Bro

Well, I found out, on FACEBOOK of all places, that my little brother and his wife are expecting a baby.

He's 40. The baby is due sometime near his birthday, when he will be 41.

It's ironic, b/c our dad was 41 when bro was born. He was the last of our siblings to be born, and was totally spoiled by both dad and mom, altho mom denied it, and blamed it all on dad.

Best wishes, brother, and I hope your baby is the legacy to you, that you are to dad. I mean that in a totally good way, really.

AC

If you were fast enough to read the story about my car's broken AC before I removed it, here is the rest of the story.

It's the evaporator.

"Not the evaporator!?"

"What's the evaporator?"

I never got a clear answer. It costs $1000 and "there goes your beautiful wood dash."

It doesn't sound like my AC will be fixed. WW III is brewing.

I believe I'll get another buzz. At least it will always look fixed after a trip with the windows open.

Oh, now I get why they used so much hair spray in the 60's...

Clues

Our dog, who is usually a Little White Rug with a Pulse, comes alive when she thinks we are going on a walk. She runs into the room, tongue out, tail wagging, dancing, acting all happy.

Years ago, she figured out that the leash indicated a walk was coming up. It's plastic and makes a clunking sound when we remove it from the coat hook on the wall.

Now, she has figured out many more clues. She's so smart!

I tie a plastic bag from bread or newspaper onto the leash before walking so I can scoop her poop. Now she comes running when she hears plastic bags rustling -- even if it means DH has just come home from the grocery. (I use cloth bags for groceries.)

When I put sneakers on, I often sit on the side of the tub. This excites her as sneakers often indicate a potential walk. Heels don't excite her -- only sneakers.

In similar fashion, socks might indicate a walk. Obviously, I only wear socks with sneakers, not with dress shoes. Nowadays she comes running if I open the sock drawer.

The undies drawer is just below the sock drawer. She does not react to my opening the undies drawer every morning. Just the occasional sock drawer. These are heavy wooden drawers in my armoire, not screechy plastic things. They rumble, and to my ears, they rumble identically. How does she tell the difference?

On a related note, I have recently begun putting the crusts from LO's sandwich on the floor near the pet bowls in the mornings when I pack the lunchbox. The crusts have the tiniest smidge of luncheon meat that gets trimmed when I cut the crusts from the sandwich.

Little Dog has just lately figured out the sound of LO's lunchbox unzipping, and comes running. Food?

Storm Brewing

My little brother posted this photo on Facebook with the caption, "As usual, there's a storm brewing over the Capitol."

I thought it was a great double entendre' and asked permission to post it.

He shot the photo with his iPhone from a parking deck, I think...

The Week

I have been thinking about our week. I would not really call us a busy family; there are only three of us and it's not like we are always gone. Yet, I feel I am in the car quite a bit, and the times I am home are short spurts, when I accomplish little.

So here is our life:

Sunday (day of rest)
7:30 DH leaves for band practice
8:30 LO and I leave for church
10:00 Sunday School
11:00 Return home, often stopping by Taco Bell on the way
-- This is LO's normal time to clean her room
-- This is my normal time to get laundry done
2:00 (not every Sunday) LO has tennis w/friends
4:30 LO choir
5:00 Prepare dinner
5:30 Pick up LO
6:00 Dinner
7:00 to 9:00 DH and I enjoy TV on Sunday night
LO washes hair, dries, and straightens


Monday
4:30 DH arises
6:00 DH leaves for work, LO and I get up
Shower, dress, makeup, walk dog, pack LO's lunch, fix breakfast
7:15 Drive LO to school
8:15 I go to work (this is my one day at a location away from home)
1:30 Home
3:15 Pick up LO
3:50 Home; LO has snack and starts homework
Some Mondays I cover School Board meetings for paper, 5-8, then write article til 9:30
6:00 DH home
6:30 Dinner
7:00 DH leaves for his Man Group
8:00 Long walk with Little Dog
9:30 DH returns
(Some Mondays we have PTA 5-6)

Tuesday
Same as above, but no Man Group and I don't work away from home
Add:
8:15 Dry Cleaner
9-11 Vacuum
12-3 Interview for articles
3:30 Recycling and garbage out to curb for tomorrow morning
Some Tuesdays, I attend Planning board 4-6pm, sometimes as late as 7:30
6:00 LO to tutor
8:00 LO home from tutor
(One Tuesday a month I have Band Boosters (secretary) 5-6 or so)

Wednesday
Same as Tuesday, but no tutor
Bring in recycling bins and garbage can
9-1 Work on novel
Sometimes but not often I have interviews on Wednesdays
6:00 LO to piano
6:45 LO home from piano (I just wait there for her. If I came home, it would be time to go back and get her)
7:00 DH to violin
8:15 DH home from violin
In addition to our Sunday TV shows, we try to watch Idol on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Thursday this is a quiet day.
Same as other days, but no music lessons
Most Thursdays, I have interviews in all parts of the county much of the day
7:00 LO to tumbling
8:15 LO home

Friday
Same as other days, but no tumbling
9:00am I go to grocery, vacuum, do laundry, fill up car
One or two times a month we go downtown together or call in supper.

Saturday
DH has been working most Saturdays lately...
Change sheets
This is our day to shop, run errands, go to nearby Larger City when we have to.

In addition,
Monthly:
Car wash
I call to renew LO's Rx, pick up scrip from MD, take to Walgreen's, pick it up.
LO gets checkup at orthodontist
LD goes to groomer
I attend Progressive Women group at gf's house
I attend Band Booster meetings, where I serve as Secretary
I attend neighborhood pool board meetings, where I serve as Secretary
I attend Planning Board meetings
I attend School Board meetings (4x a year there are 2 in a month)

Quarterly:
I renew my Rx on phone
DH changes oil in my car
Band concerts
Report cards
I take LO to nearby city to chemically straighten hair

Twice a year:
Each of us visits dentist

Annually:
Car inspections
Renew license plates
Taxes

Not listed here are social engagements, writing for pleasure, deadlines for articles (I average 2-4 articles a week), mending, brushing pets, more vacuuming, shopping, and home repair.

No wonder we never feel as if we have time.

The Novel

I cannot describe how ethereal it is to spend time with my novel.

You know how you feel transported to another world when you read a good book?

Well, writing one is similar, except that you're creating that other world.

I get so totally into it, when I stop, I am in a sort of fog, a daze, and it really takes me a few minutes to snap out of it.

When I start speaking conversational Latin, it's time to have me hauled off. :)

Letter from China

OK, so I mentioned a few days ago that I was ISO new hankies as I have donated many of mine to friends who cried about this or that.

When a friend starts to cry, I just love whipping out a beautiful hanky to give them. Oftentimes it makes them smile.

Most of the hankies on eBay average out to about a buck per hanky. Not bad. 25 hankies, $27. 32 hankies, $35.

I found an entry for not-vintage hankies, but new, vintage-looking, a lot of 100. The price at the time was at about $10. The designs were the sort I like, in fact, several in the pic match hankies I have on hand. This is the actual picture of them.

So I made a bid of $22 max. For 100 hankies.

I won. Turns out, shipping is more than I paid for the collection: $15.50 for the item, $20 for shipping. It's coming from China. Still, $35 for this little hobby of mine, and I haven't bought any in years.

Last night, DH read me the endearing email I got from the vendor. Here it is:

Thanks for buying my items, I am Cathy from China, I have already sent the package for you, the tracking number is xxx, I also put one more lovely hanky in your package as the gift, hope you really like them.

I shipped your items via the Chinese Post office and the US POSTAL SERVICE, I am living in Xi'an,the central part in China, your package will leaving China from Shanghai,that will takes about 3 days, so 2 or 3 days later, when your package leaving China, there will have an information about your package on the US POSTAL SERVICE website, then you may tracking your item from http://www.usps.com/.

Since this is the international mail, from China to USA is a long journey, the distance almost cover the half globe, so it will takes longer time than ship things in the US, usually shipping takes about two weeks, sometimes need longer time, but I hope you will get it soon.

When you get the package, please let me know,thank you! Sincerely, Cathy

Simple-Tasking

OK. As a programmer in the 80's, yes, I know some of you weren't BORN yet, but back then, we learned the term, "multi-tasking." It referred to the process of having the computer do multiple things at one time so it would run as quickly and efficiently as possible.

At some point, I began multi-tasking. It was simple enough when it started. Tying a child's shoe while talking on the phone. Stirring the spaghetti and calling out spelling words. Driving the car and yelling into the rearview mirror, "Don't make me stop this car!"

Then I really began multi-tasking. Mopping and watching TV and answering the cell phone. Eating and playing spades online. Walking the dog, listening to the iPod, and talking to neighbors. Writing and listening to NPR and answering emails.

I feel like I don't listen anymore. I don't complete tasks. I start working, flip over to FaceBook, flip back to the article. Listen to the recorder to get that quote just right. Oops, an email popped up. Answer that one. File it before I forget. Back to the article. Someone asks where I put the thermometer. In the cabinet, I think. Back to the article. Second shelf, I think, I call. Back to the article. Wait, why do you need the thermometer? Do you have a fever? Come here, let me feel you.

And on it goes.

I am making a conscious effort to stop multi-tasking. No more eating hunched over the keyboard. I. will. eat. at. the. table. Even if I am home, alone.

No more scanning the newspaper online and listening to NPR. I will read the tangible newspaper. It's delivered every day. I'll read it the old-fashioned way.

I will close the door when I write, and not scad about email and internet.

I will look people in the eye when they talk. I won't look about to see what else is going on. That's rude, anyway. No more thinking what I want to say next. That's rude, too. I will Listen. Listen. List-en.

I will play music on my new stereo. Walk the dog. Just walk her. No electronics. Sit on the porch.

After a week of this strange new world, I will make a report as to how well (or not) it went.

Stay tuned.

Hankies

Many of you may know I collect vintage hankies. I love 'em. I try to carry one or two on me at all times. If I have allergies, or feel emotional, or my makeup runs, or a kid scratches a mosquito bite, their uses are endless.

I was at school board meeting Monday night and met with someone out in the hallway to discuss a much-loved teacher who is battling cancer. She had just received a merit award and I was interested in perhaps featuring her in an article.

So I asked the assistant to meet me out in the hallway for a second. When I told her my intention, she began to cry -- quite hard. Fortunately I had a polka-dot hanky in my pocket.

I have offered a hanky to a crying friend several times over the years, and it never fails to cheer them up. The polka-dots are my favorites.

Sometimes when I am tired, I will pull up vintage hankies on eBay just to look at them. I love to see the various designs. What a lovely item that, sadly, has fallen out of favor.

I am shopping for more in earnest now b/c I have 'loaned' so many to friends that my stock is running low. If the idea appeals to you at all, I encourage you to browse on eBay just to see all the lovely choices. It takes you back to a simpler time. Enjoy!

Guns and Barbies

As a young mom, I made many mistakes. One in particular I remember is forbidding my children to have the things I didn't believe in.

The two boys were only 16 months apart. I did not allow them to have toy guns. It seemed at every birthday party, they would receive at least 2 or 3 toy guns. It was very frustrating. After the guest had gone, while the boys were distracted, I would slip the guns out of the room and hide them on top of the refrigerator until I could get them into the outside garbage can.

They were both fascinated with the concept of guns. Everything became a gun. Sticks in the yard, half-eaten sandwiches, stacks of Legos, anything that could remotely resemble a gun, became one. Bang, you're dead.

Finally I gave up. Once they were allowed to have them, the fascination seemed to wane. I still wonder, though, is that why DS2 joined the armed forces?

I was also opposed to the Barbie doll. Her physical perfection seems impractical to me. Does she have a good personality? A sense of humor? Is she sensitive? Smart? Self-reliant? I became anti-Barbie.

And so my daughter craved them. Being a cheap gift, she received scads of them as birthday gifts. They disappeared, similarly to the guns. She loved to go next door and play with the little girl whose mom encouraged Barbies. I distinctly remember the mom next door, out in the front yard at night with a flashlight, looking for a missing Barbie shoe.

Do you know how small a Barbie shoe is? It's not quite a half-inch long. By maybe a quarter-inch wide. Why on earth did she even know it was missing? I never understood.

Finally, I relented and let DD have Barbies.

By the time I raised LO, I was a wee bit older and wiser. Still opposed to Barbies, I allowed her to have them, but did not encourage them. When we played with them, I would say things like, this is her college interview outfit, this is what she wears to help at the shelter.

LO soon tired of Barbies and they languished in their box until I finally had her permission to throw them away.