediately?

Usually, if your child has cold symptoms, the deciding factor is whether she has a fever too, experts say. If there’s no fever, it’s probably just a cold. So long as your child feels pretty healthy otherwise, it’s fine to send her off to school.

Children with bad coughs need to stay home and possibly see a doctor. It could be a severe cold or possibly bronchitis, flu, or pneumonia. But when the cough improves and the child is feeling better, then it’s back to school. Don’t wait for the cough to disappear entirely — that could take a week or longer!“

This BM has no intention of keeping her kids out of school or daycare, while they battle their colds and are free from fevers or other infections. A cold is not also known as ‘common cold’ because it is some rare and deadly virus. Though I do understand, a common cold can lead to more serious illnesses such as croup. Croup is not a friendly virus. Croup is down right scary, and it is something my family has dealt with on several occasions. Rest assured, if the croup cough is heard, we take steps to isolate our kids from others. But a cold? Buckle up Betty, because my kid is going to daycare/school, and he may even sit by your child. Mwahahahahaa

And don’t waste your time asking me where I think my child found this lovely rhinovirus (or other cold virus). This BM is not on a mission to find the source of the virus. A wise teacher once told me, trying to pinpoint the source is like going on a witch hunt. Germs and bacteria are all around us. If the mail person is sick, she can transfer her germs onto the mailbox handle and the mail itself. If the UPS man is sick, he can transfer his germs as he smiles and passes you your latest purchase from QVC. And, let’s not even think about the grocery stores. Face it. You are surrounded. Surrounded. You should probably just stay in bed and keep your kids in their room.

Perhaps we could all travel in zones, just like airports have zones for various modes of transportation.
The Green Zone is for the healthy people of the world, who carry no bacteria, viruses or germs: Please breathe freely in the Green Zone.
The White Zone is for the people of the world who carry bacteria, viruses or germs. Please do not breathe in the White Zone.

(God help the person who is on the moving sidewalk in the Green Zone, when they cough or sneeze.)

My apologies if I sound cranky. It’s probably just allergies.

This, that and another Friday

~ Lenore Diane ~ 1 Comment

.:: Wait a second; who put that there?
After dinner out one night this week, Rob and I were walking to our car. Rob started walking to the wrong red car. When he realized it, he started laughing.

“Remember when my parents borrowed my car, and I used my Mom’s car for a week?” He asked.

“Yes.” I replied.

“Well, I took my Mom’s car to the grocery store one day. When I came out of the grocery store, I got in the car and got ready to drive away. But, I noticed something.”

He continued, “The seat was leaned way back, and I didn’t remember reclining the seat at all.”

Then he started laughing hard. “I looked around inside the car, and I realized I was in the wrong car!”

I laughed and said, “That’s funny. I have a similar story. I didn’t share it with you because I was too embarrassed.”

“During a trip to Target, I walked away from my cart to look through the clothes. I didn’t find anything, and I went back to my cart and continued shopping. I went to the card section to buy several birthday cards. I was probably there for 10 minutes. When I was done, I put all the cards in the cart. Then I realized, it wasn’t my cart!”

Rob and I start laughing.

“I went back to the clothes section, where I got the cart. I parked the cart, and slowly walked away. I pretended to look through the clothes, again. And, I noticed a woman come and take her cart away without a word. I felt like the biggest dork. I waited awhile before I went and retrieved my real cart.”

.||.

Lost in thought with so many things on your mind.
All sorts of distractions, basically leaving you blind.

Where are the car keys? Who put that chair there?
I know I’m going some place; I just don’t remember where.

You make it home, thinking things could be worse.
You unload your car and realize that’s not your purse.

.||.

.:: It’s All a Daze
Week two of my overnight part-time job. I am so glad Rob and I decided not to have a third child. Though the reasoning behind the ‘no more kids’ decision was based more on me being psycho and our relationship struggling than the genuine desire to increase the family.

Lacking a full-night’s worth of sleep for two days out of the week is really taking its toll on me and my over 40yr old self. I’m not more cranky without the sleep (Rob may beg to differ); I am just plain tired and lacking any sort of motivation and focus. (Though really, motivation was hard to find even with sleep.)

My son’s teacher is celebrated her birthday this week. My son came to me with an elaborate idea to make a special craft for his teacher’s birthday. He wanted to make a lesson for his teacher, similar to one she uses in his in class. I was impressed with his grand idea, and I wanted to see it through to fruition. Well, the day before his teacher’s birthday and a day after no sleep, I asked him if he was ready to start on the project. He said ‘no’.

If I was working with a weeks worth of sleep, I would not have accepted his ‘no’ response. In fact, I would have said, “Okay, Joe. You need to start working on your project.” However, because I am lacking sleep these days,  I said, “Ok.” And honestly, I was impressed with his idea; I thought his teacher would appreciate it; and, I was looking forward to having him tackle the task. Alas, I was too tired to push for it. This is one of those times where I will have to find satisfaction in knowing he had good and creative intentions. Then again, I’m so tired, I’ll probably forget that part, too.

.||.

Sleep deprivation
Loopiness and no focus
Ooo pretty colors

.||.

.:: Don’t go back to Rockville
Sleep will find me this weekend. In addition to sleep –  junk food, movies and great conversation will find me, too. This weekend, I am taking a road trip to meet a girlfriend of mine. (Meeting a boyfriend of mine would be a bit odd, seein’ as I am married.)

I met my friend when I moved to Rockville, MD back in 1992. I moved back to Georgia two years later, after my father died. (No, I didn’t move back because I thought, ‘Woo hoo! My dad is gone. I can go home now!’ I moved back to be closer to my family, because I wasn’t able to get to my Dad in time.)

Even though I moved back to Georgia, my girlfriend in Maryland remained and remains one of my best friends. So this weekend, she is driving south, I am driving north and we will meet in the middle. Woo hoo! We’ve booked the hotel, and we’ll both arrive within minutes of check-in on Friday and leaving no earlier than check-out on Sunday. We’ve already discussed the junk food we’ll have in the room, as well as the movies. And, we’ve loaded ourselves up with books to read.

Though we are prepared with a plethora of entertainment, we’ll also bask in the quiet free time. Because we both have young kids (6 and 4, 5 and 4), we have a greater appreciation for quiet free time. Aaaaaah….. quiet free time.

.||.

Hitting the road and heading out.
Spending time with a friend is what it’s about.

My time I’m a’wasting. I need to publish this post.
So, I can get in the car and head for the coast.

The coast is not really the destination this time.
But, I need to hurry, and I am trying to rhyme.

Okay, I’m going; hug hug – kiss kiss.
I didn’t even have to shave for this!

.||.

Be good to yourself, and be kind to others.

Regrets Possibly Pending

~ Lenore Diane ~ Leave a comment

I have received many comments about my blog. Not surprisingly, some people worry that I share too much. When I started writing the blog, my husband’s main request was that I maintain a line of privacy – of sorts – with regards to how much information I share. And, according to my husband, I have not yet crossed the line (though I’ve come close); but recently, my husband did ask me to delete one picture I included in a post, and I deleted the photo without hesitation.

Earlier this week, I read another blogger’s post about things best left unsaid or unpublished. In fact, I read the post several times. And, though I do not fully agree with the author, I understand the points she is trying to make. And, I do believe her words should be heard, if only to keep things in perspective. So, I made myself hear her, and I made myself reflect on my writings. Are my regrets pending? Will I look back, when my boys are teenagers, college students, etc. and feel regretful for exposing my life (and the lives of my family) to countless people? Will the feelings of my sons be hurt, because I wrote about a day (or month) when they drove me crazy?

No, the boys do not have a say in what I choose to share. No, I am not asking them for permission to write about their life. Does this make me a bad Mom? Some may answer ‘yes’, but I answer ‘no’. I don’t know what my boys will think about what I have written and what I will write. I hope the boys find my writing funny and entertaining. And, I hope my boys find the serious posts heartfelt and honest, even if it hurts. [Note to self: Be prepared to read the previous sentence directed at you, when the boys release their ‘Tell All’.]

This life of mine is my reality. I am living my reality. And, I am doing the best I can for myself, my husband and my kids. There is not a doubt in my mind that my current reality is manageable because I write about it. This blog was created the beginning of this year, and though the I still run into speed bumps, I am in a far better place today, in part, because of my writing.

Today – October 20, 2010 – hundreds of thousands of young people across the USA are wearing purple to call attention to the deaths of six youths who committed suicide after they were bullied or harassed because they were gay or were thought to be gay. I mention the ‘day of purple’, because many of the bullying takes place in cyberspace via YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, etc. One need not be gay to be bullied; moreover, one need not be bullied or gay to consider and/or commit suicide.

What does the above have to do with my writing? I believe one benefit to writing is letting others know they are not alone. In the past, I’ve written about my own suicidal thoughts. In fact, when I wrote my blog about that dark period, some of my friends reminded me they didn’t like it when I went through that stage the first time, and they didn’t like reading about it again. Why? Because it made them uncomfortable. Words are powerful, whether spoken or written. Words are supportive, whether spoken or written. As cheesy as this may sound, words can be used for good or evil. When I write, I am trying to use my words for good. And, I hope my boys will learn something from my experiences, regardless of the actual experience. [Note to my boys: The previous sentence is not to be used as an excuse for you to feel it is OK to experience everything you want to in life, not while you are living under your parents’ roof. Keep it legal and safe, boys; and, follow directions.]

The blog I read earlier this week, that inspired my post today, dealt with a girl stumbling across a Christmas letter her Mom had written. The girl was hurt by the words her Mom wrote. I think it is important to add that this person found her Mom’s letter by accessing the Word document and figuring out the secret password. This was not some random letter her Mom left out for all to see; although, it was the Christmas letter . . .

Still, it brings me to another point, when your feelings are hurt because you went out of your way to find the meanness, you looked in nooks and crannies that did not belong to you, you picked the locked which was intended to keep the thoughts private – is it fair to attack the writer? And, that is a question I ask myself, because I wrote You are what you seek after I felt bullied by someone. But, in my post, I made the point that I was responsible for going out of my way to find the mean words. I sought it out – found it – didn’t like it – and wrote about it. In addition to calling out the person, I was calling out myself. I was holding myself accountable for actively putting my nose where it didn’t belong.

Being a bully is wrong. Using words (spoken or written) to hurt is wrong. Again I ask myself, will I regret these posts in the future? I don’t think I will. And, I don’t think my boys will react negatively to what I have written or may write in the future. Time will tell. In the meantime, I will continue to live this reality as I know it, making sure my husband and boys know I love them with all my heart, even when I have bad days.

Then again, aside from knowing I love my family, what do I know? I currently have two part-time jobs, one of which is from 11pm until 7am, two nights a week. The lack of sleep is turning my brain to mush. When I started this post, I am sure I had a point, but the point may have been lost – like my sleep. Oh, and if you are interested in reading the post I mentioned titled “Things best left unsaid (or at least unpublished), you may do so by clicking here. Good night. Oh wait. I’m working tonight. *sigh*