It's been almost 20 years. You think he'd have me figured out by now.
He hasn't.
I have had a bad day (for no particular reason. Ladies, you understand, I'm sure). I come home. I'm pissy. He asks what is wrong - and I tell him. I tell him vehemently of all the things that went wrong today (there may or may not have been some slamming of things around - just to get my point across, you understand). All I get is, "It'll be all right" from across the room. Then he pipes in with, "Well, tomorrow will make you feel better." And then I begin to cry. Not a lot - just a bit. Because I'm in a foul mood and just a tiny bit stressed.
AND, can someone please explain to me how having a houseful of people is supposed to make me feel better? Although I do love these friends and their children dearly - please tell me how having my friend (who may or may not be going through a divorce) with her three boy children (who can be extremely wild) and her mother (who brings a whole 'nother set of issues with her) and my other friends (who have two really small children) is supposed to calm me down and keep me sane? On Thanksgiving?
And while I don't have to do the majority of the cooking (thank GOD!) - I am supposed to come up with the desserts; which can someone else please tell me how I am supposed to do that when the Chef (Hubby) is downright SELFISH with the kitchen and the ovens? And all this is supposed to calm me down!
No. None of that will calm me down and make me feel better. You know what would? A hug.
That's it. Nothing complicated. Just a hug.
I've told him this repeatedly through the years. But, apparently, upset women and tears must frighten the beejesus out of him.
So now that I've spilled it to you - without all the gory details and the smeared mascara on display - I feel better.
Enough to go to battle for an oven or two. So that we can have desserts after dinner tomorrow. And it will be great (especially if there is enough wine - and there will be, I will make sure of that).
So if I don't get around to see you before - have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
*****
Sorry I've been dumping on you guys so much lately. You've all been wonderful. I count each and everyone of you as a blessing when I give thanks and will do so doubly tomorrow! Mwah!!
November 24, 2010
November 20, 2010
Year of Wonders
As I sat down to write this post, I realized I haven't done a review since August! Not that I haven't been reading - I have. I just haven't read anything FABULOUS.
The book I'm going to tell you about today is a departure from my usual reads. It's a historical novel. Occasionally, I will read historical novels - but generally they don't catch my eye when I'm looking for something to read. But on the recommendation of a friend I read this one.
This novel is based on what happened when the bubonic plague struck Eyam, a small English village, in 1665. In an interview with Ms. Brooks it comes to light that there isn't much of a written record about that happened that year - not enough to create a non-fiction book. So her imagination took over.
Imagine, if you will, living back then - when the medical field was primitive at best. Living in a small village that has been hit by the plague. Imagine the terror - never knowing who would die next. Very few people who contracted the plague survived.
As was the way - the village was centered around the church; which meant that the rector was a powerful leader. When he suggested that the town should quarantine itself to keep from spreading the disease - most of the town agreed.
Word was sent to the surrounding towns and a system was set in place where the villagers could receive goods and pay for them without any contact. It was called the Boundary Stone. In this stone they dug out holes and filled them with vinegar. Then they would put coins inside the holes - they believed that the vinegar would cleanse the money - and leave a list of staples that were needed. When the villagers from Eyam left the stone - then the merchant from the other town would come to collect the lists and the money and to drop off supplies. This was the only "contact" they had with the outside world for an entire year.
As you can imagine people began to go a bit crazy. People were dying left and right. It was possible to fall ill in the morning and be dead by evening. Whole families were wiped out.
Some people were convinced that this was a punishment sent by God and felt that they must atone for their sins. Others claimed it was the work of witchcraft.
Others became extremely greedy and opportunistic. Taking advantage of their neighbor's plights.
While this book tells the story of the plague - there is also a story of great friendship. This thread of the story shows us what we can become if we have someone in our lives who believes in us.
The book is 308 pages long but is a fairly quick read as the author has done a great job fleshing out the characters and tells the story in a way that encourages you to read a bit more to see what happens next.
All in all it was a very good book. I didn't care for the ending - but I can understand why the author felt that was the way to end it.
The book I'm going to tell you about today is a departure from my usual reads. It's a historical novel. Occasionally, I will read historical novels - but generally they don't catch my eye when I'm looking for something to read. But on the recommendation of a friend I read this one.
by Geraldine Brooks
This novel is based on what happened when the bubonic plague struck Eyam, a small English village, in 1665. In an interview with Ms. Brooks it comes to light that there isn't much of a written record about that happened that year - not enough to create a non-fiction book. So her imagination took over.
Imagine, if you will, living back then - when the medical field was primitive at best. Living in a small village that has been hit by the plague. Imagine the terror - never knowing who would die next. Very few people who contracted the plague survived.
As was the way - the village was centered around the church; which meant that the rector was a powerful leader. When he suggested that the town should quarantine itself to keep from spreading the disease - most of the town agreed.
Word was sent to the surrounding towns and a system was set in place where the villagers could receive goods and pay for them without any contact. It was called the Boundary Stone. In this stone they dug out holes and filled them with vinegar. Then they would put coins inside the holes - they believed that the vinegar would cleanse the money - and leave a list of staples that were needed. When the villagers from Eyam left the stone - then the merchant from the other town would come to collect the lists and the money and to drop off supplies. This was the only "contact" they had with the outside world for an entire year.
As you can imagine people began to go a bit crazy. People were dying left and right. It was possible to fall ill in the morning and be dead by evening. Whole families were wiped out.
Some people were convinced that this was a punishment sent by God and felt that they must atone for their sins. Others claimed it was the work of witchcraft.
Others became extremely greedy and opportunistic. Taking advantage of their neighbor's plights.
While this book tells the story of the plague - there is also a story of great friendship. This thread of the story shows us what we can become if we have someone in our lives who believes in us.
The book is 308 pages long but is a fairly quick read as the author has done a great job fleshing out the characters and tells the story in a way that encourages you to read a bit more to see what happens next.
All in all it was a very good book. I didn't care for the ending - but I can understand why the author felt that was the way to end it.
November 15, 2010
I'm having a nervous breakdown....seriously.
Hello! And welcome to your ringside seat whereupon you get to witness me have a complete and total meltdown.
It’s that wonderful time of year again – where I begin to stress over holiday stuff. Why? I don’t know – most of it I could do in my sleep. But if I don’t stress – then where is the tradition?
This year – to add to the fun – we’ve had Man-Child take the test for his driver’s license; Junior Year Parent Night and work issues. All within a week of each other. Yay!
Although, the very prospect of sending my one and only child off – in a car; by himself; on the INTERSTATE to school every day is enough to make my head spin and my stomach nauseous - but still, I could deal.
Junior Year Parent Night – (for the uninitiated – JYPN is when the school has a meeting with the parents of the Junior class to tell them about the processes and timelines of what needs to be done prior to the Senior year to prepare for college. Who knew that so much would need to be done this year?!? The most laughable part was the way they kept reiterating that we shouldn’t do all the work for them – yeah, right. Like any self-respecting 16 year old is going to take it upon himself to look up financial assistance, fill out forms and work on their resume and various applications without anynagging "help") could also probably be dealt with without too much trauma. But this meeting did slam home the fact that pretty soon my nest will be empty.
And the work stuff? Well, let's just say that I’m sick of office politics and managers who can’t make a decision without a Magic 8 ball. All I want to do is come to work – do my job and cash my check. I don’t need or want to be embroiled in all this other crap. For the most part, I love my job - but right now? Right now, I just don't need all this drama. I’m hoping it all comes out in the wash soon without involving me any more than necessary.
In and of themselves, I could probably deal with each one okay.
But – something else has been going on. Something I just couldn’t put my finger on.
And then it hit me. Not only is Thanksgiving NEXT WEEK – which in turn, kicks off the official “holiday season” – but this week we’ve hit the 6 month mark of unemployment.
Needless to say, this realization caused me to begin to hyperventilate.
Despite all my protestations that “everything will be fine” and “we will be okay” and blah, blah, blah and here let me sprinkle some fairy dust on it and all will be well – today it hit me. Unemployment is due to run out soon.
And no matter that Hubby’s idea for a business venture is a good one – there have been no bites. And no matter how much I tweak and fine tune that resume and no matter how many contacts Hubby has – the fact of the matter is there aren’t any jobs out there to send the damn resume to any way.
And when all this came bubbling to the surface – I found myself in my car at lunch sobbing.
Not that sobbing ever really fixes anything. And to top it off? It didn’t even make me feel better and I had red eyes when I came back to the office. They probably think I’m having “liquid lunches” now.
I think what has me so wigged out – is that there isn’t anything I can do to “fix” the problem. I can’t make jobs magically appear out of thin air for Hubby to apply to or clients to fall from the sky for his business venture.
I hesitate to even share my distress with Hubby – because he is the worrier. If he sees that I’m wigging out – how much will that freak him out? Like he doesn't have enough to deal with without me throwing gasoline on the fire? I hate to dump on to you – because you all have your own issues to deal with and frankly, I’m generally a pretty private person. So odds are good that this post will be deleted before it ever gets published. But then, what is the point of spilling my guts? I will still end up holding on to all the worry. That huge rock sitting in my tummy will still be there. What, then was the point of this blog - which I started just to get all this stuff out of my head?
Since I haven’t taken much vacation time this year – I have thirteen days that I must schedule before the end of the year – or I’ll lose it all. So this means that I will be home for 2 ½ weeks at the end of the year – with a couple of other days thrown in before then. I can already tell you that all this time at home together will just drive up my stress level – I just know it. How can it not?
Because of all this added stress and drama – I have made a momentous decision.
This year, I will not be sending out Christmas cards.
(I can hear you all gasping collectively)
I mean it. Not one. I spend far too much time and money in doing so every year. And although I do generally enjoying doing them this year I just don’t have it in me to do it. To be honest – right now, I don’t have it in me to do any of the holiday stuff. The things I’ve done so far have been done out of obligation and necessity.
We won't be doing the annual party either - which is a no-brainer. We just can't. So at the very least, that's two stressors off my list.
I KNOW in my head and my heart that everything will be okay - one way or another. But right now? Right now, I'm just a tad overwhelmed.
It’s that wonderful time of year again – where I begin to stress over holiday stuff. Why? I don’t know – most of it I could do in my sleep. But if I don’t stress – then where is the tradition?
This year – to add to the fun – we’ve had Man-Child take the test for his driver’s license; Junior Year Parent Night and work issues. All within a week of each other. Yay!
Although, the very prospect of sending my one and only child off – in a car; by himself; on the INTERSTATE to school every day is enough to make my head spin and my stomach nauseous - but still, I could deal.
Junior Year Parent Night – (for the uninitiated – JYPN is when the school has a meeting with the parents of the Junior class to tell them about the processes and timelines of what needs to be done prior to the Senior year to prepare for college. Who knew that so much would need to be done this year?!? The most laughable part was the way they kept reiterating that we shouldn’t do all the work for them – yeah, right. Like any self-respecting 16 year old is going to take it upon himself to look up financial assistance, fill out forms and work on their resume and various applications without any
And the work stuff? Well, let's just say that I’m sick of office politics and managers who can’t make a decision without a Magic 8 ball. All I want to do is come to work – do my job and cash my check. I don’t need or want to be embroiled in all this other crap. For the most part, I love my job - but right now? Right now, I just don't need all this drama. I’m hoping it all comes out in the wash soon without involving me any more than necessary.
In and of themselves, I could probably deal with each one okay.
But – something else has been going on. Something I just couldn’t put my finger on.
And then it hit me. Not only is Thanksgiving NEXT WEEK – which in turn, kicks off the official “holiday season” – but this week we’ve hit the 6 month mark of unemployment.
Needless to say, this realization caused me to begin to hyperventilate.
Despite all my protestations that “everything will be fine” and “we will be okay” and blah, blah, blah and here let me sprinkle some fairy dust on it and all will be well – today it hit me. Unemployment is due to run out soon.
And no matter that Hubby’s idea for a business venture is a good one – there have been no bites. And no matter how much I tweak and fine tune that resume and no matter how many contacts Hubby has – the fact of the matter is there aren’t any jobs out there to send the damn resume to any way.
And when all this came bubbling to the surface – I found myself in my car at lunch sobbing.
Not that sobbing ever really fixes anything. And to top it off? It didn’t even make me feel better and I had red eyes when I came back to the office. They probably think I’m having “liquid lunches” now.
I think what has me so wigged out – is that there isn’t anything I can do to “fix” the problem. I can’t make jobs magically appear out of thin air for Hubby to apply to or clients to fall from the sky for his business venture.
I hesitate to even share my distress with Hubby – because he is the worrier. If he sees that I’m wigging out – how much will that freak him out? Like he doesn't have enough to deal with without me throwing gasoline on the fire? I hate to dump on to you – because you all have your own issues to deal with and frankly, I’m generally a pretty private person. So odds are good that this post will be deleted before it ever gets published. But then, what is the point of spilling my guts? I will still end up holding on to all the worry. That huge rock sitting in my tummy will still be there. What, then was the point of this blog - which I started just to get all this stuff out of my head?
Since I haven’t taken much vacation time this year – I have thirteen days that I must schedule before the end of the year – or I’ll lose it all. So this means that I will be home for 2 ½ weeks at the end of the year – with a couple of other days thrown in before then. I can already tell you that all this time at home together will just drive up my stress level – I just know it. How can it not?
Because of all this added stress and drama – I have made a momentous decision.
This year, I will not be sending out Christmas cards.
(I can hear you all gasping collectively)
I mean it. Not one. I spend far too much time and money in doing so every year. And although I do generally enjoying doing them this year I just don’t have it in me to do it. To be honest – right now, I don’t have it in me to do any of the holiday stuff. The things I’ve done so far have been done out of obligation and necessity.
We won't be doing the annual party either - which is a no-brainer. We just can't. So at the very least, that's two stressors off my list.
I KNOW in my head and my heart that everything will be okay - one way or another. But right now? Right now, I'm just a tad overwhelmed.
November 11, 2010
Because some have a positive effect on others daily
I am not a teacher - and I NEVER could be one.
Oh yes, I love little people and love to cuddle and play with them. But to stand in a classroom full of them and demand order? To expect them to actually learn something that I could teach? From other people's children? Children that I can't ground, guilt or nag into submission?
It's laughable. I don't have that kind of patience or fortitude.
It takes a strong and special person to be a teacher.
I saw this video over at VodkaMom's site (that for the life of me I can't get to "fit" where it's supposed to! Apparently, I need an HTML teacher.....).
It made me remember all the fabulous teachers that my son has had - it made me remember some of the fabulous teachers that I've had. These men and women touch our children's lives daily. They help us to shape and mold the people that our children are going to be. These people help foster a love of learning in our children that will carry them through life.
So if you have a wonderful teacher in your life - go give them a hug. And thank them for doing this most important job.
And then? Then, thank God that I never went into teaching.
Oh yes, I love little people and love to cuddle and play with them. But to stand in a classroom full of them and demand order? To expect them to actually learn something that I could teach? From other people's children? Children that I can't ground, guilt or nag into submission?
It's laughable. I don't have that kind of patience or fortitude.
It takes a strong and special person to be a teacher.
I saw this video over at VodkaMom's site (that for the life of me I can't get to "fit" where it's supposed to! Apparently, I need an HTML teacher.....).
And it made me tear up.
It made me remember all the fabulous teachers that my son has had - it made me remember some of the fabulous teachers that I've had. These men and women touch our children's lives daily. They help us to shape and mold the people that our children are going to be. These people help foster a love of learning in our children that will carry them through life.
So if you have a wonderful teacher in your life - go give them a hug. And thank them for doing this most important job.
And then? Then, thank God that I never went into teaching.
November 9, 2010
You have to have a lot of confidence to pull this off
Being in the midst of all things football here - this has to be, without a doubt, the best sneak play I've ever seen!
If it weren't for the fact that it's all over the news for our opponents to see, I would think it would be a great play for our guys to use at our first playoff game this week. Those little guy's coaches are pretty clever - and that one kid is as cool as a cucumber to pull that one off. I love the way the other team just watches him - not realizing what is happening.
*****
For those that need a little explanation: the guy with the ball is acting like a foul has been called on the other team. A foul usually means that the ball is moved back on the side of the field of the team receiving the foul - which puts the ball further away from their goal line and closer to the opponents. The boy's acting like he's marking off yardage on a foul against the other team. Good Lord! I just realized that all this football stuff is actually seeping into my brain somehow!
If it weren't for the fact that it's all over the news for our opponents to see, I would think it would be a great play for our guys to use at our first playoff game this week. Those little guy's coaches are pretty clever - and that one kid is as cool as a cucumber to pull that one off. I love the way the other team just watches him - not realizing what is happening.
*****
For those that need a little explanation: the guy with the ball is acting like a foul has been called on the other team. A foul usually means that the ball is moved back on the side of the field of the team receiving the foul - which puts the ball further away from their goal line and closer to the opponents. The boy's acting like he's marking off yardage on a foul against the other team. Good Lord! I just realized that all this football stuff is actually seeping into my brain somehow!
November 6, 2010
It's the biggest secret we've ever tried to pull off....
I've mentioned before what a good kid I have - especially considering he's a teen. (Yes, I am knocking on wood furiously over here because I know that could change with the blink of an eye). I figure this is my repayment for the fact that he never, ever slept as a baby AND had colic. Needless to say, for the first year or so of his life, I was insane. Because I'm not kidding or exaggerating when I say - he NEVER SLEPT!!
You may also recall that Man-Child recently celebrated his 16th birthday and is going to take his driving test this coming Friday.
So, being the uber awesome mom that I am, a long while back I asked my car guy (the guy who works on my car) to keep his eye out for a really good, safe and cheap car for Man-Child. And he came up with one. When this guy tells me that a little old lady has been driving the car, I can believe it. When he then tells me that he's been doing the maintenance on this car and knows the history then I know that it's a good car. And, bonus points, it doesn't look too much like an old lady car. When he told me the price, I almost fell over because it seemed to good to be true.
Hubby and I had actually shelved the idea of getting him a car since Hubby isn't working. But between the price of the car, the fact that Man-Child is such a good kid and hasn't gotten into any trouble (that we know of, anyway), he's kept his grades WAY, WAY up this year, and the fact that once Hubby either gets a job or this business takes off he will need a way to get around (did I mention the price of the car is a total steal?) we decided to at least go look at it and see what we thought.
The whole thing has been insane as we had decided to keep it a secret. We went to go look at the car two Thursdays ago. I figured I would take off from work an hour early - we'd go look at it and we'd be home before Man-Child. Man-Child is NEVER home from football practice before 6:30 pm. Never. So we had plenty of time.
As we were standing there talking to our car guy (who is also a personal friend) my phone rings. And who should it be? Man-Child. At 5:30 pm! Apparently, school let out early (yes, I get bad mom of the year for not knowing his schedule) so practice had naturally ended early. I lied and told him we'd gone to grab a bite to eat. Luckily, he didn't pick up on the fact that I don't usually even get home until 5:30 pm.
After discussing it, in snatched whispers, we decided that we would do it. So on that Saturday, we somehow ditched Man-Child long enough to meet up and pay for the car and pick up the title. Hubby was to go to the DMV on that Monday to have the title switched.
Another snag in our plan. That Monday after Halloween was a Holy Day of Obligation. My son goes to a Catholic school. School was closed (my God is this kid ever in school???) again. So Hubby devised some way to ditch the kid again - at this point it's a miracle he didn't develop a complex and start wondering why we didn't want to spend any time with him.
Now, as we all know visiting the DMV is it's own special hell on earth. Hubby forgot the cardinal rule at the DMV. They only take checks or cash and you are not allowed to question that policy. Guess what he did not have? Cash or checks. Guess what he got for questioning the policy? Nasty looks and snotty remarks. He had to give it up and go back the next day.
It was my thought that we keep the car secret until Man-Child actually got his license. But Hubby knows me far too well and knew that there was no way I could keep my mouth shut - so he put his foot down.
It's been very hard - because I am one of those people who buys a gift and then gets so excited that I can't wait until Christmas to give it.
On Wednesday, Man-Child received his grades (all A's; remember?) and I was raving about what a great job he had done - when he pipes up with "Since I got all A's do I get a car?" (joking, of course). After a quick beat, I made a joke back.
We had decided that today was the day. This morning, Hubby and I woke up very early and crept out of the house to go pick up the car. We wanted to get it back here before Man-Child woke up. We were successful!
The plan was to have Hubby go outside to do something. I was to follow and then call back into the house that we needed Man-Child's help and then viola there would be the car and I would get the perfect picture.
But as with life - things didn't go according to plan. Hubby went outside and before I could get out there Man-Child had followed him. His reasoning - Dad was going somewhere - maybe he could tag along and get breakfast - it's all about food with this boy. So he got to see the car and I didn't get to see his initial reaction. I almost cried.
But - he is overjoyed. And totally surprised. He keeps repeating over and over, "I had NO idea!" and walking around with the biggest smile on his face.
And now? Now he has the biggest reason in the world to pass that test on the first try.
You may also recall that Man-Child recently celebrated his 16th birthday and is going to take his driving test this coming Friday.
So, being the uber awesome mom that I am, a long while back I asked my car guy (the guy who works on my car) to keep his eye out for a really good, safe and cheap car for Man-Child. And he came up with one. When this guy tells me that a little old lady has been driving the car, I can believe it. When he then tells me that he's been doing the maintenance on this car and knows the history then I know that it's a good car. And, bonus points, it doesn't look too much like an old lady car. When he told me the price, I almost fell over because it seemed to good to be true.
Hubby and I had actually shelved the idea of getting him a car since Hubby isn't working. But between the price of the car, the fact that Man-Child is such a good kid and hasn't gotten into any trouble (that we know of, anyway), he's kept his grades WAY, WAY up this year, and the fact that once Hubby either gets a job or this business takes off he will need a way to get around (did I mention the price of the car is a total steal?) we decided to at least go look at it and see what we thought.
The whole thing has been insane as we had decided to keep it a secret. We went to go look at the car two Thursdays ago. I figured I would take off from work an hour early - we'd go look at it and we'd be home before Man-Child. Man-Child is NEVER home from football practice before 6:30 pm. Never. So we had plenty of time.
As we were standing there talking to our car guy (who is also a personal friend) my phone rings. And who should it be? Man-Child. At 5:30 pm! Apparently, school let out early (yes, I get bad mom of the year for not knowing his schedule) so practice had naturally ended early. I lied and told him we'd gone to grab a bite to eat. Luckily, he didn't pick up on the fact that I don't usually even get home until 5:30 pm.
After discussing it, in snatched whispers, we decided that we would do it. So on that Saturday, we somehow ditched Man-Child long enough to meet up and pay for the car and pick up the title. Hubby was to go to the DMV on that Monday to have the title switched.
Another snag in our plan. That Monday after Halloween was a Holy Day of Obligation. My son goes to a Catholic school. School was closed (my God is this kid ever in school???) again. So Hubby devised some way to ditch the kid again - at this point it's a miracle he didn't develop a complex and start wondering why we didn't want to spend any time with him.
Now, as we all know visiting the DMV is it's own special hell on earth. Hubby forgot the cardinal rule at the DMV. They only take checks or cash and you are not allowed to question that policy. Guess what he did not have? Cash or checks. Guess what he got for questioning the policy? Nasty looks and snotty remarks. He had to give it up and go back the next day.
It was my thought that we keep the car secret until Man-Child actually got his license. But Hubby knows me far too well and knew that there was no way I could keep my mouth shut - so he put his foot down.
It's been very hard - because I am one of those people who buys a gift and then gets so excited that I can't wait until Christmas to give it.
On Wednesday, Man-Child received his grades (all A's; remember?) and I was raving about what a great job he had done - when he pipes up with "Since I got all A's do I get a car?" (joking, of course). After a quick beat, I made a joke back.
We had decided that today was the day. This morning, Hubby and I woke up very early and crept out of the house to go pick up the car. We wanted to get it back here before Man-Child woke up. We were successful!
The plan was to have Hubby go outside to do something. I was to follow and then call back into the house that we needed Man-Child's help and then viola there would be the car and I would get the perfect picture.
But as with life - things didn't go according to plan. Hubby went outside and before I could get out there Man-Child had followed him. His reasoning - Dad was going somewhere - maybe he could tag along and get breakfast - it's all about food with this boy. So he got to see the car and I didn't get to see his initial reaction. I almost cried.
But - he is overjoyed. And totally surprised. He keeps repeating over and over, "I had NO idea!" and walking around with the biggest smile on his face.
And now? Now he has the biggest reason in the world to pass that test on the first try.
November 3, 2010
Making the grades
Hello!!! I'm here (see me waving?)!
I've not fallen off the face of the earth, contrary to popular belief.
I've things to say - but I'm in limbo over here. I'm just waiting for a few things to resolve themselves. Some I may be able to blog about; others I won't (only because it's work crap and nothing you'd really be interested in). I figure I'd rather wait and present you with the "finished" product on some of this and I don't want to jinx myself on the other part. (and before you ask - no, it has nothing to do with the job search or business start up for Hubby, unfortunately).
Since I am here though, I will brag just a little bit if you don't mind. Man-Child received his report card today - the first one of his junior year. Can you guess why I'm bragging? (Why can't I download ANY pictures today? Just pretend you see a picture of a report card here.)
Yes, yes, I know lot's of kids get all A's. But y'all this is HUGE! Man-Child hasn't done this since 4th grade, y'all. Seriously. And not because he couldn't get all A's - he just wouldn't. He had this thing about not turning in his homework. It seriously drove me bananas. He would ace the tests, make beautiful grades for classwork and participation - but the homework (or lack of it) would bring his grades way, way down.
It drove me crazy!! We tried everything. Bribery. Threats. Punishments. Begging. Pleading. Lecturing. Everything. Nothing worked.
Oh, his grades weren't anything to be ashamed of - but we knew he was not reaching his full potential.
We started to see a turn around in this trend when he started high school. But Spanish was holding him back. He just couldn't get it enough to pull an A in that class (and I don't blame him, I couldn't even pass Spanish, much less get an A in it). But two years of a foreign language is a requirement for graduation.
But this year? This very important year (where grades get sent to colleges) he is (so far) pulling down a 4.0 GPA. And this mom couldn't be happier.
Hopefully, this trend will continue - because he is finally reaching his full potential.
I've not fallen off the face of the earth, contrary to popular belief.
I've things to say - but I'm in limbo over here. I'm just waiting for a few things to resolve themselves. Some I may be able to blog about; others I won't (only because it's work crap and nothing you'd really be interested in). I figure I'd rather wait and present you with the "finished" product on some of this and I don't want to jinx myself on the other part. (and before you ask - no, it has nothing to do with the job search or business start up for Hubby, unfortunately).
Since I am here though, I will brag just a little bit if you don't mind. Man-Child received his report card today - the first one of his junior year. Can you guess why I'm bragging? (Why can't I download ANY pictures today? Just pretend you see a picture of a report card here.)
Yes, yes, I know lot's of kids get all A's. But y'all this is HUGE! Man-Child hasn't done this since 4th grade, y'all. Seriously. And not because he couldn't get all A's - he just wouldn't. He had this thing about not turning in his homework. It seriously drove me bananas. He would ace the tests, make beautiful grades for classwork and participation - but the homework (or lack of it) would bring his grades way, way down.
It drove me crazy!! We tried everything. Bribery. Threats. Punishments. Begging. Pleading. Lecturing. Everything. Nothing worked.
Oh, his grades weren't anything to be ashamed of - but we knew he was not reaching his full potential.
We started to see a turn around in this trend when he started high school. But Spanish was holding him back. He just couldn't get it enough to pull an A in that class (and I don't blame him, I couldn't even pass Spanish, much less get an A in it). But two years of a foreign language is a requirement for graduation.
But this year? This very important year (where grades get sent to colleges) he is (so far) pulling down a 4.0 GPA. And this mom couldn't be happier.
Hopefully, this trend will continue - because he is finally reaching his full potential.
October 29, 2010
Want to see me freak out???
Then you should have been here last night, as I was contemplating going to bed and just checking Twitter before doing so.
When I saw a tweet from Kathryn.
@gigirambles Sweetie! It's not spam...it's Google Chrome. WTF??
along with this picture
I almost immediately began to hyperventilate. What was going on? How could this be happening? HOW IS GIGI'S RAMBLINGS HOSTING MALWARE??????
This was completely unacceptable! Impossible.
Of course, I jumped online and, with the help of Kathryn, began researching what could have happened and how to fix it ASAP!
Did you know that Blogger/Google has "Webmaster tools?" I didn't. I'm still not sure how they work or what all they do.....all I know is that I was inundated with information that was next to impossible to decipher - especially since my cold medicine had begun to kick in about an hour into it (yes, the cold is still hanging on somehow....).
I finally had to admit defeat and head to bed - praying the whole time that I would wake up and all would be well - that it had been some kind of horrible nightmare.
It wasn't. I woke up and spent far more than my usual, alloted thirty minutes of computer and coffee time before work trying to fix it. In a last ditch effort, I dumped my beloved template. I had remembered reading something last night that mentioned the site that hosts my template. And miracle of miracles - that fixed it.
Apparently, the site that hosts the template was hacked. Who would have thought?
So that, my friends, is the long winded explanation of why things look a bit different - and will probably continue to evolve as I try to find something else to my liking. If you happen to notice something is missing please let me know as the switch was just a quick one - so I don't know if I caught everything I needed to catch before switching.
A very special thank you to Kathryn for alerting me to the problem and going to such lengths to help me try and fix it. This is why I love blog-land!
And once again, I have to question why people feel such a need to do bad things - like stealing credit card numbers and hacking into websites. If you are going to put that much effort into something - do something legal and worthwhile; because seriously? There IS a special place in hell for people who put others through so much torture. Especially when all they want to do is go to bed - or get up and enjoy their coffee.
When I saw a tweet from Kathryn.
@gigirambles Sweetie! It's not spam...it's Google Chrome. WTF??
along with this picture
I almost immediately began to hyperventilate. What was going on? How could this be happening? HOW IS GIGI'S RAMBLINGS HOSTING MALWARE??????
This was completely unacceptable! Impossible.
Of course, I jumped online and, with the help of Kathryn, began researching what could have happened and how to fix it ASAP!
Did you know that Blogger/Google has "Webmaster tools?" I didn't. I'm still not sure how they work or what all they do.....all I know is that I was inundated with information that was next to impossible to decipher - especially since my cold medicine had begun to kick in about an hour into it (yes, the cold is still hanging on somehow....).
I finally had to admit defeat and head to bed - praying the whole time that I would wake up and all would be well - that it had been some kind of horrible nightmare.
It wasn't. I woke up and spent far more than my usual, alloted thirty minutes of computer and coffee time before work trying to fix it. In a last ditch effort, I dumped my beloved template. I had remembered reading something last night that mentioned the site that hosts my template. And miracle of miracles - that fixed it.
Apparently, the site that hosts the template was hacked. Who would have thought?
So that, my friends, is the long winded explanation of why things look a bit different - and will probably continue to evolve as I try to find something else to my liking. If you happen to notice something is missing please let me know as the switch was just a quick one - so I don't know if I caught everything I needed to catch before switching.
A very special thank you to Kathryn for alerting me to the problem and going to such lengths to help me try and fix it. This is why I love blog-land!
And once again, I have to question why people feel such a need to do bad things - like stealing credit card numbers and hacking into websites. If you are going to put that much effort into something - do something legal and worthwhile; because seriously? There IS a special place in hell for people who put others through so much torture. Especially when all they want to do is go to bed - or get up and enjoy their coffee.
October 28, 2010
A little bit of this and a little bit of that.....
I have so many little bits just floating around....not enough to make a real post but just enough that I need to clear out of my mind to make room for more little bits.
First, is this......
Seriously?! These have been around for a few years now. And to be honest, it's a little irritating. Mainly, because they are usually in "prime" parking spaces and because how come we didn't have these when mine was small? I had to wrangle him all the way up from the bottom of the parking lot (uphill both ways!) - taking care that he didn't get run over until I could get him in the store and buckled into a cart. Sheesh!! You younger moms have it soooooo easy.
******
What with Halloween being around the corner and all - it should come as no surprise that I was totally freaked out today. I jumped in the car at lunch, pulled up to the parking lot exit and just happened to glance down only to discover the world's largest spider sitting in my lap leering at me. Needless to say, I screamed and swatted the thing away. The world's largest spider is now lurking in my car somewhere - most likely pretty upset at me. So of course I spent the entire drive to and from lunch - and on my way home this evening, keeping an eye on all the shadows in my car (what road?) and feeling like there was something crawling on me. I may never drive that car again. And here I was worried about snakes crawling out of the air conditioner vent after watching the news this summer - clearly I need to be more concerned about this spider who surely has revenge on his mind after being swatted.
****
In other news, one of my beloved colleagues has announced her retirement at the end of the year. I am heart-broken. She is one of the few sane ones and I love her dearly. Life at work will not be the same without her. So what that she has been with the company for about thirty years - how can she leave me like this?! I have expressed my displeasure - it doesn't seem to faze her one bit. I have informed her that she can't possibly leave me with all the crazy people - again, she doesn't seem to care. She seems to think that we will keep in touch - I know better. I know how those retirees are - I've seen the commercials. They are out living the high life while us desk jockeys spend our days slaving away.
I've decided my only recourse is to kidnap her.
So, if you aren't busy next weekend.......I might need a little help - since I don't think she'll come with me willingly......
October 24, 2010
Perhaps I should just un-invite them
Hubby came to me the other morning and blurted out this rather random question (why yes, we do speak a lot of random in this house - although he claims it's usually just me. But you and I know better. Oh okay, you are right - it's usually me) "You know where we ought to move to when we retire?"
My first thought was "Retire? When will that ever happen given the current state of life?" But instead, I piped up with, "The beach!" Because that is where I would truly like to live - well, at least during the majority of the year but not during hurricane season.
He said, "No." (of course. We are going to have a real problem when it comes to retiring, I can already see). "Las Vegas."
Now given that this is a man who is not a gambler of any type and the fact that he hates heat this one surprised me.
I know that he figures if we lived somewhere "fun," and "glitzy" and is a "destination" that we might actually get family (specifically his family) to come and visit occasionally. (Although, in my mind the beach meets all those requirements.....)
We live exactly at the half-way point between family up north and family down south - but yet, we've had very few visits from family - despite the fact that the family seems to visit each other up north and down south fairly often. The icing on this cake? My brother-in-law's youngest daughter is now in college right across the state line - about an hour and a half from here. Despite the drives down to settle her in or to visit - we've yet to see anyone - even though you pretty much have to drive through North Carolina in order to reach South Carolina.
For the most part the family seems to like us whenever we visit (because yes, we are expected to do all the visiting) so we can't quite figure out why they don't come here. Anyone that has come for a visit is given the royal treatment and goes home exclaiming what a wonderful time they've had and how hospitable we are.
Hubby's mother has been to visit maybe once. She kind of gets a pass as she is older and can't be expected to make the nine hour drive. She doesn't like to fly - although she's been known to fly to Florida several times - much to my annoyance. I mean seriously. It's under an hour to fly here versus however long it takes to fly to Florida.
Hubby's sister has been a few times - after we guilted her into it. She makes the trip from Florida up north at least once a year. Her argument for not stopping? It was 45 minutes out of their way. Seriously??? Once we guilted her into it - they would stop for an overnight visit. Staying only about 12 hours before heading out to spend a week or two up north - and never stopping on the way back. She hasn't been back since we asked her not to stop 3 years ago because we had just moved that weekend and weren't prepared for company - we didn't have any of the beds set up or had even begun the process of sorting out the boxes.
Hubby's brother? Has never visited. Ever. This, I think, is what hurts Hubby the most as they are close. Brother - has no excuses. Especially now that his daughter is so close. Hell, he wouldn't even have to come here - just tell us that he is in South Carolina and we would drive down to meet him. But yet, this same brother is constantly badgering us to come up for a visit.
Even when I was planning a huge (and I mean HUGE) bash for Hubby's 50th and personally invited them - not a one showed up - much less gave a decent excuse. This I know, hurt him deeply.
I love Hubby's family, I really do. They are wonderful people - except for this. Not only is my husband deprived of his family - my son is also deprived as he has not had the opportunity to get to know his aunt and uncle or his cousins.
It's not like we smell funny. We don't (I've checked). We have plenty of room for visitors. We make people feel welcome. We don't live in a backwater area - there is plenty to do here if you don't want to actually visit with us and would rather see the sights. It is the most baffling thing.
We've invited them repeatedly. I've made pointed comments - so many, in fact, that Hubby has asked me to refrain - as it makes him uncomfortable. But, apparently doesn't make the family uncomfortable enough in my opinion.
So when I asked why Las Vegas - he responded "So every time someone asks to come visit - we could say we are too busy for them."
The hurt shines through.
My first thought was "Retire? When will that ever happen given the current state of life?" But instead, I piped up with, "The beach!" Because that is where I would truly like to live - well, at least during the majority of the year but not during hurricane season.
He said, "No." (of course. We are going to have a real problem when it comes to retiring, I can already see). "Las Vegas."
Now given that this is a man who is not a gambler of any type and the fact that he hates heat this one surprised me.
I know that he figures if we lived somewhere "fun," and "glitzy" and is a "destination" that we might actually get family (specifically his family) to come and visit occasionally. (Although, in my mind the beach meets all those requirements.....)
We live exactly at the half-way point between family up north and family down south - but yet, we've had very few visits from family - despite the fact that the family seems to visit each other up north and down south fairly often. The icing on this cake? My brother-in-law's youngest daughter is now in college right across the state line - about an hour and a half from here. Despite the drives down to settle her in or to visit - we've yet to see anyone - even though you pretty much have to drive through North Carolina in order to reach South Carolina.
For the most part the family seems to like us whenever we visit (because yes, we are expected to do all the visiting) so we can't quite figure out why they don't come here. Anyone that has come for a visit is given the royal treatment and goes home exclaiming what a wonderful time they've had and how hospitable we are.
Hubby's mother has been to visit maybe once. She kind of gets a pass as she is older and can't be expected to make the nine hour drive. She doesn't like to fly - although she's been known to fly to Florida several times - much to my annoyance. I mean seriously. It's under an hour to fly here versus however long it takes to fly to Florida.
Hubby's sister has been a few times - after we guilted her into it. She makes the trip from Florida up north at least once a year. Her argument for not stopping? It was 45 minutes out of their way. Seriously??? Once we guilted her into it - they would stop for an overnight visit. Staying only about 12 hours before heading out to spend a week or two up north - and never stopping on the way back. She hasn't been back since we asked her not to stop 3 years ago because we had just moved that weekend and weren't prepared for company - we didn't have any of the beds set up or had even begun the process of sorting out the boxes.
Hubby's brother? Has never visited. Ever. This, I think, is what hurts Hubby the most as they are close. Brother - has no excuses. Especially now that his daughter is so close. Hell, he wouldn't even have to come here - just tell us that he is in South Carolina and we would drive down to meet him. But yet, this same brother is constantly badgering us to come up for a visit.
Even when I was planning a huge (and I mean HUGE) bash for Hubby's 50th and personally invited them - not a one showed up - much less gave a decent excuse. This I know, hurt him deeply.
I love Hubby's family, I really do. They are wonderful people - except for this. Not only is my husband deprived of his family - my son is also deprived as he has not had the opportunity to get to know his aunt and uncle or his cousins.
It's not like we smell funny. We don't (I've checked). We have plenty of room for visitors. We make people feel welcome. We don't live in a backwater area - there is plenty to do here if you don't want to actually visit with us and would rather see the sights. It is the most baffling thing.
We've invited them repeatedly. I've made pointed comments - so many, in fact, that Hubby has asked me to refrain - as it makes him uncomfortable. But, apparently doesn't make the family uncomfortable enough in my opinion.
So when I asked why Las Vegas - he responded "So every time someone asks to come visit - we could say we are too busy for them."
The hurt shines through.
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