Great aunt sounded good on Saturday, but today she was moved to the ICU. My mother is of course freaking out, because freaking out is what she does best. Great aunt has too many grandkids and great-grandkids to count, she has lineal relatives in the same area code to deal with this. They will be there. This is not our responsibility, and even if we could drop everything and fly 1200 miles we have zero legal authority to act. I know this, Cousin C knows this. But my mother, who is 1200 miles away, is adopting this as her personal crisis. She's calling Cousin C multiple times a day, and C is bravely falling on the crazy grenade for me, so I can deal with the crazy bombs going off at work. C is totally getting the Lakeview Clapotis for Christmas, along with some really fancy bath goodies and such. I'm thinking every squishy smelly bar Lush makes, for starters. And wine. She has EARNED it. She is also my best sanity check when I feel guilty about my mother - she's the one who says, "I don't know how you are as sane as you are, Jesus Christ, she'd drive anybody batshit!" She's taking the crazy bullets for me right now, and I love her for it.
It's only Tuesday. Tonight I'm answering the door for the trick-or-treaters that have been very sparse so far. Could it be because I just turned on the porch light and didn't decorate? I'm sorry, my house is brightly lit and looks unthreatening, but I didn't have time when I got home late again, and Girl got home even later.
Tomorrow night I am tackling the stress with a formal plan. It involves nightly hour-long workouts. And I have a plan for the job. I am giving them the rest of this quarter and the next quarter to get their shit together and staff us properly. That is generous, and if they piss me off royally before time I reserve the right to cut that deadline to When I Am Really Pissed Off. But this is reasonable. If by the end of March we don't have proper staff support, I'm gone. I plan to be gone from Florida, or at least on the way out, but honestly I could go downtown right now and make around what I'm making and have ONE boss instead of four or seven or whatever the count is this week. I'd get one or two bonuses a year instead of a quarterly thing, but honestly, at this point the hours I'm putting in and the stress I'm under is averaging out to average money.
The crazy calls at work did taper off after the boss talked to my favorite VP. My favorite VP asked me if she was being a burden and to tell her if she was, and I told her that my only concern was that her people were writing my number on the bathroom walls in the other division, and she doubled over laughing but totally got it, and will direct them to filter everything through her. They aren't allowed to call me directly with their wildass ideas. She gets paid to smack them upside the head, I have enough people like that already.
So far I have had EIGHT trick or treaters. Even the usual suspects haven't come to the door. Last year it was about 50, the year before about 100. The year before, maybe 60. I cannot predict the traffic. I am up to my ass in KitKat Bars. This is so dangerous. They are soo good with coffee in the morning.
7 comments:
You could send some to me. I've never tried that combo before, and there was a shortage of chocolate here tonight.
sallyjo
Be strong, C. and take them in to the office and give them to the Cupcakes. There's nothing like a fatass cupcake stoked to the gills on chocolate, sugar, and caffeine...just step out of the way and watch the died blonde fur fly, hehe.
happy halloween!
Yup. Take the KitKats to the CupCakes at the office. I will say a prayer for your great aunt - and one that your mom settles down, but I don't expect that one to be answered ...
(((hugs)))
Ooooo. Baaaad. No KitKats. Have girlchild take them to work or something but get them out of your house!
And yea for hour long workouts. That's always my first line of defence against the dear old nutcases.
i understand about the kitkats. it was cold here last night, and i've got half a 48 qt plastic tub full of goodies. thank goodness a lot of them are toys (i used to work at otc, and like giving out those (easier on the dental bills, lol)), so i'll just sack them up and put them in the halloween container for next year.
sorry about your great aunt AND your mom. has anybody told your mom she just needs to chill (i'm assuming so, but you never know)
I like Caroline's idea of jacking up the cupcakes.
Hope Great Aunt gets better real soon so your mother can step away from the Crazy Ledge.
"Just tell her to chill?" Unless you failed to notice it by now, my mother has actual psychological problems, has had them for many years, and refuses to seek help. (We've tried, believe me.) She can be wonderfully functional until she isn't. She could be wound up like this for the rest of the year, the rest of her life or come out of it tomorrow, and even at her weirdest she maintains enough control that she is not "a threat to herself or others" and therefore there is no real intervention I can force upon her, even if I had the energy after living with this for 35 years. And I don't. Golly gee, I wish I'd thought of just telling her to chill!
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