Grouchy Mom

Where'd it go?

    I am not a genius, as I'm sure my teenagers will be happy to confirm, but I do have a fairly good grasp of the basic realities of life and the universe.  You know, things like "the sun always rises in the east" and "the bread always falls butter-side down".  Stuff like that.  But today I'm looking at the calendar, and I swear to you that there is some sort of hole in the space-time continuum, because so much of 2008 has just disappeared.  Poof!  Gone!  Which begs the question, where did it go?
    I remember certain moments, but there are some pretty big chunks missing.  Last January and February?  Gone.  March?  Um, I remember my aunt passing away, lots of driving in miserable rainy weather, and my 20th anniversary (which was NOT celebrated in Paris, as we had so fondly hoped).  April, May.....very blurry.  June was our oldest niece's high school graduation and my darling daughter's 14th birthday.  July, eldest son turned 16 (eeeek!).  August was the Big Event - Melinda got married!  September, my honey's birthday as well as my mom's 70th.  And since then?  I know there's been a lot going on, but why can't I remember more of it?  And more importantly, how is it all happening so FAST?!? 
    You know, as a kid I can remember my mom and my grandma talking about the way time moves faster as you grow older.  I also remember thinking "They're crazy!  How can time move any faster?"  Ah, the innocence of youth.  Now, now I understand.  It's not really time moving faster; it's all the details of daily life, compounding year after year, until eventually you lose the ability to differentiate between the laundry you did yesterday and the laundry you did last week (or month, or whatever).  All those repetitive tasks lose their clarity, so that you only remember the "big events".   Oh, I know I do laundry and dishes and clean the house, but after so long, who cares about the details?  What I want to remember and hold dear are those special moments, the ones that only come once in a lifetime - a 16th birthday, a wedding, a new baby - the jewels along the timeline of life. 
    So, really, maybe those "gaps" aren't such a bad thing.  They're my mind's way of rejecting the non-essential to make room for the truly important.  And I'm okay with that...but sometimes I still wish the process would slow down a bit. 

And speaking of warmth...

     We haven't had any.  For over a week.  Well, actually, as soon as I put the flannel sheets on the bed the weather became unseasonably warm, which we have thoroughly enjoyed.  However, at roughly the same time, our boiler heating system went pfffffft!  Thankfully the warm weather meant that we weren't freezing in our beds, but hot showers are nothing but a vague memory at this point. 
    Before anyone leaps to the (not unreasonable) conclusion that none of us have had showers in the past nine days, let me assure you that we have.  Friends have graciously allowed us to use their showers on several occasions, and on the days when we weren't at friends' homes, we did things the old-fashioned way.  We heated water on the stove for baths.   I am here to tell you that this method, while technically effective, leaves much to be desired.  We may not be offensive to the olfactory sense, but I'm still fighting the urge to cover myself with Lysol.  The furnace guy is (supposedly) on his way with the necessary parts, so we should be good to go by this evening, but it will be a long time before I take hot water for granted.
    Despite our boiler woes, it's been a pretty good week.  Seth received his orange belt in Sanchin-Ryu karate on Wednesday!  He is so excited.  Sanchin has been really good for his self-esteem and self-control, and he loves it.  We're really proud of him for working so hard.  Sorry about the huge picture, but isn't he cute?  That's my baby boy!