when I was a kid

We didn't have internet, so it didn't matter if it was down for half a day. What did we used to do to get our news? Oh, right, watch tv only at noon and 6.

Glad to be back.

because I can't not play along...

from SJ, Katie, and WB

A - Age: 39

B - Bed size: Queen

C - Chore you hate: raking

D - Dog's name: no such creature lives here

E - Essential start to your day: hitting snooze at least once

F - Favorite color: turquoise

G - Gold or Silver: gold

H - Height: 5'2" (?)

I - Instruments you play: once upon a time piano and clarinet.

J- Job: alt ed teacher

K – Kids: Boy (11) and Girly (9), plus bestfriends 2, and all my students...

L - Living arrangements: with my family, living the American Dream...

M - Mom's name: Ann

N - Nicknames: Nanny, Buckaroo

O - Overnight hospital stay other than birth: oh, too many... week in 3rd grade, again in 5th grade, a night with Girly for her asthma...

P - Pet Peeve: when I order a Coke and am asked "Is Pepsi ok?" Um... NO!

Q - Quote from a movie: "High school are your prime suffering years" --Uncle Frank, Little Miss Sunshine

R – Robot or Human? now this is a pathetic question...

S - Siblings: two sisters and a brother

T - Time you wake up: 7:00 on school days... but that's not always when I get up...

U- Underwear: bikinis

V - Vegetable you dislike: beets. I think it's the only one I just won't eat.

W - Ways you run late: getting distracted... often by one last check of email, blogs, and FB...

X - X-rays you've had: I think it would be easier to list those I've not...

Y - Yummy food you make: why make it if it's not yummy?

Z - Zoo favorite: not a big zoo fan...

conquering demons

Girly was more than a little bit scared about going to any gymnastics competitions. We're not totally sure why, but she is definitely closer to WB's introverted nature than my extroverted. Because of her extreme resistance, we took the choice away from her and made her go. The only way she'll know what to expect is to do it, and she might as well learn about meets now rather than when (if?) she makes the competition squad.

She was very close to losing her breakfast before her first event, but her coach was standing right there next to her, and you could see her face relax after finishing that first event. By the end, she was glad she'd gone. She even won her level on floor exercise, and came in second in her level for their All Around scores!

I think what I enjoy most about parenting these days is watching them grow. She was really out of her comfort zone today, but she found the inner strength to suck it up and get through it. She could have melted down-- many other kids might have-- and she could have just dug in her heels and told us no. But she knew she had to overcome this hurdle, and she did. We are so very proud of her. It was a good day to be a Girly!

Weezer knows best

When you’re on a holiday
You can’t find the words to say
All the things that come to you
And I wanna feel it too

On an island in the sun
We’ll be playing and having fun
And it makes me feel so fine
I can’t control my brain

When you’re on a golden sea
You don’t need no memory
Just a place to call your own
As we drift into the zone

On an island in the sun
We’ll be playing and having fun
And it makes me feel so fine
I can’t control my brain

We’ll run away together
We’ll spend some time forever
We’ll never feel bad anymore

On an island in the sun
We’ll be playing and having fun
And it makes me feel so fine
I can’t control my brain

We’ll run away together
We’ll spend some time forever
We’ll never feel bad anymore

Hip Hip

We’ll never feel bad anymore
no no
We'll never feel bad anymore
no no
We'll never feel bad anymore
No No
We'll never feel bad anymore

No No

you know it's time for vacation

... when your patience is shot

... when you flip out at the drop of a hat

... when you don't care enough to flip out anymore

Oh yea. I'm there.

deep thoughts

So much rattling around in my head that I'm having a hard time making sense of it all. Random events lead to startling understanding, but how to share the knowledge without scaring or offending everyone is the challenge. Kids feel so much pressure... to be cool, to be smart, to resist authority, to succeed (and succeed and succeed)... and what they really need is to... what, exactly? Therein lies the million dollar answer. As I see it, everyone (and I'm not just talking kids any longer) needs to learn something different. Some need to learn to let go, others to work so hard at something they collapse in relief. Some need to laugh more while others need to give in and let the tears fall. Sometimes the hoops are there to jump through and other times they need to be thrown aside and a new path forged. How do you know when to rebel and when to sit quiet... and how do you help someone figure that out for himself-- even when that person is you?

That's where my head's been at... How about the rest of you?

This one's for the Jug O' Water

Tired of all of those surveys made up by high school kids?! 'Have you ever kissed someone? Missed someone? Told someone you loved them? Drank alcohol?' 49 questions for the people who are a little older...Tag me when you finish. I'm too self absorbed to pass these stupid things up.

What bill do you hate paying the most?
The ones I forget are due.

Where was the last place you had a romantic dinner?
Little Dan's BBQ

What do you really want to be doing right now?
laughing

How many colleges did you attend?
One. I got my master's from a different college, but I only took one on campus class (the rest were distance learning classes housed at local schools) so I don't consider that attending.

Why did you choose the shirt that you have on right now?
Cause it was right near the bathroom door.

What are your thoughts on gas prices?
That this correction has been a long time coming and we really need to get off our addiction to this limited supply resource.... but it's nice to be able to afford to drive around to see family.

First thought when the alarm went off this morning?
Why is JOAD so stinkin' early on a Saturday?

Last thought before going to sleep last night?
my body is older than my mind

Do you miss being a child?
I sometimes miss the freedom to just go play when there's work to be done, but usually you couldn't pay me enough to do it again. Except college. I'd go back and take random classes and live in the dorms in a heart beat.

What errand/chore do you despise?
Raking the lawn.

Get up early or sleep in?
sleep in. I still think school should run 10-4.

Have you found real love yet?
yup.

Favorite lunch meat?
right now I'm on a salami italian kick

What do you get every time you go into Wal-Mart?
I try hard to avoid Ho-Mart. They treat their employees like crap, no matter what their fancy ad campaign makes you think. Look out for the little guy!

Beach or lake?
isolated lake, but I wouldn't turn down a trip to the beach

Do you think marriage is an outdated ritual?
not at all! You learn a lot about yourself and a lot about what forever really means.

Sopranos or Desperate Housewives?
I haven't seen either yet. Plan to 'Flix 'em both eventually.

What famous person would you like to have dinner with?
Oh man... today I think Peter Sagal.

Have you ever crashed your vehicle?
too many times. *sigh*

Ever had to use a fire extinguisher for its intended purpose?
no, but I do have one.

Ring tone?
vibrate or the closest thing to a boring old ring

Ringback tone?
I don't even know what this is.

Strangest place you have ever brushed your teeth?
some might say the shower, but I was just economizing my time.

Somewhere in California you've never been and would like to go?
Why CA? I would like to go back to San Fransisco and see it right. 24 hours with 4 kids was not enough time.

Do you go to church?
Not anymore.

At this point in your life would you rather start a new career or a new relationship?
Neither. I love teaching and I love my husband. I guess a new friendship could be fun, but honestly, I have some pretty rockin' friends taking care of me already, so...

How old are you?
39.... although I really think of myself as 34 max.

Do you have a go to person?
yup-- depends on the situation who gets gone-to first.

Are you where you want to be in life?
Sure am.... except for the debt. Working on that.

Growing up, what were your favorite cartoons?
I remember a lot of live action-- Sesame, Electric Company, and Mr. Rogers, HR Puffenstuff, Land of the Lost, Sigmund the Seamonster, Electric Woman and Dinah Girl, Oh Mighty Isis.

What about you do you think has changed the most?
Contentment

Looking back at high school were they the best years of your life?
Not a chance. Not even the second best.

Are there times that you still feel like a kid?
Sure, but less and less often.

Did you ever own troll dolls?
Yea. My mom did too.

Did you have a pager?
Never. Don't think I'll ever have one.

Where was the hang out spot when you were a teenager?
Usually someone else's house. My parents were too strict.

Were you the type of kid you would want your children to hang out with?
Oh my yes. Goody goody all the way. Hard working, took school seriously, but also liked to have harmless, clean fun. You betcha.

Who do you think impacted your life the most?
No one person has impacted me the most-- but everyone has impacted me in some way.

Was there a teacher or authority figure that stood out for you?
A whole bunch. Mrs. T. Mr. Bissell. Lib and Cas. Mr. and Mrs. Houghton. I really could go on...

Do you tell stories that start with “when I was your age”?
Daily, but not in the way you might think. I use them as teaching tools, and they're often about the stupid things I did or the moments that have helped shape me into who I am today.

hello....

I've noticed the RVBs in general have been quiet lately. Rough time of year for all of us, I'm sure-- I know it is for me. I guess I'm just here to say I miss all of our online conversations and I'm looking forward to when we have more energy to chat using our keyboards again.

another quick SJ quiz

Eerily true...

You Are Chirping Birds You are a very caring person. You especially feel for innocent beings, like animals and children.
You are keyed in to the world and very peaceful. You believe that everyone is connected.

You remain focused and in the moment. You are not easily distracted.
You have a good memory, especially for things that you hear. You listen carefully.

after a day about literacy

How about a top ten list of influential books? In no particular order...

1. A Wrinkle in Time/A Wind in the Door/A Swiftly Tilting Planet - Madeleine L'Engle
I loved this series. I don't remember when I first got turned onto these books, or how many times I read them, but read them I did. I wanted a Charles Wallace for a brother and to date a Calvin. Now that I think about it, I might have married a bulkier version of him.
2. Ramona Quimby, Age 8- Beverly Cleary
The Ramona books were the first books I remember wanting to get the next one to read.
3. The Diary of Anne Frank- Anne Frank
I must have been in sixth grade or so when I read it. I think it was the first time I came face to face with life being unfair, for no reason other than sometimes it is. Harsh lesson to learn, but an important one.
4. Otherwise Known as Shelia the Great- Judy Blume
I read all the Judy Blume books, and got all the messages she was sending. Reading that even bullies are vulnerable was a nice bit of information to have in my hip pocket as I headed to junior high.
5. The View From Saturday- E. L. Konigsburg
I didn't stumble upon Konigsburg until I was a mom, but if I had as a kid, I'd have loved her in the same way I did L'Engle. This has become my standard gift to all my sixth grade kids.
6. The Lord of the Rings trilogy- J.R.R. Tolkien
I resisted reading this, out of pure stubbornness, until I was in college. I only read it cover to cover that one time, but I am so glad I gave up the battle and just read this brilliant book.
7. The Fionavar Tapestry- Guy Gavriel Kay
This was another adult find, and one that I can't wait for the kids to be old enough to read. I think Boy especially will love it. Even if there is a dwarf named Matt...
8. A Song of Ice and Fire- George R.R. Martin
This could be the only author whose webpage I check daily for updates on the release of the next book in the series. Tackling this is a serious commitment, but oh, what a story...
9. The Harry Potter series- J.K. Rowling
I'm late to this party, but not because I didn't believe in the series. Girly is now reading the fourth book, and she's almost ready to pass it onto me. I didn't want to have read them before reading them to her, but her reading skills surpassed my ability to keep my eyes open for bedtime reading. And to have American children waiting in line at midnight to get the next book, well, how can any teacher not love that, even if they don't love fantasy?
10. The Cat in the Hat- Dr. Seuss
My earliest book memory is of my sister and I squished into the living room chair together, and I would read to her. I would start off with the title-- "The Cat in the Hat, by Dr. Seuss"-- and she would reply without hesitation "on the loose". I still can't read any of his books without hearing the litany echoing in my mind.

strong genes aren't always a good thing

So I've had this random joint pain in my left ring finger. It'll render me useless when it happens-- this horrid, sudden, jolting pain that usually causes a naughty girl word to leave my mouth. I went through about a week last fall where I couldn't get through making dinner or doing dishes without having to stop a couple of times... and then it just stopped. Poof. Gone. I'd sort of forgotten about it. And then this week I was reminded of how annoying it is. Yesterday as I was attempting to find the acupressure point to relieve the pain (and the point I found made it MUCH worse, which is not typical for me) it occurred to me that my mom might have some insight. She has osteoarthritis. Her hands are covered in swollen joints, and it's probably gotten bad in the last 5ish years. She confirmed today that she started getting pain like this in her joints about 15-20 years ago.

My very limited understanding of genetics tells me osteoarthritis is a dominant trait. My great grandmother was afflicted, as well as my grandmother and my mom. At least one of my uncles. It does not surprise me that I carry the gene-- this many family members afflicted must mean it's dominant. Which means pretty good odds that at least one of us will have it, if not a majority. (If you're lucky, hoyden, you're able to dodge this bullet.)

I imagine I'll make an appointment with my dear friend whose Magic Hands have helped me through back pain and infertility (another family trait I inherited-- this one from my dad's mom. It's a miracle he exists, and a weird bit of genetics that such a trait would be passed on, but I digress) and I value his insight onto this chapter of my medical history. I'll ask my doc about it the next time I go in. I'll have to read up on this, and what I can do now to make things better in 20 years. It could certainly be worse. But as long as I'm able to hold my grandchildren someday I think I'll be ok. I'll certainly be reminded that this is how Grandmas in my family look :)

end of an era?

Normally, when anyone asks (see Facebook) "What's your favorite sport to watch?", my answer is "NCAA Mens College March Madness". For reasons unknown to me, that has not been true this year.

I've thought about this all weekend, and there may be a few things going on. First, I was busy all afternoon Thursday. Not home until 7 PM... meaning I'd missed a lot of the early games. And I am tired-- bone tired-- daily, meaning I was not about to stay up until midnight watching Cinderella. Friday turned into another late afternoon-- home at about 7 after Friday DT and then a spontaneous dinner date with WB. The kids were with bestfriends, so I could watch some L Word without them seeing things they shouldn't. By the time they went to bed, I just wanted to finish that disk... so no games Friday. By then I was out of the pattern of games all weekend. Hmmm...

More importantly, I think was not being involved in a live pool. I'm in Don's FB pool, but I can't find the link half the time and I didn't write my picks down, thinking it'd be easy to find online. Silly me. I did not talk to anyone about it all month-- no students interested, no one in my building to chat it up and get excited. I like watching college ball for sure, but I think I really like the trash talking with my friends. Having a group to rehash the upsets with-- and to see who was damaged by the upset and who is back in the running for bragging rights. No hype this year is definitely a factor.

I could just take the sisterly way out and blame hoyden for letting me know about Dickie V's true personality. That knowledge is a factor-- I used to love watching his excitement, and learning he's a jerk takes the fun out of it for me. While that is a tempting solution, it's realistically a combination of it all. We'll see what happens next year... I may just need to start a pool to bring the fun back into March.

sigh

I understand the teen years, and I even sort of get being a disgruntled teen boy who does not like school and accepts getting detention as part of their right of passage... but man, sometimes, I just want to get their attention and get them to understand that they're really only hurting themselves. No, it's not fun for me to be here, and I don't like being sworn about, but I'm getting paid to monitor them. I signed up for this, so I'll get by. But man... come on guys, catch the clue. Just suck it up and move on.

4:45. Finally.

Happy St. Patty's Day

guess I never thought of it like that....

perspective

Everyone plays their part, but honestly, I don't know how she plays hers.

I get to see kids whole, and growing, and learning, and leaving me for better things. I don't know if I could have endured all of that studying myself to still not have the answers.

eating through the holidays

It is well documented that I enjoy eating. I also enjoy preparing food, classic as well as new recipes. As a result, we often celebrate major and minor holidays with our own low key versions of Festive Meals. So far this year we've had hoppin' john for New Years and long life noodles for Chinese New Year. Jambalya for Mardi Gras. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out we have corned beef for St. Patty's Day. Because of crazy work commitments, we had it today.

I love honoring different cultures through food. I think it has to do with tradition combined with ingenuity. Someone had to figure out how to make this incredibly tough piece of meat enjoyable. Or how to take the scraps from the Main House and feed your entire family well enough that they can go back out and work in the fields without collapsing. What do you do when okra is the only vegetable that grows in your area-- and it is slimy and unpalatable? People figured it out, and became known for those dishes. And it seems right to celebrate their talent by attempting to recreate it ourselves.

more random acts of geeky

Today is the second Friday the 13th in a row. I asked my class (thanks to SJ's recommended site) why it happened. They all freaked out about having to think. I wanted to cry. I mean really, aren't questions like this more fun than bisecting angles?

When I was delivering mail to my fellow East Campusites this afternoon I noticed a bulletin board showing we've had 8 left handed presidents. I made a comment about saying it would be interesting to compare that percentage (18.6) to the general population (7-10). She looked at me knowingly and said "... blog post?"

It's a good thing I'm comfortable with my geekyness, because there is no hiding it.

Of course, I now feel I need to compare other world leaders handedness and add it to my stats...

***UPDATE***
I asked Boy and Girly the same question on the drive home today. It took some work, but Boy got to "because it is divisible by 7"! I lead him into why the 7 was magic, and what the pattern was, but I was very pleased that my biologicals didn't give up when it got hard. Having a math geek for a mom pays off eventually.

Geek 101

One of the resonating memories of my childhood is sitting at the dinner table figuring out the Punnett Squares on the likelyhood any of us received any given trait and the percentage breakdown of our heritage. Tonight, the darlings asked what percentage German they are. Finally! Some fun family math to pass our evening. Unfortunately, the WB side is not as simple as mine, so we're dealing in approximations, but our best guess is about 25% German, 25% Italian, 33% British Isles (with the details a bit hazy) and 17% random. As WB noted, "... a bunch of these guys were sailors, so who really knows..." They're glad they have enough Irish in them to claim a real part in St. Patty's day (which we celebrate, as we do all cultural holidays, with food), and I'm just so excited to play math games.

You just don't get any geekier. I know.

happy blogiversary!

For the past year, I've been putting my thoughts and observations out here for the world to see, and a bunch of you have actually read them. This has been the most consistent writing I've done since required high school journaling, and I think I now understand why McCann wanted us to write daily. So thanks for being my audience. And see you tomorrow.

generation gap

If I survive the next 10 years of parenting it will be a miracle.

"These pants are uncomfortable under my snowpants!" (stomp, stomp)

Her goal was to be allowed to wear the definitely-not-school-appropriate sweatpants with the too-small-shirt that shows her belly. Um... no. She changed her pants and put a sweatshirt on, but made sure we all knew just how unimpressed she was.

This could get ugly.

*sigh*

Upon being asked how the hot chocolate at skating was:

Girly: "It was good!"
Boy: "It wasn't awful, like I thought it would be."

What can you do? I guess it's just a part of who he is.

SAT prep

The BoDeans are to The Medium as The Hold Steady are to Saving Grace

m&ms are to coke as corn chips are to whiskey

REM continuing without Bill Berry is as BNL continuing without Steve*
*I hope

yankee ingenuity

In our continuing quest to keep the home fires burning, we need more wood-- turns out 10 cord cut and split is not enough to feed the furnace. So, a few dead trees around need to come down. Getting them down is the easy part... getting them to the furnace takes a bit of effort. I don't mind putting them on the kids sled and dragging them back a piece or two at a time, but WB got the idea to build a better sled. So he did. We had some old cross country skiis around, sans bindings, and he created a base from left over pieces of 2x4s. All he had to buy was screws. I love that kind of project: it works, it's recycled, and costs less than $5.

20 albums.

Think of 20 albums that had such a profound effect on you they changed your life or the way you looked at it. They sucked you in and took you over for days, weeks, months, years. These are the albums that you can use to identify time, places, people, emotions. These are the albums that no matter what they were thought of musically shaped your world.

1. Concert in the Park, Simon and Garfunkel
This was the soundtrack to Sunday mornings. The 6 of us squished into the Olds, heading to Holy Cross.
2. The Joshua Tree, U2
The first album of which I anxiously awaited the release date. I stayed up until midnight to hear BLM play it in it's entirety. I didn't love it at first, but it grew on me. When I went to see my Fabulous Uncle, he took me to Joshua Tree National Park (National Monument when he took me, yes Carrie) and showed me THE tree. Amazing.
3. Green, REM
REM is my band from high school. I loved all their albums... until the 90s. Then they made me mad.
4. Welcome Home, 'Til Tuesday
My sister and her best friend and I listened to this album a lot. I played it for Mike the summer after we met. It was the first time he'd ever heard of them. It was not the last time I introduced him to something new.
5. Home, BoDeans
I found this band somehow-- I think through my friend Cathy? When I moved here I said something about it being good work, to which Nicky replied 'if you can get it'. I knew I'd found a fellow fan. I first met Normie and Alicia riding to see the BoDeans with Nicky and Devon.
6. The Breakfast Club Soundtrack, various artists
We quoted this movie, a lot. Truth be told, still do.
7. Essential, Divinyls
This band came to me through Tom. I instantly fell in love.
8. Violent Femmes, Violent Femmes
The Official soundtrack to One Act Festivals. In Southern Maine in the 80s, anyway.
9. Staring at the Sea: the Singles, The Cure
This bridged One Acts in high school and freshman year of college.
10. The Innocents, Erasure
I learned of Erasure through my friend who was also involved in Theater UMF. I had a crush on him, but I figured out later he was gay. I think I really just liked him because he wasn't pushy and liked good music.
11. Upstairs at Eric's, Yaz
Julie, my fellow RA, turned me onto Yaz. I found out later that Vince Clark was also a member of Depeche Mode (who makes the list of significant songs but not albums) and Erasure. I love it when I'm consistent.
12. Greatest Hits, james
Kiya mentioned hearing a james song in the X Files Lightening Boy episode. Dave knew the band, so then I needed to. Another one of instant love. Now the kids love them, too.
13. Mutiny, Too Much Joy
This is the soundtrack to doing the nursery in our first house.
14. Stunt, Barenaked Ladies
The first BNL show we saw... which lead us to the next 2 albums. BNL is to my transition to parenthood what REM was to high schoool. Those years of not sleeping come rushing back when I hear these songs.
15. Lost and Gone Forever, Guster
The kids first rock concert included Guster, Ben Folds, and Rufus Wainwright. Another band linked to parenthood-- and the good and bad it brought into our world.
16. All You Need Is Live!, Cowboy Mouth
A great live band. I was singing Let It Go in my head while the maternity nurse was putting on the relaxing yoga music during Cate's delivery. I needed something with a lot more energy to get the job done!
17. Wonderlick, Wonderlick
The parent band, Too Much Joy, is WB's all time favorite. I prefer the mature version. (For the record, Girly is entering the Hearts and Stars phase...)
18. Who The Hell Is John Eddie?, John Eddie
When I think about Mike and Katie dating, I think John Eddie. Debbie and Rick, too. But not them dating :)
19. Hot Fuss, The Killers
The kids loved this album too. All These Things That I've Done means we're in the van, headed somewhere.
20. Boys and Girls in America, The Hold Steady
My newest craze. They're all about dangerous sex and drugs-- totally opposite me-- but something about the storytelling mixed with the raw, straight up sound makes my day. One of my students took my advice and gave 'em a listen. The cycle continues...

life happens while you're making other plans

Yesterday turned into one of those days that you just have to figure out.

I had a student who needed a 'cookie' from a tree for a science project, but didn't have a chain saw. Well, he could have found one to use, but he was using that as the excuse to not do the project. Anyone who knows me realizes why I immediately jumped in and offered the use of our chain saw and to come cut one of our trees. He jumped at the chance to help us: since the project is due Friday, days to come cut were limited. Yesterday was it. I got him home, found the tree to cut, donned the snowshoes to get through the ocean of snow in the back yard... and got a phone call from my mom. Mom, upon the advice of my brother, had taken a snowboarding lesson at Sunday River. The lesson went well... but her practice runs on her own, not as well. She'd broken her wrist and needed help. Um... right. Let me make a plan and get back to you. Boy was cross country skiing at BMOM with his after school group. Girly was in tears because she didn't get into art club. I had a student running a chainsaw in my yard. I was supposed to be filling MEA stress bags. No one home at Bestfriends-- either one. Good times.

The plan came together as the path of least resistance: finish the tree project, get Boy, bail on the volunteering, and head to the mountain to grab the patient and drive her to Biddeford. Gramma decided the kids needed food first, so she treated us to a sit down meal (I was expecting drive through, but I guess she didn't want to try to eat in the car or something. I see the logic in that.) Girly and I rode with Mom in her car, WB and Boy followed in the van. We dropped her at about 9 in Biddeford, chatted with Dad for a few minutes... and turned around and headed home. The kids slept, thankfully, and we got home around 11. Not bad, all told.

Mom is probably at the ER now. I haven't heard any updates, but there was a chance of surgery and pins. It could have been worse. But it does get me thinking of the medical future potential. We've hit the age where our parents could require as much assistance as our kids. WB's dad had a hip replacement last year. Mom's wrist. I hope we stay in the physical realm and don't have to deal with any mental issues, although I do worry-- Parkinson's on WB's side, Alzheimer's on mine. It could certainly get worse. I hope it doesn't.

stop yelling at me!

The one feature of my van that really leaves me less than thrilled happens every spring. When it snows or rains and then gets really cold overnight, the van doors freeze shut, and no one is strong enough to wrestle them open. So, when someone tries to open the door and fails, the van yells at us until it warms up enough to get it open. Yesterday was one of those mornings... and the kids had to climb in and out through the trunk. The interior lights stay on, and the beep of warning starts. And continues. Not fun.

The only solution I've found to be effective is to ignore the screaming van and drive into school, with the heat on full blast. That starts warming the seals from the inside, and then when I arrive I climb up onto the roof and use the window scraper to release the seal from the outside. I'm sure I look insane-- but if I can't stop the beeping, then I am truly going to go insane.

I don't mind winter-- but the transition season is what gets me. I can live with it constantly below 32, and enjoy it when it's routinely above 40, but this in between stuff is for the birds.

winter wonderland

I'm not sure if these pictures show it clearly, but that's a lot of bleeping snow out there. WB's best guess is in the 18" range... the kids lost my yard stick earlier this season, and it still hasn't been located, so it's all about perspective. It took us about 2.5 hours to dig ourselves out. WB plows with the 4-wheeler while I work on shoveling and cleaning off the cars. Today I had to strap on showshoes to make the path to the compost and the electric meter. I haven't had to do that in a long time.
One of the local 'kids' decided to attempt our neighbor-on-the-hill's driveway-- right after the town truck left a bank as high as my waist. It didn't take long before he was asking to borrow a shovel, and it took him lots longer to return it. He did get himself out, claiming to have "learned my lesson". I, however, am certain he'll attempt it again next storm-- boys with big trucks don't take defeat easily, even if it is at Mother Nature's hand.
We are heading into the traditionally snowiest part of Maine winters. I hope today was the worst of it, if only because I don't know where we'd put another foot and a half of snow.

Thanks, Krazy Karoline!

Such talent my sister has... and we are lucky to be the recipients of her skills. Thanks for the prezzies!

from Katieland

Because I always enjoy playing with my friends.

1. A is for age: 38.. and rapidly approaching 39!

2. B is for beer of choice: Sam Adams Winter White. It should be out soon, if it isnt' already...

3. C is for career right now: alt ed teacher

4. D is for your dog's name? I have no such creature. Nor do I desire one.

5. E is for essential item you use everyday: my glasses!

6. F is for favorite TV show at the moment: The Closer or The Medium. Depends on which day you ask.

7. G is for favorite game: Trivial Pursuit. Which I still don't own.

8. H is for Home town: Peru or Biddeford, depending on who you ask.

9. I is for instruments you play: used to play piano and clarinet.

10. J is for favorite juice: Not a big juice fan.

11. K is for whose butt you'd like to kick: none, although there are a few sunshines I'd like to motivate...

12. L is for last place you ate: home

13. M is for marriage: can't imagine life without him.

14. N is for your full name: MummaNanny... the one that makes me happiest.

15. O is for overnight hospital stays: too many... 3rd grade for dehydration, 5th grade for unknown stomach pain, birth of both kids, and one night as the mom of an asthmatic 4 year old. That was the scariest trip.

16. P is for people you were with today: Weather Boy, Boy, and Girly

17. Q is for quote: I get by with a little help from my friends

18. R is for Biggest Regret: not visiting SF with my fabulous Uncle

19. S is for status: happily married

20. T is for time you woke up today: 9 something. The power went out, so the details were lost in translation.

21. U is for underwear you have on now: Cotton

22. V is for vegetable you love: so many... right now I'd be happy to have some brussel sprouts in the house.

23. W is for worst habit: watching too much tv

24. X is for x-rays you've had: just had my feet checked. Surgery on the second foot when we have the cash... and I agree to be laid up for 6 weeks.

25. Y is for yummy food you ate today: left over fish, mushroom risotto and brown sugared acorn squash

26. Z is for zodiac sign: Ares.

You like me, you really like me!

I was awarded the When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonade Award by Julie, who is a famous writer of romance novels who grew up around here. Her dad cleans my teeth, of all things. At least he's not my GYN, I guess...

Anyhow, turns out other people see me as a half-full kind of person. And now I get to highlight some other half-full peeps, too. What a great job for a vacation Saturday.

It works this way:

1) Link back to the person you received the award from, and

2) Nominate 10 bloggers who are deserving of this award.

I lemonade the following:

1) Weather Boy

2) Katie

3) Mike

4) Beth

5) Amity

6) the glass is pretty full

7) Krazy Karoline

8) SJ

9) Sara
10) Phenomemom

And, while having lunch today, WB noticed a drink special for a Lemonade Martini. I passed, as it was a bit early in the day to be that tipsy, but I guess we all know what my word of the day is! Now that you mention it, I believe I have a lemon in the fridge and some booze in the cupboard...

Hope... forshadowed

The West Wing is one of my favorite all time series, written by one of my favorite all time creators. If you have never seen Sports Night, you owe it to yourself to 'flix it. I swear, the man may like his nose candy, but he knows how to write a brilliant script.

Today I caught a few episodes rerunning on Bravo. It was during the election campaign at the end of Bartlett's administration. An aging Vinnick had just earned the Republican nomination; Josh told Leo he was sticking by Matt Santos, a young, Spanish American with limited Congressional experience who was refusing to end his campaign. The young, inexperienced, smart, well spoken Dem beats the aging, conservative, upper class white Republican. Um... wow. No wonder I had so much hope last November.

where's the pea?

(No, we do not spoil our kitty... why do you ask?)

reality

So my dear hubby WB wrote about a new Food Network "reality" show. It got me thinking about the kinds of reality shows I enjoy. It has been well documented that I do not enjoy Survivor, and have not watched since the first season (although WB did for awhile, but he's done now too. Yea me!) The Mole was cool, but once Anderson Cooper left, it went downhill. Amazing Race isn't bad, but they started losing me with the eat-a-ridiculous-amount-of-gross-food challenges. Plus you can predict the pairings-- family members, dating and always fighting couple, gay guys, etc. But the ones I really love are the creative ones. Top Chef is also a good way to pass some time, but Padma drives me insane and Tom is a bit too much like Eyeore for me to get sucked in. My all time favorite, of course, Project Runway. I love it all-- the flamboyant personalities, the crazy garments (on the models AND designers!), the "make it work" need to not disappoint Nina. I find it fun, and dramatic, and a real representation of the unreal desire to break into fashion designing, where it is hard to predict why you are in one day, and out the next. And I like that you win based on talent, not based on forming alliances and scheming to get people voted off. Now, if the producers would stop fighting over PR leaving Bravo and heading to Lifetime-- talk about reality tv!-- I could get my fix on.

ridiculous

Last night, International Date Night, WB and I had not planned a date. The odds of us finding a sitter with Valentine's being the first Saturday of Feb vacation were not on our side: we figured we'd have a VD observed sometime later. The Kids had come over in the afternoon because their mom had worked the night before. Boy 2 hatched a plan to have our kids sleep over there, and through the wonder of vacations, it happened. Suddenly, WB and I were alone on VD... and we jumped in the van and headed for the movies.

Now we have never been a big movie-going couple: even when we were single, dinner and a movie but a dent in the wallet. During the sleepless baby years, I couldn't stay awake long enough to watch the rented movie, never mind get to the theater and get my money's worth. Recently, though, we've become Saturday night NetFlix watchers. For $10, we watch 4 DVDs. That is a cost/enjoyment ratio I can support.

But we usually pay to see one movie in the theaters each year. It's not like we've made it a formal plan or anything-- it just seems to work out that way. WB wanted to see Slumdog Millionare, and decide it could be our VD date. The kids left at 5:50, making the 9:15 showing our only option. I hadn't gotten cash or anything, but figured the $13 in my wallet would be sufficient. Imagine my shock when it cost us $16 for two tickets! Ridiculous! Thinking back, I don't remember the last movie I paid to see during the 7 o'clock hour, never mind the late show. I'd rather see a matinee for less money than say I saw the same movie at night for more money. (Yes, I know, I'm cheap. All good Maine Girls are. :) Now I remember why I rarely see a movie in the theaters-- sticker shock. Ridiculous.

Now, it should be said that Slumdog was very well done, and while parts of it were shocking and parts depressing, parts were uplifting too, and it was well worth seeing. I would feel better about the price if the studio execs would do something radical, like say give 1% of 1 day's take to something-- reducing the national debt, buying paper for a public school, giving to a food pantry-- but I don't think even Obama can bring about that kind of change. So, until I forget the shock of a full priced ticket again, I'll be waiting to see the rest of the Oscar nominees on video.

in which my luck might be changing

Last night I was pulled over for having no left headlight nor rear left license plate light. The officer was very nice, and only gave me a verbal warning. Girly was a bit concerned, but it all worked out as it should have. I didn't even have a panic cry reaction! So it only cost me the embarrassment of being pulled over and the price of a couple of new lights. I'll take it over that plus a ticket any day.

enjoy every sandwich

As my friend SJ mentioned earlier, today started by shaking many of us up. I saw the accident, probably within moments of it's happening. I had one of those "this isn't good" feelings, and it was sadly right on. By 8:30 my mom heard the description on the news and called to confirm it was someone else. Other friends called or emailed later in the morning to check in. Many of the kids in my room are affected by the deaths; students and staff across our district are affected as well. We'll feel the vibrations from this for a while.

I've had lyrics from a couple of BNL songs running through my head. There's a line in Helicopters that starts "This is where my life changed in a day". I remember back to another tragedy that happened during my first teaching life, and how that family's life changed in a day. In a second. What if's surround everything... and there is no way of knowing why. How can this be part of a Master Plan? I can't believe all this pain is for the Greater Good... but it makes even less sense if it has no meaning at all.

Another song is about a fatal car accident. The refrain repeats "You're the last thing on my mind". It's a haunting song that always gives me chills, and I hope it never has any bearing on my life. You never know when it's your turn, however, which is probably a good thing. My dad stole a line from his friend, and I've heard it many times: there's not much you can do when it's your turn, but I just hope I'm not sitting on the plane next to you when your number's up. I'm sure it will be a while before I come down the hill and look right and not see the image planted in my head today. Like SJ, I'm thankful that this was not our fate today, and like the rest of the community my heart breaks for the families left behind.

Warren Zevon was dying of cancer the same summer Devon was, and his experience is, in my head, linked to hers. On his final Letterman appearance, Dave asked him if he knew anymore about life and death than the rest of us. His answer was that we should enjoy every sandwich. Today I was reminded of that, again.

be who you are

I went to high school with the gay guy in this video. I think he was in my sister's class, and I haven't thought about him in 20 years. I didn't know he was gay back then, but it wouldn't have mattered to me then nor does it now, except to say I'm excited that he survived our very white and very straight community and was able to get out and be himself and live his dreams.

desperate times

call for desperate measures! I found this log on the side of Rt 2 today on our way home from the Bangor Auditorium. So, I turned around and went back for it. It's bigger than it looks-- Girly rode next to it as it went all the way to the back of my seat! It was also very pitchy-- I bought a bottle of rubbing alcohol when we stopped in FarmTown for groceries. We were safely in the breakdown lane, so no logging trucks were going to kill us. It may only get us a day of heat, but that's one more day than we had-- and a free day at that!

oh what the heck... what's one more?

A List -- Scattegories Style

Rules: It's harder than it looks! Copy to your own note, erase my answers, enter yours, and randomly tag 10 people (including me). Use the first letter of your name to answer each of the following questions. They have to be real. . .nothing made up! If the person before you had the same first initial, you must use different answers. You cannot use any word twice and you can't use your name for the boy/girl name question.

Have Fun!!

1. What is your name: Rachel
2. A four Letter Word: read
3. A boy's Name: Ryan
4. A girl's Name: Rebecca
5. An occupation: researcher
6. A color: red
7. Something you wear: ring
8. A food: raisin
9. Something found in the bathroom: rolls of tp
10. A place: Reed State Park
11. A reason for being late: resting
12. Something you shout: rats!
13. A movie title: Running Man?
14. Something you drink: rum
15. A musical group: Replacements
16. An animal: rat
17. A street name: River Rd.
18. A type of car: Renault
19. Something scary: republicans
20. Ice cream flavor: rum raisin

another one

Also stolen from Facebook. Posting here is double duty-- anyone not on FB can read, but those of you on get it twice. I don't care which one you read :)

1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
Mom just liked the name Rachel, Margaret is for my Dad's mom, grandmother, and great grandmother. They were all Margaret someones, and called the someone. Logical Mom decided to just name me what she was going to call me.

2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED?
"Ok, Buckaroo, thanks for being my teacher." Graduation. Gets me every time.

3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
I have horrible handwriting, but it is distinctive.

4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT?
Tunafish that I've made with good mayo. Otherwise, I'm in a salami phase.

5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS?
All kinds. 2 I carried, 2 who I treat like I carried, and a whole bunch I teach all day.

6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON, WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
I think so.

7. DO YOU USE SARCASM?
Who, me?

8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS?
Yes

9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP?
Nope

10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL?
oatmeal, but only sometimes. I really dont' like cereal.

11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?
No and I hate wearing shoes that have ties

13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM?
chocolate chip cookie dough

14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE?
probably their eyes-- I've never thought about it.

15. RED OR PINK?
turquoise over pink.

16. WHAT IS YOUR LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF?
that I can be overwhelming to shy people.

17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST?
living, my uncle. no longer living, my grandmother.

19. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING?
tan pants and socks.

21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW?
Jon Stewart

22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE?
turquoise

23. FAVORITE SMELLS?
anything baking, especially if vanilla is in it.

24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?
Mike


26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH?
NCAA Mens Basketball tourney. Love Dicky V and the Cinderella teams!

27. HAIR COLOR?
Dark Brown... turning gray :(

28. EYE COLOR?
Brown

29. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS?
No. Tried once, hated the experience. Love my glasses.

30. FAVORITE FOOD?
Mexican

31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS?
Suspenseful, sure, but never scary.

32. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED?
something from NetFlix.... NYPD Blue Season 1, Disk 1 I think

33. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING?
Green turtleneck sweater

34. SUMMER OR WINTER?
Summer, but I don't hate winter.

35. HUGS OR KISSES?
Hugs

39. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW?
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle for a high school adult book club

40. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD?
haven't had one since forever

41. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON TV LAST NIGHT?
Lie To Me. It wasn't great, wasn't awful.

42. FAVORITE SOUND(S).
laughter and love yous

43. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES?
Beatles

44. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME?
California

45. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT?
Sure. All kinds... :)

46 WHERE WERE U BORN?
Bangor, Maine

48. HOW DID YOU MEET YOUR SPOUSE/SIGNIFICANT OTHER?
First time in anatomy lab my freshman/his junior year of college. For real, when he was coaching middle school soccer at school and my teacher friend made me say hi.

more from SJ

One Word... Or Maybe Two

Fill in the blanks and share, borrowed from Facebook.

Where is your cell phone.....coat pocket
your hair .........brown
Your father? ....... well read
Your favorite thing? …. modern comforts
Your dream last night?.... can't remember
Your favorite drink? ........... margarita
Your dream/goal? .......... financially solvent
The room you are in? .... living room
Your fear? ......... being hated
Where do you want to be in 6 years? right here
Muffins? ............. Yes!
One of your wish list items?......... no debt
Where you grew up? ........... Biddeford
The last thing you did? ...... checked Facebook
What are you wearing?....... favorite sweatshirt
Your TV?........... flat screen
Your pets? .......... kitty
Your computer? ...... school owned laptop
Your life? ......... great
Your mood? .......tired
Missing someone? ...... always
Your car? ........ toyota minivan
Favorite store?..... Goodwill!
Your summer? ....... freedom
Your favorite color? ........ turquoise
When is the last time you laughed? ........ hour ago
Last time you cried? ........ January graduation
Three of my favorite foods? ......... low salt chips, mexican, veggies
Three places I would rather be right now? .... Bozeman, MT, a friend's kitchen, warm beach

I give up

The washing machine died in mid cycle tonight. Soaking wet clothes, full of water, and dead. No idea why.

I am going to cry.

***UPDATE***
The little thingy that lives in the lid that pushes the button on the machine to tell it it's safe to agitate because the lid is down is gone. WB rigged something up to get it through. It was 11 PM when we discovered the problem. At least it's a relatively easy and inexpensive fix.

resolution season

For the first time in many, many years, I appear to be sticking to my resolutions. My chip consumption is way down. I haven't had a Coke since Christmas. I'm conscious of eating more fruit and veggies and less crap. I pay attention to portions. I'm moving more regularly, although sometimes life gets in the way of my workouts. And the biggest one is I am drinking a nalgene bottle of water daily.

Never in my life have I drank enough water. For a long time water alone would make me throw up-- partly because I used that technique to get through morning sickness: throwing up water is easier than crackers or apples or dry heaving. Now I actually find myself wanting my water bottle instead of forcing it down. That is growth.

I'm no where near as focused as Mike is. I don't chart my food, count calories, or have a full fledged workout routine. I'm trying to slowly encorporate healthy changes in a way that is sustainable. For now, it seems to be working. We do not have a working scale, so I don't know if I've lost weight, but my jeans don't feel as tight as they did at Christmas. I'm taking that as a good sign.

to explain

no, that would take to long.
To sum up:

oven ignitor
van windshield
broken water pipe underground
dead truck battery
2 kids referred for orthodonture
flat van tire, requiring 4 new tires to complete the fix

By my count that's 3 vehicle related incidents, 2 home related (which I am counting as 3 as it's the quick fix and then the real fix in the spring) and 2 kid related future expenses. So ... I guess the waiting continues.

change

I need our luck to change. Today started with a flat tire. Thanks to the generosity of my autobody shop owning neighbors, they changed my tire with their power tools and I was on my way again after only an hour. Had they not been there I think I would have had to call in the favors I've built up in my classroom. Anyway, I need this luck to change. I'm not sure the message the greater Cosmos is trying to send me, but I know you're telling me something.

Or maybe I just need to take a page from Katie's book and let it go and trust that this is all happening for a reason and it'll all work out, somehow, in the end.

***UPDATE***
4 new tires later, the van is ready for the coming snow.

I know it could be worse, but really, I just need a break.

Happy New Year!

Because we love to cook, I guess, we try to honor other culture's special holidays. Today is the Chinese New Year, I think the Year of the Ox. So, we set to cooking. I made Wonton Soup and WB made dumplings, using the same meat mixture he made last night for both. I also made a Long Life Noodles from Cooking Light (yes, I modified it by what I had in the fridge. Still authentic, but also using what's here.) And, just because I had splurged on Wonton wrappers, I made up a Crab Rangoon recipe. I'll need to work on that-- I think more cream cheese and some more flavor of some sort. Garlic? Ginger? Onion? We'll need to keep playing.

I do enjoy these cooking adventures. Trying something new is always fun, and it usually comes out well. And while school does Diversity and Cultural Awareness Day once a year (which coincidentally was today), I think it's nice to expose the kids to other cooking cultures in the comfort of their own home. Yea, they're on track to grow into culturally accepting kids, but it doesn't hurt to know that other peoples make your belly happy :)

Next up: Mardi Gras. Perhaps WB's favorite of the year! Come on down Feb 24 if anyone is in the mood for some Cajun cookin'!

Fashionista!

Girly went shopping on her Birthday Girls Overnight. She came home with this funky hat, a shirt with blingy buttons, and these high heeled flip flops. In this shot, she's wearing the sweatshirt she bought on last year's outing. She is certainly developing a sense of style... and one that is hers and not her mother's!!

great shot

Boy has really taken to cross country skiing. He went out yesterday and plowed through the powder and made himself some trails, and then WB went out on the snowshoes and joined him. Boy went out again today and I followed behind on my snowshoes snapping pics. Catching moments like this is why I take so many at a time... I don't always have a vision of what picture I'm looking for, but I know it when I see it. I have to say, I'm pretty proud of this one.

Thinking back, many of my favorite pictures are taken from behind. I have a great one of 18 month old Boy trudging up Coast Guard Beach, and one of 18month old Girly following her brother and father down Nauset Beach at a distance. I got some great ones of the cousins walking through the Redwood Forest, with only the baby looking back over his mother's shoulder. I'm mostly a mom-photographer, but I feel like I'm getting better at taking shots anyone would like, even if they didn't know my subjects.

dance with the one that brung you

After the ceremony last night, WB and I had a date. Imagine that! Normally such an event brings us to Brian's Bistro or to the Sunday River Brew Pub, but neither of those felt right: Irving's Truck Stop, however, was the perfect. We arrived to a full house, forgetting it was the Friday Night All You Can Eat Fish Fry. Hanging in a truck stop eating fried fish and warmed toll house pie is exactly what you should do after putting on a Carthage based AltEd graduation.

My Opus

Tonight 2 of my sunshines graduated. One a semester late, which took a lot of courage to come back for a 5th year, and one at least a semester early, depending on when you start counting. Both of them worked hard to get here, and deserve the smiles you see before you. I am proud of them. So very proud.

As you all know, these are the kids who struggle through school. They hate it. It's torture. Usually their parents hated it too, and remember their own trips to the very same naughty kid bench. But these are the ones that it means something when they suck it up and finish. I cheer for them more than I imagine cheering for my own kids. These small, private ceremonies are so special-- I get to speak directly to them and for them, and to their extended friends and family. Anyone can come and there is no need for tickets. And the 'ceremony' is over in 30 minutes :)

One of these guys gave me the most sincere hug-- multiple times-- and thanked me for being his teacher. When I read his card (with an engraved gift from his family and chocolate for my tree hole from him) it said "Thank you for all your help. I wouldn't have graduated without you." How do you respond to that? I met him as an angry, impulsive 14 year old and he graduates as a respectful, caring, giving father. I'd be lying if I didn't admit to being a part of that transformation, but I'm under no delusions that he couldn't have done it without me. I just happened to be the right person at the right time. You all even know my secret, and it's really not even a secret. Treat them like you would like to be treated. Practice tough love when necessary. Listen. Be honest, and demand it in return. He grew up because he found a place (a place found him?) where he could be himself, but also be held accountable for his actions. We laughed, we cried, we planned, and we connected. And now he's ready to go get a job and be a grown up. That's a good day.

I'm sure most of you saw Mr. Holland's Opus, and WB jokingly made that reference to me tonight. It's not quite a match, because I in no way feel I'm wasting my life teaching. I know what I do everyday will pay off in dividends in weeks, months, and years. It paid off tonight, as all 50 people in that room thanked me for doing what I can't imagine not doing. As I looked into the crowd and saw my graduates from last year and the year before come back and support their friends. As kids I haven't taught let me give them grief for doing stupid things and then told me about their successes. There is no false modesty when I say I don't see a whole school assembly happening when I retire and my former students showing up with their own security detail. But I do think I'll have steady visits throughout the years with stories of successes and failures, and truly that is all I want. And as much as this feels like an 'it's all about me' post, it's not. I've stumbled upon my dream job, and it wouldn't exist if every kid was ready to access the regular high school curriculum. I'm as thankful to have these sunshines in my life as they are to have me in theirs. And on the days when they can express those feelings, I feel like they're all out there, playing my Opus.

overrated

Mid-terms and finals are a bigger pain than they're worth.

My humble opinion of course.

I am ready for today to be over and for life to get back to normal.

Since I've been tagged... twice!

37 Random Things About Me

1. Do you like blue cheese? I don't like the smell of it, so I haven't gone further than that.
2. Have you ever smoked? A short phase in college... and some days I still miss the feeling. Amazing how addictive the buggers are.
3. Do you own a gun? Nope.
4. What flavor Kool Aid is your favorite? It's all too watery for me... but as a kid I liked Tang. (Bet you can now figure out when I was a kid!)
5. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments? No, I'm usually going in with a purpose and need a problem solved. Plus I'm not afraid to speak up if I don't like what I'm hearing.
6. What do you think of hot dogs? I try not to think about them at all.
7. Favorite Christmas movie? A Christmas Carol. And the Gift of the Magi section of A Sesame Street Christmas
8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? Tea usually, but sometimes I need a comfort coffee.
9. Can you do push-ups? Yes. I used to be able to do a lot.
10. What's your favorite piece of jewelry? My engagement ring with my grandmother's diamond and my mother's ring my hubby had made for me with my great, great grandmother's diamond.
11. Favorite hobby? Scrapbooking and cooking.
12. Do you have A.D.D? No, but I can get many things done at once.
13. Do you wear glasses/contacts? Glasses. Tried to make contacts work the summer of 93, but they never got comfortable so I dropped the idea. It wasn't really my idea anyway!
14. Middle name? Margaret (in honor of the line of Margaret's on my father's side... and the original owner of the said mother's ring diamond)
15. Thoughts at this moment. 207 is just not catching my attention tonight.
16. Name 3 drinks you regularly drink? Tea, water, and whiskey
17. Current worry? Paying down our (accidentally increasing) debt.
18. Current hate right now? People who work with kids but don't seem to really like them.
19. Favorite place to be? In a friend's kitchen-- or they in mine.
20. How did you bring in the New Year? Pot luck music night at our house. We made it to midnight, but not long after. Kids, too.
21. Where would you like to go? South of France to visit my bucket list-ing uncle!
23. Do you own slippers? Yes, although I lost one of them this weekend. I swore it was tied up in the blanket, but now I can't find it. Knit Mary-Jane looking things that were a gift.
24 What color shirt are you wearing? Gray 2004 girls soccer MVC champions sweatshirt of WB's. They should have won states that year. Sometimes I think about that game and it upsets me all over again.
25. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? I had a blue satin pillow case as a child-- I think a gift from my grandmother (the engagement ring one) who went overseas. I remember it being very slippery, so I'm not sure sheets would be any fun. Never tried though.
26. Can you whistle? In an emergency.
27. Favorite Color? Turquoise and teal.
28. What songs do you sing in the shower? I rarely sing them outloud, but I often play my tap song in my head and visualize me doing the moves. I always sing with the radio, whether I like the song or not.
29. Would you be a pirate? No. No way I could cope with the violence.
30. Favorite Girl's Name? In my 20s I wanted a Jenna
31. Favorite boy's name? In my 20s I wanted a Dylan
32. What's in your pocket right now? chapstick
33. Last thing that made you laugh? probably WB. He always makes me laugh.
34. What vehicle do you drive? Toyota Sienna
35. Worst injury you've ever had? Broken bone.
36. Do you love where you live? yes
37. How many TVs do you have in your house? One. Brand new this summer, darn it all.

Hope

Today is a good day to be an American. For the first time in 8 long, difficult years, I am not embarrassed by my president. More importantly, I now notice, he is MY president. I voted for him, I believe in him, and I claim him. He is also the first president of my adult life that I trust and respect-- I believed in the last democrat, but I did not trust him, and lost respect for him as a person (but not as a leader) by the end of his term. This man, Barack Obama, I trust to lead us out of this mess, and I respect his integrity, his honesty, and his leadership style. Yes, a good day all around.

The first inauguration I remember is 1980. I knew there was something hokey about the Hostage Crisis resolution: why were the Iranians waiting until Regan took office to release those hostages? What did it really matter? Now I understand the deep slap in the face that was to Carter, probably the most humanitarian leader the world has seen. I remember sitting in Mr. Spenard's fifth grade class, and Tammy Jo Macomber counting down to noon and cheering loudly. I knew that she was just repeating her parent's views-- I was for Anderson because my mom was. But I also remember feeling awkward at that moment, and knowing there was a bigger piece to the puzzle that I just didn't get yet, and that moment has stuck with me. I don't know what it says that it would be 29 years and 6 major elections before January 20 at noon would matter to me again.

Today all the schools in our district were encouraged (commanded?) to show the inauguration to all students. Boy was grateful to get to see the whole speech, even if most of the kids in his lunch didn't care about it. "My eyes got a bit watery after he said it." How many other kids will remember this moment 30 years from now and have been impacted by what they saw?

Later today I had a meeting to talk about the future of AltEd in our new RSU. I left that meeting with hope: administrators believe in our programs and are committed to keeping them, and to making them better. I left feeling secure in my future, but also valued as an important piece of the success story. We even talked about how it's not only the AltEducators responsibility to connect with kids, but all teachers. How do we fall back on connections made in elementary school to help disconnected middle or high schoolers? How do we help transitions between grade levels? We left the AltEd world for a bit and talked about impacting all students. Saying I left that meeting hopeful is an understatement.

So I have hope: hope for the future success of this RSU transition (even though I still think our governor lost his mind), hope for my sunshines, and all the other sunshines out there needing a connection, hope for Boy and Girly's future, and hope for America. It sounds hokey, but today the promise of America doesn't sound so crazy. Hope. Such a breath of fresh air. The first step to getting something done is to believe it can be. My sunshines start earning credits and moving towards graduation when they believe they can do it. The same holds true for countries on the brink of disaster: I believe that this person is what our country needs to generate enough hope for us to make a change. That his background is what it is only adds to the story: he did not grow up easy, he was not expected to ever become president, but he believed, and here we are. Hope.

satisfying

Today has turned into a very satisfying day.

Our Saturday AM trip to JOAD had Boy scoring a 202, beating his personal best by about 50 points. Instead of going out for lunch and spending lots of money, we got breakfast before at Dunkin Donuts. If we ever get a DD in Dixfield, I will have to take a second job to pay for that habit: I won't get up early enough to drive to Rumford for a coffee before work, but if I pass one, I have a hard time resisting the urge. We stopped in at Play It Again Sports and got some store credit for trading in some old skates and skis, although I know they'll sell them for more than we traded, but whatever. They're out of my shed, which completes the summer cleanout project.

While WB went to do grocery shopping, I wanted to get outside in the 'heat' of the day. I decided to be a Useful Engine and finish cutting up the tree that WB felled last weekend. It was still on the side of the house, but had been overshadowed by the cold and the water issues. I spent probably 90 minutes getting the usable bits free and dragging them over to the Woodmaster. WB has probably half a dozen branches to chainsaw into smaller pieces-- either that or teaching me how to, because I can't use our handsaw to save my life.

After I cleaned up from that project, I started dinner. Cooking Light had an oven fried chicken recipe I've wanted to make all week. In my typical fashion, the recipe was a guide rather than a bible, but I think switching panko breadcrumbs for cracker crumbs was a brilliant decision. I then toasted the homemade bread I'd made last weekend with an olive oil garlic dressing and had Boy make up a simple cole slaw. Super yummy! I got all the dishes done while it was all cooking, so the kitchen is even clean now. Yea me!

Tomorrow the kids will come sleep over before their mother goes to work, and we'll hook up somehow with Bestfriends on Monday to return them. All 4 of the kiddos are anxiously awaiting that.

Right now the living room temp is up over 70 (we started the day at 55) and my belly is happy and full. My muscles are tired from doing some work, and my brain is satisfied with accomplishing so many things. So this, SJ, is my favorite kind of Saturday!

and now for our regular programming

You Are Basil

You are quite popular and loved by post people. You have a mild temperament, but your style is definitely distinctive. You are sweet, attractive, and you often smell good.

What Spice Are You?

now what?

The truck is dead. Started this morning, WB stopped for coffee, and came back out to a dead vehicle.

I need this week to end.

bleeped

So the water situation is as bad as it can be: the pipe from the well to the house is broken. We need an excavator, and new pipe laid down. I am not kidding when I say I have no idea how we're going to pay for this. Well, I do, I guess. It's called credit, which I am desperately working our way out of needing. But I guess not now.

Darn it. I'm so sad... and mad at myself for letting us get into this financial mess. Darn it, darn it, darn it.

Update: The glorious plumbers got us water in the house again. A heat wrapped pipe, buried in the snow, leading from the well and across the lawn into the basement. The plan is to do this until spring, when we can get the excavation part done. They also suggested calling the homeowners policy-- which I'd never have thought of myself-- so I'm crossing everything that it's covered. A deductible is much nicer to deal with than the whole thing!

livin' la vida Norlands

So I'm finding it slightly ironic that today, when the death of the founder of the Norlands Living History Center was announced in the local paper, we are carrying water in 5 gallon buckets and melting snow. I say, you haven't truly lived until you've melted snow on the stove to do dishes. One bowl with soapy water, one for rinsing. Granted, I was using my modern gas stove, with electric lights to help me, but still, it gives one a sense of gratitude for the wonders of indoor plumbing. I can't believe Devon didn't have indoor hot water until 1983. Further proof that she was an absolute saint.

As WB mentioned, we have lots of options on what may be wrong, but no clear solution. The guys will be back in the AM-- one a former student who is a great kid and loves his job-- to try to fix it. I trust them completely. I have rekindled respect for my friends at Community Energy. We'd hit a rough patch a few years back with budget payments for oil, but the service side of the business has always been rock solid. They are my official Go-To People. Rosemarie recognized me immediately, although it's been a couple of years since I'd called. Let's hope it's a bunch more years before we speak again!

A shout out belongs to the bestfriends, who harbored the kids after school and have offered meals and showers until the problem is solved. This, good people, is why you have friends. You people rock!

#3

Remember last month when the oven died and then the windshield cracked? I tried to convince myself that the third in the line was something silly like an exploded pen all over me. I should know better. Today, the water pump appears to be within hours of death.

I noticed our electric bill was a bit high last month-- higher than it should have been with Christmas lights and the electric bits of the external wood furnace working full time. Then WB noticed the pump was coming on a lot. I called someone, and they misunderstood the issue. Today, the pump is just not shutting off. So WB shut it off. Now every time we want to use water, he goes downstairs and turns it back on. One of these times, it just won't. I've called Our Guy, who happens to be the step dad to my longest running student. He's coming by one night this week. We probably need a new pump. The last time it died was 7 years ago. Saturday morning of Memorial Weekend. Boy was 4 and Girly 2. Running water was sort of important, so we paid the double time charge for the nice people to come. Still paying off that debt, as it got mixed into other random emergencies on the equity line. At least this time the kids are old enough to wait until a weekday. At least its working enough to not have to go lug water up from the stream. Luckily we have a Guy who likes to come work for us after his day job is done... which is great, except it means we have to wait. I don't like waiting. But he treats us well, and keeping this relationship happy is win/win for all of us.

So if you see one or all of us knocking on your door with shampoo and towels in hand, you'll know why. And please let us in!

beautiful

This is my favorite kind of snow. Light and fluffy, easy to shovel, and a fresh layer of pristine white on top of all the dirty stuff. I also love seeing the evidence of kids playing outside. When the sun comes out and the last few flakes are falling, I can't imagine living in a place with no snow.

(Ask me again later in the week when the thermometer doesn't get above single digits how I feel about winter.)

The Snack Club

I'm living my own Breakfast Club moment right now. My poor girl is in a very bad place, and there's nothing I can do to help her. Except listen. Being 16 is not easy. Life is often not fair. And working toward making it better is a really hard choice to make. Because it's hard work. Brutal work. And I don't know if she's ready to make that choice.

Another friend of mine came in at the last minute. Needed to get his truck jumped so he was late. Me being me, of course he can come late. Still has to do the 2 hours. I may be soft, but I'm not a pushover. I hope he joins me next semester. I think this is where he belongs

And seriously, I even had a Ally Sheedy type kid show up. He wasn't even on my list! I could not make this stuff up even if I tried.

Dear Mr. Vernon: We accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it is we did wrong, but we think you're crazy for making us write an essay telling you who we think we are. You see us as you want to see us: in the simplest terms, in the most convenient definitions. But what we found out is that each one of us is a brain, and an athlete, and a basket case, a princess, and a criminal. Does that answer your question? Sincerely yours, The Breakfast Club.

step it up!

I didn't get home in time to go for a walk tonight-- a college girl stopped in to chat after school and then I had promised the cheerleaders I'd come critique practice. I had gotten home with just enough light to dig my old step aerobics step out of the shed. So, during Jeopardy! I walked up and down and all around, switching direction and movement every minute. All those steps we did in the basement of the Madison in the early 90s came rushing back... a few more sessions of low impact, old lady tempo and I should be hopping around like the old days.

I went to step aerobics when I was new to the area and a newbie teacher. One of the veteran teachers was quite the exercise addict and brought me along. I figured it was a great way to meet people, get to know the area, and stay active at the same time. Once I met WB and started having someone I wanted to hang out with in the afternoons I stopped going. I have always liked aerobics-- the dancing/cheerleader/gymnast comes out loud and clear-- but I hate paying for it. Maybe this flashback will get me through the dark days of winter until I can get outside, walking the streets.

Hogwarts

Girly is now reading Harry Potter to herself. I read her the first 2 books, but I'm really not a very good bedtime reader... half the time I'm coming home from a meeting, or needing a shower before morning, or just too tired to keep my eyes open. I've been bugging her to move beyond Junie B. for months now, and this was what she needed to do it. I think she's read 3 chapters today. Very nice indeed.

Boy is reading Harry #6 (for the second time, first time reading the whole series himself) while Girly is on #3. Now I have no excuse to not finish the series. I myself am only about 1/6 into #3, and can't believe I've shielded myself from most of the secrets. I heard about one, but it wasn't too terribly shocking considering the length of the series and the time it encompasses. Hopefully I finish reading before finding anything else out!

I am not even kidding.

If you have not yet watched Little Miss Sunshine, go out and rent it tomorrow. Seriously. You will laugh until you cry, and cry until you laugh. I stumbled upon it on cable after The Muppet Movie, and WB and I are even more hooked than the first time we saw it. My face hurts from laughing. My next signature line ready to go. Man, this movie is amazing.

If I was made of money, you would all have a copy headed to your doorstep now. I'm not (and am actually working rather hard to eliminate our debt) so this will have to be a 'thought that counts' kind of moment. But really, watch this movie. You won't regret it. I promise.

winding down

Vacation is coming to an end. It's hard to think about waking up to an alarm again and getting back to running to dance and gymnastics (JOAD kept up over break). But, really, is there a better time schedule for parents? I feel quite blessed to get so much time with my family.

I am missing my sunshines, though. I wonder how their holidays were. No one has made the papers, so that's good news. No one has called, which probably means no tragedies beyond typical teenaged ones. But still, I look forward to their stories Monday morning. (Not to the alarm, though, even if it means them. I swear schools should run 10-4.)

Tonight we had fish and chips and onion rings (opened, unused beer from NYE means time for some batter!) and are watching The Muppet Movie. WB saw this in Rumford back in the day... I must have seen it at the Maine Mall Cinemas... both of which have been torn down. Somehow the kids have reached 9 and almost 11 and not seen this movie. Bad parents, I know, but easily rectified. Netflix is a great thing, no?

Happy New Year

New Year's Day means resolutions...

A combination of factors including age, hormones, meds, lack of time, and laziness have increased my waist size beyond where I consider to be acceptable for me. Today I resolve to start slowly, but to steadily work away at this so I do not need to purchase a whole new wardrobe. I got a new nalgene water bottle for Christmas, and I need to drink at least one per day. I've had success with paying attention to portion sizes in the past-- I never do well eliminating something I enjoy entirely, but limiting how much works well. I also really need to stop snacking after dinner... which could be the hardest change to make. Exercising 3 days a week, regardless of the schedule, is also important. No excuses! Maybe I'll find my old stepper and store it under the couch for those school nights where it gets dark before I get home...

That's a lot-- 4 major changes, really-- but all so important to my goal. I really need to lose about 10 lbs, but should be looking at 20 or 30 to get to the point where I feel my best. I guess 25 is a good, reasonable goal. My hope is if I do this gradually enough, the changes in habits will stick and I won't be posting this again next year.

If anyone is looking for a walking (or snowshoeing or anything else) buddy, let me know. I do better when I'm meeting someone to exercise-- I honor commitments to others more than those to myself :)