Me - forty-something, single, teacher, rubber stamper/paper crafter, singer, former theater director (amateur only), chatty, people loving, over scheduled, mercurial, internet obsessed, shopping fiend, voracious reader, journal keeper, often lonely. I bought my first home July 2003, a very odd feeling to know that I own something like this.
Main Characters
Mom - Passed away April 14, 2003. I lost my best friend that day. She was a nice lady who had the ability to make me feel guilty about nothing without a lot of effort. I can't even express how much I miss her. I still cry at least once a day.
Dad - Passed away May 17, 2000, he was very handicapped and having a difficult time. He too could drive me crazy. But I miss him every day.
Bert- one of my brothers who lived at home with my mother, and still occupies the family home. Bless him. He has to put up with a lot.
Roc - married brother. Has two kids (see below).
Sara - sister in law. Sometimes a friend and sometimes not.
Dee - closest friend. Also a teacher and singer. We spend a lot of time together.
Cathy - another good friend, and my former assistant. She's had a tough life, but is managing to struggle through a lot of heartache.
Keith - nephew. He's thirteen and one of my favorite people on the face of the earth. The apple of my eye.
Matilda - niece. An eleven year old drama queen. She's so much like me that it scares the family. Sometimes it scares me too. I love her to bits!!
Chorus - The group of women I've been singing with for thirteen years. I am often over involved and in the thick of the running of various aspects of the chorus. This either makes me very happy or totally crazy. My mood about any given committee or involvement can change by the minute.
Supporting Players (sometimes non-supporting)
Michael - My internet friend. Met in a chat room, became good friends and correspond via e-mail fairly reguarly. I admire him tremendously and get depressed if I don't hear from him. Wish I had a more prominent place in his life. Not romantically involved, but he challenges me intellectually. I like that a lot.
Jack- close friend who lives and works in an ashram as he tries to pull his life together. I miss him. He's gay, which is incidental but explains that there is nothing but friendship between us. He was more fun to hang around with than almost anyone I know.
R.J. - another gay friend who is currently living in Florida. One of the most artistic people I know, but he's never done much with it. He's afraid that he's not as good an artist as his significant other, so he has stopped trying.
The Principal - the person I work for. He's come a long way in the last eight years and finally has an understanding and respect for the special education department. For a while I never thought that would happen.
The Ice Queen - the other person I have to report to and who I loathe. She has no people skills and can be a two faced liar. Self serving with no understanding of what I actually do everyday. She is of no help to anyone in her department and won't even take phone calls.
Encore - my neurotic fraidy cat. He passed away very suddenly and unnecessarily on October 8, 2000. He was very smart (stop laughing!) and almost human. He understood me totally. None of my friends had ever seen him because he hid if I had any company. When it was only the two of us he rarely left my side. He was a black cat...which should explain the use of the images.
Bravo - One of the new cats that I got a week after Encore died. Also all black, with very green eyes. He owns the place and has totally won my heart. He plays fetch with his toy spider and is fascinated by the flushing toilet.He will only drink from the bathroom sink and sits on the vanity and calls me to freshen the water.
Broadway - the other new cat, I got him the same day that I got Bravo, but they weren't from the same litter, he's about 3 months older. He's very skittish, and will hide from anyone else who is in the house. He is an black Maine Coon cat who has just a smidgen of white/gray on his underside and on his tail. He's just beautiful and a floppy rag doll who loves to be petted - if I can catch him. He's huge. He's got to weigh about 14 pounds.
