Solo Parenting
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The Gaslighter and the Bee-Word
gaslighter / ˈ ɡas ˌ līdər / a person who uses psychological methods to manipulate someone into questioning their own sanity or powers of reasoning bitch [ bich ] a malicious, unpleasant, selfish person, especially a woman I used to date a guy who gaslighted the hell out of me. When we first met, I thought that I had hit the boyfriend jackpot. He was good-looking and had a job that he was passionate about. My daughter and my dog equally adored him (and my dog doesn’t like anyone). I lost all concept of gravity and fell in love with him faster than a spacecraft blasting into orbit. But within…
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Suitcases and the Disney Villains
I do not handle change well. The question of change often comes up in job interviews, and I always lie through my teeth about it. When asked, I assure the interviewer that I love change, that I am flexible and eager and accommodating. But I am a dirty liar. Change makes me anxious. I do not like the unknown. I am a girl who needs a plan and an end game. Surprises are not fun for me. Speaking of interviewing, I have been doing a lot of it lately. It is such an atrocious process, and I hate every single second of it. Even with over two decades of experience…
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Christmas Lights
I admittedly am the girl who puts her Christmas decorations up the second that the last Snickers bar has been distributed from my Halloween treat bucket. I probably would have done it sooner this year had my daughter not forbidden me from even looking at the pile of Rubbermaid boxes in the basement filled with ornaments and glittery reindeer trinkets. I haven’t always been this way, though. I spent so many years barely willing myself to put a tree up, sometimes only dragging out the 3′ tall fiberoptic tree that my dad bought me for my college apartment seemingly 100 years ago. The Christmas spirit was just not always easy…
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First Days
My baby girls started kindergarten today. It was their official first day. Last week, they had a stagger start day where only a quarter of their classes went for half the day to allow them to get used to the structure. Open house was the week prior, and I left work early to make sure that we made it. There were two gigantic bags of school supplies to carry in, and we had to park a mile away from the front entrance because there were so many families there. I wore a cute blazer so I would feel trendy and pretend that I wasn’t the oldest mom at kindergarten. It…
