Spring Break - Monday

Tarzan has Spring Break this week. (Lovely concept; Spring Break. I don't think I appreciated it enough when I was in school.) So I took the week off too. Not that I work like he does, but some time together is never a bad thing.And Tarzan had some big plans.First up, the yard.
Our yard has been getting a little overgrown lately - which I suppose speaks well to our ability to grow things though not for our trimming skills:Tarzan talked to one of our neighbors who was willing to help him dig up all the weed blocker - which we learned doesn't really block many weeds - fertilize the fruit trees - it's way late in the season for that, I know - and thin the succulent plants which were threatening the front porch foundation.I was in charge of finding a new ground cover, preferably something that doesn't need much care or water. It couldn't be too tall fully grown either, or too fragile because the cats like to sleep in the sun in the front yard and they inevitably choose the most delicate plant for a bed. These were the ones I decided on:I helped with the planting of the new stuff, but Tarzan and the neighbor did all the heavy lifting:If all goes according to plan, I won't think about the yard for six weeks and when I remember that it's out there, everything will have settled in nicely:
This is me. Here's hoping we didn't kill everything.

Conference Resolve

Rather than New Year's resolutions, I have decided to develop General Conference resolutions.
Tarzan taught the Gospel Essentials Sunday School last week and the lesson was on the Atonement. I was impressed with his ability to explain such a complex event to those who are new to the gospel. And he summarized it well with this: Two things are an obstacle to us getting back to God. Physical death and spiritual death. Physical death is taken care of by the Atonement of Jesus Christ.
No exceptions - we will all be resurrected - so no worries.
Spiritual death is also resolved by the Atonement - provided we make an effort to increase our understanding and try to be more like Jesus.
This is me trying to improve.
All the talks at the conference this weekend were good. Are there ever any that stink?
I was impressed with one talk this morning from Dieter F. Uchtdorf about forgiving others and avoiding resentment. I don't think I hold a grudge but I am a big advocate for justice and one point that he made was we need to be more merciful.
So I resolve to show mercy, help those around me and not judge why others are acting the way they are. One of the hardest things to watch but most important parts of this life if the ability to choose for ourselves what we will do. I have to not be angry or get frustrated when someone chooses different from me, different from what I believe to be right, different from what they may have just heard the prophet say, different from what they know to be right. It's part of life and learning.
I have to let them learn.
Myself included. I need to learn from a choice rather than be annoyed with myself for not choosing differently. Next time I will get it right.

This is me, promising to try harder to be good.

Wildlife

I wrote once about the raccoons that were living under the house and eating the cat food.
I thought I had put in a bit about the raccoons heading out for greener pastures - more variety - and a possum taking up residence. (If I did I have lost it in the vacuum of the Internets.) Not nearly as cute as raccoons, we try and run the possums off whenever we come upon them.
It would seem that the possum has not departed.
More to the specific, since I have begun taking the cat food in at night - to prevent it being sucked down by the possum(s), that's right, there is more than one - the, I am guessing, momma possum has started venturing out during daylight hours to forge:As you can tell, the local felines don't care enough to attempt to scare it off despite the fact it's the one eating their food.Weirdos.
So I can't feed them outside at all now.

This is me and the things I have to worry about...

It Was A Good Casserole

Does anyone have a handy tip for peeling butternut squash? (Really, thin, tough skinned squashes of any variety)
I know about roasting them first but I was making a casserole where I needed to saute the squash and I couldn't do that with the skin on.
I was using my "new" knives - a smaller blade than usual for more control - and of course it slipped and I sliced my thumb. Not off. But enough for it to bleed profusely. After the usual pressure and cold water and application of a band-aid I was okay.
Mostly.
Turns out one uses one's thumb a large number of times throughout the day. Putting on one's clothes for example. I can't pull up my pants or put on my socks without a lot of maneuvering. Shoes hurt a lot. Keys and doorknobs present a difficulty.
Oy.

This is me and I did it again.

There's Gonna Be A Weddin'

Oh right!
I forgot to mention, my sister BHB and her steady, Seth, got engaged last week:They are ridiculously twitterpated which is to be expected:The plan is to get hitched this summer. August sometime. Tarzan and I are the only ones from her family to not be introduced to the intended. I sure hope to meet the boy before the wedding or we might welcome the wrong guy into the family:
This is me and a big congratulations to them both!

My First Party

My first party as Relief Society President - the Relief Society Birthday Party no less - was not what I envisioned. After the search for egg rolls and mini-quiches yesterday failed - I settled for bagel bites and taquitos - I further discovered that the party supply places near my house did not have helium for the balloons, no one had round table cloths and Tarzan forgot to get the ingredients for the punch.
It was not a great start.
Taking time to find a place that did balloons took time, so I was late getting to church to set up, which meant I was late finding a place that had round table cloths - luckily across the street from the church - late getting the punch - at a store that was renovating their freezer section so the sherbet was almost liquid! - late getting started and I really, really, REALLY hate that feeling, of being late when it could have been avoided.
We had a lot of food: It was all really good. My second counselor made - MADE - the cupcakes:And they were delicious. She's on the right:(Note the FANTASTIC balloons I aquired. There were three dozen. I know.) The party goers:It was a low key fuction, with eating, talking and Pictionary which went well I thought. Everyone got a party favor. My first counselor made all the party favors and they were adorable. She's on the right:We were small in number but large in fun. And the kids were apparently fooling around with my camera when I was not in the room:
This is me and Tarzan was correct; it all came out okay.

Apocalypse Now

What has the world come to when Costco does not have egg rolls OR mini-quiches available for purchase? Costco was built on the certainty that mini-quiches were there. All the time.
I know, I know, your Costco has those snacks available. But because I need them for the Relief Society Birthday Party tomorrow, they are not to be found.
It's just been one of those days.

This is me and it's a travesty.

Letter To The Universe

Dear Universe,
Is there any way the 10 minutes here, 15 minutes there, 30 minutes spent waiting for a person who promised to be ready when you arrive to get her doing her a favor but lost track of time at a place that shouldn't be mentioned in polite society, could be collected up and used as one block of time?
It would make my life so much more efficient.
And I know that's what you want as much as I do.
Nature abhors a vacuum, I hear.

This is me and thanks.
Jane

An Epic Tale - The Conclusion

Let's see.
The shed was finished on a Thursday and Christmas was the very next Sunday. We came home from my parents' house to be busy right away with Aunt Richie's Christmas party (it was a little weird to be a guest with the people I work with every day on the other side of the table serving me) and also rehearsals for the program at church. I was very excited about having Tarzan's parents and AuntReese involved. Not the least because Gamma offered to accompany most of the singing thus sparing me the lack of enthusiasm Tarzan has for learning new music. Also, she is much better at convincing him to practice than I am, and she knows what areas he needs to improve and I do not, so it was a real help to have her with us.
And when it all was done, the program went off with no obvious hang ups. One performer did not show. We skipped his acoustic guitar piece - probably the one I was most looking forward to and the most worried about - and the a Capella soloist went a little off-book but he did it well, so no harm, no foul. The youth chorus was probably the strongest; Tarzan and I sang with them. The missionary piece - We Three Kings - should have been fantastic. Gamma brought a really awesome accompaniment and AuntReese was exceedingly great improvising with her violin. The missionaries though, just didn't sing very loud. Though they had done okay in rehearsal it was tough to hear them in reality. The Primary were adorable as usual - the seven of them who were there; I guess it was Christmas - and the Elder's Quorum group was very good. Love me some bass/baritone harmony. So it was all alright.
After church we headed down a little south to see some family for dinner and sing some really old Christmas carols, really loudly with some personal interpretations, mostly by Tarzan. And that was Christmas Day.
I call the next four weeks My Month Of Airports. I am pretty sure there was a week near the end of December where I was at an airport every single day, dropping someone off, or picking someone up. Christmas Eve I fetched BHB to take her to our parents' and then the day after Christmas I fetched her back. (She got shafted on her holiday vacation this year, mostly because she broke her ankle and was on paid leave for a month in July.) M2, PIT and their children flew in the day after THAT; tickets from The Other Side Of The World being much cheaper that way. (My family had delayed our 'Christmas' until they were in town.) My brother and his family were down as well and the kids were just darling together. They were all enthralled with the roof coming down on my convertible so I took them each for a spin and PIT has some shaky but really hilarious video of them screaming from the backseat. My favorite part was LittleJ exclaiming his hair was coming off. (I wasn't going that fast.)
We stayed in for New Year's Eve - couldn't imagine needing things to get crazier - and I had to teach Relief Society on January 1st. I had not been to Relief Society in 15 years.
It was weird.Everyone was nice of course but it's much different than teaching the children. For one thing, if the kids misbehave I can pick them up and carry them down the hall to their parents. Not so if their parents aren't nice and won't let their neighbor finish a sentence. Again, a whole 'nother post.
BHB came back into town as soon as the new year opened - new year, new vacation schedule - and was with us for a week before she flew home with M2, PIT and Co. for a week there:(That's ATL, PIT, M2, BHB, Ecru in the stroller, Rosey on TOP of the stroller and Squishy to the right.)
When she came back from The Other Side of The World she was with us overnight and then flew out again, home.
Tarzan's parents flew home sometime in the week BHB was gone and then back in to do a fireside about Family History for our ward congregation. He's been at this for quite a long time, has visited a number of countries and has some amazing war stories to tell about his adventures. It was a very entertaining fireside with some colorful side notes from Tarzan and Gamma, clarifications when they thought MusicMan was getting to dramatic. But we had many positive comments from those in attendance and regret from those who missed out. The Stake is talking about having him come again on a larger scale. Then they were off again, home and to see other of their children.
That takes us through the middle of January.
By then I was too far behind to catch up in a short little post, I was swamped with things I "had" to do as Relief Society President - I didn't really but I didn't know that yet - we were neck deep in Academic Decathlon preparations - of which I did post a little - I was working crazy busy hours at Aunt Richie's and taking some side gigs with her daughter, Tarzan's cousin Stingy, and February slipped away. Even the 'extra' day we got didn't help me much.
Then BOOM, here we are in March and I hadn't posted in so long it was ridiculous.I almost decided to quit this blogging thing - several times in fact - because then the guilt might go away but at the same time I would take pictures or make notes and think "That needs to go on the blog."
So I repented of my wicked ways, spent much too long composing that first post back, and only now am getting back in the posting groove. The weather has been unpredictable but milder than previous years.
I hate the time change but I'm loving the sun up so late already.
This Relief Society thing is trying to kill me, but it'll get better, right?

This is me and that is my epic tale. And where I was for the past three months.

Happiest Penguin

One day of catch up, one day of random.
Cutest video ever.

This is me. We should all be that happy.

An Epic Day In The Tale

As mentioned previously, the second day of our shed building experience deserved it's own post. It was one of those days that, if seen in a movie or something, would be dismissed as too far-fetched to be realistic.
This is my life.
You may recall an Ode I did a few months ago for my lovely MIL when she invited me to see Wicked with her and one of Tarzan's aunts, who'd never been. Tarzan's cousin VT went as well, and if not for her I might have jumped in front of a bus several times that night.
It started early at the job site, we naively believing we could still finish the shed that day. We spent a lot of time measuring the front beam for cutting - I checked the marks three times - squaring the posts and aligning everything - this will become important later. But I had to leave by 3:00. The show was at 8:00, we were meeting around 6:30-7 for dinner before and I figured if I left before 3, which meant 3:30, I'd be home in time to shower, dress and be ready to go. (All that heaving and running around leaves a girl with a certain 'glow.')
I didn't miss by too much, getting on the road by 3:45. I'd be home no later than 6.
Except traffic was atrocious.
I don't know why, I was going opposite to all the commuters, there were no accidents, no freeway construction, nothing but slow cars and blinking brake lights. Tarzan called me frequently to check on my progress and we discussed alternate routes to get home. (Thankfully there is more than one freeway between my parent's neighborhood and mine.) But nothing was any better. Shortly after 5:00 Tarzan's mother called to see how I was doing because in their eagerness to get to the show and beat the traffic - they were staying with family, a good distance south of us - they were at my house already.
I was nowhere close to being there.
Time became a real issue but what can you do when the cars just won't move? I raced when I could, took all the shortcuts Tarzan could find on the map, relaying it to me between calls from Gamma but nothing doing. I started revising my schedule for when I finally got back, skipping lots of frivolous things, like eating. Gamma, AuntReese and VT went and got dinner for themselves and me, but they had to eat it in their car because they couldn't get into my house and there aren't any parks or nice places to just hang out in the dark in the south central Jungle.
Sad, but true.
I finally pulled in to my house around 6:45pm. I opened the gate and let AuntReese pull her car into Tarzan's usual spot.
(I forgot to mention that the whole deal was we were going to drive in my car because AuntReese didn't want to take her fancy, red car into the neighborhood where the theater was. She was going to park it at my house, behind our secure gate and then pick it up when we dropped me off.)
My car was in it's spot, so there was about three feet for me to leave the car I was driving - Tarzan's - while I raced into the house, tore off my filthy, construction clothes, donned my Wicked green shirt and black pants and raced out the door again. No shower, no dinner, not even a chance to brush out my hair. The other three were already in the car so I hopped in and pressed the button to close the gate.
Then I remembered parking money. Gamma had bought the tickets, AuntReese had paid for dinner, it was only fair I pay for the parking, so - and this is the stupidest thing I have ever done - I clicked the remote to open the gate before it had shut completely and ran into the house to get some cash. When I came out, the gate was partially open, where I had left it and beeping.
I had forgotten about that safety feature.
So I tried to unscrew the bolts that hold the cover on the motor by hand but they were too tight so I raced to the shed to get a wrench - in my haste nearly tumbling suitcases on my head - and got them off, flipped the switch that shut off the horrible noise and waited the 30 seconds for the gate to reset itself. I turned it back on and clicked the remote.
Nothing.
I tried again, and still nothing. I called Tarzan, he mentioned the "really big allen wrench" that we use to crank the gate open when the power's out and I ran to get that from the shed. I found what I thought was the wrench but couldn't find the place where it fit on the motor box.
I'm in a panic. I'm filthy, now also covered in grease, sweaty, tired, late and my mother-in-law - plus company - is witness to this all. She's on the phone with Tarzan telling him to come and fix it - remember he's a two hour drive away, with neither of our cars available - it's getting later by the minute and I am nearly in tears.
Finally, it's about 7:10, AuntReese suggests that we just go or we'll miss the first act - not true, but whatever, I am in no mood to argue - and with one last longing look at her car and my half open gate, we hit the road. I am not chancing the freeways again, so we take the surface streets. About 15 blocks up the road we pass a Burger King with six police cars outside, flashing lights and megaphones. Apparently there is some sort of disturbance and the authorities are directing all traffic around the area.
Fortunately, I know an alternate route to the one they are suggesting and we get around the jam. I am probably going too fast but we figure all the police are already occupied for the evening and no one's going to bother me. Despite many careful questions from the passengers we arrive at the theater by 7:30pm. Even I am impressed with myself. There have been times ATL and I haven't even left our house by that time when making a show at 8, so for the first time in five hours, I can relax a bit. Parking is a breeze and right across the street from the venue. We get in, find our seats - which are phenomenal. I mean, able-to-see-the-expressions-on-the-cast-faces good - and there's time to text Tarzan about my mental state and his mother's before the lights flickered in warning.
It was a good show. It's Wicked - it's never a bad show - but I thought Mamie Parris did a nice job as Elphaba. Good balance of emotions and excellent voice. Katie Rose Clarke as Glinda was also very good. She didn't overplay the silliness which I appreciate. Liz McCartney as Madame Morrible was 'eh,' Kyle Dean Massey was a good voice for Fiyero, a little too slapstick in his actions. Boq wasn't too stupid and Nessarose, though a little violent, was strong. I was really glad to see it again, and as mentioned before the seats were amazing.At intermission I checked the dozens of texts Tarzan had sent me and he reminded me ATL got home from work shortly after we left; she was watching AuntReese's car so that made me feel a WHOLE LOT BETTER. I was able to reassure everyone, including myself.
After the show, we drove back to my house to see if we could get AuntReese's car out of my driveway somehow. Through Tarzan's second round of texts, he explained and I found the OTHER "really big allen wrench" in the shed, it also had a blue handle, and it fit, no problem, in the motor casing. We cranked open the gate - about 20 minutes of work - the car came out and since it was nearly midnight, the three of them left for the 45 minute drive they had to get home. I shut the gate, with the remote, after turning it back on, no sweat, threw all the tools in the wholly disarranged shed, went in the house and barely changed into pajamas before I fell into a pile and slept for nearly nine hours.
In the morning when I woke up, I finally got a shower and went back out to the Desert to finish the shed.

This is me and that was a crazy 24 hours.

A Surprise

(I will return to the updating posting tomorrow.)
Tonight I will say this: Tarzan and I stepped WAY out of our comfort boxes and went to an Event (that's right, capitol E) at a local university where awards were given for excellence in helping out kids. I don't know the whole deal. Tarzan went because he's part of the program through his school and with all the negative press right now abut schools, he wanted to hear some good stuff.
There was a lot of "aren't we awesome," but the biggest surprise of the night was how much I enjoyed listening to Arianna Huffington speak. She's direct, honest but not mean or cruel - her introducer was quite right, she doesn't disparage anyone else's opinion - she's realistic, practical and she's funny.
Such a good speech.
Not overly long but very helpful and uplifting.
I would totally vote for her if she ran for President. (I know, born in Greece and all that but I think she'd be good at it.)
Do you remember in school, when the teacher asked who you looked up to? I could never think of anyone.
Now I have an idol, though I don't think that's the sort of attention she's looking for.

This is me and to think I almost stayed home tonight.

An Epic Tale - The Beginning

Where to start, where to start...
How do you blog about events in your life that are so huge you just don't know where to start describing them? The Christmas/New Year's thing this year was one of those monumental events, and it's only just barely over such that I can recognize it's been six weeks without a post of meaningful content.
Not because stuff hasn't happened - because it has, all over the floor it has - but because it's too immense for one post and I have no idea how to break it into many posts, so instead I do neither and watch six episodes of The Big Bang Theory instead. I know that's a healthy response. And that's not even including the whole Relief Society President responsibilities thing, though I have developed a lovely eyelid twitch because of that.
Completely different story.
I've been composing this post for a while now and I'm sure I'm omitting dozens of details but it seems to be blocking me from writing anything new, so here goes.
Early in December of 2011 my father got a contract to build a hay barn for a customer of his grain business. Because I am "the resident architect" - his words, not mine - and Tarzan is young, strong and willing to do most anything, we were conscripted to help my father, my sister and my brother get the thing up. Once Tarzan was on Christmas vacation we scheduled a visit. The night we had to drive the two hours out, we were at a family wedding - Tarzan's family - and it went a little later than planned so we were late leaving and therefore late getting to my parent's house and they do not like to be up past their bedtime, so that gave us a stellar start to the project. Oh, and a few days before that, Tarzan's parents came to town, ostensibly for the wedding, but also to see us and while I love them both, very much, it is stressful to have one's in-laws come to visit, especially when one has to figure out where to have them sleep in a house that - I am learning - is the size of most people's front porches. But they did, sleep, and so did we and we made it to my parent's in time to get up bright and early to work on this shed thing.
On the surface it seemed a fairly simple project. Four 4" square galvanized steel posts to be sunk into the dirt, a front and back beam, three 2" square support posts, twelve 4'x8' corrugated metal side panels and eight 8'x12' corrugated metal panels for the roof. A zillion screws and we should have been fine. We started with high hopes of taking one day for the structure, one day for the roof.
Hahahaha!
Oh, the follies of ignorance...
To begin with, there were no instructions. Not even a stick drawing. Tarzan and my father did not think this was a big deal but it's nigh on to heresy - blasphemy! - as far as I am concerned. I will deviate from a plan as required, color outside the lines so to speak, but I at least need to know where the line was. I hate flying without a net. As we plugged along, it became apparent that we would need a tool to notch the support pieces and the beams so the exterior panels would lay flat and give us at least two places to connect to. This necessitated a trip - which ended up being three trips - to Home Depot to get a grinder, which can also cut metal, with the right kind of blade. Of course, the cutting wears down the blade and with the kind of cuts were were making, we used up six blades over the course of the project. The first day took much longer than we had planned. We were trying to get as much done as possible so we stayed past dark and tried some fancy finagling to bend light around the corners and came home exhausted.
The second day deserves it's own post, so let's leave it there.
The third day we could finally see a light at the end of the tunnel, and the bloomin' thing hadn't fallen down in the middle of either of the two previous nights, so that was good for our morale.
This is how it came out:
Not too bad, considering what we started with. And with the sun still up.
It didn't take us two days however.
Grand total: Four days, a few more dollars than we planned and not a little pain.
AND THEN, to put the frosting on the cupcake, after the previous three days of crazy, my father informed us we had to buck the hay, into the brand new shed. Those bales are heavy. My poor fingers did not recover for days.

This is me, stay tuned for the rest of the epic tale.

Oops I got fired again!

Hi all,
For the 2nd year in row I have been laid off by my school district. As a cost cutting measure they are going to replace all librarians with self service kiosks. I still don't get how the books are supposed to get shelved again. Some of my library regulars said they would give the machine a day before someone broke it. I'm not too worried though I feel sick inside at the general state of affairs in my school district. Acadeca is gone, school busses are gone, adult ed. is gone, not sure what will be left if this budget goes through. I've got my Patriarical blessing, I've been through this before last year (to no long term negative effect, good faith building exercise)and frankly I don't care or even bother thinking about this stuff anymore. I serve until released. Gotteswillen.
Jane and I are teaching students at my school how to swing dance for a musical, Zoot Suit Riot and will be teaching youth from our stake how to dance as well. I thinking of asking some of my students to attend the stake dance. Last night Jane and I went out to a casual sushi place called "how do you roll" that works a lot like subway. They assemble the rolls in front of you assembly line style. Tasted pretty good. We also went out Friday night to a little hole in the wall Chinese restaurant that serves the best beef rolls and dumplings Oh so good! Afterwards we wandered around a nearby Asian supermarket. It was like a field trip to a foreign country. Exotic fruits, more kinds of seafood than an aquarium and whole rows dedicated to the most delectable noodles and sauces you can imagine. Life is busy. No time for worries. Thank goodness.

Busting My Buttons

I know, it's been a while - no apologies, just a huge post that's coming - but in the meantime I would like to share the really good news we are party to.
One of the many things Tarzan and I do is coach the Academic Decathlon team at his school. Well, he's the coach. *I* am the coach's wife, provider of the cookie bribes and chauffeur. I help with speeches, practice interviews, offer support, encouragement, scoldings and make a lot of cookies.
We were a little disappointed after the last day of competition and the team was kind of apathetic about the awards ceremony tonight. We hosted dinner at our house and then went down to the convention center.
It was awesome.
Three medals.
Two perfect scores.
Most improved school in our district:
To put the whole event in perspective; the top five scores in our school district were the top five scores in the entire country. It is a smart group we compete against.

This is me and I am so proud of the team.

State Of Affairs

I am not dead, much as it might be WAY easier that way.

As a general indication of my state of mind right now, I am wearing green, elf slippers, not unlike these, only less pointy:

Also, navy blue sweat pants, a magenta t-shirt and a black cardigan. I don't know that I could be less co-ordinating if I tried.

This is me and a post of epic proportions is in the works, never fear.

Touching

I went to the church building tonight to meet with the previous Relief Society President so she could give me - even more of - the low-down on the people in the ward.
Wednesday night is a busy night at the ward building; basketball, missionaries, people taking down the Christmas decorations, Family Home Evening.
You know, the usual.
One of the kids - he's 5 - was messing around with the missionaries and the basketball came over to me and asked, "When are you coming back to Primary?"
Awww. Makes even an ice queen like me tear up a little.

This is me and it's nice to know they miss me.

New Hook, Same Fish

Did I mention they released me from being Primary President two weeks ago?
Wait, wait, before you get too excited and happy for me...
I was called to be Relief Society President in the same interview.
Oh yes, I believe this is called, "out of the frying pan and into the fire."
Thus far - all two weeks of it - haven't been too bad; I taught a lesson today that got positive reviews but there's a lot more to this position than the last one and I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop. For when it gets hard or complicated or when someone dies.
To make matters worse, because of Primary callings, I haven't been to Sunday School or Relief Society in nearly 15 years. The whole system has changed since I last attended regularly, and now I'm in charge of it.
Oy.
After one meeting with the previous president I know more than I ever wanted to about people in the ward. And it's barely begun.

This is me and it's going to get interesting.

Ring Out The Old

As the last few hours of the year melt away I am a little bit sad, a little anxious, but mostly hopeful.
Hopeful that 2012 won't be as stressful as 2011.
On a global level; I hope we all can learn to get along. I get that every culture has their own history and holidays and traditions, but so many traditions come from other cultures originally and since we all started in a pond somewhere in Africa so it shouldn't be a big deal to let the small stuff go, right? I hope we can see the evidence of that this year.
At the national level; I hope we can become more responsible. Bring the factory jobs back to our own country and employ our own people rather than send all our money and jobs out. I know it makes more money for the board of directors but it doesn't help the economy in any way.
For the state; I hope we can figure out how to balance a budget. I don't understand why a problem that has taken years to create is expected to be solved in six months and I hope to see a measure of moderation in the cutting that needs to take place.
City-wise; I hope we will stop being a gigantic pile of selfish, greedy, stupid people and take an interest. Not in a solve-hunger-in-Uganda kind of way but in a care-what's-happening-with-our-neighbors-in-the-house-next-door kind of way. The 'think global, act local' adage is cute but means nothing unless we let the lady with two kids get in front of us in line and worry less about what the media tells us is cool and read a book. Or look at what the political candidate means rather than just what s/he says. I hope to see a rise in intelligence and kindness.
Familial; I hope we can communicate more, talk less behind people's backs and complain less.
Personally; I hope to be more organized and waste less time this year. I have a lot to keep track of and I really need to be on top of it all. I have felt one step behind a lot this year and I don't like it.
Those are my hopes and dreams for 2012. Of course, if the Mayans are right we don't have to think about any of it. If they aren't then we're going to be in the exact same place 365 days from now.

This is me and HAPPY NEW YEAR everyone!!

Not A Creature Was Stirring

There has been a lot going on and I will get to it and tell you all about it, but tonight I need to remember Christmas; the calmer Christmas Eves of my past when it was all twinkly lights and pine fragrance, (some) presents and carols. My brothers and sisters and I would get in our pajamas, sit around on the floor and listen as my dad read a story to us out of the big, red "Christmas book."
Then out of the Bible we'd read the account of Mary and Joseph going to Bethlehem and all the visits of that one night so long ago. We'd have "snack," say our family prayers, we'd brush our teeth, hang our stockings and settle down, too excited to sleep and wanting to so much so Christmas would come.
Things have changed significantly since those days. People coming from far and near, arriving and departing at different times, jobs, spouses, kids and all that.
I love my life and I love the changes but sometimes I wish I could go back to that time when it was just me and the tree and a cookie and the itchy, magical feeling that comes the night before Christmas...

This is me wishing everyone a feeling like that tonight.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

I Did Most Of The Falling

Do NOT laugh.
But.
I think I sprained a thigh muscle yesterday at church, playing ring-around-the-rosy in the Nursery.
...
In my defense, I was wearing three inch heels, there were three of them and we played over and over and over for 25 minutes straight.
How does one say no to three angelic faces begging " 'gin!, 'gin!"
I couldn't, obviously, but now my leg really hurts when I get up and down from a chair or in and out of the car or any other sort of seat.

This is me and I know I'm not in the greatest shape, but really?

We Belong

'Tis the season and all that - I will have to mail 4 or 5 boxes myself later this week - so I shouldn't have been surprised when mysterious packages started arriving on our doorstep. There hasn't been a note on any of them though and after I opened one - almost spoiling a Christmas surprise - I've just been piling them in a corner of the living room.
Hopefully none of them are perishable.
Then, last night, I overheard Tarzan on the phone asking about a membership kit that was supposed to have arrived. We rifled though the stack and, fortunately for the guy on the phone, came up with it.
See, we had joined the Fridgetop Root Beer Society.
Tarzan really likes root beer and over Thanksgiving he and Floyd did some talking about ways to spread the love. It's still in the embryo stage but he's having fun networking with the owner/CEO of the Root Beer Society.
(Tarzan joined Facebook! That's how much he's into this.)
They've exchanged emails over the wonders of the new flavors that are in the membership kit - the Sprecher was super smooth, the Gray's a little zippier.
Also included in the kit; two "official" membership cards, a cute mug that can be frosted for crisper tasting, the history of the company which is a really funny read and a bottle opener which comes in handy for people who don't use their shirt to open a bottle cap. All profusely stamped with the name of the ccompany and the website.
I think we're lifers.

This is me and I'm contemplating how Tarzan would take it if I framed his member's certificate for a Christmas present...

The Good News

On a lighter note, my USC Santa hat does keep my head really warm while out and about:

This is me, keeping positive.

Multiplication

I'm about half done with the Christmas shopping - which I love to do, pick out gifts I think others with like, plus it's shopping with zero guilt - but there's still the wrapping and the shipping and as soon as one thing gets crossed off the list three more appear. I don't know how it happens. I try to schedule things out. We started working on the Sunday Christmas program almost two months ago but now we're down to two weeks and Tarzan hasn't even looked at his piece yet. The guy whose supposed to be playing the guitar - acoustic - hasn't been there the last two weeks so I don't know if he has time to learn his song. The kids are way more interested in presents than singing.
And I know it will all work out. The presents will get bought, and delivered, and the program will be good.
It's just the anticipation that makes me antsy. Timing is not my gift and I really worry about forgetting something serious.
Like sending the outline to the lady who does the program so she can print it out.
Or asking the guy to play Santa at the party this weekend! That's what I was supposed to do this afternoon. Oy.
Send some good scheduling thoughts my way.

This is me and maybe I should develop a mantra; "it will all work out...it will all work out..."

Star Wars: Fodder For Anyone

QC sent this to me a (long) while ago:

I only just got around to clearing out the Inbox of that email account and found it just as amusing now as I did then.
(That's my measure for whether things are really funny.)

This is me and this movie is good for so much stuff.

'Tis The Season

I loved my iPhone before, but now it is getting serious.
Over Thanksgiving with Tarzan's family I was lamenting the fact that there weren't any good ring tones on my iPhone and I didn't want to spend money to get any. Floyd mentioned it should be possible - I just had to trim the song to the right length and find out the file extension to change the song to.
And it worked.
(Floyd is a genius. If you ever need to know anything, he is the man.)
So tonight, following these instructions, I took my favorite 1:53 of Jupiter, cut it to 0:40, changed the extension and voila! I now have it as a ring tone.
Awesome.
Then I got a little crazy and did a Christmas one too. We will see if Mannheim Steamroller's God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen will wake me up in the morning.


This is me and the magic of the iPhone never ceases.

Where Does It Go?

Why do my best ideas for this blog come to me when I am laying in bed and have no access to a writing utensil or even my iPhone?
(I leave my iPhone in the bathroom, charging, so that when the alarm goes off in the morning I have to get up and go in another room to turn it off. I am much less likely to ignore it and go back to sleep that way.)
Last night, for example, I was all tucked in, the kittens were snuggling on one side and Tarzan was on the other and I thought of a brilliant topic for discussion. I considered getting up to write it down, but it was so warm and comfy and the kittens won't come back if I disturb them so I thought I'd leave myself a reminder for the morning. It was a good idea, I promise. But whatever cairn I left for myself was all over the floor when I got up today and of course I don't remember what it was about.

This is me with curses for my inferior memory and lack of a pen.

Unexpected

I have to say, DaddyScrubs.com sounded WAY cuter on the radio commercial.
Also, the text on the website is suggesting these are a MUCH bigger deal than they seem.
I could MAKE these things myself, with some old hospital scrubs - don't ask how I have them - and a fancy marker.
Bing, bang, done.

This is me and what am I missing?

Suggesting To My Mind

So, the human mind is a weird thing. (As I am sure you are aware from my multitude of Weird Dreams.) But beyond my nightly brain dumps are the images and sensations that develop over the years and we aren't even aware of it.
Take tonight for example. It wasn't a cold day by any means, not baking but in the mid-60's. Fine for the last day of November in The Jungle. Even when the sun went down it didn't get too chilly. But right around 7pm this wild wind picked up and started blowing things around. Fairly heavy things, boxes, cans, chairs, trash bags. It blew and blew for almost an hour. (Poor outdoor kitties had their water bowl all filled with leaves and dirt and rocks and stuff.) As soon as the wind started howling - and it was howling, which is weird for here; there's not much room to pick up speed for a howl - I got really cold. Even being in the house, where it was warm, in my sweats and eating warm food, I was chilly and shivering. I can only suppose it comes from my time in The Frozen North where winds like that brought ice storms and blizzards and things like that. Don't know. But it started me thinking; what other sensations come from our past but trigger vivid feelings?
Does fire make you extremely warm too? Even if you're outside and taking two steps from the BBQ pit will start the ice forming on your nose does the feel of the fire make you think of July and heat waves?

This is me and am I just totally nuts?

Winding Down

I'm about out of steam for this year's NaBloPoMo. Thankfully tomorrow is the last day of the month. I do have some handy iPhone pictures to share with you for today. This is Tarzan and me waiting to board the plane to come home Sunday very early in the morning: I was exhausted and went to sleep as soon as I sat down. Didn't even notice when we took off and didn't wake up for drinks and snacks, which is unusual. (Hey, if I'm paying that much for an airline ticket, I'm getting all the orange juice and Sprite they will give me.) Upon landing, and waking, I thought the pilot was kidding when he stopped the plane and said we were getting off here:He wasn't.
Sure didn't look like a normal gate. I think that was the longest hike from plane to baggage claim ever.While we were waiting to deplane I captured Tarzan's errant eyebrows, just so you know I wasn't making it all up:There you go, proof positive.

This is me and I am so scrounging for material. Is it obvious?

Noticed In The Bathroom Mirror

Whenever someone in a movie or on TV brushes their teeth I comment that they must not be using real toothpaste because there isn't any foam. (I'm a stickler for details like that.)
Then, this weekend, as I was brushing my teeth at Tarzan's parents house I noticed *I* wasn't getting any foam. Same technique, same brush, same toothpaste as I use at home. Different results. And again in the shower; my shampoo just didn't have it's usual suds. By that point I was paying attention and tried to make lather. It took some effort and it wasn't as airy.
Does anyone know if it's an altitude thing? Or an ocean thing?
Last night though, as I was getting ready for bed, my toothpaste was super foamy and that made me feel better.

This is me and things are back to normal now.

USC vs UCLA

Yes, yes, the game was yesterday. I know. But it was a night game locally, which made it even later at Tarzan's parents house - this is partly why the PAC-12 gets no respect, no one on the East Coast can stay up to watch our games - and we had to get up in the middle of the night to catch our airplane home. So we had to hold on and not read the paper or listen to the radio until we got home.
Oh boy was it hard keeping the people at church from telling us what the score had been. It was a good one.
And if this had to be the last game of the season, I can think of no better way to end it.
USC: 50
UCLA: 0
That's correct. 0 points. That's what's called a shut-out.

This is me and it didn't look hard to do.

The Muppets

Gamma was a doll and took the entire family out to see The Muppets movie this afternoon.
So. Much. Fun.
It was really cute, funny, not too cheesy - the bad guy rap was a little much - and it had all the best Muppets in it. Kermit, Miss Pigggy, Gonzo, Beaker! I did miss Animal doing his "Aaaaaaniiimaaaaallll" fit, but he was awesome still. I don't really understand this new Walter character, but I guess there had to be a catalyst for the whole story and he was it. The Swedish Chef with the flamethrower was classic.
Jason Segel and Amy Adams were not overly involved but enough so the dancing was not out of place and it allowed some of the things Muppets just can't do. Jack Black's part was minimal which was a sad, but I get it was about the Muppets not the people. (He's also uncredited, which I don't understand.)
And Mickey Rooney. So fun to see him in a cameo.
A ton of other stars made cameos, including one of my new favorites, Jim Parsons, from The Big Bang Theory.
Not a complicated story and so it was the real talent of the Jim Hensen company and the puppeteers that came through. If you're looking for some way to spend $12, go see The Muppets. So worth it.
Thanks Gamma, that was excellent.

This is me with a great end to a great vacation.

Awesome Squared

The other thing I forgot about Tarzan's family is the concert after the sushi party the day after Thanksgiving. Despite all the leftovers in the fridge, we get out a bunch of rice and seaweed, fish and vegetables and make a bunch of sushi. We invite over friends and talk and eat and laugh. It's awesome.
Then all those who play instruments pull them out and they play for us. There are many great videos from this evening's performance. Phatfiddle has some flying fingers, Sunshine is learning violin, Teaq played the theme from Star Wars...so much fun.
But my personal favorite was Tarzan's piano duet with his brother QC. Every year we have been married whenever the family gets together they ask to hear Jubilation, a duet the brother learned in middle/high school and won some competition with. It's been so many years since they played it together though that one or the other invariably misses a part or forgets a bit and then it all falls apart. I have never heard the piece through entire.
Until tonight.
Tarzan has been working on it for the days we've been here and I figure QC has too because they finished. It was excellent. And I was prepared enough to be able to share it with you:


If you didn't know, he's the one on the outside end in green. My only regret is that the video cuts out before you are able to see Gamma through her hands in the air in celebration of their feat.

This is me happy to be married to that talented man.

Happy Thanksgiving 2011

It is that time of year again when we pause for a moment, eat a lot of turkey and sides and hopefully count our many blessings. My three kernels this year are:

• Tarzan. It's a little cheesy and I get groans at the dinner table because I say it every year but it's true. I am thankful for him and for his willingness to do whatever is necessary. And without complaining, whining or shirking his duty. It's a little amazing.
• My education. Not my formal education at USC - though that was awesome - but the practical one I received from my parents wherein I learned to desire to learn. I know what words mean in a regular conversation and I don't have to take a calculator to the grocery store. I know enough to know more and that is something I am very thankful for.
• Family. The ones we are eating with this year, the ones back at home, the ones that live on the other side of the world. I am thankful that we are given families on this earth, to come to, to grown on our own and to continue on.

This is me and I hope your day is spent with lots of people you like and good food. Happy Thanksgiving!

Whirlwind

I'm not sure why I don't remember that visits to Tarzan's family are always filled with adventures and PLENTY to do. From the moment we landed early this morning we've had places to go and things to do.
Tarzan, his father and the other men sleeping in the house this weekend had "guy things" to do. The girls and the kids went to the park and then the mall wherein we took about a thousand pictures of the small ones riding the indoor train. Too cute. I'll get some up here as soon as I figure out whose camera we were using. (There are so many.)
Then it was lunch and naps and a tree came down in the backyard. (It's also one of the things I forget; when we come here there are tree branches that need to be sawed off and piled up.)
Dinner was across town at QC's house and it was lovely. We all ate so much we didn't fit in the cars to come home again.
Then it was some family history notes and I scoured Gamma's brain - and piano bench - for music for our Christmas program.
Because we hadn't done enough yet today we watched Coraline - which I liked more than I thought I would but don't know if it was such a good idea to do so right before sleeping - and now I am off to bed because we only got four hours last night and I really don't know what time my body thinks it is now.

This is me and it's a whirlwind every time. I should send myself a memo.

Change Of Pace

We're leaving tonight to visit Tarzan's family for Thanksgiving. Rather than leave early in the morning - as with other trips - we're leaving late at night and arriving way early in the morning.
MusicMan is a sweetheart to come and get us.
I don't know that I could do it.
But we're the last of his siblings to arrive (two live nearby making that way easier) which means the welcoming committee ought to be epic.

This is me and more exciting posts to follow.

In The Dawn's Early Light

It was a clear, crisp morning in The Jungle. Bright and sunny and cool, a typical November day. ATL and I headed out to the car preparatory to taking her to work. As I rounded the rear of the car I noticed the result the combination the torrent of rain from the previous night and morning, the black fabric roof of my car and the early morning sunshine had made:

This is me with my iPhone coming in handy again for pictures.

Reflections On The Fifth Year

Happy 5th Blog-iversary to me!
That kind of sounds like a long-ish time to be doing this. Putting my real life on the Internet for anyone to read that is. I attempt to walk that fine line between Too Much and Just Enough Information. And it's been a fancy dance since November 2010.
Well, everything has been stressed this last year, no question. Three new babies in the family, a new job, my parents' business, the nonsense with Tarzan's job, plus the usual work, church and family stuff. It's been crazy to the point that I feel like I'm missing two months. (I can't figure out why it's so dark by 5:00pm if it's only September.) And my posting has totally suffered this because of the craziness, and I apologize. I expect that's why truly busy people don't blog.
And still in all this time I haven't figured out what my 'voice' is going to be.
Certainly not a mommy blogger. I assume one has to have children for that to be feasible.
There are so many infertile blogs and they're all way funnier with lots more information and movement than mine.
I could blog about TV but then it wouldn't be as fun to watch. I think I learned that lesson from the DWTS situation.
I'd love to be an online psychologist or help desk or something but I have no credentials for that.
So I suppose I'm a random, which is hard to find a niche for. Of course, if I had a niche I'd be obligated to write more and we all know how that works out.

This is me and it's better if I blog because I like it.
This time last year: Reflections On The Fourth Year.

USC vs Oregon

Once again, especially given last week, I expected a rout.
It sort of was, but we mostly routed ourselves in the 4th quarter. Previous to that point, USC scored 21 points smack out of the gate. Recovered a fumble right before the half. Blocked a punt right after. Barkley was on fire. That was nice.
Of course, next to those images are the shots of our guy jumping up and down on their running back. And then cheating a touchdown in. And taunting the fans. So that wasn't good.
On the other hand, that play was totally holding and pass interference. And the line judge at the end zone REALLY needs to get his eyes checked. Seriously.
On the other hand, we can't even hold onto the ball - sometimes at the MOST inopportune moments.
On the OTHER hand, dude biffed the field goal to tie the game. Wow.
Final score;
USC: 38
Oregon: 35

This is me and that was amazing.

Throw Back

Because today was not a red-letter day.
But this is a red-letter dress:
This is me with us, circa almost a year ago.

Big Bang

I've mentioned how I watch too much television. And how I am every broadcasting company's target audience.
I've picked up another one.
I know, I know, but before you get too disgusted with me I have good news. ATL and I got serious this fall and weeded out all the series recordings of shows that are stupid, that we don't really like and the ones that have been canceled. As a measure of how serious we got, we stopped recording Dancing With The Stars.
(Yes, that's right. It was a tough decision but it runs thee hours over two nights and it's just too reality show-y to make up for the cool dance numbers. I miss Seasons 3 and 4 before it got so big.)
So reduced are we in our television view-age that we're actually on top of it and many nights are watching the show as it records because there's no back log.
For ATL and I this is huge progress. HUGE!
Tarzan still thinks we're weird and plays his computer games in the corner with headphones so he doesn't have to participate. Except for Burn Notice. He watches that one with us.
But the new show. It's not new to most of you, I am sure but I finally watched an episode of The Big Bang Theory for kicks because there was nothing else on and now I am hooked.
I was interested at first because of Johnny Galecki but it is Jim Parsons who is my favorite now.
Sheldon is just hilarious.
It's the point of the show, I am sure, but I feel smarter for watching it AND I'm extra pleased when I actually understand what they are talking about. That doesn't happen often.
I could continue to tell you how funny it is but until you have heard a rejoinder between Sheldon and Leonard, it just won't be the same.
It doesn't hurt that one of my favorite groups composed and sings the theme song either.
"...We built the pyramids..."

This is me and it is a really funny show.

George - My iPhone

This is my iPhone - I call it George:
It's the iPhone3 - and it was free. My cell phone was due for an upgrade - yes we're still on one of those contract plans but it works for us - and Tarzan ordered this for me for my birthday. I was fairly certain I would not like it and did not need a 'fancy' phone. All I use it for is texting and calling, right?
Well not anymore.
Firstly, texting is SO MUCH EASIER with a full keyboard and it's not even annoying anymore to to turn the phone sideways to get a wider display. I do miss the arrows of a regular keyboard though. Inserting is very difficult.
Calling is slightly more annoying than I would have thought. I've accidentally dialed people more often with this phone than all the others combined. The Contacts screen is a little touchy.
(Touchy - hee hee hee)
And it took me all of a day to decide that keeping notes and things on my phone was handy. How many times have I left the grocery list at home, or mailed it, or lost it? More times than I have forgotten my phone when going to the store, that's for sure. Also, deleting and writing another list? So handy. Saving the trees.
And then there are the games. I miss Tetris from my old phone. I still hold out hopes of being able to get it transferred because I paid for it once, but we'll see. But there are so many others to play.
The Internet. Love the Internet on my phone!
I hate to admit the number of times I have dropped my iPhone already though. It's like there's holes in my hands sometimes. I've had to exchange my SIM card too, though that's not a bad thing when you consider the one I had was the first one I ever had, so old it was still printed with 'Cingular.'
The camera is nothing sort of spectacular compared to my old one and being able to download the pictures to my computer is so convenient. I just need to learn how to make my own ring tone now and things will be perfect.

This is me and I have a iPhone and I like it.

Seasons

Some people say we don't have seasons here in The Jungle.

I offer proof that we do:

This is me, and we had hail last year...for about an hour. It was enough.

Last Meal

One of the writing prompts for NaBloPoMo has me pondering - which I suppose is the point - about my last meal. What would I choose for my last meal?
Which begs the question; why is it my last meal?
If, like they always show in the movies, I'm in prison and about to be executed, there is no way I'd eat. I'd be too freaked out to swallow anything. (It makes my throat close up to type it, let alone live it.) So, no.
If it was some operation thing, where my jaw was being wired shut for mouth surgery or whatever - it happened to my uncle when he broke his jaw - then it'd be all the chewy things I could think of. Steak and fat french fries, asparagus, carrots and apples. Food like that.
If I didn't know it was going to be my last meal, before I died of natural causes at 101 and I still had my teeth, I would have Asian food. Some Thai soup, good spring rolls, BBQ pork, an exotic vegetable mix, bao.
And there would be ice cream cake.
The right ice cream cake, not the one they messed up for my birthday this year. (So annoyed about that. Chocolate curls and graham cracker crumbs do not look the same, ever.)

This is me and it's a tougher question than it initially seems. What would you have?