Okay, Here Goes

I wasn't planning on making a big announcement about this, but I'm finding it hard to write about anything else without broaching some of the changes that are afoot in the Kidde Woodward Family.

Specifically -- oh, just spit it out, Mikala -- I moved out of the house April 1st.

This is, of course, sad, and hard, and scary as hell. It also feels like the right thing, for now. We don't know what the future holds in the long term, but for now we are finding our way slowly into this new arrangement. All four of us appreciate your love and support (though we may not always want to talk about it, especially the kids -- your discretion in this matter is much appreciated).

This is not the place for a prolonged emotional analysis of the situation -- even if I felt capable of delivering one -- but I can answer a few logistical questions:

I'm renting the house next door to my sister, which also happens to be across the street from the school yard. It's a seven minute walk from the house on Mead Street. I feel very lucky to have found a place so close by, with so many ready-made connections to family and community. (Though of course I'm missing Mead Street something awful.)

The kids are spending half the week at each house, which seems to be working out okay for them -- as okay as such a wrenching change can be, that is. I'm fortunate enough to be able to see them frequently on the days I don't officially have them: they stop by after school on their way to the other house, or I sign one of them out for a quick lunch at home, or all four of us go to one of Josie's rollerderby bouts together. This helps a lot. We have also been experimenting with occasional family dinners.

I am officially, seriously looking for ways to increase and stabilize my income. The contract work I've been doing for the last year and a half has been great, but it's not at all clear to me that there'll be enough of it to pay the rent going forward. I welcome any and all suggestions regarding jobs, projects, book deals, foolproof online investment schemes, etc.

Again, I don't expect to be going into a lot of emotional details here. Ironically enough, I'm actually a fairly private person when it comes to painful stuff like this -- which is why the whole thing may come as a surprise to some of you. I'm hoping that at some point in the not too distant future I'll get to a place where I can share some stories from my -- our -- new existence.

Meanwhile, please hold us all in the Light.