I hadn’t realized how hot the house had gotten until Dan got home and questioned why it was 89 degrees in our bedroom. I thought I was sweating because of all the adrenaline following the Blogher15 Conference. I checked the thermostat and sure enough, something was wrong.

A series of fiddles and phone calls and it was confirmed that the central air was indeed broken, “Sorry lady. Just turn it off and we’ll see you in the morning.”

I knew this news was not going to go over well, and struggled to keep a smile on my face.“Won’t it be fun to camp out in the basement? It’s nice and cool down there.”

I would love to share that my entire family was excited and happy with the situation. I can’t – we are a NORMAL family. There was a lot of storming around the house and dinner was completely silent (following the rule that if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all). We did manage to get the basement set up without killing each other and then discussed bed assignments. The original plan was that Dan and I would share the pull-out couch, Jack would take the blow-up bed and Anna would sleep on the floor. She’s heading to Outward Bound next week and it seemed like good practice.

An hour into our camping trip, I realized both of the children were still awake and I told Anna to take my spot. I would share a bed with Jack to try to calm him. Jack doesn’t have the ability to easily shut down for the night. He gets distracted and fidgety. Brain damage is strange. I spent the next several hours trying desperately to get Jack to go to sleep. Just when I would think he was out, he would sit up and attack me with his elbow, leg or his entire body. At one point, he fell asleep with his body folded completely over me. I was so tired that I just let it be and closed my eyes. When I woke up a couple of hours later, I realized that he had peed on me.

I know that more than one of you are saying to themselves, “Last time I hung out with Jess, I did notice that she pees an extraordinary amount . . . maybe . . . ”

It’s true. I am a pee-er (spelling?). I’ve been told my issues are a little gift from the ALD gene. Woman (generally) don’t develop major symptoms, but they do tend to receive an assortment of little reminders that the gene is lurking. I don’t have much to complain about. Some numbness in my feet and a bladder than doesn’t work perfectly. My Fitbit tells me I wake up 4-5 times a night and walk approximately 170 steps. During the day can be even worse. My family is accustomed to many unexpected stops while on the road.  Dan knows to ask, “Should I wait for the next rest stop or just pull over?“  – I always have a roll of toilet paper handy and my husband it a good man.

I do admit to my “issue”, but last night was all Jack. I still love the boy, but I don’t like being peed on.

Love, Jess