The Other Madness(es)

I enjoyed being Queen for a Day (or two) on Rex Parker's website--see link in the previous post. It caused somewhat of a stir to use that title, but anyone who saw that show in the sixties knows what I meant. I started decorating my new office yesterday. The calendar selection was pretty picked over, but I found a Mary Engelbreit for two dollars. April featured my absolute favorite--It's Good to Be Queen.

I rest my case.

Why Madness--Crossword and Otherwise?

On any given day, there are things out there that just make me crazy. Some days it's crossword puzzles, some days it's something else. Today's madnesses:

Tax season. My husband is a CPA with well over 150 corporate clients. Most of them are Sub-S corporations, and their tax returns are due on March 15. That leaves a month to do the individual returns for those clients, and the 100 or so others who just come in for their 1040s. The IRS could come up with something that's better for everyone. I get crabby this time every year. It's almost over, but these last few days are the worst.

Teenagers. I have two, both girls. I've earned a few more gray hairs this last week. Elaine, the older of the two, became engaged, but she's only 19. I hope she and Josh will wait a couple of years. The news of the younger is not so good. Let's just say we have an empty nest sooner than expected.

The Sunday Crossword. There's no doubt that Brendan Emmett Quigley is a gifted constructor. That said, I don't much enjoy themes like today's. Even though I'm a random thinker, there are times when that just doesn't help. The fill wasn't too difficult, though, so I ended up with a lot of correct letters in all those l-o-o-o-o-o-o-ong answers. The only one that jumped out at me was BUILDABETTERMOUSETRAP. I liked CDCASE (41A: Music box?), USURY (102D: Asking too much of someone?), GRILLS (94D: Subjects to cross-x), PEEKAT (10D: Glimpse), and CRISISPOINT (43D: Do-or-die time).

ACPT. I did my third puzzle today--the one with all of the death puns. I used the entire 30 minutes and 4 theme answers have blanks. I finished the first in under 12 minutes, used all the time on the second but was missing a theme answer. I'll finish and send my packet in, just to see how the scores add up. It's good practice--at least I see the levels of difficulty--but there's no way to compare my performance (sitting quietly in my office) with all those who were in a room filled with anxious competitors.

My husband (hereafter called Don) thought that this blog title sounded negative. That's not what I intended. I think Diary of a Mad Housewife was kind of floating in my mind when I was searching for a name. So, to offset any possible negativity, here are an equal number of things for which I am grateful today:

• Four hours spent with girlfriends--eating, drinking, and being merry.
• Sunshine and warm weather, even though it's April in Colorado. I wore capris and sandals.
• Finished a book I was reading just for fun; i.e., not for book club.
• The garage door just opened, which means my sweetie is home.

Good night ; )