Life Blogging

So, I'm a Life Blogger.

Let me do a little life blogging, then.

I haven't seen my children since last Friday afternoon. Wait. That makes a week. More than 168 child-free hours. I love it. It's been a wonderful week for sleeping, lounging, eating whatever/whenever. Do I miss them? Sure. A little. But I've had a chance to be Alison this past week, not Mom.

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When my mother-in-law (hereafter referred to as MIL) offered to take the kids during this break, I agreed, and said I thought I might spend a few days at her house as well. She thought that was a good idea. But that was before the shit hit the fan, before I freaked out on my way to work that one morning and was diagnosed with depression three days later. I don't want to go spend a few days with my MIL. Ack! So today when she called, I said I'd be coming on Sunday, most likely, and would leave the following day (she lives three hours away).

"Oh! Not longer?" she said.

"No."

"Why?"

(hesitation). "I just don't think it would be good for me to be there longer."

"Ah."

Well, SHIT. I mean, really. I can't stay there. I know it will be awkward. She wants to have details about my separation from her only son. He hasn't given her any. I don't want to either. It's all I can do to come out of hiding on Yahoo Messenger. I'm not ready to spend a few days with my MIL.

I'm not even sure I could spend a few days with my own mother, although if you asked me that any other time, I'd tell you I'd give anything to have the chance to be with her again. I wonder how she would feel about my situation. When I told my dad I wanted to leave Julien, my stepmom wrote me a private e-mail, saying in essence "You GO, girl!"

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This is life blogging. This is free association blogging. I'm just writing here. Just thinking out loud. This is basically the reason I started blogging. Just a way to think out loud.

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No politics.

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So I'm listening to Radio Paradise, as I usually do. Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells is on, I guess because today is "Frightful Friday" -- 'tis the season, hey. So, anyway, I heard the name Mike Oldfield and Tubular Bells after I got to France. Never before. But apparently, this music was used in The Exorcist...would that be the re-released version, or the original version? Because I saw the original version, and it scared the bejeezus out of me. (But I don't remember this Mike Oldfield stuff).

This movie scared me even more. I saw it in college, and granted I was beered up when I watched it, but I barely slept that night, despite the presence of a big warm swimmer in my bed. He was totally asleep.

He and I saw Pet Semetary in the theater, and I didn't sleep that night either.

Thing is, when I was in high school, I watched all sorts of cheesy horror movies with my friend Denise. We were befri stends, and she turned me on to tortilla chips dipped into cream cheese. (Or "cheese cream," as my Peruvian friend Rodrigo called it in college).

So how come I got all freaked out by horror movies when I was older?

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I'm still listening to Radio Paradise, and "Sympathy for the Devil" is on. This song always reminds me of my brother Aaron. He took one semester off from college, lived at home, and worked in the produce department of a grocery store. I was not there, I was busy at my own college, living up to the five-year precedent that had been laid out for me by Aaron and our older brother and sister. Aaron had a Rolling Stones tape playing, this song was on, and my mom heard it and said "Can't you turn that noise off?" (My parents always listened to classical music). She probably heard the "Hoo-hoo" part of this song.

Aaron may or may not have obliged. He told me later that he wrote out the lyrics for her. This was before internet, before you could just google up sympathy devil + lyrics.

He asked her to read the lyrics, without telling her what they were. She concurred that it was interesting, and he then told her that that was the song she had condemned as "noise".

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If you've made it this far, bravo! I'm going to quit here. "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" is on the radio, and all I can think is "Is this the 'sonofabitch' version?"

I think that means I ought to quit while I'm ahead.

UPDATE: It's the "sonofabitch" version. W00t!

Comments

[Denise]

"befri stends" Awww...not having such a great day, and, therefore, that MADE my day.

I know what you mean about horror movies. I've seen, oh, pretty much every one of them, and never been scared. Until The Ring. *shiver* Do yourself a favor and don't ever, ever see that one.

Can't wait to see you in Dec.!

[Alison]

I thought you'd like that. Glad it cheered you up! And I can't wait to see you, either.

[madame l.]

a.:
follow your instincts about MiL. don't spend any more time than absolutely necessary. it wears you down for no good reason. you certainly don't owe her any explanations. especially if her son is giving her no info. uggghhhh. having said all this, my x mother in law is great. i speak to her once a week and it's been almost 4 years since i separated from her son. good luck.

[Mike]

Isn't life blogging fun! It's the only way I know how to do it. OK, I tread lightly around some parts of my life but I've gotten good at leaving clues for those who are good at reading between the lines. That, too, has been fun. :-)