Monday, December 13, 2004
Clean Sombitches
Well my people, as of this morning my washing machine went to the place where all 15 year old washing machines should go..yes, washing machine heaven. I am so excited because my husband went out and purchased me a BRAND NEW, yes I SAID BRAND NEW Maytag Atlantis Washer and Dryer. WOO HOO! I haven't had a new washer and dryer EVER in my 28 years. We just purchased a new stove, refrigerator, over the counter microwave and dishwasher about 6 months ago. I WILL HAVE ALL new appliances for the first time in my life. Not bad from a little girl from Dickson County huh? Hell, they are even coming to deliver it tomorrow. I will be doing laudry everyday so if you don't hear from me that is why! With 5 people in this house including 2 teenagers and a baby as you can imagine we have a lot of laundry to do. I usually spend most of my Saturday doing laundry in fact. Hopefully this will speed up the process some.What a weekend this has been. Actually got to go out to dinner twice. That is a miracle for me. I haven't been out of the house much since McKenna was born. I am pretty much a homebody because she likes being home and I enjoy spending time with her. Every moment I have I treasure with her. My dad actually came to visit today. I really enjoy it when he comes which is usually about every 2 weeks. He brought my Aunt with him which I haven't seen in a few years. She is one fucked up individual. My dad's whole side of the family is f'd up. I am suprised that I am not an alcoholic dopehead that lives in a trailer park. I don't know how I got so lucky. I guess I chose to take the right path which I am so thankful for and very proud of everyday. I am the only person in my immediate family to have graduated HIGH SCHOOL. My mom and dad got pregnant with me when they were 16 & 17 years old so they both got their GED's later on in life. Once out of high school all my friends went to college while I went to work. Although I never went without anything as a child my parents were not smart with money and never had any. My dad filed bankruptcy when I was 10 years old and pretty much has never recovered from it. My mother died when I was 18 years old and she had a little financial sense but not very much. When I got married the 1st time at 19 years old I worked in a sewing factory and my husband at the time worked in a factory also. I knew the night that we packed up and left my dads house that we would just never make it. It would be way too hard to just pay bills I thought. I had watched my dad struggle with bills all my life and I was terrified. I had come home at 16 with no water, no eletricity etc many times because he could never pay the bill. If my mom would have known 1 time that I didn't have water she would have driven down from her small mansion in Germantown TN and swept me away. Sometimes I wish she would have..she would probably still be alive if I would have decided to go with her when she left to get remarried(I was 15 at the time and wanted to stay here with all my friends.) So when my first husband and I moved out into our first home (rented) I soon realized that paying bills wasn't so bad after all. I did screw up with some credit card debt but luckily I managed to get out of if. When we decided to divorce it was crazy. We were only 23 years old and divorced already. We were both pretty devastated but knew we were better off as friends. I left with my car and my clothes and he kept everything else. A family friend let me stay with her for free until I got back on my feet. By this time I had quit my job at the factory and gotten a job in Nashville in an office environment which I loved very much. That is where I met my now husband. Long story huh? Well there is a lot more to it but I won't bore you with that. My point is..I am so lucky to have nice things. Hell, I feel lucky just to have a home that is nice much less all new appliances to put in it. Sometimes I really can't believe I am so lucky. We are not rich by any means...we both make really good money but we don't spend it on stupid shit. We live in a home that my husband bought with his first wife brand new 13 years ago. We got the house when we got custody of the kids and totally re-did everything. We have put a lot of hard work into this house and still there is a lot more to go. I drive a new van, my husband drives a brand new truck with his old 1999 Mercury Sable sitting in the drive waiting for my step son to have it when he turns 16 which I am begging my husband to get him something else. He is so stubborn but I can tell you that we would not be in such wonderful financial condition if it weren't for him. He is cheap ass cheap. I mean CHEAP ass CHEAP. He quit school in the 8th grade because it was boring him and he went and got his GED immediatley. From there he worked some shitty jobs including the State Hospital in Missouri and as he says he whiped many a crazy person's ass there. He met his first wife, they got pregnant with my step son and he decided he had to get his life on track so he enlisted in the USCG. This literally changed his life. It gave him a skill which is rare to have if you don't go to college to get it. Yes, he would be a telephone man. He got out of the Coast Guard when I was graduating High School in 1994. By this time my step daughter was born also. His 1st wife never worked a day in their marriage which was very stressful to him. Even after the kids were in school she never volunteered to help out. His first job out of the CG he made maybe 11 bucks an hour and supported a family of 4 on it. He saved for everything they had and never used a credit card to get it. They were pretty damn poor. When we met I might have been making 19 grand a year and he was probably making 30 a year. We have since more than doubled each of our incomes. I still cannot believe that I don't live paycheck to paycheck anymore. I am so excited about this washer and dryer that I could pee my pants. Now I can give the dryer to somone that needs it FOR free. That is a nice feeling. Well that is it for today. Keep in mind that this is the season for giving. We just sent a stove, refrig, furniture to the salvation army..It feels nice to help people don't yah think? I might be a bitch but I have a heart people.
