MythBusters

Here are five myths about being a single mother, and the real scoop behind the myth:

You poor miserable cow

Actually, even though there are days when it's no picnic, I'm probably the happiest I've ever been in my life. I think there's a certain amount of fulfillment in doing something everyone acknowledges is hard by yourself. And it helps that I have a great kid, a supportive boss, and a bunch of awesome friends.

You must hate men

I really like men. I like their perspective, and their company. I just don't want to have a 'relationship' with one right now. That would be short changing everyone concerned. Though I still fancy quite a few of them.

You must be after my husband

Unbelievably enough, I have felt this vibe from a couple of women. Now tell me, why would a single mother complicate her life by bonking a married man - are you crazy or just unbelievably insecure?

You have an unhealthily close relationship with your child

We are very close - we've been through a lot together. But my kid is also awesome company - smart, funny, compassionate and very perceptive. I dunno if it's unhealthy, but he's my preferred companion most of the time.

You must be reaming some poor guy for child support

Umm - nope. I think some Neanderthals, who are scared of becoming 'obsolete', are not too comfortable with a single mother doing it all on her own, but it is entirely possible.

One of the reasons I enjoy being a single mother is I feel like I live feminism every single day, that it's idealogically satisfying to subvert the sexual politics that seem to rule so many women's lives by doing this on my own. It really does make me feel powerful, in a quiet, understated way, and I think it would be hard for me to ever relinquish this power. I feel a little subversive, in these dark Bush days when everything seems to be sliding further rightward, and I enjoy feeling subversive.

In other news, the ants that were taking over my sink have undergone some medieval Heironymous Boschian mutation and turned into tiny milipedes. I liked the ants better because the milipedes skeeve me out and I am scared I have ingested quite a few of them. Somehow, I don't mind eating tiny ants quite so much.

I just got my first issue of Paste. What a great magazine, though a little heavy on the alt-country for my taste. Now I have discovered this band. Iceland is almost as good as Scotland for churning out good music. There's a lot to be said for a country with a gloomy climate and long winters.

Is it bad that the first thought in my head when I heard this news is how much will gas cost now?