On The Road Again...

Only working half a day tomorrow, then heading out for Arkansas to do a gig. I've never stepped foot in that state before, so you can be sure there will be a shotglass and also a new babyspoon added to my collections during the trip... My mom's real mom's family is from Arkansas. That's all I know about them, except for what her real mom's last name was. Our gig is a private show for entertainment at some big convention. I'm sure I'll be scruitinizing name tags in the hallways and elevators to see if I might pass anyone with that last name. I know, that 's pretty lame. Like I'd be paying enough attention at any given time to even notice there might be someone in the elevator with me or passing me in the hall? Not likely.

We decided to leave the new hunka-hunka-burning-ripped-in-two-places-jumpsuit at home rather than try to mend it for the show. We decided it'd be better just to use one of the other suits instead of having to hold back on the performance and energy of the show due to worrying about more rips and tears. It wouldn't be fair to the audience or the people who are paying us to perform. Right? right.

I can't remember if I posted about getting called about a job over in big city last Friday. Anyway, I did get a call but it wasn't worth the hour drive each way to big city and back, and it would only be doing workmen's comp stuff which would be a total snore. I'm still looking though. I put in with the state gaming commission last week and the bureau of alcohol, tobacco and firearms this week. Sooner or later I'm going to find that perfect job.

But for now, I'm going to finish up the stuff on my desk and try to figure out what I need to pack. What on earth do people wear in Arkansas?? Goodness. I have no clue.

Letters Home... (Boys Write Too!!)

Got a wonderful 90 second phone call from my son on Sunday. Yesterday, 2 -2 page letters written a week apart came from him too. Gosh that helps...

American had a 99.00 each way special on, so I bought tickets for Lil'Dd and myself to go to Mr.Blue's graduation in 3 weeks. Ms.Blue hit the same sale and bought her ticket too. For the record, DH isn't going. I'm sure it won't be too much longer and part of my job will include drawing up my own divorce papers... but enough of that for now. I've tried not to air my dirty laundry about him and I and shouldn't change that today.

Anyway... Got the new elvis suit finished in time for the show last Saturday. Dh ripped it out in 2 places on stage, so I'm busy sewing again this week trying to get it repaired in time for the big show in Arkansas this weekend...

Round & Around & Around It Goes...

Mexico would be a good place for this one to hit. Especially if it gets bigger. Don't want it to hit Texas because of Mr.Blue... and the northern route looks awfully close to home...

Freeking Peachy - Again...

I woke up this morning ready to pack up Lil'DD and her clothes and just leave everything and drive to my Mom's in Califnrnia. DH and I have been together 9 years, and in all that time while I've been more 'content' than 'happy,' I've never once thought about just chucking it all and running away. Until today. I spent most of the morning wondering "what on earth is WRONG with me??" ...I never had post-partum depression after the babies were born but I swear I've got it now, and how. Day after day for the past two weeks I've told myself ... "things just seem worse than they really are right now..." it was a really rough morning for me, again.

Then about 1:15 I saw an 18 year old kid come into the office to wait to see one of the attorneys. He had a 45 minute wait (it was the only time he could get a ride) so I got a pretty good look at him. The kid was filthy. Not like 18-year-old-working-or-playing-hard-in-the-summertime dirty. Dirty like he was homeless and hadn't had a bath in quite a while. Which he was and he hadn't. He was wearing dirty flannel pajama bottoms and a dirty white t-shirt. flannel pajamas and it's over 100 degrees outside.

Maybe I don't want to be in such a hurry to pack up and run away after all. Maybe I'm very lucky that my own 18 year old boy is wearing his combat boots and BDU's out marching in 75 degree weather in the middle of the tropical storm that's pounding Texas the next couple of days. Maybe I'm also very lucky that my 19 year old girl is wearing her combat boots in a nice air-conditioned office up in Virginia. And maybe I'm also very lucky that my 16 year old baby girl is on her way home from school right now and will be home when I get there tonight...maybe a little sweaty, but wearing clean clothes and having had a bath before school today, with a roof over her head and good food to eat...

Maybe it's not all about being happy.
Maybe content is okay.

Maybe.

Baby's Got A Brand New Drill!

Lil'DD is being spoiled rotten now that she is the only kid left at home. She will be 17 in a couple months... and started 11th grade last week.

When we sat down the end of last school year to pick out the classes she was going to take her junior year, she was stumped about what to take for electives... She decided to take German II, (she'd already taken 2 years of Spanish and one year of German) and I talked her into trying ROTC and if she hated it, promised she could drop it and take study hall.

By the second day of school, Lil'DD decided she's dropping German II and she absolutely loves ROTC. They made her company commander. Oh.My.God. This is my blonde child. Remember--the one who got upset because the CowForSale (or was it HorseForSale) sign was on the fence we passed driving down the road rather than on the cow or the horse or whatever it was that day?? Goodness. So now when we're cooking dinner at night she's practicing saluting and right face and left face and talking about doing pushups... "Mom!" she said. The class voted to do drill outside rather than inside, then they complain about it being so hot..."

My baby girl has got a brand new drill! I think it's hilarious. She didn't want to take the class in the first place. The oldest two are now out in the world wearing combat boots, and everyone we know has asked her over the past month if she's going to be going in the service too. She has answered up to this point with a blank stare and "I dunno..." perhaps that's going to change? We'll see I guess.

Anyway... in another month I'll get to post pictures of Mr.Blue in his snazzy new Air Force uniform... maybe by then Lil'DD will have her Army JrROTC uniform and I can post hers too!

Gotta run...

Weeks 1 & 2

Thank GOD last week is over. It was a rough one.
I screwed up everything I tried to do at work... fortunately my boss remembered how I fell apart when Ms.Blue left and was really patient with me.

Mr. Blue made it through week 1 and is now in week 2. At least I'm assuming he did. I haven't heard from him and don't expect to... he wouldn't call now unless he'd been hurt or is getting discharged. No news is good news still doesn't make it any better though... I still jump every time the phone rings, even though I know it will be either Sunday or next Sunday before I hear from him ...at the earliest.

Ms.Blue's supervisor approved her to take leave for Mr.Blue's graduation so she's hoping nothing will happen to mess that up and she'll meet us in San Antonio next month. She told me the other day her supervisor also mentioned that it'll be a year in just a couple of weeks since she screwed up last year and got arrested, she's worked hard and done a good job of staying out of trouble so it should be coming off her record before too long...

Before Mr.Blue left, he cut yards and yards of material for me, we have 3 gigs coming up in the next several weeks and I've been sewing like crazy the last few days. Every time I see where he cut something a little off and the scarf is going to be uneven or crooked, I just miss him so much I start to cry all over again. So it's more like sew sniff sniff sew sniff sniff... but I'm hoping to get the scarves done in time for Elvis to pass them out... this weekend it's a 4 hour show not too far from here... next weekend --check this out. Next weekend, we are driving all the way to Arkansas to play for an HOUR. They are paying for our hotel room for 2 nights. Plus gas/mileage. PLUS our regular fee. Guess with all the Elvis stuff that's been on tv the last month or so, it's a good time to do EP stuff... then next month we're back closer to home playing at a convention. I started sewing the egyption jumpsuit a couple of months ago, got about a third of the way through with it, and we discovered the aloha eagle kit which DH has been wanting forever so we put the other suit on hold and spent another thousand dollars on stuff to do the aloha eagle jumpsuit. We also had a new pattern made, the one I've been using for years has finally given up the ghost and just fallen apart... the new pattern took forever to get here... and it's been a nightmare ever since. I had to alter it a couple times, and DH has been putting all the studs on this one so I can have time to study. ... except the sleeves weren't measured right when they made the pattern... so I have to see if I can change them around tonight to get them perfect and then put the lining in... I'm not sure it's going to be finished by Saturday but we're hoping so...

Other than that, it's just life as usual here... The sec is still a pain in the ass. I received email replies from 2 of the jobs I sent out resumes on, didn't hear anything on the rest of them. Get this. The regular secretary government job I applied for sent me a thing telling me I wasn't qualified. Which was pretty much cool except for the fact that I've got my legal secretary certification (which by the way the sec managed to get hired without) AND am testing next month for my paralegal certificate. BUT. I was considered for the paralegal position over at the JAG office over in big city, which would have paid 3x what I'm making now plus benefits... so that made me feel pretty good...

Gotta run...

Zero Week... (Just Freeking Peachy II)

Yeah. I'm just freeking peachy. About like I was when the first one left. Except this time I know more. It doesn't make things any easier though. Thank you Stacy for calling Thursday to ask how I was doing. Sometimes it totally sucks and sometimes I can keep busy enough to not worry so very much...

Mr.Blue finished ZeroWeek and is into WeekOne. This week he's a baby flight. That means they have to wear white tennis shoes with their BDU's to let all the other flights know they are the new guys. He can't go anywhere at all without taking a wing man with him. They travel as a group or in pairs and are never alone. Even knowing all that doesn't make it any easier...

Damn.
6 more weeks.