"Um, HELLO?" {HEAVY SQUEAKY DOOR SWINGS OPEN}

{CLICK}[fluorescent lights flicker on]

"WOW, it's really dusty in here, kind of like no one has been here in almost 40 days..."

[pieces of equipment start to whir to life, and that familiar electric hum becomes the new standard of silence]

[quizzically looks down and wonders if it still works, then decides to try it out]

"Does this thing work? Testing....Testing.....1..2..3...Is there anybody out there? Is there anybody in there? Just nod if you can hear me...Is there anyone home?"


Ok...what happened? I feel a little like Rip Van Winkle maybe? I'm not sure.

The short story is that two independent events merged and formed a perfect storm of sorts that has kept me busy. I haven't even been answering email. It isn't over yet, and probably won't be for a couple of months, and it is likely to get worse before it gets better.

Now, for the longer story.....
A good friend from Richmond called last week and said it had been a month since I last posted. I kind of laughed and was thinking it had just been week or two. He said "February 5th". I was stunned. Really? Wow...my perception and perspective were in dire need of calibration. A few people started writing me and a note I got today got me jump started. I wasn't trying to worry anyone or looking for attention I have just really lost track of how much time was going by because I don't have any spare time to reflect on anything right now.

So what has been going on? Well we'll start with work. I rarely say anything about work here because a few people I work with currently read my blog. I also don't like to bring work home with me so it is usually the farthest thing from my mind when I'm at home. That changed about a month ago. There were contract issues and other problems happening at work and my company asked me to help out. So I have been. I now work in a different city than I was during the day, and at night I work on things with the previous position from home. It was supposed to be only for a short period. The short period is over and the next foreseeable end is around September. In a way I'm getting a promotion, but the team we had is splitting up and I would rather that it didn't. Some of the confusion and chaos ends Friday as it is my last day with one company and Monday I start with another. Same position, etc, but another company won the contract...and that is supposedly how Military contracting goes.

The other factor conspiring against me is my son. Every year in the spring he begins to become unglued. I've worked on several different solutions this year to try and prevent it from happening, but he is still falling apart. His tantrums are becoming more violent and more frequent. Right about now we probably need an extended break from each other, but that isn't really possible. We had a problem today where he began to explode but showed a little bit of promise. The rest of the day seemed to go well. However, Friday he came unglued with a substitute teacher at school (I don't think she'll come back to that class) and then really exploded at the YMCA. He has been suspended from the YMCA for two days and is now on probation. Three more events and I will not have childcare anymore. I am not sure what I will do after that. I hope he doesn't get to that point, but history says not to be too hopeful...so I need to start planning. I also missed a day and a half of work last week because of a tantrum he threw at home in the morning. Emergency counseling appointments, doctors, etc. He is heading back to in patient care and there doesn't seem to be anything I can do about it.





Two weeks ago we did have an amazing adventure with Whale Watching. Not only did we see a whale, it was a North Atlantic Right Whale...one of only around 300 known to be alive. They are a very rare sight anymore. You can see the pictures HERE. If it looks a little strange it is supposed to. I was there watching the animal move and everything and I still can only barely make heads or tails of it. It was about 30' long, in about 20' of water, and only about 500 yards off shore...if that. When I signed up for the trip I never thought I would actually see a whale, but it turned out to be an amazing experience.

Welcome to another edition of "Daylight Savings Time". I'm really tired now and going to bed.