"Oddball Family Conditions"

I am the younger, more vulgur version of my mother. We are so alike that it can actually be overwhelming to have us both in the same room together. When happy, we laugh like hyenas, but when antagonized, have been known to throw shoes (or worse). My mother actually once took an axe to the wall in the bathroom which my brother and I share. I can't even make that up. She decided it needed a more "open" feel, so instead of calling in a contractor like a sane person, she screamed at my aging father (for allowing the bathroom to be built this way begin with) and grabbed the axe from the garage. Needless to say, we had to call the contractor regardless.

"My Life and Hard Times", by James Thurber, is hands down the most timeless book I've ever read. It was published in 1933, but everytime I read it I feel like he's retelling a story that could have easily occurred yesterday. It's hysterical too. I find myself having to put the book down because I am laughing so hard that I am literally gasping for air. However, I think I'm mostly in love with the book because the family Mr. Thurber describes in his tales is so similar to my own; both totally bonkers and thick as thieves.

It's difficult to imagine the kind of person I would be today without my family and even more difficult to imagine how I would function on a daily basis without their constant love and support. Although my mother might be a little off her rocker, she's interesting, fun, beautiful and not at all boring. There's nothing worse than being boring. Afterall, "My Life and Hard Times" would not have been a best seller if James Thurber had had a conventional family. I hope that if I ever write an autobiography like Thurber, people might want to read it as well, not because I can write worth a damn, but because that little anecdote about my mother and the axe is just the tip of the iceberg.