I'm baaaack....

Monday, April 23, 2012


I’ve been encouraged to come back to the blog. So here I am. Larissa Mogano, what follows is entirely your fault, for better or worse.

Much has changed since my last post in – gasp! – 2008. The whole premise of this blog was my Big Opt Out of the corporate world. Well, sometime in 2008, shortly after my last blog post, I opted back in, aaaand, it was kind of a fiasco. I was supposed to launch a career and save a boatload of money, but instead, I found myself cube-caged and clawing to the precipice of my sanity. I was barely 30ish years old, mindlessly shuffling endless paperwork and facing my Great Existential Dilemma: “Is this what I’m supposed to do with my life, who I’m supposed to BE?” These were rhetorical questions, of course, because I already knew the answer: my conscience screamed NOOOOO every time I saw yet another passive-aggressive note taped to the break room fridge.  Always one to listen to my gut (thank you Oprah,) I Opted Out again.

To bring you up to speed on my life since last posting: Still super happy with my super hubby as we approach our 15 year mark. The kiddos are older now – teenagers, both – and rarely have time for their ol’ mum, so I’ve some time to pursue some things entirely unrelated to child rearing. I’m a full time student again and I’m much better at it this time around. 4.0, Mammajammas - that’s GPA, not BAC! I’m also a bartender a night or two per week, because, hey, why not; I’ve got the youthful glow and flagrant disregard for age-appropriate clothing to pull it off for a few more years.

I’m glad to be back in the land of the blogging. I haven’t been doing much (okay, any) writing lately that isn’t academic in nature, so I need the motivation to get words on the page. It’s also interesting that I’m making my grand return in another election year; I began this blog in 2008, during election season. The act of writing is, for me, always self-revelatory and in writing during the ’08 election I discovered a lot of new things about my personal and political beliefs. I’m excited, and admittedly nervous, to discover what the writing will dredge up this time around.

Christmas Dinner 2.0

Friday, December 26, 2008

Christmas Day has come and gone. All went well and all were happy. Today is Christmas 2.0 in Meadville with The Hub's Clan, who have long since become MY clan as well and not just by marriage but by an odd and humorous convergence of the family tree that is difficult to diagram without specialized genealogy software.

Christmas here is fun and laid back. We are awaiting the yearly convergence of the far-flung. I'm currently on my second JD and coke, listening to turkey pop and hiss in the oven. We've just finished a multi-generational discussion on the importance of church/state separation and now The Hub is walking dogs in the rain. Grandpa is watching an illegally downloaded advance copy of Soderberg's Che movie on the Mac. Grandma is haggling me about my newfangled Turkey cookin' skillz. Boys are playing with power tools. All is as it should be, and I am warm and happy.

The Christmas that Wasn't

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

December again and I don't feel very Christmas-y. Maybe that's because this is the year that I think I finally lost my faith, religion, whatever you want to call it. I got all kinds of introspective about it round about the middle of the year. I spent months and months going over it all afresh, everything I've been taught to believe, this whole doctrine of Christianity trying to find some magic bullet Bible verse that makes it all jibe with what is logically, tangibly, provably true and good. Turns out, there's just not much there bolsters a case for faith. Turns out that more than providing answers and truths, the Bible has provoked questions and exposed itself as contradictory. Turns out that actively, critically thinking about faith and religion it has proven to be its very undoing in my mind.

So this is my first Christmas season as an Agnostic and it feels a lot different. Being certain of things for so many years was easy and comforting and required very little of me. Fessing up to Not Knowing is sorta scary. It requires that I read and research and write and in short, do a lot of mental and spiritual leg work. It requires that I think and I'm not used to that.

I'm not the "Tear Down the Manger Scene this X-mas" type, so I will wish a Merry Christmas to all of those who believe and find comfort in the story.

Wanted: Friends

Saturday, October 25, 2008

So some gals post personal ads for boyfriends when they're unsatisfied with the current state of their romantic relationships right? Well I'm posting a personal ad for friends. There, I've said it. I'm trolling for friends. Not like "casual encounters" friends cuz I'm all stocked up in the sexual satisfaction department. Just plain old friends. Just a few good acquaintances who could turn into good friends if all goes well. Not because I'm currently desperately friendless and alone, holed up in the dark with internet porn or anything like that. No, no. I've got plenty of acquaintances and a few really good friends. It's just that my friends and I have always sort of been on different pages in le livre de vie. When my peers were in college and reveling in all things Frat Boy and Spring Break-y, I was home raising babies and reveling in all things Barney. But now that my babies are getting older (12 and 10 respectively) and my social life is becoming viable again, all my friends have decided to up and have babies. I stayed in when they went out. Now I want to go out and they're staying in. I'm only 31 and 31 is far to young to be feeling the pinch of limited social options.

I'm not looking to get back to the aforementioned Frat Boy era of yesteryear. In fact, I thank my lucky stars I missed all that. I'm just looking for some mellow chicas to hang with on occasion. I'm actually quite fun, or so I've been told. Here's a bit about me: I read a lot. I write, though not nearly as often as I should. I really want to play with papier mache and paint. I'm learning to knit. I'm not fancy or high maintenance. I'll never own a Coach Bag. I am of the unwavering opinion that Thick is the new, improved, jucier and far more delicious version of thin. I'm bringin' sexy back. I'm in the throes of a love/hate literary relationship with Henry and Anais. I spend many, many hours bowlside playing Bettie/Skate Momma. I heart classic pin up girls. I love New York. I hate L.A. I only wash my hair once a week because the dirtier it gets, the cuter it looks. Sometimes I play dress up when I have the house to myself. I'm not really tech-y. I can play approximately 6.5 chords on a guitar. I have some blessed, new-found free time with which I'd like to do something socially and spiritually relevant, but - alas - to date I've been only a Slacktivist: all idea(l)s, no legs. I'm no good at mincing words. I'm no good at dancing but I dont' let it stop me. I drink my PBR straight from the pounder can. Even before it was trendy, I had a thing for scarves. I'm a good Momma and my kids are good kids. I'm a good little wifey and my hub's a great guy. My jokes are laced with wit and sarcasm. I smoke more than I ought to. There is no blouse on earth that can contain my cleavage so I've given up trying. I love camping. I like Scrabble, but I loooooove Upwords. I never remember the rules to card games. I never remember album/artist names. Tattoos make me happy. And so on, and so on, ad nauseum.

I'm looking for a compatible Pittsburgh-based female with whom to share some or all of the following: Happy Hours , Knitting Circles, Free Movies in the Park with kiddos, babysitting duties, bread recipies, occasional saturday nights out with our significant others, bad jokes, good books, ridiculous anecdotes on motherhood/housewifery, funny youtubes, 80's night dance-till-you-sweat-a-thon's, camping trips, beers and board games on the porch, a hand to squeeze when getting inked etc. Oh, and smart conversation, too; I like my women all nice and educated-like (but you must not condescend to me for opting to be Stay Home Momma for the time being. Oh, and you also can't tsk-tsk me for being kinda Tits Out sometimes because, if you've been paying attention you'll remember what I said about the cleavage.)

If this sounds like you, drop me a line. We'll go on a Girl Date!

It's In His Genes

Thursday, May 29, 2008


The Eldest has inherited many traits from me: a slightly crooked front tooth, a hair-trigger temper, unruly hair, unparalleled genius.

And now, drumroll please, Craigslist Savvy. Just like his Ol' Momma, he can pretty much wish a Craigslist posting into existence and have the WhateverItIs home before anyone else even knows it was up for grabs. Case in Point: he found this yesterday. It was FREE. And now it's his. I'm convinced it was there just because he wanted it to be. Words cannot express how proud I am.

Now we just have to figure out how to get this monstrosity home.

Just when I get to feeling old and boring....

Wednesday, May 28, 2008


.....I am reminded that we are sometimes fun and often adorable. And that we have huge heads, of course, but that goes without saying.

Call me a BragHag if you will....

Friday, May 23, 2008


...but, man, my kid is too smart for his own good. He's NINE. And he doodled this.