Ffffforty-seven?

Is that right?  Am I really 47?  I cannot even believe it.  In my mind, college was just a few years ago, but no.  I must be getting old, because freakin' DAVID BOWIE was on the oldies radio station K-Earth 101 the other day.  Serious.

Took a birthday holiday from work today.  I should have stayed home and cleaned our messy house, or done some of the work I brought home to do, but it was a crazy busy day.  We left 25 minutes early today so that Maiya and I could participate in Walk n Roll Wednesday, that is walking (or scootering/skating/skateboarding/biking) part of the way to school with a group of about 25 kids and parents from Maiya's school.  I think it's going to be a monthly thing--trying to encourage parents to use alternate transportation to get the kids to school.

Went to a parent meeting at school in the morning (my first time, it was interesting), then went to get a Thai massage, had a nice lunch (Veggie sandwich, bionico and fresh beet/spinach/carrot/apple juice), and then went to see my eye doctor, who has been telling me for years about how droopy my eyelids are getting, and how it affects my ability to see more each year.

After that, I went to pick up Maiya from school.  She's taking a traditional Japanese dance class on Wednesdays, and I haven't ever been able to see the class.  Luckily, I got there and was able to catch the last 10 minutes of class.  Then, since it's my bday, we stopped at the local neighborhood coffee shop, and I got a yummy chocolate/caramel/coffee drink.

When we got home, Maiya and I proceeded to have a pretty rough afternoon, which started with us getting out of the car, continuing through and beyond homework time.  She can push my buttons like no one else.  I know that she is embarrassed and wouldn't want me to write in detail about just how terrible it was.  I'll just say that she was whiny, cranky, demanding, disrespectful, and we had a pretty miserable time.  She pushed me to to my limit, not my finest hour as a parent, and I had to get out and take a long walk around the block.  I came back home, and since I wasn't ready to go back in the house, I took down all the Halloween decorations.  When I went back in the house, I found this note on the computer:

Dera Mom 

I no I made you angare 

but do you fugiv me dust rit me a leter. 

Love Maiya

I wrote her this on a 3x5 card and handed it to her up in her bunk bed, where she was still sulking.

Dear Maiya. 

You are my daughter and I love you. 

I am sorry, too. 

Love Mommy

A little later, she came down and asked me if I forgave her, yes or no, then brought me her bag of Halloween goodies and said, "since it's your birthday, you can pick one candy."  An hour after that, we went to dinner with Tony, who napped through our bickering.  By shower time and an early bedtime, things were back to normal.

Today, I am 47.  There is a lot of stuff going on in the world...in Oakland, for one, and important stuff that maybe I should be blogging about, but I'll tell you this, I may have gotten a few more gray hairs this afternoon.  

Peace.  Out. (NaBloPoMo#2).