Five things about me that you don't know

Sky Maybe has tagged me to write about "Five things about me that you don't know". Now, the last time I participated in one of these all hell broke loose what with troll infections, etc. But this time will be better right? It must! Especially because I'm going to reveal some really new stuff.

1. I have ADD, techincally ADHD inattentive type. I've had it all my life, and was never diagnosed until about 5 years ago. Ritalin, Dexedrine and more specifically Concerta now have radically changed my life. Unfortunately, this does not undo a lifetime of unmedicated verbal gaffes, school failures, broken friendships and employment issues. Why haven't I written about this before? Because when I have told people, they think less of me, and tell me so.

And if all of you on the internet did that, it would kill me.

ADD is a real disease and people like me really suffer when we can't function, but it is also the joke du jour for the public, and the medical profession. So real sufferers like me hide, terrified we will be humiliated by bullies.

2. On a lighter note, I have previously hired a professional organizer to deal with my house, and I may have to do it again. My basement is getting so bad, I can't walk in it! This is a problem because many important things are in it, like Christmas presents---

3. Those credit cards we paid off recently? Weeell, to start DH's new business we loaded up credit cards and lines of credit, to the tune of $123,000. As of today, we have paid off two Visa's and one Amex, at $20,000, $9,000, and $11,000, for a total of $40,000. We still owe $83,000, but a large part of that is the line of credit for the house and car. Yes, tsk, tsk...I know, but starting the business was worth the risk, even when there have been months when I couldn't figure out how to pay the bills. The good news is, now we can.

4. My DH makes a dramatically larger salary than me, and since he is so much farther ahead in his career, I can never catch up. By the time I make as much as he does, he will have retired. When we met he was already in a law firm and made loads of cash. He was also 8 years older. It didn't matter at the time, but as I've gotten older and it's been harder and harder to catch up, it does tend to wear on the ego to realize that I'll never be his financial equal. Morally, mentally, in parenting skills, and in lots of other areas, we are equals, but in earning capacity, not. And yes, this is a frustration.

5. I am not just an advocate for grieving parents and the infertile, I also advocate for victims of crime, especially abused women and children. In fact, I'm going to a conference in December that will bring together victims, law enforcement, prosecutors, shelter administrators, and others to try to find solutions to the problems women experience. I'm not sure if this will work or not, but hey, it can't hurt to try, right?

So, here I am internet, hoping that you are open and accepting of me. And I'm tagging AJW5403 at My Pain I Hide, and my newest commenter, (welcome!), NinaB at White Chocolate Baby Dream. V cool name for a blog BTW...