It's a Jan's Life

Swan Lake

2010-11-05T23:13:00.003-04:00

We saw a beautiful, interesting production of Swan lake tonight. Not everyone's cup of tea, it's by a guy named Matthew Bourne and it was primarily a male cast ... including the swan.

It was absolutely lovely, but Husband's review on the way out sums it up:

"That was either an amazing visual representation of dying to oneself...
or 'gay' doesn't even begin to describe it."

A guy walked past us, laughing, and said, "Can I quote you on that?"

Before the show we had an awesome dinner at a Greek place not-a-diner next door. We had chip-thin zucchini and eggplant, 3 dip/spreads (tzaziki, hummus-ish, and another one). I got there early and the Vince Vaughn maitre'd took good care of me and hooked me up with a lovely Greek white wine, which I sipped while I read my book and waited.

Lovely evening!

My Bad: Forest Hills Storm Pics

2010-10-01T22:38:00.009-04:00

Oh my, it's been a long time since I've posted. I've thought about it, does that count?

Unfortunately it seems like the last thing I want to do is sit at my computer and type; I'd be happy to buy the latest brain-to-blog software!! (Oh, wait, isn't that called an iPhone? We're waiting for Verizon to come out with that. Then, Husband says, we're gonna get 'em.)

We had some more monster rain today, though not as much damage as a couple weeks ago. (I think all the loose trees were already down!)

Here are a few pics from that first storm ... they're not scenes I normally think of when I think NYC!

Hello, Haiku Friday!

2010-09-17T12:36:00.002-04:00

It's Haiku Friday, and how am I supposed to post something when tornado-force winds ripped through my neighborhood last night and knocked out my cable, and internet?

Of course it's a disaster of Biblical proportions for DuckyBoy ... thank goodness we have DVDs, and if I can only find his sleeve of computer games we'll be all set. (At least he's got his DS now.)

Um, carry on without me!

Solid wall of rain
Brown water forcing its way
In open windows

Haiku Friday: Punt

2010-09-10T19:40:00.004-04:00

Oh yeah, Haiku Friday.

Um, I've had a coupla beers. (And it's only 7:45 pm, Sis ... don't tell Mom!!)
There was no school today so after we drove Husband to work we went to Ikea. Where I ordered cabinets for the pantry and DuckyBoy played nonstop for an hour in Smaland.

And then I had to drag DuckyBoy out of the mall playspace 'cause he was, like, pile-driving a toddler. Not on purpose, but still. He, really, just didn't know.

Here ya go!

Taking a Risk on Jury Duty

2010-09-08T16:53:00.004-04:00

So, you know that person who rolls in an hour late when you've already been sitting in the jury room for an hour? Well, today that was me.

I'm usually the person there on time, listening to all the instructions, etc, etc.

But today was the first day of school. (I can hardly believe DuckyBoy's in 3rd grade!)

So, I took him to school around 8:15, drove back to Forest Hills, parked the car in our usual spot and walked over to the courthouse. I was proud of myself for not rushing! It was around 9 when I arrived. I went in and had no idea what was going on. So I sat down and read my book. (The funny part is, people kept coming in after me and asking me what was going on!)

The clerks called people by row "if you have questions," so I stayed seated. Finally one clerk said, "Anyone who still has a summons, come up now. Last chance."

So, all by my lonesome, up I went. And it was fine.

Most of the folks got sent to another jury room, but about 2 dozen of us were left behind for an hour or so -- at which time the clerk returned and announced we had fulfilled our obligation and were being sent home. YESS!!

I was going to leave at 2 pm anyway to get DB, even if I had to sneak out a bathroom window ... so it all worked out fine. I even had time to get groceries and eat lunch before going to get DB.

And it seems like his first day was fine. He's sooo happy with one of his teachers that he knows a little bit from last year, and I've heard nothing but great things about the other teacher from several moms. He has informed me that it's going to be a "pack my lunch" school year. AS he would say, What-ev-er!

Haiku Friday: Eight Years

2010-09-03T11:10:00.003-04:00

Eight short (?!) years ago
DuckyBoy arived, and BAM!
What I thought I knew,

who I thought I was,
all was up for grabs again --
still is, in some ways ...

I'm a proud mom (?!) of
somebody very special.
Happy birthday, son.

For his birthday, DB wants the big Lego City police station, and he just told me all the logical reasons why on the phone -- "I have so many Lego policement, and they need a place to stay, and I want to be a policeman when I grow up!"

Grandma H has already bought it, all we have to do is pick it up at the Lego store and head out.
Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 5-7-5. More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). DON'T sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. Pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week. I will delete any links without haiku.

Project Oasis at the Halfway Point

2010-09-01T10:41:00.004-04:00

Husband is off work this week, and DuckyBoy is at his grandparents ... at Grandma's request, I might add.

So when we were casting about thinking of what to do on our vacation, the usual things came up: places like Puerto Rico (which, given the current hurricanes blowing through that region, we're really glad we didn't opt for), London (which I love), and the like.

One day, Husband called from work and said he had the perfect plan for our vacation: "Project oasis." he said.

"I'm in!" I said, loving the sound of it. "What is it?"

Brilliant mind that he is, it's rearranging, organizing, sorting, and otherwise making our apartment into the oasis-to-come-home-to that a home should be. We never really did that when we moved here; at the time, we were both kind of crazy in our own ways. He was still trying to move up the ranks at Big Bad Corporate Bank and I felt all alone dealing with baby DuckyBoy, who was starting to veer from the behaviors the baby books told me to expect, yet didn't seem delayed in any significant way.

So, here we are. And we're having a blast.

Monday we sorted and rearranged the shop/pantry, then took a boatload of stuff to the Salvation Army, bought a new smooth-tilting tripod at B&H Photo, and treated ourselves to dinner at Metrazur. For $44 you get appetizer, entree, dessert And a bottle of wine. What a deal! And everything was really good, too. Plus you're overlooking the waiting room at Grand Central Station.

I had a Groupon-type coupon from Open Table for the restaurant, which is why we were going to that particular place. I bought the coupon deal (spend $25 for $50 off your meal) because the place is a no-brainer for us: Created by Aureole chef Charlie Palmer, the menu had things I knew we'd like, excellent value price fix, fun location, on and on.

Husband says the best moment of the day was when, after fielding several questions from him-on-the-couch about what for him was a mystery restaurant (including, "Has Adam Platt reviewed it?), I finally said, "I'll lookm, but this is the last question I'm answering about Metrazur. You can come with me, or I'll go with someone else some other time."

He bust out laughing, got up and went to his computer, and he looked it up himself ... and immediately knew why I was so sure of myself. He loved that I, as he put it, stood up for myself. And we had a great laugh!

Tuesday, we tackled our bedroom. We treated ourselves to egg sandwiches and juice via delivery from the diner, then moved the 3 large Ikea wardrobes from our room to the playroom/other room/ room-to-be-named-later. Which meant dis- and re-assembling them. And we did it without a single argument, which is huge. We did realize that no design decisions were really involved, which is when feelings get involved and our tempers rise. But, still. Anything involving both of us and tools has traditionally caused at least one tiff.

Then we went to Ikea and sized our cabinets for the pantry, double-checked the pieces we want for the bedroom, and ate at The Family restaurant, mainly because we haven't been there in, oh, forever, and it's one of the reasons we live in Forest Hills. Happily, it hasn't changed much in the year or so. (I was a little worried because recently a sign appeared in the window, "Cool off with a margarita, sangria, or daquiri," which is usually a sign of desperation when a restaurant starts touting drinks completely unrelated to their cuisine.)

Today, we tackle the many boxes in the bedroom and ... [insert gasp] ... do some more planning of the office/living room before we move the myriad heavy things around. We had eggs with our leftover veal Valdostana from Da Family, and we're ready to go!

Haiku Friday: Seriously, A Year

2010-08-27T09:16:00.004-04:00

Wow, it's been a year
that I've been hosting this meme ...
time to up my game.

I'd like to blog more
in haiku, poems, and prose ...
BlogHer '10 inspired.

I declare it here,
I'm going to get serious
'bout blogging again!

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 5-7-5. More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). DON'T sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. Pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week. I will carry on the esteemed tradition of deleting any links without haiku.

My Christian Kane Fantasy

2010-08-26T12:17:00.005-04:00

Ok, I know what you're thinking. That I'm going to share some sexy dream I had about actor Christian Kane. I know, there's been precedent for that on this blog. And I do think he's a sexy guy.

But my fantasy is actually about his hair. I want it. Specifically, as it's styled on the show Leverage. every time we watch the show I'm distracted by his hair: "How do they get it to stay out of his eyes? How to they keep it off his face?? How long does that take?"

I got my hair colored and styled Monday, and my awesome stylist with her round brush did amazing things. Tuesday morning I put on a tank top and short-sleeve shirt and HEY! There it is, the Eliot look!

What do you think:

Mystery Dog

2010-08-25T15:18:00.020-04:00

This little guy was hanging out on one of the beds at the CheeseBurgHer party at Blogher '10.

I have 2 questions: Was the music too loud for him? (It was too loud for me.) and, Did he get to eat a cheeseburger? (There's a scrunched-up wrapper behind him.)

I've got a review of the Angus Snack Wraps that I got to try at CheeseBurgHer, plus a giveaway, over here.

Haiku Friday: Ode to Big

2010-08-20T12:51:00.004-04:00

Grandpa PotatoHead is going to help me with this week's haiku. We just got him yesterday at Costco ("Can you go shopping just ONCE without DB getting a new toy?" Husband lamented last night.) -- Db was the one who realized why he was at Costco -- because he's BIG!

Huge boxes and jars
Stare at us, floor to ceiling,
as we roll the aisles

Here's something we like,
we won't eat that fast enough,
let's try this sample.

Nuggets not crunchy,
but whole-wheat pasta's thumbs up,
and sweet-pepper sauce.

Who knew the samples
would expand DB's palate,
a little at least!

Want to play along on Haiku Friday? It's easy!

Just write a haiku (5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables) on your blog, any theme.
Put the post url into Mister Linky here, then please leave a comment after linking.

Not a blogger? Feel free to write your haiku in the comment field. Or just tell me what you think of my haiku. Or what your weather is like. Anything!

And have a great weekend!

Haiku Friday: Conference Hangover

2010-08-13T11:52:00.004-04:00

I had so much fun last weekend at BlogHer ... then promptly fell off the face of the earth!! My apartment is covered in awesome BlogHer swag that I want to write about, take photos of, and on and on.

So far we've got one of DuckyBoy's swag pix up on his blog, of him with the adorable TempurPedic bear he got!

I'm uninspired re: haiku this week. I did join the Haiku Friday Facebook group, though ... and I added "#haikufriday" to my saved Twitter searches.

One poem per week
doesn't sound that hard ... yet it
rolls around so fast!

Seventeen morsels
of thought from my brain to yours
and from you to me

This summer haiku
drippy with humidity
and silliness too!

Haiku Friday: BlogHer '10 Edition

2010-08-06T22:44:00.008-04:00

How embarrassing ...
Spent the day at BlogHer '10
but forgot to 'ku!

Some hostess I am ...
I do better in person,
snacks, drinks I can do!

Maybe need to think
of hosting haiku as more
of a house party!

I'll try to redeem myself with a few photos of the day... obviously, DuckyBoy came with me ... his shirt (made by me) has his blog URL on it. :)

On our way into the hotel for the conference,
there was Mrs. PotatoHead getting out of a cab!

We also saw the Pillsbury Dough boy ... I saw him twice.
DB enjoyed poking him in the stomach to hear him "Tee heee..."

After the 4th or 5th poke, the Doughboy started to poke DB back!!
(Which made him "tee hee" too...)

Duckyboy really wants this Tempurpedic-material bear!
Me, I want to win the 2-free-mattresses giveaway!!

The S'mores suite was amazing, they recreated a hotel suite to look like an actual campout. Very unique and cool. In addition to eating 2 S'mores, DB snagged an awesome set of telescoping marshmallow toasting sticks, in a case!! Plus, they filled his backpack (not everyone's mind you, just his...) with Jet-Puffed marshmallows, Honey Maid graham crackers, and Hershey's chocolate. No other brands will ever do for him again!! And, now we MUST go camping.

So, what are you doing this weekend? (I think I asked that last weekend too! It's summer, people do interesting things...)

A Different Kind of Win

2010-08-01T09:25:00.002-04:00

We didn't win a prize this year at The Great Hot Dog Cookoff, but we had a good time trying -- all 3 of us! DuckyBoy helped put the little "boats" in the serving trays, cut dogs, place buns, and even tried his hand at squeezing honey onto the buns and glopping on the cheese sauce.

He also walked around with a tray and served, and read an entire Calvin & Hobbes book. (A few new books was cheaper than a sitter... and anyway every option for him to do something else for the afternoon fell through. Feel better, JB!)

Haiku Friday: Hot Dogs

2010-07-30T10:54:00.001-04:00

A hot dog poem
in honor of our weekend
cooking 100 --

Great Hot Dog Cookoff
our second year doing it,
"The Last DogBender!"

Long lean mystery
meat chopped fine inside a bun
topped with yumminess!

So tell me... what are you doing this weekend?

Lesser Known Milestones

2010-07-26T10:54:00.004-04:00

The past couple of weeks I've noticed some subtle milestones in DuckyBoy's life, ones the parenting books never talk about:
* Thirst not satisfied by small bottle of water
* Snack-size ziploc bags don't hold enough of anything for a snack

That got me thinking about the others that, since there's such a wide range of when they occur, the books just don't even bother with. But aren't they huge for moms, like:
* Wipes own butt
* Orders own meal at restaurant
* Can be left alone 5-10 minutes while you run to mailbox or put laundry into dryer (especially in an apartment building, where a locked door and an elevator separates you), or in front of apartment building with heavy objects while you get the car a block away and pull up.
* Turns on TV
* Changes channel on TV
* Finds own DVR'd show

I'm still waiting on these:
*Sets DVR for own shows
* Eats restaurant meal without your having to cut up the nuggets

Haiku Friday: Summer Heat

2010-07-22T22:50:00.005-04:00

Hello, 100,
you make DuckyBoy happy;
when he's hot, he's calm.

DuckyBoy is actually happy these days. He's SAYING so.

He's like a different kid these days. He says he's tired and has a summer cold. I think it's partly the swimming -- lots of physical activity -- and also, just maybe, the heat wave has a similar effect as a fever ... making him less anxious, more loving, more calm?

I know, sounds weird. Possible, though.

PS, speaking of weird, I think my snowy header looks a little weird ... but I'm too hot to make a new one right now, and the air conditioner is too loud to put it on. Tell you what, it's on the list!

Doesn't Feel Like Much, Yet...

2010-07-21T21:27:00.004-04:00

These are my days this week so far... (this is kind of an amalgamation but you get the idea.)

7 am:
Pack DuckyBoy's snack.
Get Husband's pain meds.
Take shower.
Get dressed.
Get Husband his prednisone by 8 am. (That's what the dosing info says?!).
Have first cup of coffee.
7:40:
Pick up DuckyBoy's friend and drive both boys to school.
Drive home and pick up Husband.
8:30:
Drive him to work.
Have 2nd cup of coffee.
Drive back to Queens.
9:30 am
Shop at Trader Joe's. Get heavy bag of water, flowers, chips.
10:30 am
Scrounge quarters so I can park in front of the nail salon.
Park twice so I'm not too far away from the curb.
10:35:
Let myself get talked into having my eyebrows and lip waxed in addition to bikini.
11:30:
Drive to DB's school and pick him up.
12:00:
Listen to DB vent at me.
(Monday) Take him to dentist on Long Island.
12:45:
Sit in chair with DB while dental assistant cleans his teeth.
Pet nice kitty on the way back to the car.
1:30:
(Monday) Take proud son home. Agree he should be proud to have endured cleaning he was scared of.
3:30:
Agree to take him to Disney store for a white Puffle because he was so good at the dentist. Resist comparing white puffle with tooth for fear it will be a turn-off (likely). Remind him that the Lego store (latest obsession) opened in the mall.
5 pm:
Begin feeding DB dinner.
6:45 pm:
Go to pool because it's too hot to go home.
8:10 pm:
Get home and give DB enough to eat that he stops saying "I'm starving!" and will go to bed.
8:25:
Help DB brush his teeth. Read to him. Set up "guards." Get him cold water. Check hamster. Give her fresh water. Turn off room light. Turn on nightlight and music.
8:40:
Change his fuzzy blanket for my old quilt... slightly less heat-holding, yet still protective from things that go bump in night.
8:50:
Collapse on bed next to Husband and watch TV.

* * *
We've also been to the Hall of Science with a friend, and we've been to the pool I think 3 days out of 3. And today we went grocery shopping. And, sucker that I am, I agreed to go back to the mall. I swear, this is the last Lego for a while! (I'm taking a cue from my friend and have offered DB a deal -- his next coveted set for some math work with coins ... now if I can just find that workbook I bought!

Where's the Gout Diet?

2010-07-17T21:23:00.000-04:00

Husband has been having a bad bout with gout (I know, it's awful that that rhymes ...) this past week.

Sketchy help on the internet, and in the library as well. Maybe an opening for me!

It's Too Hot!

2010-07-17T21:20:00.003-04:00

DuckyBoy has been like a different kid, most of the time, since my last post. Maybe, just maybe, something got through. AS Husband said, "Sometimes, you get a glimpse that he's going to turn out ok."

DB's also been HUNGRY nonstop for the past week or so! It's actually fun to be able to make food for him that he chomps through and then wants more.

And not just junk, though he is mostly sticking to his usuals -- oyster crackers with cream cheese, chicken nuggets, fries -- he's also taken a fancy to Boar's Head Baby Swiss cheese, pretzel thins, and hummus. That's my boy!!

Haiku Friday: Harrumph

2010-07-08T21:47:00.005-04:00

Apparently DuckyBoy is doing great at summer camp. He's (fairly) upbeat about getting on the bus, where his friend is riding for the summer who usually goes by car during the school year. Not that I dare call him a "friend" because then DB will be sure to rebuke me: "He's not my BEST friend!"

Anyway. No one bothered to tell us moms that the kids are arriving half an hour late ... meaning DB and his friend are on the bus for just about an hour and a half each morning!! And they miss the "social activities worksheets" the kids do over breakfast. Of all the things to miss!!

But his teacher says he's been great so far. Which is good, because as soon as he sees me he turns into Drama King, unless he's in the pool or I am doing exactly what he wants me to do.

Which I am Not.Doing.Any.More.

Can you tell I am a bit p.o.'d at DB tonight?? We went to the (half an hour from nowhere near anywhere we ever go otherwise) dentist today and he screamed, fought, cried, and screamed some more when they tried to clean, just clean, his teeth. I'm spitting mad at him and he knows it. There was no mask, no laughing gas, and he's had a cleaning at least twice. But no. Apparently his new schtick for the dentist office is to freak out. He'd better not repeat that shtick on Monday when we go back for the cleaning! The dentist did get him to let her count his teeth, and she promised that's all she'd do and kept her word.

Did I mention they're a half an hour from nowhere??

Don't worry, he's been reassured that he is loved, and always will be, but he had no TV and fell asleep on the couch during our Bible study tonight. "I'm having trouble enjoying this relaxation time without tv," he moaned at one point. I told him his choices were to try, or go to sleep.

Can we tell a story? Um, no. I was honest with him -- I'm too mad at you, I said. Can I help you find a Lego part? Um, no. (I did help him download a pattern.)

I don't care that it's been like, 1,000 degrees here in NYC the last few days. I don't care that he's probably worried about 3rd grade and certainly reacting to the end of 2nd grade.

He's got to reason to be the way he's been toward me. The things he says range from mean to demanding to rude. I'm totally sick of it.

So mad at my son
and yet I love him so much --
my heart breaks in two.

Sigh. That's the best I can do today. I look forward to reading everyone else's haiku to pull me out of this funk! (And guess what? NO school-camp on Fridays, so we're stuck with each other all day! As of tonight my plan is: I'm going to get a bikini wax, a pedicure, and grocery shop. I also may need to criss cross Queens looking for 16-oz iced-coffee cups with lids. (Who knew they'd be so elusive?) Any other ideas, besides driving past every playground with a cackle?? Humph.

Please, do better than me! Link to your haiku post below, and leave a comment, too, unless you'd rather kick and scream for me...

Queensboro Bridge Poem

2010-07-07T10:10:00.002-04:00

Queens-bound traffic jam
more like a traffic noodle,
one long thin line
on the shelf of the outbound bridge.

The only thing moving is the litter
tumbling blithely in the hot breeze.

Move forward in jerky spurts
then stare at the pairs of red eyes
that glare back from the cars ahead,
resigned to our common fate in the chute.

Whazza?

2010-07-06T22:09:00.005-04:00

I have been so negligent ... even my ad network has left me (temporarily)! Apologies all around.
I'm having trouble logging into Google (aka Blogger) consistently -- this time it worked, hooray.

I missed 2 weeks of Haiku Friday?? My schedule must be off.
Why, yes it is... school's out for the summer!

"Summer camp" started today. In quotes because DuckyBoy is figuring it out: "It's just school!" (Well, yes, but only 4 hours' worth. And not as intense.) But, he had a good time anyway today, even on the bus because his friend whose mom drives him during the year is on it for the summer. (Not that they're Best Friends ... he's certain to point that out to us every time we mention this kid's name. Sheesh.)

Remembered this weekend that he sleepwalks/ sleep talks when he's very anxious ... which is right before something new. There, it's in print now. One year I'll notice the pattern.

Looks like I make more typos than usual after I've had 2 g&t's. Imagine that.

Had a heart-wrenching heart-to-heart with DB tonight about being happy. "Every other kid is happy except me."

Happiness is fleeting, I tell him, and also that all those other kids don't rethink every minute of their day Every.Single.Time. "Can I brush my teeth in bed? "You don't comb my hair on weekends!"

I even had to tell him that people comb their hair on weekends. I know that's hard to hear, I said. Dad and I have tried to protect you from the pain you feel, but it's not working. So you might as well know.

I'm sure I contributed to his being this way. And I'm just as sure it's partly genetic, as both adults in the household are on Zoloft. But what else can I do???
Tough love, redefined. In a marshmallow sort of way.

Overall the end of the year went really well for him. I got "guypped" out of a party-ish thing at the pool club on the last day of school: ALL the other moms (and their kids) were going, we were all going to order pizza, play in the pool, yadda yadda, I was telling peopole I was going up until like a half-hour before pickup time ...

... at which time DB informed me in no uncertain terms all he wanted to do was Go. Home.

I forget how anxious the end of year makes him.

So we went home.

I hope I did the right thing.

Haiku Friday: Our First Fads of 2010

2010-06-17T23:59:00.002-04:00

Fuzzy Zhu-Zhu pets ...
DuckyBoy rolls on the floor
with desire for them...

We have the real thing,
even fun accessories!
But this ... this is NEED.

How 'bout Silly Bands?
He has so many can't count.
Invented a day

For next week at school,
Unofficial Official
"Class Silly Band Day!"

He'll have to share them,
but so far so good with that;
from abundance comes...?

A Hair Affair Update

2010-06-17T17:18:00.005-04:00

First I want to say thanks for the nice and interesting comments on last week's hairy haiku!

I'm almost embarrassed to post because I don't have an "After" photo yet of my hair -- but I'm sooo happy I got it cut, and of course colored. I honestly had no idea how long my own hair is. It's been weeks since I've worn it not-in-a-ponytail. And wavy! I have a wave in my hair! This is 100 percent news to me; I thought my hair was stick-straight and always would be.

And! I found a nice salon. Which is huge for me, I'm very intimidated by salons and hairstylists in general.

Which is probably why I've gone to a barber for 5 years.

Anyway, I've been getting lots of compliments, I feel like the moms whose hair I admire at school, and I promise to post a pic as soon as I can re-create
the style my new best friend did for me!! (Or a fraction thereof. She did give me tips.)

Just pretend this is me, okay? It will probably be easier to Photoshop my face onto this picture than to take a good photo soon... lol!! Ah, but I HAVE acquired semi-mad Photoshop skills in the past few weeks, which is very cool.

Haiku Friday (on Saturday): Long Hair on the Brain

2010-06-11T16:56:00.002-04:00

Two years of long hair.
Is it worth all this trouble?
Long hair in the drain

Careful showering
keeps the pipes unclogged for now
despite no filter.

Long hair on the brain
ponytail all of the time ...
New stylist Monday!

Haiku Friday: Life Spins on a Dime

2010-06-03T21:22:00.006-04:00

Our new family motto is, "Life spins on a dime." Husband claims we had one already ... "Life sucks, then you die" ... but I don't remember ever voting for that, as if I ever would!

Last week for Husband's birthday I made this giant dime from posterboard and put a spinner on it, then taped things around the edges like "I go get your breakfast from 7-11," "Open Present #1," and "1 hour of watch shopping."

His birthday was Saturday, but we used it all weekend. I plan to use it again, because it made for a great weekend. Even for a guy who claims to not like surprises!

I liked that he was trying to guess what it was while I made it -- yep, I was brazen enough to draw it right in front of him! He thought it was a quarter as in, "A quarter of my life is over?!" -- which, since he turned 45, wouldn't be so bad.

Life spins on a dime:
DB will be Citizen,
his teachers told me!

From life on savings,
now full-time income again,
things feel so diff'rent.

I can charge something
and leave the house without guilt
and still get things done.

We don't live for it,
but money plays a big role;
life spins on a dime.

Taping Together a Plastic Bucket

2010-06-03T21:19:00.003-04:00

I've just spent an evening (ok, half an hour) taping the pieces of a cheap plastic bucket back together after said bucket, filled with water, was dropped and broke at the park.

Oh, the weeping and gnashing of teeth!!

Part of me is about ready to gently say, "You know, some things just can't be fixed," and the rest of me wants him to come to that conclusion on his own. I don't know which is gentler.

For DuckyBoy, it's usually better for him to reach a conclusion on his own.

Especially when it's a personalized bucket.

The other day as I was walking him downstairs to get on the bus, he said, "I don't feel like talking again today." We went back and forth a few moments and he said,. "It's hard to get in trouble when you just don't say anything." Then he added, "I did talk a little bit, I answered questions."

Can I tell you, we were overjoyed! how many years have we been telling him some version of, "Just don't say anything!"

He even said, "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all."

Geez Louise, he HEARD ME! Or, heard somebody, anyway.

Haiku Friday: The End of the School Year Nears

2010-05-27T16:06:00.004-04:00

School year winding down
Last chance to be Citizen ...
can DB do it?

All should get a turn,
but his outbursts caused some doubt
within the past month.

This week's going great,
new mp3 for the bus
and getting driven

3 days out of 5
seem to help a great deal.
Wish I knew the key!

Has Parenthood Changed Your Sense of Humor?

2010-05-26T14:32:00.004-04:00

It's changed mine in that I'm more aware of what I find funny as I see DuckyBoy get jokes that I'm not sure he'll get, or explain ones he doesn't and watch the light dawn.

I also notice there are certain things I don't find as funny -- cringe-worthy topics --as a parent and just as I get older, I guess.

I also sometimes have to NOT laugh at things I (sigh) have to send the Responsible Adult message about. Fortunately, Husband and I can usually take turns being the Serious One and the Snickerer.

Our latest favorite joke is from a recent Reader's Digest:

A guy is really lonely, so he gets a pet centipede and a little box to keep him in.

One night the guy says to his new pet, "Hey, do you want to go get a bite to eat with me?"

No answer.

After a couple of minutes he asks again: "Are you up for going out to eat?"

Nothing.

He waits a few minutes more and then shouts, "Hey, do you want to hang out or what?!"

A little voice says irritably from inside the box, "I heard you the first time. I'm putting on my shoes."

(Badda-bumm.)

$2 Spongebob

2010-05-22T10:52:00.000-04:00

We were in midtown Manhattan last weekend to do some corporate-job-clothes-shopping for Husband, and we encountered a street fair with benefits, aka characters with tip jars.

DuckyBoy wanted his picture with Spongebob. Having just returned from the artificially priced worlds of Disney and Atlantis, how could we say no to the paltry sum of $2? (The green thing in Spongebob's hand is his tip jar. It's clearly marked.)

Haiku Friday: For the Birds

2010-05-20T22:43:00.003-04:00

Birds by the highway
splash and wash in a puddle,
no fear of danger

Two of them, so small,
found their city oasis
next to an off-ramp

I wish I could have snapped a photo of the 2 little birds I saw this afternoon-- starlings, maybe?? -- fluttering about in a puddle RIGHT next to the Queens Boulevard off-ramp of the Grand Central Parkway. (It just sounds big, right?) I was amazed at how such tiny creatures adapt to city life to the point that multi-ton vehicles zoom right past them and they just continued to splash around.

Want to play along on Haiku Friday? It's easy!

Just write a haiku (5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables) on your blog, any theme.

Put the post url into Mister Linky here, then please leave a comment after linking.

Not a blogger? Feel free to write your haiku in the comment field.

And have a great weekend!

Haiku Friday: Week Off!

2010-05-13T23:03:00.013-04:00

Husband just asked me,
"Did you do your haiku yet?"
I've got a good man.

Last week I blew it
blame it on the vacation ...
but not Donald Duck!

Sorry!!

(Anyone know where this Donald is in Disney World? I've got nothing in particular to give away, but I'll come up with something for someone who gets it right!)

Here we are, not-haiku'ing at Epcot --
Tink, where are you? --
Atlantis pictures to come...

Want to play along on Haiku Friday? It's easy!

Just write a haiku (5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables) on your blog, any theme.

Put the post url into Mister Linky here, then please leave a comment after linking.

Not a blogger? Feel free to write your haiku in the comment field.

And have a great weekend!

Haiku Friday: Pink Blizzard

2010-04-30T06:30:00.004-04:00

cherry tree in bloom --
gently swirling pink blizzard
drifts and paints the steps.

i wait all year to
scoop up soft petals and make
playful poofy snowballs.

when rain falls, petals
are splash-plastered to the bricks,
nature's can of paint.

leaf blowers protest,
blowhards powerless against
the pink dot onslaught.

before green bursts forth,
nature celebrates spring with
a confetti blast!

Want to play along on Haiku Friday? It's easy! Just a haiku on your blog, any theme. Put the post url into Mister Linky here, then please leave a comment after linking.

And be sure to have a great spring weekend!

Whew

2010-04-28T14:53:00.005-04:00

After all, I'm 45, for pete's sake. Getting a little old for this, dontcha think?

It's true that I can't bring myself to give away the Moses basket or some of the cutest baby clothes and stuff ... so I do have some mixed emotions about the whole thing ... but overall, I'm sticking with, Whew.

Haiku Friday: Guest Poems by DuckyBoy

2010-04-22T22:24:00.004-04:00

Perhaps hosting Haiku Friday is not the best model for helping my son learn to write poems, which they do every April in school. Here are some of his, clearly dashed off during homework time at afterschool. I think they probably expect a little bit more, but then again, it's only second grade.

homework
homework, homework
lots of it, every
day and every
night, let's hope
I don't have
to do any more
work!

penceil
sharp, point yellow
tool used to write
(His teacher wrote next to this one, "That's a bit short!")

paperclip
tiny
skateboard
like a paperclip
long
oval glide
fast
(There's another one on this theme
but it's written in a circle
and I can't read the overlapping letters.)

Birds
tiny
little ani-
mals that fly around
the area.

That last one's actually almost a haiku! So here's my version:

Birds, tiny and fast
little animals that fly
up, down; flit in, out

How about if this week, I remember to put Mister Linky in!

If you'd like to play along on Haiku Friday, just write a haiku on your blog and post the link (to that post) here:

And please leave a comment to let me know what you think of my future haiku-writer in the family!
Have a great week and take a look at my happy guys enjoying their bike ride last weekend in Washington, DC:

(More DC pix on my Flickr page.)

Family Lemonade Stand

2010-04-15T10:26:00.007-04:00

DuckyBoy has asked at least once a year for the past couple of years to have a lemonade stand.

I think it's adorable when kids do that, and would love to see him increase both his social and business acumen from this type of endeavor, but...

I'm really shy about stuff like this. And he's not old enough to do it himself.

This year, I hit upon the bright idea of "We have to ask Dad if he'll do it with you!"

So last night, when we got home from school, after DB asked me in the car if it was a nice enough night for a lemonade stand, he asked his dad so nicely that Husband said yes. And then, because it's not like I have something more important to do, I said I'd come along.

And it worked out great!

Dad gave DB pointers on when to make his sales pitch, what to say when they decline ("have a nice day) and the right tones of voice. A cop even stopped his car and bought a cup.

It was awesome, I couldn't have helped him with ANY of that because I can't get past my own self standing there waiting to get rejected.

I dug up the dirt in the flower boxes while my salesmen did their thing.

Oh, and another best part? DB wants to donate the money to the people of Haiti. (Previously he's wanted to keep the cash. This time he decided in advance he wanted to donate it.) Awesome!

Here's his sign, which I didn't help him with at all. It says:

All of your funds will go to the people in Haiti

LEM[o]EN-
ADE

(There is also a dollar bill with a glass of lemonade in place of a president, and another refreshing glass of lemonade at the bottom of the poster.)

How About a Haiku Weekend?

2010-04-10T22:39:00.004-04:00

It's not that I forgot about ...

... it's more that the haiku I wrote sounded the same as all my others -- in fact I managed to blend seasonal and maudlin haiku and I just didn't want to post another sorry-sounding poem! Here's Kari's fun haiku for the week (there's even a contest attached).

And, since I wrote it already anyway (in bed Thursday night), here's mine:

The drops of rain are
bullets to a daffodil,
lullaby for me.

I'll try again next week!!!

How to Care for Your Bossy

2010-04-08T11:58:00.007-04:00

Having had the delightful chance to be part of the first stop on Bossy's (No) Book Tour 2010, and being the helpful type who does things like take pictures with Bossy's camera of the cameraman taking pictures of Bossy, and make the cameraman feel welcome by chatting amiably with him -- we talked about his wife! honestly! ok, and his brilliant movie idea! -- I thought I would compose a few hints for those of you who are anxiously, I mean eagerly, awaiting Bossy's arrival in your town.

Here are a few items you should be sure to think of ahead of time, by which I mean at least a few minutes before Bossy arrives, to help make your Bossy comfortable in her new surroundings:

1. Do you have your Bossy's drink of choice?
Bossy likes cocktails. Does the place where you are meeting Bossy have good cocktails? Bonus points for cool cocktail glasses.

Remember, too, that your Bossy is driving, so make sure she can safely get to her bed for the night. (Though I hear she is planning to test out the comfortability of the backseat of her Ford Fusion, I don't think "I slept in the car because I was too drunk to drive" is what Ford had in mind when they gave Bossy the car for her tour.)

2. Do you have toys for your Bossy?
By toys I mean, of course, persons with a Y chromosome.

There is a wide range of acceptable male attendees. Charming, handsome and at-or-close-to legal age seem to be preferable qualities. Use your own good judgment based on who you'd want to greet you at an event in a strange city.

(You don't really have to worry to much about this one, as my few encounters with Bossy have indicated she has an unusual ability to attract this type of amusement on her own. I hope she'll post her secrets some day.)

3. Don't forget to feed your Bossy!
This should be obvious, but it's easy to get caught up in the excitement and forget things. Especially if you are in a back room with no waitress service. So do what you must to flag down that inattentive bartender and get some food!

4. Make sure you take pictures of your Bossy.
You have a beautiful Bossy in your midst; don't forget your camera, or charge your phone, or whatever you need to do.

You might want to grab a friend and practice the arms-length-photo-of-yourself-and-Bossy beforehand. Or, you can forget to do that and end up with pictures of everyone else and just hope you show up in someone else's photos as proof you were there. (Whew, I made it into one.)

Bossy Bonii:
(the word "bonuses" just isn't unique and special enough for Bossy)

5. Can you meet somewhere that will enable Bossy to see some Local Sights as well as enjoy everyone's company? Bossy has scheduled herself solid with driving, sleeping, and eating at Burger King, and as anyone who's driven on the US highways knows, that's no way to see the country. (If not, see #2 above.)

6. This is going to expose me as the 100% dweeb that I am, but I gotta be me, so here goes: If you're at all inclined this way, toss some pens into your bag or pocket. Specifically, your Bossy needs a coupla Sharpies (for nametags) and a coupla regular, blue or black ink pens (for photo/video disclaimers and signing Bossy's guestbook). You may even get them back!

Edited to add:
You may wish to schedule a recovery day for yourself following your Bossy Visit. I mean, Bossy was here Tuesday and no way could I sit at my computer long enough yesterday to write this.

Edited again to add the link to my Flickr photos.

Nature on Display

2010-04-07T10:14:00.000-04:00

We had beautiful weather in northern Indiana last week. My brother's town is small and surrounded by fields, so it's full of beautifully chirping birds, his yard is covered in violets:

And Duckyboy had a blast trying to "jail" a ladybug, who kept blithely meandering over the sticks that comprised his triangular cage:

Between being able to run in and out of the house which was full of people and cats to play with inside and lots to look at outside, at one point DB said, "This is even more fun than playing on Club Penguin!" Which, believe me, is saying something.

This Is Family: 21, 14 and 7

2010-04-05T22:07:00.004-04:00

Here's my sister's daughter, my brother's youngest son, and DuckyBoy. They sat like this for probably 2 hours, playing some funny online game together.

After awhile I realized the 3 of them are exactly 7 years apart: 21, 14 and 7.

We went to Indiana for a few days to see my Dad, expecting the trip to be nothing but, well, pretty sad. Actually what I really wanted to do was give Dad a CD of old heaven-focused hymns, see how the conditions are at the home, and tell him that if he wants to, it's OK to let go, that his brother is waiting for him in heaven.

I did all that, but the surprise benefit of the trip was seeing these cousins make connections. Plus one, this beautiful young lady is my brother's 16-year-old:

Dad may not know us any more, but he brought us together. God does work in mysterious ways.

Haiku Friday: April Fool!

2010-04-01T12:08:00.000-04:00

Son's disappointed, no school April One -- how can he fool friends?

He had it all planned:
rubber chicken in his bag,
with a clucking sound.

If he remembers
to do it after Spring Break,
it should be a hit. We're on an airplane -- I hope the pilots don't have a 4/1 joke planned! We'll be home in time to go on Club Penguin for April fool fun (whew!)

Yes, I'm posting this on Thursday -- April Fool!

Want to play along on Haiku Friday? You know what to do: Write haiku, any theme. Put the post url into Mister Linky here, then please leave a comment after linking.

And be sure to have a great weekend!

Spring Contrasts: Flowers Old and New

2010-03-30T14:32:00.000-04:00

From my in-laws' backyard:

From my building's front area:

I.... don't have anything else to say today! I hope to take more flower photos this year than last year. Can you believe I have not yet plugged in the camera I won at BlogHer last year? It's been sitting on my desk collecting dust.

What's sitting right under your nose collecting dust and reminding you of fallen intentions?

Working from Home: LOL

2010-03-27T13:18:00.000-04:00

Here's one of our MOCA speakers, Kathy Mallary, talking to us about how people generally work on big projects: "They leave the stuff for later and pretty soon they've got a big pile of hard..."

Here's my favorite exchange from the telesummit so far:

Husband: "Paulette, can I ask a question?"
Paulette Ensign: "Sure. You just did!"
Husband: [Recovers his composure] "I love you, Paulette..."
Paulette: "I love you too!"

Haiku Friday: Listening for God

2010-03-25T20:00:00.000-04:00

Where is God at work
in the people around me?
I look and listen ...

Focus on the good,
then I can find where to help,
where God would guide me.

I am reading a workbook called Experiencing God as part of a group I'm in. It's oretty hardcore and sometimes contradictory, but overall I am getting the message to listen for where God is working in order to find where my place of service is.

Want to play along on Haiku Friday? You know what to do: Write haiku, any theme. Put the post url into Mister Linky here, then please leave a comment after linking.

And be sure to have a great weekend!

Haiku Friday: Anxiety and Sunshine

2010-03-19T10:26:00.006-04:00

wind etches the cliff
like lines of worry on the
face i hold so dear

I don't totally know why I wrote this haiku. It came to me last night as I lay in bed. Husband and I are anxious about several things (not the least of which was my Masters of Client Attraction call yesterday, which went really well, and his today!); maybe that's why.

Dear Internet, I love you too much to end on this downer. So, part 2:

Happy sunshine warms
wings and beaks, arms and noses --
chirps and smiles emerge.

Want to play along on Haiku Friday? You know what to do: Write haiku, any theme. Put the post url into Mister Linky here, then please leave a comment after linking.

And be sure to have a great weekend!

Do I Really Want to Friend my Electric Company?

2010-03-15T09:49:00.003-04:00

This the back of the envelope my electric bill came in.

I am enjoying getting more active on Facebook, and I've become a fan on several companies I like -- Oreos, Shining Stars stuffed animals -- but my electric company?

Talk about just jumping on the bandwagon.

The tips on the ConEd fan page actually aren't bad, but I just can't bring myself to become a FAN of my UTILITY COMPANY who has the government's permission, nay, blessing, to OVERCHARGE me.

It's probably going to become some scary Big Brother thing where if you DON'T become a fan you'll get cut off... AAAAAAGH!

Ahem. Excuse me!
Don't know what got into me there.

Isn't it a little weird, though? Next thing you know the cable company will want me to friend them. Sorry, I already got free HBO 'cause I've got real friends in my building (meaning the co-op board, who hooked us all up legally).

Is It Spring Yet? Haiku Friday

2010-03-11T20:47:00.005-05:00

Through the stale dry earth
thin knives of green cut upward,
take in air and sun

A chill edge of night
makes the leaves hug together
until warm spring stays.

Haiku in the News

2010-03-09T10:29:00.002-05:00

This "news" is a month old but I thought it was funny. All my facts are from the February 5 New York Post, page 30.

Former CEO of Sun Microsystems, Jonathan Schwartz, announced his resignation via this Tweeted haiku:

Financial crisis
Stalled too many customers
CEO no more.

How funny is that? I guess when you're leaving with $12 million severance, you don't really care.

Oh, and the best part: people were taking his verse to task, like, "If it's not about a season it's not a haiku..."

This is still RT'ing its way around the Twitterverse, so I don't feel so out of date. Plus, another Sun exec just quit today, confirming it via his blog, so it's got a timely edge to it. (Even though, if it weren't for the haiku, I don't know any of these people and would care less... but anyway!)

Good thing that person doesn't read my 'ku! Though I have found this year's snow to be very 'ku-spirational.

SURVEY!
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__ 1 or fewer words or phrases that made no sense to you, leave a comment telling me your favorite thing about Twitter

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Haiku Friday: Memories Lost, Memories Made

2010-03-05T09:33:00.007-05:00

What's Alzheimers like?
amnesia or swiss cheese, holes
in your memory ...

Eyes search for meaning:
I think that I should know you,
but I don't know why

Connections won't come
every day is new, yet not
what day is it now?

What day is it now?
Did I just put these clothes on...
(no, it's been a week.)

My dad has had Alzheimers/dementia for several years now. My brother, God bless him, took him into his home and has cared for him, even though Dad has been ornery and stubborn. (Amazing how some of the personality doesn't go away...)

Currently Dad is in a nursing home for rehab after a stint in hospital, but he is uncooperative with the physical therapies they are trying, so it is coming to a head whether he needs to stay there permanently -- in which case, the home would like to be paid full-rate instead of the medicare post-hospital stipend for dealing with the ornery old man.

His father, Grandpa Wright, developed the same thing and we kept him at home as long as we could, with someone coming in to check on him and cook for him every day. When at last he had to enter a home, he never spoke ... or, I think, smiled ... again.

Ironically, one of the most important goals Dad had for his life was "not to end up like my father." He swore (sometimes literally...) up and down that he would keep his brain active, he'd never retire (the dastardly act to which he accounted Grandpa's mental decline), he was a stronger man by far.

Yet here he is. Not stronger than genetics. I'm just glad he doesn't know.

Well now, isn't that a cheery thing to end on! Sheesh!

How about a more-fun haiku to lift the mood. I'm trying reeeeally hard not to write another snow-theme haiku, but it is snowing again a little bit. Come on, brain, focus......

Oh, it's no use, I can't think of another haiku. I've got waffles on the brain ... we're going to a diner shortly!

But here's a fun snowman who was at the playground next to our house. We didn't build him, but that is DuckyBoy in the pic for size comparison. I had to sneak it so it's his back, sorry. He only wanted his Puffle in the picture, so when he was placing it I snapped this.

Want to play along on Haiku Friday? You know what to do: Write haiku, any theme. Put the post url into Mister Linky here, then please leave a comment after linking.

And be sure to have a great weekend!

Funny and Yet, Sad Quote

2010-03-02T13:38:00.003-05:00

"The highest treason a crab can commit is to make a leap for the rim of the bucket."

From The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles by Steven Pressfield, author of The Legend of Bagger Vance. Which I have not read but have heard of.

The War of Art is a great little book, each page is short but packs a punch. The first part is about resistance, and it's written in a way that makes it easy to see, and laugh about, the ways I sabotage my own efforts at success. This quote is from the page about how others can work to keep you down (so they feel better about their ow inability to overcome resistance and move forward).

The link above is my Amazon affiliate link to the book, but I'd recommend you pick it up anywhere you happen to be!

Happy Bring a Book to Bed Day!

2010-02-27T14:40:00.006-05:00

My friend Alba founded this fun mid-winter holiday three years ago: Bring a Book to Bed Day, the last Saturday of February.

This year, it was easy to comply ... as Husband and I are not watching TV for Lent, we are reading more books.

Here we all are:

I am reading the latest Sue Grafton book,
U is for Undertow. I get the hardcovers for Christmas!

Husband is reading Pawn of Prophecy.
He says it's a slow starter, that nothing has
happened yet in the first 30 pages.

And, DuckyBoy and I are reading a few things at once:

At bedtime I've been reading him Beverly Cleary's
The Mouse and the Motorcycle, and
he loves to read his Complete Official Guide to Club Penguin
over and over. Here he's reading it with his purple Puffle, Yoyo.

Haiku Friday: Big, Fat, Soft, Wet Snow

2010-02-25T22:24:00.004-05:00

Here's DuckyBoy's school
this morning as the wet snow
falls in soft clusters ...

Clumps of dizzy flakes
move as one with fluid grace
like teens at the mall.

When I was little, we'd ALWAYS get a tremendous, unexpected, impossible-to-deal-with snowstorm on or around my birthday. Guess what! It's been over 20 years since I left Erie and haven't had to deal, but the February 26 blizzards have found me again!

Want to play along on Haiku Friday? You know what to do: Write haiku, any theme. Put the post url into Mister Linky here, then please leave a comment after linking.

And be sure to have a great weekend!

Haiku Friday: The Joys of Togetherness

2010-02-19T11:59:00.004-05:00

Please, family, please,
I just need 90 seconds
surely you'll survive

without me that long,
I know it will be hard, but ...
I just need to pee!

This is the last day of winter break...

It's been great, but the 3 of us together all day long? Tough on Mom!

Haiku for Snow

2010-02-12T11:03:00.002-05:00

Finally! A chance to do a seasonal haiku! We get so little interesting weather here in New York...

Cars cuddle under
their fluffy white comforters,
cozy as a nest

Tree branches frosted,
a thick layer of icing
delicious and cold

The desperate tires
strain to grip the smooth glass street
angry at failure

Hubby hurts his back
(he told me to add this one...)
clearing heavy snow.

(FYI: Hubby is OK. His back just hurts a little.)

Long Hair is a Hassle!

2010-02-09T13:33:00.003-05:00

I've been growing my hair for almost 2 years now. This is the first time in my 44 years that it's ever been this long. It was longish at the end of high school and when I had DuckyBoy, but it was never long enough to put it all in a ponytail, etc. until this time.

And now I know why my Grandma Wright kept her long hair up in a bun -- otherwise, it sheds everywhere! And it's all over the bathroom when I brush it, I have to slick it into place to keep it from fuzzing out all over my head in that unattractive Earth Mom non-style, eeesh!

I think that once short styles became popular, like, in the 1930s, the women in my maternal family said, "That's it, I'm done with this junk!" and cut it short. Grandma Meeker, my mom, my aunts. They learned the hard way!

My sister had long hair in '72 when it was trendy, but now that I think of it, it's been short ever since.

Aaaand, now I know why.

I'll keep on struggling for now, because I'm still having fun.

But I think the clock is ticking.

Energy Rush

2010-02-06T07:00:00.001-05:00

I was suddenly nervous, wondering what I had done.

DuckyBoy and I were at a focus group session, where he was to play a new computer game and give his feedback. We arrived on time, weathered his desire for popcorn (from the empty popcorn machine the PR firm had in its waiting area/kitchen; he wanted me to ask them to make some), and even found an activity book he enjoyed leafing through (rare!).

Suddenly, a woman appeared and said she was ready for him. Even though a show he liked had just started, he hesitated only a moment, then stood and followed her.

I half stood, then asked, "Do I stay or go?"

"You stay," she said.

Oh!

I spent the next half hour wondering, then realized if he was going to wig out he'd have done so long ago.

He returned, happy as a lark, wanting to know how long he was there. Upon being told, he remarked, "It felt like only 10 minutes!"

Loved having a secret I didn't know, said he wasn't going to tell me about the game. He let a little bit of info slip later on, but not a lot.

Wanted to stay, in fact, and watch SpongeBob that was on the monitors.

Wanted another Oreo.

Said "30 for me, 20 for you!" when I showed him the $50 bill we earned for his time, and told him we'd split it evenly.

After we left the building, resumed our game of "Angry? Grab a Snickers!" -- where we'd take turns trying to grab a pretend Snickers bar from the other. He had a real Snickers on the way into the building, bought in the subway. ("You pick up the item, give him the money and that's it, it's yours?" he'd asked. "Then why is there a bar code?")

Reminded me I said we'd check out a cool playground afterward. Didn't say a word about having to backtrack 2 blocks the other direction to get to Union Square.

He liked the playground, the statues, the dog run, the bronze map of the park, the sand art on the sidewalk. (What's not to like?)

Wanted to see more Manhattan sights. Suggested a cab to the Empire State Building, and immediately started trying to hail one.

Loved the TV monitor map in the cab that showed us where we were.

A little claustrophobic in the innards of the ESB, but interested enough to continue.

Afraid of the elevator from 2 to 80, it took a whole minute.

A little afraid of that extreme height on the 86th floor --who can blame him?! At 7, who'd have the words to express that feeling of, "I don't think I should be this high!"

On the way down, he's so DONE with it, ready to be outside again. Wants me to make him a T-shirt that says, "I survived the elevator ride at the Empire State Building."

McDonald's across the street, that's exactly what he already requested for dinner!

Still not ready to go home after that, so we walk to Macy's to get the subway. He loves the "World's biggest store" sign (is it really?, we wonder), and marvels at the lighted trees in the vest-pocket park that divides 7th and Broadway just above 34th, and the street filled with cafe tables, the painted bike lane, the sheer energy of it all.

"How long were we in Manhattan?" he asks on the ride home. "Three and a half hours," I calculate.

"Wow," is all he says.

Haiku for Manhattan

2010-02-04T22:50:00.003-05:00

My friend called me out,
said haiku's s'posed to evoke
a feeling or scene ...

she is right of course,
in the traditional sense ...
a cocktail haiku?!?

The feelings I stir
tend to be quotidian
more than expansive ...

In my own defense,
I point to Club Penguin ... where
Sensei-bird speaks 'ku!

Ahem, let me try a "real" haiku...

Manhattan pulses
a million different drummers
contribute a beat ...

the air is alive
with movement, thoughts, change, and life ...
dull senses quicken.

Tires revolve and fade,
voices run sharp, soft, pleading,
underground trains hiss ...

My boy wants to stay
he can feel the energy,
it mirrors his mind ...

Eyes, heart, neurons drawn
to the new, spicy, unknown
that keeps us alive ...

Friday Night Cocktail Haiku

2010-01-29T21:04:00.002-05:00

my haiku undone,
but books discussed, books logged in ...
literary day

haiku unwritten,
sharp sting of vodka intaken,
buffalo wings downed.

haiku is undone,
eyelids work to stay open
when I remember

Haiku for Haiti

2010-01-22T16:14:00.004-05:00

Thousands wander, lost,
without food, water, shelter ;
far-flung fam'lies pray.

What little they had
now entombed in piles of rock,
yet miracles live.

Life fights to go on
breath after breath 'spite the odds...
prayers hold up Haiti.

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 3 lines, and count syllables, 5-7-5. The best haiku evoke a feeling of place or emotion. (Unlike mine which are often factual.) More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). Don't sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. If you'd like, pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Please do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week. You are welcome to leave a comment, though!

Weight Loss Update

2010-01-20T11:22:00.005-05:00

On Friday I posted about Husband and I are trying to lose weight by making different food choices, in a way that's sustainable to eat going forward.

We have done Weight Watchers and Atkins and even The Zone in the past, all with some success, but the problem has been that, like so many others, the weight bounces right back. So this time, after conversations with Gregory Anne Cox and getting her free 7-day ecourse, I'm trying to do it right and change the way we eat in a sustainable way. Finding out that she loves food and doesn’t believe in depriving ourselves to lose weight really helped.
I'm learning to turn off that judgmental voice in my head that says, "Good food, bad food" and allow myself to use my intelligence to make a good choice.

Husband and I are really enjoying what we eat and, surprising to us, not missing what we’re not eating, which is lots and lots of carbs. We’ve done Atkins in the past so we knew we could live without the carbs, but this is different because we’re not trying to follow some strict regime for a period of time (or amount of weight ) -- we’re just choosing different foods for the plate. And choosing what sounds good, rather than whatever will get us through to the “next pound down.”

A few M-and-Ms don't hurt me. A piece of spinach pie, yes even with the flaky crust, won't blow it (like it would on Atkins). But you know what? I don't feel as good this morning after eating that flaky crust. Next time I may just go with the Greek salad.

If you told me I'd go to a late-night diner with my friends and NOT get a cheeseburger, or anything with fries, I'd have laughed. But I truly enjoyed the choice I made, knowing that the burger-and-fries would make me feel not-good today.

This morning I’m down a total of 7 pounds, and Husband is down 10. And the main thing we’re doing is picking different foods … it's nothing short of a miracle.

I do notice we need more sleep, though. No joke. Gregory Anne mentions sleep in her email course, and I thought, "yeah, yeah, we all need more sleep." But this is like, "I MUST GO BACK TO BED," my body is Not.Taking.No.For.An.Answer type of need for more sleep. If I don't get 8 hours I can't function. 8 and a half is better.

Seems worth the trade-off: Body feels better when I'm up; clothes fit better; little more energy (I'm still out of shape but I'm willing to run with DuckyBoy now, every time he asks, at least until I'm out of breath); in exchange I need to sleep more? Ok.

If It's Spring, It Must Be Bossy

2010-01-19T13:22:00.004-05:00

Top 10 Reasons Bossy Should Include Me on Her Spring 2010 No-Book Tour:

10. I’ve written a book and can advise Bossy of the pros and cons. (OK, it’s an ebook, but last year I advertised it on Bossy’s blog and I think that’s where my customer came from).

9. Something about Bossy reminds me of a long-time boss of mine, only … Bossy is more approachable. With better hair.

8. Bossy can watch any John Cusack movie she’d like on our 65-inch TV.

7. My husband makes awesome margaritas. And cosmo's. And we have pretty martini glasses.

6. We like to eat appetizers for dinner.

5. We also know of awesome Chinese buffet places.

4. I'm not afraid to get naked to help Bossy experience a Korean spa.

3. We have a car and I love to drive, so Bossy doesn’t have to drive around NYC.

2. We have a lovely pull-out couch, or the lovely Kew Motor Inn is less than 2 miles away. (It’s been compared to the Plaza! Really! (I believe the exact quote was, “This place is about as far from the Plaza as you can get.”) Then there’s the Pan American Hotel which just cracks me up, and seriously, there are nice national chains near LaGuardia, too.

And, the Number One reason Bossy should include me on her (No) Book Tour is:

1. I can chronicle Bossy's trip in haiku form.

Why I Don't Want My Son To Say "OMG"

2010-01-17T11:44:00.006-05:00

I've never liked to hear people say, "Oh my God," which usually comes out "Omigod."I don't even remember when I first noticed it, but I've always felt like a bit of prude for feeling this way.

Unlike most things for which I have felt like a prude for, though, I've stuck with this one. I'll say"Oh my gosh," and I'm sure there are purists who say even that is bad, but they're not my concern.

My concern is that now the second graders say it. In fact I'm sure I heard it last year from DuckyBoy's classmates, which means 6-year-olds are in the habit of it. They have no idea why, it's just something they hear all the time. It's "just" part of speech nowadays, like "wow" or "oh" or "huh."

It's not exactly taking the Lord's name in vain, because you're not cursing anyone out, or angrily saying "Jesus Christ!" like sometimes people will do. But it just makes God's name ... meaningless. To me that's even worse. The name of the Creator of all life is reduced to ... a throwaway phrase? An empty fill-in? Sad. (Some of these kids go to Christian churches, too.)

Now there's OMG. The phrase is so pervasive that it's got a text shorthand version. The kids just say "OMG" sometimes.

And I'm not sure how I feel about that. Because I know the origin is not people who didn't want to type out "oh my gosh."

I can say "G for gosh" to myself when I see or hear OMG, so it's a little better, but not much.

I have asked DuckyBoy not to say "Oh my God," and he's been really good about respecting me on that (even though I know he hears it all the time). But what do I do about OMG? It's kind of its own thing at this point, an exclamation with no background meaning. I'd rather he say that than "Oh my God."

But I'd really rather he not say OMG, either.

Husband just told me this morning that he read someone who believes CS Lewis is evil because he used the phrase "Gee whiz" in his books, which apparently was originally shorthand for "Jesus's whiskers."

Is OMG really that different?

I'll see how often DB comes out with OMG. If it becomes a habit, I'll ask him to stop. I'm sure he'll think I'm the worst mother in the world sooner or later anyway, so I might as well stand up for what I believe in. Right?

Haiku Friday, Pound by Pound

2010-01-14T22:00:00.006-05:00

Haiku time again,
but a slimmer me writes it ...
we're eating better

I record each bite
on the fitday dot com site
picked it 'cause it's free ...

scale's needle moves to
the left ever so slightly
inching its way down

I feel the diff'rence
when I sit to drive the car...
there's less tummy there.

No big diet we're following, just trying to eat fewer carbs, plenty of fat, and enough protein and veggies to keep from being starving. It's been a week, and so far I'm down 3 and a half pounds, first week is always a big drop then my body adjusts, but, I'll take it!

A big part is having done some reading and talking with one of our website clients, Gregory Anne Cox, a really cool lady (and I don't use "lady" for just any woman) who knows and loves food and also knows how to help women past their, um, 30s lose weight.

She talks about the different kinds of carbs, and about fat, and the importance of enjoying what you eat and making it a lifestyle, rather than a quick weight-loss and then revert to my old ways (which is what happened a few years ago when Husband and I did the Zone diet, with 3 meals delivered to our door each day. We lost weight, but hadn't relearned how to eat right).

It's eye-opening to input everything -- especially the 2 spoonfuls of sugar in my coffee each morning. Now, when I'm onto the 3rd cup, I've got a decision to make -- are those carbs going to be worth it?? I get to make the choice, though -- I'm not tied to a number of points or boxes -- so I choose to drink a third cup black (on those days when I need a 3rd cup).

I enjoy adding up what I've eaten, but I'm doing it to get the trend, not to nitpick. So far, so good.

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 3 lines, and count syllables, 5-7-5. The best haiku evoke a feeling of place or emotion. (Unlike mine which are often factual.) More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). Don't sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. if you'd like, pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week.

A Hairy Haiku Friday

2010-01-08T09:51:00.006-05:00

This is my son's hair,
hanging down off of his head
soft, golden, messy

Took upside-down pix
because when he's standing up,
we can't see his eyes!

We got DB's hair trimmed about a week after this photo was taken -- so at least his bangs are above his eye level now -- but his hair is still pretty long.

Adults either love or hate his longish hair. He has raving fans, and people who can't imagine why I'd let him have it so long. He likes it to cover his ears, so I get it cut to that length and have the stylist make it short enough in the back so it's not too snarly when we comb it. After that, it's fine with me.

She left it long in the back this week, so after his haircut I noticed in the bathtub that his hair is long enough I could put it in a little ponytail ... now THAT is not my thing for boys. (Db showed no signs of being interested in it either.)

Would you like to join Haiku Friday? Just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 3 lines, and count syllables, 5-7-5. The best haiku evoke a feeling of place or emotion. (Unlike mine which are often factual.) More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). Don't sign unless you have a haiku this week. (But you're welcome to leave a comment without a haiku!) If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. If you'd like, pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

The Scourge of Second Grade

2010-01-07T21:49:00.002-05:00

Guess what DB has that got him sent home early from school today?

Hint: they're small and live on heads and are hard to get rid of ...
Find out here ...

It's not severe; the nurse said he can probably come back tomorrow.

It's my library volunteer day at school tomorrow ...
but do I really want either one of us to be there all day???

Hamster on Her Front Porch

2010-01-06T11:56:00.006-05:00

I'm proud of myself for capturing a photo of Supergirl ... Chinese dwarf hamsters are FAST!

I like to think of this as her "front porch." The blue end cap has air holes in it (as do the tubes themselves, mind you), and from time to time she stops here and hangs out as if she's checking out what we're doing in the room.

The tubes are in the shape of an ellipse, and she long ago picked one spot where she sleeps. It's close to the opening between the tubes and her cage, but 99 percent of the time she chooses to run around the long way to get in and out. So she always runs past this spot.

New Year, New Haiku!

2010-01-01T01:48:00.002-05:00

Out with the old year
like a trash bag that
tumbles down ... KA-THUNK

Welcome the new year
with a martini or two
then write some haiku

Wrestle with Facebook
click off the twink'ling tree lights
Lie on the cool sheets.

Look back on the day ...
DB's friend, sister's email
of her son's success...

And turn my face to
what God wants me to look at
in year Twenty Ten...

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 3 lines, and count syllables, 5-7-5. The best haiku evoke a feeling of place or emotion. (Unlike mine which are often factual.) More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). Don't sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. if you'd like, pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week.

Slip-On Sneakers: The After Photo

2009-12-30T12:02:00.006-05:00

This photo is for Cathy, so we have the before-and-after of these sneakers.

DuckyBoy doesn't know how to tie shoes either, but it's not just a spectrum issue. My friend whose 9-year-old son is totally typical (well, by New York city kid standards anyway, haha) said he asked her to tie his new basketball shoes ... and until he asked her, she hadn't realized that he hadn't learned yet! It's just so easy to buy the slip-on and Velcro shoes now.

DB got into the habit of walking on the heels of these shoes, and also we had to switch from slip-ons back to Velco-closures for school, because he'd also fiddle with his shoes while siting at his desk. Darn near drove his kindergarten teacher crazy! So these were his summer '08 shoes, I think. When I saw Cathy's post about Ethan's new shoes back in November I dug these out ... and this is how long it took me to upload it!

Christmas Haiku

2009-12-25T07:39:00.004-05:00

Breathe in scent of pine
Dots of color show the way
to fun this morning

A helicopter
hovers proudly atop it
not really that strange ...

We do pick something
that flies in the air: angel,
reindeer, star or ... this!

Stocking is open
by seven thirty a.m.
Now on to big stuff!

Fresh coffee has brewed,
the parents are awake now,
let's see Santa's loot!

Merry Christmas to those who celebrate, including me! (I can still celebrate Christmas on my own blog, right?)

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 3 lines, and count syllables, 5-7-5. The best haiku evoke a feeling of place or emotion. (Unlike mine which are often factual.) More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). Don't sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. if you'd like, pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week.

Arguments Still Surprise Me: Haiku Friday

2009-12-18T07:17:00.005-05:00

Cloud of angry words
dissipates slowly with time
the storm is over...

the hist'ry to blame
still lurks on the horizon
love's winds can't blow it

far enough away
to keep squalls from popping up
out of sunny skies ...

I'm never prepared,
need a better predictor --
Accu-Argument?

I'm just not always good at knowing what I do that will make Husband upset. Or when his reaction to something DB does (or, in this case, doesn't do, as in listen to us) will escalate to full-blown yelling. (I guess that just makes me human. But Husband is a systematizer by nature, finding ways to do things better, learning from every mistake ... so he expects me to improve the process every time!!)

All the work DB's teachers do to teach him voice levels, to modulate himself when he's angry, and what does he live with: a "level 5" voice.

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 3 lines, and count syllables, 5-7-5. The best haiku evoke a feeling of place or emotion. (Unlike mine which are often factual.) More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). Don't sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. if you'd like, pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week.

Chicken and Sweet Potatoes: Delicious Recipe

2009-12-16T12:42:00.004-05:00

I found this recipe on the back of a carton of Swanson Chicken Broth. It appealed to me primarily because I had most of the ingredients -- a couple of sweet potatoes that needed to be used, part of a carton of broth, and the spices. I never cook meat on the stovetop -- I either Foreman-Grill it or bake it -- but this sounded too good not to try. And it was soooo good!

I altered the amounts a little bit based on what I had and it was fine.

Chicken & Sweet Potatoes

1 TB oil
4-5 chicken pieces*
1 c broth (using more will give you a nice little broth to pour over the meat)
1 TB garlic, chopped
1/2 tsp. rosemary
1/4 tsp. thyme
1 or 2 sweet potatoes, cut in half-inch pieces
1 or 2 cups green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces (leave whole if you prefer)

1. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook 10 mins or until it's well-browned on both sides. Remove chicken and set aside.

2. Increase heat to high. Stir broth, garlic, romsemary, thyme, potatoes, and green beans into skillet. Heat to a boil and cook 5 mins.

3. Return chicken to skillet and reduce heat to low. Cover and cook 12 mins or until chicken is cooked through and potatoes are tender.

* I used 5 bone-in thighs; the original called for 4 boneless breasts. I also used pieces with the skin on, and the skin stuck to the bottom of the pan and came away from the meat, so the top of my meat wasn't browned. But we had some awesome cracklins for an appetizer!!

September 11 Poem

2009-12-16T12:31:00.004-05:00

I wrote this shortly after the towers fell. I just found it in my old Franklin-Covey planner and thought I'd better type it up before I lost it.

Nine Eleven

I sat in those chairs
held onto the handrail of the escalator
thumbed through the books
rode the elevator to the top.

I remember spending an afternoon
in awe at the vistas
looked out the windows from the top
waiting for sunset
so I could see the night view too.

Walked the tiles.
My DNA lingered thedre.
When the towers came down,
I felt the loss immediately.

What of the suicide pilots?
Their ashes also mingle
with the victims'...
and have become part of American soil.

Lonely Haiku Friday

2009-12-10T23:38:00.002-05:00

Where are the 'ku-ers
to fill up Mister Linky
with five-sev'n-five verse?

Onto Mount Haiku
the lonely hostess doth climb,
out of breath at top,

taking but a glance
at the reams of prose 'round her,
she seeks the rare 'ku

that can make her laugh
or quite take her breath away
with subtle beauty

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 3 lines, and count syllables, 5-7-5. The best haiku evoke a feeling of place or emotion. (Unlike mine which are often factual.) More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). Don't sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. if you'd like, pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week.

About Me: Six Easy Questions (OK, 5)

2009-12-06T21:46:00.004-05:00

My friend Nancy sent me this cute fill-in email chain. I liked it because it's not too long. Especially since I didn't bother to answer one of them about who would answer it if I forwarded it, since I decided not to forward it (but I did send it back to her).

Six names you go by:
1. Janice
2. Jan
3. janny226
4. Babe
5. Mommy
6. Mrs. H

Three things you are wearing right now:
1. Blood:Water Mission bracelet
2. My "Beer Helps" t-shirt that I scissor-ripped just to try the process and my friend told me, "That's so 80s!" but I wore it out in public anyway 'cause I kinda like it even though people gave me dirty looks in Stop & Shop for wearing it while having too much fun with my kid
3. A grey t-shirt under the other one because it's cold outside!

Two things you want very badly at the moment:
1. To eat more chocolate pretzels
2. To weigh 30 pounds less

Three things you did last night:
1. Wrote a "task card" for the school library craft project
2. Cut out penguin beaks and feet for the school library craft project
3. HAD THE WHOLE BED TO MYSELF (Husband's at a conference)

Two things you ate today:
1. Peanut butter on toast
2. Mozzarella sticks that DuckyBoy said are "just like the ones at school!" (They're his favorite school lunch.)

Two people you last talked to on the phone:
1. Husband
2. DuckyBoy's friend's mom

Two things you are going to do tomorrow:
1. Talk on the phone
2. Edit the workbook for this week's class on writing a business website

Your favorite beverages:
1. Coke from a glass bottle
2. Tequila

BlogHer NYC Holiday Party: Haiku Review

2009-12-03T22:33:00.003-05:00

BlogHer holiday
NY party -- with Jory! --
was a nice event.

A mix of bloggers
and sponsors, it seemed to me,
and int'rested folks ...

Washington Square Park,
Great Neck's Motherhood Later,
Gympressions and Curves ...

Snacks rocked @ Pranna,
chutney, sliders, shrimp, and naan ...
fusion like the crowd!

Proud I went alone,
wish I'd remembered my cards,
but still glad I went.

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 3 lines, and count syllables, 5-7-5. The best haiku evoke a feeling of place or emotion. (Unlike mine which are often factual.) More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). Don't sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. if you'd like, pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week.

Participatory Democracy

2009-11-26T22:46:00.002-05:00

Last week I attended a New York City Council committee meeting about funding for arts programs in the public schools.

It was really interesting to see how the process works. "Wheels of justice turning slowly" indeed. The meeting started at 1 pm, we moved to a larger chamber at 2:00, and the meeting was finally over at 4. Or maybe it was 5. At any rate, I was part of the last group to give our testimony.

And I think I was the only person there without some other agenda other than just wanting my kid to continue to have art classes. And guess what? My kid hates one of his art classes! (Music.)

Everyone else either worked for an arts organization or was somehow connected to some group that made money or something from dedicated arts funding.

Now, I did attend becuase a group I'm a part of, Center for Arts Education, asked me to, but even the other parents -- all 4 of them-- had some other reason. 1 guy is a musician and he wrote a cute song ("You can't spell 'smart' without 'art", thanks Tom Chapin!); another is getting her teaching degree in, yep, art, so she'd like a job in a few years, and so on.

And I was the ONLY person who told a STORY about ONE kid. Everyone else spoke in generalities or referred to statistics about the value or art in relation to academics. I told a story that illustrated it:

During writing time at school, the way they do it to draw their story, then write the words. DB tells great, detailed stories, but he would only write clipped, short ideas. I thought it was handwriting issue, but last spring the art teacher taught him to draw people beyond the stick-figure style, and now he tells better stories.

I can only think it's because he now is confident he can draw what he wants. His people are still sticks (I didn't say that in my testimony), but he CAN draw whatever he wants.

They liked my story!

I was impressed with the attitude of the committee chairs who had to stay the whole time and listen to new people say the same thing over and over. They were polite and positive and thanked us for staying till the end. One guy who had to leave at 3 (clearly no one had expected the crowd they got) even apologized.

Haiku Friday: Thanksgiving Edition

2009-11-26T22:25:00.003-05:00

Just enough turkey
on my plate to enjoy it,
didn't overeat.

I skipped the stuffing
and we skipped the overnight:
good to be back home.

DB had nuggets,
warm crescent rolls; for dessert
peanut butter cup.

Didn't fight with him
at all about what he ate
pleasant all around.

Husband's family
of origin issues are
another story...

Whatcha gonna do,
it's only one day a year,
the rest to ourselves.

We all went around and said something we are thankful for:
* Skids and Mudflap the ice-cream twins Tranformers (new as of yesterday)
* Judy Moody books that have gotten DB to enjoy reading
* That our niece/cousing.granddaughter's recent surgery went well
* That we live in America
* That we were together and travelled safely
* Employment
* Our clients

It was nice. Plus, I have a sour-cherry pie here at home from the school fundraiser last week, and boy is it good! So that's my Thanksgiving treat.

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 5-7-5. More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). DON'T sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. Pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week! I will carry on the esteemed tradition of deleting any links without haiku!

Haiku Friday, Now With Gratuitous Cute Baby Photo!

2009-11-19T22:27:00.006-05:00

Busy busy week
s'posed to be a week off? Ha!
didn't quite happen.

I was going to use this past week to catch up on a lot of things. Somehow, it ended up being mainly more of the same, though I did make time for some rejuvenating activities. Like meeting this little guy here. Is he a sweetie or what??

Anyway, the busy work is actually leading to some income for us, so that's a yay!

And Husband and I spent last Saturday learning lots of interesting stuff about WordPress (am I allowed to say that name on my Blogger blog?). My favorite idea I came away with is to start a blog for the books of the month, and for photos of our related library crafts.

I also want to figure out how to scan and make Powerpoint presentations out of the books of the month so the kindergarden kids can "watch" them be read on the Smartboard instead of squinting to see the pictures.

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 5-7-5. More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). DON'T sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. Pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week! I will carry on the esteemed tradition of deleting any links without haiku!

Annd, Haiku Friday Sneaks Up on Me Again!

2009-11-13T21:25:00.005-05:00

Really no excuse
for forgetting this again ...
what is my deal here?

With a little help from DayQuil to control the cough I woke up with, I had a great time in the school library today. Each month DB's school features a different book that inspires discussion and projects. We moved the "bucket drops" from the October book-of-the-month, How Full Is Your Bucket, to a different wall, then made a new display of vegetable soup inspired by the November BOTM, Uncle Willie and the Soup Kitchen.

We also have to add something new from now on-- the librarian said the principal told her to add a "Task sheet," describing what the kids did for each project and why, like this: "Using crayons, K and 1st-grade students decorated foods inspired by Uncle Willie and the Soup Kitchen, including onions, carrots, string beans, noodles, tomatoes, potatoes, cheese and bread."

It was fun to write them up and make those pages fit the theme of each display, and I also think they help make the projects look more "official," instead of purely "for-fun."

Next week we're going to decorate mittens and hats and read the book Caps, Hats, Socks and Mittens. Guess who's bringing the craft? Bring it on!!

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 5-7-5. More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). DON'T sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. Pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week! I will carry on the esteemed tradition of deleting any links without haiku!

INSERT MISTER LINKY LINK HERE

Health Care Debate: The Necklace Edition

2009-11-09T08:05:00.003-05:00

This is the first and least relevant of my questions about the health-care bill that passed the House this weekend ...

Why was Nancy Pelosi wearing a lariat of Twizzlers?

Was it her emergency snack for the all-night session?
Photo by Yuri Gripas/ Reuters

After the Flea Market: Me and Mini Me

2009-11-08T12:22:00.004-05:00

I made a whopping $8 for my $84 investment at the flea market. (Not counting the $100 to get the sewing machine repaired mid-project, since that would have happened sooner or later anyway...) But it was a good time anyway.

The best part: Finally meeting the guy I keep hearing looks just like DuckyBoy. I think they're adorable. (DB didn't see any resemblance.) You be the judge:

Haiku (Late) Friday!

2009-11-06T21:24:00.006-05:00

Omigosh, I completely forgot it's Friday until @rmitty FF'd me on Twitter... I read her tweet and went, uh, Friday, isn't there something I do on Fridays?? ... Yikes!

I haven't even posted since last week. Ironically, what I've been doing is helping other people create websites and, yes, blogs! There's God showing that divine sense of humor!

And then there was Halloween to recover from. It was loads of fun. We went with some friends to Metropolitan Ave, DB had a blast dancing at one stop and shoved his way to the front of the candy line with the rest of 'em. My favorite part of trick-or-treating was that DB kept holding up his candy-holding pumpkin and making it say, "I'm not full enough! Is that the best you can do?"

My favorite part of the whole day was spending the rest of the evening at our friends' house and getting to play Wii tennis and bowling and letting the kids play. That, and NOT dressing up. It was nice weather so I just wore my Old Navy Halloween shirt and orange jack o' lantern hat and was happy about it. For once I didn't need to dress up to have a good time.

Plus my feet hurt so much Friday night that there was no way I could be Laura Ingalls a 2nd day in a row!

On Sunday we let DB eat as much Halloween candy as he wanted -- my friend was pretty shocked, 'cause she has A Plan for doling it out to her kids and then tossing it. Yep, as long as he ate healthy-ish food periodically throughout the day, he could pretty much go to town. I liked that he kept asking me if it was OK to have more, though.

Hey, Jan, how about a haiku? Well, let's get one going:

Sewing like crazy
to make a craft sale deadline ...
we'll know tomorrow

if I make money
with my holiday/fall wreaths
and some outgrown clothes...

DB's school is hosting a craft/flea market as a fundraiser, the idea being that the school sells you a table and then you can sell whatever you want. So I bought one to support the school and got the bright idea to make these fabric wreaths my MIL makes for her church fair every eyar.

I actually was hoping she'd have some leftovers lying around, but when I asked he she was like, "Here's the pattern!" which actually is really cool, except she didn't warn me that the first 5 of these buggers you make are the Hardest.Ever!! I have made every mistake possible when only doing straight-line sewing.

And my sewing machine broke.

And DB broke one of the styrofoam wreaths as we were walking out of the store with it. Niiice.

More cosmic sense of humor! I figure, for next year I'll be all warmed up. Meanwhile I have 4 to sell tomorrow plus some of DB's outgrown winter coats and assorted clothes.

I had big plans to make some cool holiday handbags too, but it's just a pain to even find the right stores that carry the right fabrics near me. So, next time. I'm proud that I've completed all the ones I could. It's a lot for me right now to follow through on something like this.

But meanwhile, I apologize for not getting this posted earlier!

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 5-7-5. More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). DON'T sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. Pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week! Even though I have barely kept with the tradition of Haiku FRIDAY, I do promise to carry on the tradition of deleting any links without haiku...

Have a great weekend!

Haiku Friday: Boo!

2009-10-29T23:56:00.004-04:00

Ms Frizzle will take
this year off from Halloween;
it's a new girl's turn ...

She lived with her Pa
and Ma and fam'ly out West
back in the wild days ...

One bad thing about
Laura Ingalls Wilder is
her name's not a good haiku ...

that, and I had to
make husband color my hair
to get out the grays!

Happy Haiku Friday and Happy Halloween to all!

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 5-7-5. More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). DON'T sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. Pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week! I will carry on the esteemed tradition of deleting any links without haiku!

My First Giveaway: 6 Tickets to Bronx Zoo!

2009-10-26T18:04:00.006-04:00

I love Halloween, and I've always wanted to go to the Bronx Zoo's "Boo at the Zoo" event but we haven't made it yet.

This year, I've got tickets to give away, and I'm putting it on the calendar for us on Sunday--we may even take DB's friend who's coming for a playdate.

It sounds even more fun than what I thought I knew -- there's a hay ride, hay maze, batty theater, "Haunted Safari Adventure," magic, pumpkin carving demos, and of course crafts. Kids in wildlife costume get in free. DuckyBoy's Transformers outfit doesn't counts as wildlife (how about if he was a DinoBot, I wonder?), but I do know other kids whose interests run more to the animal kingdom. (Oh, and there's a photo contest for best wildlife costume that has a whole boatload of tickets as the prize.) The Aquarium has fun stuff for the weekend too.

Anyway, the giveaway! Courtesy of the Bronx Zoo, I have 6 tickets that can be split up any way we want. Two were for me and Db but since we've got a membership I'm adding them to the giveaway!

So we can do 3 and 3 or 4 and 2 all 6 together. (I already know somebody who'd love 3!)

Here's the catch, you've got to use them Saturday.

If you want an alternative to daytime trick-or-treating on Saturday, or something seasonal to do while you wait for an evening candy roundup, just leave a comment below and tell me what your kid(s) are going to be this year for Halloween, and how many tickets you'd like. Thursday night at 10 pm ET, I'll use a random-number generator to pick a winner, and then another if they're not all gone!

I've got the tickets at my place in Queens, and will make sure you get them by Saturday or Sunday.

Good luck and BOO!

Haiku Friday: Time Slips Away

2009-10-23T08:07:00.001-04:00

Tink, I know you like
to do your 'ku quite early,
for 2 weeks I'm late!

Sorry about that!

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 5-7-5. More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). DON'T sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. Pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week! I will carry on the esteemed tradition of deleting any links without haiku!

Haiku Friday: Better Late Than Never

2009-10-16T07:46:00.005-04:00

Many wins this week
DB dealt with the downs, too ...
they were hard on me! :)

DuckyBoy did great this week! I made him wait to get a toy until he got 2 stickers at school -- they have a reward system where you get one warning, on the 2nd thing you lose your sticker for that half of the day, and the 3rd time they ahve to speak to you (same or different offense) you have to write a consequence report.

When you get 10 stickers you get a prize. And at Back-to-School night, I noticed DB had the fewest stickers by half, literally.

So this week when we found one of the Transfomers he wants, he's out of spending money so I bought it, then had the idea to make him earn it by having a 2-sticker day.

At first he thought that was impossible! But he has had them before, at least once or twice, so I assured him he could (plus I emailed his teachers a heads-up, not so they'd go easy on him but so they'd know).

The very next day, he almost did it -- but had different teachers (who also know him well but didn't know "the plan," but it's fine) in the afternoon and acted out a bit right at the end of the day ... and was devastated that he didn't win his toy!

Whined and pleaded the whole way home, and got angry, adn tried sugegsting all kinds of things he would do at home if he could earn it that way.

It was really hard, but held firm.

And the following day? He got it.

He also lost his beloved Sigg bottle last week and found it on his own this week -- under one of the big freezers in the cafeteria, he thought to look there. A nice win!

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 5-7-5. More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). DON'T sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. Pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week! I will carry on the esteemed tradition of deleting any links without haiku!

I Do Care About The Earth

2009-10-14T21:42:00.005-04:00

I decided to participate in one of my first blog "things," which is Blog Action Day on the subject of Global Warming.

It's amazing how organized the, uh, organizers are, suggesting angles and topics to write about, tips to give, links to more reading. SOme of the links I'm too scared by the thought of globals warming's effects to even click trhough to, but others -- like a Scientific American post from late 2007 on "10 Solutions for Climate Change" are more my speed.

I like the idea of the site Kids V. Global Warming also, though it'll be a tough sell right now to DuckyBoy that one of the things you can do is things like have less stuff and use less electronic media! The boy on the home page is like a teen, so maybe I should just give him a few years. But keep preaching now.

The idea behind 350.org is also intriguing, but the more I consider participating in this type of Blogger preaching, the more hypocritical I feel.

I drive almost everywhere.
I have an apartment much bigger than I need.
I leave my computer on overnight.
I fill the bathtub with hot water for DB's baths (though they're not as frequent as they once were...).
I throw food out uneaten (but only when it goes bad before I get to it or after I forget about it).
I eat at fast-food restaurants.
I buy prepackaged, processed foods.
I wash my hair with chemicals that go down the drain.
I forgot to turn my lights off for Earth hour.

Well, that's enough "true confession" for now (which by the way is something we strongly advise our clients not to do!).

I also recycle.
I return my cans and bottles (or try to toss 'em where someone else can).
I reuse lots of old stuff for fun with DuckyBoy.
My consumption of new clothes and shoes, and accessories for self and home, is way below the American average.
I buy used.
I resell or give away instead of tossing things out.
I turn out lights.
We keep our radiator knobs off so our apartment's not too hot and hopefully the people at the edgse of the building can get enough heat.
I wash my hair less often now that it's long.
I eat the carbohydrates in the fridge instead of throwing them out, because good food shouldn't be wasted.
I try to teach DuckyBoy why these things matter to me.

OK, I feel a little better now! I think it's time to turn off the computer, and get in bed.

Hamster Comments, Please!

2009-10-09T22:26:00.003-04:00

DuckyBoy would love for people to comment on the cute online hamsters we added to his blog. You can play with them and they don't smell or nip!! Enjoy!

PS, I visited Supergirl today for a minute, she was busy rutzing around in her bedding but I still said hello so she'll remember my voice.

Of course I wanted her to run up to the top level of her cage and squeak, "Take me home!" but she didn't.

Which bodes well for her as an adaptable little animal. (I'll get over it.)

I also felt really good about myself today, the school librarian had several crafty projects lined up for me, and me especially! I've basically decorated the entire library for the present time. (I do the frameworks that the kids' artwork gets displayed with.)

If I'da had my camera I'd have taken a picture of my paper-collage Border collie; next week, if I remember!

Haiku Friday: Who Am I Again?

2009-10-08T22:41:00.002-04:00

Women on the web,
words on a screen to connect
the flow of our thoughts.

A big issue is
the time when the kids are gone...
what to do with it?

Not quite empty nest,
it's more like empty hours.
Who will I become?

Brain filled with "to-do's,"
I've forgotten who I was
before motherhood.

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 5-7-5. More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). DON'T sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. Pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week! I will carry on the esteemed tradition of deleting any links without haiku.

Supergirl's Tale

2009-10-02T11:45:00.006-04:00

Supergirl was last year's class pet in DuckyBoy's first grade class. She is a Chinese drawf hamster, light brown with a darker stripe running down the center of her back. At fast glance, she looks like a mouse. Only up closer do you notice the stripe and her short, nonmouselike tail.

Her first week in the classroom, before she had been named, she bent the bars of her wire cage (which was supposed to be safe for small animals of course) and, on a Friday morning, escaped.

When the teachers and children arrived, they had to be very still and look for her in their second-floor (this matters later on) room. But she did not appear!

So the day went on.

Later in the morning, one of the kindergarten teachers on the first floor called maintenance: She had seen a mouse!

Fortunately, the science teacher who was in charge of the search for the missing hamster got wind of this, and arrived in the classroom to find the kindergarten teacher ready to throw a book at, not a mouse, but the hamster!

With the help of a pile of sunflower seeds and a small cage, the science teacher capture the hamster and returned her to her classroom -- first in a large aquarium tank, and then by Monday she'd returned the wire cage in favor of a safer plastic cage.

Interestingly enough, the male hamster in the cage did not escape, and presumably slept through it all.

On Monday it was time to pick names. The boy was named "Brian," and the name "Supergirl" won hands-down for the girl.

And that is how Supergirl got her name!

In the spring, she had babies. They were tiny and bald and blind and slept in a muddle in the corner of the cage. The mommy and babies were removed from the main cage for a while, until the babies were bigger.

When the little family was reunited with Brian the daddy hamster, he apparently went after the babies, whereupon Supergirl went after him.

He was promptly removed and never seen again. (The story is he was returned to the pet store. I don't even wanna know if that's a euphemism or not, but I'm sure the science teacher wouldn't hurt him.)

When summer came the science teacher asked for volunteers to take al the class pets home over the summer. Supergirl came home with us and, as is my wont, we promptly spoiled her with fluff, felt, and tubes to run through and sleep in. Oh, and watermelon seeds and a big play area for when we cleaned her cage. And an exercise ball to run around the house in (supervised, of course).

Guess what! I took her back today, and DuckyBoy will soon start to earn a hamster of his very own. I thought it would be one of Supergirl's babies from last spring, but he's already in a classroom -- so once DuckyBoy earns her with enough good-behavior stickers, we will get Supergirl back for good! [Edited from earlier when I said we might get her or her baby -- guess the science teacher decided this would be best all around!]

I'm so excited.

Haiku Friday: Supergirl Goes Back to School

2009-10-01T22:47:00.003-04:00

I'll miss Supergirl,
she gets a class tomorrow --
Take good care of her!

Trying not to show
how sad I am about it
for DuckyBoy's sake.

So far, he's OK,
one class he hopes she's not in:
a kid from the bus.

She's mouselike and caged;
my affection surprised me
for one such as this.

Supergirl is the Chinese Dwarf Hamster we've had for the summer from DuckyBoy's class last year.

We're planning to get one of her babies from last spring as our very own hamster to keep; but his school team and I have cooked up a plan for him to EARN the hammie with good behavior. I hope he earns it soon!

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 5-7-5. More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). DON'T sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. Pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week! I will carry on the esteemed tradition of deleting any links without haiku!

How Do YOU Know It's Fall?

2009-09-30T10:10:00.003-04:00

For me it's not a date on the calendar, or back-to-school, or colored leaves.

All those things are duly noted, of course, but what really tells ME fall has arrived is my skin.

I can go weeks during the summer months without putting on my Oil of Olay face cream, and all summer long I only truly need to moisturize the rest of me when I shave my legs or have been in a pool or ocean.

But then comes a day in mid- to late-September when, suddenly, I feel a slight tightening on my face after my shower. Time to moisturize.

Time for fall.

What's your harbinger of fall?

The Clean Hands Song

2009-09-27T10:34:00.005-04:00

You know how the schools all tell the kids,
"You should wash your hands for as long as it takes to sing the alphabet or Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, through twice?

Well, why don't we teach them a song to sing about what they are doing instead?

Goodbye, goodbye, little germs,
How I want to make you squirm!
Send you down the drain so quick
So you will not make me sick,
Goodbye, goodbye, little germs,
How I want to make you squirm!

Goodbye, goodbye, little germs,
How I want to make you squirm!
Though you are too small to see,
Soap and water make you flee,
Goodbye, goodbye, little germs,
How I want to make you squirm!

Haiku Friday: Love Note to Poets

2009-09-24T21:51:00.002-04:00

I enjoy haiku,
but I like all of you more --
you inspire my week!

Love getting to know
little bits about each one
from shared words and pix

Should we spread the word
and get more poets to join?
Meanwhile, carry on!

Would you like to haiku today?
To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 5-7-5. More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). DON'T sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. Pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week! I will carry on the esteemed tradition of deleting any links without haiku!

Thrifty Birthday Party Budget

2009-09-21T06:15:00.000-04:00

We had a great party for DuckyBoy's 7th birthday. As some of you know, we are living fairly comfortably this year off last year's excess income (the Lord DOES provide), but are trying not to be extravagant since simply living in NYC is an extravagance itself.

So, we set a budget of $200 for this year's birthday party.

It helped that DB got into his head to "only invite 8 kids," I think because he saw that the birthday paper products come in 8-packs. So, despite my usual inclination to invite more, more more, I invited 8, and didn't even invite more when I got a couple of no's.

So, we ended up with 7 kids, including DB. It was plenty.

We always invite parents, too, 'cause no way am I crazy enough to have a drop-off party, and most of my friends are Nest parents anyway and they aren't ready to drop their kids off anyway. So we feed the adults too, which some people might not do. So there were 8 adults who ate dinner.

And, in true Poverty Party fashion, here are the actual expenses:

Cake: $23
This included a Transformers cake-topper toy DB had been eagerly awaiting. It's a bit of a dud because It.Will.Not.Stand when properly transformed, but there's a priceless lesson right there.

Beverage total: $36
Beer (plus bottle deposits): $18
Soda (plus bottle deposits): $13
Ice for the cooler: $5

I splurged on beer we like, Stella Artois and Blue Moon, and on the little 100-calorie cans of soda 'cause they're cute and Husband likes them.

Food total: $73
5 lbs beef brisket: $25
Other food: around $48

I got buns from a local bakery outlet, BOGO potato chips, and a few veggies from our weekly CSA box, which all helped. And we have a bunch of stuff left over -- buns, bbq brisket, veggies, and a whole $7 package of nuggets -- so some of this can roll over to the grocery budget, right?

Paper goods: $25
I got both sizes of plates and both sizes of napkin, plus extra 99-cent plates in case we needed more. I could have returned one pack of big plates abnd a pack of big napkins, if I hadn't opened them already. Could still return $1.98 of plain plates, but is it worth the gas? Anyway I'll use the napkins for his mini-party at school.

I didn't buy a Transformers tablecloth; I had one with the right colors (red and blue) so I used that. Also, I decorated with a couple of printouts of the page I scanned to make his t-shirt, and also with drawings of Optimus Prime cut from gummy boxes (I've been saving them for this). Oh, we did buy one poster for $2 (half the price we'd seen weeks earlier at the same place!)

I made a $4 impulse splurge on little popcorn boxes so the kids could have popcorn while they watched the cartoon on the big TV. Those were SO worth it. Could have skipped the $14 worth of nuggets, in fact, since we let them snack first...

Games and prizes: $25
Um, we didn't play any of the games I planned. DB has a lot of toys, and after they watched a Soundwave episode of Transformers Animated, they colored these paper guitars I have left over from a splurge order of misc. nonsense years ago from Oriental Trading, and they played with those.

Soooo, we didn't hand out any of the prizes. Well, we had one $3 ring we dubbed the Allspark ring (it's a blue square), which we gave DB's girlfriend 'cause she was the last one there. (Her mom said, "Is this an engagement ring?!")

But DuckyBoy already knows about the prizes, so I don't think I can return them (except $3 worth and again, worth returning? hardly). I'm hoping to save them for rewards for the school year -- a week of completed homework or of no reports of yelling, stuff like that.

Favors: $27 + $10 = $37

I made favors for 10, and here's why. Two of DB's friends each have 2 younger sisters. I didn't know if one set was coming, and knew only one of the other set was coming, but didn't want the sister-who-couldn't-come to feel left out. 'Cause I like her. Now, they're younger, and they're girls, so I thought they might prefer something other than Transformers stuff, so for those 4 girls I got some different stuff. About $10 worth of stuff. Would do it the same next time.

My friend on LI had her son's favors in brown paper bags, which made me want to save those few bucks too. So we gave DB the choice -- Transformer goody bags, OR he could have the $ they would have cost (which was like $8 since I'd have needed 2 sets!). He chose the money, so all I spent was $1 on ribbon to tie the bags shut. (I folded the top over and punch2 holes, then tied each bag shut and put the name on. I think they looked nice.

6 favor boxes had: Transformers coloring book with mini markers, bubbles, package of gummies, and an Allspark cube.
4 had: Tiny purple notebook, Pez dispenser (shh! don't tell DB!), gummies, bubbles, and 2 got a coloring book and 2 got an Allspark.

Other: $54

About $20 for a plain T-shirt and iron-on transfer paper, which I had to buy twice (long story).
$4 for a special birthday-boy ribbon to put on his shirt. Which we forgot to put on him, but he'd worn it the day we got it and got the use out of it. Maybe we'll reuse it for the class party.
$30 for babysitter. I expected more siblings who'd have needed wrangling. Even though the group of kids was smaller, she was still a big help. Plus I just liked having her around.

Grand total: $286.

About $15 of the prizes, I will use for rewards.
At least $25 worth of food and beverages was left over.
He'll wear his custom $20 t-shirt all year long.
$5 of paper goods will go toward his school party, for which I'd have to buy something anyway (and still need to come up with other favors for).

So that's $65 worth that, with some creative accounting, can get lopped off, meaning I can think of my party expense as: $221.

Since we spent cash we'd been saving from our weekly budget, Husband says it seems like it was free.

But he also said that for what we did, a low-key home party, it seemed like it should have only cost $50. Next year he can do more of the shopping!

Relationship Poem: Asking for What I Want

2009-09-20T12:44:00.006-04:00

It Used To Be Enough...

The thought that he
found me sexy
used to be enough

His passion fueled my passion,
any touch was welcome

Now the touch is the same
but the skin is thin

the differences hang
in the air
over me

I regret never asking,
not ever really thinking about,
what would feel best to me

for now so much time has gone by

not a lie, really,
more a miscalculation
of what it means
to be with someone

* * * * * * * * * *
I wrote this awhile ago (like, within the past year)
and just found the slip of paper.
Don't feel like this so much right now,
but I didn't want to lose it.

It's true that I do have trouble asking for what I want
and sharing what I like and what makes me feel good
both in and out of bed.

I'm getting better at it.

Political Quote

2009-09-20T10:10:00.004-04:00

I'm not turning into a political blogger, and these days my politics are somewhat in question anyhow, but I heard someone say this on NY1 this morning. I thought I'd be able to find out more about who said it and what show, but I can't seem to -- looks like it was maybe someone from the NY Times so they don't let NY1 have the online rights to that show or something. Anyway, here's the quote:

"There is no God-given right for any organization to receive a grant from the United States government."

I think it says a lot about our country that a statement like that even needs to be made.

Haiku Friday: The Pain of Being 7

2009-09-17T21:06:00.005-04:00

Frustration rises,
spills over into tears, a
scream from the backseat.

"I've been there," I say.
"What do you mean?" he says, shocked
I could get his pain.

"It was a long day,"
I say in a soothing voice.
"Sometimes school is rough."

"Let it out," I say.
One more strangled scream bursts forth,
then there is silence.

This has been the first full week of school, and the first week of DuckyBoy's long-awaited (on his end!) experience of going to After-School. For the most part he's happy to be there, to have free time time to talk to and play with and just be with the kids he likes.

But it makes for a long day; he gets on the bus at 7 am and I picked him up between 5 and 5:30.

And, a couple days ago he got teased at school, then yesterday he retaliated and he's the one that got into trouble (rightly so -- but a tough lesson for him to learn, literally; he does not understand the ramifications of his actions on the other student).

And so, there we were in the car, and out came a scream. And I didn't yell at him. He was so surprised. It was one of those moments where you think, "I hope that helps him in the long run, because it seemed like the right thing to do and say..."

And now, I'd like to apologize for haiku'ing about parenthood so much! This is not Haiku Parenting Friday! It's for everyone!

Would you like to haiku today? To participate in Haiku Friday, just follow these steps:

1. Write your own haiku on your blog. You can do one or many, all following a theme or just random. It or they can be part or all of your post, but your post must include a haiku. What's a haiku, you ask? Hint: 5-7-5. More info: Click here. Or here.

2. Sign the Mister Linky below with your name and the link to your haiku post (the specific post URL, not your main blog URL). DON'T sign unless you have a haiku this week. If you need help with this, please let me know.

3. Please leave a comment after linking, thanks! (Eventually the Mr Linky links go away, I think, so they only way we'll find you in the future is via your comment.)

4. Pick up a Haiku Friday button to display on the post or in your sidebar by clicking the button at the top of this post.

REMEMBER: Do not post your link unless you have a haiku this week! I will carry on the esteemed tradition of deleting any links without haiku!

Cool Music on Tour: Elvis Plays Sitar

2009-09-17T07:26:00.007-04:00

If you're in Texas, Chicago, or in between this fall, consider attending an Aradhna concert (check their website for the tour dates).

Aradhna plays music I'd never, from the description I got, have thought I'd like: Indian sitar music.

Now, I've heard Indian music. To my ear it can be whiny sometimes.

But this is a white guy with American influences in his head playing it -- and to me it comes out like, Elvis plays sitar.

We were blessed to have Chris and Pete stay with us during a NY stay a couple years ago, and after we heard their sound we were so sorry we'd skipped the concert!!

Pete, DuckyBoy, and Chris in NYC 2007

Do these look like the nicest guys in the whole world or what? They are. (Well, except maybe for that one in the middle. We're working on that.)

They are committed to playing Christian music in a style that can reach a largely non-Christian population, which is also way cool. Looks like Pete will not be on the tour but I'm sure Chris, who is the sitarist, will be surrounded by with other wonderful musicians.