Ramblings of a married single-mom

I heard you..."say what!", you all say... what kind of oxymoronical mumbo jumbo is this girl spewing...?  I know; I know...but it is true...this past week and almost every second week for the last 3 1/2 years (once 7 weeks in a row) I was and will continue to be a married single-mom...in that I am married but am singular in the parenting...my husband goes to the end of the earth...ok, you got me, the end of our province...the top end...where internet is a concept and cell towers are tree tops...and communication is zilch...

Some people think it is difficult and, at first, it is...not having that extra set of hands but who am I kidding, he is never home even when he is here (he is, after all, an incredibly "important" person) and i  have gotten into a groove of sorts. Now I am "used" to his being gone (I enjoy the break) but find that the biggest hindrance for the kids and I is I need to be cloned...studying, basketball games, drum lessons, work, cleaning, cooking meals...I need a clone.....Ha ha ha

Thankfully, my children are old enough to help with throwing a load of laundry in and folding it...it may not be folded the way I would do it but it is folded and they have helped and that, my friends, is what is important to me. They are not limited to helping out with laundry...that was just an example that was in the forefront of my brain given that I have a mini mount laundruvious in the midst of activation in my basement as I type.

Having a meal plan has helped - only a lot...and I do admit to the Tuesday work until 4 pm, basketball game until 5 pm, drum lessons at 6:30 pm McDonalds run for supper...I am not ashamed...there is no 'S' on my chest...weeks that B.D. is gone we tend to eat a lot of things like grilled cheese, tomato soup, toads-in-a-hole...

But do you know what has really helped...not expecting as much...I have lowered my expectations...If we go to bed at night and there is still a growling mess in the kitchen I have learned to be ok with that...it will be cleaned when we get home the next day or in the morning before school/work...

The biggest thing though is the kids and I work together...we will routinely have mini meetings to say "ok, this is what needs done and by when and how are we breaking this up?". We also make sure that we make time to just have snuggle time with each other. I know it is hard on my kids when their dad is gone...extra snuggle time eases that burden for them ever so slightly...

Anyway, these are simply the ramblings of a married single-mom for today...

Time flies

And I am not even kidding one little bit.  14 days since I have been here heh? Yikes.  Bad blogger!!! Bad blogger!!! Now,if only there were some way I could rub my nose in the blog or something. {grin}

Work has been going great! I am, however, still learning to get and keep myself organized - between kids, their school, B.D. being gone so much, the hours at work, the family tree book I have been working on...there's not much time left but for sleeping.  Little by little, slow and steady...it is all coming together.  Meal plans, grocery lists, cleaning schedules, teaching Jellybean what she can do to help out with supper after school, etc.

Did I mention that the night time incontinence issue we were having at our house just dried itself up? {funny? not funny? my humor is in an odd state of being lately} Shortly after mentioning it a few months ago, it just stopped. No accidents since.  Yay!!!!

It snowed here again a few days ago... yep, snow...disappointing but, it has had its perks. Take for example, this instance that happened on Friday night when Bug and I were on our way home.  He was being goofy and I, joking with him, told him to quit or I would throw a snowball at him...he didn't believe me. I needed to become a woman of my word and BLAMO {cha! look it up - so a word -grin}, down goes the window, to the roof of my car goes my hand, grabbing a nice handful of snow which I then tossed at my son in the backseat and it hit the mark, landing softly right at his neck where it could escape down the collar of his coat... definitely a 3-pointer!!!


I promise it will not be 14 days until my next bloggingness again... I don't want anyone to swat my nose with a rolled up newspaper or anything...yikes! :D

First

week of work went great. Lots of learning.

Mental fatigue...

First chance to hop in some puddles this year.  Took advantage of it. Kids got soaked.

One is warming up in a hot bath right now...

First day of the rest of my life...

Gonna make it a good one. :)

Thinking of all of you...

It's not you; it's me

Seriously.  I can guarantee that I will be extra quiet around here for a bit - not because I don't like it here and certainly not because I don't love y'all but here is why.  Two days ago I was offered full-time at the doctor's office I work at. YAY! This is going to mean a lot of nights until 5, rush home for supper and be out the door  by 6 or 6:30 for the work at B.D.'s church I have been told I have to do.  I need to adapt and adjust to this new schedule, the new regime, the new structure and that may mean a bit of extra silence for a bit.

So, as of Tues I start full time at the doctor's part of the week doing pre-testing and part of the week doing surgical booking.  Looking forward to this new adventure.  I will try to check in at least once a week for the next bit - at least...

The post you don't have to read

you know, because I'm about to whine just a teeny tiny bit...

I don't want to go to work today; I would much rather stay in my bed.  Ooooo it was so toasty.
You see, it's cold outside.  Not as cold as it can be nor, for that matter, as cold as it has been. For some reason though, the sound of the alarm, this morning, was like bamboo shoots being shoved through my eardrums. (ok, I am surmising; I have no idea what that feels like nor do I intend to find out).

I get to venture into coldness and windchills to start my car, let it warm-up for 10-15 minutes so it is warm enough to drive. I also don't feel like contending with square tires. You think I could make that stuff up?!


How many times do you think you could call in "allergic to vertical" and still have a job to go to?

That's what I thought.  Better go start that car then! Sheesh!
{grin}

Working 9 to 5

No, I am not going to write about Dolly Parton (and her song). (Dad, you're welcome! {wink})

Just wanted to pop in and let you know that I have now completed Day #3 of my new job where I am working for an Opthamologist as an assistant to him.  All that really means is I get to do vision tests, dilate patients' eyes and do some pre-testing to save the doctor some valuable time.  So far, I am loving it (I feel like I need to add a 'ba da ba ba ba' in there or something to make it authentic).

My brain is on information overload and I am feeling so fortunate to have been able to  gather enough brain power to string these few sentences together coherently.  But, mostly, I am feeling so fortunate to have this job.  Still working part-time at the grocery store and part-time for the doctor.  I am just so thankful for  this opportunity.

Off to have a nap so my brain functions enough to remember my children's names.  I need a synapse to "fire" NOW!  {grin}

5 Question Friday

Wow, it's been a while since I have participated in MamaM's 5 Question Friday. I've been a little busy *ahem* unpacking and stuff.

But I shant dwell on the past any longer.  I will lift up my head and, without shame, guilt or other such condemnation, throw myself back into the swing of things. {grin - remember I am the drama writer at the skit,  I think over-acting may be my middle name}

Anywho, without further delay present to you my answers for 5QF.

1. What is your favorite thing about summertime?

Oooo, tough question.  Could we make the word "thing" plural?  Please? I have to answer plural.  There is no one "thing".  Water and camping and water fights and basking, boating and fishing and hiking and sunning.  These are a few of my favorite things...

Sorry, got carried away singing... {grin}

2. What is your ideal retirement location (if money didn't matter)?

Retire?  I don't know I will ever be able to retire. If I do, I want to travel...I want to go to so many places....

3. Do you live in the same town you grew up in?

I live VERY close to the same town I grew up in.  In fact, this is the closest town to the farming community I did live in.  I left here for a time (a few years) but it is home and I was drawn back.  You know, it's not quite as boring as it was when I was a teenager.  Huh!  Go figure.

4. What nervous habit did you have as a child that you kicked to the curb before becoming an adult?

You know, I can't think of any.  Which probably means I never kicked them, right?  All I know is I don't turn eleventy-hundred shades of red when I get asked to speak anymore!  Um, yes, eleventy-hundred is so a number!  Don't believe me?  Do we need to poll some of my elementary school classmates?  Huh? Huh? Huh?  Didn't think so!

5. What is the most embarrassing thing that happened to you while on the job?
 
Working switchboard at the hospital.  We worked in a plexiglass enclosure, lovingly (or not so lovingly) dubbed the fishbowl.  Outside of the fishbowl was the flower "shop", a cooler, that we switchboard operators took care of as well as manning the kijillion phone calls (you're not going to doubt this one are you?).  I happened to be helping someone to get flowers out of the cooler when the phone rang so I sprinted off to answer the phone only to push against the door instead of pulling and ran right smack into it in front of all the people waiting to be seen in Emerg and, well, everyone in the foyer.
 
At least I did not need to become an E.R. patient that night.  I think that would have topped it off in the embarassment category...

Didn't I just do this?

Here it is, another Tuesday. Another week with B.D. being gone for work. He was home on the weekend but, by the time I get groceries, do our running around done, get his laundry done, packed and ready for another week, and all the run-of-the-mill stuff you need to do everyday for a family we didn't really see him.

And so...

He is gone again.

And...

We have all ready had tears this morning; there were meltdowns galore. Their sleep is restless, their concentration minimal, their patience with each other near extinction. And me? I am at the height of emotional this go around. Mad because I get to do this all again...alone... Mad because the last thing I remember is him elbowing me so hard last night as he rolled over in bed that he almost "threw" me off the bed. Mad because it gets frustrating. So far, in March, he has been home 3 days and he was gone, what seems like, the last half of February.

Bug feels his dad is going to do the same thing Rush did - never come back. He told me this last night. I know B.D. misses his kids but he usually only talks about the hotels he is staying in and all the steaks he eats.

So, week number two is underway. It is 9:10 AM and I have all ready cried into my phone  so hard and so much that I was thinking I almost had to put it in packing popcorns to dry it out. {GRIN}

Anywho, that's my Tuesday thus far and it's only just begun. (Sick! Now I have that song stuck in my head! Rats!)

Health Records Laughs

I used to work in Health Records and I have seen some very silly things; these are not them. I am taking this from an email my cousin sent me. VERY fun stuff!

"Actual sentences found in hospital patient charts"

She has no rigors or shaking chills, but her husband states she was very hot in bed last night.

Patient has chest pain if she lies on her left side for over a year.

On the second day the knee was better, and on the third day it disappeared.

The patient is tearful and crying constantly. She also appears to be depressed.

The patient has been depressed since she began seeing me in 1993.

Discharge status: Alive but without my permission.

Healthy appearing decrepit 69 year old male, mentally alert but forgetful.

The patient refused autopsy.

The patient has no previous history of suicide.

Patient has left white blood cells at another hospital.

Patient's medical history has been remarkably insignificant with only a 40lb weight gain in the past 3 days.

Patient had waffles for breakfast and anorexia for lunch.

Between you and me, we ought to be able to get this lady pregnant.

Since she can't get pregnant with her husband, I thought you might like to work her up.

She is numb from her toes down.

While in ER, she was examined, X-rated and sent home.

The skin was moist and dry.

Occasional, constant infrequent headaches.

Patient was alert and unresponsive.

Rectal examination revealed a normal size thyroid.

She stated that she had been constipated for most of her life, until she got a divorce.

I saw your patient today, who is still under our car for physical therapy.

Both breasts are equal and reactive to light and accommodation.

Examination of genitalia reveals that he is circus sized.

The lab test indicated abnormal lover function.

The patient was to have a bowel resection. However, he took a job as a stock broker instead.

Skin: somewhat pale but present.

The pelvic exam will be done later on the floor.

Patient was seen in consultation by Dr. Blank, who felt we should sit on the abdomen and I agree.

Patient has two teenage children, but no other abnormalities.

Gone. Gone. Gone.

You've been gone so long. You've been gone, gone, gone so long...

Anyone else remember that song by Chilawak (spelling?)?

My husband was gone all last week (and by that I mean the whole work week; he does come home on weekends). Usually he is gone one week and home the next and it stinks but it is workable, managable and fathomable. This month he was gone last week, is gone this week and will be gone next week. I will do what I have to during these days and I will, for the most part, do it with a smile on my face but, can someone say "Sucks!"? It does. For so many reasons. My best friend is gone. It just isn't the same talking to him on Skype with his, usually, poor internet connection, with his mugshot freezing on the webcam every couple of minutes.

It also stinks that I am now, getting us all ready for school/work solo - you know bath giving, lunch making, hair brushing, mitten finding, agenda signing, homework helping, lizard feeding/spraying, fish feeding, reading so-lo. We get it done, and get it done fairly smoothly but it's just not the same. At the end of my shift I race drive as effectively as I can while maintaining the speed limit to the school to pick up Bug and his friend and take them back to our house were they play for two hours before I do the switcheroo. I take K back to the school and replace him with Jellybean; get the kids back home and get a snack into them because they will surely die if they don't eat now instead of waiting the hour until supper is completely ready. I finish supper and the bath giving, bedtime story reading, tooth brush reminding, hands and face washing enforcing, feed the cat reminding, chore delegating, instrument practice instigating, mitten drying, peed bedding washing schedule begins again... solo.

It would bd nice to have help with that. I have done the whole single parent thing all ready. I had enough of that...especially since I'm married.

So, now he's gone again. We have talked to him, said our goodnights and I have taken care of almost all of the things I needed to this evening (except getting the non-dishwasher dishes done)and I have gotten our car back from the repair shop where it was getting its back window replaced. It looks lovely by the way; I never thought getting a window put in your car could make one family so happy.

Anyway, back to the original point of this post. Really, it was only going to be about a 4 sentence post.



Back to the point. Ahem

It is one thing to listen to your spouse or your children softly sleeping and/or snoring when you have "insomnia". It's totally another when the snoring you are listening to is the soft, squeaky snoring of your cat, who, by the way, is curled up on your brand new fuzzy blanket that YOU got for Christmas!

Yep, I am having a hard time with that one.

{Grin}

Much ado about nothing in particular

→Today we cancelled our home phone.  We both have cell phones, plus we have skype on our computers.  We can't call land lines with it as we haven't paid for that feature but we can call computer to computer...  We are saving ourselves $600/year by cancelling our land line.  $600 a year, huh?  That's a fair bit especially given the fact that most of the calls we get are on our cells and we may get 4 calls a month on our land line. Ok, maybe a bit more than that - but not much.  EVERYONE calls our cells.

Thus begins our year of beginning to incorporate Kingdom principles in our finances.

→ I used that Jillian Michaels Fitness Ultimatum 2010 the other day. 

I needed help to even think about using my leg muscles.  My boss even threatened to send in help to get me off the toilet if I took longer than she thought I needed.  Seriously though, I could hardly move.

→ I got to go out for supper last night with my husband.  Just us.  I had a Tuscan pizza. Oh! So Good! {like I am salivating right now good} I was very nicely surprised when a figure ran up beside me and threw her arms around me.  When I realized who it was, I began to cry {happy tears}; it was my friend who moved away {the day Rush ran away} to another province.

→ I was distracted through a bit of our supper as one of Rush's good friend's family sat across the way from us and I could see her talking and laughing with her family and looking at her mom with love and adoration.  It hurt but I am pleased to say that it did not dictate my night.  I had my moment of grief and was able to move on.

→ We were joined after we finished our supper by some very, very dear friends of ours for "coffee". 

→ Why "coffee"?  I don't drink coffee.  I haven't since I was pregnant with Rush over 16 years ago.  The smell of it made me ill and I have had, maybe, 3 cups since.

→ Kids really do say the silliest things sometimes and the thought processes they have ever amaze me.
 → Case in point, Bug was playing and running quite hard this morning and was left a little out of breath; he looked at me and said, "Mama, my breath is angry at me."

The other day he decided to delight us with an extremely descriptive tale of his last bowel movement and how it "shot out of him like a bomb from a ship."  {Has to be a boy thing.}

→ We are in the process of deciding if it will be to the best interest of our family for me to take in a couple of children and have Home Daycare instead of working at the grocery store.  There is one lady who is interested at this point.  I would need one more to make it worth my while.  My job does not give us medical benefits; we get that from BigB's work and so we are just relying on my job for the income.  If I can do that while still being at home full-time all the better!

→ BigB got me Lightroom and I am so thrilled to be able to begin playing with it tonight.  I have not yet had the chance. What with writing a skit and all...

→ I wrote a skit called The Biggest Loser - Church Edition and we performed it at our church on New Year's Eve.  BigB and I also teamed up to compete in the anual Iron Chef competition at our church (also on New Year's Eve).  We didn't win but had SO much fun with the 4 other teams.

→ Boxing Day was an incredibly eventful day.  We were introduced to a new {church} family member.  Little Landon Jeremiah was born at 7 AM.  In the evening our close friend's dad was admitted to the hospital and the prognosis didn't look good.  I am pleased to say that the situation has been rectified and e is doing well at home.  Grandpa Art simply had pneumonia that had brought on an infection which resulted in complications.

→ Dec 27th we had a bunch of the young adults from our church over.  People who have recently moved from different provinces and have no family here.  We filled them with food, baking and love and sent them home happy; it was nice to be around people we love.

→ I am thankful for my regular schedule.  It is nice to be able to be back blogging and to go to your blogs and see what you all have been up to.

See? Much ado about nothing in particular.  What have you been up to lately?  Huh, friends?

I.C.U. too much

That's right I.C.U. too much but I don't mean you or you - really I don't.  I worked in I.C.U., or Intensive Care Unit, on Saturday; I am a ward clerk there.  I worked 8 hours there on Saturday, as I said, and then I ended up spending some unscheduled and unwanted time there yesterday on personal business. 

At church yesterday morning our very dear friend began having intense chest pains; he had been having pains on and off for a couple of days now but he is a stubborn, stubborn man! During service BigB ran over to me (he is the head usher so we never sit together at church), threw the car keys at me and told me he was rushing W to the hospital!

I brought the kids home, fed them and went up to the hospital to get BigB and S (W's wife) to take them out to eat.  She is diabetic and hadn't eaten since early that morning.  I spent some time in the ER trauma room after I brought W an MP3 player and S a coffee and stayed with them as the doctor decided it was best to admit W to ICU for observation and to keep an eye on his Trop levels.

Today, it sounds like he is doing better- not yet discharged but better.  It was so very hard to reign in panic and worry and to not let those bad thoughts take over and run amuck.  I kept on saying to myself things like "God is bigger than this and it will all be ok" and "I do not allow these thoughts to control me - worry will NOT control me".

It was easier said than done.

A lady I work with wasn't feeling well the other day and was sent home from work; she went to lay down.  Fifteen minutes later her husband went to check on her and she had passed away.  Her funeral is today. She was 47 years old.

I have an uncle in the hospital dying right now from brain cancer and another just got out of the hospital after having a stroke.  Both of these uncles are barely 60 years old. The uncle who had the stroke has to wait who knows how long to get a specialist appointment to see how he is doing.  Where he lives there isn't much for medical care, let alone specialist.  My uncle seriously lives with the polar bears.

Now I don't say these things because I am looking for sympathy; I am not sad.  Well, I am sad but I am not grief-stricken by any means.  Some people don't understand that.  I love all these people (except for the lady I worked with - I only knew of her) but I keep focusing on God, praying and knowing that He can and will bring fullness and wholeness to all of these situations.  Does this mean my uncle won't die from the cancer that is keeping him in the hospital right now?  Not for sure.  But I know that if (and when he does eventually die) God will strengthen me and give me the peace I need.

But for now, I am going to go hug my family, spend some time with them and enjoy their company.  We aren't guaranteed tomorrow - spend today wisely.

I'm feeling MUCH better now!

I stand here (ok, technically, I am sitting cross-legged on the floor but you know what I mean) humbly, graciously and awed by the support I have gotten from you ladies the past few weeks (22 days to be exact); it is overwhelming to me to have you all, strangers, come into my life to become supporters and "friends" to me through this (and I find myself in tears while reading your comments more often than not). And I thank you for enduring my rollercoaster of emotions. It seems odd to be fine for days and days and then suddenly have something spark emotions in me that come in crashing like a hurricane!

I feel much better than I did this afternoon. I put on some music by my friend, Pastor Dustin Smith (you can listen to his music on the left hand side of website I just linked to) from World Revival Church in Kansas City, Mo (we visit them as often as we can, considering DS1 lives there!). It helped me to push past the pity party I was having and to snap myself out of my sorrow! Yay, Pastor Dustin!

So, here I sit, as I said cross-legged on the floor in my living room, surrounded by large glass bowls and trying to take the stickers off them. Sheesh! What a kerfuffle that is getting to be. I solicited some advice on how to get the gummy gunk off the bowls so they look nice for the wedding on the 19th (we are using them as center pieces).

I have dyed my hair for my brother's wedding this weekend; nothing fancy - straight out of the box. My hair is now Milk Chocolate so, if I find myself in need of a snack, I can always eat my hair. {Grin}

Tomorrow begins the battery charging process and the getting the pictures that DS3 took today (that's another post all on its own - ah the perspective of a 6 year old boy) off the camera. I bought the gift today so tomorrow I will be wrapping that.

I will be supervising the remainder of the "clean DD4's room" tomorrow night too. We started tonight but ran out of time - after our trip to StuffMart for gifts, wrapping paper and ribbons and to the pet store for more crickets.

Yes! We did just by some but Jewel, the cat, decided she wanted little friends to play wi...ahem eat. Needless to say, we have since moved the lizards and their cricket-food (I have pets to feed my pets - that I didn't even want in the first place! Aaaaakkkk!) to a new location where Chop Suey Jewel can't get them.

So many half projects going on: laundry is folded but sitting on my living room floor with me (it is in piles, not cross-legged), placecards for next week's wedding, printed out and waiting for me to cut and finish them, are staring at me from the floor beside me (in hopes that I can get to them tonight). Marley and Me is on in the background just for a bit of adult conversation as it seems pretty lonely here with DH gone - again.

I am hoping to get my eyebrows waxed tomorrow on my lunch break; I would really like to go to my brother's wedding with TWO eyebrows instead of the one I am working right now...

I need to think of some things to say as well as I am saying grace at my brother's wedding. What an exciting 7 days (one of which includes my last day of work at my current job - still looking for someone to hire me for mornings only...without it being McDonalds. {sigh})

Laboring

This Labor Day has been anything short of a holiday from work but it has been good. Last night I went to a brief meeting to finalize decorations for a wedding I am "doing".

Don't really know what else to call it.

I did the wedding invitations and she is getting me to do the decorations for the ceremony and reception as well. It's for my "sistah" who I blogged about a few days ago here. I am a bit nervous about it. We have a small budget and live in a small town with little to choose from but I hope to make it simple yet classy as she is a classy lady. (I will hopefully remember to post some pictures for you guys to see.) The wedding is in two weeks.

This weekend, it's my brother's.

Oh, but I digress...

I was talking about how I labored today. Went with DH to see if he could help fix a friend's van but the water pump is seized and with it being a holiday...well, nothing was open.

We did a bit of shopping-running-around-type stuff which means we exchanged a pair of bluejeans we had bought for DS3, bought a new litter box for the cat, got a new blazer for me and some medicine for my sick DD4. Did the whole house cleaning thing, which resulted in my spending my free time in DS3's room - we went through toys and clothes and got rid of a garbage bag full of junk (curse McDonald's happy meal toys) and a large box of toys the DS3 has outgrown.

(Tomorrow...DD4's room, if she is feeling better)

How did you all spend your Labor Day? And...Does it excite you as much as it does me when you get to get rid of STUFF from your house? It's almost better than chocolate!

You Poor Thing

Yes, that's what she said. She who? Oh, didn't I tell you? Sorry.



I got a call to go do some ward clerking in ICU at our hospital this morning. There was an RN there that I didn't know. She asked me if I had gotten a perm.



Nope, this is all natural.



And she said, "All natural!? You poor thing..."

Of Mice, Men and Mothers-in-Law

My mother-in-law is a meddler. How many would raise a hand to that in their own lives? C'mon! Be brave! I just put it out there; join me... please?

Her intentions are always the best; she just has no idea the ramifications of her actions or words sometimes.

Most times.

I have been doing rather well the last few days except when I talk to Mamasita. She always brings up DD2 and talks on and on and on about her and how she knows in her heart it will get better, and I end up just wanting to cry everytime she calls me.

Which she does. A. Lot. Lately.
Because she IS concerned about how I am doing because DD2 is gone and DH has been gone with work more often than not since he started this new job Aug 17.

I know she loves me and that she is doing this out of love and concern, and so, I continue to remind myself of that over and over and over during our 45 minute conversations about how "terrible I must be doing with all of this to adjust to".

No. I was fine. Thanks for making me think I shouldn't be.

She has a great heart and I know that she is doing it out of love so...I am not angry at her. I appreciate the love she has for me; at one time, she hated everything about me (2nd marriage you know; I was somehow to blame for a marriage falling apart that didn't exist when I met DH). I just wish she would understand that I am ok...until she points out how I shouldn't be ok with "all" I am going "through".

People go through worse than this. In the grand scheme of things, even though it is upsetting to us, it isn't that bad...

in comparison.

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DD4 had a rough day at school today. She burst out crying in the middle of class because she misses her sister with such an intensity. She was consoled by the fact that her teacher, a friend of mine, said "I understand; we all miss her, honey." After school DD4 set her hand to making her sister a present, a rock house. I will get a picture of it on here soon. She also drew her a few pictures. It looks like we will be sending the rock house and pictures in the mail.

I wonder what postage for a house would be...?

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Working on this laptop is a bit of a pain; I have to remember that there are a few letters that don't always work. It makes proof reading just that much more tedious.

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I have begun applying for part-time work (mornings only) as of yesterday. If nothing pans out, I may just babysit a couple of kids...

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My house has been overtaken by these irritating little flies (fruit flies?); they have taken over a couple of my plants and they are quite something to contend with. I can't get rid of them. Apparently they like it here and have moved right in. Too bad they wouldn't just fly into the lizards' terrarium...you know, a little snack for Fredrico and Rodriguez.