The New Year is kicking my @$$

This is Cat me...  with a grown up beverage, but it really kind of sums it all up!

It's been a while since I've posted so I don't know if anyone is still out there... but I'm going to do this anyway, just so I can remind myself that it's not my imagination... lots is happening everywhere and our place is no exception.

The new year started very well and mellow as far as I can remember.  Nothing really mind blowing.  Then my mom got very sick again around mid January.  She fought hard and rallied a few times from her bout with cancer and we thought she might regain some quality of life and be here a while longer, but that didn't happen.  She died the day after my birthday...  She did not want a memorial or funeral or service so the family got together for a weekend to just be with each other... and chat and hug and catch up and of course eat.  We eat.  A lot.  So that was good.  Great to see all my nieces and nephews doing so well and they are all so sweet and funny.

We finalized our bankruptcy status.  Sort of.  We had our hearing, all routine, bla bla blah... except we did not have our 2010 taxes done, so we have to fax that in and when we do, we'll be officially bankrupt.  Yay for us!
This is a strangely good feeling.  I sort of wish we'd done it sooner, but maybe there is a bigger cosmic reason why we didn't and that's just ok with me.

We have to try to get Harley enrolled in big boy school before May to be able to get a discount on the summer rates.  I still haven't looked into several other possible alternatives because I just can't seem to make myself do this.  It's a simple and not very intellectually challenging process that many people who are not as equipped as I do all the time, but for some reason I am frozen.  Whatever.

My hub had a call back from a job that he applied for eons ago and forgotten about.   It is a fantastic Federal Investigator position in Colorado.  Woo hoo!  This came completely out of the sky.  They wanted him to fly out for an interview.  He did.  It went fantastically! He is simply itching to work for the guy he interviewed with, who is, and I quote: "The coolest guy ever"!  Have I mentioned we've been wanting to make our way out that direction for quite some time.   For many many reasons... but somehow could not make it happen.  It may happen.  We're hoping it may happen.  Some of us are even praying for it.

Meanwhile, said husband got offered and accepted a better position at the agency he is currently employed with.  YAY!  right?  Better job, more money, what could be wrong??  Well, the more money part may not happen because of our evil fucking governor whose name I can not contaminate my blog with.  You can look it up if you want.  He is the crook who is running Florida now.  Anyway, we are still hoping that some creative shell shuffling at the hands of our dear friends (who are the hubs higher ups at work) will magically happen and the money will appear....  I'm not holding my breath though.  The good news is that he does work with honest and lovely people who we adore and if there is any rock that this money is hiding under, I'm confident they will find it.  I'm grateful for them.  They rule!  hee hee.  Look at me, I made a funny!

We managed to eek out the payment of our 2010 property taxes, so that is a many splendored thing.  whew!  This living by the threads on the seat of one's pants is exhausting.  The excitement is just too much for an old woman like me.... but here we are.

We are still waiting to hear back from Colorado.  May take a while.

This week we had a delightful visitor from Germany.  A spunky 22 year old named Elisabeth.  She graced us for 3 whole days.  We had lively conversations about culture, politics, life, love and all the rest.... AND wine with dinner EVERY night!  I think I may reinstate the wine with dinner policy... But I digress...  I find it fascinating that her parents are younger than me by 4 years and her youngest sib is 14 years old.  And we, me and the old man have a 5 year old.  It just struck me as funny.  She was here because she is a pen pal to our good friend and ex client GW who lives on death row.  She had an opportunity to come and meet him, and she took it.  Thank God she did because we made a new friend in the process and she is just precious.  She came here on a learning expedition of sorts and to meet her pen pal.  She had lots of adventures and met lots of new friends in the process and I think she knows Florida better than I do now!  She's amazing!  I cannot imagine going to a foreign country alone at that age and visiting a maximum security prison!  Counting on the kindness of strangers and driving a rental all over the place on my own.  Kids these days!  So that was a fun and exhilarating whirlwind visit... unfortunately at my age, that also means exhausting!  We have more visitors coming from Ireland and somewhere else across the sea to visit inmates also.  These are the kindest most loving people you will meet.  Anyway, we are looking forward to that and I'm trying to rest up for the next round of visits.

Meanwhile I still desperately need a job, and nobody and I mean NOBODY is contacting me.  I guess my res is a little less than impressive.  sigh.  I have my coaching business all set to go, and for some reason cannot seem to make myself build a website or hustle up any customers.  This is due to some personal issues and also not being good at splitting my time up and my energy.  I still feel like full time mommy whose schedule is at the whimsy of of my hub and my child.  That is the truth, and I know it, but at the same time, other women are out there making it happen so what the hell is my problem? (Don't really answer that... it's just sort of rhetorical really.)  I truly do know what my problem is and I mean to correct it.   As soon as I clean up the breakfast dishes.

Hope you all are having a great 2011.  If you are reading this, I thank you for visiting as I am not the mad poster lately... nor am I the most exciting poster... I'm just regurgitating my reality on screen.  For some reason  this helps me to make sense of it.  Thanks for being my witness.

Love and Spring flowers to all,
pf