However, now that I’ve become domesticated I have acquired hobbies. Here in the United States people inquire about your profession.  But in other places, the interesting thing about a new acquaintance is their hobbies.  I guess in other countries people have time to have hobbies?

Whatever.  I’m not sure how I can possibly keep the scrapbooks that I began when I realized the inherited 70s collections were rotting.  I don’t know how I’ll ever finish them.  That’s a whole accidental hobby by itself.  And there is the related and completely time-consuming family history and genealogy.

Unrelated I have sewing.  Sewing is practical.  And I might argue that it is necessary.  But that would be silly since we won’t go naked if I don’t sew.  I rarely sew garments.

I also have this blog.

So now I have acquired hobbies, a fair amount of accessories for each, and have very little time.  If the girls didn’t just look elven, but could actually behave like elves and help me, then we could do all of the hobbies.  That is not likely to happen anytime soon.  DD7 has her own scrapbook.  It’s great.  But it looks like a seven year old did it (as it should).  So I probably shouldn’t hand over the scrapbooking scissors and irreplaceable photographs.  DD1 harasses DD7 from under the kitchen table, trying to climb up into her lap and grab things off the table.  So… scrapbooking is out as a family activity.

Ditto genealogy, blogging and sewing.

Boo, hiss.

We do sort of exercise together.  I have rubberbands that I use to work out.  I purchased more of them so that we could all share and nobody would fuss over not getting to hold one.  But DD1 wants whichever one someone else is holding, regardless of whether or not she has one, nearly identical, in her own hands.  DD7 has only a marginally better attitude.  She doesn’t covet the rubber band I’m using.  She instead wants to jump over one like jump-rope, in the house next to lamps, hook one over her sister, or swing one wildly like a whip.  She appears unable or unwilling to remember this from day to day.  Either way, somebody ends up laying on the floor yelling.

Sometimes I think it should be me.

Sword in Toy Box

I have here two documents from organizations representing gigantic bureaucracy, the United States.  One of them I thought would be the current Census.  But it says instead that it is a survey for 2007 business owners.  wtf?  I was hoping to improve on last decades census when I was living in sin.  I thought my dad could finally rest in peace.  I filled out that damn form ten years ago with his voice in my head telling me that I’m going to hell and the least I could do if I’m going to live in sin is not tell the U.S. government.

The other is a letter about my grandmothers apartment, which is senior citizens only, which falls under HUD regulations.  And it says I have to clear it out.  That’s opposite, of course, to what Georgia law says, which is that it must stay put. 

Right, off to the census site to see if this form has been lost in the mail for two years.

Yeah, went to Census Bureau and am still confused.  Imagine that.

It can’t possibly be normal for me to receive two communications from the government in one week.