I have a Dr. Seuss poem stuck in my head. "I am a Yop. All I like to do is hop from fingertop to fingertop...."
Don't as me why; I haven't the first idea.
Forest's dad took a brand new job, which is a good thing for a number of reasons! It's pretty good loot, and it means working the winter in much nicer conditions than he had as a plumber HVAC person. For Forest and I, though, it means that Forest will be running the Store next summer. He gets a raise, and he won't be so likely to be working all weekend. I think it's pretty exciting. Forest pointed out that he will be going to school next fall, and his dad agreed, that if it came down to it, they'd close the Store when school started. Done deal, as far as Forest's concerned.
I'm sad to see his plans for school being pushed back and back. Originally he'd been shooting for this fall, then it was January, now it's next fall. Still, this will put him in better financial shape, and I'm the first to tell you that it's pointless to try going to school when you're worrying about money.
I have faith in Forest, though. One way or another, he'll finish school!
Tonight's taekwondo class, and once again I don't have anywhere for Kirstin to go. I am going to have her come along, and then I guess I'm going to have to leave and go home when it's her bedtime. It sucks, because midterms are coming, and I want to please Master Kim, and I haven't even learned my new form yet. I also think it sets a terrible example for the less experienced students who don't really know me when they see the brown belt leaving in the middle of class. There's really no help for it, though. I keep reminding myself that my days as the parent of a little kid are numbered, and that I should just relax and enjoy them while I can. It's true, you know. In a few years I'll be able to let Kirstin stay home while I'm out doing things like that. So, patience.
Today during lunch Forest and I were playing, and I walked right into a punch. I took it HARD in the solar plexus. It hurt like mad, and I spent a good minute doubled up over it, not being able to breathe. Of course it was completely accidental, but it made me question the entirety of my martial arts experience. Is this really something I want to do?
The answer, of course, is still yes. Accidents will happen, as with any sport. I enjoy the practice, I love the forms, and I have a good time playing. I just have to remember the joy of it when I occasionally get socked.
Life is actually slowing down a little bit now. I still feel busy, because I still haven't had time off since the play was over, but it starts tomorrow night. Wednesday and Thurday I'll be home, with time to myself. WWhhhooooaaa. It gets better. Friday and Saturday I get time with Forest and Kirstin!
When the weekend's over, Kirstin will be at her dad's weeknights, and I will be even MORE free. I hardly know what to do with myself. Well, actually, I do. I'm going to:
1. Go to the damn grocery store.
2. Clean my house. It's messy, but not as bad as it sometimes is after a show. I'm grateful to Forest for having kept it in one piece.
3. Do our laundry, fold it, and put it away. This is another place I haven't been putting in my usual fair effort. Praise be to Forest for keeping me in clean clothes.
4. Hang the curtains upstairs.
5. Finish assembling the desk in the study (also guest bedroom) and move the computer up there. Wire a phone line up there, too.
6. Get my garage ready for winter.
Of course I've just listed enough things to keep me busy for more than a week, but who's counting, right?
I'm feeling pretty bad for one of my coworkers today. His elderly mom lives alone up north, and apparently suffered a stroke, fell into the bathtub, and was trapped there for two days before anyone found her. How awful for her, and it sure must be difficult for the family, too. I have hardly begun to think of how I'm going to take care of my parents when they are elderly. It seems as though it must be very difficult to preserve the dignity of a senior citizen while taking over the things they have done for themselves for so long. I can philosophize all day long about how aging is natural and change is inevitable; but I suspect they will be a lot more difficult to get past when I'm actually faced with them.
For now, I think I'll count my blessings and try to make sure my parents are getting enough exercise.
I've spent the past week spending money for our annual budget close-out, and I'm now utterly drooling over the Nikon Cool Pix digital camera our company bought. See, I'm in a bit of a camera dilemma right now. I've got an old Nikon 35 MM that does okay, but I really would like to advance to more modern technology... and I've become enough of a photo bug that I think I would enjoy an actual honest to god manual camera. One that I can focus myself, and that I could adjust light levels and shutter speeds and make some interesting photographs, not just snapshots.
Of course I shouldn't spend money on anything of the kind until after next June. Mortgage. Christmas. Wedding. Honeymoon (we hope to take). Expensive things. Well, not as expensive as some, but expensive to us. We have about $3700 still to spend on the wedding, pretty much for decorations, a tent, officiants, musicians, cake, and catering; and that's hoping we can keep the list down to 150 guests. We're hoping for a $2700 honeymoon, although that depends on plane tickets. I'm going to be good this year for Christmas, but even so, it will run somewhere in the neighborhood of $700 by the time all the relatives are taken care of and the travel is done. Our mortgage is $815 per month. It's better than the last one, but it still sucks intimately.
Still, miraculously enough, we're afloat. Sometimes I have no idea how that happens. The people who are doing our new mortgage are incredibly cool, though. We're closing tomorrow, and today I had a call from the title company, saying that there was still a lein on our property from the previous owners. Forest and I were just about to freak out and try desperately to get that taken care of before tomorrow, but the lady from the mortgage company took charge of it, told us she'd take care of it, and not to worry. It makes me happy that they are taking care of this stuff, not us.
Speaking of making me happy, Forest went to the doctor's office yesterday! I'm incredibly glad to see him taking responsibility for his wellness a bit. I think he likes his new Doctor (this is his second visit), and has actually gotten something out of the visit. It turns out the pain in his leg is a sprained adductor (which you can plainly see if you just look in the right place), and that his back hurt because it was awfully misaligned. The doctor rearranged that for him in a hurry. Taa daa. I have a much happier honey. (And as a result, a happier me.)
