t_k_f@hotmail.com

I live in Lexington, Kentucky

I'm owned by a cat, Moiya, who has me very well-trained.

Click here for more on the artist!

1. Do Christmas newsletters truly exist or are they simply an enduring holiday myth, like fruitcake? I've never received one and I've certainly never written/sent one. Perhaps it's a rich WASP thing and I wouldn't understand?
   
   Soooooooo, since I've never received a Christmas newsletter and never written one and, certainly, never sent one, this is NOT a Christmas newsletter. Really!


2. There's been an extraordinary amount of changes of the past year. I left Tallahassee. It was past time for a change and since people frown on certain changes, I chose to move back to Lexington. The weather here has been wonderful and I have a fantastic new career!


3. Probably the biggest change in my life is a new relationship forged from my oldest friendship. Never before have I been with someone so loving and giving. There may be no such thing as "The One" or there may be many potential "The One" 's. That said, I've never had someone with whom I had such a perfect fit on every level. All those qualities that everyone had expressed irritation (or outright hatred) for, he finds endearing or even loves me for them (as opposed to "in spite of").


4. One thing that hasn't changed is the fact that my kids appear determined to drive me crazy.
   Allen: Still no GED. Still hasn't paid me back the money he owes me. Possibly just got a job (a second one) with FedEx and he told lthat he has to be at work at 5am. Mind you, no buses run that early. Clearly the expectation is that one of us will drive hime to work 5 days a week. Oh, and he stole almost $300 from Jerry's bank account to pay the phone bill. (He didn't like having it turned off.) Note that we only had $4 to our name when he did this, so the paid it and charged an overdraft fee. For the curious, he found an old checkbook with the carbon paper stubbs and got the routing number and the account number. Jerry was going to press charges, but decided that he didn't want a felony conviction hanging over Allen's head if, in the future, he DOES get his act together. So, instead, he's supposed to be paying us back.
   
   Did I mention I just found a bag of pot in his room?
   
   Daniel: He just turned 15 on the 11th. He seems happy with the presents even though we couldn't get him a lot. I'm awaiting his upcoming report card--he's been warned that anything less than a "C" in anything will result in a life of misery. He should be able to get "C"'s with his eyes closed, so those "F"'s must have been strenuously earned.
   
   Nikki: I love her, but I'm so hurt, angry, and disappointed in her right now! I don't even want to speak to her. Not only has she been thrashing me, verbally, to Ferg and her Dad and not only has she made a fuss about "her" money--I now find out that she's given him (Ferg) my address! I don't know what's going through her head, but I want to shake the sense back into her! She's spending one or two nights a week at his place. They go out to dinner. He gives her money and has promised to buy her a car. (He's pulled out all the stops!) Even with all that, it's not like she didn't witness years of him drunk, mean, yelling and breaking things! How could she possibly fall for this big act he's putting on now? (Up to and including sending Daniel a birthday card with a long sappy letter inside about how much he loved and missed him. Daniel just rolled his eyes, handed me the letter, and said, "When did Ferg start writing comedy?")


5. Some thoughts on Amazon.com:
   ~ There are entirely too many "Dummies". I know this because of all the books for them:
   Wine for Dummies: Do "dummies" really need the added benefit of alcohol?
   Sex for Dummies: "This is Slot A. This is Tab B. Insert Tab B into Slot A. Congratulations! You're having sex!"
   Spanish for Dummies: "Que?"
   Italian for Dummies: "Whatsa mattah you?"
   
   ~ Then there are the Learn insert language here While You Drive! CDs. I can't help picturing something like:
   
   "Get off the road, asshole!"
   "Obtenez outre de la route, abruti!" (French)
   "Gehen Sie von der Straße, Arschloch weg!" (German)
   "Ottenga fuori della strada, asshole!" (Italian)
   
   ~ Everyone is having "Chicken Soup"--teachers, sisters, grandparents, teens. Who knew there was such a market for meaningless platitudes aimed at specific audiences?
   
   ~ People order a lot of big, heavy, "coffee table" books at Christmas. My guess is they are the gift of choice for "needs a nice gift but you don't really know a thing about them" people.
   
   ~ Gary Larson has a 2-volume, leather-bound set of all of his cartoons, ever. These aren't books, they're construction material! Buy a couple of sets and you have four walls! I like Gary Larson cartoons, but after spending a day lifting those things over and over, I would love to beat him with one!
   
   ~ Who the hell is Josh Groban and why does he sell so many albums?
   
   No.
   
   Really.
   
   I don't know who he is...
   
   ~ I found out today that opening and looking at a book is a firing offense. I'm not making that up.


6. I'm craving steak and Chinese food (separately, of course) in an extreme way


7. Someone is messing with us. Someone called and sic'ed the city government on us. We have 30 days to replace the storm doors and some other stuff. Worse, the following day, we both got notices on our cars. The gist of those were that you can't have a non-working vehicle on your property in Fayette co. Not only is this ridiculous (they're not on blocks, you know!) but my car works. We have 10 days for that one!

1. Mandatory overtime = 57 hours, total, a week = a very sore, tired woman feeling her age. Everyone that said it would get easier after a couple of weeks (and lots of people told me that) were WRONG! However, the money is nice even if I don't get any time to look at the stuff I think is interesting because I have to fulfill my hourly quota. From the sound of things, though, I probably won't have a job after Christmas. Frankly, I don't know that I could keep up with this anywhere near longterm anyway.


2. I've been sick for the past couple of days. I think I said one too many times that I don't catch the flu/colds/etc. Speaking of which, if anyone should happen to find a lung laying about....
   
   *COUGH!*


3. Nik isn't coming to visit. It became very obvious that she really didn't want to be here. Other stuff has happened, as well, and she's spent the better part of a couple of months not speaking to me. (Gee, just because I got pissed about her running to Ferg and sic'ing him on me because she couldn't appreciate that I didn't have $200 to send her when her car broke down--after telling him things about me and my life that were untrue, unnecessary, and/or both??) I just found out last night that she apparently has been sobbing to her dad that I haven't been supporting her and have just "abandoned" her (interesting spin to put on "let her stay after she insisted she didn't want to leave" and "completely broke, but finding a way to send her money anyway"). He sent me half the child support and a note explaining that he'd be sending "her share" directly to her from now on. When I confronted her with that and the fact that she'd already received the money and let me borrow money from my grandmother to send her the same amount and wasn't going to say anything about it at all, she got huffy and got off the phone. Guess it's another month of silence.


4. Hmmmmmm....other than such stuff, life is GOOD. Very very good.

ARRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!!!

1. Still no job yet.


2. Still hoping something will pan out or I'll be hitting the convenience stores and grocery stores sometime around the 1st, since money is kind of important.


3. Birthday lunch for a friend tomorrow. Yay! Birthday lunch at an Indian food place--the only ethnic food I don't like. Not so yay. Anyone have any suggestions on something that's not filled with caradom (however you spell that) since I think that's what I don't like.


4. Allen made actual steps to take his GED (he's just waiting for a test date now) and got a job (starts on Tuesday)!


5. Nikki started her externship (that's what they call it, I swear) at the hospital ER last week. She's loving the experience. Aside from that, she's doing very well in school. Also, she and a bunch of female friends decided to heck with finding a date for Homecoming this year. They are exchanging dresses amongst themselves (so no one is wearing something they've worn before) and going together without dates. She sounds very excited about it--more so than when she's had a date for the dance in the past.


6. Daniel seems to be doing well in school (we'll see when the midterms come out). More importantly, he's getting along wonderfully with Jerry and with Jerry's boys, especially Corwin. They've gotten him into gaming and he's pretty much obsessed with creating new characters. He's also playing chess every day and even taught Allen how to play.


7. Damn, I'm happy. *contented sigh* Not exactly sure why or how Jerry puts up with me and mine, but I'm very happy that he does, since I love him to death.

Just got your message and wanted to give you a response. Not to upset your carefully revised history or anything, but you're the one that told Nik that you thought I was doing badly financially and that you wanted to "help me out" but I wouldn't take your calls. I told Nik that I didn't want a dime of your money, but if you were that anxious to send money, it would help me out if he sent $200 to Nik since I don't have a job yet. Then I told her not to hold her breath because you haven't kept a promise in 10 years. Well, you've kept them to your friends, but apparently, your wife and kids don't fall into that category. So the first of September rolls around and I asked Nik if you'd sent her anything. Of course you hadn't because of some accident you had, but you'd send it on the 15th. I told her that I highly doubted she see a bit of money from you and to call me on the 16th or 17th and let me know if you'd actually followed through on something. I also told her that I'd figure out some way to get $200 to send her if you acted like I figured you would--and you certainly have, haven't you?

Finally, let's get something straight. I realize you're having a wonderful time telling all your drinking buddies that I'm a golddigging bitch that stole your money and lied to you and now I'm trying to soak you for more. Unfortunately, I don't want your money; I don't need your money; and even if you promised to send me some, I wouldn't believe a word of it anyway. I may not have a job yet, but I'd rather live in the streets than accept a single dollar from you.

Oh, and I don't know how you got my new number, but don't call it anymore. I DON'T want to talk to you.

1. Still no job. Beginning to feel like What's-His-Name in the Secret Diaries of LOTR--"Still not king." Then again, I'm neither beating on ogres nor secretly lusting after hobbits (Sam would kill me), so maybe I'm not too much like him.


2. Allen had a good weekend from the looks of his neck. Either that or he was attacked with a vacuum cleaner and lost. Considering how late the girl calls and/or stays on the phone, I guess I should have considered that she might be a vampire.


3. Got registered at the VA today--now I just have to wait forever for an appointment and hope the meds don't run out before then. I was told, though, that if I do completely run out of meds before then, I can come and sit and wait to be seen by "Urgent" Care (read: "We'll get to you sometime today, hopefully" Care).


4. BEST. BIRTHDAY. EVER.


5. Kill Bill Vol. 1 and Kill Bill Vol. 2 movie matinee went off fairly well. Most of the people invited arrived, if not exactly on time. However, I've been told that my movie education is sadly neglected because I've never seen The Magnificent Seven or the movie that inspired it, The Seven Samurai. There's some other movie that's based on the Samurai one, too, so I think that's our next movie matinee.


6. I miss everyone! Call me or SOMETHING! (Yes, the number has changed, but the email hasn't and I'd be happy to send you my new number!)

1. No job yet, but I have new things circled in the classifieds, so hopefully that will change. There is also a job fair on the 13th. The temp agency hasn't called even once--I'm not impressed.


2. My birthday is going to be on Friday, September 10th. There should be enough candles on the cake to alert the fire department if we're not careful.
   
   So far, my plans are all day at home with Jerry (he's taking the day off and Allen and Daniel will be in Illinois and school, respectively) *grin*


3. Allen is going to Illinois to visit his gf and his other friends next weekend. I love him, but I can't say that I'm not looking forward to a bit of a break. He's mentioned possibly renting a room from his gf's dad and working for his plumbing company. But then, his plans for the future change daily, so who knows?


4. Nikki informed me last night that she plans to only spend part of winter break with me and part with her dad. I told her the tickets for different departure cities will be expensive and I don't know how I can manage that. Her response? "Well, you and Dad need to talk about it and arrange things soon, since it gets more expensive the closer you get and I'M not paying for it." In other words, I come up with a buttload of money or I don't get to see her.
   
   This isn't in the vein of her occasional bouts of self-absorbtion. She's been very distant and cold on the phone lately and always sounds very pissed off at me. However, when I ask her what's wrong, she just says, "Nothing!"
   
   *sigh*



5. Speaking of my daughter, she's not getting too clobbered by Hurricane Frances, though I got snipped at yesterday (Sunday) for "not calling and asking if she were okay--after all her dad and Ferg did". I told her that I had been out most of the day and the last I'd heard prior to that was that it wasn't even going to hit Tallahassee. Aside from that, I'd planned to call her today and ask how she was doing, she just beat me to it by calling yesterday. I don't know. Maybe she feels I'm neglecting her or don't care or something.


6. Other than that sort of thing, I'm extremely, sickeningly happy, in case anyone was concerned about my absence. I've just been a bit...busy *wicked grin*

1. Donna is down in Fort Lauderdale with Tammy (Ferg's sister) and is fine.


2. Bill is back out on the road again already, since he can't afford to let a hurricane cause him to lose a week's pay.


3. No one has been home to receive the package I sent them with the letter to them and the letter/packet to Ferg. He's promised to send it out as soon as possible, though, and without giving Ferg my address. (He even offered to drop it from some other state somewhere when he was on the road again.)


4. He says they both understand why I left and that he thinks I did the right thing. He also said they still love me and I'll always be family. I really love those guys.

1. My car was vandalized three nights in a row by some unknown person. The first night, they spit tobacco all over it. The next two nights, they keyed it. So far it's been left alone for the past two nights, but I don't know what the hell was going on. I haven't been here long enough to piss anyone off and he doesn't have any broken-hearted, disappointed women in the shadows.


2. Allen declared that Jerry and I "look good together" and that he likes how he treats me and Daniel. Considering the boy has been pretty much mad at the world since he's been here, I was taken aback. Then he told me that if I "fuck this up, he's going to be very pissed at me because Jerry seems like a really great guy". I guess I've been warned.


3. I may have to pull a "warrior MOM" moment. I signed Daniel up for "free lunch" for now and asked on Friday, before school started, if they'd please inform the cafeteria so that he could eat. She swore that she would. They've denied him lunch for the past two days. If he comes home without eating today, I'm going up there and drop-kicking some people.


4. I'm sure there's more stuff, but I can't think of a thing...
   
   I've been somewhat distracted lately in the best of ways. *grin*

1. Come out of my secure little hidey-hole.


2. Get KY license and get the car registered.


3. Finish unpacking--there are books and unassembled book shelves cluttering up the front room. Boxes of kitchen stuff have turned in one part deathtrap, one part maze in the kitchen.


4. Seriously look into the job situation, even without a phone.


5. Until I find one, go by social services first thing Monday morning.

1. Allen told me last night that Jerry and I are great together and that he really likes how he treats me and Daniel.


2. Great morning (really really REALLY great morning!) until we left the house to discover that someone had keyed my car. The day before, they spit tobacco all over it. Now I haven't been here long enough to piss anyone off that I know of and Jerry says he doesn't have any broken-hearted, disappointed women in his life. I have NO idea what's going on. Oh well, aside from that, still a great morning!

1. Most of his stuff out of the bedroom--except the closet and the computer.


2. Closet in living room cleaned out.


3. Kids' bedrooms mostly done.


4. Curio-cabinets cleaned out (need to wrap stuff and put them in boxes).


5. Boxes acquired (more needed).


6. UHaul and car tow thingie reserved.


7. Car found for Nikki.


8. Limited Power of Attorney for the couple Nikki will be staying with and wrapping-up conversation with the mom.


9. Appointment made for cat for rabies shot update and sedatives so she doesn't have the feline meltdown that she had coming down here--she spent the last four hours under the car seat moaning. She's so big that if she did that this time, we'd have to take the truck apart to get her out.


10. Appointment made to see doctor about renewing my prescriptions before I leave.

1. Close savings account and open Nik a checking account.


2. Help Nik find insurance and get her car registered.


3. Continue to badger Ferg for the $400 he owes her--sent him an email today telling him I needed it to give to the landlord so I don't get evicted. Got a reply that he'd "try to get it to me as soon as possible" but that he didn't think he could do it "before midweek" [rolleyes].


4. Finish packing.


5. Call junkyard about the dead cars.


6. Get Daniel's shot records to enroll him in school in Lexington.


7. Call to have trash, utilities, cable, satellite turned off. Give them Ferg's address for final bills!


8. Get storage facility for his stuff.


9. Get person at temp agency to call me back so I can give them the address to send my last check.


10. Change of address at post office for Ferg.


11. Change of address at Child Support Enforcement.


12. Change of address at VA.


13. Give bank Ferg's address!


14. Send Ferg the contract, key, and short letter telling him to not contact me and that I'll send the divorce papers to his dad's house.

"I understand the position he is in, as well as ours. [snip] I don't know what else to do. I don't get paid until I get paid, and you know we are in a very precarious situation. I'm really at a loss for what to do. I went over my expenses last night and the list below is what I came up with just for bills. I can try and live on very little but the list has to be paid.

Road Runner - 24.95 (cable modem for the computer he doesn't have yet)
Digital Cable- 16.95
DVR- 4.95 (God only knows)
Digital Phone- 39.95
Cable - 35.00
Rent - 600 (For a one-bedroom apartment!  Nothing to do with it being a luxury apartment, of course)
Furniture - 186.20
Trash - 7.00
Storm Water - 2.00
Electric - ???
Gas - ???
Water - ???"

He left off Everquest ($90/6 months); Nascar some-or-other that he gets online ($30/month); whatever he's paying for his various porn sites that he visits ($no idea/month)