Did You Hear That Blood-Curdling Scream Coming From Iowa?

She's.Going.With.Us.

MIL.The Queen.

Going.Camping.With.Us.

Four.Days.

(Insert scream here. Again.)

There went my peaceful 'mini-vacation'. No phone, no work. I was going to take my video taped shows I'm behind on watching (I'm up to about April). My 'puter, of course - not that I'll have i-net, but I can at least keep track of things to post later. My cross-stitch and crocheting. My stack of books. One of my pups is going - the little one, Frieda. I'd planned on lots of sleeping and drinking (I'm not driving anywhere and I don't have to go to work the next day...) and just vegging. Now? Now I have a hyperactive 5'3" 75-year-old woman who talks all the time wanting to share my space. She's already talking about taking the pickup and going to nearby towns. I.Don't.Want.To.

Fuck. I'm sorry, but that's just the way I feel. FUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I know she's lonely. I know she likes going to the races - she goes with Hubby every Saturday night now (drives him crazy!). BUT - she is not one to 'go with the flow'. She is a control freak and she gets it in her head the way she thinks things should go or what we should do and it's almost impossible to change her mind. She is not going to calmly sit by and watch me do nothing. She thinks this is a great opportunity for us to go do things during the day while the guys are working on the car. I don't WANT TO! How do I say, "Leave me alone" without coming off like an anti-social bitch? I mean, that's what I am, but I usually just avoid her instead of coming out and laying it on the line. Poor Hubby is caught in the cross-hairs. Even The Princess laid a guilt trip on him about taking her with. He can't win.

I even went so far as to go shopping with her and The Princess yesterday. Keep in mind that I am not a mindless shopper. I don't go shopping for the thrill of shopping. If I have to shop, I usually know exactly what I want and it's just a matter of going into the store and getting it, or at the very least maybe having to hit a few stores before I find what I'm looking for. I do NOT like "browsing" or just wandering aimlessly through the malls - especially when I'm one of those people who is thrilled to find something on sale for $10-20 and these people were looking in the $100 range. Not even neat stuff...! Some of it was just plain hideous.

Oh, God, I am sooooo not looking forward to this trip now. Maybe I'll come down with Ebola or something.

On the flip side, I can't because I've heard my son is going around telling everyone how tickled he is that BOTH his parents are going. In other words, he's really thrilled I'm going. Don't want to let him down. (sigh)

Maybe I can teach Frieda to bite before then.