TIMES LIKE THIS

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I stared out from the window seat at flashes of red, orange and yellow rolling in the snow at the park. Aaron Barber and her gang, bundled up in lifesaver-colored snowsuits, tackled each other in the drifts, then jumped up throwing handfuls of powder at each other. Clouds of breath rose with their laughter, and my own breath fogged the window gray, as I lowered my head into a Nancy Drew novel.

Aaron had approached me while I played in the park earlier that day. My smile fell as Aaron's drawl lashed out at me, "Well, well, if it isn't Smelly Shelly playing all by herself in the snow. What's wrong. . . don't you have any friends?" Her blue eyes narrowed scowling, "I heard that your Mom and Daddy are divorced and you live with a bunch of hippies."

Aaron turned giggling to the other girls, who grinned nervously, then looked at me and stared at the ground. I tried to run away but slipped, falling on my face. Tears stung my frozen cheeks as I heard the girls snickering behind me. Aaron called out, "Did they get divorced because of you, or because your Mom is a slut and likes living with a lot of people?"

Nancy Drew gallantly aided Oscar and Ned, who were unconscious in a cage mysteriously doused with chloroform. As Nancy dragged the men outside and waited for a cool breeze to revive them, I heard Mom's Volkswagen pull up to the house. I watched from the window as she tried hopelessly to make it up the driveway, but the ice defeated her attempts as the Bug drifted back into the street. Mom rested her head on the steering wheel, and I imagined the long, jagged sigh that accompanied her distress as she pounded her fists on the steering wheel. Suddenly the Bug gunned across the driveway onto the front lawn and let out an exhausted groan. Coughing and gasping, with a final, dying lurch, the Bug sputtered into silence.

Loaded down with groceries, Mom juggled the bags as she slammed the car door shut with her hip. I giggled to myself watching her fight furiously with the car door that refused to release her keys, as if seeking revenge for Automobile Abuse. Her shadow swayed in the porch light, then staggered dangerously as she slipped, trying to regain her footing up the walk. The glass door squeaked slightly, then banged shut. Her muffled voice called, "I sure could use a hand . . . if anyone could help . . . I'd . . .WHOOOP!" I heard a bag rip and an echoing crash as Mom bit the dust. "Goddamnit! Groceries, snow . . . damn it all!"

I stiffled a laugh as I stood at the top of the stairs. Against the glass door, Mom sat sprawled on the wet tile. Slush dripping down her boots, she kicked a can of green beans as it rolled across the hallway. She picked up a box of macaroni & cheese and looked at me, tossing her black gloves to the floor. As she pushed herself up along the wall, straining to keep from slipping or kicking the eggs, she sighed, "I sure hope one of us had a good day! It definitely wasn't mine, so how was yours?"
I offered a half-hearted smile, "Pretty crappy here, too."

"Well," she sighed, "let's make some tea and bitch together."

I sipped hot chocolate and munched granola while Mom fixed tea and a hot bath. After she nestled under the bubbles with a steaming cloth over her eyes, she said, "You first or me?"

"Go for it." I sat on the toilet lid, resting my feet on the tub's edge.

"Sometimes it's really aggravating dealing with inconsiderate assholes who think only they exist in this world!" She raised the washcloth a few inches from her eyes, "Today at the office a buyer in the company came for a conference. This jerk in a cowboy hat actually patted me on the butt, and then asked me to bring him coffee!" Pressing the cloth back to her eyes she huffed, "Like I spent six years in college training to serve coffee to Okies in the 'awl bidness'!"

I chuckled, them remembered Aaron 's cutting drawl. "I had an inconsiderate asshole today too." I felt the tears coming, "Aaron . . . played by myself . . . called us . . . names." My voice cracked as I rubbed my eyes hard with my knuckles. A blurred image of two Moms holding washcloths over their heads stared intently at me.

"It's frustrating isn't it . . ." She leaned back sipping her tea. "Why don't people think before they act? Sweetie, I don't like living with every stray friend of your aunt's, but right now it's financially impossible for us to live alone. Right now, we just have to work through it and wait for a time when things can be somewhat normal again."

We sat in silence, then Mom smiled, "Someday it'll be just us again, and we'll spend more time together. . . more times like these." Tears threatened again as I kissed her forehead.

"Oh by the way . . ." she added, "what's going on with Nancy these days?"