110827 Kinda Down

There is a man in court in Ft. Worth who is trying to get his daughter back. His wife died while he was out of state, so her parents took the child and hired a lawyer. That was three years ago. He is still trying to gain custody of his own daughter! She is about 9 years old.

My in-laws have been upset with me since the divorce. Moon is old enough to be on her own if necessary. Her boyfriend's mom has an extra room. He moved across the state to go to college. What if they found a reason to take Agent? I don't think they will, and she has reached the age where the court ususally gives the child the choice.

This case reminds me of the time last year when I thought CPS was going to take my children from me. Grandparents are one thing, but the state? If they threatened, I instructed Moon to run away to friends or relatives. Agent would not have survived well in foster care. Those two girls kept me going after the crisis. Without them, I would have given up and died.

110816

Yesterday, I went to see a friend with an disturbingly familiar story. She told me that of all her friends, I was the one who could understand.

Last week, her husband was caught in the midst of doing things that were illegal, immoral, and utterly stupid. Unlike Raymond, his response was to put a bullet into his own brain. That variation has given her situation both advantages and disadvantages when compared to mine. We discussed them, and decided that at least we had each other. Now, support groups make sense to me. I know what crazy emotions are tearing though her brain, and she knows I know!

We have been friends for 5 or 6 years, and met as SAHMs in a homeschool group. Our children are of similar age. Like Moon did for me, her elder daughter is trying to 'handle' everything. The younger ones act like nothing has happened, which is what Agent did. Her eldest is in college, and my friend plans to continue homeschooling the 12yo and 14yo. Texas law says that 12yo children can stay home alone while she works.

We joked that the world ended sometime last year, but our psyches simply have not processed the info.

"...That's the signpost up ahead - your next stop, the Twilight Zone!"

110815 Once Per Month Post (until I become established)

My children need me to earn an income in order to take care of them. Because no one wants to hire a 50-something computer programmer with skills 20 years out of date, I am starting a business with Herbalife. If you are concerned for health, I sell:

Weight Loss products
High Protein products
Supplements
Skin Care Products

My online catalog is available at: www.bemaweightlossmall.com.

Thank-you

Writer's Block: Languages

What other foreign languages do you know? Which one(s) do you want to learn?

 View 1175 Answers

Español, si hablame muy despacio y claro...
Sometimes, I recognize some words in русский язык
I read and study in the Ελληνική γλώσσα
I read and understand Middle English and the King´s English. I even use educated language, but mostly I speak Texan.

I'd like to learn conversational Russian, Finnish, and better Spanish.

Too Close to Home

Cousin to Moon's boyfriend. Too much like my younger one was.

Little Girl Lost

Life's a Beach

You Are Determined

You do things your way, and you always get results. You'll work as hard and long as it takes. You are completely fearless. You refuse to let fear control you. You are proactive, and you try not to let anything slide. You avoid lazy thinking habits. You always have a way when your will demands it. You don't consider failure an option.

The Deserted Beach Test

Work is Hard. Time for Blogthings!

110711 Moms

When Moon was a baby, Susan Smith murdered her two boys for the sake of keeping a boyfriend. I have a picture of baby Moon playing happily in front of a television that was showing the story. In 2001, Andrea Yates drowned four out of five of her children a mere 200 miles from were I live. Last week, the Casey Anthony trial ended with a verdict few, if any, liked.

Do people think that I am like those moms? When four-year-old Jovonie Ochoa of San Antonio died of starvation and his family went to trial, people looked at five-year-old Agent Em's skeletal form and glared at me. They compared her tiny body to Moon's tall plumpness, and asked me if I were feeding the younger. Any time my emotions surfaced, someone suggested counselling. Surely I was a danger to my own children! Someone actually went to my minister to say that I was ruining children's futures! Health and Human Services investigated me in 2005. It proved groundless. Last year, another agent told me that they had the power to take my children from me, even though they were now teens. All of this is based on isolated incidents and what other, infamous mothers have done! Meanwhile real crime slips through the cracks.

Ask my children what they think. Are teens supposed to act out? Are they supposed to lie? Are they supposed to yell at their parents? Are they supposed to do their best to break every law, rule, and guideline set by their parents and school officials? That would appear to be the norm. (I taught high school, remember?) Mine, however, respect and obey authority. If one or the other has a problem with a rule, we talk about it. My children talk to me. WHY IS MY METHODOLOGY SO WRONG?!

There is economic prejudice in this country. It is probably world-wide and crosses all time. Because I have a lack of money, it seems to be expected that I am a low-life, under-educated moron who cannot be expected to handle life as well as someone with a Phd who seldom if ever suffered a lack of any material object. Publicly, I am retreating back into my shell, and I don't plan to emerge until 2016, when the younger reaches age 18.