Summer 2012

Summer 2012
BibeauArt of Santa Rosa

Sunday, October 09, 2005

Fall is here and musings on cranky, rude old ladies

Fall is certainly in the air over here in California. The sun is shining brightly with a beautiful golden yellow hue against a blue-grey sky with those wonderful patches of clouds here and there. The wind is blowing just in time to cool you off when the sun becomes too much, and I've got the cough of all coughs.

Fall is here!

I sound like a frog, but knowing it's Fall already makes me happy. I love this season. Not too cold, not too hot. Full of anticipation, full of wonder. Fall has always been my favorite season (if you can call it a season here in California).

Tomorrow I've got my first job interview with the hospital - one of five apparently. I feel confident that I'll land one of them - and can't wait to start. Gotta wait at least two to three weeks, and in the meantime I'm taking care of loose ends around town and possibly working part time for JP's godmother's company as a temp. Just a part time thing - with another great group of people, but I'm holding out for the hospital positions.

Didn't go to church today due to the lovely cough and the coughing attacks I have. Relying on my inhaler and cough syrup with codeine today to help me breathe. I'll be fine in a few days, I'm sure. Doesn't feel like an infection, which it normally turns into. It feels like my immune system is kicking back into gear after the surgery. Maybe the appendix was a big part of my health problems.

Speaking of health problems, my poor honey went to church today with JP and got an earful from a cranky Greek old lady regarding us only having one kid out of ten years of being married. The health problems come in when my husband let the lady know that we have one kid because, well, he's kind of a miracle child since the wifey has some major health problems. The lady was just rude and went back to chewing on her food. This all happened right in front of the priest too. Where are the manners with some people??? I've had people (normally at church) who remark about how you should have children (right after you've just miscarried for the 10th time) and how it's such a shame how we only have one kid.

I'm not as nice as my husband and let the people know that it's not their business, but if it was they would know better not to bring that subject up. I just feel it's not just rude, but it shows a lack of Christian compassion.

Would YOU, dear reader, EVER say something like that to someone after they announced they were celebrating their 5th, 10th or 15th wedding anniversary? NO! You'd be nice and say "Congratulations!" - especially to a stranger at church.

Maybe it's just an ethnic thing. The older women who have had say, 24 kids, are upset that you're not as tired, overweight and cranky as they are? Hey, this is America, deal with it. AND it's none of your business why I can't provide you with more kids, lady. How about the next time we have sex I call you up and let you in on it too?

Yeah, it's that personal. Stay out of my bedroom Greek Grandma!

Okay, rant over for today! Hope everyone has a pleasant week - and I appreciate everyone's prayers for a new job this month!

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I hope you get better soon, and I am so sorry about the awful reception the news of your anniversary received. I can understand why you guys considered leaving the Orthodox church with that kind of ethnicity to deal with. It would be very frustrating to deal with a few times, and from the sound of it, this isn't new territory for you. Again, my sympathies are with you and cparks.

I am praying for you job interview(s) with the hospital. You'll be fine.

Unknown said...

Yeah, I hate to say it, but I'm used to things like this happening to us (and other friends) within the Orthodox Parishes. Sad. Never had this problem EVER in the Catholic church. They had manners and there wasn't as much ethnic stuff going on to justify it either.

Maybe it's a test - we're being tested like this until we can simply ignore it and move on. LOL! Yeah, like that's gonna happen. I'm just not a monastic!

In the meantime, we've decided to go to church and LEAVE right after communion to avoid any more run ins with folks who want to tear us down. We're just starting to get in gear again (work, going to church, getting things back to normal) and we don't need side trips back to guilt land - especially from our own churches.

This week I will be going to the Skete for a Liturgy (nobody talks there and everyone knows their manners) and to see Mother Suzanna. I always feel like part of the family there. Nobody breathes without her blessing anyways. A safe spot for me - and a good place to pray. Always felt the presence of God there - very comforting, very quiet, very real.

See, you can find solitude within the church if you look!

Anonymous said...

Remind me why you don't go to the Skete regularly, is it because of the travel distance?

Unknown said...

No, not the distance, but due to my pain threshold prior to the surgery and the fact that some of the nosy nellies from my old parish sometimes show up at the Skete to get the latest gossip. When I'm in pain I don't handle those types very well and get really cranky. Kinda ruins the nice calm feel one gets from the Liturgy.

However, now that I'm more 'me' again and feeling much better, I think I can handle these types in more of a mature, even fashion this time around. Pain just strips me of any tact I had left in me and tends to make me lash out at these poor unsuspecting troublemakers.

Yeah, real Christian of me isn't it? LOL! Maybe I need to go more often. The Abbess is my spiritual mother of sorts and we like each other's company. She knows I've been sick and faithfully prays for me. Time to visit her so she knows her prayers aren't in vain - and that I'm not Lutheran (that's the latest rumor floating around.)