Disconnected

For many years I used to wish my sister and I were close.
After all, many sisters are, aren't they?
But for us, it never seemed to happen.
With the exception of one year where she'd play with me -
Yes, one out of my standard eighteen at home -
It was my brother and me, my brother and her,
Or the three of us in some vague way.
I played a lot by myself too.

Then, in college, I started documenting my efforts
Through a sister journal -  not online.
Through that, I have come to realize that we will never be close.
We just have such different personalities, that
We will never understand each other.
We will never "get" each other,
Never connect in a meaningful way.

The only connection is my brother, and
The technicalities of our blood.
But she is soon off to her senior year of college,
And then plans to marry her sweetheart next summer.

So, if I don't mention her a lot,
Or just in terms of her boyfriend visiting,
That is why.

I Should Stop Thinking

How come when I think a baby-sitting job is going to be easy, it never is?

"Bad" Cat

So, today at work one of the cats brought
My youngest charge and me a dead bird.
Apparently he killed it.
Probably for us.

But then, as I started moving it out of the way,
He grabbed it back with his mouth and started eating it.

So when the older girls arrived home from school,
I heard running and a shriek and quickly followed them outside.
Apparently, he had just got done eating the head.
And they witnessed it.

They said this has happened before,
And I told them the cat was just trying to bring a gift
(And apparently he was trying to say he was starving,
Which, if you know how often he tries to get people to feed him,
You would know how much he thinks he is starving.)

But the girls didn't care.
They buried the bird
and chased the cat.
But he baby and I still like the "bad" cat!

Disney Dumbing Down

I've spent a good portion of this year watching Disney.
It happens when you are a nanny to kids ages 3-10.

I remember Hannah Montana, and thought it was okay.
Phil of the Future and That's So Raven - tolerable.
But the shows now? Like A.N.T. Farm,
Shake it Up, and Austin and Ally?
Can't stand them. They are so dumb.

I realize I am not the target market age.
I realize that they are not made for my level.
But seriously - when I was 13 Britney Spears
and Vitamin C were on Disney Channel.
They were showing re-runs of  Boy Meets World
And came out with Lizzie McGuire.

Compare those shows to now -
It's a fact that the substance of the shows are different.
Maybe it's a reaction to complaints,
Or the fact that younger viewers are watching.
But the logical, cogent facts are there -
The shows have been dumbed down.

And it really annoys me.

Less Pleasant Things

I am currently downsizing my books,
Along with everything else I own.

It's not very pleasant,
The digging and sorting,
But on my days off,
It has to be done.

Weekend Getaway

So this past weekend my mom, sister, and I took off
To see a couple relatives in a different part of the state.

Seeing them was great - we had lots of laughs, fun games,
And way too much food to eat.

The only downside was a close friend who was hanging around,
Because what we really wanted was family time.

All in all, though, it was fun.