existing again

I have felt anonymous all week. An interesting statement, considering all of the week's events but I suppose, in the overwhelming wake of so many significant happenings, I am merely trying to find my specific place amid the locura.

Besides the accident. Besides the warning bell of head lice having severely hit a playmate's house and therefore having to wash THE ENTIRE HOUSE in a merely preventative measure...

okay, insert funny story here:

I got The Call on Tuesday afternoon right before I was leaving for a class. So as soon as the kids came home I checked The Young Prince's head and it was COVERED in dark brown spots. Without a further thought I marched them both straight to the bathroom, ordered them to strip all clothing IN THE BATHTUB and then, after the shampooing session was over, to come to me with the nit-comb and, outside, I would go through their hair.

La Princesita was first, and I couldn't believe it---there was absolutely nothing in her hair, on her scalp...nothing anywhere. So once I got The Young Prince out, I saw that neither was there anything in his hair or on his scalp. Strange, I thought. I didn't believe this could just "wash out" so easily. Then I stopped to think, and humbly came to the realization that I perhaps just had a really dirty kid.

Ugh. Great commentary on my parenting skills, right?

Well, the night before they had been in that accident, on the side of the road with lots of dirt and dust kicked up. And to the farm before then.

I called my friend, who said it sounded doubtful, especially in that the color is not dark-brown.

Great. So my kids are filthy. But at least, I think, we're in the clear..for now. I continued, nonetheless, to bag up plush toys and it will be like Christmas again in 30 days. It took three days to wash and dry everything I threw into the laundry room, and I have itched non-stop for days.

Okay...digressing to my week.

Three more outlets blew in the kitchen, to join the oven outlet we have the refrigerator outlet, the microwave outlet and the master telephone outlet. So the fridge and telephone are now hooked up on extension cords and, well, let's just say thank God I am the Crock-Pot Queen.

Mr. Electrician came out yesterday and at least had the decency not to charge me extra for the diagnostic, which will come out of the...are you ready?...$1,500.00 bill for a brand new subpanel and breakers for the kitchen and garden room. I know, we need it. But ...ouch.

That will be fixed next Wednesday. The roof will be worked on tomorrow. While I am working...someone is going to have to pay for all of this, after all!

So...

I went to the gym this morning. At the very end of my workout, I had seated myself atop my final machine to do leg curls and put the bar down atop my horribly bruised right knee (oh, another story...). I commented to the lady next to me, as she saw my reaction, "Just getting old." This opened the door to about an hour-long conversation in which we both met a new friend. She is a woman from El Salvador, married to a man from Massachusetts, an excellent hold on her English, and a mother of two. We ended up exchanging names and numbers.

I showered at the gym, then ran to the market to grab a few things before picking up Young Prince at preschool. At the cashier, I was greeted, she inquired about my children, and we had a lovely chat. I left almost bouncing out of the store back to my car. My heart felt light, my lips couldn't help but smile...

I have not ceased to exist!

Today is a good day. It is Friday--that helps. I am not doing one load of laundry today. My patience level is sky-high. It is windy--I could easily go out and dance around in the falling leaves, twirling my Little House on the Prairie skirt out wide...my heart feels as light as a child's.