Post-birthday report

Random stuff, not really a cohesive entry today. First things first.

Yesterday as I was driving home from lunch with my old boss, I saw the swan out in the pond near my house. He used to come hang out down closer to my house, but he seems to be very happy over closer to the big part of the pond. I wanted to get a picture of him. So I turned around, parked, got out and went to see if I could get him to come closer.

There were dozens of Canada geese in the pond, they were all trying very hard to be the swan.

He didn't want to come close, but I watched him for a long time. I watched all of them looking for food, sticking their long necks under the water, with their duck rumps straight up in the air. The swan is huge, so he was pretty impressive to watch in this process. And... they stay under a good long time. I was impressed.

The really funny part was that when I parked my car, two ducks came from the opposite side of the pond and followed me across the road like puppies. They were very unique. There were no other ducks in the pond that looked like them, and I've only ever seen ducks like them at the Topsfield Fair. The Canada geese and the mallards didn't like these two at all, and kept harassing them. Sigh. Intolerance in the duck world.

So here are two pictures from my Swan and Duck watching experience.

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I'm in MF's class right now, working from home.

I wish I had broadband, because I get no visuals at home on CuSeeMe, just audio and text. It's better than nothing, and my only real purpose here is to zap the unsavory interlopers out of the room, so I don't really need to SEE anyone... just be here. I had to stay here because Jessie had a half school day and band practice after the half day... so I had to pick her up in the middle of class. It was either work here or go down there and try and arrange for another parent to get her. I didn't want to deal with the hassle. So I stayed home. It all worked out well. I abandoned the class for 10 minutes. People came in. The students asked them to leave. No one was given a hard time. Peace reigned and all was good in the world.

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Birthday report -- well. It wasn't a Barenaked Ladies concert with a celestial event following, but... it was nice.

I kept Geoff home because of Grandparents' day festivities at his school, and we went up to see his best friend Pete in Maine. Hanging out with Marcia and the kids was very nice and relaxing. They have some snow, so the kids got to sled... it was icy and fast, and they really liked it. Geoff fell asleep in the car on the way home after crying for the first half hour that he wanted to move there and live near Pete and "my girlfriend Mary. I want to marry her and live in Maine forever..."

Dude, you're already married, twice!

Mary is sweet on him too... which makes it extra cute. They'd make a nice couple... in 20 years. Gah. I can't imagine that far into the future... so I'll drop that line of thought.

I got several emails (Thank you Amy, Carrie, Virginia, Tess... you so rock) and different online cards from people. I took a nice nap when we got home. Then Doug took all of us out for dinner at Stripers Grille in Salisbury, right on the Merrimack River across from Newburyport. If you're familiar with the area -- it's a great little place to eat, the food is awesome, and because it is on the other side of the river you get the view of pretty Newburyport... all lit up and New Englandy. It's a very nice place. When we got there, Geoff told the waitress it was my birthday and she gave me mad props.

There was a large table filled with partiers, celebrating an older woman's birthday there too. When they brought out her cake, Geoff protested. "Hey! They didn't say the right NAME! It's my MOM'S birthday," and he was mad. We laughed at how cute he was.

I went to the bathroom, and when I did the waitress came over with MY cake, unrequested by Doug -- it was her idea. And she was all "Uh, where'd she go??!!" because I spoiled the moment by needing to pee (vodka and cranberry juice drinks makes me gotta pee when I gotsta pee). So she got my name at least, making the singing part easier, and then they came back around to sing to me when I got back.

I put a napkin on my head. I was so embarrassed. Geoff was thrilled that I got sung to, and that we had cake. It was all very nice.

When we got home, I put the kids to bed, I got a call from my mom so I returned it and we chatted. I got a call from my sister, so we chatted. Doug fell asleep and then I remembered I had a meeting with cateringman in the morning and hadn't finished the menus! In fact, I was less than halfway done with the menus! And it was 11pm!!! Aw crap.

So I went into the study and finished the menus. I got to bed after 1am. I was shagged out tired yesterday. The meeting went well and they accused me of partying too hard for my birthday. I let them believe that. I didn't want them to know I'd stayed up on my birthday WORKING for them... they'd call me a nerd.

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Yesterday I had lunch with my former boss, and a friend from the Marketing group who got laid off in June. We had a wonderful time, and it was so good to see him. I keep in good contact with my old boss, but some of my old pals I've been out of touch with since my layoff.

I went and bought myself a new winter coat (Kohls was having a 50% off sale. Wooo!) and got some stuff for Geoff -- he needed a new coat and sledding pants. I got the first of Jessica's Christmas presents but she went into my room and saw it on the bed. I got her a Simpson's Chess set. So there goes 20 bucks that was supposed to be part of Christmas for her.

My bedroom should be SO off limits!

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Tonight we're going to look at a new truck. We've been thinking for a long while that we want a truck, but have the family to sit in it. So. We're looking at a Dodge Ram pickup, extended cab. Seats 6. Great payload area for the dogs and gear (we'll obviously get a cap so the dogs aren't just... floating around back there, waiting to jump out and get killed. Decent mileage (18city/20hwy).

We don't want a minivan. An SUV is out of the question because that won't keep the dogs in the way back. And there aren't any decent sized station wagons that seat more than 5 people. No one makes the way way back seat anymore. And the middle seat is virtually useless in the front if you manage to get a car with bench seating... so going with the truck is where it's at. With 0% financing right now, we can trade in the Saturn and have the same ballpark payments that we have with it if we buy now.

This of course puts a crimp in Doug's Big TV Fantasy(TM). He wants a bigassed mother 36" TV for the built-in, and even picked one out. It costs like 1400 bucks or something. I forget how much. It's expensive. We may have to live with the pimpy TV for a year longer. Unless I get a job in the next couple months. Which I'm so hoping for. Then, we pay off all our debt, buy the truck, buy the TV and finish fixing the stuff we need to fix! Money -- it's helpful.

I've sent out resumes to head hunters. I'm dying to hear back from that college I just applied to. Yesterday was the deadline for submissions. They probably have an internal candidate already hand-picked and the advertisement and I'm not going to even get an interview. I have an interview tomorrow with a company in Watertown, which is SO far away, but it's a writing position that I'm really hoping I can make part time or flex time, and work from home. They are a young software company and a friend of mine works there. He is working for next to no money while they sell the first round of their product. They need a few more clients before they can give everyone who's been there since the start some serious money for sticking with it. But, they need training documentation and tech support manuals. So... that's what I'd be doing.

I'm sort of nervous, feel very under qualified. I have to dig out my tech writing samples. I'll probably have to go with the engineers to installations to work with the training process and then have stuff written for training afterwards, so this could be more of a pain in the ass if it doesn't pay well to start. I'll let you know.

Plus, if they give me this job, at very little pay... what do I do when I get the call to interview for the other job? What if I get the job at the college that I really really want? What if I walk away from a company that ends up with a great IPO and I miss out on gajillions of dollars? Meh.

I don't want to think about it. I won't get either job at all. In the long run... all that matters is I get the dishes done today, and the laundry folded. After this class is over. And a nap. Yeah. A nap.

I'm old

Staining the built-in

We survived the storm.

Now, all the bread I bought will get moldy. Fudge.

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The weekend was a mostly stay-at-home event due to that weather. Jessie spent the day at a friend's house (the "K" girl who was in my group for the field trip earlier this year, the slightly odd one). So it was quiet around here, and I got Geoff's room completely cleaned up, again.

Sunday was sort of rainy and icy, and all seven members of the choir, plus the organist, the pastor and six parishoners turned up for church. It was kind of sad. The roads weren't that bad. But Sunday School was cancelled (the Sunday School director obviously had worse roadage near her house than I did...) which was why there were no kids and hence no adults in attendance. Our 10am service is all families and a few older single people.

We all stayed after church for coffee. It was a lot of fun, and I'm glad I went... normally I'd be wrestling with Geoff or Jessie'd be whining in my face that she wanted to go to her friend across the street's house for the day.

Football watching was fun. We almost had skin failure when Tommy Maddox of the Steelers was shown splinted up and being hauled off the field with an obvious back/neck injury (nearly jumped online to email Leatheregg, Chadster, CJK and Smitty all at once screaming my head off). But I restrained myself. I almost started crying when I saw him there, they flashed over during the game they broadcasted here (Bills. yawn).

He's got an amazing story -- He is this year's "Kurt Warner" in "amazing stories" kinds of ways. He was an insurance salesman, wanted to get back to football... He sent out letters begging any NFL franchise to give him a chance and the Steelers got him. He's had a great year so far stepping in as the QB for the struggling Kordell (although I love him, he just isn't ... performing as well as last year). It would so very suck to see the guy lose his ability to walk, lose his career... lose his second chance at everything. Sigh.

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Today -- I finally got Home Improvement Project #2 - the built in cabinet - just about 100% completed.

Yes. I stained the bad boy. Holy cow it was a bitch and a half. Four and a half hours, 1.25 cans of stain. My hands are a mess.

After deliberating with my sister via long distance about whether or not I'd need them, I bought gloves and started the project at about noon.

The gloves were pimpy-cheap and my fingers popped through the fingertips, so I ended up tossing them. And yes, Linda, there was polyeurethane in the stain, so getting the stain off my hands was a party. The interior of the shelves was the hardest part. I made a big big mess.

It looks great, but I can't take a picture of it because I loaned Cateringman my camera so he could take some pictures. Plus, I'll get more email that says "your tv is still too small and pimpy in there..." Yes. I know. But it is the only TV I gots!

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I applied for another job that I really really want, this time it is at a community college here in the Commonwealth. The position is exactly what I did at the college where I used to work, but it pays 12k more to start than I was earning four years ago. Which ain't too shabby.

I am perfect for the job, yet again. I want the job... yet again. I'm not getting my hopes up.

I sent my resume, portfolio and transcript to them via email. I asked all my former bosses/friends/cheerleaders for letters of recommendation. We'll see what happens.

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Tomorrow, Geoff doesn't know it yet but we're taking a little trip up to see Wayne and Marcia in Maine. Geoff's school does a "grandparents' day" every November. Last year I ended up going and picking him up because he was SO distraught that his grandparents weren't there and everyone else's were. We're not running the chance of him going through THAT trauma again for a day of grandparent worship. If it were a Friday or a Monday or something, I'm sure my parents would come up for the weekend. But a Tuesday is a tough request from people who live 5 hours away. Doug's parents are 12 hours away in the far west of PA, so we never even ask them. So tomorrow will be a special day for Geoff and mommy, and his friend Pete... and I'll enjoy not having to sit here looking at the ceiling, which is Home Improvement Project #1, and it still isn't complete. It's close. But not complete.

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I got some cool email about the roller conveyor. My friend Mr. Garfield shared his stories with me. And Tanager told me there's a conveyor roller slide at a park near Coolidge Corner in Boston. She also indirectly told me I had a fat ass... which made me laugh.

I'd share their emails with you. But I accidentally deleted them because I was on the phone with my sister and was distracted. I thought I was deleting the two pieces of spam I got today... but it was their emails that went down the tubes.

Enough. Dinner's in the oven. I'm gonna relax a bit, kick it in front of my beautifully stained home entertainment cabinet, natch!

Autumn is an Ache

I'm not depressed, angry or sad about not getting the job or anything... just so you know. I've gotten email from complete strangers and friends I've made through this journal, and am touched that people care. Not getting the job kind of bummed me out, but not enough to quit writing and crawl under a rock. I simply have been busy doing a lot of nothing, all of it not in front of this computer. So that is the reason for my absence. Thanks for asking.

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I inadvertently caused my sister a great deal of home sickness with the above banner picture.

She is in Florida, where there is no fall, there is no snow. And there in the picture is a combination of the two. It hit her hard -- she isn't going to see fall at all this year, and may get to see snow at Christmas if she's lucky.

I didn't mean to drive her into a great sadness. It was just a picture. I printed it for her on my new printer, color glossy and the whole 9 yards, and I am going to get it framed for her. I'll give it to her and it won't be a Christmas present, like I thought it would be. It'll be a just for no reason present. All nice and ready to beautify a wall wherever she lives for the rest of her life, be it north or south, east or west.

We did a geocache on Friday afternoon with one of Doug's co-workers. She was so interested in geocaching after Doug explained it to her that she ran out and bought a GPS and she and her sons attempted what they thought would be a nice easy one. Turns out the guy who put this one out there also put out the one that skunked us on our first attempt (thanks, Fismo!) and so they couldn't find it. Doug, being the seasoned geocacher, figured he'd walk right up to it.

We couldn't find it either. There was another cache in the same area, by the same guy, and so we went and found that one easy as pie.

After we split up to head our own way home from Doug's friend and her son, we realized our error and think we know where it is now. Unfortunately, after work caching is now done because of frigging daylight savings time. We'll have to cache on weekends or holidays, until the snow comes. So far we've found 31, and have only had to revisit two of them to find them. This has been a fun hobby, and we're not done yet. I'm just hoping the snow holds out.

I know exactly where we are going to put one when we're ready to put one out there. I just hope no one beats us to it.

I took the kids to the one that Ivy, Jamie and I did on Monday because we all needed a walk, Doug was sleeping, and it was so easy I knew Jessica would be able to find it in a second, and she did. We left the house at 3:50pm, finished finding the cache and got in the car at 4:45pm, and it was already too dark to be walking in the woods. It broke my heart. Just a few months ago the sky would have looked like this at 8pm. We've lost three hours of light, and it's only going to get darker. I hate it.

It doesn't matter to me that it is lighter in the morning. I'm not a farmer. I don't get up at 5 to plow fields. This is stupid. It should so be abolished. Stupid daylight savings time.

Anyway -- I did grocery shopping, we did church, we watched football. It was pretty much a weekend away from the computer and I needed that. Unfortunately, I've got a project to finish for CM, and have some more work for MF to do this week. I can't believe it is week 9 of the semester already. There are only 15 weeks. Gah!

Wayne and Marcia are coming by at about 11am with the first set of pieces for the built-in entertainment center. Wayne did a ton of work on them this week, and it's all falling into place. The bottom is the hard part. The rest of the piece, above 36 inches, is shelving and he'll be able to build that out quickly. Doug and I need to pick a stain for it, and then I get to stain it.

I'm actively looking for a job, and sent out about 20 resumes in the last 48 hours. I'm contemplating contacting a head hunter. Professor CM is hoping to create a grant-funded position for me to work at the college again. I'd take it in a heart beat. He wants a 2 year grant that would pay between 40 and 50 grand annually. I don't know if grant funded positions come with W4s or if they are 1099 contractor positions, so if I got such a job and the grant didn't have my taxes withheld I'd only make between 20 and 25 k in the end, which would kind of suck. But... it beats getting no money. And it'd be working for him. Which would so rock. I miss spending time with him on a more regular basis. Not only is he funny as hell, but he inspires me and we have so much to talk about workwise. He's such a techno-whore, and he keeps me feeling fascinated by the net. I have been lacking that kind of spark since getting laid off. My boss at my last company was always thinking of what the web could do for what she wanted... and I'd research it and find out. We were a good team.

I miss that kind of work relationship. I don't get that here at home. Not to dis home or anything -- I love being here. I just miss a more concrete intellectually challenging work environment.

Speaking of home -- dishes call my name. Have a great day... and here are some dogs to make you smile (they even fit in with the color scheme of the page!) Check out Jack's tail on the back of the couch... it's so furry and cute. Kinger looks as if he's mentally communicating "Please get him off of me!" to me. But the two of them were cuddled really nicely together before I came in with the camera and Jack got all excited to have his picture taken. He's evil, but cute.

September Morn...

When Doug and I were first dating, he would sing Neil Diamond's "September Morn," to me in a schmaltzy Vegas style that would crack me up. I bet I've mentioned this before. I should read my September Archives... So every September I start laughing, waiting for him to do it again.

Problem with reading my September Archives means I have to read all the entries I wrote around September 11th. And I just don't want to do that. Not in the mood. My summer was great -- I'm feeling mentally stable and very happy. I don't want to dip back into the memory bank and start feeling scared and shitty.

I don't know about you, but I'm not looking forward to TV over the next couple of weeks. Our national heritage is worship of the dead it seems -- monuments, memories, slow motion replay reels with sappy music (none of it Neil Diamond though) and all for what? The Barbara Walters "I made you cry in an interview" kind of feeling where we bite back tears by holding our bottom lip between our collective teeth? No thanks.

This has been a busy weekend. We went to Maine for the day to see the residents of the Hyde-A-Way, and special guests from Western Mass., my old roomie Laurie and her husband and kids. We went to Old Orchard Beach, a place I can honestly say I've never been. Only we didn't go up into Old Orchard Beach Proper -- we went to Ocean Park, which is just south on the coast, and a lot less crowded. Most of the coastal beaches from there down to the cape are usually maniacally crowded, but this one was different -- there were a lot of people, but no charge for parking and we drove right up to a choice parking space in town. It was lovely. We got there at about 2:30pm, and the tide was coming in, the waves were amazing, and the kids had a blast.

Normally I would never set foot in the Atlantic ocean this far north, but found myself in the pudding, as it were, when Geoff went fast as possible up to the middle of his chest and I was convinced he was going to die.

The water temperature was lovely. It was cold, yeah, but not bracingly death grip instant heart attack cold. I showed Geoff how to ride a boogie board on his belly. He never got the gist of it, but I had fun. And I got a good work out. Sarah and Jessie were way out there with the real men (E, Wayne and Chris) riding waves and having fun. For as sore as I was after playing in the up close surf, I'm sure Jessica must have been stiff and sore the next day tenfold.

Here are some Kodak Moments:

Laurel and me in one of my silly hold the camera out arms length masterpieces.	Mary and Natalie digging in the sand. My pasty white son is visible just behind Nata.
Jessie and Sarah take a break from body surfing	Mary is by far my favorite kid on earth. I've said it before and I know I'll say it again.
Pete and Mary in the truck pit. Pete broke his arm last week when he was running in the yard... so he was breadbagged and cautious	Peteman grabs some waves, erm, some sand... looks like a pro though...
	Unlike my son who looks like he is trying to fly instead of surf. I love the concept of surfboard on the shore... these kids don't get it do they? What a riot...
Sarah, Nata and Jessie decided that the dogs all needed a bath. After they decided, the dogs went for a mud swim up at the Hydepond... so their want turned into true need... Abby was first.	Here's poor Jack, not sure why he is tied to a bench and hating it.

We barbecued in the Hyde yard, a feast not to be forgotten, and we sat around the dining table drinking a few beers and talking about college. Doug came into college well after I was already friends with Laurie, Chris, and Wayne... E was there but I think I never met him while he was there, and Marcia went to UVM, but we all had a great time ragging on each other and talking about Christian College Relationships (handholding and making googly eyes meant you were practically engaged! Chris was practially engaged to 100 girls at once). And the kids had a blast together.

Next summer I really want to borrow Sarah for a week and take her someplace with us. She and Jessie have such a good time together, and when they are together it is as if they were hanging out just yesterday, even if they haven't seen each other for months. They know how to be friends... none of this awkward "I'm not sure who you are anymore or if I'm going to like you still" crap that pre-teens do. It's refreshing.

Saturday was a hang around the house day. Nothing interesting to report.

Sunday I worked like a madwoman on Professor MF's site because it has to be ready for this Thursday. My mom says everytime I put MF there all she sees is "mother fucker" in her mind, but it isn't... those are just the unfortunate initials of said professor. I'd use her name but I doubt she would want me to, even though she's a public figure of sorts.

Doug took Geoff geocaching, and Jessie went to her friend A's birthday party. She ended up being invited to sleep over, so I brought her stuff to her. Doug and I watched 100 episodes of Law & Order on A&E (some sort of Labor Day Marathon thingie) and a rebroadcast of the 2001 Agassi/Sampras US Open quarters from last year. Yes, a year old tennis event. Don't laugh. It was thrilling then, and still thrilling to see a year later. Amazing match. And I barely like tennis.

Today it is pouring. It is actual Labor Day, the day so many view as the last hurrah of summer. I'm sure a lot of people are cashing in their chips at their vacation tables and rushing home early this year. Most of the Mondays in Labor Day Weekend over the last few years are fresh in my mind as rainy ones... seems like such a sucky way to end the summer. Good thing TNT has picked up the Law & Order marathonning so I have something to watch on this rainy day!

For me, though, it ain't over until I can't walk barefoot without getting frostbite. It's summer until I come screaming into the house after taking the dog out and I'm yelling "Damn! It's cold!!!"

That may be sooner than I want -- two nights ago I was out there in fleece pants with my breath vapor visible in front of my face. So Sad.

Not to complain -- my favorite of all seasons approaches. Fall. See the October archives for that.

Alright -- gotta get some work done. There is a slim chance Aaron and Michelle may come visit. They are spending the weekend with other friends (gasp! They have OTHER FRIENDS!!!??? No way! I thought we were exclusive!) and they may stop by before heading home. Then again, they may just go home. They're moving from their house to spend the winter on Mt. Desert Island at Farmer Matt's farm. So we may go there Columbus Day weekend and hang. That's still to be determined. Funny to plan ahead when this holiday weekend isn't yet over. Next week is a busy one for me. Tuesday meeting with Professor MF (stop thinking that Shirley!) and actual class time on Thursday. Finishing up Professor CM's stuff. Damn. No rest for the weary.

Birthday, Ice Cream, Graduation Party

A Sunday entry. How bizarre is that. I normally don't get to do this, but Doug is learning about extra terrestrial involvement in the pyramids, the kids are at the neighbors, and I've got some time to myself while the laundry launders.

We had a busy weekend. Here's what went down.

Maine
Geoff and I went to Maine to get the Natster. Geoff had fun playing with Peteman and Mary, and I got to spend time with Marcia, which I always enjoy. Found out they're expecting Kid Four in February. Much to their surprise. But they've got the house for it, and the life for it, it all works for them and I wish them the best. They have wicked cool kids. Hopefully number four will be just as wicked cool.

Here are a couple pics from our Maine Visit.

Geoff told me he was a beaver, building a dam, "And this is how beavers get their trees," he said, grabbing a young tree to munch. I stopped him before he actually COULD cut the tree down with his teeth. He told me he wasn't REALLY going to chew up the tree, but just show me how it is done... right. Likely. But I did snap this picture right before I yelled at him to quit chewing nature.

Geoff and Mary enjoying a swing on the hammock. Geoff got it swinging pretty good there with his foot on the outside edge, and they had a nice time together.

Geoff looks kinda lonely without Mary. I changed the orientation of this picture from horizontal to vertical because I thought it looked cooler.

They have this cool double swing out front, but Pete was taking a nap so Geoff couldn't swing with.

We left Maine and came home to find Jessie, A and her friend T whose parents had not RSVPed intention to send her over for the movie thing... I guess they called while I was in Maine and Doug talked to them after he got home. It was weird mixing Natalie in with 10 year olds, seeing as she's 7... but she did well and got along all right. The girls had the bond of Jessie, and horses. And we went to see Spirit.

My Review, Our Adventures
I hated this movie. No exaggeration. It was PAINFUL at best. There were far too many scenes of horses talking to each other in horsey scream and whinny language with human facial expressions to give us non-native horse language speakers the gist of the discussion. The Calvary guys were of course brutal, western expansionism was evil, the Indian guy was the cool guy and "understood" the horse ... horse falls madly in love with girl horse, they spend hours playing and romping. Sigh. Happy. Love. Kiss kiss. Meh meh. Puke puke.

And in the end, yes I WILL give it a way so avert thine eyes if you don't want to know, horse and Indian guy escape the bad cavalry guys and the wicked worst of them all gives them the nod of approval and "acceptance," and they go off and live happily ever after. Yeuch. It was tripe.

The animation was impressive but there were scenes where it screamed "computer! computer animation! too perfect! too exact!" and that bothered me.

And the icing on the hate cake for me was the fact that it was all a BIG music video for Bryan Adams.

Bryan friggin' Adams, who hasn't had a hit since like 1985, is the songwriter, singer, STAR of the movie. All the songs were written around the plot of the movie, and there were intensely long stretches of time where Bryan Adams' song was telling the story while you watch horses leap and play, or fight bad guys, or work hard. It made my stomach hurt. Bryan Adams. Who the hell calls Bryan Adams and says 'hey, we've got this horse movie, wanna write the soundtrack?'

Please. Puh-lease! Stop. Bryan Adams. I laughed and laughed for the first 10 minutes. A great big Bryan Adams music video is all this was. And it was pure, unadulterated crapola.

But the girls didn't see it that way. They loved it. As we went out for icecream after the movie I said "what was your favorite part of the movie?" and they talked about it and how wonderful it was. I tried not to puke and was successful. Barely.

Geoff liked the movie too, but I don't think a movie about being bad and fighting back wicked hard (even if the horse was right) was a good thing for him to see right now. As defiant as he is. Because the message of the film really is just that -- fight. Fight because you are right. Which isn't a BAD message, don't get me wrong. I'm all for standing up against injustice... but I don't know that it is something that a five year old needs to learn just yet. Perhaps, learn to get along with your immediate because they are good and right and THEN when the need arises to stand up and fight, do so.

Sigh.

Anyway... he hasn't talked much about the movie other than he liked the horses and likes the "Get off of my back" song that good ole Bryan Adams sings for us.

Bryan Adams... I'm still laughing.

In short, I don't recommend the movie. Don't waste your money. But if you have a 10 year old girl who loves horses, well then okay... she'll love it. Take her. Otherwise, rent Shrek or something else if you want to see a good kid's movie.

Congrats, Melissa!!!
We went to the deep south of Massachusetts yesterday afternoon for my cousin Mike's daughter's high school graduation. I remember when she was born. I have pictures of her holding Jessica, pictures of her from my wedding 11 years ago, and she was little.

Now she's all grown up. So weird.... She's going to get a nursing degree, live at home to save money, and I think she'll do super.

I don't get to spend much time with this angle of the family even though we're in the same state. Seems like Boston is some sort of physical barrier between me and those down south... but I always have a wicked good time.

Anyway... that was our adventurous weekend. It wasn't supposed to rain, but it sure as hell is right now. We were going to go pick strawberries or something, but it looks like once I get off the PC the kids will get on to watch Jessie's "Harry Potter" DVD (thanks to me). Coming this week is another edition of Blogger Insider, Jessie's REAL birthday (with cake) and whatever other wacky adventures we can get ourselves into! Stay tuned for further developments.

Par-Tay Checklist; Frontier House

The immediate To Do list:

Tomorrow:

1. Contact the mortgage company first thing in the morning to get fax number to send my homeowner's policy to them so they'll pay my bill. it's due the 17th. Call the insurance agency to make sure that's all I need to do. Must do. Or we lose policy.

2. Get the form from HUD notarized to get the money (about 1000 clams) from our refinance last year. Didn't realize we hadn't done that.

3. Check with tenants on where the rent is.

4. Verify Geoff's next eye appointment date in June because I think it conflicts with his CORE eval.

5. Contact Dart folks to tell them who to host with and get final info to finish site. They've been awfully patient. And I'm 99% done with cateringman, so that site won't take up nearly all my time anymore.

This week:

1. Download the professor's site I'm working on.

2. Get boxes for the food drive next Saturday, organize church basement so there's plenty of room to bring the stuff in. It'll be fun. Also, ask Pete if we can use his GMC Jimmy.

3. Send mother's day cards to certain mothers. Grandmothers. Matronly aunts... etc...

4. Call Gammy, she fell and broke her arm.

5. Remind Doug about taking Wednesday morning off to be with Geoff while I go to some ridiculous unemployment "retraining" crap. Jeesh.

It is a gorgeous day, I just wanted to do a quick life update, write those things down because I always remember things better when I write them out. I've gotten kind of forgetful in the past few months... eep. Can't be a forgetful nelly in this life. We went to Wayne's birthday party on Friday night. We got there about 20 minutes late because of traffic on the Spaulding Turnpike. We were at Newick's Seafood on the Great Bay of the Piscataqua River in Dover New Hampshire... it was GORGEOUS there. I love living in New England... the sun was setting in the west up the river, and there were all these cute little boats and serious lobster boats, lovely dark pines lining the river and beautiful stately homes across the water in what I guess is Newington, not sure... but I loved it. The boy was kind of well behaved. For as good as he's been the last two weeks, he gets way excited when he gets with his buddy Pete.

Pete always looks at Geoff like "okay, what new trouble can you lead me into here!?" and seems to get such a kick out of him. Wayne enjoyed his cake immensely. It was lots of fun. We had a blast.

Before, when the cake was new...

After... when none of us got any. D'oh!

Kidding! We staged this after all the cake was dealt out. It made me laugh. Good cake too. Kudos to Marcia.

I was supposed to go to this reunion party for one of the companies that I used to work for in Marblehead, but Doug was in a kinda poopie mood, and Geoff was giving me a hard time about leaving. I knew I was screwed if I left Geoff there with Doug in a poopie mood, that I'd get grief for it later. So I decided not to go. At about 8pm Doug says to me "when are you going to this thing?" Mind you, it started at 6 and was 45 minutes away. I told him, obviously I'm not going. Cited my reasons. He kind of shrugged and said "whatever."

I hate going to stuff without him, even if it is something that is primarily MY friends or MY history. He gets all bitchy and moany about going, but then he always has a great time. We went on a harbor cruise once that this same company paid for and had for us, and he didn't want to go. Didn't want to get a sitter. Didn't feel like it blah blah blah.

Halfway through it, he's having a blast talkin' shit with my buddies.

Whatever.

Anyway, I feel badly about skipping it. I'm a schlub. I should have gone and just had him deal.

Marriage: Sometimes it isn't fun. And sometimes it is hard work. But you're a team. And teamwork is necessary. So sometimes there are concessions.

Which brings me to my next topic (nice segue, eh?) I've been watching marathon sessions of this PBS show "Frontier House." Perhaps you've seen it, heard of it? You can't go NEAR PBS without it being on lately.

Essentially it's "Survivor" meets "The Real World" meets 19th Century Montana.

Three families, starter provisions, period clothing and tools, and the homestead act. The goal isn't family vs. family, but family vs. requirements to meet for making it through the winter. Only one of the three families end up having proper stores of supplies, and that's just barely, by the time the whole thing is over. And it is interesting to watch how they changed, grew, transformed... I enjoyed this program a lot, and like my addiction to "The Real World" and "The Real World Road Rules Challenge" programs, this is another "reality" program that I will proudly declare as a guilty pleasure.

The only complaint I have is that I wish they had filmed an episode a week the way "The Real World" does it... but there are like eight episodes total I think. The website gives a lot of detail that you miss out from the overview programming, so if you've watched the show and haven't checked the site, please do.

The first family on the frontier is the Brooks family, initially just Nate and his dad. Nate's bio said he was employed at Fisher College in Boston... so he's my local favorite! Yeah Team Brooks!

Nate and his dad Rudy head out to the west and are preparing a homestead for Nate's bride Kristin to come out in July and have their wedding (by the way, yes, I cried and cried, it was gorgeous. I'm a friggin' sap. But I loved it).

How hip and cool and sweet and wonderful is this guy?

The cabin he built for her, the dress he sent to her, ugh! Gorgeous and romantic, and so grounded. He's a damn riot too, very funny. I'd have all the Brooks family members over for a beer and hang out anyday. Especially compared to the other two loser families.

The next family is the Glenn Family, from Tennessee. She's Karen, and is divorced with two kids, Logan and Erinn. She's there with them and her 2nd husband, Mark. Initially it's all peaches and cream. They all four seem to get along great. But eventually the marriage and all the interpersonal relationships in the family start to fail. It's really incredibly sad to watch. Karen is controlling and unyielding, Mark doesn't feel like he's a part of her "family," because it's her and the kids and then him on the outside, so watching him distance himself and begin a resentment at being treated like an 8 or 12 year old was difficult. The boy Logan was so funny, full of great little comments like "My best friend is Work. You met him yet? Nah, cause yer a 21st century slacker!" The daughter Erinn rocked, and I thought she was the most normal person in that house, but you can tell in the future her mom's going to pollute her mind. They'll have a hard relationship as she grows.

The Glenns officially separated, after they got back to Tennessee.

Finally, the team from Malibu California, all Hollywood stuck up attitudes and all, the Clunes. A husband, wife, their three kids and a Clune cousin.

They cheat, and break laws, and basically don't really learn anything from the experience but they are convinced in the end that they did and would have survived the winter with one pile of "wafers," Gordon's nickname for unsplit rounds of firewood.

The wife, Adrienne, begins the journey all heartbroken about not having makeup, skin cream, shampoo etc... the girls are just as shallow. They smuggle 'contraband' into the past with them, which they later realize was stupid and they bury the stuff under a tree. Gordon, the dad, is upset and angry that life is so hard. And "you mean to tell me that 19th century man wouldn't have come out here more prepared than our so called "history experts" sent us out here?"

The two boys seem to get the most out of things, and really love being with their dad on the frontier. By the end, the girls who started out naughty seem to have learned the absolute most.

They all would have died lonely miserable deaths in 1883.

The thing that pisses me off the most about these people is they are the most highly educated of the bunch, but the dumbest when it comes to reality of things.

They came into the project thinking "this is going to be fun, romantic, and so cool." The wife "has a degree in food science" so they obviously planned on living off her skills. She is an excellent baker, wonderful in the kitchen, and makes great baked goods with her time. But they miss the point. The first winter out there would have been the hardest, and being most prepared with essentials instead of peach pies would have been the important task.

They needed wood split and hay cut for their animals. Not scones with raisins. She ended up building a romanticized 1883 life as their crops come in and their hunger abates after the spring, but this does nothing to prepare them for the future, for the winter. It was kind of sad to see her get all into it and happy, only to know in the back of your mind that nothing she is doing is going to benefit the clan in the months of cold to come.

So this show sucked me in, and I really liked it. It's one of those things that I can't pass on the dial without seeing what's up.

I'm glad I didn't watch from the start though, because the very first episode where Adrienne is crying because she put rag curls in her hair, and wasn't allowed to wear makeup for the olde tyme photograph they were having done, pissed me off and I couldn't take it seriously at all. If that was the first episode I saw, that would have been the last. Glad I tuned in when they were milking cows and the Glenns were a fightin'.

Anyway. Geoff is head to toe mud out there. It's spring. I have some seeds I want to plant, get a garden going out there... And during the week we'll go pick vegetable plants out. I saw where one of the squash seeds that Geoff had planted is growing up. Aah, frontier life.

Raising Chloe, Raising Arizona, Washing Machines and West Shore Road Memories

Pictured is of course the lovely new addition to my extended circle of friends, apologies to Bonnie and Duncan but she's so stinkin freakin cute that I could not resist lifting the picture from the hospital nursery page and posting it.

Meet our friend Chloe.

Man is she gorgeous or what? I love that hair, and I love how babies just always have their hands up by their mouths or cheeks... I went through most of the pictures on the hospital site and all the babies were there with hands up, ready to raise the roof. Only a couple were so deep in sleep that their hands were nowhere to be seen.

My friend Lori went through the site. She saw Chloe and swore she was the cutest baby on the page, then proceeded to rag on all the other babies! We had a good laugh making fun of names and making fun of kids that were born without the benefit of being cute like our woman up here. I feel sorry for babies when they're butt ugly. I mean, they just came down the narrowest passage of their lives, got battered, bumped and bruised, and they look like who did it and ran, and here we are picking on them. Poor things. hee hee hee. But this is one good looking kid and the respective Bonnie and Duncan clans should be right proud.

Now, I'm gushing praise and schmoopy-doos over here for this kid and one of my co-workers asked me if i wanted to have another.

Let's get one thing straight here, dear reader, unless God Himself wills it, I'm not putting myself through another labor and delivery again. The pregnancy part, okay. Those were fun. I loved feeling the babies move, each had a personality before they came to the light. Geoff always had the hiccups... on a daily basis I could count on at least a round of 20 minutes or so of him jerking like a freak. Towards the end when things got cramped in there for her, Jessica would stretch her legs, and I have a distinct memory of playing with her feet up right below my left bottom rib, and I'd push back at her, and we'd play. We'd play. I played with my kids and knew them well before I ever even laid eyes on them. Those are very special moments.

But I don't want to repeat the thing, the unspeakably painful thing, one must endure to get to the point of laying eyes on them. Shudder. Quake. Ugh. No. So for me, I'll enjoy playing with my kids now that they're on the outside and I will live vicariously through friends like Bonnie who have new ones for me to cuddle. Speaking of which, here's the segue to the next topic...

One of my favorite movies ever is 'Raising Arizona.' I love when Glen is telling H.I. that Dot wants another baby because "Thesuns is gettin' too big to cuddle." That kills me. All like 9 kids are running around wrecking stuff ("Now you take that diaper off your head and you put it back on your sister!") and writing on the walls, breaking things, and these parents are just standing around all stupid and proud of the brood and shit. And there's poor H.I., overwhelmed at what his sudden vision of parenting is. These kids can eat you alive... and Ed is suddenly overwhelmed by Dot "Hi, We got the dip.tet for him yet? We got a pediatrician???" at the responsibilities.

Having two is enough for me. But H.I. stands there with this look on his face that kills me. With his eyes huge and wide, mouth gaping open. Oh My God, what HAVE I just gotten myself into.

All parents should feel that way. Shocked. Stymied. Overwhelmed. Then you shake it off, blink a couple times, shut your gaping mouth so you don't catch any flies and get in there and do the job. Once in a while you'll feel like H.I. again, but standing around gapemawed isn't going to do any good.

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We went out last night and bought a new washing machine so that gets delivered a week from today. I'm relieved. This weekend we're going to Maine, to see Wayne and Marcia. They have a great house, and hopefully Chris and Laurel will be there too. It's been a while since we've seen them. I feel like I need a weekend of kid related fun. Where the kids entertain themselves and have fun, and I lean back and watch. I'm sure there will be some good stories out of that.

And I wanted to make a short list of stuff I remember from the House on West Shore Road. When I was little we lived in a house in NY on West Shore Road, and I think most of my clearest memories are from there. Here are a couple:

• I had an easy bake oven. It worked.
• I had white furniture, and my room was up on the third floor, there were 2 rooms up there, the back room was mine, the front room was Linda's
• I remember a tree broke one of my windows in a storm. I think there were four windows in the room, and the one that broke was on the left side of the room as you stood in the doorway.
• A cat of ours, I think it was Smokey, my mom's FAVORITE cat, had kittens in my bedroom closet and I touched them all and she killed them (not a good memory... someone correct me if that one is fictional).
• Once my cousins came down to visit from Cape Cod and Billy and I got to sleep in the same bed. My parents pushed my bed, which had a princess canopy on it, so the foot of the bed was against the closet door and Billy slept at the foot of the bed. We got yelled at a TON of times for not going to sleep and being silly.
• I used to melt crayons on the light bulb in my bedroom. I think it was a clown lamp, and I loved the smell of the crayola crayons melting on the light. Then I'd let the light bulb cool off and I'd peel the wax off. My mom caught me and I got in trouble.
• You could see the hospital from the balcony on my parents' room, and at Christmas they put this crazy "tree" of lights up there, and I remember standing looking at it for hours.

Okay, that's enough for today. I've got more, but I need to go home to my family. I also have to schlep some clothing to the laundromat because I have NOTHING to wear and I think Geoff has no more underpants... So I'll do a quickie load and then finish everything up on Saturday morning before we trek to Maine.