flawed but authentic » angela

Contrary to Popular Belief, Rarely Giggles

Angela — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 16:30:51 +0000

A few days back, KarenTH sent an e-mail to share an article she had read on NPR.org.

(You should go read the article. And if you have twelve minutes, you can listen to the Talk of the Nation Broadcast at the same link.)

In a nutshell, an online magazine asked readers to summarize their lives in six words. The results were compiled in a book titled Not Quite What I Was Planning.

I’ve been thinking about this for the past few days.

After throwing around combinations like “Two Kids Later, Fifteen Pounds Heavier” and “Will my hair be short forever?” I’ve decided to go with the following six word summary.

Amateur Craves Pancakes, Yarn, and Wit

If you could summarize your life in a half dozen words, which words would you choose?

Forgiving Myself x 10 Again

Angela — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 16:50:27 +0000

1. I forgive myself for not being able to lose those final ten pounds.

2. I forgive myself for not reading as much as I used to.

3. I forgive myself for dreaming of a world in which parents allow their kids to be kids.

4. I forgive myself for spending too much money on sock yarn.

5. I forgive myself for not making my kids eat what I eat.

6. I forgive myself for often feeling overwhelmingly unsuccessful.

7. I forgive myself for not being as outgoing as I want my kids to be.

8. I forgive myself for never learning to swim.

9. I forgive myself for being all “I want a sewing machine. I NEED a sewing machine! I’m going to be CRAFTY!” and then letting my new sewing machine remain in the unopened box for nearly two months.

10. I forgive myself for hardly ever practicing what I preach.

It’s Super Tuesday.

Angela — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 19:46:04 +0000

“The average man votes below himself;
he votes with half a mind or a hundredth part of one.
A man ought to vote with the whole of himself,
as he worships or gets married.
A man ought to vote with his head and heart, his soul and stomach,
his eye for faces and his ear for music;
also (when sufficiently provoked) with his hands and feet.”

-Gilbert K. Chesterton (1874-1936)

Loathing or Something

Angela — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 20:44:57 +0000

I’ve been feeling a bit out of touch.
I don’t know if any particular skirt length is out of style right now.
I have no idea which cell phone would work best for me.
I know nothing about the latest fiction.
I know that my camera can do many things, but I can’t tell you how to do anything other than point and shoot.
These are all things to which I used to devote quite a bit of time and energy.
I’m starting to feel disconnected and fizzled–in need of a new Something, but unsure of what that Something should be.

Meredith, because she can sense when I need a fresh challenge, stirred it up yesterday by telling me that:
1. She no longer wants to be my kid.
2. She wants me to move out.
3. She’s done with me forever.
4. She hates me.

Like any other thin-skinned mom would do, I took a deep breath, sent her (with Jeff) away for the night, and taught myself how to knit two socks at once.
(EDITED TO ADD: With the help of a book, of course. I’m no wizard.)

So there’s my Something.

Incidentally, when Meredith returned home this morning, she told me that she loves me.
Two hours later, she stuck her tongue out at me, stomped her foot, and once again proclaimed her hatred.
(I suppose my “Try to drink some of the broth from your soup.” request was a bit too much for her.)
She’s really Something.