Starting a New Hobby

This past week or so, Boy 1 has been in one of his downward swings. Or maybe, this is the real him and when he's behaving better it's the temporary part. Either way. The past week, if he wasn't telling me how stupid I am or how much he hates me, he's been calling me names. He feels I am fucking bitch, a hoebag (hobag? ho bag?) a faggot, etc. He's gone out of his way to be horrible to his brother, to argue with everything I've asked him to do. If I remind him of the time in the morning, I'm a fucking nag. If I don't remind, I'm a fucking bitch. I'm not certain which is better, to be a nag or a bitch...

On top of that, I got my cell phone bill today. Now, Boy 1 just got his cell phone back a few months ago. It seems this past month, he got the bright idea to make prank calls to 411. Now, on the bright side, at least he wasn't making prank calls to 911. On the deep, dark, bad side, he made prank calls to the tune of $50, at 1.49 per call. AND, even though he said he was checking the number of text messages he had left each time I asked him to, and told me he had this many left, he went over by 200, to the tune of $30. That's $80 freaking dollars in crap on top of my normal bill.

Also, (to continue my rant.. pull up a chair, I may be a while), I got my tax stimulus check. HOWEVER, I'm too poor to get the whole thing. You see, my tax liability wasn't high enough to earn the whole $600, so I only received $300. Still nice to have, but the irony of being too poor to receive free money, nice slap in the face.

And, to add the salt to the wound, today. Today, I was mowing my lawn for the first time this year. Got my mower to start right up, lovely. Did about 8 laps and noticed my mower sounded funny all of the sudden. Probably because the oil tank had literally fallen off. While I mowed. I'm pretty sure an oil tank is an important part of an engine, right?

So, ok karma, I get it. You win, I'm totally giving up. I'm going to watch a sad movie, cry my lonely little heart out and start my new hobby. Drinking. It just seems like a good hobby for me.

Today's a new day

Yesterday, Boy 1 was great. Helped me move the computer from my room to the living room, set up the wireless adapter thingy that didn't want to work (listen, the router is exactly one foot away from you, behind this wall. This thin, 100 year old wall. Work, damn you!), and rearrange some furniture in my fit of Must Clean Out My Room!

Today? He hit his brother with an empty pop tart box and a dish towel because Boy 2 was doing the heinous crime of breathing. The fiend.

Yesterday, Boy 1 played basketball with Boy 2, Boy 2's annoying friend S and our upstairs tenant's son, who's 5. Played nicely, shared, was gentle with the little kids and didn't trash talk their skills too much. Just a little.

Today, Boy 1 has called his brother names and mumbled obscenities at me because I, too, dare to breathe and exist in his space. The nerve.

So, I'd like to go back to yesterday please? Today is not looking so hot.

Happy Mother's Day!

I hope ya'll had a great day. We had a pretty quiet weekend, with the boys wreaking havoc, er, skateboarding and me puttering in my yard. I really love the puttering part, almost as much as I love the 'my yard' part. Planted some plants (I forget the names, but they're pretty) and then planted two lilacs and two hydrangeas below my bedroom and the kitchen windows. Then I counted to five while I patiently waited for these little twig things to burst into bloom. I stopped counting when I hit 50 and nothing had happened yet. Guess I have to be - gag - patient. Urg.

In the meantime, I enjoyed this:

and

(I'm not sure why the pictures are going sideways... they're fine on my computer.)

The day was complete when the boys gave me their presents (a homemade bracelet from Boy 2 and a jar opener made in Boy 1's home ec class) and took me to Dennys. My treat. They're so good to me.