Recap and my 4th 'Child'

My trip was successful:) If I had known that eating Subway was going to kick-start the sales, I'l have eaten a lot earlier!

No, seriously...Friday night was cold. When the temperature started falling, I was only concerned with staying warm, and by 9pm I no longer cared if anyone came by; I was in countdown mode until K arrived to pick me up.

I did have several people stop by and inquire, and I was surprised by the number of MEN who were asking about them! I also spoke to several people who 'always thought about writing', and told them about NaNoWriMo. I also answered publishing questions and how hard was it to write my first one.

We had also stopped by the school and spoke to several teachers and old friends before going on to the festival. The first question was always, "Are you coming back?"

Saturday, my goal was to sell 3 books so I could put gas in my car, and one so I could get something to eat. K went with me and napped; several people stopped by to joke about what to do to his unconscious self, and looked at the books, but no one bought. Until after K left to go back to his friend's house and a friend of mine showed up. She had read the rough draft of LFAW and bought me dinner while we talked. And since she'd just fed me, I went ahead and autographed a copy for her. Fifteen minutes after she left, I sold 3 more, and was able to fully gas up my Buick:) When K arrived back around 10pm, he was thrilled that yes, he could now get an ice cream cone or an elephant ear, as I needed to break a large bill for the next day. The temp was slightly better; I had taken a blanket with me, but didn't need to wrap up in it until nearly 9:30pm!

Sunday morning, we got up early and went to church. I'll confess, I did something a little tacky. I took a copy of LFAW and my oversized postcards. Several of my friends were thrilled to see the book, and eagerly took the postcards. Everyone was glad to see myself and K, and inquired about W and hubby's health.

Our host for the weekend took us out to lunch, and after we'd dropped off his son at band practice, we continued back to the house where we hugged him goodbye and got in our car. Arrived at the festival and since it was parade day, saw even more people from our old neighborhood. It's also interesting to tell the true friends from the fake ones: The true friends hug you, ask about the entire family, and we catch up. The fake ones simply say hi, and keep on walking. I'm happy to report I have more true ones in that community! Two years dulled my memory somewhat, but I'm okay with the snubs I did receive. And my daughter had the same experience: She attended volleyball practice, and came away with the knowledge that her old friends still want to be friendly, and only one girl is still stuck-up. But S had a wonderful weekend helping to house-break a new puppy and reconnecting with her friends. We all watched the parade, and I'm sad to say the batteries in my camera died on Saturday, so there are no pics of the marching band.

Unless S took some...I found out four hours later she had hers!

I did sell two more books before we broke down the booth and headed for home, so we stopped in Terre Haute for dinner at Mack Shack.

WARNING: If you don't want to hear a rant about my homecoming, STOP READING and click on a more enjoyable blog to the right. I'm pissed and justifiably so.

I came home to discover my house looked like Hurrcane Hanna had arrived. Yes, I know she went up the East Coast, but she spawned a tornado in my house! My 54-year-old child decided to pull the passive-aggressive stunt and did not pick up after himself or the toddler. He fed W, but didn't clean up anything! And when I asked him why, his reply?

"I just said 'F*** it. I didn't want to deal with it."

Okay...and he's said repeatedly over the years he doesn't want to work 40 hours a week and come home and clean? What about me? I worked hard all weekend, but it's okay for ME to come home and clean?

"You weren't working; you went off and left me with no transportation."

Okay, fine. Don't want to act like an adult? I won't treat him like an adult! I've informed him that as soon as I finish posting, he's going to help me. And guess what his chore will be? The messy kitchen that got my blood BOILING last night when I saw it! When I left Friday morning, everything was in good condition. Last night we walked in, the trash was overflowing; the sink was piled high; the ice cube trays were stacked in the drainer.

Before I blew a gasket, I walked into the bathroom and noticed the toilet paper was low. Good; I volunteered to go to the store and cool off before I ended up in a lawyer's office this morning. The man couldn't walk 3 BLOCKS for milk or a four-pack of TP?

His excuse? "That's too far for a 4-year-old."

Oooookaaaaayyyy....so all those times he let W walk down there with his older siblings was over-taxing to the toddler? Riiiiiight....

Okay. I'll quit boring you with my homecoming rant and go unload on him. I've not checked in with my friends yet; I'll get to it later. Right now, I hear another cup of coffee calling me.