A Happening......
I believe I heard a drive by shooting lastnight??? It was late and I was awakened by screeching tires...and then a pop! The sound of a gun! I couldn't see anything because I have plastic over my very drafty windows! I don't like my windows covered, but my power bill was right at $200.00 last month!!! I cant afford that! So...we have plastic...
Count Down...
Cooper's last day of school is Friday! His class is planning on having a little farewell party for him...chocolate cupcakes, yummy!!! He will appreciate that!!! 3 more days...
My Head...
I am ready to get this done and over with!!! I am ready to get to Alabama! The sooner I get to Alabama, the sooner I will return!!! The more I sit here surrounded by boxes, the more anxious I get...! Since I will be saving money by living with Tim, I am going to take care of some health issues before anything else! Things that I haven't been able to afford and have put off for some time! Only because the cost of living is ridiculous!!! The first thing I am going to do when I get to Alabama, is get my eye-glass prescription updated!!! The last time I had my eyes checked was 4-5 years ago!!! My prescription has been looooong time out of date!!! I cant see with them!!! So I have been using these cheep over-the-counter reading glasses, which have worked GREAT up until the last couple of years!!! My eyes hurt...and I cant see very well to paint!!! If I am going to Graduate School to PAINT...I need to be able to see!!! So, first priority!!! Since my rent has gone from $800.00/mo (Atlanta) to $150.00/mo (Tim's)...I will be able to afford some things I haven't in awhile! Even when I lived in my house...the utilities alone ran me around $500.00/mo!! Sure...I could move back into my house, but why??? When I can rent it out and bring in more income!! The house is way too big for Cooper and I...and too much maintenance!!! I'd have to come up with deposits to turn the utilities on...and to be very honest, I don't want to let go of any money!!!! We aren't staying in Alabama permanently, so why bother going through all that for just a couple of months! The house will stay clean and ready to show for future tenants if it remains empty! Besides...I have made a promise to myself that I was going to take care of the health related issues going on with me, before anything else!!! These things have been put off for way to long and it cant continue!!! I had rather have less and get new glasses!!! I HAVE to go to the Dentist, or I will lose my teeth...bottom line!!! I have a couple of spots on my skin that I have to have looked at!!! I have to take care of myself, because I have children who need me to be healthy! Even if I ((could)) afford to pay for Health/Dental Insurance right now, it wouldn't help me...because I have alot of pre-existing "shit" that Health Insurance will not cover!!! With Dental...I have to wait a year before the benefits kick in and I need work done NOW!!!! I cant wait and it is not in my budget to throw out $200/mo for something that wont help me today!!! I don't know why I got off on this subject...really??? Because it pisses me off every time!!! People are killing themselves over health-care issues...because they simply cant afford it! People had rather die...!! They had rather die...?? Wow...
Whoops!
I got of on a tangent there!!!
Sorry...uh hum!
Now...
the kewl story.....
I got of on a tangent there!!!
Sorry...uh hum!
Now...
the kewl story.....
The kids were in Elementary School...we lived in Florida at the time. Year 2001, I believe!! I had an awakening...! I am an observer and a thinker!!! I NOTICE!!! I noticed that our street was quiet!!! There were no children...none!!! I thought back remembering when I was a child, and we were OUTSIDE!!!! We were playing in the woods and the creek...until the sun came down! We...played!!!
I was at the grocery store one day, around Christmas time...and while I waited in line, I over-heard a Mother and her Daughter talking about how Christmas was "around the corner"...! Then the little girl started repeating over and over all the things she wanted for Christmas! Now, she was 7??? Maybe 9??? And so she begins her want list of video games...I think it was PlayStation at the time...cell phone...Game Boy...and so on! I cant remember everything, but I do remember that nothing cost under $50.00 and her list was endless!!! I was thinking, "What?????" Hell, I had just bought cable for the first time that year!!! I had only had a cell phone for maybe...6 months!!! We still watched VHS...and just this last year bought a DVD player! lol! I sold my VHS tapes just before moving to Atlanta...! And this kid wanted a spaceship!!?? Anyway, I stood there and listened...and I thought, "Wow"...! Where are the kids today???
Well, I went home after grocery shopping, and out of curiosity asked Kayla what she wanted for Christmas...and she said, "crayons, paper, kite...and a puppy!" I was proud as I wiped my brow and thought to myself, "whoosh! Thank God!" But even so, I couldn't get the neighborhood silence out of my head!!! That night I thought ALOT, and made a decision...
The next morning fell on a Saturday! I walked into Kayla's room and said, "Kayla! Today, I want you to pick 3 of your favorite toys and 10 outfits..that being 10 pairs of pants, tops, socks and underwear...Oh, and 3 pair of shoes! When you have picked these items out...come get me!" She did...! She did a fine job at selecting these items! Within 7 days, we boxed everything we owned and put it into storage! I bought a 10 foot (yes...10) camper and we moved into it! We had a huge, big bulky...old 46" TV that we inherited from a friend of mine who stored it at my house and never picked it up! Tripp is a very ((visual)) person, especially being Autistic...watching movies was about the only thing that calmed him down at times, so we always had a TV! In fact, several! Even when we camped, we brought our little (?)10" camping TV and VCR for Tripp! Now, this TV was huge sitting inside that 10 footer! I told everyone instead of "tie-downs" we used the TV to anchor the camper in-case of strong winds...! lol!
My friends thought that I had lost my mind! A girlfriend of mine stopped by to check out our new used camper! She said, "Girl! I thought I was brave moving from Georgia to Florida with 2 little boys!!! I was WRONG!!! Now THAT (pointing to the camper), is brave!!!" The kids Dad was pissed at first!!! In his mind this "move" was negligent and inadequate for the needs of his children! I told him tough shit!!! After all...he was a "part-time" Dad and had very little to do with the kids life to begin with!!! His "hands-off opinion" meant nothing to me! I shrugged it all off, because I believed that what I was doing was good! I was teaching my kids something here! The fact that the rest of the world didn't "get it", was all the more reason to DO IT! Point given!
We had a BLAST!!! We cooked outside...built a campfire every night! Planted a small garden and many evenings I slept on a hammock I had made from scrap canvas and a few boards I found! Every weekend we had a project planned!!! Cleaning up the property became our main focus, only because there was so much liter! I don't mean just paper trash, I mean tires, wood, scrap metal...! Treasures!!! We cleaned up our little patch of earth and made use of what we had found!!! A double mission! Outside of our projects, the kids had chores!!! Gathering firewood was one of them!...
Kayla and I were sitting beside the campfire one evening...Kayla was doing her homework...Tripp was in bed! I look over at her and I ask,"Kayla...how many kids do you think are doing their homework by a campfire tonight?" Kayla said, "Not many Mom...!" And smiled...
After awhile, this lifestyle started to rub off on others a little! People actually started showing interest in camping with us! After the shock wore off for the kids Dad, he visited a few times himself...and even brought friends from Alabama with him to camp with us!!! They set up tents and brought their kids! Yeah....!!! It became the "kewl place" to be...! It was a great feeling to see everyone hanging out at our home and having fun!!! People actually "got it"...
We learned alot from living in that camper! The most important lesson being, we don't really NEED alot to live! The camper was small and the three of us lived in it together! When I saw this camper for the first time, I said to myself..."Kewl! Just enough space for sleeping meaning more time outside!" Being that the camper was so small, we learned to be organized and managed our space well! We learned to be respectful of one another by being patient and considerate! Hell...we didn't have a CHOICE!!! 10 feet is smaalllllll.....!! Cooking outside also encouraged more outdoor time! It was awesome! We had a blast! My daughter is now 19, and that camper is ((still)) one of her favorite places we have ever lived...! *smile*
I have pictures of the camper, but unfortunately they are packed! As soon as I unload that box, I will post a few...
I was at the grocery store one day, around Christmas time...and while I waited in line, I over-heard a Mother and her Daughter talking about how Christmas was "around the corner"...! Then the little girl started repeating over and over all the things she wanted for Christmas! Now, she was 7??? Maybe 9??? And so she begins her want list of video games...I think it was PlayStation at the time...cell phone...Game Boy...and so on! I cant remember everything, but I do remember that nothing cost under $50.00 and her list was endless!!! I was thinking, "What?????" Hell, I had just bought cable for the first time that year!!! I had only had a cell phone for maybe...6 months!!! We still watched VHS...and just this last year bought a DVD player! lol! I sold my VHS tapes just before moving to Atlanta...! And this kid wanted a spaceship!!?? Anyway, I stood there and listened...and I thought, "Wow"...! Where are the kids today???
Well, I went home after grocery shopping, and out of curiosity asked Kayla what she wanted for Christmas...and she said, "crayons, paper, kite...and a puppy!" I was proud as I wiped my brow and thought to myself, "whoosh! Thank God!" But even so, I couldn't get the neighborhood silence out of my head!!! That night I thought ALOT, and made a decision...
The next morning fell on a Saturday! I walked into Kayla's room and said, "Kayla! Today, I want you to pick 3 of your favorite toys and 10 outfits..that being 10 pairs of pants, tops, socks and underwear...Oh, and 3 pair of shoes! When you have picked these items out...come get me!" She did...! She did a fine job at selecting these items! Within 7 days, we boxed everything we owned and put it into storage! I bought a 10 foot (yes...10) camper and we moved into it! We had a huge, big bulky...old 46" TV that we inherited from a friend of mine who stored it at my house and never picked it up! Tripp is a very ((visual)) person, especially being Autistic...watching movies was about the only thing that calmed him down at times, so we always had a TV! In fact, several! Even when we camped, we brought our little (?)10" camping TV and VCR for Tripp! Now, this TV was huge sitting inside that 10 footer! I told everyone instead of "tie-downs" we used the TV to anchor the camper in-case of strong winds...! lol!
My friends thought that I had lost my mind! A girlfriend of mine stopped by to check out our new used camper! She said, "Girl! I thought I was brave moving from Georgia to Florida with 2 little boys!!! I was WRONG!!! Now THAT (pointing to the camper), is brave!!!" The kids Dad was pissed at first!!! In his mind this "move" was negligent and inadequate for the needs of his children! I told him tough shit!!! After all...he was a "part-time" Dad and had very little to do with the kids life to begin with!!! His "hands-off opinion" meant nothing to me! I shrugged it all off, because I believed that what I was doing was good! I was teaching my kids something here! The fact that the rest of the world didn't "get it", was all the more reason to DO IT! Point given!
We had a BLAST!!! We cooked outside...built a campfire every night! Planted a small garden and many evenings I slept on a hammock I had made from scrap canvas and a few boards I found! Every weekend we had a project planned!!! Cleaning up the property became our main focus, only because there was so much liter! I don't mean just paper trash, I mean tires, wood, scrap metal...! Treasures!!! We cleaned up our little patch of earth and made use of what we had found!!! A double mission! Outside of our projects, the kids had chores!!! Gathering firewood was one of them!...
Kayla and I were sitting beside the campfire one evening...Kayla was doing her homework...Tripp was in bed! I look over at her and I ask,"Kayla...how many kids do you think are doing their homework by a campfire tonight?" Kayla said, "Not many Mom...!" And smiled...
After awhile, this lifestyle started to rub off on others a little! People actually started showing interest in camping with us! After the shock wore off for the kids Dad, he visited a few times himself...and even brought friends from Alabama with him to camp with us!!! They set up tents and brought their kids! Yeah....!!! It became the "kewl place" to be...! It was a great feeling to see everyone hanging out at our home and having fun!!! People actually "got it"...
We learned alot from living in that camper! The most important lesson being, we don't really NEED alot to live! The camper was small and the three of us lived in it together! When I saw this camper for the first time, I said to myself..."Kewl! Just enough space for sleeping meaning more time outside!" Being that the camper was so small, we learned to be organized and managed our space well! We learned to be respectful of one another by being patient and considerate! Hell...we didn't have a CHOICE!!! 10 feet is smaalllllll.....!! Cooking outside also encouraged more outdoor time! It was awesome! We had a blast! My daughter is now 19, and that camper is ((still)) one of her favorite places we have ever lived...! *smile*
I have pictures of the camper, but unfortunately they are packed! As soon as I unload that box, I will post a few...
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