kyburg | Meme 2002

I'll cut this for brevity -

About 20 years ago, I was 22 and...

# Getting ready to do my internship with KNBC before getting my Bachelors of Science in Broadcasting.
# Driving a birdshit yellow Chevy Vega Stationwagon I dubbed the Yellow Submarine.
# Eating chicken enchiladas every night because I couldn't work and do an internship at the same time, and was totally broke. I had packed the chicken enchiladas in one marathon session one afternoon in preparation for this.
# Living with two other total strangers in San Dimas.

About 15 years ago, I was 27 and...

# was married to Cliff and struggling with it.
# Living in Montrose, and he was out of work. Matter of fact, we'd just done the one Christmas with out a tree and had to make everything with $40. All the gifts. ALL of them. Did it. Pissed as hell, but I did it. He was out of work. I wasn't.
# Just taken over the finances.
# Made some of most kick-ass porcelain dolls and gave one to Sis for Christmas.

About 10 years ago, I was 32 and...

# Was seeing the end of Quantum Leap and my last attempt to break into the business writing.
# Forgot the promise I made to myself the year before when Cliff got hurt at work and needed care full-time.
# Discovered I was far more adaptable to change than Cliff.
# And much, much stronger.
# Began a period of getting and losing jobs that "just didn't work out" and knew they were related to having a diabetic husband.
# Tried to start a family. Failed.

About 5 years ago I was 37 and...

# Trying to cope with a husband who didn't love me anymore. Or he did. Or something. I couldn't tell anymore.
# Getting ready to be totally on my own.
# Spending a weekend a month in the bay area with

silverkun and Celeste.
# Cursing the fates that made me unable to provide anything to someone who didn't even have a life to live anymore.
# Feeling totally abandoned by God. As in "this is it, cope. You've gotten everything you are going to get - you're on your own here."
# Rediscovering the kindness of strangers. A lot of kindness in a lot of strange places.

About 2 years ago I was 40 and...

# Had been working for Skechers for a year, and loving it.
# Had had Jim living with me for months and never so much as complained about a thing yet.
# Discovering how expensive real estate can REALLY get. Manhattan Beach is just nuts.
# Looking at moving - getting discouraged. On my paycheck alone, it was grim.
# Really grateful my mother had not died the previous winter when she'd had her heart attack. Worried about her now that she was in recovery and in a lot of pain (turned out to be a synovial cyst).
# Plotting and scheming to be married...not get married.
# Would meet Jim's father and decide he was not good enough for Jim. And damn dangerous in the bargain, forget the step-mother.

Now I am 42 and...

# Preparing to move away from the condo in Ontario Cliff and I bought in 1989.
# Married for just over a year to Jim.
# Working as an EDI Administrator and finding the hardest part of my job is explaining it.
# Looking forward to having more time for art. Writing. Exercise.
# Planning on starting a family - either by me or by adoption.
# Have not killed any of my siblings. Yet.
# Have more video games than I did when I was in my twenties.
# Looking forward to adopting another dog, cat and perhaps a lizard once we've moved.

Hmm. I'll have to come back and revisit this again.