Dear Elli,
We live in Northeast Ohio. Home of the "Rubber City". That's what they call Akron. We just call it Akron.
It's cold here in the winter. And it snows a lot. I don't like to bobsled. Or snowshoe. Or ice fish. So I stay indoors for the better part of half the year. Approximately November through March. And I mostly bitch the whole time about having dry skin from the damn furnace blowing hot air at my face all winter.
Tomorrow it will drop below zero. That's Fahrenheit. Not Celsius. Which means it's gonna be really freaking cold. Way colder than even Northeast Ohioans are accustomed to.
The last time this happened, I was in middle school. I remember standing outside waiting for the bus. And feeling like someone hit me in the face with a metal baseball bat. It's truly a feeling of being violently beaten. Can't breathe. Tears and snot streaming down your face. Every muscle in your body flexed in an attempt to stay alive. It actually hurts. And it's not very sexy.
Anyway, somebody asked me the other day why I still live here. Good question. It's certainly not the stunningly pleasant weather that keeps me. I guess the answer is that I love you. And I think it's important for you to live close to your extended family. Because that was important for me as a kid. And I also need their help. Because you drive me bat shit crazy sometimes.
I almost left once, before you were born. When I finished my training at work, I knew I would be sent to a field office. My bags were packed and I was ready to go, Baby! Anywhere! Dallas, Phoenix, Jacksonville, Atlanta. Whatever. I was game for anything.
You know what happened? An executive sat me down, congratulated me on successfully completing my training, and said, "Jennifer, your services are now needed in Cleveland, Ohio". I'm not shitting you. I'll never forget that statement. When I left his office, I promptly walked into the bathroom and cried.
Cleveland? For real? I didn't even have to move, for God's sake. My drive to work was just more shitty than before. But at least I was rocking a company car!
Anyway, my escape from Ohio didn't really work out so well. I'm still here. And now you're here, too. And so is most everyone else in our tight-knit family, which pretty much keeps me happy. And I've made my peace with the fact that God wants me to suffer from dry skin for roughly half the year. I probably deserve it.
I love you. And I love Northeast Ohio.....from April through October.
Mom
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