Writing in the Corner

I just lost a blog entry when I tried to publish it. How annoying. But maybe it’s a sign that I should write about something else.

Day two (yesterday) of “Stop Procrastinating!” was also very successful. I finished fixing some glitches in the GED software that had been hanging over my head for a few weeks. Now they are not.

Today I had a very encouraging interview for a temp gig at the Tulane National Primate Research Center. I presented myself well, listened attentively, asked good questions and provided good, thoughtful answers to the questions presented to me. At the end of the interview (which lasted almost two hours) the interviewer took me around and introduced me to members of the IT staff with “Ann is considering the temporary support staff position.” Like it was all up to me! Maybe he did that with everyone he’s interviewed. He’s not done interviewing, but he wants to make a decision by Monday. The job will last anywhere from six weeks to six months, with a possibility (but no promises!) of going permanent. I’m trying to be hopeful without getting my hopes up.

Day three of “Stop Procrastinating!” has not been so successful. I was at the interview all morning, and have spent the afternoon internetting instead of cleaning the family room. I’ll go get right on that…

Yesterday morning was commencement at the university where my husband teaches. He had to go, because he’s on the faculty there. $40 to rent regalia. But he looks so awesome in his cap and gown with the hood with the Texas Tech colors. I guess the ceremony was kind of long; many, many names to read. I didn’t go. Next year, though, I think I will find a sitter and go to the baccalaureate mass, which they hold the night before. My husband said the music was very nice, and I haven’t been to a solemn high mass in a long, long time.

After commencement, a member of the faculty hosted a crawfish boil. (It seems rather sacrilegious to cite an Austin, Texas newspaper for a description of a boil, but this is a very good description; almost like a blog entry.) We had a very nice time, and ate a LOT of crawfish. They are so tasty, like tiny little lobster tails, but zippy with spices. We ended up taking home two gallon-size ziplock bags full of crawfish. This evening, we peeled them down to the tails, which is where the meat is. The two large bags reduced down to just over 12 ounces of crawfish tails. I will make crawfish fettucine with them this week.

For mother’s day, we had a very yummy breakfast - waffles with fresh Louisiana strawberries, whipped cream and pecans. Oh, and a little bacon for contrast. My husband made me a card with a the poem Dedication to my Wife, by T.S. Eliot. It was the most romantic Mother’s Day card he’s given me in seven Mother’s Days together. I did not get a gift, but I did not expect one, since we are so broke. My little boy made me a drawing with a picture of different fruits.

I went to church with the family. Of course the little kids sang, and it was so cute to see my little guy, alternating between straining his head to see us all the way in the back, and singing his little heart out.

My husband has done all the cooking today, and all the dishes. Also, we had a moth infestation in our pantry (a bag of cheese tortellini turned food source for larvae; ugh, ugh, ugh) and he cleaned it out thoroughly. It was really gross. He’s a biologist, and even he thought it was gross. Worse than skinning rodents, even.

We had brownies for dessert tonight, and the little boy is asleep. Older son went out with his friends and just got back. Tomorrow, I will write more about him being done with school.

Pound, a blog I read, has an entry today about her appearance on Chicago’s Fox TV affilliate about blogging. Just think, she got to appear on the news in a major US market because she blogs! OK, so she’s a very well known blogger, with a book deal and stuff, but still. What I crave most, more than anything, is attention. When I was young, I even preferred negative attention to being ignored. I want lots of people to read my blog, but my audience is mostly just people I know from other places on the web. I don’t write about exciting things like the tricks I turn or economics or political satire or how my life changed (but stayed the same) when I lost a lot of weight. There is even a blog by a Mormon woman college professor in New York called “Celibate in the City” that is about her dating and not having sex that is way more interesting than what I write.

I did have a Google hit the other day that was from a search on cardinal nesting. Maybe more people are linked to my blog than I think. I’m proud to be linking Miserable Failure still. Maybe the secret to lots of hits and getting on TV is linking to lots of other blogs. Or maybe I need to be a better writer. The first time I wrote this, I typed “right” instead of “write.” Yeesh, even spell check wouldn’t pick that up.

Maybe I need a focus, but that would imply something that simply doesn’t exist in my life.

Several weeks ago, my mother hurt her foot. It’s a deteriorating tendon. There is no cure. She was seeing an MD she didn’t like and who wasn’t treating it properly, so she went to see another MD who immediately put her in a cast. For the entire time she’s been seeing an MD, she hasn’t been able to drive. I phoned her the other night and she was just in despair. She was absolutely sure her foot wasn’t going to get better. I called my dad the next morning to see if it would help if I came to visit. He said he would check with her.

Today, she had an MD appointment. He took off her cast and put her in a boot. She needs to stay off her feet for another three weeks, and she has been fitted for an Arizona brace. She was very encouraged by the appointment today. She will need to always wear the brace, but she will be able to drive, walk, etc., so she really doesn’t care.

I can hear you all thinking, “So, Ann, how does this affect you?” I’m glad you asked. I have been giving a lot of thought to how this came about for my Mom. When she was my age, she started having problems with her feet. She switched to flat shoes, but at the end of the day her feet always hurt. I think she was in Stage I of this foot disorder/disease even then, twenty years ago. My tendonitis is much better; the heel cup and arch support combo really help, and the prescription strength anti-inflammatory helps, too. But I think I may go see a foot person in the next couple of months; after I get my life back in order. Because that is one ugly foot, and one ugly boot, and I don’t want to be housebound for two months when I’m 63 because I didn’t bother taking care of my feet when I was 44.