On Sundry Topics both Large and Small

Work – Work is… There are several adjectives that I could fill in there, but I won’t bother. I seem to go through phases where it doesn’t seem so bad, but the fact remains that I very definitely want to get out of there. I still don’t have a partner and tomorrow I’ll have 7 kids in my room, plus a woman doing her classroom interview for the position of my partner. I met her this morning and I’m not sure how I feel about her yet. My first impression is one of too much makeup, too much hairspray, and an overwhelming urge to speak with a Brooklyn accent. Nothing against people from Brooklyn, it’s a lovely borrough, but she just seemed to exude that particular stereotype. So I’m trying to reserve judgment as to her actual teaching abilities until tomorrow.

Karina is now out on maternity leave, replaced by Sarah, who is very nice, although no one else seems as enthusiastic about her as I am. I do feel bad that she’s only been with us for a week and she’s already been thrown into the deep end, and with the sharks no less! ::cough cough:: Joy ::cough cough:: Sorry, but I’m still not a fan of Joy’s attitude towards pretty much everyone, but especially towards myself. Occasionally I see a glimmer of civility, but it’s rarely more than a glimmer. It makes me very glad that I am down the hall and away from the collective cattiness of the three central toddler rooms, a situation that’s already inspired Sarah with envy. Only a week and she’s already being inundated with gossip and bitchiness. Lucky girl. I advised her to do what I do and listen politely while keeping your mouth shut.

We have a Harvest Party on Friday night. Unlike KiddieWorld, these events are mandatory and that means that they’re overtime. They try to avoid that by having us leave early one or two days during the same pay period, but that’s okay by me. And Erica says she might be able to get me out at 4 on Friday. That means I could come home, feed the kitties, and come back for the party, which would make the kitties very happy. I don’t mind not getting the overtime, especially if it’s in the service of spending less time doing actual work. The Harvest Party is a parent-child activity. We just happen to be there.

Finances – Our money situation is improving slowly but surely. I’ve only got a couple accounts carrying over a previous balance at this point and those are just partial balances anyway. The one major one is Verizon, but I should have that taken care of this week for most of the amount due, if not all of it.  We do still owe my parents money, and we’ll owe Mike for two months worth of rent, which means we owe him the same amount we owe my parents, but my parents are all right with us paying them back slowly, so once we get Alan’s first pay and BAH we can start paying Mike back. It’s all a little like a high wire act, but at last I can see the platform waiting for me.

Alan – Just two more weeks from today. It’s a little terrifying to think that Alan won’t be here anymore. He went through all of this clothes this weekend and put away his summer things, threw out stuff that was stained or torn, and donated whatever didn’t fit. His closet’s quite a bit emptier now and I’ve put some of my shoes and sweaters in. I also took one of the hoodies that he was going to get rid of and made it into a "hug." I closed up the openings at the bottom and the cuffs, stuffed it with polyfil, sewed joints at the elbows and shoulders and closed it up at the neck. Now I have a big squishy "Alan" that even smells like him. ^_^ Nothing like the real thing, but it’s the best I can do with what I have. I was reading Ladies Home Journal the other day and they featured several little tales of woe about what the horrid economy is doing to families around the country and one of them was about a family who turned to the Army as their only real option as well. It’s good to know that there are other people out there in the same situation, even if it is a shitty situation.

Celebrations – In honor of Alan’s imminent departure, Lisa is having a farewell party on the 1st. In other words, the last day I’ll have to spend with my husband, I have to share him with everyone else. Woe and suck! Booooo! Hsssss! But anyway, it’ll be good for Alan to say goodbye to everyone at the same time, instead of having to do a whole bunch of little visits. And at least I’m not the one doing the planning. She tried to con me into it, but I’m too clever for her. Bwahahahaha!

And there are true celebrations to look forward to. My second cousin Jennifer is getting married on November 28th, and plans are pretty well set for my mom and I to drive down to good ol’ "Sparkle City," as it is colloquially known. The rest of the world would probably just call it Spartanburg, and if you want to get really technical, we’re actually going to Moore, SC. That’s where Charlie lives anyway. The wedding is in Spartanburg though, which is pretty cool since I don’t think I’ve been there since I was maybe six. Hardly the age to properly appreciate it’s importance to my little family’s story (my parents met there when my mom was in college). And most importantly, I’ve found not one but TWO perfect dresses for the occasion. One is a black and white floral print in a light-weight cotton in a very pretty, retro full-skirted shape with a kind of a high waist, knee-length hem and bateau neckline. Very Audrey Hepburn. The other is by the same designer and has the same retro appeal. It’s also a lightweight cotton with white polka dots on a brown background with reddish-orange trim at the neck and hem. The waist is closer to empire, with a deep-v neck, and it hits a little lower, around the top of my calves. And the best part about both of these dresses? They are 4 sizes smaller than I would normally wear. Okay, the brown one is a teeny tiny bit tight, but nothing another 5 lbs. won’t cure, so go me! And almost all of my pants are too big these days, not to mention my bras. Now that’s a real cause for celebration.

I guess that about covers it. I wanted to update since I didn’t really get a chance to this weekend. I haven’t been sleeping very well lately. I find that I have no trouble falling asleep, but then I wake up in the middle of the night because I have to pee or for whatever other reason and have trouble staying asleep after that. I just toss and turn. It sucks, especially when I’m trying to do everything I can to moderate my stress levels. Ugh. Maybe I’ll take a dose of NyQuil before bed. I am feel rather congested anyway.

~Liz