It Ain't Just A River In Egypt

I thought I was done convincing myself that my life was anything other than what it is. I was wrong. Apperantly I still had a bit of denial left in me.

I guess I can't blame myself too much for falling under the sense that things were really ok afterall. I mean, it did seem better. At least for a little while. Hub hadn't been on the computer in weeks. He did check email, but only while sitting right next to me where I could see the screen and know what he was doing. He'd begun coming to bed with me as well.

It started with the night I let the walls come down. The night we had our special moment. No promises were made. If they had been it would have been a warning to me that things weren't different at all. The promises mean nothing. They never have. Empty words. Lies. I hate the lies most of all.

We somehow managed to make a connection again. I had thought that impossible for so long now. It felt amazing. It also distracted me from reality. I knew deep down things weren't really different. That eventually he would show his true colors again. But for a time, I let myself forget. Really, what I let myself do was pretend. To pretend life had not become horrible and unbearable. To pretend that our marriage was not only able to be saved, but worth saving. It felt good to think that way, even if only for awhile.

That's the thing with denial... you know it's not good for you, but it feels good to be there, deep in it, anway. You let the river carry away all your doubts and fears. The cooling waters soothe away the pain. The current keeps you afloat even though you were sure you were going to drown. You're not alone anymore because there are creatures all around you, floating along, riding out the waves at your side. You know that the creatures actually have sharp teeth and that in the end they will end up eating you alive... but it doesn't matter because at least you're not alone. So, you float along in the cool waters, your cares drifting away, holding hands with that croc and feeling like life is really ok. Until you look down and see that crocodile smile for what it really is. Then you brace yourself for the bite that's about to come...

Brutal Honesty

Sophie tagged me for some Honest Scrap, which i think translates into unload some true crap about yourself. I appreciate the tag, I feel so accepted now. ;) I’m supposed to share 10 honest things about myself and then tag 7 others. I am going to take a pass on tagging 7 others. I haven't really been around this bloggy circle long enough to even know 7 other bloggers to tag. I'll give you the 10 honest things, with a bit of a catch. I am doing two lists. If you want simple, random little truths just read the first one. If you want the deep down ugly stuff then go ahead and read the 2nd list. Most of them will be things that I have been meaning to blog about but haven't done yet. I will get the subject out there in this post and follow up with more detailed posts soon. (or hopefully soon) here we go then



the shiny happy list:

1) i am 36, look like i'm 26, sometimes act like i'm 6 but feel like i'm 56
2) i recently dyed my hair light golden brown. well, that is what it said on the box... really it turned out dark, nowhere in the neighborhood of golden, brown.
3) i am the youngest of 5 kids and my parents have been married for more than 50 years. i came from a pretty dysfunction free family (i managed to find the dysfunction all by myself)
4) i cry when i see my kids perform in school concerts or plays
5) i cry at sappy movies (hmm.. i cry a lot)
6) i grew up with a corn field in my back yard
7) i read the first Twilight book in 3 days and the 2nd one in 2. I am just getting ready to start on the 3rd. I need to read it and the 4th by Christmas because they are actually gifts for Dot and I am reading them myself before I wrap them up for her. yes, i know that's terrible!
8) my favorite holiday is halloween because i love making costumes
9) i would much rather give a gift than receive one
10) my favorite food in the world is fresh baked bread

now for the brutal list:


1) I lost my job (part of which was to order office supplies) for making purchases that were not in the best interest of the company. And yes, this one will have a follow up post because it's something that will take explanation. Explanation but not excuses and that my friends is the tough part.

2) I have not been without a guy in my life since I was 16. I have always had a new boyfriend before leaving the one I was already with. This one will need to a post or two as well.

3) I have always made the worst possible choices in my life. In that way I have not been a very good person in the past. (just look back at 1 and 2 for proof) I have decided to change that though.

4) I have this weird fear of talking to people on the phone. I never call anyone because I am afraid I am interrupting their life with my call. And as far as calling businesses I am just really freaked out at the idea of having to call and talk to someone. I have no idea why that is, but I have been that way as long as I can remember.

5) If my marriage wasn't so screwed up right now and if I could afford it I would adopt as many kids as I could afford to raise. I love children but hate pregnancy and childbirth. Plus it makes me cry to know there are children in the world who are without families to love and care for them and I would love to give at least one of them what they are missing. It breaks my heart that I will probably never get to actually do this.

6) I am scared that I screwed up a really good friendship when I slipped. This guy is a good friend of ours, Hubs and mine. And I am aware that this guy had as much a part in my slip as I did and I am totally not owning all the blame. But I am still worried about our friendship. (this one will probably have a post of it's own eventually too)

7) we are a family of 5 living in a 2 bedroom apartment because it is all we can afford right now

8) I tend to avoid my family (parents, bros and sisters) because I feel like the loser of the family and I am embarrassed of my life right now.

9) When I first learned about the things Hub was doing online I tried a lot of crazy stuff to get his attention back on me. I didn't know about sex addiction yet and didn't understand the real problem. I thought if I did certain things he would want to be with me more. (this is very likely to be the subject of some posts, but for now it's hard to think about let alone write about)

10) I have really low self esteem and I am terribly afraid that I will pass that trait on to my kids.

One Special Moment

He held me close. I could feel his arms around me pulling me tighter, closer in to his warmth. I felt his hand, hard and calloused rubbing my back. Soothing cirlces of contact swirling across my skin. The stubble on his cheek scraped along my cheek, my temple, my forehead as he lifted his head to kiss me gently on my hair. I burrowed my face into his neck breathing in the old, familiar scent. "I miss you" I whispered. "I miss you too," he answered back as he held me even closer.

For a small while at least, Hub and I shared something special. A few moments of forgetting the past and letting go of the pain. We held on closely knowing it wouldn't last for long. But still, we held on.

I Slipped

I did it. I slipped over the edge. I am no longer on the verge.

I hate to admit it. I do. I hate to admit it. But I don't hate that I did it. Oh boy does that need an explanation though. Because the reason I don't hate that I did it surprised the shit out of me.

I learned something tonight. As much pain as he's caused, as much crap as he's done... I still love Hub. I still want Hub. I still desire Hub.

This slip, this flirtation gone too far was a lesson on my own feelings. I am not sure I like what I learned tonight. But I needed to learn it.

(the rest of this is going to be very real and very revealing so back away now if you don't want to go down that road with me)

I wanted to know that I could find pleasure elsewhere. I wanted to know I wasn't dependent on Hub for this. But I am. The fact remains that he is the best of my life sexually. And I freaking hate it! I didn't want it to be true. But it is. I spent the evening with another man and when it was over all I wanted was to be with Hub. Hell, during it all I wanted was to be with Hub. To be with the man that knows how and where and when and what and well... he knows me, he knows what I like. We'll leave it at that.

Now I am even more angry and frustrated. Angry with Hub for screwing up what we had. For taking what seemed like the perfect relationship and turning it all into this big mess that it is. We should be happy damn it!

So what I learned upset me but at the same time it made me realize that if Hub can somehow find his way through the crap, if he chooses to fight the addiction and win... well, then maybe we really do have a future. Maybe, just maybe, we can be happy. For real this time.

On The Verge

I am on the verge of doing something stupid. I know it's stupid. And childish. And selfish. I know all that and still I am dangerously teetering on the edge of going over into the land of revenge.

No. Revenge is not the right word. I am not considering doing this out of spite.

Lonliness. Hurt. The desire to be needed, to be wanted. That is what has me at this point.

I simple flirtation could become more. My mind tells me I have the right. My heart tells me it needs this. My body screams to be touched. What's left to tell me NO?

SCREAMING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am so bored and lonely right now that I could SCREAM!!!

I want friendship. I want companionship. I want what I used to have!!!

Tears are threatening to fall. I fight them and fight them. I am sick to death of crying over all that has gone wrong in my life.

I want to skip to the happy ending. Or at least to the happy part.

The Fall of Hub: part 1

Hub worked in professional sports. I won't mention what team or even what sport. That's not really important. It is simply the fact that he lived in that world that matters.

It is a world like nothing I had ever seen before. Through the years I never stopped being amazed at how people went out of their way to do things for these men. Gifts, expensive gifts, were thrown their way regularly. It was almost unheard of to pay for a meal when going out to eat. There were some guys who had people buying all their groceries for them and even cooking their meals. I do not mean that they hired someone to do these things. That would have made sense. No, this was something else entirely. This was young woman doing these things for them simply to be near them. For to be near them was to hold out a hope that perhaps they would notice you. Getting noticed gave them the brief hope of becoming a girlfriend and then a wife. (of course there were much, much worse things these women did to get noticed) There were even families who would do things for these men in hopes that they would take notice of their daughters. Parents who actually hoped for their daughter to get involved with an athlete so that they could have something to brag about to their friends.

It is a crazy world. One that I never felt comfortable being near, let alone being in.

Hub was not an athlete, he was a trainer. Somehow that made me feel secure about our relationship. At least at first. I knew women threw themselves at the athletes and I would never have gotten involved with one of them. I knew the risks, and it was one I never would have taken. Or at least I thought I hadn't taken the risk. Little did I know that women would try to climb the ladder, so to speak. It was like getting your foot into the door. You could sleep with someone working in the front office, then move up to the training staff, from there on to the players. That was a fact Hub didn't bother to mention to me, until it was too late.

I am getting a bit ahead of myself in this story though. All that comes later. First there were the good times.

It was by accident that I got involved with a man working in pro sports in the first place. It was the off season when I met him. He was simply a man I took interest in, and he took interest in me. It was after months of casually running into each other at different places that we had our first date. It was on that first date that I learned what he did for a living. I guess I would be lying if I said that I wasn't impressed a bit myself. While I certainly wasn't a groupie out to find a way to get in with the players, I was a fan of the team. The idea of going to games for free and of getting to go into the "off limits" areas of the arena was appealing as well. Still, it was more the man than the job that had my interest. He was good, kind, funny and he spent a great deal of time with me. Almost always wanting to be with me. He seemed perfect. A year later we were married.

I was stunned at first to be a part of this new way of life. Then I was impressed by it. Getting into any club in town without having to stand in line was awesome. Having the alcohol flow freely was great too. I do indeed mean free. We never once paid for a drink in all the times we went out. We went to expensive restaurants, ordered whatever we wanted off the menu and never paid for that either. It was an amazing life. Impressive for sure, but one I never really felt comfortable in.

I am, and have always been, a blue jeans and t-shirt kind of girl. I now had a husband telling me that I needed to dress in nice clothes and that skirts were preferable. I was supposed to look and act a certain way. For his sake I tried to change the way I looked. I bought the clothes I hated to wear, I wore high heal shoes although I struggled to walk in them, and I went to the salon to get my hair colored and styled. I made the physical changes. It was made clear to him in no uncertain terms though that I had no intention of changing who I really was. If he wanted someone who would act a certain way, then he should have found someone who was indeed that way. He fell in love with the real me and if that wasn't good enough around his friends and co-workers that was too damn bad. He actually apologized and told me I was right and that I should be me because that was the woman he loved.

I will continue this another time. I am to the point where I learned about his past and I am not up for telling that at the moment.