The Purple Nerf

Football fever is gearing up as the collegiate teams are getting into the meat of their seasons. It was on the news this morning and got me thinking about football and how I used to play all the time when I was in grade school. Of course we played with a purple nerf. It was my purple nerf and the game couldn't start until I got there. Such power. I loved that football. It was used so much that it eventually got a hole in it where the psuedo strings were. I often carried it with my finger stuck in the hole. We played before school and during recess. There were only two girls who played. Me and a girl a year older, who could outrun every one in the school - girl or boy. Our games were just two-hand touch. We always had a blast. Our school was in front of an old train depot, which was down about 25 feet, past this concrete wall. When the ball would slide through the iron fence that kept us away from the drop, there were three boys that liked to scale the tree vines to go get the ball. This also provided us amusement. They thought they were some kind of super hero and they acted up when the went for it. I always wanted to be as fast as Maria (the older, faster runner girl) - she was my idol. We were cool - we both wore red converse - chuck taylor style. They matched our red plaid uniforms so well. Of course we had to wear shorts under our uniforms - in case we were running so fast it would fly up. Yeah right - in case the boys we played with decided to pull up our skirts to see what was under there...

Those were fun times. I love a good pick up game of touch football. Wish we could have one soon. I need to get some red chuck taylor's though...

What is for dinner?

Do you ever get tired of thinking of things to make for dinner? I sure do. You spend the time preparing it all and making sure everyone can get together to eat. Sometimes even that is hard to do. Then they all sit down, eat in five minutes and zoommm.... They are off to a practice or to do their homework or to get back onto the computer. The dinner conversation leads to a lot of one word answers.

"How was school?"
"Good"
"What did you learn?"
"Nothing"
"How was soccer practice?"
"Good"...

Then as I am cleaning up the mess, I hear them on the phone.
"Oh my gosh, did you see so and so today in math class? She was in so much trouble. She didn't even know the answers. That was so embarassing how she got caught passing a note to Emily..."

Sometimes I think I need a fun little AIM name - sOcCeRQT4U - or something to get them to talk to me. That would never work though - because I don't know the whole AIM language that they do. I am sure I would be busted in no time. "IDK my BFF Jill!"

I am lucky tonight though. TBW is cooking dinner - but I will appreciate it very much... and will even help her clean up the mess. Plus... I'll definately give her a big tip later - just sayin'

Tidbit Tuesday

When you say the word "lesbian", a picture comes to mind and for most people it is quite different. Apparently there are a ton of different adjectives to describe us - dyke, lipstick lesbian, butch, femme... It is amazing we seem to have various cultures with our culture...

The discussion of flannel came up on RSG's blog and it got me to thinking... People associate flannel with a lesbian. Now I don't wear flannel - but I love our flannel sheets in the winter time. I've never known anyone to have a mullet either. But then again - I am quite sheltered and I don't know too many other lesbians. We have one other lesbian couple that we do things with and one night we ranked each other in who looks the most lesbian... Out of the 4 people, I came in second. I wonder if folks in the straight world who now speculate that I am gay, sit back and say "ahhh ha - I knew it..." or is more like, "that suprises me...". I am not gonna get a mullet and wear flannel just to let them know. I like a little element of mystery...

Luckily, last night our dogs slept through the night. Saturday night, one of them had the squirts all over the bedroom floor. Luckily for me I had gone in to lay down with D3 and I must have dozed off because I didn't hear the steam cleaner going at full speed. Then Sunday in the middle of the night, I thought I heard rain, looked out the window - clear - and realized the other one was peeing. He started on my side of the bed, made a nice swirl pattern to get to the door (when I yelled at him to quit) and then just couldn't hold the rest of it in... That steam cleaner sure got a work out. Nothing like a good squirt and pee party at 3 in the morning... TBW (The Beautiful Wife) got the short end of the stick on that one. I think if I would have had her shift - there would have been more to clean up... Just sayin...

Rainy Monday

It is raining here in the bubble - so much for mowing the grass :) My beautiful wife (mbw) took care of things for me this weekend while I ran around with the kids. Yesterday was non-stop coming and going. She cooked, cleaned, did the laundry and ironed - I am so lucky - she takes good care of me.

Last week a few kids were suspended from D2's school for cheating on a national standards test. You know the one they teach their classes towards, so your kid places better in high school. She didn't know the details - that is my girl - lost in her own thoughts - doing her own thing. These kids are the "popular" ones. They have been in various bits of trouble - with what they have been putting on myspace and AIM, etc - before. Their parents don't believe that they could be that mean or would ever do those things. Wake up people! I know my daughter isn't a saint and eventually she is going to do something stupid. Hopefully it won't be life-threatening, like driving while intoxicated - but I am not naive about what goes on in middle and high school. If my daughter was caught more than once - I think I would have to accept that something is wrong. I have to admit - the girls left on the volleyball team this weekend were carefree, smiling and having a great time. Something I have yet to see this year.

I was suspended once in high school. My best friend was a cheerleader. She had received flowers at the beginning of the game, and had asked me to take them out to the car. While I was out there putting them away so they wouldn't get messed up - two of my friends were in the front seat. They asked me to pass a beer up - and I did. As I handed it to them, an officer's flashlight was on my face... Busted. Now, I definately was not drinking at the time - but I did have a beer on the way to the game... I was suspended for three days. My parents had to come pick me up. My Mom came. My Dad was playing poker with the "old ladies" - she said she could handle it. The next morning I had to tell him what happened. He told me I wasn't going to be punished because the suspension was punishment enough. I had my reputation to make up, tests that I would miss, and it was on my permanent record. Worst of all in my mind - was that I couldn't play in the district finals for basketball. Like he said - it was all punishment enough. Word got out that I wasn't really drinking - so I was allowed to take the tests that I missed - but I still missed my basketball game and it was on my permanent record. It scared me for quite a while - I don't think I drank again until after I graduated high school.

Somehow, since these kids' parent's don't believe they did anything wrong - I don't believe they had a life changing experience... You never know. Time will tell. I will say one thing - this has caused quite the talk amongst the bubble folk...

TGIF...

What a long week... Why does time go so quickly when you are at home and so slowly during work hours? Daughter number 2, has been in a great mood all day. One of the girls from her school and who is on her volleyball team moved in down the street today. I just pumped the tires up on their bikes and they were planning all kinds of things to do... watching movies, riding to the UDF to get milkshakes, getting online. I have often wondered, especially when we first moved to the bubble, why kids just don't go out and play anymore. Everything always has to be a "play date" that is scheduled by someone. When we first moved here, about 14 years ago, Daughter number 1 was 2 years old. I was the only one sitting out in my chair watching her play outside. All other kids were in the house. Even as she got older and her sisters came along, there were no pick up games of kickball, basketball or tag. We lived on a cul-de-sac and we were the only ones out riding bikes, drawing with chalk, riding in the barbie jeep.

I remember when I was little. We had a "field" (it was really someone's side yard, but big enough for us to play) in our neighborhood. There were no calls that had to be made when we got home to make sure so and so would be there - you just rode your bike if you were allowed and showed up. You picked teams and you played. Didn't really matter what - mattered more what kind of ball we had to play with. We always knew when the one kid's mom called him for dinner - how many minutes we had before we had to get back to eat at our house. When dinner was over - it was "game on" once again until dark.

Not so much in the bubble. More so here where we live now. Our new house is also on a cul-de-sac, but we live on one of the ends. Now, it is the adults that meet up in the street each night after dinner to talk. They all have younger kids and they all play together. But you can tell - they are mixed between the world of arranged play dates and just showing up!

I'm glad daughter number 2 has found a friend. You never know - she might venture out and actually make a few friends while milling about. And none of it will be arranged by me!

Let's get going...

Well - I have been threatening to start writing a blog for a long time - so I'm just gonna do it. Hopefully it will be theraputic for me and entertaining for others. I know my life sure is... At least the rumors that I hear about it are. We live in the bubble. Better known as suburbia. A quiet, conservative, midwestern town. Not really an environment for two women - and not known for its lesbian culture. We're having a go at it. The neighbors don't care. Well - most of them don't. We do have an uptight family across the street - but the rest of them are all cool about it.

Why do we stay here you ask? Well, up until two years ago, I was married to my former husband and this is where we were raising our 3 children. We decided to keep their lives as close to "normal" as possible. I know you are wondering - how is a late in life lesbian keeping things normal. I guess normal is a state of mind. I hope to use this blog to tell my story, to get to know others who are like me and to just have some fun. Since I don't think I'll find many "sisters" in the bubble - I thought it would be fun to move the bubble...

I was driving home from work yesterday and was trying to recall the first signs that I knew I was gay. They say you just know. For me - not so much - because being gay was never an option. I often wonder... How did others know?