A Very Rough Saturday and Sunday Afternoon, A General Assembly Meeting and a Meeting with the Polizei

Sup Sunday? I am going on very few hours of sleep. The Kid has been up off and on since 1 a.m. We have no idea why and he seems to be in good spirits today but we want to curl into the fetal position and cry from exhaustion. Yesterday was a pretty horrific day with the Kid. He had two separate freak outs... they were a combination of tantrums that turned into freak outs and it was a nightmare. But so far today he seems to be in a better mood. Fingers crossed. We just got back from an hour walk around the neighbourhood to try and work out the extra angst. It was the first time we went on a real walk without the stroller. For us the stroller is a safety blanket.. for the Kid, it's his pope mobile. We decided to take advantage of the nice Fall weather and he was a super star: happy as a clam and not once trying to take off. I am very proud of him and we felt a tiny slice of normalcy on that awesome walk. Golf claps all round for us! This afternoon a woman is coming by to meet the Kid. Our awesome psychology can only unfortunately work Mondays and Fridays this semester so we want to supplement his therapy for Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. I'm hoping it works out and that she doesn't see the Halloween decorations and goes running in fear. Well, if she goes running in fear, I will know that my decorations ROCK! (Update: we had to cancel the meeting. Read below)

Last week at work was pretty hectic. I felt zombie-like for most of the week and then on Thursday night was my first General Assembly. Two dear friends are part of the board. When I mentioned a couple of months ago that I wanted to start a "Verein" they both said "I WANT TO BE ON THE BOARD!" and so they are on the board. One friend works in the same department so just after 5, we made our way to der Fuchs und die Trauben. When we exited the Ubahn station; 3 things happened. One, my friend realized that I am extremely bossy when walking. I tell people when to cross, when to stop, when to not cross the street. I never realized it before but I guess I do get a little dictator-y on the streets. I think part of it has to do with the fact that I have no sense of direction so if I verbalize all the steps, I can't possibly get lost (Wrong. I get lost all the time). Another part could be from when the Kid was going through an absolutely horrific phase of only going down certain streets: if you changed the route, he would lose it. This actually ended up being pretty helpful when we moved to the new apartment and the Nanny had to bring him back from the old kindergarten. She still wasn't 100 per cent sure of the way home but the Kid screamed every time she took a wrong term like a Gremlin GPS.

So yes, I guess I am a bossy walker. The next thing that happened (on this short walk), as we made our way to the restaurant was that we (I) was accosted by a crazy man. As we rounded a corner, laughing about something, a man pushing a shopping cart (but did not look homeless), came up and yelled "NO LAUGHING!". At first I thought he was just joking because he kind of looked like an eccentric Italian waiter. But then he kept yelling "NO LAUGHING!" and got closer. My friend, board member as well, almost took off running because she totally has my back. I just side-stepped the crazy and kept walking as the guy yelled after me. My friend then said "You attract the crazies!" and I nodded "Yup. All the damn time." We walked on and suddenly I stopped and said "OOOH!! MIRRORS!" and she just shook her head and said "Of course. Of all the shops." Now, I love mirrors. Not just because they make for good selfies but because I love them for extra light in our apartment. As vain as I usually may sound, I actually hate being caught in a mirror when I am not aware. It's like the camera phone function on selfie mode when you aren't expecting it. It's terrifying. We finally made it to the restaurant and a few minutes later my friend and second board member arrived. We ordered pink gin and tonics, I asked if they agreed with me being Chairperson of the Beacon Beach House and after an awkward pause, I was voted in. Hear! Hear!

We ate dinner and laughed and talked and just after nine, being responsible adults, we all headed back home (See S.R., I'm not the bad influence!!!). I am very excited to continue on with the Verein work except that tomorrow I have a meeting with the Landespolizei in the morning and for lack of better term, I AM FREAKING OUT! I don't know what to expect and I hope that whoever I meet with is kind and takes pity and doesn't start swearing in Wienerisch. This is a big hurdle of fear I have to overcome but I will wear a low top and hope for the best. And now I am back at my computer after an hour break because the Kid had another freak out. We have no idea what are causing them but this one was the worst. I will be under my bed if anybody needs me. The Husband was at the gym when it happened. It's heartbreaking and I wish I knew what was causing them. It's extremely rare for it to happen twice in one day... and then another the next day. We will see how tomorrow goes. Ugh. I want to cry again. The Husband took the Kid to the playground and I am finishing up this post. I will take a quick afternoon nap because I am absolutely drained from earlier. The Kid is of course fine and acting like nothing happened. Tomorrow is Canadian Thanksgiving and I am bummed I didn't plan a feast of stuffing and pumpkin pie... but in November I will host an American Thanksgiving for friends and pretend it's not -5. I wish you all a fantastic Sunday evening. If you are up watching the presidential debate, I will be thinking of you. Who knows, maybe I will be up, with unfounded fears of being arrested tomorrow... Yaay! Happy Sunday!