I need a drink.....

...and chai latte won't do....



The plan is that Vince is heading back to PhDland today. We are anxiously watching the weather to figure out if that makes sense....since he is driving into the mountains and the Pennsylvania snowbelt. Well...he is not watching the weather. He's still in bed. Carmen and I are. We have been for an hour now. We're pacing back and forth...looking out the window every 30 seconds...as if something might change. Yes, it's still snowing. We keep switching TV channels...on different TVs...to check if we hear anything different. Yes, there's still a winter weather warning--up to 8 inches of snow and ice expected. Can he wait another day? Yes, I need a drink.

Maybe I'll call the Dean and ask him if it's okay Vince stays home until it stops snowing. "Hello Dean...this is Vince's mom, Judi. I sure hope I didn't get you out of bed. How are you doing? Did you have a nice Christmas? Let me tell you why I'm calling you at this hour...my Vince a PhD student there and his first class of the new semester begins on Monday. But, he can't come. It's been snowing and I won't let him drive. Can you ask his teacher to send his work home to Pittsburgh until the Spring thaw?" Oh yes, I need a drink....

Vince would beat me silly if he knew I even mentioned his name on my blog. And, if he knew that I was talking about him--he'd ream me out like only my son can! He's funny like that. But, I'm the mother so if I want to talk about my son on my blog then I will! Plus, I need to pay homage to a day that I've secretly been dreading for a week now. I know he's been dreading it as well...for different reasons than mine, of course. So, for the past week, knowing how he has been feeling, I've donned my sweater and pom-poms and went into my cheerleader mode instead of telling him that I'm *this* close to tears and that I'd love to always have him around, I can't believe our much anticipated month together is over and gee--can we just turn back the clock...to maybe 1999? Hell yes, I need a drink....

Trust me, I want Vince to go back to his regular life. He needs to return to reality just like the rest of us. As someone who has been in academia all of my life, I know the life of a PhD student can be challenging, frustrating and sometimes very lonely. But, on the other hand, I also know that the rewards of pursuing dreams can make it all worth while. It's just that when you are in throes of it all--as Vince is right now--it doesn't quite feel that way. Like we all know--growing up is hard to do. But, it's even harder on mothers. But, our kids don't know that.

Shit, yes, that calls for another drink.....