Big news around here: might you have heard the shrieking coming from my house last night around 11:00 p.m. Central time? I finished researching and writing my book*. Finished. Though I thought for a while it would never happen, it did. Short of some minor editing, it’s done. Of course, my personal goal when I sent proposals out was December 31, 2009, but we won’t dwell on that. Life gets in the way of the most reasonable goals sometimes, and at least I kept plugging away at it. Better late than never, I always say. The writing, though, was the easy part. Getting it published? More than likely, a little…
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And, Just Like That, The Band-Aid Was Off.
When Jim and I were newly married, he was in the Navy, on sea duty. His ship’s battle group was out to sea quite a bit. In fact, in the first four years we were married, he went on three six-month cruises. That’s in addition to one-, two-, or three months out here and there, as well as the cruises that only lasted a week or two. Ahead of his departure, it was awful. The anticipation of being apart was really pure hell. All of the preparations we had to make each time he left and just the emotional roller coaster we went through on a continual basis was awful.…
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Sending Your Kid To College Is Exactly Like Being Pregnant, But Different.
I never thought I would experience pregnancy more than twice, but I was wrong. No, no, I’m not really pregnant again (bite your tongue!). I am, however, exhibiting many of the same symptoms. When we found out I was pregnant the first time, the wheels started turning immediately. We started wondering about so many things: Were we ready for this change?Were we up for the challenge of raising another human being?Could we actually afford this? Of course, those were only some of the questions. And it was a little late to be asking those questions, anyway. We put lots of time into figuring out our name choices. We did research…
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Teenaged Boys + Cars = Forever
I have learned that it’s a given, the torrid love affair between teenaged boys and cars. The day on which the older boy bought his car (with his own money!) was quite possibly the most exciting day of his life. He was positively giddy. All wasn’t perfect, however: the car came with an oil leak that required constant monitoring and topping off of oil. We took it in a few months ago to see if the pros could determine the source of the leak, and it was the worst oil-related diagnosis possible: the head gasket. The quote? $2600. (more than twice what the older boy paid for the car) It…
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If My Wallet Were As Big As His Heart, We’d Be In Business.
The other day, I was at work when the older boy called me from his job (well, one of them: he’s doing graphic design part-time by day and hosting/bussing at a restaurant part-time by night), very excited about something. “I have a GREAT idea for a Father’s Day gift for Dad,” he said. “Oh really?” I asked. “What is it?” “Well, we are right next door to one of those places that rebuilds and soups up cars, and I’ve been noticing an old Camaro in the parking lot. I went into the auto place and asked about it, and they said it belongs to my boss.” Jim’s dream car is…