Snow Day

My workplace occasionally has a "snow day"- not that it snows in P-land and we all get to stay home. No, this is a premeditated snow day when everyone associated with my workplace and the people we serve, plus family go up to Mt. Hood and have a snow day- where you can ski, snowboard, inner tube in the snow.

Just back from snow day, for which I sprung Allie from school (shh... I wouldn't have done it if she didn't have stellar grades, and she's signed up for accelerated English and Math for next year in Jr. High upon the recommendation of her teacher...whoops, save this for my "Incessant bragging about my daughter" entry) Anyway, Allie and I innertubed down the hill at breakneck speed for about 5 hours today. There is no innertubing rope tow here as there is on Mt. Bachelor, so, walking up the hill gave me my exercise today.

I went to snow day thinking - "this is great- I don't have anything super pressing on my plate, so I can just go and enjoy"- which I did. So, Allie and I came home tired, only with enough energy to flop on the couch and watch "Gilmore Girls."

After that I was mentally preparing myself for my return to work and my supposed somewhat leisurely work schedule. One item floated across my mind- a long and important article for an advertorial magazine my workplace will be featured in- I remember hearing the deadline from my contact and thinking, "Great! I have oodles of time and I can really work it through..." The deadline is March 1. Glancing at the SpongeBob SquarePants calendar in our entryway, I realized, March 1 is FRICKIN' THIS WEDNESDAY....AGGGHH!!!

Have I started the article? Have I the vaguest outline of the theme? NO! of course not, apparently in my feeble brain, February spans out endlessly, except that it is the shortest month of the year!

Part of the Puritanical, uptight, little Miss Perfectpants aspect of my personality (its small and ever dimishing, thank God) thought, I should have skipped Snow Day- its optional, not enforced fun. I should have gone to work and sent Allie to school.

Then it occured to me. How many more days will Allie and I lie in the snow on our backs and laugh hysterically? How many more years will I innertube down a hill screaming with Allie riding on my back? How many more times will we race each other down the hill?

Allie has Jr. High orientation tomorrow night. It occurs to me that pretty soon she will have her own interests, friends, etc. and someday, just like in the "Gilmore Girls" episode we just watched, Allie will graduate from High School! The "Snow Days" are a finite quantity, and we will remember the snow days long after this article has been tossed in the recycling bin.

I probably would have procrastinated on the article anyway- that is my nature. So, I'm not at all sorry about the Snow Day.

Must go now. Have an article to write.

Pop Rocks

Hubby is back from travelling for a week. I think he had a good time in some respects, but found his hotel room postage stamp sized, and at about 6'4" he finds cross country flights very uncomfortable.

A couple of troubling developments on the homefront. One is the ever diminishing number of spoons in the silverware drawer. The knives and forks are holding at steady numbers, but it seems everytime I unload the dishwasher there are less and less spoons. I asked my husband if he was taking spoons to work in his lunch and he said no, spoons are provided at his place. Allie noticed the lack of spoons as well. What gives? Spoon gremlins? are the spoons holed up somewhere with the single socks that sneak off from the dryer?

Also, I think Milo, our hamster is trying to make a break for it- ala Steve McQueen in the "Great Escape" He has succeeded in chewing much of the green paint off the metal parts of his cage, the rest is plastic. He is often furiously burrowing in the shavings of his cage- as if he might be burrowing out of there. This makes me pretty sad. I hoped Milo would be happy with us, after all, we do keep him in seeds and he has the most high-tech hamster digs with the 360 degree "EXTREME!" hamster wheel. Plus, we have made him mazes and we talk with him, pet him, and let him scurry around on us.

The only negative I can think of prompting this behavior is the "Pop Rocks incident"- you all may remember the candy Pop Rocks from the '70s and '80s - it fizzled in your mouth and some kid at school's cousin's best friend had Pop Rocks and Coke together and their head exploded or the combination made him "permanently retarded"-- I remember those stories circulating at our school. Anyway, Pop Rocks are still around, and having heard '70s lore from me, Allie simply had to try them. We had Milo out of his cage and set him down on the dining table, where unfortunately a few errant, tiny Pop Rocks pieces were left. Of course, Milo ate them and his little nose twitched and twitched as the Pop Rocks fizzled in his tiny hamster mouth. We monitored his condition for several days afterward and he seemed fine. Now, however, I have my doubts. The Pop Rocks may have done some serious damage, perhaps prompting Milo to hatch an escape plan to return to the Scamps Pet Center.

I don't understand- where are my spoons? Why is the hamster trying to leave us?

Doing the list thing

Shamelessly copying Diana. I wish I could do the link thing, but I'm too technology challenged. I tried to figure it out, and tried to do it but failed. Anyway, I'm being a copycat, but it seemed like a fun list thing. Plus, I have unfettered access to the home computer this week. My husband is travelling with the fab new job. Usually, he is on playing "Warcraft" or as I like to call it "Warcrack" because he is seriously addicted and on the edge of needing a 12 step program- if he didn't have such a winning personality and dimples he would be in trouble.

Anyway- here's the list

Four jobs I had:

Let me start with the crappiest. My two crappiest jobs came on the heels of just getting my college degree, which compounded my misery because I thought- I could have flunked High School for these shit jobs.

1. On the phone at the market research firm- Yes, I did phone surveys- it was from hell. We did a lot of political surveys, so in addition to getting people cursing you out and hanging up on you, we got a lot of people who intended to share a detailed history of their political evolution, or scream at you for the overall corrupt and incompetent nature of the American political system. Because I had command of the English language, didn't show up at work reeking of alcohol, had a felony-free past and possessed aposiable thumbs, I was quickly promoted. I edited surveys and supervised a the phone survey takers. A ragtag gang of "cautionary tales" - like J. who was about 300 lbs and her teeth were rotting out of her head. She had to leave early on Wednesdays to attend her cat loss support group. (no I'm not making this up) Every Wednesday she brought a pee chee to work with cut out photos of her cat taped to it, and inside the folder loose leaf sheets on overcoming grief.

2. Right after graduation and before the market research gig, I was a hostess at Olive Garden. You would not believe how pushy and immature people get while waiting for a table! I don't know how many 40ish - 50ish men came and bitched me out in the most foul language because a table was not available within 20 minutes of their arrival. They were the biggest jackasses ever. To this day I CANNOT tolerate people who are rude to waitresses, hostesses and retail staff. I really do have a theory that people who are nasty to waitstaff and the like are really nasty people in general who take out their frustrations on innocent bystanders.

Anyway...my two favorite jobs

3. The job Diana and I shared- at the movie theater. I had the most fun because of the great people and hey, I love movies, so the free movies, free popcorn, pop and candy didn't suck either.

4. The job I have today. Its a job that the college degree did finally come in handy for, plus in a small way making a difference.

Four Movies I would watch over and over

Now this is hard, because I love movies.

1. Casablanca- I'm a huge Ingrid Bergman fan. Plus, who can beat this all-time classic

2. The Lion In Winter- another classic. Katherine Hepburn's finest performance in my book- plus the script is great.

3. The Way We Were- Yes, I know, I know-very sappy- but soo great. I'm generally not a fan of Streisand's acting, but she was great in this. Something so heart rending about a passionate love which is not meant to be, plus the '40s and '50s costumes are great.

4. A Very Long Engagement- A recent French film that I just love. The story, cinematography, everything- just brilliant.

Four cities I have lived in:

1. Portland- I was born here.

2. Milwaukie- a burb of Portland where I spent my formative years.

3. Eugene- At University of Oregon. I actually love Eugene, though after four years I grew tired of all the hippies. Yes, they are nice and harmless and usually stoned senseless, but holy crap! I would support most of their causes, but yet the way the promoted them- via the "protest of the week" or through banging a drum and doing some dopey spinny dance or playing hacky sack, or riding their patchouli stink ass up to you on their mountain bikes and asking you to sign a petition to save the gay baby whales from nefarious goverment controlled mega corporations made me want to slap them silly. Really. I felt like screaming "The '60s are over! Reagan is President! Deal with it!"

4. Seattle- loved Seattle but was in recovery from previously mentioned shit jobs and having a "quarter life" crisis. However, I was there during the grunge craze and went out and heard live some really great music. And, I loved to walk to the top of Queen Anne hill and look over the city, loved the wind off the Sound. My friends and I use find out every weekend where a certain reggae band was playing and used to go dance our asses off to them - it was a very free, fun time.

Non-current TV shows I like to watch

Not much of a series/show person, but here goes:

1. "Once and Again" - I really liked this series that went off the air a couple of years ago. I like Sela Ward and the ensemble cast on the show was great.

2. "Battlebots"- My husband and I were addicted to this show when we were dating. People built robots and then did "battle" who ever did the best innovations and had the most durable bot won- it was pretty cool.

3. "Monty Python's Flying Circus"- The reason I love BBC America.

4. "Carol Burnett Show"- this variety show was on when I was a little kid. Loved it!

Current shows I watch

1. "The Daily Show"- I hardly ever miss it

2. "Gilmore Girls" - with Allie. I hope we have as good a relationship when she is a teen.

3. "What Not to Wear"- with Allie. I like the show, and the snarky hostess, Stacy- she's evil but she rocks.

4. "Project Runway"- also with Allie. If not with Allie these shows lose some of their luster- her commentary is essential to my overall enjoyment. I love Heidi Klum the model/hostess, and her chirpy "Auf Wiedesen" as she boots another contestant off the show. So perky, so German. Although I can't stand one of the contestants this year, Santino, who we call at our house General Zod (from the Superman movie- check it out, Santino looks like General Zod) I hope he gets kicked off, but he seems to be hanging on.

Four places I've been on vacation

I haven't travelled as much as I would like, but here goes:

1. My honeymoon in the Canadian Rockies was nice and romantic, except the dehydrating "death hike"

2. Cannon Beach- my all time favorite place at the beach.

3. New York City with my homegirl Gail.

4. San Francisco- love it there, but haven't been back since the '80s.

Four favorite foods

1. Chocolate- hands down

2. Is Reese's peanutbutter cup a food?

3. Sugary things- like chocolate chip cookies, chocolate ice cream with peanutbutter

4. Spicy/Salty- okay besides chocolate related things- I like seafood of all kinds especially shellfish, and I like spicy Tex-Mex and spicy Thai.

Four places I would rather be

1. All over Europe- looking at art and history stuff

2. My own cabin at Cannon beach alone with fireplace, books and tea.

3. In the snow with Allie inner tubing down a hill or having a snowball fight

4. Powell's bookstore

Four albums I can't live without

1. U2- "How to Dismantle an atomic bomb"

2. U2- "The Joshua Tree"- U2 is the chocolate of my music world

3. The Beatles two disc greatest hits discs

4. My mix CD of Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin and Marvin Gaye

Four vehicles I have owned.

1. The legendary "blue bullet"- a 1977 Blue Datsun b210 I bought in High School and drove for nine years

2. 1972 Blue Volvo two door sedan. Nice, but mechanical nightmare

3. 1991 Blue Geo Prizm. A workhorse of a little car

4. 2004 Blue Kia Spectra. My first "new" car with automatic everything.

Yours, mine but not ours....sadly

Due to a bout of insomnia last night, I was watching news shows on TV. Seeing conservative Bush people howl like scalded kitties because people at Coretta Scott King's funeral were critical of the president in front of the president! Apparently these people must think he is an Emperor, King, Ra the Sun god...like some above reproach potentate that no one can say anything negative about. Off with their heads! Off with their heads!

Though, one must admit it is weird for them to see the President in a setting that is not "sanitized for his protection" - meaning not pre-screened audience of Republicans so loyal they practically crumble to the floor with joy because they think he is soooo wonderful (I'm being a bit snarky here, but its true- all of his so-called "Town Hall" meetings are completely screened so its only loyal people with softball questions- THAT'S how big a wussy he is)

Anyway, this wasn't his crowd. I think his approval rating with African Americans hovers around the 20% mark or so. Plus, let's be frank, he's attending the funeral of a woman while his Presidency is dismantling the legacy her husband fought and died for. So, the audience didn't like him so much. Quelle suprise!

Among the many tragedies not only of the Bush Presidency and of the nasty partisanship of the last few years is the "us" and "them" divide. I feel its destructive and quite sad really, but its there- so since we've had this nasty little divorce, let's divide things properly. People and legacies- Blue staters-Democrats-Liberals get Dr. King, and his wife- We also get John F. Kennedy, Bill Clinton. Red staters - Republicans - Conservatives get- Joe McCarthy, Richard Nixon and President Bush.

Let's face it, that's how it is these days, our stuff, their stuff. Frankly, I don't feel like missing out by mentally putting Toby Keith in the "their stuff" pile. We all kinda know when the other side is getting into our stuff. Like that funeral or Paul Wellstone's funeral or when there was a conservative group tribute to Tom De Lay a few months back and some dumbass chose Pete Seeger's "If I had a Hammer" as the theme song. If the person who chose this song did a minimal research like reading the lyrics of the song or I don't know is it too much trouble to "Google" Pete Seeger and find out enough to know that this song is completely frigging inappropriate for Tom DeLay!! The problem for them is we do have most of the good music. I say, they can go ahead and use John Ashcroft singing "Let the Eagle Soar" for all of their events.

I say fair is fair though, when Pat Robertson dies and Ted Kennedy shows up and speaks at the funeral I suggest we get really pissed if he's treated badly.

I'm trying to stay out of politics these days, but really, Bush style partisan-conservatives rail at how outright evil they think Democrats and liberals are- Well, Dr. King and his wife were liberals! The conservatives think the 1950s were just the zenith of a happy, moral, Christian time which we must work to return to--I would suggest that the Kings would disagree!

So, enough with negativity- we always do well to revisit the wisdom of Dr. King- a few of my favorite quotes:

Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.

Man must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love.

Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter

Also, I've seen a lot of images from Mrs. King's life this past week- I really love this one. I believe now they are re-united and with God- so this felt resonant

Pause for praise

Every once in a while I would pick Allie up from school and she would be bubbling over with excitement. She would excitedly say, "I got pause for praise so I got extra recess!!" or she would say "I got a pause for praise today!"

And while I am all for positive re-inforcement in school, I kinda thought this was a strange set-up, at least how I visualized in my mind. I wondered, did her teacher stand in front of everyone in class and say "Okay everyone let's pause and praise Allie" or did the teacher say, "I'm pausing to praise you, and give you extra recess!"

"Pause for Praise" has been going on since Allie was in first grade. Now she is in sixth grade. So, in my mind I have thought my daughter has been participating in a positive, yet somewhat strange ritual of "pausing for praise" for many years. It was only at the beginning of this year I asked:

"So, Allie, when you pause for praise, does the teacher really just pause and praise you?"

"No, he just gives it to me."

"How does someone give you a pause, give you stopping what they are doing?"

Allie then gives me the my-mom-is-from-another-planet look, and then I see the lightbulb go off.

"No! not pause. Paws...a paper lion paw (the school mascot is the Lion) and when you get a certain number of paws for praise you get extra recess or get to do something fun."

Yesterday I dropped Allie off at school I saw a wallet lying in the middle of the road and Allie ran out and got it and turned it into the school office. Last night I asked her if she heard anything about the wallet's owner.

"No. But I did get a paws (pause) for praise for turning it in."

Womanimal

Watched the "State of the Union" "speech" more for entertainment value than anything else. Glad to see the President isn't abandoning his Orwellian doublespeak, but aside from that I was relieved to see the President limit some more of my Constitutional rights, apparently we can criticize, but not if it is too negative...oh, wait, let me guess, the President will decide and discern if my speech is within bounds. Oh good, I'm so inept at thinking for myself, its good that the President will limit me only to positive speaking about his policies.

But by far the biggest WTF moment was the President limiting human-animal hybrids. What!!?! When did this happen? Are there human-animal hybrids running around?

This got my husband, daughter and I talking. If we could hybridize, what would we do? My husband would like retractable claws, I would like the ability to breathe underwater like a fish, and my daughter would like a monkey tail that she could hang from. As we fantasized about our greatly enhanced lives as human-animal hybrids, we were suddenly very angry that this choice was limited.

I don't think the President really thought this one out. Obviously there would be a huge market to become a maniamal or a womanimal. With my ability to breathe underwater, I promise I would do lots of good deeds, like look for sunken treasure, rescue sailors trapped in submarines, and free dolphins from tuna nets.

I think the President is merely re-acting to the negative stereotypes of human-animal hybrids of the past, like werewolves, or vampires that turn into bats, or that crappy movie on the Science channel- "Mansquito."

Let me know what how you would hybridize and how would you use your new attributes for good?