My beloved rabbit Momo died when I was freshly 20, my parents were on vacation and I was home alone.
TW: Detailed description of pet death and the aftermath.
She couldn't really move the night before and was shaking. I had no way to get her to a vet and I don't think they could've done anything. It was old age, it was her time. I called my best friend at 6 in the morning to tell her (I had called her the night before as well). I called in sick, going to work was obviously not going to happen. I was crying on and off, trying to get my mom on the phone, but it was too early. My bestie got us breakfast at a bakery because she knew I eating wasn't on my mind. She sat with me until my mom finally called back around 10 and gave us permission to bury Momo in the yard after taking pictures. We wrapped her in a towel and put her in a shoebox along with some flowers from the garden. Digging just a shoebox sized hole was way more difficult and exhausting than I would have imagined.
But it felt good to lay her to rest, and I like knowing that she's still there. She loved running around in the backyard, eating the lower branches and leaves of the hedge and bite off flowers and leave them on the ground 😂 She liked digging too, and was much better at it than us, biting through roots in her way.
I didn't feel like an adult during the experience at all, but in retrospect I'm glad I shared this experience only with my best friend. My parents never seemed to develop deep bonds with my pets or the rabbits they had after I moved out. With my friend, I was able to grieve and bury my rabbit as the family member she was to me.
I turned 30 half a year ago and the grey hairs started turning up around my birthday, right on schedule. I'm okay with them, but they do remind me that I'm getting older.
Bulletin- I can never get it right. I feel grown up when I do a task right away. One day my check oil light went on, and I went to the garage right away. So grown up!
"Convenience" is the worst word. When I first started my job as a paralegal, I finally decided to type an entire page of nothing but the word "convenience" over and over until my fingers had the muscle memory to know what to do.
I also try not to tell kids how much they've changed since I last saw them, especially when I remember not even recognizing people who said that to me when I was young. I try to treat each time I see them as if I'm being introduced for the first time, because to them, it may feel that way. And if they do remember me, then they tend to brighten and become less shy quicker. If you just go straight for hugs or hair mussing they can kinda shut down.
The bittersweet part is that when I think about myself, I still have an incredible hard time picturing myself as an adult: I often realize that on many occasions I don't feel like doing things (events, tasks, chores) because there “will only be adults there...”
Then my hernias and pop knees take care of that, getting out of bed in the morning to remind me that I am now part of the regular audience for those kinds of occasions.
I felt like a real grownup when I hosted a nonprofit board retreat at my house and all my friends/co-board members oohed and ahhed over the new (giant, beautiful) stainless steel sink I'd gotten installed.
Interestingly, privilege is a word I have to spell check every time. I feel especially grown up when I use it to call out bad behavior or to stand up for important things when I could just stay quiet. I wish, tho, I could just be that brave about making a dentist appointment.
I have to think about "restaurant" every time (I say rest-AU-rant in my head); was one I had to memorize when younger because it's not how it sounds, at least in my Californian dialect (rest-raunt would make more sense to me).
I'm 47 and I kept expecting people to laugh when I said, "I gotta put on my readers!" Then I realized that nobody thought it was funny because it seemed age appropriate to them!
Whereas I on the other hand feel like I am cosplaying an old person!
Saturday I was helping a friend close their shop and accidentally cut my finger with a ceramic tile. The thing was flowing. Someone was beside us and saw me as I calmly reached into my tote to get out a red bandana and wrap it around my finger ( probably thought that is why I carry a red one). They asked If I was going to treat it and I said yeah as soon as I get home.
I walked to the bus stop and awaited with hand wrapped. The flow stopped and I didnt stained anything dont worry, Im careful. I also didnt use that hand at all.
I got off at my apartment and went upstairs.
As I reached the restroom and unwrapped the flow started again.
Knowing that I had to do all that while being careful and keeping focus was my reminder that I am an adult.
Sometimes you dont need to ask for help, but you surely would love to be able to. So dont worry and ask for help. Even if everything is under control, you can help someone learn how to ask for help when they need it. I
Those are my least favorite two words to spell too. They shouldn't have done that to the letter c. It has enough to do already. License. Autocorrect is good. Sometimes.
That is the best definition of adulting I’ve ever heard. Thank you.
I have to put on my “big-girl pants” to schedule medical appointments where I’ll be somewhat naked and then might be told I have cancer, also having to talk to customer service about anything.
Spelling gets more confusing when there are different variants in British* English, American English, legalese, etc.
*also former colonies, with their own variants, and/or countries that choose to translate into that spelling system.
This is beautiful. I hate spelling the word accommodate. Too many different vowels and double letters to remember. Like an earlier commenter, I also feel like an adult when I do a task that needs to be done promptly. Yesterday I renewed our motor vehicle registration. It wasn't prompt-- I'd noticed it had been expired for four months. But still, adulting.
My beloved rabbit Momo died when I was freshly 20, my parents were on vacation and I was home alone.
TW: Detailed description of pet death and the aftermath.
She couldn't really move the night before and was shaking. I had no way to get her to a vet and I don't think they could've done anything. It was old age, it was her time. I called my best friend at 6 in the morning to tell her (I had called her the night before as well). I called in sick, going to work was obviously not going to happen. I was crying on and off, trying to get my mom on the phone, but it was too early. My bestie got us breakfast at a bakery because she knew I eating wasn't on my mind. She sat with me until my mom finally called back around 10 and gave us permission to bury Momo in the yard after taking pictures. We wrapped her in a towel and put her in a shoebox along with some flowers from the garden. Digging just a shoebox sized hole was way more difficult and exhausting than I would have imagined.
But it felt good to lay her to rest, and I like knowing that she's still there. She loved running around in the backyard, eating the lower branches and leaves of the hedge and bite off flowers and leave them on the ground 😂 She liked digging too, and was much better at it than us, biting through roots in her way.
I didn't feel like an adult during the experience at all, but in retrospect I'm glad I shared this experience only with my best friend. My parents never seemed to develop deep bonds with my pets or the rabbits they had after I moved out. With my friend, I was able to grieve and bury my rabbit as the family member she was to me.
I turned 30 half a year ago and the grey hairs started turning up around my birthday, right on schedule. I'm okay with them, but they do remind me that I'm getting older.
Bulletin- I can never get it right. I feel grown up when I do a task right away. One day my check oil light went on, and I went to the garage right away. So grown up!
Oh my goodness. This happened to me too! Like a gift on my doorstep. Felt potent. A lil witchy in a good way.
I cannot spell occasionally. Ever. (It was wrong when I typed it into this comment and had to be corrected!)
Same.
"Convenience" is the worst word. When I first started my job as a paralegal, I finally decided to type an entire page of nothing but the word "convenience" over and over until my fingers had the muscle memory to know what to do.
I also try not to tell kids how much they've changed since I last saw them, especially when I remember not even recognizing people who said that to me when I was young. I try to treat each time I see them as if I'm being introduced for the first time, because to them, it may feel that way. And if they do remember me, then they tend to brighten and become less shy quicker. If you just go straight for hugs or hair mussing they can kinda shut down.
The bittersweet part is that when I think about myself, I still have an incredible hard time picturing myself as an adult: I often realize that on many occasions I don't feel like doing things (events, tasks, chores) because there “will only be adults there...”
Then my hernias and pop knees take care of that, getting out of bed in the morning to remind me that I am now part of the regular audience for those kinds of occasions.
I felt like a real grownup when I hosted a nonprofit board retreat at my house and all my friends/co-board members oohed and ahhed over the new (giant, beautiful) stainless steel sink I'd gotten installed.
Interestingly, privilege is a word I have to spell check every time. I feel especially grown up when I use it to call out bad behavior or to stand up for important things when I could just stay quiet. I wish, tho, I could just be that brave about making a dentist appointment.
I have to think about "restaurant" every time (I say rest-AU-rant in my head); was one I had to memorize when younger because it's not how it sounds, at least in my Californian dialect (rest-raunt would make more sense to me).
I do the same in-my-head pronunciation every time!
I'm 47 and I kept expecting people to laugh when I said, "I gotta put on my readers!" Then I realized that nobody thought it was funny because it seemed age appropriate to them!
Whereas I on the other hand feel like I am cosplaying an old person!
I'm very sorry you had to scoop a bunny into a bag, but if that sad action makes you feel most grown up, then I love that for you.
Saturday I was helping a friend close their shop and accidentally cut my finger with a ceramic tile. The thing was flowing. Someone was beside us and saw me as I calmly reached into my tote to get out a red bandana and wrap it around my finger ( probably thought that is why I carry a red one). They asked If I was going to treat it and I said yeah as soon as I get home.
I walked to the bus stop and awaited with hand wrapped. The flow stopped and I didnt stained anything dont worry, Im careful. I also didnt use that hand at all.
I got off at my apartment and went upstairs.
As I reached the restroom and unwrapped the flow started again.
Knowing that I had to do all that while being careful and keeping focus was my reminder that I am an adult.
Sometimes you dont need to ask for help, but you surely would love to be able to. So dont worry and ask for help. Even if everything is under control, you can help someone learn how to ask for help when they need it. I
Those are my least favorite two words to spell too. They shouldn't have done that to the letter c. It has enough to do already. License. Autocorrect is good. Sometimes.
That is the best definition of adulting I’ve ever heard. Thank you.
I have to put on my “big-girl pants” to schedule medical appointments where I’ll be somewhat naked and then might be told I have cancer, also having to talk to customer service about anything.
Spelling gets more confusing when there are different variants in British* English, American English, legalese, etc.
*also former colonies, with their own variants, and/or countries that choose to translate into that spelling system.
This is beautiful. I hate spelling the word accommodate. Too many different vowels and double letters to remember. Like an earlier commenter, I also feel like an adult when I do a task that needs to be done promptly. Yesterday I renewed our motor vehicle registration. It wasn't prompt-- I'd noticed it had been expired for four months. But still, adulting.