Run-down

For the record, I am now seated in my office, typing this while Loreena McKennitt plays in the background, while I munch on raisin-laced biscuits and douse myself with Coke light. All this takes place in the early hours of the day, before the rest of the office drag themselves through the Gates.

The place where I slave away at my given tasks is not luxurious. Indeed, there are some among my colleagues who might regard it with some disdain. Still, knowing that I am only here to fulfill my duties for two years, and one of which has passed, does not inspire me to rage against the tides that washed me here. Still, the lack of support with regards to the technical matters often drives me to seek help back at my old unit. Not a particularly unappealing solution to my doldrums, I assure those who actually bother to read this.

Indeed, the situation, dire though it may appear to the casual reader, has not been as detrimental to my situation as one might suppose it to be. To be honest, the white-liveried commanderies here are more than a little chary of the rest of us, probably due to the fact that we can, if we so choose, to overturn their carefully orchestrated play meant for the sight of the Hierarchs. And so, we are left to languish in our positions, ignorant and ignoring the calls to battle.

Yet, despite the offer of respite that this situation affords me, I find myself hard-pressed to fulfill the demands on my time and my energies. To be more precise, I find myself stressed, torn and conflicted between the interests of the mind and the needs of the young. Truly, if I am forced to do so, I will simply point out that I am suffering from a malady of the mind known to most as the 'single parent' syndrome.

The wife has departed for the Great Southern Land, to earn her next laurels in the great campaign, leaving me and our daughter to wage our war on the tides of our lonely shore. At the same time, there has arisen a situation in her mother's family that requires me to take charge of the daughter for the space of two weeks, while the grandmother deals with the loss suffered by her eldest son. And so, I am left as sole parent, and sole caretaker of my daughter for these two weeks. If my daughter was as endearing as most believe her to be, it should not be so great a chore.

Ha!

Needless to say, my daughter's traits are far less appealing when viewed at proximity. The indulgence lavished upon her by her grandmother(s) has twisted her view of the world somewhat, and this is often opposed to the vision that I see. Which, of course, leads to the expected tumult: our time together is often spent in argument. And our time together has just been greatly expanded!

This shall prove to be a most ... interesting, and exhausting, experience.

Sigh.