The Great Commute

One of the most challenging parts of Political Wife Life is the commuting. Every Sunday we pack up the family, the zoo, a few perishable groceries, my make-up bag, and a few favourite articles of clothing, and travel from the district to the capital.

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Living in two places (on one income) is an art. Living in two places with an infant is a challenging and exquisite art form. As much as I would like to think my nomadic skills are that of Michelangelo, in reality they are more of a why-does-everything-looks-so-strange Picasso.

 

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Continue reading “The Great Commute” →

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Nylons: Not Glamorous but Necessary

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Nylons: they aren’t my favourite article of clothing, but I consider them a necessity because a majority of my wardrobe is made up of dresses.

Somehow, and I am not sure if it is my unfiled nails or the fact that I live with a zoo, I tend to kill nylons at a seemingly unprecedented rate. As a result, COSTCO is my favourite place to buy them. You get a way better price buying in bulk than buying each individual package at a drug store.

When keeping the apartment in the capital “stocked” I try to be a minimalist. Except in cases of hosiery. Buy these babies in bulk!

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Political Wife Life: THEN

[huge_it_share]Political Wife Life: THEN

 

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When M was first elected, the work I did was flexible enough that I was able to go back and forth to the capital with him. I travelled a bit with my job but was mainly based out of our apartment in the capital.

M would go to work and I would be a stay-at-home dog mom/sub-contractor. I would do some computer work Hugh Hefner style (aka in my bathrobe—not with a mansion full of models) and usually have time to grab a coffee with a friend.

Then, Political Wife Life would start. At 4 p.m. I would shower, very professionally apply my makeup (I was young and carefree with ample time to primp), put in some hair extensions, and then do the event circuit with MM.

Usually, there were multiple fundraisers for M’s colleagues each evening, but charity events were also on the docket. All in all, 3 nights a week, I would meet interesting people and have the opportunity to chat with people who were at the top of their industries. Definitely one of the upsides of PWL.

I gained a bit of weight that year. It was one of my most sedentary phases of my life. A daily menu of free booze and appetizers can really sneak up on you.

And what is with those mini burgers (“sliders”)? They are everywhere!

 

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Political Wife Hack: Don’t eat the top bun! Skip the “filler” part of the appetizers and just enjoy main substance.

 

You may think “Hey, I’ll just skip the mostly sub-par food on the fundraising circuit and just enjoy the complimentary liquid libations.” Sure, perhaps it sounds good, but you’ll end up being the annoying drunk person.

 

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Take my advice: don’t be the annoying drunk person. Oh yes, and don’t eat the top bun.

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Welcome To My Zoo

Welcome to Political Wife Life. My name is Kate and, well, I am a political wife.

For a while I used to be “just” a political wife. Then I became a political wife/zoo keeper/business owner.

 

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The Zoo

 

And now I am a political wife/zoo keeper/political mom.

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Baby AG joins the Zoo

 

My young daughter, AG, family pets and I, travel back and forth to the capital with my husband, M, every week. Most often, if M’s politicking takes him all over God’s green earth, AG and I join him there too (though we try to leave most of the zoo at home on extended road trips).

Political families traveling as a unit are quite rare. As a result, it can be lonely—very lonely.

When people are elected to office, there is training and support available to them. However, there is usually little or nothing in ways of training or support for their spouses.

This blog is a non-partisan survival guide for political spouses.

I will share tips, hacks and how to deal with the unique/bizarre situations political wives find themselves in. And what would a blog be without personal anecdotes of hilarity and horrors?

Welcome to PWL . Thanks for coming and welcome to my zoo.

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