A rat of a conversation

I had an interesting/irritating conversation today that really made me want to scream. I just had to share.

Male Someone (SO): When are you going to go back to work?

Me:  (Are you kidding me?) I do work.

SO (with raised eyebrows): Are you serious? I mean a real job.

Me: Ahem. I'm a writer (and a mother of three extremely active kids and wife to husband who is working on his MBA while holding down a job in which he is the manager). I never want to teach again if that's what you mean.

SO: You don't have to teach. You can just get a mindless job somewhere.

Okay you MSO, no SOB... obviously you know nothing about my life and how writing is my passion, how money doesn't matter to me and how my husband is very supportive.

 I changed the subject and wrapped up the conversation, ran inside and began this post (which really makes me feel like a tattle-tale).

So tell me, how would you respond to something like this?

P.S. Immediately after I wrote this I checked my email and this is what I found!

~~~~

Someone is now following Bird's-Eye Gemini

Someone just started following you at http://lkkolp.wordpress.com. They will receive an email every time you publish a post. Congratulations.

Why wait?

And now I wait. It really IS the hardest part, you know. Especially when the wait is l--o--n--g.  "Patience is a virtue," my mother always told me (in a sing-songsy voice) when I was growing up. I used to say the same words to my students when I was teaching. Now I say it to my own children. But the cliche is so passé in this day and age. I mean, who has to wait for anything anymore? Our society has become  like a stepped-on ant bed. We are the (fire) ants scattering about in a million different directions seeking immediate gratification. Need a new read? Fresh material is just a click away. Need to reach someone? Call, text, Twitter, Skype. The options are endless 24/7. Everything is at our fingertips. Except when it comes to one thing. Before I tell you what it is, let's stop for a minute.


What does "Patience is a virtue" really mean?

According to my handy old Webster's dictionary, patience means the quality of tolerating delay, provocation, annoyance without complaint or anger; and virtue is morality, goodness or uprightness; a special type of goodness.


I guess it means to be good while you wait. Well, if you want to learn how to be patient like that, then become a writer. Sometimes you have to wait for eons before you hear back from editors. And you must be good while you wait because you don't want to piss them off.


So I sit. I wait. I check my email every fifteen minutes. And I write. Such is the life of a writer.


What do you find difficult to wait for?