Knocking on the door of the past

Fast asleep slowly I swim back to consciousness as I realize someone is banging on the door to the basement. I blearly open my eyes and remember that we are still living in my mother's basement and the knocking must be her banging on the basement door. "bang bang bang" then quiet..I settle back down with my daughter who, thankfully did not awaken and start to fall asleep again "bang bang bang" louder this time. I drag myself out of bed and realize that it is very early in the morning, the baby wakes up too and starts whimpering. "WHAT?" I say in an irritated voice, I can hear my husband groaning as he wakes up too. My mother opens the door at the top of the stairs "I have to go see Grandma in the hospital so I wanted to tell you that Dad is here and don't answer the phone" I can't seem to focus my eyes I am so sleepy "uh okay.....that's all you wanted?" She comes further down the stairs and hands me a sponge "here. use this to clean (something not sure what I am still half asleep) the baby stumbles in with half closed eyes "mommy? grandma?" My mother looks at the baby "someone stayed up too late last night" she says to her in an accusatory tone. She turns around and heads back upstairs, we can hear her stomping around on the first floor, making sure we are awake.

My husband asks "What the heck was that? she had to wake us all up to tell us not to answer the phone? You gotta blog about her, no one will believe it" I look at the sponge she gave me..it's used. Why did she give me a used sponge? what am I suppose to clean with it? What is the meaning of all this?

When we moved here I warned my husband that my mom would never let us sleep. She has always been of the opinion that people who sleep in will never make it in life. She used to wake me up every morning at 7 am even when I wasn't working or going to school. My mom is very opinionated and bossy. Some of her strongly held beliefs are:


People should work at only upstanding jobs like "accountant" or "secretary" The more mindless the task the better the job is. You must put everything into working, there is no room for sicktime or vacation.

People should live like its the colonial times. Apparently ye olde farming days were the golden age of mankind for my mom. Technology is evil!

People dont need to throw anything away and don't buy anything new. You don't need it. You can still use a tv antennae from 1962 (seriously she has one) No matter how old or broken it is it is still useful.

People should get up at the crack of dawn. This is partnered with her colonial living ideas.

Everyone should go outside every day for a long period of time. If you do not go outside for this period of time that only my mom knows the exact requirements of you must go back outside or face "The Puss Face"

People should not spend any money on anything that isn't necessary. You should only pay off debts and work. Anything else is wasteful and trivial. Consequently my mother has never been out of the country. That falls into the "no adventure" and "irresponsiblity" catagory.

The rules change all the time but it is up to you to figure them out. I thought if I moved my family in for awhile till we get our lives straightened out it would be a good respite but how wrong I was. I think I have doomed my own daughter to the same menace that has plagued my own life. I can only remember all the times I ran away from home growing up. I used to run away so often that my mom used to pack a suitcase for me. She knew I would be back, I had no where else to go. Even as an adult, I come back. After all, I am my mother's daughter.