We meet again.

Well hello, Lil Sis. It has been awhile. Let's pretend we haven't talked since the last post, which was like, seventeen years ago, and update each other on our lives, just so our readers can feel in the know. 

I have become a revered novelist, as well as an activist-y journalist who has singlehandedly brought about the end of a totalitarian regime AND swallowed an atom bomb before it exploded and thus saved a small country in West Africa from extinction. I also gave birth to octuplets who are all at Johns Hopkins medical school, (at the age of three) and learned how to fit my whole fist in my mouth!

You?

Actually, I married a woman who abused me physically and emotionally and I recently escaped. I'm in the process of divorce. I feel great to be free. I had an impossible summer, feeling like I belonged nowhere and like I had no one, but slowly, things started to improve. 

I am now making friends, connecting with family, and I am keeping busy. I just got a position helping Korean students with their writing (in English) and I'm also volunteering at a hospice. I am switching to veganism and getting a handle on my all-consuming exhaustion. 

Gramps passed away three weeks ago and I miss him. I just can't get it through my head that he's gone. It doesn't make sense. 

In other news, REPEAL OBAMACARE. Just kidding. Those rascal republicans. Le sigh. 

Your move, Lil Sis. Your move. 

Mmmm....foster babies...

Dear Lil Sis,

We've GOT to start bloggying more often than monthly.  Honestly, can't we each manage to write more than six times a year?  C'mon, us!  I'm sorry that (last month) you had that depressed day.  Comes with the territory in our family, but it sucks nonetheless.

Speaking of suck, I had the worst grad semester known to man.  For legal reasons I'm not going to disclose much of it, except to say that obviously, it was pretty bad if there are legal reasons I can't disclose much of it.  Let's just say that a lot of the physical bruises have faded, and the psychological ones (groan, cliche) are just beginning to fade too, but I've been struggling a lot with anger.  Like, explosive rages with throwing stuff and yelling.  Jeebus.

But things are looking up.  The University is gonna pay me the big bucks because they didn't last year, and that, my sis, was disability discrimination and negligence.  Booyah, University.  I'm almost done with grad school, and I've decided to split, to move back to Ithachachacha, aka Ithaca ASAP.  I want to leave all this crap behind me, and I want to go home.  So I'm applying for jobs in Ithaca, mostly teaching gigs, like whoa.  Hopefully something will click.

In other news, I'm starting to think about being a foster mommy.  DEFINITELY not jumping into that.  But thinking about it a bit.  The question is, how old do the foster babies have to be to be sure Harry won't eat them?

I have to go walk the dogs, and feed the birdcreature, and grade.  Grade, grade, grade.

Oh--if you're in the Iowa City area, come to the Iowa City Public Library on Friday, April 29th at 7pm, meeting room A.  We're having a sexual violence awareness event called Take Back the WRITE.  It promises to be full of gorgeous writing and even some dancing, and will be inspiring and raise funds for the Rape Victim Advocacy Program.  And I'll be reading!

Love,

Big Sis

uuugh

Dear Big Sis,

I'm feeling shitty today, mildly depressed (I say mildly because although I feel really, really shitty, I have known real depression and this just doesn't compare.), and I don't want to do any of the 1,000 awesome things I could be doing on a Saturday afternoon. It's beautiful outside, and SXSW is going on right now, and instead I'm on my bed, journaling and blaghing and about to watch an episode of Glee while I knit. Which honestly, isn't the worst thing in the world, but it's not the same as being young and alive and watching some shitty band downtown. I've learned over the years, though, not to push myself into doing things I don't want to do, and to forgive myself for not living up to those arbitrary standards. If this keeps me from achieving life goals, then perhaps I should re-look this principal, but for now it makes sense. No point self-flagellating if it won't help anything.

In other news, my sexist housemate randomly said during a group convo today, "female logic is an oxymoron." Lolz!!!!!!!!!!1!!!

I immediately said, point-blank, that what he said is sexist, and then I repeated that- "What you just said is straight up sexist," and then I added, "and also not funny." I was pissed he said it, and I was proud of myself for responding and calling it what it was. And he followed it up by saying that military intelligence is also an oxymoron. Oh, so funny, my sides hurt!!!! This was, naturally, in front of two housemates who will soon be joining the army as lawyers. He is such a douche.

Anyways, I'm going to go get my Glee on, but now I've blaghed and all is well in the universe. Or something.

Love,
Little Sis