>We ventured out late in the day, after supper, figuring that the wild and crazy folks who stayed up on night for the doorbusters would be home and in bed. We were right; traffic wasn’t bad at all, and the stores were quite uncrowded. Store staff looked worn out, though.
We stopped at Goodwill first. Daughter wanted an “ugly sweater” to wear to a theme party later this month. We laughed at each other because I actually wear seasonal sweaters to work! Elementary teachers can get away with that. While she dragged several options off the racks and tried on her favorites, I actually found something like new for Amigo and a seasonal sweater (Croft and Barrow, it’s okay!) for me. We bought two reusable cloth shopping bags so we could say “We don’t need a bag” at the checkout, and headed to the next store. Pictures will have to come later.
Steve and Barry’s was next on our list. We’re so sad that this company is going out of business. Good casual clothes, Sarah Jessica Parker’s Bitten line, and really, really reasonable prices were not enough to keep S & B’s afloat. La Petite and I both mourn its liquidation, so we grieved by shopping there one last time. Bitten runs small (perfect for La Petite, not so for me), and it seemed that my doppelganger in philosophy and size must have been there earlier in the day. My favorite shirt and jacket didn’t come in XL, and the L was too tight across the, er, chest. I may try again; the manager said there was more stock in the back. Daughter’s measurement nearly mimic SJP’s, so she went to town picking out classic pieces.
I picked up baby gifts there for the second time in a few months. I resisted the adorable baby blankets and bibs with bunny appliques and picked up the cute, cute little onesies instead.
I had an odd feeling standing in the men’s department looking at the pullover hoodies sporting car company logos. Ford. Chevy. GMC. Are these sweatshirts not selling because people are afraid they’ll be wearing anachronisms on their chests? Shouldn’t people buy these because they’re timeless classics, no matter how the car companies restructure? Will a bailout help the Detroit Lions become more competitive, too? And why was I having such philosophical thoughts in the middle of a going-out-of-business sale?
The S&B store was selling their hangers, too: nice wood ones. Again, I may go back and buy a few. If they sell their shopping bags as well, the nylon mesh ones, I’ll buy a couple. They’d be good travel bags, especially for swimsuits. They might also make good shopping bags for large purchases — like the ones we might make in the next few weeks.
Our last stop was Walgreens for a few basic meds in my cabinet. My favorite cough drops (Ricola green tea/echinacea), fake pseudophedrine (the kind no meth dealer would desire), and a couple of toiletries for La Petite and Amigo. Once again we used our own bag, the Chico Bag in my purse.
To summarize:
3 stores
Successful purchases at all three
Gift purchases at two (no, I’m not telling, my family reads this blog!)
Good deals at first two, reasonable prices as always at third
Only two plastic shopping bags, used our own at the other places.
Funny philosophical thoughts at first store (pictures of the Ugly Seasonal Sweaters will have to come later)
Strange philosophical thoughts at second store
No philosophical thoughts at all at third store

All in all, a good evening shopping. I didn’t have to camp out overnight or wake up in the wee hours, either.

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Amigo listening to Prairie Home Companion on the radio

And Plurk on the laptop.

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• You need it to pass this grade.
• It’ll be on the test.
• Because I said so.
• No one, but no one, graduates without knowing this.
• You’ll have to repeat the grade if you don’t.
• Because the Powers That Be think it’s essential to living.
• Life’s not fair. Get used to it.
• You won’t go out to recess until you can prove you know it.
• Every adult needs to understand double digit divisor division thoroughly in order to make a living and pay the bills.
• Someday you’ll thank me.
• Trust me. I know these things. I just do.

What are your kids learning in school? And why are they learning it? If you want to avoid these ridiculous answers to the ever present question, you could sidetrack the questioner and head to Scholastic’s new parent web site. They have all kinds of information for parents of children from preschool to middle and high school.

And if you’re still thinking of Scholastic as just a place to buy books, you can shop at their site by using the code BLOGBLAST – which gives you 10% off with purchase of $25 or more, valid 10/12 – 10/21. I might pick up a few things for my classroom or for Christmas.

Blog Blast sponsored by Parent Bloggers Network and Scholastic.com.

>I did some shopping at a familiar online store yesterday. I need pants (my new principal is a stickler for professional dress), so I bought a brand I know will fit. Then I went to the checkout and found out I was just shy of the amount for free shipping, so I bought socks. Then I found out that my 15% discount took me below the threshold for free shipping, and shipping was going to be $12. I said to myself, “Self, if you’re going to spend an additional $12, get something for it.” So I went to the kitchen department and found the soup bowls that we need. Four soup bowls added the exact amount I needed. Now I had to pay for the soup bowls, but the shipping was free.
Does this make sense? I hope so.

And I found this… perfect for the highchair quarterback. Fortunately (or not), my “children” are too old to use it. But they still cheer for the green and the gold as we have our own at-home tailgate style parties.

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Mingle² – Online Dating

>In memory of those who died at Virginia Tech, and in honor of those who survived:

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Bayou Farewell: the rich life and tragic death of Louisiana’s Cajun coast
by Mike Tidwell

This title caught my eye on a shelf in the public library. This is an area of the country that I know so little about, so I checked out a copy.
Up here in the midwest, Cajun often means only a style of (delicious and tasty!) cooking. In his book, Tidwell vividly describes Cajun culture, food, and unique language from his one-on-one encounters with fishermen and crabbers in the Louisiana bayous. Tidwell hitchhiked along with several crabbers, shrimpers, and others as they go about their daily and nightly routines, offering to work for them in exchange for conversations that would make up his research.
Tidwell’s new friends were welcoming and candid, and the stories they shared create a vivid picture of the coast and its people. He delves into the seafood industry itself and the generations of (mostly) men who work in it.
Through these conversations another picture emerges: that of a disappearing coastline. Tidwell wonders why there are telephone poles in the middle of the water and dead oak trees, a land tree, sticking out of submerged, isolated groves. His hosts explain that the rapid changes in the coastline caused by human impact are allowing the salt water of the Gulf to overtake the bayous and marshes of the region at the same time as the sediment-formed land sinks below water level.
The author’s descriptions of his new friends and his surroundings are vivid, sensory, and detailed. I felt like I was riding along the bayous with him as I read. He examines the potential environmental catastrophe from both scientific and political angles. There is a definite bias in his writing toward saving and rebuilding the bayous — a bias he supports convincingly through his data and stories.
Bayou Farewell was originally published in 2003. The new edition contains an update written after the hurricanes of 2005, Rita and Katrina. It is a valuable book and a worthwhile read on topics of both the peoples and the land. I highly recommend it to all who are interested in society’s impact on unique cultures and on our fragile environment.

>Gotta love the Internet and the Blogosphere. with a single post, an idea can spread. Monday it was a tribute to Sesame Street. Today, Momster declared a “Love Thursday” post. It sounds almost 60s hippie style until you start looking over the posts, and see that they’re mostly families. Here’s mine for today. I picked this one not for its photo quality, but for the action. El Grande loves baseball, but he can’t see well enough to play a regular game. He loves his adaptive league, and even practices in the backyard. Here you see La Petite, a decent player in her own right, catching the balls as he hits them. Yes, she offered to play with him! When they go over the fence for a “home run”, the neighbor kids (see wood playset in background) like to run for them and throw them back. The rabbit pen is in the foreground. Simple fun and sibling bonding all in one blurry photo — and yes, lots of love.

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When I read Kamran Nazeer’s Send in the Idiots: stories from the other side of autism, I read from the point of view of a mother wondering about the future for my high-functioning autistic teen. At first, I made mental notes about how the young adults in the book related to others. Their living arrangements, their interactions, and their friendships all filed themselves dutifully in my head. Andre, living with his sister: a young man who communicated with puppets and became infuriated when someone dared to interrupt. Randall: quiet, a good listener, involved in a monogamous relationship with a non-autistic person. Craig, who lived alone but welcomed guests. Elizabeth, a young woman who lived mainly with her parents but spent some of her late teens and early twenties residing in an inpatient facility for mentally ill, dealing with epilepsy and bipolar disorder in addition to autism.
Then Nazeer said that half of all autistic adults live with their parents, and my mind turned around. Half? Does he mean all autistic adults, no matter where they are on the spectrum? And since he quoted no specific source, is this statistic accurate? Frankly, it worried me more than a little.
Nazeer, who lives alone, talks about his frequent contacts with his parents, and their “…enhanced duty of care…” balanced with the “…joy that I have my independence.” (p.171)
Built into parenting is the expectation that our children will grow up, become independent, and live productive, happy lives. Suddenly that picture is blurry for me, like those optical challenges where by using a slightly unfocused stare you can see a different image emerge. The image for my 14 year old son will be somewhat different from that of a non-disabled, non-autistic person. Somehow, someway, a new image will emerge from the blurry pattern.

Nazeer talks about many other elements of autism such as the need for local coherence and challenges in language development. He also describes a meeting with his former teacher and his former counselor/therapist. I did not discuss these, but they are worthwhile parts of the book. I recommend this book to people dealing with autism, especially parents and professionals who work with families. It is an easy read and will stimulate discussion and thought.