Thursday, September 18, 2008

Getting Sit(ter)uated

Where have I been all my life? Oh yes, I have been chained to my computer again, until today, when I escaped to forage for groceries and things to wear with my new red corduroy jacket (which I adore despite my lack of a fashion clue what to do with it). Unfortunately during my many work hours I was easily distracted by shiny things like news! information! interviews! disasters! sudden plummet in office temperature! Sesame Street spoofing Monty Python! Lions fans wailing and cursing their quarterback and coach (why didn't we see that coming?)! Since my work was paid for the project, not the hours, well, I think I made minimum wage this week. Sheesh! (Going back to hourly this week—so I will actually stay focused. I'm distractable but I'm an honest biller!)

I'm kicking off this next round with three days of solo parenting, since Aaron is going to Young Life leadership camp with the other leaders and some kids. Boo hoo, I'd like to go, but Anna wouldn't be so easy to sneak in this year (as she was last year), and anyway, I need to be at a church workshop for our pastoral search committee. Yes, you can say it: SUCKER. But they needed as many people as possible and I like to think I can be kind of useful in the writing of reports (although last time there was a church self-analysis, ahem, didn't work out so well. We do not speak of it.).

All these things gearing up as we get into fall suddenly has my calendar full and my brain spinning with wondering how am I going to do it all? and who's going to watch the kid while I do? All the youth work obviously involves Aaron and me at the same time. Last year I took Anna along to Frontline, which worked semi-okay but won't work any more and limited my usefulness. I didn't do anything with Young Life except help with planning, but I want to try to get back into it.

That means activities that require me to get a babysitter Sunday nights, Monday nights, Wednesday nights if we start our small group study back up, and possibly whenever we decide to have our church meetings, if it's not a time when Aaron can be home. Not such a problem except that during those times all of the young people will be where we are, so I have to find, you know, real grownups.

And all that work I've been doing in the evenings? Most of it's going to have to get done during the day somehow, because if I'm not off somewhere, probably Aaron has a meeting or there's a school sports event that he/we should attend to connect with kids. But life's getting too freaking expensive, so I should really be upping my hours, not cutting them back.

I think I can hear what all of you who are smarter than me are saying: And just how do you think you're going to do all that?

I have no earthly idea.

Excuse me while I go burn my day planner in effigy.

5 comments:

daydreamwanderer said...

Wendy, this is Lisa B (writing from China) - I can't always get onto blogger on my internet connection here, but right now I can - so I wanted to say hey!
also, that red jacket would probably look really cute with an aline dark brown skirt in a heavy material... but then I haven't seen it ;)

RMMcDowell said...

:) Isn't being a mommy and a worker and a volunteer an interesting mix? I feel for you. (Hence the reason I never get to blog or call.)

I agree with Lisa--a wool skirt would look great with it. And I would wear just a simple shirt underneath. Or, depending on what the collar of the jacket looks like, an off-white, cowl-neck shirt. I can help with this much more than with the managing your life thing.

Amy said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Amy said...

Ooh, red corduroy sounds awesome. It will go with just about anything... my first thought was denim, but definitely can transition to browns, or maybe grey pants. Or olive green pants, although beware the Christmasy look.

Sorry can't help with the babysitter thing. :)

Wendy said...

Hello hello Lisa B.!

Thanks, fashionistas, for sensing my desperate need for your help. Actually I was not worried about what to put on the bottom though; more about what top to wear underneath, because it's a burgundy red, not a true red. What goes with burgundy?? I decided a cream v-neck works well and some other things may be, eh, passable.