The week (yes it was only a week, not two) without the Dedes was like a holiday for me. And my head is brimming with new ideas. Thank God for that, because, honestly, I really need to have new ideas. I just lost one of my jobs, I am not teaching this semester. For sixteen years it has been a regular income for at least half the year. This semester the powers to be reduced the contact hours for the students and of course the part time staff had to go first. So I ended up with no hours, funnily enough at the same time I got a letter telling me my hourly pay-rate has increased. It is really quite hilarious.
I always had a plan for when this is going to happen. As soon as I am not tied down by weekly lectures, I wanted to go to Europe for an extended period and travel along the Baltic Sea eastwards. Unfortunately this is not going to happen now as we are doing up the house. Bad timing I’ll say.
Sorry, I am blubbering at the moment and if my Dedes were here they would now remind me, “it’s not all about you, Missi!” But of course I am constantly thinking about what I should do next.
The Dedes won’t like what I have to tell them when they come back. (Maybe they sense something is up and this is the real reason why they stay away). I will have to tell them – and believe me, it doesn’t come easy – they will have to pay rent. They have to stop being freeloaders and contribute to our daily living cost. Otherwise I won’t be able to keep them and will have to find myself another honest job. Still, I don’t want to sell them, they have too many stories to tell. I came up with another idea and summoned them to the house for the weekend to break the news. No discussion this time. I will just tell them! Unless, of course, they have come up with a brilliant idea themselves.
Because I feel so bad about it, I am wondering what they are going to say. I have to prepare myself mentally for the right answers. I can hear Devil already… telling me the whole house thing was my idea, therefore I have to deal with it. They also might want to move back to the burrow as soon as I tell them, as life is so easy there. But let’s face it, the burrow is only a summer house – come winter and the rain, they must come inside. Then they will be very, very happy that the house is done up and warm and spacious and they have the large new studio space to run around in. They really have to be realistic about it. I am not asking too much, am I?
dedepuppets 
Sorry about the job…I’ve heard this story too many times myself. How will the Dedes pay rent…do some of them have jobs themselves?
Yes unfortunately losing a job it is a fact of life. I usually have a few on the go of which I drift in and out of. But sometimes when the stars are aligned very badly everything comes to a grinding halt. The Dedes will have to find a job if they like it or not.
Liebe Dietlind – das ist aber sehr blöd, du Arme!
Das ist nur eine Frage der Zeit, denke ich. Es kommt davon, wenn man nicht festangestellt sein will. Es kam auch nicht unerwartet alle Anzeichen waren da.