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The “F” Word….
Warning…this post contains SWEARING I lived in Fairbanks, Alaska, from the age of 4 until I was 9. It was the early 70’s, and it was much more a frontier society than we have down in the lower 48. I haven’t been back since, so I can’t speak to the modern sensibilities, but I digress. In Fairbanks, at that time, everyone swore. I mean, EVERYONE. At one point, we lived next door to a church, and it wasn’t unusual to hear people come out and say, “Jesus Christ, it’s 45 Mother-Fucking Degrees Below Zero out here!” Needless to say, my brother and I grew up with what is politely known…
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What’s Wrong with America?
If we were to take a poll today, my 4 loyal readers, and ask people, “What is the greatest challenge facing the United States today?”, what do you think the answer would be? Would it be terrorism? The war in Iraq? The ignored war in Afghanistan? The ‘homosexual agenda’? Godlessness? Racism so deeply ingrained, we may never be free from its ugly grasp? Maybe infrastructure, or how Americans are working harder than ever and losing ground in so many areas? I’m gonna go out on a limb here, and say, Poverty. Poverty is the root of SO many problems in our country, that if we, the richest country in the…
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What Kind of Mom Am I?
I read on Cape Buffalo about an idea for a Mother’s Day Collaboration, and I thought, I guess I could chip in on that. I don’t want to write about my mom, because I just did on her birthday, and I’ve got another post in mind for Mother’s Day itself, so for here and now, I’ll write about my goals as a mother…the kind of mom I would like to be. I want to be the kind of mom who supports her child no matter what. I want Maya to never doubt for a second that I believe in her, that I love her unconditionally, and that she will always…
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Commute Time
I had lunch last week with a friend who is looking for work. We were discussing two different jobs she is considering…one is close, the next town from where she lives, maybe 15 minutes by car. The other is in San Francisco, which with traffic, is not close. Can be as little as 45 minutes, but with traffic and rush hour and the tunnel and bridge, it’s usually MUCH longer. The problem is that the job in San Francisco is the job that she would LOVE. LOVE. It’s just exactly what she wants to do, and not a lot of companies are out there hiring for it. The closer job…
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Friday Night…
Maya was supposed to go camping with her girl scout troop this weekend, leaving Friday and returning on Sunday. They were going to hike and ride horses and cook their own food, sleep in tents in a regional park, that kind of thing. She was looking forward to it. Sort of. Eventually, she decided she didn’t want to go. I know several of the other girls were also somewhat apprehensive. So she bailed, and is staying home this weekend. Which is perfectly fine and wonderful, except we had taken the opportunity to plan a grown-up dinner in San Francisco, sort of a celebration of Ted’s birthday, sort of a date.…
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Violence Begins at Home…
I was walking the dog yesterday, listening to my beloved iPod, and this week’s (last week’s, really) This American Life is about crime, and the allure of it. There are several segments in each episode of TAL. The first was Julia Sweeney (Pat, from Saturday Night Live), talking about how she fleeced an old employer for 10K – 15K way back in her youth. Interesting. Perhaps even cute, because, you know, she’s Pat. Maybe we should all write about the crimes WE’VE committed, and that might be pretty interesting…make sure the statute of limitations is past, however. Anyway, the second segment was about a bank robber, Joe Loya, who enjoyed…
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Anyone Read Echidne?
Do any of my loyal 8 readers ever pop over to read Echidne of the Snakes, one of the blogs on my blogroll? She’s a minor greek goddess, a feminist, and somewhat political (OK, very, but I like that about her). I really liked her post today. Check it out. Really good thinking, really good writing.
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The First Thing We Do, Let’s Kill All The…
I was mixing some ground lamb, turkey sausage, and turkey thigh meat into a mix with Parmesan cheese and herbs to make meatballs for Ted’s birthday party dinner (spaghetti and meatballs, of course), drinking a glass of wine, listening to some music, and my mind drifted to Mad Cow disease…and I started thinking about that…about how my mother-in-law doesn’t want any of us to eat beef anymore because of it, etc. Well, the safest answer to mad cow disease is of course to not eat beef, but that’s not so likely, since I kind of think of it as the same as trying to keep people from having sex (abstinence…
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Happy Birthday Q!
This is Ted and me back in 1988…we had been dating for almost a year, and we were at his Uncle’s wedding. Maya used to say that this is when Ted was the girl, and I was the boy, because his hair is long and mine is so short. 🙂 Today is Ted’s 41st birthday, and I feel so incredibly lucky to have met him, to have convinced him to date me, and to have married him. He’s a great guy…a wondrful husband, an amazing father, an incredible teacher (when he gets the chance), and a great radio personality as well. He genuinely likes people (as long as they don’t…
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Time to Finish High School…
I think it may be time for me to finish my High School reading for English class. Maybe then I’ll stop having those stupid dreams where I have to take a test for a class, and I haven’t been going and can’t really fake it because it’s physics, and I’ve never had physics or anything. I sort of decided that it was time for me to start reading some American Classics a few years ago. Ted’s eldest niece is in college, and she was reading The Grapes of Wrath. I realized that I had never read that, and it seemed kind of dumb for me to have missed out on…
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Pyramid Friends…
Black Belt Mama‘s post about House Parties, got me to thinking. You know, the candle parties, makeup parties, fake purse parties, tupperware parties…whatever. I’m not a fan of the party where I have to buy something so my hostess can get a gift. I have friends who enjoy these parties, and hey, MORE POWER TO YOU, but I probably will find a good excuse to not be there if you hold one. Consider yourself warned. But it also got me thinking about some other experiences I’ve had. Has this ever happened to you? You’re walking along, enjoying the sunshine on your lunch break, getting a little bit of exercise, and…
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Misc. Weekend Thoughts
It’s Sunday evening, downright balmy (almost 90 degrees) here, and we just finished dinner. Ted made cheese tortellini with a tomato sauce, and salad with lettuce, spinach, and pears. Mmmm. So, here’s a sort of weekend wrap up, mixed with a couple of thankfulnesses, and so on. On Friday, we went to our Parent Teacher conference at Maya’s school. The news is that she is a very good student, works hard, no problems. Good at math, good at science, good at reading, good at writing. I’m thankful for that. We know several people whose children have trouble with one subject or another, or many. Or behavioral problems, which Maya also…
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Friday Dog Blogging
I’ve seen some Friday Dog or Friday Cat blogs out there, and this will probably be my only addition to the ouvre. We’ve had a lot of dogs around here lately. First, of course, is OUR dog, the beautiful Genevieve. She is a Keeshonden/Sheltie mix, and we’ve had her for about 3 1/2 years. We got her from a Keeshonden Rescue. She’s a VERY good girl. Good girl, Genevieve, Good Girl! Last weekend, Ted’s parents went to Ashland, Oregon for a mini-vacation, and they left their dog, Nietzsche, with us. Nietzsche is an Australian Shepphard/Border Collie mix, she’s about 13 years old, and they got her from the pound. She’s…
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R.I.P.
Are you old enough, or young enough, to remember the thrill of the mixed tape? When you would pour over your collection of albums (vinyl, cassette, or CD, but vinyl were the best for actual mixing), think about what songs you would choose, what order they would go in, and put them on a tape. You could make different tapes for different moods…I had a tape specifically for breaking up, which was the mushiest crappola you would ever NOT want to hear, I’m telling you. Well, Ted and his brother have both paid their dues as Disc Jockeys, and BIL even had a pirate radio station out of his bedroom…
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Cast Your Votes Now!
Seems like the folks at Monopoly are making yet another edition of their game…I don’t know if it will replace the Atlantic City version we all grew up with, or if it’s just another added version to add to your collection, next to your Simpson’s version, your Star Wars version, your Spongebob version, and your Lord of the Rings version. But the real estate will be from all around the country, and you can vote for your favorite landmark in your favorite city. For example, for San Francisco, they have the Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman’s Wharf, and Lombard Street. Whichever one gets the most votes will be on the upcoming…