Hello May

I'm sorry. Is it just me? or did the Month of May become a non-event in the writing area of my life. There was a total lack of any blogs anyone would want to read. (So I didn't publish them)

Apart from having my precious writing time interrupted by family I just couldn't seem to get the words to flow. I have read all the pieces on how to carve out a time and place for writing. And I have more or less done that. However as Chuck Wendig says over on Terribleminds if you don't take it seriously then no one else will.

But.
I just don't know how to make something that hovers between hobby (everyone elses perspective) and desirable career (my perspective) become important.
Hubster has taken the view that every time I take out my laptop that he bought (big mistake) I am about to do some web browsing or software analysis for him. Or his company which becomes our company when it suits him. Its gotten so bad that I can't even take the laptop out myself now. I feel like a kid sneaking in to the teachers office expecting to get caught.
I hate this.
And the kids who are old enough to have opinions and go to school unchaperoned want their mother to help with "study" for their summer exams. So I silently fume and resent them wanting my time. This is quickly followed by guilt (so quickly in fact that I think they shared the ride here).
And what is making me nauseated is I know I am the person responsible for creating this circle of demands around myself.
How do I break this cycle of demand - resentment - guilt - fear.
Arrgh!
Help!

Christmas!

And Christmas is over.
Phew!
Until next year when we do it all again.
Why is that every year I end up doing my shopping on Christmas eve?
I can't seem to face the crowds and the mania until my back is truly and firmly up against that wall.

The kids were happy with their gifts and seemed very contented - bickering at an all time low!
Hubster was pleased with his gift too.
All good no?

No actually.

Got the dinner cooked and nobody was poisoned by the 'frozen' turkey which refused to cook through in the allotted time.
Hmmmm
I took it out the day before and left it in the kitchen to defrost.
I expected one day (24 hours ) to be enough ........
however when I went to carve up it was raw so
We had everything else instead.
and a few slices off the outside of the bird where it was cooked perfectly.
So I re-wrapped her in her magic cooking bag and banged her back in the oven for another hour and she was cooked fine .
Only now everyone was stuffed to the gills
What am I going to do with 4 lbs of turkey?
Cold cuts to the visitors and spaghetti with meatballs for lunch yesterday and its gone!
just like that.
It was an uneventful Christmas
and that's how I like it.
Hope yours was deadly boring too.
Without drama.
We don't need drama.

Overheard Man on Phone

Hello Mam. It’s Jim here.
I just said I’d give you a quick buzz to say thanks for the card.
I got it this morning.
Yes you’re right. It’s my birthday today.
Thanks very much.
It was a bit of a surprise getting a mass card.
What’s that? You made a mistake?
You bought it for Mikey Kelly. I never knew he passed away.
Oh he didn’t you bought the card by mistake. I see.
Still. It gave me a bit of a start.
What’s that ? Louise Kelly is home. She has six kids! That’s a small army.
She was always a big girl. I can’t imagine what she is like now after six kids.
Oh Grand and slim you say.
You did what? You asked her for her diet so you could tell me!
How did she take being asked her private business?
Oh you were tactful. That’ll be a first.
No I don’t want to hear how she lost 8 stone in 6 months.
Well she was never as keen on me as you were on her.
She married a doctor. In New York.
Didn’t she do well for herself?
No Mam. I won’t call up. I don’t think she’d have any interest in meeting me. I’ll go and have a few pints for my birthday with some of the other bachelors and maybe some nice fat girl who doesn’t think she’s too good for me will give me a kiss for luck.
Good bye now Mam.
I’ll call again next Sunday.

Life on my planet.

Last night I was hosting a dinner party.
Nothing too fancy just my husbands family.

So... to start at the beginning.... way back in the mists of time ie Monday
night.
Hubster got the brain wave of inviting his brother (home from LA for the
50th wedding anniversary of Ma and Pa Hubster) to dinner.
To keep him company he asks Ma and Pa, the other single brother so he won't
feel left out and his sister just to balance the sexes a bit.
Hangs up the phone and his face falls.
'Oh my gosh!' he says (or something very like that) I'm in Dublin all day
Thursday on a course.
'What'll I do?' he asks me.
'Ring back and cancel?' says I helpfully/hopefully.
'Nah. It'll be fine. The course is over at 4pm I'll be home in plenty of
time' says he delighted with himself now that he has organised everything
to happen when he is out of reach and can't be asked to help with the
preparations.

Then Boychild pipes up 'we are having an open night in school and I am
helping out until 7.30'
There goes any help from him.

Girlchild has a piano lesson but its only 30mins so I figure we can manage
that. And she is game to help with planning the menu and making (and
eating) the desserts.

Then Wednesday night - DISASTER STRIKES - my tooth parts company with my gum. Its a premolar so not very prominent but still causing a serious gap in my smile. Nothing for it but to get a dental appointment as soon as
possible Thursday morning. Phew. Couldn't have people calling to the
house and seeing my pipe smokers gap.

Everyone was asked to arrive at 8pm.
At a quarter to eight my mobile rang - it was the Hubster 'my car has
broken down. What will I do?' GIANT PAUSE from me.
He was a good hour away.
I was tempted to tell him - stick out your thumb and hitch, but it was dark
and wet and I was sure he would be knocked down and killed and I would
spend the rest of my life grieving and feeling guilty. So instead I did the
supportive wife thing asked him about the car - where was it? what was its
symptoms? and almost instantly 'we' detected the problem -
Petrol! in a diesel engine that is.
On his journey home he filled up with the wrong fuel and a few miles from the
filling station the car gave up the struggle and died.
All hail the car the car is dead
Well it did struggle valiantly until he was well beyond walking distance
from the filling station before deciding to die. You've got to admire its
tactics.
Anyway I managed to get hold of a friend who galloped off to the rescue and
saved the day.

Meanwhile back at the ranch Ma and Pa Hubster arrived bang on time ' your
son is er.... missing.. as in not here yet' I mumbled. But they didn't seem to
mind and weren't a bit surprised Hubster was missing.
They arrived without LA brother who had decided to go to the open night at
boychilds school (being a past pupil he was curious to see the place). He
didn't arrive until 9pm a full hour late.
Sister Hubster arrived at 9.20 but she brought wine so was instantly
forgiven.

I decided we would begin without Hubster (anyone who puts petrol in a
diesel car doesn't deserve waiting for).
Hubster arrived at 9.55. So between the jigs and the reels he wasn't
actually that late. We were only half way through our main course. His
timing was not that off.

But I still think he should be punished. Don't you?