I received a lovely invitation to your site from Kysen, who was very kind about a diary I wrote on DKos. I wanted to say a quick hello, and to thank you for being here, for creating and supporting blogs like this one, and to promise I’ll try to be good.
I’m a pretty ardent supporter of President Obama, and that’s caused me some grief over the last couple of years. I don’t think I’m a ‘bot, but perhaps I am. What I think is that I’ve never known a more Progressive or committed president in my lifetime, which is currently about twice as long as I expected it would be. I barely recognize that oldish lady in the mirror – the inner person is still young and fired up about life and about being part of improving our world and our nation.
I marched and sang and joined and signed when I was still in my teens, I phone-banked and walked neighborhoods when I was in my early 20’s, I helped form a neighborhood association during that time as well. Then I took a couple of decades off to work on recovering from alcoholism and managing bi-polar disorder. I tried really hard to fit into what I thought I should be, and failed rather spectacularly. Repeatedly. About 12 years ago I hit “fuck ’em if they can’t take a joke” mode, and life is easier
I’ve been involved in “homeschooling” our mom with my sisters for the last 3 years. We recently found it necessary to put her in a private care home as we could no longer keep her safe. Her dementia is profound, the caregiver who’s in charge of her said she’d never seen an Alzheimer’s or dementia patient maintain her level of physical strength while losing mental capacity to this extent. It makes her a rare handful who needs 24 hour care to keep her safe. Putting her in the home was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I promised my dad we’d take care of her about 3 weeks before he died, suddenly and unexpectedly.
I keep apologizing to him, although I do believe he watched over all of us and knows exactly what we were facing. Last week, after a particularly grueling visit with mom, I yelled at him to tell her to let go, but then I realized that her path is hers, and I have no idea what she’s finishing up here, or why her end is so hard.
This is probably way too much information for a newbie to share, but if I’m here you’ll probably have many chances to hear from me, I’m too verbal to keep silent or lurk. It’s often easier for me to interact with people when I know them better, and I want you to know me.
I’m a musician, a church organist who’s not Catholic but has a gig at a Catholic Church. I have some issues with the institution that I try to keep under wraps, and I love my friends there, so who cares about my issues? They’re lovely people and they’ve helped me through the mom stuff with such kindness and gentleness!
This summer I’ll start working with the Young People’s Group, and I’m excited about a new adventure. Music was sanity for me at that age, the only place I could go and work out all those wild emotions, tame them, make them useful. If there’s anyone like me there, I may have something to offer that’s of value to him or her.
I have 2 kids who have somehow ended up being in their thirties, impossible because I’m pretty sure I’m still in my thirties. It’s a space/time contiuum issue, I just know it is.
Now I’m off to read and explore before I post this.