Newsworthy

Hey, guess what? We're in the news. It's not often that our town makes the news, but lately, we've been mentioned a lot. Unfortunately, not for anything good. We are still feeling the effects from the recent murder-suicide here in town. Only Joey knew the youngest of the four kids, but they weren't really friends per se. They are both second-graders at the same school, but different classes. Unfortunately, he was one of the two siblings who witnessed the brutal beating his father gave his mother -- using dumbbell weights. How does one move on from that? So, so tragic. And certainly not unheard of in places you'd never imagine. We are proof of that.

Now we're in the news about H1N1. Well, who isn't talking about the swine flu, right? But I guess the high rate of student absences has given the local news station something to talk about. They even interviewed staff members from one of the schools. Yes, it happens to be the elementary school my kids attend.

We also made the front page of today's edition of the Union Leader. See? Okay, this is the online edition but in the printed version, it is front page news and there is a picture of the middle school principal.

Yup, I saw it all first hand, right here from my bed where I have been all. day. long. Okay, I did get up to go out and get Jeffrey off the bus, but only because I had to because according to their strict policy, his 12-year-old brother isn't old enough. But that's okay, I'm not complaining. It was probably good to stretch my legs anyway.

So, you know how hand sanitizer has become as popular as bottled water? I would be lying if I said I wasn't doing my part to increase those sales because you can now find hand sanitizer in my home whereas you wouldn't be so lucky just a year ago. And I even carry a portable bottle with me. Because a friend gave it to me because it's a Snoopy bottle and you know how I feel about the Peanuts. Lately, I've been using the hand sanitizer a lot. Like, as much as I wash my hands, and I do that a bazillion times a day.

And yet, I still got the damn flu. Is it the swine? I don't know. Who cares? I still feel blech. There is an unwritten rule that moms aren't supposed to get sick. I just love to breaking rules and being laid up all day in bed while things go undone.

And I am not beneath begging for chicken soup.