That announcement was for the rest of the company, not for me. How could I be so foolish? No, instead I get to slog away at it after everyone else is out having fun. Bitter much? So the weekend isn’t off to such a stellar start after all. Actually, it isn’t even off yet. Grrrr.

It’s been a very long week. Thankfully it will be followed by a long weekend. The good word just came down from management…that the office will be officially shutting down at 3pm today. Then we’re off until Tuesday morning. Good thing too. I could really use a break. And I’m going to need a fair amount of time to play with my new toy. That’s right, today was payday. Naturally I rushed right on over to pick up my new camera. Over the years I’ve purchased many items online, but I’m glad I opted not to for something like this. My friend who works at the camera store tended to me with the kind of customer service you just can’t get online. Like attaching the camera and lens cap straps. Then giving me a walk through of the camera’s features. And the promise to help me out, in person, if/when I have more questions. Sweet. Now I’m equipped to capture pictures and video at the little man’s upcoming birthday party. Unfortunately I’m going to be scraping by (financially) until the next pay day, which is another two weeks from now. So I’ll have to learn to exercise more self-restraint for a while. No more evil ebay. No more impulse shopping/splurging on new comics, books, music, shoes, etc. But it will be totally worth it. Soon I will post some pictures to prove it.

My son has visited my room plenty in his nearly three years (being across the hall from his room and all). But just this week he pointed up to the framed print hanging above my bed and, with a huge smile on his face, shouted “Mama”. At first I thought he was just trying to get my attention. But when I realized what he was getting at I responded with a very confused “umm, no darling, that’s a painting by Matisse…that happens to be in mama’s room”. But he grew even more insistent…that the painting Jazz Icarus, by Matisse, somehow resembles mommy. Couldn’t he have made this pronouncement of another Matisse reproduction, also in my room, like one of the blue nudes? Oh well. But this isn’t the first case of mistaken identity he’s made recently. A couple of weeks ago I blazed through Bruce Campbell’s absolutely fabulous autobiography. Each time my son saw the cover he pointed to Bruce’s glossy countenance and shouted the name of, well, a certain someone…who is most certainly not Bruce Campbell. I insisted that no, mommy is not dating Bruce Campbell (well, maybe in a parallel universe or something…sigh). But the little bugger is persistent. He firmly believes that a certain someone must be leading a dual life as a B movie actor. If only. I mean, uh, yeah. Never mind.

Consuming baby carrots frequently causes me to suffer nasty hiccup attacks. Am I the only one? Is that Vitamin A goodness really worth this? The worst incident I can recall happened during my first visit to Chicago. I was afflicted for something like twelve or fourteen hours. The attack didn’t entirely ruin the trip, but it sure didn’t help. I went from a gawking teenage tourist to something much worse…a squeaking gawking teenage tourist. Anyhow, I just hope this current attack doesn’t last nearly as long. My attention span was already shot before my diaphragm started breakdancing.

The week is off to an odd start. Well, I’m feeling off and odd, at any rate. As my sleep deprivation worsens my workload (at the office, and at home) seems to increase exponentially. Likewise the more work that piles up the more I find myself distracted by pretty shiny things. And my judgment has been seriously impaired by this lack of sleep combined with additional stress. Was so exhausted when we got home last night that I allowed the little man to make his own dinner plans. His choice…hummus and pita, which is all right…but accompanied by a bowl of peanut butter cap’n'crunch. And don’t ask me how *that* found its way into my house. I have no reasonable explanation to offer. Perhaps alien invaders have tampered with my brain.

Spent much of the weekend apart from my cranky computer. We were outside a fair bit, enjoying the weather…but I was also deeply engrossed in the Harry Potter books. Can’t believe I hadn’t read them until now. I was loaned the first one last week and read it in a day (squeezed it in there somehow, sacrificing much sleep). Then borrowed the next two from my Dad just yesterday. Quickly finished the second one off and am nearing the end of the third. It was very tempting to call in sick, or late at least, to stay in and read this morning…but I’m needed at work and I may as well have something to look forward to this evening. Will have to get my hands on the fourth one soon. Now I understand the popularity of these immensely appealing page-turners. Will elaborate later.

For some time I’ve been entertaining certain ideas…regarding additional content I’d like to include in this site. But I need to get in gear and make it happen. I thought it would be a good kick in the pants to announce it here…which means I’ll feel obligated to follow through with it, in short order. So here goes. First off, I read a lot. A helluvalot (escapism is my friend). So it only makes sense for me to include a book review section, which I will be calling “Bookworm”. Also considering a film review section. And a recipe section. But the thing I’m most nervous about, which I still intend to go through with, is putting up some of the fiction I’ve written over the years. I intend to call it “The Land of Make-Believe”. There. I said it. I feel better now.

It’s the little things, really. Sometimes they take you by surprise. And can help lift you out of a foul mood. Instead of kicking me when I’m down, my bank did something shockingly fair. The other day I decided I simply must have that camera I’ve been drooling over. But I’m no Ms. Moneybags…so to make that happen I realized I’d have to put it on layaway. And soon, if I I’m to get it in time for the little man’s birthday party. Went down to the local camera store, where an old friend of mine works (their price was the same as all the online stores). We were so busy catching up and gossiping, that he inadvertently charged the full amount to my checkcard. An amount which I did not have in my account. Doh. He quickly reversed it, and we continued our conversation. But then the next day. Ugh. My account showed a balance of -$275. Ouch. I thought it might take another to day to process. So I waited. Checked again. Still negative. Went down to a branch office on my lunch hour yesterday to clear it up. The “customer service” rep I dealt with was extremely rude.
Me: Will this accidental transaction result in extra bank fees charged to my account?
Her: It could happen.
Me: Umm, when will I find out?
Her: It might not show up in the system until tomorrow. Or Monday. (seeming more disinterested in this discussion by the second)
Me: Well, if I am charged, could the bank fees be dropped?
Her: No. (rather unpleasantly)
Me: But it wasn’t my fault. (pleading)
Her: Well make the retailer cover it. (replying with a snort)
I left thoroughly frustrated. And unable to withdraw any cash. Couldn’t go grocery shopping or fill up my gas tank. Or buy chocolates, which was probably for the best. But I had to borrow two dollars from a coworker, just so I could take my son to the Children’s Museum last night (to cover the parking fee). This morning I logged in to check my account…to see what the damage was. To my delight I discovered a positive balance. With no charges having been incurred. Phew. And this little fiasco helped take my mind off of bigger issues faced this week.

Having a really weird week. Barely controlled chaos combined with some major changes. Hopefully not all of them bad. Going to defer dwelling on it…and head to the Children’s Museum with the little man instead. Which will tire me out so much that I’ll be ready to collapse when we get home. And, hopefully, sleep.

When my darling son gets upset and the whining kicks into high gear, I try to see things from his point of view…if not remembering, then empathizing with how frustrating it must be to be nearly three. Sure, his communication skills are improving. His understanding seems to be growing, and others are able to understand him more clearly. But he’s still unclear on so many concepts. I’m sure he wonders what, exactly, is going on when I break bad news to him. Like telling him his treasured trinkets are broken or have gone missing. Why are Mr. Potato Head’s eyes nowhere to be seen? Why can’t the all-powerful mommy just fetch them? And I’m sure certain rules seem arbitrary to him at this point. Why can’t we keep the dripping-wet umbrella open in our little hatchback car? Or the more popular “no running into the street” or “no running with scissors”. Just what do I mean when I frequently repeat “Parker, be careful” or, in a pinch, just an urgently uttered “careful”. What does “you could get hurt” really mean to a nearly three year-old? Specifically to this daredevil of a child who has, knock on wood, never really been hurt. We’ve been lucky with all his fearless extreme sports-style climbing and jumping, he’s hardly had a scratch. While my friend’s toddler broke his arm after a simple spill off the kitchen stool. At least my son seems to have realized the concept of “too hot” without any extreme example to back it up. He knows that after food is heated up it needs to cool down a bit before eating it. I’ve told him a million times that the oven/stove is hot and can hurt him. Recently he pointed at the gas stovetop while I was cooking and said “blue”, referring to the flames. Thankfully he followed that up with “too hot”. So we’re getting there. Slowly but surely.