SURPRISE!

Boy, I don't know how to say this, other than this is like a fantastic Christmas gift to me, even though it isn't mine.

Got our work done early enough to take a break. T was sitting next to me, and she'd had a really good day. Well, who am I to let that continue? LOL I decided to ask her if she'd gotten her sink put in yet.

Apparently whatever I said to her the day of her meltdown stuck. She said she went home and called her dad and her sister and read them both the riot act. I guess she informed them that she had been promised that her trailer would be finished in June or July at the latest, and it was now December and a full year since they'd started remodeling. And...she wanted her home to be done. No table saws in the bedroom, no excuses that she had to wait.

And, she told them, too, that if they couldn't get these things done, then the family was not to expect her to be a nice person any longer, in fact, she told them that she'd just write herself out of the family, because they weren't giving her the respect she deserved.

And, they got her kitchen sink in...and today she had to be home to let a repairman in so he could install some better faucets on the thing. Yayyyy T!!!!

And, to make it even sweeter (to me, anyway) she had told me her nephew was staying with her for a couple of weeks while he looked for work and found himself a new place. She's been taking care of him just like a mom, fixing meals, doing laundry, etc., and this kid doesn't lift a finger to help her. In fact, she said she came home the other day and found the house a pit. She spent the next couple of hours picking things up.

So, she said something to the nephew about how she'd appreciate a little help in keeping things neat. Apparently he got mouthy at her, and told her he just didn't need a bitch ordering him around.

I said, "He really called you a bitch?" She said, "Yes, and I told him that I was being nice enough to let him stay, and if he was to continue to stay, he needed to follow my rules. And, if that was not possible for him then he could get out permanently."

I'm so proud of her I could just burst! She said that she's sick and tired of being the baby, and being the one that everyone can shove around. She said it was scary to confront them, but she figured she didn't have anything to lose, and maybe everything to gain. And so far, so good!

Now if we can keep that self-confidence going through her work, she could still make it happen.

I'm guardedly optimistic again.