So, yesterday was “Black Friday”.  Or for those of us who work in retail/grocery– Hell.  Luckily I didn’t have to work until well after the rush was over and frankly, I’m not thinking a lot of folks are looking for deals in their local grocery store.  At least not after 1pm.  So, I avoided that… Work-wise…

Mooooom, however, found a deal for something that couldn’t be passed up.  And guess who got to go get it?  Yeah.

So I made Faith go with me.  It was a little chilly out so I bundled her up in her new coat (her fur is really thin, oook?)

Weady! Wewe's my Cookee?

Isn’t she adorable?  The hood is faux-fur lined and everything.  It even has a pocket on the back– Why?  I don’t know, extra cookies?  Though if we did that, we’d make millions because Faith would become the world’s best canine-contortionist.  No way would she leave cookies back there, all alone and unattended!

Anyway, we left, knowing we might not come back alive and I say this half jokingly, because honestly there have been several deaths associated with this horrific sales day– not counting the brawl that broke out between two people at an outlet mall nearby over a Bath & Bodyworks item no less– which is really sad.  Honestly, is there anything at all in this world that’s worth trampling someone for?  It defeats the whole point of Christmas.  However, when you can go into a store and see people lined up clear to the back with 6 cartloads each of crap no one really needs.  You have to laugh out loud, with a touch of horror, because you’ve just joined the masses.

Which, we did.  I cannot believe I actually waited 20 minutes just to park my car and it looked sort of like this:

www.life.com/image/56273378

I had several people point out the spots they were in, letting me know they were leaving.  Which was nice, but not terribly helpful as there were still at least six cars in front of them that would keep them from exiting for a while.  One woman decided she wouldn’t be waiting and reversed anyway, nearly smashing into one car and coming precariously close to mine.  Thank goodness my car has a surprisingly loud horn because I was not having any of that.  Just got the window fixed on that thing, not going to have the butt-print of some idiot’s car imprinted on mine.  Unfortunately it wasn’t a white Prius, so I couldn’t make a connection…  But oh well.

Finally after circuiting the store several times, speaking with clueless and clearly exhausted employees, I found what I had been sent for– in the shoe section.  And let me tell you.  I wasn’t looking for shoes, I was looking for:

http://www.hoverspeed.com/Ferry%20News/Expats-given-present-tips/

Haha, like I would actually tell you what it is. It’s a present for crying out loud!  I’m just saying, it’s not shoes!  It shouldn’t have been in the shoe section!

After acquiring the target, the challenge then extended to getting through the line quickly.  Seeing as I only had one item, that self-serving part of my brain began listing all the reasons why I should be able to skip in front of all these “Black Friday” nerds with their game plans and reusable bags, purses unzipped for easy wallet access and store charge cards getting sweaty in their grubby paws.  But no.  I had to wait in line too.  Even when a “1 item or less” line would have been handy!

20 minutes later (20!  I’ve never waited that long in line before!) and I finally got checked out!  20 minutes…  Unnnnnnbelieveable.

Never again my friends!  Never again!  If I get my Christmas shopping done early, I’m perfectly content to pay full price or maybe snag a deal a few days before Christmas, but never will I traverse into the wild that is this after Thanksgiving “special”.  It should be renamed After Thanksgiving NIGHTMARE!  And to think there are people out there, that actually sit out in the rain and cold and snow and CRAP, late into the night, so they can be the first ones in at 3am.  NOTHING is worth that.  If I had kids, I’d love to see them smile, but I don’t think I can ever love them enough to buy a Happy-Slappy-Facelift Barbie that early in the morning.

Good grief!

However, we did survive.  Within an inch of our lives (did I mention it took another 10 minutes to get OUT of the parking lot?) and neither of us was the worse for wear– Well, maybe:

Bwack Fwiday makes me sweepy...

Me to Faithee, me too.

At least one of our posse is happy about things:

Give me, de bottwle and I wiww weave you awone!

She loves plastic bottles, just as much as Faith, if not more.  If Mom happens to have a bottle of water, she better get it done quick because Paisley will be watching.  The second you set it down, it’s hers!  No questions asked.  Or permission– what’s permission?

As demonstrated here...

She really shouldn’t be on the furniture, but there’s that whole listening thing again… /

Hewwoooooow?

Guess who’s fitting in nicely?

Well, that’s all I’ve got for now.  Sorry it wasn’t more interesting, but with school, homework, the holidays and all that other crap that means I’m an adult, this sort of stuff doesn’t get done as often!

Until next time!

Jaina & Faith

Friday. The Cat is away, The new bookkeeper comes in, I get to get a haircut after work, and then I pack a bag and go to The Boy’s house to spend the night. I’m going out with him early tomorrow so…slumber party tonight!

I just took my last Cipro and will finish the Keflex later today. I can’t wait because I hate feeling like I’m going to yarf. This morning, I am REALLY fighting it. And… I just lost THAT battle. Damn it. Yarf City. At least the waves are passing.

Last night The Girl and her father had SEB over after their day. I think it was too soon and they should have waited till he wasn’t living under MY roof, but no one asks me what the fuck I think so I don’t give a shit what the outcome is. I understand her wanting Jack to meet SEB. She still believes he can be normal. It is unfortunate that when dealing with Jack, AS IN ASS, everyone has to lie. This is why I think they should have waited. When he wants to push to give SEB a ride home to another part of the city they lied that he lives in, it is going to get sticky. Make no mistake about it, he is going to want to know SEB and be intimately involved in his life since he is dating his 18-year-old daughter.

He is not done sniffing SEB out yet.

I hope by the time he figures out what is going on, I have moved. Things with SEB and me fell apart weeks ago and it has driven a huge wedge between my family and me. He is fine with that, my daughter is fine with that, and I’m leaving. Had I known this is how all of this was going to play out, I’d never have moved him in or offered to help him.

I’ve isolated myself. My wall is going up and I’m getting hard again. Until she decides she and I are important, I’m done trying to work on things. She has made her choice and I can only accept it. I have decided the best thing for me to do is go on with the other areas of my life. It doesn’t all stop and revolve around The Girl. I have to matter too. If I have learned ANYTHING the last year, it has been how unkind I have been to myself the last decade.

That stops. I’m not trying to be mean to other people, but people have gotten used to how I have let myself be a doormat. It just stops. My life, my wants, my desires, my moments come first.

Both of my children attend a Montessori school, where one of the basic philosophies is that children’s play is valuable work and should be regarded as such.  To this end there are various “practical life” stations in the classroom where the kids have scaled down versions of adult activities, like laundry hanging, dishwashing, and sweeping.  (I’m waiting for the class to have a few more useful ones, such as “cooking dinner” work, “putting self to bed” work, or “zymurgy for toddlers.”) One of the favorites is always “window washing” work.  I’m not sure why this is such a big hit, though I think it’s partly because it’s simply fun to spray a water bottle.  I purchased a set recently from a Montessori supply website, though I could probably have just put the whole thing together with stuff from the dollar store.

My intention was primarily for the girl to use it, but the boy grabbed it and proceeded to wash every window in the house.

The girl got into it, too:

She particularly loved the squeegee, and once when the boy tried to use it, she snatched it back from him and proceeded to whack him on the head repeatedly with the hard plastic side in a fit of rage. This landed her in time out rather quickly.  The boy, to his credit, never cried or lashed out at her, but instead walked over and sat down in front of her.  “It’s okay, sweetie pie,” he said. “I’m your brother and I love you.  Can you say sorry and give me a hug?” They gave each other a hug and promptly returned to window washing, while I got teary-eyed.

On another occasion, the girl picked up a towel and began to wipe off the fridge, completely of her own volition.  Seriously, this must be how they get the school clean.  I wonder if they’re licensed for child labor.  Should I notify the authorities?

She then made the sign for milk, so I handed her a sippy cup thinking she must be thirsty.  She instead proceeded to do this:

See? She realized that the fridge wasn’t actually dirty when she was cleaning it, so she purposefully dripped milk on it and then wiped it off, which gave her a great deal of satisfaction:

The thought process mystifies me–I wish I knew exactly what was going on in that little brain.  Does she need to feel that her work is purposeful? Or did she just want something to wipe off?  I’d like to think that it’s the former, since really, don’t we all want our work to be meaningful?  It reminds me of the Van Morrison song, “Cleaning Windows,” in finding happiness and satisfaction in simple, purposeful work.

Or maybe, sometimes spilling milk is just making a mess for the fun of it.

Even I don’t have the words for these photos.