Χρόνια Μου Πολλά!!Να Με Χαίρομαι!!

Most habits die hard.
Old habits die even harder i dare to say.
Today is my name's day.(yes,ετσι το λεμε στα αγγλικα αν και σε πολλες αλλες θρησκιες δεν υπαρχουνε ονομαστικες γιορτες...from what i know atleast..anyways..lucky bastards!!!)
This year though things are a bit different.
This year i don't have to worry about cleaning and getting the whole house in order because all the snooping relatives will come not only to wish me χρονια πολλα αλλα και να δουνε τι 'καλη' νοικοκυρουλα που ειμαι (which i am only when i want to..μου βγαινει το αντιδραστικο μου και εδω).

Really though, have you ever considered when people use your bathroom that they open all your cupboards to see what's in them? To see if you have anything 'hidden' behind the shower curtain like a load of laundry that you didn't have time to put up to dry or that didn't fit in the washing machine so you could hide it from all the curious eyes around?Or what about all the wardrobes and drawers in all the bedrooms?Under beds?Behind doors?Under the cushions of your couch?I just got a shiver with that one..(μου εχει τυχει γιαυτο και οταν εχεις τρια παιδια μπορεις να βρεις απιστευτα πραγματα χαμενα στους καναπεδες!!!)

Don't laugh.It happens. I've heard other 'polite' members of my and other relatives gossipping about other such incidents. Everything is under inspection, from the type of nuts you serve, to the glasses you serve the drinks in, to what you wear. Νot to forget the yearly question and later discussion about 'γιατι δεν εχεις στολισει το σπιτι με τις γιαγιας σου τα πετσετακια?Κριμα.." (whoever created πετσετάκια and thought of putting them on any and EVERY flat surface in the house was TRULY not well in the head!!!) This is not a celebration.It's more like the Inquisition!!

This year i don't have to worry about if the top shelf on my bookcase doesn't have all the books perfectly aligned or if every single cupboard in the kitchen is well organized.There's always a cupboard somewhere that we just shove things in and it ALWAYS happens to get opened when the room is full of people and the Tupperware just comes crashing to the floor and you try to find an excuse like "ΑΧ!! αυτα τα παιδια μου!!!παντα μου πειραζουνε τα ντουλαπια!!!" and my mother-in-law (ex mother-in-law actually..i wonder,do all of the relatives from your ex husband's side become ex-es now? ex-brother-in-law?ex-this?ex-that?) ALWAYS happened to be there at that exact moment and i knew i had lost a few points in the νοικοκυρα department.

This year I'm not going to celebrate. Besides the fact that it's a weekday (thank god!),this year I'm in a new social category. I have the capital D stamped on me, just like they used to do in the New World when women would commit adultery and had to wear a red capital A on them. I'm d i v o r c e d. (separated actually but same difference)

You know, I think that most married couples are afraid of other couples who have separated. Maybe they think it's contagious. There is no other explaining it. Everyone has just seemed to disappear(except for a limited number of friends).Apart from a few awkward phone calls with very uncomfortable long gaps of even more awkward pauses of silence, people don't know what to say. They just look at you with pity in their eyes and say 'κουραγιο' as if I've gotten some kind of incurable disease. Even though it's ridiculous and shows how more ridiculous people are, it's really quite funny though and i get out of having to get the whole house ready for public inspection because of it!!!

But still,it does seem strange. It has been a habit that I've been used to doing for almost fifteen years and habits are the things that remind you that things have changed. Some habits make you feel good and warm like every morning,when i get up,i turn on the radio without even a second thought. But loosing your sense of pattern sometimes makes you feel a bit down in the dumps. For a moment or two of course because then i remember that i don't have to serve anyone with a ridiculous tray this year and then i feel much better!!!

So χρονια μου πολλα και να με χαιρομαι!!and i try to you know. I'm proud that my head is in the clouds most of the times and my feet don't touch the ground when i walk unless I'm getting ready to fall..then i step on my tip toes but just because sometimes i have to...