It’s a Carpenters Kind of Day

“Cold Days and Mondays Always Get Me Down…”

Okay, its a bastardization of the song, but it wasn’t rainy here today. It was, however, cold and Monday.

Well, Monday down and Tuesday, etc. to go.

It wasn’t a bad day. Its just that I’m still struggling with depression. I’m trying hard to just keep putting one foot in front of the other and hoping that I’ll be able to walk it off.

Tomorrow is picture day at work. Everyone, including support staff (paralegals, the office manager, the janitor [if we actually had one]) have to get their pictures taken for the new website. I’m also supposed to write a biography. And I’m expected to be serious. It’ll go something like this:

Susan M. North – Senior Paralegal to Mark J. Dahlberg, Esquire

I was born on a farm out in Iow-way…no? Right, serious.

Here’s the real thing, I think…editing will be needed.

“Susan has worked in the legal field for more than 25 years, working her way up from law firm receptionist to senior paralegal. Her primary focus throughout her career has been in family law, but she has also worked in the areas of personal injury, criminal defense, and wills and estates. She graduated with a liberal arts degree in Humanities from John Tyler Community College in Chester, Virginia and has completed course-work toward a Bachelor’s Degree in Art History from Mary Washington College in Fredericksburg.

Susan was born in Fredericksburg but spent many of her formative years overseas in countries as diverse as Japan, Switzerland, Italy, and France. She continues to travel and has a large travel bucket list, including destinations both domestic and foreign. She is a master level crocheter who also knits and quilts. Additionally she enjoys baking and cooking for her family and co-workers.”

Hello

Years ago I wrote a blog which, in a fit of pique, I deleted. Its a big regret. I’ve tried several times to restart but nothing has lasted for long. I’m going to try again.

So, about me. I’m 51 years old, will be 52 next month. I have three children, Joshua, Julie and Peter. They’ve given me four grandchildren, Nathan, Alexandra, Kenneth, and Kayla. I have a younger brother and sister. My birth parents are both gone now, but I have the “other” parents that they gave me (we don’t use the word “step” in my family).

I have a dog who is the love of my life. Many people will read that and think its sad. I have moments where I’d be tempted to agree. For the most part, though, I am happy with my life.

I work as a paralegal in a medium sized firm in my little/big town. I like my boss and love my job. It took me years to find the right place. I have worked primarily in the areas of family and personal injury law. I took a brief hiatus from law and worked in retail management, on management teams for both SunCoast Motion Pictures and EBGames.

I’m a serious introvert. I have a few close friends, but I don’t see them often as they’re in a different city, about 50 miles away and they’re not the type of friends I call up and chat with. We tend more toward planned activities like concerts, art exhibits, and weekend trips away. I love them (the friends and the activities) but they leave me exhausted. I always need a few weeks of recovery time after these interactions.

I’m a serious crafter. I’ve been crocheting since I was about 6 years old. I made all of my daughter’s clothes when she was a child. I’ve taken classes in quilting and I’m learning to knit. I also love to cook and bake. October is a huge baking month for me because I love anything and everything pumpkin. This October I’ve baked 6 loaves of pumpkin bread, made pumpkin blondies, and will be baking pumpkin pies tomorrow.

I’m also know to be kind of moody and this where I hope that this blog will help. I occasionally struggle with depression. Its been a few years since I’ve had a serious episode but I feel one coming on. I haven’t been able to shake it off and I don’t know how long it might last. I don’t really have anyone I can talk about it with and so I hope to just pour things out here.

I’m also hoping that this blog will serve as a record of the things that I do. Pinterest is nice for tracking what I want to do, but this will (hopefully) be a place for the things I complete.

And there you have it. Me, in a nutshell.