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Seven is a lucky number
Jan. 29th, 2013 11:38 pmOn this day in 1957, I was present, by report, when my mother kicked the obstetrician (who'd been brought in specially through a horrible snowstorm 25 miles from Oneida to Hamilton) across the delivery room. I was late. And very tiny. After almost two weeks in the hospital, they finally let me come home, even though I did not yet weigh 5 pounds.
On this day in 1964 I was in Miss Butler's first grade class in Morrisville-Eaton Central Elementary. Miss Butler, who was probably overdue for retirement, kept forgetting the new words that had been added the Pledge of Allegiance. She often muttered "it was good enough for 50 years...."
On this day in 1971 I was in eighth grade. Dana Sue Miller was my science teacher, and in later years I became her lab assistant. Books, chorus, and band were my salvation (though Mod Squad, Daniel Boone, Hogan's Heroes, The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour, and the last season of Dark Shadows helped). Momma was in college, Daddy felt threatened, and Lee's health was beginning to deteriorate.
On this day in 1978 I was living off-campus with Kate and Robin. It...wasn't perhaps the best housing choice any of us ever made. But we survived it. I was a double-major in Music Ed and English, and working in the PoliSci office for work-study, had two shifts at WCVF-AM, and was the receptionist and music librarian ($$). AM-Radio music kept me sane. I went into a hard depression between semesters, and was only just coming out of it by January 29. Shelley, Joe, and Linda were my best friends there, and are still loving and loved presences in my life.
On this day in 1985 I was in grad school at Syracuse University. Michel, Marianne, and I were the terrible trio, and perhaps one of the oddest set of best friends you'd ever see. But it worked for us. I was learning the limits of my academic ambitions, and for the first time understood that as good as my education had been, that there were just some schools that prepared students better for graduate school, and that some circumstances of childhood and adolescence did, in fact, give an advantage--something I'd never believed before. Intelligence alone was really not enough.
On this day in 1992 I was still, using Victorian terms, a bride. I was teaching part-time, and was the Assistant Editor for The Mid-York Weekly. Life was crazy, but good. I loved where we were living, loved the people I knew, and the world was full of promise.
On this day in 1999 I was two years past the surgery that saved my life, had more energy than I'd had in years, but things were otherwise rocky in almost every area of life--love, money, SCA, work.
On this day in 2006 I was teaching full time as a term contract, and the years since 2001 when I started getting full term contracts had helped with some of the money anxieties on my end, but houses eat money with the appetite and table manners of a velociraptor. Morguhn was chomping at the bit to fight in Crowns again, and neither Rowan nor I was interested in putting the household or ourselves through that. This precipitated a fairly prolonged period of "Dukes behaving badly" that made for a rough year or two, but there was a glimmer of hope. We'd begun to get better at both being able to talk and be able to listen.
Today I taught my classes, still on a little bit of a high from the very nice birthday eve I had. I have a job that only drives me a little crazy most of the time. I work with some really cool people. I'm not ignoring the fact that, as my doctor said with a little gasp when she was taking my history, "So,you're all alone." And sometimes it does feel that way. But I have wonderful friends in Eastern Star and the SCA, not to mention the friends I've made in the 56 years I've been kicking around who are still important parts of my life. And I have my chosen family.
So, here's to birthday 8x7--let's kick a little ass. ;-)
On this day in 1964 I was in Miss Butler's first grade class in Morrisville-Eaton Central Elementary. Miss Butler, who was probably overdue for retirement, kept forgetting the new words that had been added the Pledge of Allegiance. She often muttered "it was good enough for 50 years...."
On this day in 1971 I was in eighth grade. Dana Sue Miller was my science teacher, and in later years I became her lab assistant. Books, chorus, and band were my salvation (though Mod Squad, Daniel Boone, Hogan's Heroes, The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour, and the last season of Dark Shadows helped). Momma was in college, Daddy felt threatened, and Lee's health was beginning to deteriorate.
On this day in 1978 I was living off-campus with Kate and Robin. It...wasn't perhaps the best housing choice any of us ever made. But we survived it. I was a double-major in Music Ed and English, and working in the PoliSci office for work-study, had two shifts at WCVF-AM, and was the receptionist and music librarian ($$). AM-Radio music kept me sane. I went into a hard depression between semesters, and was only just coming out of it by January 29. Shelley, Joe, and Linda were my best friends there, and are still loving and loved presences in my life.
On this day in 1985 I was in grad school at Syracuse University. Michel, Marianne, and I were the terrible trio, and perhaps one of the oddest set of best friends you'd ever see. But it worked for us. I was learning the limits of my academic ambitions, and for the first time understood that as good as my education had been, that there were just some schools that prepared students better for graduate school, and that some circumstances of childhood and adolescence did, in fact, give an advantage--something I'd never believed before. Intelligence alone was really not enough.
On this day in 1992 I was still, using Victorian terms, a bride. I was teaching part-time, and was the Assistant Editor for The Mid-York Weekly. Life was crazy, but good. I loved where we were living, loved the people I knew, and the world was full of promise.
On this day in 1999 I was two years past the surgery that saved my life, had more energy than I'd had in years, but things were otherwise rocky in almost every area of life--love, money, SCA, work.
On this day in 2006 I was teaching full time as a term contract, and the years since 2001 when I started getting full term contracts had helped with some of the money anxieties on my end, but houses eat money with the appetite and table manners of a velociraptor. Morguhn was chomping at the bit to fight in Crowns again, and neither Rowan nor I was interested in putting the household or ourselves through that. This precipitated a fairly prolonged period of "Dukes behaving badly" that made for a rough year or two, but there was a glimmer of hope. We'd begun to get better at both being able to talk and be able to listen.
Today I taught my classes, still on a little bit of a high from the very nice birthday eve I had. I have a job that only drives me a little crazy most of the time. I work with some really cool people. I'm not ignoring the fact that, as my doctor said with a little gasp when she was taking my history, "So,you're all alone." And sometimes it does feel that way. But I have wonderful friends in Eastern Star and the SCA, not to mention the friends I've made in the 56 years I've been kicking around who are still important parts of my life. And I have my chosen family.
So, here's to birthday 8x7--let's kick a little ass. ;-)
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