“Cora, I don’t want to talk to my mother. Call her and tell her to send that gal over with my girls. I want to see how these outfits look. Tell her I don’t have all day.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Cora ambled on downstairs. They ain’t no way she’s gittin’ her claws in them babies. She dialed directly into Charles’s office. “Miss Ellen told me to have Josie bring the babies over right away.”
“Thanks for calling, Cora. I’ll take care of it” Charles answered.
In about ten minutes Charles called Ellen. “Ellen Dear, Miss Geneva called me to check on the baby this morning. I just ran by. Ginny has a fever and may have chicken pox. They can’t go out, but I can pick you up to visit them if you want.”
“No! I don’t want to get exposed to chicken pox. My face might scar, besides, I’m not speaking to Mother. Do you think the baby’s face will scar?”
“Young children don’t usually scar. It’s adults who have to worry. Your mother didn’t know if you’d had chicken pox. Do you remember?” He had certainly struck the right chord with her.
“No, and I don’t want it. The dresses will have to wait a few days,” she told him.
“Whatever you think, Dear. I’ll be home around six.” Charles had scared her off for now.
After the call from Charles, Cora overheard Ellen calling her friend Sarah Marshall. Of course, Cora couldn’t hear Sarah’s replies, but it was clear Ellen made opportunities to point out all the ways she felt superior to Sarah.
“Sarah, I’ve decided to invite a few more friends to tea. There’s no point in going to all that trouble for just you. I’m feeling great. I have a new hairdo I’m dying to show off. I never realized how smart I’d look with short hair. If you didn’t have such a round face, you might want to try it. Of course, my hair curls naturally. You’d have to get a permanent wave, and those just fry hair. That certainly wouldn’t make you look any better. I guess I’m just one of those lucky women who doesn’t show her age. Charles still thinks I am a bride. If we didn’t sleep in separate rooms, I’d never get any rest.
You know my Cousin Jean died. I was always her favorite. I’ll be inheriting her farm and her family home in Jasper. She was from a prominent and very wealthy. She rarely used her lake home in Jasper, but kept it in lovely condition. I’ll be sure to invite you when we have a country weekend. Got to go. I have a lot more calls to make.”
Ellen had never spoken directly to Cora about the tea, but clearly expected her to be ready. I am so glad I ain’t got no friend like her. Woo, Lordy, that’d be rough!
Glad Charles managed to save those children from their mother, at least for a while.
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She was a hazard.
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As Rosie says, she IS ill, but living with it was not fun. Mother was not so much a narcissist, but she could tear you to shreds with her words very much like that. It’s hard to build self esteem in that environment and as a child, you don’t recognize it for what it is. You just accept it. How I figured it out, I’ll never know, but I’m glad I did. I just felt so beat up all the time and unfortunately, at times it was both physical and mental.
I have a feeling that had one of us been like Charley, she might have been different, like she was taking in a broken animal. I could be wrong, but I think she would have been protective. She would have taken her to doctors to have her “fixed” right away. Since she didn’t like us girls, she probably would have encouraged the boy part.
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My dad always liked the NEW baby and my brother. Once the older girls went into puberty, he hated us.
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Sad.
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I always dreaded seeing my father come home.
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It’s amazing any of us survive. Lol
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She is in full flight now!
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She is a disaster.
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Ufortunately she sound’s like my Mother… This cames alive I could see her sneer, the squinting of her eyes as she visulised the chickenpox, the
Checking of her reflection to be sure she was as exquisite as she remembered on last glance. Nicely done.
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Thank you. I am trying hard to portray bipolar narcissist.
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If you need any tips I can draw on a wealth of sarcasm spite and spittle recorded on my internal cassette player. Years of snide backhanded compliments “you look quite respectable today… then that shape works on bigger bodies” *sniff*. This week drew a gem! ” Oh do you have to dress like you are practicing to be a lesbian”? I was wearing Jeans and doc martins while removing nettles as tall as I am at our new house…
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It must have been miserable. I had a neighbor who bviously despised her daughter. She’d buy wonderful things for herself and get her daughter’s Things at a thrift shop saying, “There’s no point in buying you nice things. You just mess stuff up.”
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Yep I heard that one too. At 85 she is as acerbic as ever, I was one of four girls so at least I wasn’t alone. Linda are you on twitter? I am @cheshirebest I can’t find an about page so not sure of whence you come…
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I am on Twitter. Nutsrok1. I am very poor on Twitter. Check your email.
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I will follow happily.
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I love your site! I am from Louisiana. Chk email.
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Thank you, my sister lives in Pooler Georgia we hope to visit this year. I am afraid I can’t find you on twitter😇maybe you can find me then i will follow back.
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I followed you. Have you been to Georgia before. Bring summer clothes. It’s hot!
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No we haven’t , she lived in Vermont for twelve years and i went there three or four times but we haven’t managed to get to Georgia yet. Fingers crossed it will be this year.
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Get ready for accents. Georgia folks have an amazing drawl! I love it.
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I am hoping for lots of material… be afraid Georgia… haaha
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Look for rednecks! It gets exciting when they yell, “”Hey, Bubba! Hold my beer!”
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Nasty business them rednecks, but they will get short shrift from me if they want a beer holder… buy the boy a tray I say. Haaaheee!
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What do they expect asking someone to hold their beer.
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My mother was like that too! It’s amazing we survived.
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Aybe its what made us who we are… kind tollerant non abusive human beings. 😇
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Probably.
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I believe that is absolutely true. It was hard to live through but at the same time, I feel her pain as well. That war inside that cannot be quelled and something deep inside telling you its wrong. Mother once said, “I think I’m going crazy”. In those moments I thought she knew, but you couldn’t say anything, especially agree because she could snap in a second and the Ellen personality would be there.
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No kidding. Occasionally my dad would cozy up and say, “You can tell me anything.” Wild horses couldn’t have dragged a problem out of me. It would have been a catastrophe to confide anything.
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Ahhhh, so you do know.
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Yeah, I do.
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Oh please don’t attatch my name to the it that is her condition. Which my Mother would never ever agree with, in fact her denial of any thing wrong doing (as it isn’t just her tongue) would be vehemently denied… we are all liars except she.
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Yep. And you won’t let her treat you right!
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She’s back and nastier than ever 😳
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Wouldn’t you love her for a mother.
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I feel sorry for her, there’s a reason she is as she is 😟
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She is mentally ill.
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Reblogged this on Smorgasbord – Variety is the spice of life and commented:
We are now on part 29 of Charley’s story which in fact is centred around her mother Ellen.. who indeed needs to be centre of attention.. trouble ahead narcissism and motherhood do not go well together..
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Thanks so much, Sally.
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Pleasure Linda.. great story… very well told. xx
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Wouldn’t you hate to deal with her.
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Yup…
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Thank you.
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She’s delusional…
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It’s all about her.
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Totally x
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She is whacked. ☺☺☺
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A real mess.
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It sounds like her “friends” are a long-suffering lot. Charles is clever. 🙂 — Suzanne
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With friends like her……..
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