Out of The Anonimity Closet

Ooh, is it easier to breathe out here? Brighter? Less cramped? It was never my intention to write this blog anonymously. It just kind of, well, happened that way. And I wasn't sure how I could write about my life without occasionally mentioning my sons. I began to refer to them by their ages, which can be tricky, since it keeps changing all the time. And I sound so very much more exotic as Bellona of Avalon than as my real name, which as many of you who actually know me, is Carla. Since I blew the elder son's cover on Saturday by referring to him as Michael, all of us may as well step out into the light. The 17yo, when asked if it was okay if Mom named him in her infamous blog, said okay. He shall henceforth be called Reid in this space. Which also happens to be his given name. Sometimes I call him other, less flattering things, which I reserve the right to do at times since he remains a 17yo boy and does things that 17yo boys do. And thereby earns those less-flattering references. To recap, hello, I'm Carla, aka Bellona of Avalon, my goddess name. The elder son is Michael, the younger son is Reid. The cats have always been Newton and Einstein. The various beasties who reside in my anxiety closet have mostly been identified, named, and either banished or tamed. The garden gnomes who live outside in the back yard are Edgar and Vladimir. And I thought it was crowded in the closet.