Two Years at DD.

May fifth came and went, and I neglected to mention it was my second anniversary on Dear Diary. It seems so strange now to go back and read some of those earliest entries on the Salamander diary. I was absolutely clueless where I’d be two years hence, when the pressures on my life would take such a different direction. Back then my primary concern was life after divorce. Now my energies are focused simply on living.

My experiences on this site over the past two years have been a mixed bag. I’ve met some extraordinary people, and seen some amazing grace under fire. I’ve seen some big-hearted gestures, and some small-minded petty cruelty. I’ve been subject to everything from cheers and moral support through to derision and ridicule. I’ve experienced people who do very nice things for no good reason other than the fact that they can, and people who do some very mean-spirited things for no good reason other than the fact that they can. In other words, this site is as real-life as any community could ever be.

To the people I’ve become closest to (Slipperman, Lilith, TraumaMama, MoonRiddenGirl, franny, and a very special cool kid): Thanks for getting me through hard times, and for making the good times better. To others that I’ve come to know and respect through their diaries (you all know who you are because I leave you comments): Thanks for the peeks inside your lives and your thoughts, which often grant me a better perspective on my own life and thoughts. To a minority who really should go unmentioned: Thanks for teaching me new forms that true cruelty and egomaniacal maliciousness can take. I’d never in my life experienced such egocentric disregard for the feelings of others, and it has been a lesson I’ve taken to heart.

Something has been biting the heads off of some of my newly sprouted morning glories. I’m not too upset yet, since I planted too thickly and would have had to do some thinning anyhow. I only hope that whatever it was had only been doing a taste-test and has no intention of coming back to finish its salad. I noticed this morning that the first of the moonflower seeds appears to have sprouted, but I’ll have to investigate more closely this evening to make sure that’s what it is, and not just another morning glory. Yesterday and today have been chilly, wet and generally miserable, so I expect that the growth rate of my little plantlings will be slowed down a bit. Now until the fifteenth are the critical days, since the fifteenth is our frost-free date. This next week will tell whether or not I’ve lost my little bet with Mother Nature and will have to sew new seeds.

I got a call first thing at work yesterday from my car salesman, who wanted to let me know that he had negotiated with the owner of the dealership and gotten me the CD upgrade for my new car free of charge! The poor Socialist is going to have to come up with another birthday present for me, I fear, since he originally planned to purchase this for me for my birthday. If you’re reading, sir, baubles will do nicely. Nice, sparkly, glittery, set-in-gold baubles are always appropriate. If not, you can get me the new Harry Potter book.

I have to say how pleased I am with this dealership. The test of true service doesn’t come when everything goes right, but instead in how the company reacts when things go wrong. In this case, things may have gone wrong, but the service and treatment I received in resolving all problem issues has ensured that I’ll be one of the best ambassadors for business this place could hope for.

I get my hair trimmed and colored tonight. It was originally scheduled for Saturday, but my hairdresser became overwhelmed with requests from high school girls who wanted their hair done for the prom that evening, so she asked if I could move the appointment to a weeknight. I hope I don’t get caught here too late, because I want to hit the bank first and try to get that problem with my checking account statement straightened out.