So right now you are so angry and hurt that you can scarcely think straight. The strangest thoughts come to mind. You suddenly understand the term “crime of passion” and why so many cheating husbands end up dead on TV.

You consider destroying everything of his that’s of value, but there’s a little corner of your mind that keeps saying, “Don’t burn your bridges.” He was devastated when you caught him. It was almost like he was glad, like he wanted to get caught because he couldn’t stop himself on his own. He always was weak like that.

And then you find a printout crumpled in the trash can next to his computer. It’s search listings with the following headings: Memphis Family Lawyers and Memphis Divorce Lawyers. But the most damning evidence that he wasn’t devastated at all, was this: Memphis Child Custody Attorneys. No way is he taking your kids away from you. No way!

The other day I was thinking about natural disasters and what would happen to me and my family if we were ever to be caught in the midst of one. I decided that day that I was going to be prepared in case it ever happened and I started making lists of things that we need and evacuation plans just in case.

I packed a list of things that we could buy like bottled water and canned goods that would enable us to survive for seventy-two hours. I thought that it was vital for the whole family to know the plans so we had a family meeting to discuss the emergency procedures.

The family all seems to understand the plans and I am very glad that we will be prepared for anything that comes our way in the future. It makes me feel good to know that my family will be alright and I think it is a good idea to be organized for once.

There is nothing more frustrating or embarrassing than going to a store, waiting in line, and then having problems with your credit card.  Irrespective of whether or not there is problems with your account, people just look at you like some sort of criminal and you feel ashamed when your credit card transaction doesn’t go through.

I recently had that experience at a store where I bought a few hundred dollars worth of groceries.  It took awhile to get to the front of the line, and when I went to pay, the terminal said credit card processing error.

All I could think is “Great, now what”.  I had to leave my food and go phone the credit card company.  When I talked to the friendly customer service representative, I was told that it was just a glitch with the system and that everything would be fine the next time I used it.

Though it did work after that, it is hard sometimes to deal with the embarrassment that goes along with having problems with your credit card - but I guess that is life, right?

My best friend’s sister-in-law’s stepfather’s sister — I think I got all those familial connections right — was recently widowed. Aunt Hattie is only 62, so it’s hard to believe Baby Boomers still have the kind of marriages where the husband does all the heavy lifting — physical or figurative. I can’t imagine never having pumped gas, taken out garbage, changed light bulbs, balanced a checkbook or bought a car. Aunt Hattie has done none of these.

If you know someone like her, encourage her to start planning for the future now. Tell her Aunt Hattie’s story. Help your loved one to visualize opening a California Medicare Supplement quote and wondering what to do about it, or getting a life insurance bill or Social Security Statement. Would she understand what they mean, how they apply to her and, above all, what to do?

Bereavement is hard enough. No woman should be left helpless at a time like that. Aunt Hattie is having to learn too much too quickly about things she should already know how to do.

It has been a long time since I have run into anyone that attended the same high school as I did.  It is not that I am really old, but I have moved from the city that I attended school - and it seems that no one ended up living here.

But, last night I ran into an old high school acquaintance that I used to have a crush on.  Katherine surprised me when we crossed paths in the music store, and we had to go out for coffee and catch up on our lives.

I told my life story, and she told me hers - as it turns out, she is now a Motorcycle Trader.  I was a little surprised, but honestly, her father was a biker, so it doesn’t surprise me.

We had to part ways, but she gave me her number so that we could stay in touch.  Man, it was so great to see her again - she is even more beautiful than I remember.

Over the weekend, I attended a costume party.  Sure, a costume party in April is a little strange, but it was put on by some accountants I know to help celebrate that tax season was over.  They felt that by dressing up, they could take their mind off of all the tax returns that they had done and the couple left that they had to do.

Before the party, I decided that I would dress up as something different than the average person.  I wore an Astro costume as I am the biggest fan of the Jetsons.  Sure, the cartoon was popular years ago, but that didn’t matter to me.

It was nice to see that the attendees at the party recognized who I was and appreciated my choice of costumes.

But, now that it is over, I have to return the costume to the store.  But I know where to get a costume the next time I need to dress up for another party.

I went to the library today to pick out some books.  Usually, I just read works of fiction and I enjoy the escape from my real life that they provide.  Sometimes, it is nice to think that I could be flying on the back of a dragon, or rescuing a damsel in distress - that would be the life.

Now, I usually get some books to read for fun as well as one educational one.  Today, I decided to look in the computer section to see if I could find something new to learn.  There was a lot of programming books on the shelf and only one book that really caught my eye.

The book that I took out from the library ended up being a book about online dating.  Sure, I didn’t need to find a date by any means, but I always wanted to know how they worked and how people were actually able to weed out the weirdos from the legitimate people on there.

I will have a few weeks to read it, but I am sure it will end up being very interesting - maybe I could become an online dating guru!

When I left high school, I thought that I would never have to do homework again.  Well, I guess I thought wrong.

For those of you out there who haven’t figured it out yet, when you have kids, you will eventually have to do homework.  Sure, you don’t have to do all the work anymore, but rather it is like you are a tutor helping your child.

For example, my son is doing a report on world destinations that he wants to travel to.  Now, except for Disneyland, he really didn’t have any ideas.  So we went to the library and took out some worldwide travel guides to help inspire him.

Now, all he has to do is decide where he wants to go, and we will have to do a write up.  We have a few more days to get it done, so I have told him that he needs to get working on it.  So much for getting away from homework…

I will be going on a trip outside of the country for most of the summer, so I want to make sure that all my belongings will be safe when I am gone.  I have already found someone to house sit for me, now the only thing that I have left to deal with is my yacht.

Normally, I would be fine leaving it at the lake for the summer, but if I won’t be there to check up on her, I don’t feel safe doing so.  Instead I have decided that I should get some yacht storage and keep it safe in there.

Now, there are many companies that offer yacht storage units in town, but I wanted to find the one that offered the best price, but with the best security features.

I ended up getting a yacht storage unit that was further away from my home than I would have liked, but that offered better protection than the others.  It will be sad to store my baby for the entire summer, but at least I will know that she is safe while I am gone.

A writer friend of mine has been teaching a writing course at the local joint vocational school for a couple of years now. A number of her students have written books that went on to be published. Occasionally she will show me some of their manuscripts, particularly if she’s having difficulty assessing the publishability.

One particular manuscript had her stymied. The writing was impeccable. The text flowed from one subject to the next. It was clear the woman knew her subject intimately. Therein lay the problem.

While the first two sections of the book were on creation and use of magick talismans and magick amulets & charms, in the last section she described in detail magick spells & rituals to raise the dead!

I said, “Give her an ‘A’ and tell her no one will publish her book, but if she makes it fiction, she’ll have a bestseller.” And we were right.