Another Snow Day without Blagojevich

How in the hell am I supposed to keep up with Blagojevich? How am I supposed to maintain my civil-mindedness with all this madness flailing about me? How am I supposed to create my regular Tuesday blog, Holiday Fat Ass today with all of my children spinning about as if some invisible good-for-nothing were pulling their collective strings all at once?

It’s another snow day. Few words in the English language evoke such panic for a mother of 5 … because it’s not indicative of having 5 children at home, bored, and looking for any type of stimulation that might give them the high they usually get from a day at school … ok that might be overstating how much they appreciate their education, but nevertheless … it’s indicative of 5 children with at least 5 friends all eating and pulling out stuff and basically carousing like there’s a full on frat party taking place in my front living room … and secretly ... I absolutely adore it.

Perhaps it's because my favorite book as a child was "Snowy Day" by Ezra Jack Keats.

I love that my children’s friends love to come here. That’s how it was for me growing up. My friends loved my house … they loved my parents. And not because they let us get drunk in the basement, they loved them because they gave us a space … not without occasional screaming from my Dad … who would yell, often, “Don’t you people have a home?” from his bedroom door. Though we kept him up too late, often making him late for work the next day, he and my mother encouraged us to have fun and nurtured those friendships like they were tending a garden. I love that about them for many reasons. For one, the friends I had growing up are still my very best friends today. They are the first ones I call when something wonderful happens and they are the very first ones I call when something awful happens. But, more importantly, my parents set the perfect example of what “home” is for me and I am much more able (and willing) to provide that for my own children.

My snow days were much different than todays snow days are. I played outside, regardless of the temperature or my age and only came in to warm up … often so cold that a hot bath was required. My kids are somewhat interested in going outside to play … but mostly interested in Wii and ipods and computers … perhaps a little texting …fighting is a big “hit” as well (hahaha) … but, eating is at the top of the list, which automatically employs me as their short order cook, waitress, and dishwasher … so far this morning, I’ve made sausage links, waffles – 3 times, strawberry smoothies, several bowls of cereal and snipped the plastic wrapper on at least thirteen beef jerky packages. It’s as if they are carbing up for their Everest ascent or preparing for a hibernation that I am certain is not in my future.

With all of this going on, I just can’t focus on President Elect Obama’s Education secretary or the new evidence that may or may not prove that Casey Anthony killed her beautiful little daughter, Caylee. I don’t even have time to stew over the tragic spectacle that is the BCS, much less express my disappointment regarding Sam Bradford’s Heisman Trophy win. How am I supposed to carry on the life I’ve built for myself … the life that exists between eight a.m. and three p.m. … it’s apparently impossible and for that I am somewhat ... thrilled. Thrilled to have a little extra time to spend with the people I love the most and enthralled to make their cocoa and cookies and cinnamon toast with the crust cut off.

I had never really though much about the dichotomy of my “life” … my day life and my evening life. I guess it’s something like day and evening make-up. During the day your make-up is a bit more demure, conservative and during the evening, basically, anything goes ~ bring on the super smoky eyes or some brilliantly perfect, red lipstick. That’s my life ~ during the day … I follow politics, I blog, I think. After three, I cook, I clean, I nurture, I help with homework, I read stories and I listen … I love.

So … to hell with impending impeachment and the possibility of my favorite Kennedy’s senatorial bid … forget about shoe-throwing (even though I could watch that clip a million times and especially love that President Bush smiles during the attack ... he grins ... how cute is that???) and the Madoff scandal (what a complete SOB) … those things will be there tomorrow when the sun comes out and the bus pulls up in front of my house. Today I’m ten years old ... and it's a snow day. Hooooorayyyyy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!