birthdays

Birthdays! I love birthdays: drinks all around!

Most members of my family managed to be born in spring, that is why March and April are the most festive months of the year here. We used to organize thematic birthdays parties, masquerades, family sports competitions and so on. Those parties were hilarious.

Later various diseases started to take us down one by one. So those, who are still alive, have learned to treasure the rare occasions of just gathering around the table talking, sharing recent news and photographs of the past and present.

Somehow birthdays have turned into tributes to those who passed away. There is a tradition to propose the second toast to the birthday girl's or boy's parents. The parents are not with us any longer, and these moments are the most intense and sad.The toast is usually followed by a silence, as everyone goes back to the past mentally for a few moments to meet the dearest ones again. These were the days we thought would never end...

Then I slip into the present and see the little ones fooling around, playing and amusing themselves. They still believe that a birthday is a day of fun, presents and laughter.

I wish they had more happy birthdays than we do.

family issues

The repair of my apartment is in full swing. I called on to see how much of the apartment had already been torn down. To my surprise little was done. The old tiles were removed, the floor and the walls were leveled off, the doorways were widened and new door studs were installed; they even started to glue new tiles. However the pipes have not been replaced, the batteries have not been unpacked and the bathtub is still in the hall, which means I’m to live at mum’s for a couple of weeks more. That’s not cool!

You see, since I started to live at mum’s, she’s been treating me as her little girl. She worries if I’m not at home by midnight, she asks if I eat well at work and why I don’t dine at home. A couple of days ago I slipped on an icy road and limped home half-covered with snow, so mum wanted to make sure that nothing had been broken. She even fills me a lunchbox as she used to when I went to a primary school. It’s crazy!

I have been living on my own for almost eight years now. I have learned to take care of myself and developed certain habits, most of them are outdoor activities. So it’s okay for me not to be at home early, not to eat regularly or fall off the bridge on a regular basis. Mum has been comfortable with it for the last eight years, and I’m wondering why she just can’t behave the same way, while I’m at her place.

I’m not unhappy about bunking down there. I’m glad to have a chance to spend more time with mum, to help her around the house, to chat about my apartment repairing, the parents’ country house decorating and so on. It’s just weird to receive phone calls in the middle of the night requiring where the hell I am. Trust me, mum, there are places you wouldn’t like to know about!

Anyway, I’m spending the coming V-Day with my family at our country house, because the only true love I’ve ever experienced is for my parents, siblings and grandparents.

Happy coming Valentine’s Day to all of you!
Love and be loved!

family issue

The piggy's adventures at mom's place are in full swing.

Mom's poodle has recently developed a crush on it and even attempted to kidnap my lovely toy. I rescued it twice from his teeth and once retrieved it from the poodle's secret hide-out in the living room. Piggy was so dirty that I had to wash it and then blow-dry.

My step-father got intrigued by the piggy blowdrying and sneaked into his study aka my room. He gasped at the sight of it: his beloved bookcase was now filled with colourful tubes, bottles and tiny cases, the aroma of Kiwi (eau de toilet) used as airspray flying around, some nailpolish was half-opened on his computer table and... there was me drying the piggy with his hairdryer. It was too much to bare.

He muttered "sheer lady" under his breath and left.

family issue

Due to serious repairs in my apartment I had to find a current place to live in. There were several options: grandparents', dad's, or mum and step-father's place.

The grandparents live too far from the city centre. My sister is currently stationed at dad's, so I'd better not go there, as she is a lazy teenager and I'm an ex-teacher who has been telling off lazy teenagers most of her life. I'm sure dad will involve me into upbringing the sister, so I'd rather stay away. Thus the only refuge is mum and step-father's place, which is in two-minute walk from my own apartment, close to the city centre and doesn't contain a crazy teenager. Don't get me wrong I love my sister. I just prefer spoiling her to bringing up.

Anyway, yesterday I collected living essentials, tons of cosmetics and headed to mum's apartment. The step-father answered the door. His jaw dropped when he saw me cuddling my stuffed piggy and clutching a huge bag of cosmetics . He was too startled to say anything. I made my way inside.

Mum and the step-father had prepared their study for my bunking down for a couple of weeks. And I'm now living in a tiny study surrounded by a computer, a huge plant and an empty bookcase that serves as my dressing table. Lovely!

Mum is so excited about the whole thing that even cooks, while the step-father complains that she never gets into so much trouble to feed him. These two are so sweet!

I do feel that three is a crowd at their place. Therefore I'm looking forward to the repair to be completed, so I can go back to my little universe and leave mum and the step-father in peace.