Having been raised in a very superstitious household - where spilled salt and broken mirrors were considered unfavorable signs of bad things to come - and being a very clumsy child, I was a cause of deep concern for my family and often times found myself the subject to one of my grandmother's homemade remedies, or lucky charms.

Did they work?

Depends on who you ask - especially, whenever things finally went right - my grandmother swears it did and growing up, I was scared to death that lightening would strike and somehow I would be blamed.

And then, it did - twice - and now, I've got both my husband and poor mother-in-law scared to death!

You see, she reads my blog - hi mom, how's it hanging? - and my husband is simply horrified by the fact that I might, you know, write about something that his mother may NOT necessarily care to know, or read about.

SNORT.

Like, she raised five children and has babysat ALL four of our children on numerous occasions. I mean, my kids can't wait to tell grandma, "Our house almost burned down" and "The car almost broke," or, "Guess what Mommy did?" and give me up...all...the...time.

Trust me, she knows.

"Are you recovered, yet?"

My husband got home from work and I had just finished chasing my husband into the pool - he was in a terrible mood and needed to soak his cranky butt, badly - when my mother-in-law called, as I was finishing dinner.

"Um...from which thing?"

I mean, seriously.

"Oh, I'm sorry, the thing with the lightening, losing power and everything."

See, she knows.

"Oh, that...yeah, how weird was that?"

Silence.

"We want to come over and hear all about it - when would be a good time?"

Wait a minute.

"Uh...well, it's almost seven...and we're almost ready to have dinner...so, I guess in an hour?"

My in-laws almost NEVER do anything, without consulting their calendar, or calling, well in advance and - since I am considering changing my first name to, last minute - this was a most welcome and refreshing change of events.

"We'll be there in an hour-and-a-half, then."

Good, just enough time for me to fumigate the house (stupid cat) light some candles (stupid dog) and hide the laundry!

"How are you feeling, today?"

Okay, this time, my husband looked just as confused as, you know, I can get.

[shrugs]

"Fine...uh, mom...why?"

Uh-oh.

"Well, we heard what happened to you...and thought we'd call and come right over...and wanted to see if you were, you know, okay."

You smell something?

"No, I'm fine, lightening either hit the branch, or close enough to fry the circuits and cause it to lose power."

Because, judging by the way my mother-in-law was looking at me, I swear my hair's on fire!

"By the way, how did you know?"

[shrugs]

"I read it on HER blog!"

[biting lower lip]

"I didn't say...I mean...I DID say that he came home...I guess it sounded, you know, a lot worse, huh?...I mean...did I mention I made him Grape Nut Pudding!?!"

Morale of the story: be careful what you blog, it could get you fired - or, scare your mother-in-law half to death and cause you to burst into flames and wish you were hit by lightening, twice.

Lucky for me, technically, I don't work and we're not related.

Stupid blog!