erica and the no good, very busy day(s)



Okay, so I'm (erica) not exactly having a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. I'm having a day, er week, that could result in, if I were a juggler, a lot of dropped balls laying around (let's hope not knives or those fire thingies).

This was what I wrote this morning (er, yesterday. yes, we schedule ahead) (from work - it was inside recess and the aides were watching the kiddos):

My poor beloved laptop is broken again and that's been weighing heavily on my mind and heart (okay, that might be stretching it, but it does make it harder to get any blogging done). I wasn't home on Tuesday - left at 7:20 am got home around 10:00 pm. I worked late last night getting ready for a parenting class that I'm doing tonight, so it'll be another 8:00pm throw-the-kids-in-the-shower-god-i-hope-someone-fed-them-today night. Oh, and am I ready for the class tonight (it's a make-and-take math and science activities) - um, NO WHY WOULD YOU THINK THAT???!!! My son's teacher called because he won a free book earlier this week and ALL I HAD TO DO was sign and return his book choice today and I DIDN'T DO IT!!! Tomorrow is a teacher work day, so no school for the kids (thank goodness for grandmas), but I have to work and HOLY CRAP it's supposed to be 30 degrees below zero regular temperature with 45 below wind chills!!!! So lots of praying my car will start and going out early to check and then scraping for about 20 minutes (did I mention yet that I don't have a GARAGE??!!). whoa, that was a lot of shouting packed into one paragraph. but it's pretty reflective of my mood today.

AND ABNA submissions open in three days with my laptop in lock-down mode. Yes, I have my ms uploaded onto an online program. But my son's computer (my backup) doesn't have Microsoft Word (and I'm not paying to add it to the old computer), so I have no way to download and format it from home. TRIPLE CRAP. CRAPPITY CRAP CRAP CRAP. (I'm going to be spending a lot of time at my in-laws this weekend, using their computer, I think. quadruple crappity crap.)

BY THE WAY: Has anyone but christy and I noticed that every time we post a picture of a hot guy, we LOSE a follower????!!!! We're sorry, people, just shoot us an email if we offend you DON'T UNFRIEND US, PLEASE, WE CAN'T TAKE IT!!!!
And this is me ten hours later:

I am so very sorry for my bad blogging behavior earlier today. You have your own crappity crap and you don't need to read about mine. However, feel free to write a book about mine and get rich - just put me in the acknowledgments.

My son got his book because my friend who works at the school took pity on him me and got it for him.

I had inspiration for a wonderful way for parents and children to work together to learn math/numeral/counting skills and put it together only minutes before the meeting and it was fun and simple and everyone loved it, made their own, and went home to learn, learn, learn (the fun way). Almost all the families that were signed up showed up even though it's super cold and loved the pulled pork sandwiches I made.

When I got home, hubby had fed the kids and dogs, cleaned the kitchen, and done laundry PLUS bought groceries so I don't have to go out in the cold. They're curled up watching the old '80s version of Tron right now.

The cord from one of our work laptops fit my computer and voila - it was just the cord that was bad on mine. I ordered a new one from Amazon for $8, will borrow this one in the meantime, and all's well. ABNA might just happen yet (with no nosy in-laws looking over my shoulder to see what I'm doing).

It's still going to be cold tomorrow, but I'll live. With any luck, tomorrow will look more like this:

(back to what I wrote this morning) AND SO - what does this have to do with you??? Good question!!!

I'm here, admitting that sometimes us parents suffer from EPIC FAIL. And unfortunately, as teachers (and bloggers), we sometimes don't get done what we really, really, REALLY meant to get done. blech.

What about our characters, though? Do you write about kids with parents who can do no wrong? Or are your parents more like me the failure type? What about teachers? Do they know everything and lead your characters onto a path of super-happy-lifedom (I'm busy, I can't think of a real word)? Or do the kids put tacks on their seats and blow spit-wads behind their backs? Or are you the kind-of writer that only puts in absentee-adults who barely speak? (for some reason, my characters dads keep commiting suicide. I have no idea why.)

In other words, how can you guys help me turn this week into a good book????