Head-to-brick-wall at high velocity

Oh, where to start? Let’s put Thursday, June 19th into chronological order just so you get the full lovely impact of all of this garbage.

1. First we start with hard drive failure. I’m okay with that, ironically. We have regular backups and although I’ll lose a few pictures, life will be okay. There’s a place in town that can do it in a week. I’ll use my Patient Husband’s computer until then. (Although I feel like I can’t think on his computer. I feel much more comfortable on my own. Go figure. Using the same programs.)

2. My children whined and complained muchly, but okay, I’ll deal with it.

3. The oldest two had their last day of school, so they got out early. I told them we had to leave for the library at 1:30 in order to be able to spend time there before taking Kiddo#3 to the dentist. My oldest wanted to go visit a friend, promised to be back by 1:30. At 2pm, I drove the other kids over to his friend’s house and threw him and his bicycle into the van so we could go to the library.

BTW, I did far worse than yelling at him. Instead, in front of his friends, I held him and cooed over him and cuddled him and said I was so worried, etc. Embarrassment is a far better tool than belligerence in some cases.

4. We get to the library and the kids bicker over the books and videos they want. When it’s time to leave, the entire library staff is behind the checkout desk, but none of them want to check us out. Kiddo#4 starts fussing; eventually I say, the heck with it, and I let him start howling in the library. If they wanted it quiet, they could have felt free to check us out at any time. Eventually a different employee emerges from nowhere and checks us out. We get in the car and then…

5. Kiddo#3 says, “Where’s my calculator?” That was his comfort object he was going to take to the dentist. I knew he’d taken it in with him, but I figured since he loved it, he would keep hold of it. Foolish mortal that I am. I asked where he’d left it, figuring Kiddo#1 could go run for it. He gave me answers like “somewhere,” “maybe I dropped it,” and pointing to the building. Finally I said we couldn’t wait any longer, and we left.

(In a possible bright spot to today, Kiddo#3 thought he remembered where it was. I prayed that whoever found it would turn it in to the librarian. After the dentist, I went back and sent K#1 inside to ask for it; instead he found it beside the computer where K#3 had been playing. It’s a good thing I didn’t go look myself, though, or it wouldn’t have been there.)

6. On the way to the dentist, I hit a bird.

7. We got there and waited 15 minutes past the appointment time just so the dentist could look at my kid’s mouth (a whole other post, and this is already long) to say that although three previous dentists swore he’d have to anesthetize my kid and do nasty things to him, he wants to do nothing. So I’ve driven 40 miles with 4 kids for nothing.

8. I get home to find that the romantic comedy series, after five months of dickering, got rejected.

9) Kiddo#4 has been screaming now for two hours, with little breaks when we can keep him calm.

10) You see those little dragons in my sidebar? I love them. They’re so cute. But to access the site, I need a password, and the password is no longer working. I don’t know why. I had it email me the reactivation code so I can reset the password, and my .mac account isn’t receiving it. I have no idea whose problem it is (it activated fine the first time) but it’s just the final blow in a stinky day. You know, I really wish SOMETHING would go right. And this is such a little thing.

I’m ready to scream. When I look back at my life and think of my best day, it won’t be this one. Nor will it be the second best day. “Third” isn’t looking all that possible either at this point.

Pray for me.