A Man and His Garage

I believe I speak for both of us when I say my husband, Walt and I love our home. It's everything we could ask for, really. We love pretty much everything about it, including the neighbors who live in the houses nearby.

We do have a difference of opinion about one thing. You see, my husband seems particularly fond of "his" garage, even to the point of leaving the garage doors up most of the time during daylight hours if he can get by with it. Because of the approach to the house (one of the few things I would change about the house if I could) that means that people who drive up see right into the garage first thing.

I, on the other hand have a "thing" about first impressions and the first thing people see about my home is no exception. Walt likes to laugh at me because I insist that the garage doors be closed, and all our visitors be brought into the house through the front door. He thinks it would make more sense to walk them through the garage and into the house via the door that enters the hallway between the kitchen and the utility room.

Frankly, I don't see his point! The walk around the front of the house, past the flower beds and fountain is so much more pleasing to the eye! Not to mention the appearance of the entry hall vs. the boring wooden steps and kitchen trash can which welcomes visitors from the garage area.

Our garage is nice, as far as garages go. I'd even say it's the nicest garage I've ever owned, but a garage is not part of the living area of a home ... any home. It's a place to park the cars (or in our case, a car, a motorcycle and a truck.) Period! Our (or perhaps it would be better said Walt's) garage is different. The man actually has framed Harley Davidson photos hung on the walls!

Yeah.

I once went so far, as to insinuate that I had partial ownership in the garage by buying a sign to hang on the side where I park my car. I thought I was going to have to call the paramedics for my husband when he read the words written on my purchase ...

"Queen Parking Only ... you're not worthy!"

I thought it was pretty funny, but Walt came this close to losing consciousness when he learned I was serious about hanging it.

Needless to say, I won that battle and still snicker at my sign every time I pull my car into it's spot just below the metallic blue sign with it's blazing white letters. Most of my female friends also see the humor in it and laugh accordingly.

The men, well. They seem to sympathize with Walter. What else would you expect?

I suppose many men have a thing for their garages. It's probably deeply rooted in their DNA somewhere. It would be an act of futility to attempt to understand, much less fix it. For that reason, I've chosen to compromise on the matter. Walt can have the whole garage as his own, with the exception of spot supporting my "Queen Parking Only" sign.

Fair is fair, after all.

Unless of course, he decides to bring one of his Harley Davidson photos into my foyer.

Different is a very GOOD thing!

I may (or may not) have mentioned some time back that my fourteen year old son, Adam has been diagnosed with ADHD. It astounds me that even though he's grown up in a generation where it seems that everyone else's kid was being handed medication for hyperactivity by the time they were in second grade, my son sailed right on through, his "issue" un-noticed until his freshman year of high school.

After a couple months of absolute nightmares with different counselors, doctors, psychiatrists and the insurance company, I do believe we are finally well on the way to finding out exactly what it's going to take to help Adam deal with the matter.

While Adam has always been a bit different in comparison to other kids his age (probably due to the fact that all the others were already medicated) , I never considered him to be hyperactive. Oh sure, he's had his share of sugar rushes and sudden bursts of energy at some rather inconvenient times, but ADHD? No, I've not thought so.

What I have thought is that my son is a lot like his Grandpa (my father). A "character" of sorts, but also very sweet and sentimental. Not crazy about being in crowded places or "staying put" for long periods of time. Love's animals, tender hearted and protective of his family.

Beautifully unique.

Adam's behavior is absolutely normal in the sense that I am so familiar with it, I've only contributed his differences to the fact that he has a lot in common with my Dad. (I consider that to be a very good thing!)

Well, today my five year old grand-daughter, Esther was diagnosed with ADHD too.

Like Adam, Esther is also a character ... a wonderful one at that. She's beautiful, smart, talented, bossy, and maybe just the slightest bit on the impulsive side. Esther does seem to get frustrated easily and that has concerned me at times. She has a twin brother who loves to learn and can entertain himself for hours with books and other things that require concentration. Esther doesn't seem to care all that much for reading and writing. I've wondered if her frustrations might be due to the comparisons that are sometimes made between her and her twin.

Other than that, Esther's lack of interest in learning is no big deal, at least not in my opinion. She's only five, so there's plenty of time for that in the years to come. Right?

Esther just always has something more fun to do, that's all. She'd much rather chase the cat or construct elaborate tents in the family room, take the remote control apart and examine it or sort through my jewelry box when I'm not looking.

I like that about Esther!

My daughter told me today that the doctor said he could tell Esther had ADHD just by observing her in the examination room for a few minutes. I asked Emily what Esther had been doing to make him say that. Her reply was "Oh, she was lying on her back kicking her feet up in the air, then she turned over on her stomach and hung her head over the edge while banging on the side of the exam table with her hands, then sat up and swung her legs back and forth for a while ..."

What? You mean that isn't normal?

Honestly, I thought that all five year old kids acted that way. Esther is obedient and polite (most of the time). She's also lot of fun. As a matter of fact, I adore her spit-fire attitude. It's a rather endearing trait. Esther will go far in life. I've known that since the day I first laid eyes on her!

I would much rather call my son and grand-daughter gifted, rather than hand them a "label" such as ADHD. However, I'm not at all opposed to giving them medications to help them focus. That's actually a relief, since I've seen my son struggle so much in school all the while knowing (and being told by his teachers) that he is brilliant! For that reason, I am glad Esther's ADHD was discovered so early on. Perhaps she won't have to struggle so much and feel frustrated.

My hope is that the medications will help Adam and Esther focus, without changing who they are. They are both such incredibly interesting people! It would be a shame to lose that.

ADHD, or whatever the medical professionals decide to call it, I love my son and grand-daughter ... rambunctious spirits and all! I don't see any abnormalities when I look at them (or listen to them talk only slightly under the speed of light) I see traces of my father in them, and my father is a wonderful man! Wonderful, and "different"

And that is a very GOOD thing!

Lab Rat at Heart

I've been thinking of returning to the laboratory environment to work. The lab was my first love, and it's been calling my name again in recent weeks. This morning I decided to send away for information on degrees in the field of forensics. I am hoping to find a university that will accept the credits from my current degree in science. If so, it shouldn't take long at all to earn my BS in criminology.

With a little luck, I'll be able to complete a great deal of it online.

"Luck" however, doesn't seem to be much on my side lately, so it could be interesting!

I don't plan to give up my Life Coaching career, rather I hope I can work in forensics as a day job and do my coaching practice as more of a ministry.

I've often caught myself wondering why, despite the fact I have a science degree and all my experience in the medical field, I've not felt any urgency to put my knowledge and education in those areas to use for all these years. All the while, my fascination with the darker side of science has been eating away at me and I can't help but wonder, "Did I somehow miss my true calling in life?"

I suppose we will find out soon enough! It could be that I'll hear back from the schools I sent to for information and decide I'm really not interested after all. Then, I'll go back to getting my "morbidity fix" by watching Forensic Files and reading creepy crime stories whenever I can get my hands on one.

At the very least, it would make for an interesting story. Perhaps it might provide research for a children's book titled .. "Grandma Goes to College". It could be filled with photos of a middle aged woman seated in a classroom filled with late teens and twenty-somethings ... all young enough to be my own children.

Hmm ... no. I'll stick to the online schooling idea, thank you! My self esteem has been beaten down enough as it is.

I'll be taking the process one step at a time. If I find an online school that suits me, I'll then need to pursue financial aid of some kind ... and so on and so forth. Hopefully I would be able to pay off my student loans sometime before I retire.

So much for this analytical mind to ponder, so few years in which to follow through!