Life is rather trying these days. I know we’re not suffering from famine, flood, fire, earthquake or terminal illness and I’m glad about that and extremely sorry for those who are. And we have the grandbaby to look forward to, which is very nice indeed. But apart from that… things are grey. We no longer have the jolly young people around much (which leaves a big gaping hole in our lives) but have a lot of responsibility for the older ones. There’s my poor confused aunt, who is living these days in a condition of constant bewilderment and is also very deaf, so that she can no longer in any real way understand what I’m bellowing in her ear. And there’s my mother, who is in a much better state but is apt these days to insist that she is right and I am wrong about a variety of things.
Such as today. For the first time for ages, she was upstairs in our house and looked into our upstairs bathroom.
She: You told me that there was only a shower in here, not a bath, and look – there is a bath.
Me: I wouldn’t have said that. I know there’s a bath. We had it put in.
She: You told me off for saying there was a bath. I distinctly remember it. I can’t remember why we were discussing it but I said there was a bath and you said there wasn’t and you told me off for it.
Me: [grinds teeth].
And that sort of thing.
It doesn't really matter, I know. But. Gah. Grump. Whinge. Moan.
Tell me about something cheerful in your life. Please.
Hmmm. All I can say is that the same kind of conversation goes on here DAILY. You told me - no I didn't - yes you did - are you arguing with your mother........
ReplyDeleteAnd my young ones have flown too. Beam me up Scottie.
Cheerful news? Missy is 2. And super cute. And every Granny bone in my body wiggles (or jiggles) with delight when I get to see her.
My son turned 13 this weekend. I have not only his teen years to look forward to (which I suspect will be fine, actually as he is basically still 6 at heart) but the Second Born's teen years, and at 10, SB is already a master of eye-rolling, contradicting for the sake of it and declaiming "FINE!!! No-one listen to me!!" before managing to simultaneously slam every door as he stomps his way upstairs. Not cheerful exactly, but you can have a sly chortle at my expense, no?
ReplyDeleteWell, I suppose you could always look forward to the time when it will be you who is swearing to your children that black is white - kind of revenge in waiting? :-) No, seriously, treasure the time while you have it and be glad that they have you to argue with. Trust me, your heart will be lighter when they've gone if you know you did what you could while they are here.
ReplyDeleteCheerful news? Hmmm. My hyacinths are showing colour, the primulas are beautiful, I made some amazing cinnamon buns and I've nearly finished embroidering members's names on what is possibly the the most unattractive WI tablecloth you've ever seen! Hugs to you x
members's ?? Oops!
ReplyDeleteRead 'Emotionally Weird' by Kate Atkinson in bed last night. Laughed so many times, there were tears in my eyes. The Chemist laughing at me laughing.
ReplyDeleteI swam 22 laps last week. That is just over one km.
Is that cheerful enough?
PS it doesn't matter how old we are, we are still just the daughter to the Mother, even when we are right...
Well, let's see. Sebastian the painter did a bang up job on the house. It's a creamy colour but feels like sunshine, though the OC was adamantly against yellow! Also we had a gloriously warm day today. Wish I could package some sunshine for you to chase the doldrums away!
ReplyDeleteMy aunt just got adopted by a lovely abandoned golden spaniel!
ReplyDeleteShe had just stepped out of her car at my Granny's house, and this dog marched up and sat on her foot. A man across the street told her this beast had been wandering about the neighborhood for 10 days. So my aunt decided her indecision on getting a dog had just been solved for her. He's a very sweet and mellow thing.
True enough...however old we are we will always be the daughter that our mother can argue black is white with .. frustrating but not all that we have in our lives .. we are blessed in so many other ways.
ReplyDeleteYes, recognise that conversation.
ReplyDeleteCheerful news here? Broadband appears to be fixed (don't breathe on it too hard), daughter is having Friday off to whisk me off somewhere... - don't know when I'm going to get back to blogging though.
Oh dear. Not much cheerful here at the moment. Similar Mum relationship to be found here. I have a list of not cheerful, but that wouldn't help. Oh wait -- a not cheerful for me, but very cheerful for you -- our snow has all melted over the weekend!
ReplyDeleteOne upside of a mum with Alzheimers is no chance of ever losing an argument along those lines!!
ReplyDeleteCheerful stuff? Going dancing tonight....can't wait....an hour of being in Rich's arms and having a laugh....
Does Mr Life dance????
Lesley xx
great image - just how I feel too...
ReplyDeleteerr - daffodils!!
I swear you told me no bath.
ReplyDeletei'm with Fran - you DID specifically say there is no bath, and, although i can't recall why we were discussing it, i DO remember you telling me off ... snicker
ReplyDeletemy cheerful thing is ... i filed the taxes and i don't owe the government any money (no money - just my firstborn child - ha ha ha!) and ... and ... AND the sun is shining brightly (even though it is colder than a witch's - oops! i'd better not write what my dad used to call it, huh? - colder than a popsicle outside)!
Cheerful? Uh.... hmmmm.... hold on a minute.... errrrrmmmmmm...... wait, wait, I've got it!
ReplyDeleteFebruary is almost over!
There now, don't we all feel better?
8-)
Hugs,
M
Hmm... With my mother, it is the eternal snow conversation. She calls from many thousands of miles away, to ask if we are buried in snow. I say "No" as mostly, we never are. She says, but the weatherman says you are. I say, "No, the weatherman in Texas stands so that he covers most of the East Coast with his body and tells you it is snowing in New England... which is not here in North Carolina." And she says, "Well, are the boys wearing snow boots to school?" as if to try and catch me at my lie. And I say, "No, they don't even have snow boots, and there is no snow here." To which she replies, "But the weatherman said it was snowing."
ReplyDeleteSigh. Not necessarily something cheerful, but at least I can commiserate with you. The long grey February days will soon give birth to spring, and that will feel cheerful.
The next few days here will be sunny and hovering around 0° which will make it perfect for skating on the Rideau Canal. And there will be beavertails to eat while skating (pastries, not actual beaver tails). And the canal is close enough to my office that I can skate on my lunch break. These things are making me cheerful.
ReplyDeleteSorry to tell you this (if you don't already know) but it will probably get worse. Don't even TRY to argue with your Mum. It took me months to convince Ken and his sister that it was better to simply agree and nod when their Mum makes some crazy statement. She can't rationalise any more, and if they continue to argue the point, everyone gets upset.
ReplyDeleteNo good news from this end. Hubby is getting worse,and I'm also trying to give moral support to various friends who have health issues. I sometimes wonder who would look after me if I got sick? The best thing in our life right now is our Tiger - he is such a darling little kitty.