Seeking the Details of My Ancestry

Even decades after her birth, I still marvel at my daughter. Her genetic makeup covers the Caribbean, South America and at least three European countries.

That we know of.

I’m certain that I inherited my coarse, curly hair and need for eyeglasses from the birth mother who left when I was a toddler. I’m kind of sure of my ethnicity but feel sad that I passed the uncertainty to another generation.

Big Goals, Bigger Hair

I’m a glass-half-full kind of person, so when I discovered I needed a day off to see the dentist urgently, I saw opportunity. A midday appointment meant time to do many things that I simply cannot do during work hours:

1. Go to the bank and supermarket, which would take half the time they would on the weekends.
2. Research resume writers for a pal.
3. Visit my dad.
4. Use the laundry room when it’s not crowded.
5. Call people who are home during the day.

A Book, Its Cover and A Wonderful Bio

Handbook For An Unpredictable Life: How I Survived Sister Renata And My Crazy Mother And Still Came Out Smiling (With Great Hair)

It’s quite a title, but sums up Rosie Perez’s autobiography in a nutshell. Rosie was born of an affair her mother had and was promptly left in the care of her paternal aunt. After three years, her mother demanded Rosie back, only to dump her in “the home,” a prison-like residence run by sadistic nuns.

Her aunt was a loving, steady and joyful woman. Through her youthful ordeal, Rosie knew she was loved, especially when her father became a part of her life. However, the mother was not just crazy, but abusive and manipulative as well. This created a special hell for the kid, but that didn’t stop young Rosie from enjoying what there was to enjoy.

Happy 2014!

From my child’s school craft fair in 1999.

12/31/99: Y2K. There was some concern that the world’s computer systems wouldn’t handle the change to the new century. But the ball dropped, the lights stayed on and our East Coast ground did not shake. All good.

Life changes often don’t get a national holiday. Your birthday, graduation dates, the day you closed on your house: these are huge personal events that are probably more worthy of celebration than the change of the calendar. This New Year’s Eve I feel grateful for the opportunities and good people that made my life Interesting. I am grateful for having had the guts to try new things, including blogging. This was the year I stopped spending inordinate amounts of time trying to make my hair look straight and instead, let it go curly. (I’m sure there will be future posts about that.) I stopped eating ice cream and lowered my cholesterol levels. (Take that, Pharmaceutical Industry!)

I have grown stronger. This will be a quiet New Year’s Eve because I choose my own company over that of a roomful of drunken strangers. Right now I am watching “A Toast To 2013” and laughing my head off.

That’s how I hope to start 2014. I wish everybody love, health, happiness and personal growth!