Category Archives: Random Thoughts

>What a difference a year makes

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>One year ago the kids and I were hitting the road for a long, marathon drive. This wasn’t a holiday visit. It was a drive to a funeral — my father’s funeral. He’d been sick for a while, and we knew it was just a matter of time. In early November, the doctors had said it could be days, weeks, or months. He passed away right after Christmas.
The trip presented many challenges. Husband couldn’t come along. He’d been sick right after Christmas, and he was still working long extra hours to fill in for an injured co-worker. La Petite was recovering from getting her wisdom teeth out, so she was still in some pain and taking care of her sore mouth. My right wrist was in a splint from a soft-tissue injury that wasn’t healing well, and a long drive wasn’t going to help its condition.
Dad died Wednesday afternoon. Thursday morning we hit the road. We planned to get as far as we could, maybe St. Louis, and then find a hotel and proceed to our destination of Springfield, Missouri, the next morning.
Meals were a challenge. Amigo doesn’t like to eat in the car for fear of spilling or making a mess. La Petite had to eat slowly because she still couldn’t open her mouth all the way, and she had to rinse with salt water after each meal. These small details eliminated drive-through meals and extended the length of the trip overall. We were stopped in Milwaukee for lunch when my brother called to tell us that the funeral would be Friday morning at 10:15. This radically changed our plans; we had to make it to Springfield that night.
I couldn’t make the long drive any shorter, but I can make a long story short. La Petite and I shared driving shifts through Illinois and Missouri. Amigo learned to pump gas to help rest my sore wrist. We kept up with my brother by cell phone, since he was a few hours ahead of us, and he made the hotel reservations and gave us directions. We arrived in Springfield (Missouri, that is) close to 11:00 that night and collapsed into our room.
I was really proud of both kids. They really showed me their best. Amigo didn’t fuss about taking his turn in the back seat, even though he was the tallest one in the car. I put the kids in charge of answering the cell phone whenever I drove so I could concentrate on the road. Amigo was great about pumping gas, and La Petite helped navigate. We couldn’t save time on meals, but we managed to minimize our other stops by combining gas/snack/bathroom breaks into one. The trip was long and tiring, but we all managed. One year ago, despite the difficulties, we pulled ourselves together and made things happen.

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>do-bee-do-bee-do or falalalala, whatever rings your bells

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>Up here in Packerland, our local TV and radio stations are full of Packer shows, both pre-taped and live. The coach has his own show, several players have their own shows, and one former-player turned sportscaster has a show that welcomes a different player as a guest every week. This show has a live audience and a house band and films in the Lambeau Field Atrium itself.
Last week I got a call about 15 minutes before showtime from Husband, who works on the crew. He asked, “What’s the next line after ‘Happy days are here again’ in the song “Happy Days are Here Again?” (Notice how he never doubted that I would know.) I sang “The skies above are clear again” and heard him relay the line to someone on the other end. “Okay,” he said. “See you later.” It seems the band wanted to sing a little of that tune as the show began because the Packers had finally won a game.
Five minutes later the phone rang again. “We need one more line to finish up the chorus of the song! Do you know it?” Well, this one escaped me. I sang “Happy days are here again, the skies above are clear again, da-da-dah-da-dah-dah-dah-da-da, Happy days are here again.” “No, no! Da-da-da isn’t good enough!” It took me all of two minutes to google the lyrics. I called him back, sang the first three lines, had him sing them back to me, and then when we were sure he had it, we hung up so he could go tell the band. This was, oh, about eight minutes before showtime.
I turned on the show and sat down with Amigo to watch. The host called out, “Here we are, in a real, true celebration of Packer Football!” The band began. “Oh, Happy Days are here again, the skies above are clear again, Da-da-dah-da-dah-dah-dah-da-da, happy days are here again!”
I nearly fell on the floor laughing. The show’s host razzed the bandleader a bit about not knowing the words, to which he replied, “Someone told me the words a few minutes ago, and then I forgot.”
Someone? Your backstage engineer is lucky enough to be married to a licensed music teacher, a woman who is willing to sing over the phone to give you what you need, and it comes down to “da-da-da” and “I forgot”?!!
All I can say is, there better be some tickets in it for me if I ever teach him lyrics at the last minute again.

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>It was a night of small disasters.

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>Friday night, Amigo was going to a freshman basketball game at his school.
Unfortunately, he couldn’t find his wallet with his school ID in it.
Fortunately, the wallet turned up — in the wrong pocket of his backpack.
Unfortunately, the doors to the hallway leading to the right gym were locked.
Fortunately, we were routed through the big gym past the ticket-takers to get there.
Unfortunately, I needed a ticket to get in, too.
Fortunately, I work for the school district, so my school ID gets me in to most games free.
Unfortunately, we didn’t see any of Amigo’s friends immediately.
Fortunately, he befriended a few fans in the stands with kids on the team. He then told me, “It’s okay, Mom, you can leave to run your errands.”
Fortunately, the high school dance team was sponsoring a book sale in the school auditorium. I got a few great deals at 50% off. Then I left for my other errands.
Unfortunately, I got stuck in a long line of traffic behind a big accident.
Fortunately, the detour was going the way I was headed anyway.
Unfortunately, it too much longer than planned to get there, so I didn’t get my package shipped after all.
Fortunately, I did pick up what I needed for my class’ goodie bags, and had a good handful of change for the red kettle on my way out of the store.
Unfortunately, I didn’t know how long the game would last, so I hurried back.
Fortunately, I arrived in the last five minutes of a dramatic finish.
Unfortunately, the team lost, 46-42.
Fortunately, I ran into an old friend on our way out.
Unfortunately, the fire alarm started blasting as we were talking.
Fortunately, we were parked nearby, so we left quickly to avoid any ensuing chaos.
Fortunately, it turned out to be a false alarm.
And all in all, we had a good night.

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>Aging even as we speak

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>I just took a look at my profile and found out it said I was 250 years old! I was supposedly born in 1756. Um, how did that happen? Did I age noticably when I switched to Blogger Beta? I’ll tell you, I’ve been feeling old lately, but nothing like 250.

I fixed it. If only I could slow the real aging process that easily!

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>Random thoughts on Secret Santas

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>It’s Secret Santa time at my workplace, and we really, really get into it. We enlist the building maintenance engineer’s help in off-hours deliveries. We leave things in odd places. We get kids to deliver for us. We slip quietly past the door of the recipient, hanging the gift from the doorknob while he or she is teaching. Yesterday, I left a gift on top of the printer that I know my “giftee” uses. I found out when she had art class on and left her gift with the art teacher to be delivered when her class returned to their room.
The wildest and craziest gift delivery had to be the time my friend the music teacher had my name. She convinced the engineer to help her out. In fact, when all was done, I found a polaroid picture of him in his elf hat on my desk. I got in that morning to find a warning sign on my door: “Caution. Deer Droppings Ahead.” I opened the door cautiously to find — “droppings” in the form of chocolate covered raisins, carefully placed in little mounds on small sheets of paper all around the room. It took me half the morning, with students help, to get them picked up. Of course, I shared. It’s become part of building legend, much like the banana in the boa.
Our students enjoy this, too. Mine keep asking, “What did you get today? Do you know who has your name? Do you think you know? Do you have any clues?” I have too many suspects; that’s the problem! It could be anyone from the music teacher (she loves the same kinds of coffees I’ve been getting) to the police liaison officer (I caught the secretary delivering, and she’s not playing this year). So far my “Santa” has delivered (or had delivered) a different flavor of coffee each day with a pretty seasonal mug. Oh, except for the day the coffee was packaged with a cute cartoon titled “Java Junkie”. It looked suspiciously like me. Hmmm: maybe the art teacher? She doesn’t drink coffee, but the music teacher is her best friend and could certainly advise.
So far I’ve unwrapped Chestnuts by the Fire, Hot Butter Rum, and After Dinner Mint. Mmm!
And yes, I’ll take pictures of the new mugs to post when the week is over and my Santa is revealed.

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>Is there coffee in the house?

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>My favorite coffeehouse in our downtown is a family owned place. The décor is simple: original wood floors and tin ceiling, plain walls, and basic chairs and tables. There are two “window” seats, small tables-for-two that are actually up a step and in the full length windows at the front of the shop. These little alcoves also do double duty as stages for live performers. There is a cozy couch in one corner. They used to have an old church pew from a historical building nearby, and I kind of miss that. But every time I’m there I think about owning it.
If I owned the place, I would:
Keep the hardwood floors and tin ceiling. They’re beautiful, and completely in character with the neighborhood.
Paint the walls a different color. They have a few nice photographs and a few random art pieces hanging here and there, but I rarely take the time to look at them. The walls would need work. Maybe a neutral but warm color, with the art work on the walls grouped strategically to encourage viewing, would be the improvement the walls are crying for.
Clean it up more often. Maybe I’ve just been there on busy, busy nights, but I’ve noticed that the garbage bins on the way out the door are often overflowing. There are always at least two or three light bulbs burned out as well. Could this be a job for a teenager after school? A college student in exchange for free caffeine?
They have free wireless internet service, too. There is a tip jar at the counter asking for tips “to keep the wi-fi free”. I haven’t used their wi-fi yet, but my change always goes in the tip jar anyway. If I owned the place, I’d keep this service if at all possible. It would bring in at least a few regulars, creating word-of-mouth buzz for more customers.
They have a limited menu of sandwiches and breakfast goodies. I would keep this, too, while potentially sharing advertising with a local bakery. It could be a win-win for both of us.
It’s not in a location that encourages a drive-through, so that’s not a concern. Delivery maybe? There are enough workplaces in the general area to make deliveries worthwhile. Offices could fax or call in their orders ahead of time, and we could deliver for a small fee. This could expand our reach, create more exposure, and encourage those folks to stop in on their own time.
Smoking isn’t an issue, either, since our town passed a smoking ban in public places a while back. If we didn’t have the ban, I’d run a nonsmoking place anyway.
Reading over this, I realize that I really like the place. Most of what they’re doing is great. Did I mention their coffee is delicious, too? And since retirement is a long way off, I don’t plan on opening up my own spot for decades, if ever. It’s just a dream.

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>not so random thoughts about medicine

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>Disabilities are part of our family, our daily life, the little things, the big picture. Doctors’ offices? A familiar place, a comfortable setting. Amigo saw two doctors in two days last week. He noted the fact, but didn’t complain or think it was negative.
He’d been complaining of minor discomfort in his right ear. When he told me it was getting worse, that his ear hurt, I called the pediatrician’s office. Nine times out of ten when Amigo complains of ear pain, he has an infection. He is almost never wrong. Sure enough, his right ear was (as Dr. put it) “a prototypical infection”. Then she took one more step, and asked if we would allow the medical student to come in and take a look at it. Her logic was “This will give the student a chance to see a poster child for an ear infection, but in a child who will sit still.” Amigo is in his teens, and the medical student would get a good look at an infected ear without the squirming of a toddler or two-year-old. Amigo was personable and friendly with the medical student, discussed her alma mater’s basketball team, and showed her a perfectly infected eardrum.
The next day we headed to Children’s Hospital of Milwaukee for an annual check-up with the pediatric neurologist. She’s an amazing professional with incredible depths of knowledge about children and their brains and bodies. We discussed Amigo’s participation in a study, and she agreed that yes, his participation would be a good thing.
The only issue is money. This is no simple blood test. The cost estimate is around $1300. I am gathering my courage to call our insurance company. I’m certain they will say no; they really balked at the genetic counseling recommended for us. Next, I’ll apply for financial aid through the research center itself. Their forms, however, are on a web page still under construction.
I’ll keep at it. Project 3000, as the study is called, is an ambitious and worthwhile undertaking. We’ll do our part for Amigo’s sake and for the sake of others with this cause of blindness. Fortunately, doctors’ offices are familiar and comforting places for our family. That makes it, not easy, but at least a little less difficult.

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>Things I’ve learned from participating in NaBloPoMo:

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>I still can’t figure out how to add a logo to my sidebar. Sorry, Yoda. Text link, yes. I guess ads will have to wait.
Coming up with topics to post wasn’t a problem. If nothing interesting was going on in my life, I posted another coffee mug & its story. Nothing going on? That rarely happens in my life.
Love Thursday is as much fun to post as it is to read. Go to Karen at Chookoloonks for more. If I can figure out how to load the logo, I’ll join her “Nice Blog” community as well.
Many other blogs have the same template I do. That either means I share their good taste, or I’m too lazy (or cheap or inept) to create a unique template and banner. Nah, must be the first one.
I’m more interesting some days than others, but there are bloggers that are even less interesting than I am!
Life can be more interesting through the eyes of a writer thinking, “Hey, I could blog this.”
Stat counter has been interesting.
Most of my readers turn up in the evening and overnight.
Now that both my teens read the blog regularly, I have to be cautious how I talk about them.
Connecting with other bloggers, mommybloggers and otherwise, has been a gift. It’s great to read others’ posts and find out that I’m not alone.
There are many progressive moms and dads out there expressing themselves through the blogosphere. It’s reassuring to read and hear from other like-minded folks, especially since I live in a rather conservative town.
Thanks for the idea, Mrs. Kennedy, it’s been fun!
Thanks, too, to Lane for the Randomizer. What a great way to sample the participating blogs!
(Um, yes, I know there’s one more day. I’m not done yet!)

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>Life is what happens when you’re not looking — or counting

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>Keeping track of numbers must not be too important in my life — I missed the chance to “celebrate” my sesquicentennial post on Compost Happens. Maybe it hasn’t been 150 years — but today’s post is number 153, so any real anniversary discussion would have taken place three posts ago. I must have been too busy preparing Thanksgiving dinner, cleaning up after it, contemplating (but not actively participating in) Black Friday, ringing a bell for the Salvation Army, and the daily chores of life. Come to think of it, all of those things were more interesting to do (and to blog about) than the simple number of 150, anyway.
With Thanksgiving over with, I can start to work on (drumroll, please) Birthdays! Hahaha, you thought I was going to say Christmas, didn’t you?! In our home, the Christmas season is also the birthday season. Mine is in November (ahem, today), Husband’s is in mid-December, La Petite’s is the day after that, and then we can put up the tree. After the New Year’s ball drops and the Christmas tree comes down, we have about two weeks until Amigo’s birthday. That’s just the immediate family; there are other birthdays in and around this time in our extended family as well. I wrote up my “Holiday Gift Inventory Notebook” today to make sure I don’t overshop or inadvertantly miss someone.
I am taking some advice from an article in today’s paper and wrapping presents as I buy them. I have almost everything I need for my Secret Santa project at work, so I will wrap these and hide them in my classroom’s locked closet, in the space that was filled with test booklets a week ago.
Now that I have reclaimed the kitchen at home (stored leftovers, threw away what was left of the turkey carcass, prepared soup stock for freezer), I can focus on real life again. Real life, coffee mugs, lesson plans, and the works. We have a saying in my workplace when things get frantic: “Never a dull moment.” Life, such as it is, isn’t dull. Not at all. Not even at Post #153.

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>November has been an interesting choice of months for NaBloPoMo. Election Day (rather dramatic elections!), Thanksgiving Day and preparations for it, and now, Black Friday. Shiver, Shudder.
I’m not a big crowd shopper. The only store I will visit today is the grocery store where Amigo and I will ring a bell for the Salvation Army’s Red Kettle Campaign. I made a contribution to the cause and the craziness, though. I helped feed the boys. Um, the young men. You know the type: the kids, er, college students camping out in the parking lot of the big box electronics store last night. They were in their spot, equipped with tent, heater, and other essential equipment, by seven last night. And get this: they were not first in line. Since one of these boys is La Petite’s boyfriend and the other is a family friend (and former student of mine), we sent over leftovers from Thanksgiving dinner. La Petite put together a bag full of rolls & sliced turkey for sandwiches, some crackers, and a few assorted other goodies. She delivered the food, hung out for a little while, and then came home to watch late-night TV with her dad.
I’m sure they’re home and sleeping now. I hope they got what they wanted to buy. I’m sure they enjoyed the overnight camp-out!

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