My older daughter has her last appointment this upcoming week with her child psychologist, and what I've gotten out of that whole thing has been my sweet little girl back. My baby (okay, not really a baby) has returned to me. She's the sweet little girl that she was years ago, before things between The Ex and I got really dysfunctional, and with lots of love, affection, attention, consistency and me doing my level best to not badmouth
The younger daughter has recovered from her latest bout of strep throat. I've gotten strep throat exactly once in my life, when I was 23, and I thought I was going to die. So far this year, my children have had it five times, between the two of them. I need the older daughter to go ahead and get it one more time before November because then they will finally take out her tonsils. And strangely, even though they live together, are are therefore in each other's faces ALL OF THE TIME, they never catch it from each other. So when the younger daughter got sick last week, all I could think was, "Wrong kid, dammit, wrong kid. I need the other one to get this shit." How the hell do they keep catching strep throat and I never had it as a child? I don't get that at all, other than these are some super-germs floating around the schools now. The older daughter also got lice again, but I'll say that the second time around wasn't that traumatic for me. I was still quite grossed out, of course, but I'm determined that a tangential mission in life has been to make sure that everyone knows that clean kids get lice. The younger daughter has never caught it from her, so I don't understand that, either. Nor did the cat or I catch them, thank god, because I don't know what I would have done if the cat got them. That would have been a real fucking mess.
Knock on wood.
I got a ticket last week, on the way to the pediatrician's office, no less, for my expired inspection sticker. Yes, I knew the damn thing was expired the day after it expired, and I've let it float. I had a couple of different lies worked up in my head for The Man should the time come, but opted not to use them. Lies, you ask? What kind of lies? Oh, and these were pretty good. Lie #1 - "But, sir, I just got divorced (truth) and my ex-husband always took car of my car (lie) and he told me the inspection was good until October of 2011 (and not November of 2010)." That one might have worked since the two boxes say 10 and 11 respectively, at least from my perspective inside the car. Lie #2 - "My inspection is expired? My ex-husband told me that inspections were good for two years! That SOB!" But I didn't do it. How can I expect my children to be honest if I can't even do it? So I just fessed up and told him that yeah, I knew it was expired and I didn't have the money to fix what was wrong with it, being that I'm spending $75.00 a week in gas just to run around Richmond and Chesterfield (okay, I didn't bitch about the gas part even though I wanted to). And so I got to press hard when I signed my name on the triplicate form. I can't fault The Man for doing his job. The docket's in August so that means I've got a little wiggle room. I've formulated my argument for the judge when I go to court to have it dismissed, even though the judge won't ask for my argument and won't care.
"Your Honor, I'd like to plead guilty to the infraction. Yes sir, I've gotten the car inspected and here's the proof. But I'd like to respectfully note for the record that the Commonwealth's state inspection statute does not serve any purpose in keeping the citizens of the Commonwealth safe on the roadways. This is because the inspection is conducted once per year, and immediately after having a vehicle inspected, any number of mechanical failures could occur which would normally result in the vehicle not being passing an inspection. However, the inspection isn't due again for another eleven months, effectively leaving a vehicle on the roadways of the Commonwealth that would be found to be unsafe for travel. For the state inspection process to work effectively in maintaining safe vehicles within the Commonwealth, the Commonwealth must begin to impound vehicles immediately upon failing an inspection or having found to have an expired inspection. At this point in time, a vehicle can be inspected and fail that inspection, and then immediately driven out of the mechanic's shop back onto the roadways that it has been deemed to be unsafe to be on. Without the immediate impoundment of such vehicles, the Commonwealth will never be able to reasonably ascertain that the roadways are safe from vehicles that are mechanically fit to be driven. Additionally, inspections should be conducted once every six months."
Ha! How you like me now? Logical but yet so very farfetched. I think the state inspection process is bullshit. BULLSHIT. It's bullshit. Did I mention it's complete bullshit? I figured this out when I bought a car brand new in 1994 and then the damn thing failed the inspection the following year. I've had a car fail almost every fucking year since I've been driving. And no, they haven't all been hoopties. I'm no slouch in the mechanics department, but I pretty much have to take them at their word unless I'm going into the garage and getting under the hood myself. The state inspection serves to keep mechanics in business. That's all it does. Shystie-ass mechanics who are legit only because they're working in a building with a state inspection plaque somewhere on the property and not under a shade tree. So this weekend, I'm going to Wal-Mart to get new tires. And some tampons and a couple of frozen pizzas.
Yes, indeedy, I am feeling more optimistic. Who doesn't love a place where I can get tires, tampons, pizzas and my favorite $4.00 wine?
1 comment:
I am trying to be patient, but I am going into blog withdrawal!! What happened with your girls? What happened when Guy #1 came back from vacation? Don't make me wait!
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