Launch!

Sorry it has taken me so long to write this. I expected to write it last year.

Friday was her moving day. She invited over some neighborhood husbands and the couple that she parties with. While I was taking our daughter to dance class, they were moving furniture out of the house and into the POD in the driveway. When we finally got home the gang was just finishing up. When they saw me pull up they quickly closed the pod and locked it. (She got a new lock to replace the one I snipped.)

The crowd surrounded my wife and a couple of them nervously acknowledged me as I walked inside. Once I was in, I could hear the laughter outside. I'm sure they feel bad for the pretty woman who was so abused by her husband. But luckily the house was not damaged much. There were still a few chairs, tables, and couches.

A few friends and my brother came over as my ex-wife and her daughter finally got into their cars and drove off into the night, leaving the pod in my driveway. Without much fanfare there was a transition from one type of government to another. Now I only have to blow up that swastika on the roof.

I had to laugh because her daughter took one of my computer monitors but could not get her hands on the computer. I'm sure she thought that she got me on that one, but she doesn't know that that old monitor doesn't even work.

Anyway, it didn't take long before the pizza arrived and the stereo was hooked up. We even got the disco mirror ball working for the perfect effect. Beer flowed like wine, and everyone was having a pretty good time. Even my daughter, who was just enjoying all the attention and music without understanding the real cause for celebration.

In fact, when her mother called her later in the evening, I turned off the music and disco ball so she could talk. But she soon got bored with the conversation and asked me, "Daddy, turn on the disco ball!" Everyone laughed at the thought of what this must sound like on the other end of the phone.

My daughter eventually went to bed and the party continued, and for the first time in many years I felt comfortable having friends over. I could play the music as loud as I wanted. I could play the piano freely, if not expertly. I could walk into any room without being hit with hate rays, and I suddenly had a lot more closet space.

True, it was very sad on some levels to see big empty spaces where there had been a family a long time ago, but there wasn't anything I could do about that. I didn't cause the divorce and I couldn't have stopped it. So my conscious is clear. Another Captain and Coke, please.

My friends and I had a great time until 2 AM and then they left and I went to bed. On Saturday I took my daughter to Storybook Land. On Sunday I mowed my lawn and installed a new lock on the door. On Monday the POD disappeared and I painted a bathroom. Now I look forward to going home after work. I try not to think about the loss. I have plenty of things to keep me busy.


They took my large bucket of pocket change (probably $500), and a new ceiling fan and web camera. But I can replace those in a few years.






I think I'm going to like living in peace.