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willow_25What's going on? I haven't done a personal update in a while, due to the nothing-much-going-on factor, but I thought I'd jump on and ramble a bit anyway. (Mildly upsetting family thoughts ahead, you've been warned.)
The house is looking put together again after the party and the moving in, but like everything, it's a process. The roomies went shopping on Monday while I was at work, and picked up shades for the living room. No more glare on the TV screen! Very exciting.
I've been thinking about family a lot lately; with one roomie's sister being so sick, my brother having spent the better part of three years away with the Army, and my parents getting older it's probably inevitable. I'm in a weird situation with my family; or maybe not so weird, depends on who you ask, I guess.
My Mom's been married to my Dad since I was 3, but she didn't give birth to me and I haven't lived with them consistently. She's still much more of a mother to me than the woman who did give birth to me, even though I do have a few good memories of my biological mother, enough to think of her as 'Mom' too, sometimes. My baby brother is biologically my step-brother, and I know my biological mother has at least one other son, but when people ask if I have siblings, I say, "I have one brother". Because, as far as I'm concerned, that's what I have. One brother, who I visited in the hospital when he was born with my grandparents, who I fought with like tigers when we were little, who is now actually a friend. I don't have that relationship with anyone else, not even my cousins, who I am also close to.
It feels like there are a lot of loose ends with my family; who is 'real' family, who should I put up with because they're blood relations, even if they're not nice people, or I don't know them well. Still, I like to think that as we all get older, these things will be less important than the fact that we love each other, and nothing will happen to keep us out of touch.
Sorry, I'm all wallow-y. I'll stop now. This whole thing just got stuck in my brain, along with some other assorted crap that I don't want to get into here, and I needed to let it out. Please excuse the ventilation.
The house is looking put together again after the party and the moving in, but like everything, it's a process. The roomies went shopping on Monday while I was at work, and picked up shades for the living room. No more glare on the TV screen! Very exciting.
I've been thinking about family a lot lately; with one roomie's sister being so sick, my brother having spent the better part of three years away with the Army, and my parents getting older it's probably inevitable. I'm in a weird situation with my family; or maybe not so weird, depends on who you ask, I guess.
My Mom's been married to my Dad since I was 3, but she didn't give birth to me and I haven't lived with them consistently. She's still much more of a mother to me than the woman who did give birth to me, even though I do have a few good memories of my biological mother, enough to think of her as 'Mom' too, sometimes. My baby brother is biologically my step-brother, and I know my biological mother has at least one other son, but when people ask if I have siblings, I say, "I have one brother". Because, as far as I'm concerned, that's what I have. One brother, who I visited in the hospital when he was born with my grandparents, who I fought with like tigers when we were little, who is now actually a friend. I don't have that relationship with anyone else, not even my cousins, who I am also close to.
It feels like there are a lot of loose ends with my family; who is 'real' family, who should I put up with because they're blood relations, even if they're not nice people, or I don't know them well. Still, I like to think that as we all get older, these things will be less important than the fact that we love each other, and nothing will happen to keep us out of touch.
Sorry, I'm all wallow-y. I'll stop now. This whole thing just got stuck in my brain, along with some other assorted crap that I don't want to get into here, and I needed to let it out. Please excuse the ventilation.
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no subject
Date: 2007-06-13 03:39 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-06-13 06:54 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-06-13 04:48 pm (UTC)Honestly, that's what I thought when i saw your headline.
Yay venting, although I've never heard "ventiliation" used before. You being an eglish major, I assume you know it's uses better than I. And how to properly write the latter sentence.
:-)
Glad someone else is on the bandwagon. What would we do if we didn't have family?
Ack
Date: 2007-06-13 06:57 pm (UTC)I'm making no sense, I'm sure. Anyway; without family, I'd either be a lot more sane, or a lot more boring. Probably both.
no subject
Date: 2007-06-16 06:50 am (UTC)I have a brother, three half sisters, two stepsisters (both named Kim!) and two stepbrothers. Things have shaken out in such a way that some I consider family, some I don't. The way I see it, blood relatives are family in my case, and otherwise it depends on how we treat and feel about each other.
However, my ex-wife was adopted, and I adopted my older daughter. In both cases, their "real" parents are the ones who raised them, sat up with them when they were sick, and loved them through good and bad times. Some of their birth relatives they consider family, but some they don't.