Have Some Time to Kill? Try this little quiz

Try this little quiz (I did it while I ate lunch). I belonged in 1952 when I did my first choices and 1987 when I did some of my second choices. What year do you belong in?

http://www.blogthings.com/whatyeardoyoubelonginquiz/

Ralph's Annual Fish Fry

Last Friday night we attended a neighborhood fish fry with the main dish sponsored by our Alaskan addicted neighbor--Ralph. Ralph owns a lodge somewhere in that great northern expanse and runs hunting and fishing expeditions. www.gonefishinlodge.com I think Ralph's life is probably the covet of most men. His wife, on the other hand, is probably not coveted by the other gals since the house is adorned with Ralph's large stuffed trophy heads. Last May when Ralph was getting ready to head north for the summer, he offered his leftover fish to the neighbors. I sent Corbin over straighaway and he dutifully returned with succulent salmon and halibut.

I love fish.

The halibut Ralph's wife prepared was nothing short of divine. This is how she cooks it:

Dip both sides in ranch dressing. Sprinkle cracker crumbs (whatever kind you prefer) over both sides. Cook in a foil tent on the grill or in the oven. Here's where I am a little sketchy--I think the heat is about 400 for 10-15 minutes. Try it and if it burns, let me know and I'll turn down the heat before I cook mine.

Never Say Never

This morning I was headed down the street at 7:03 am. I was a little disgusted with myself because I was running "late" in my mind. On Fridays, Corbin watches the kids so I generally try to get out of the house by 6:30. I had to fully do my hair today though becase we have an engagement tonight for which I needed to shower (as opposed to Casual Friday with a pony tail). The thought occurred to me that I should cut myself a break for being behind schedule in my mind because after all, who would have ever thought that I would have been out of the house, showered, lunch packed, and a load of laundry started by 7:03. Oh, yeah, plus I ironed my pants. I am a true superhero.

Most people know I can't get anywhere on time. It's been a lifelong ailment. My past employers would drop over if they heard rumor of my self-appointed work schedule now. (8-5 M,T,F) How do I ever make it in the office by 8:00 (and earlier if I can swing it) with two kids when I couldn't come close as a single or even a double person? It's astounds even me. It's just one of those "growing up" things, I suppose. I remember thinking as a child that my mom never slept in. Now I know why.

In a few weeks, we will be in Disney World with my Uncle Rod and Aunt Sue. When I was a teenager, Uncle Road (aka Roadster) always teased me about how long it took me to get ready in the morning. Once when we were in Williamsburg he claims it took hours for me to get ready. Well, I can't wait to blow his socks off whe he sees my newly-found speed. I'm going to be over at his door with kids in tow telling him to step it up we've got sights to see.

I've experienced a few other things I thought I'd never witness myself doing. Ain't life interesting?

Halloween Candy Hell

Good grief, it's that time of year already. The office mates are busting out the Halloween candy and beckoning to all to come partake. I had 3 mini-Snickers but have to call it quits. My stretchy pants are already screaming at me. Whoever invented Halloween anyway? It's a cruel holiday for those with no willpower. I actually thought about giving away pencils this year or some other useful item kids seem to like but I'm afraid that we could have a child-sized riot on our hands if there isn't candy involved. Plus, I don't want Matthew to have the stigma of being the son of "Party-PooperPencil Lady."

My Attempt at Ed-u-kay-she--on

Last month I subscribed to http://www.dictionary.com/ Word of the Day. I think I need to boost my vocabulary. I must admit that of all the daily sites I subscribed to, this one is probably the most useful. It's fun to see the incoming travel deals, but let's be honest. . . they don't really do anything for my life. I can't really run out tonight to catch a $49 flight to LA to get to my rock bottom priced cruise and I've never ordered anything from the daily Chadwick's clearance sale.

Word of the day--that's something I can use, in theory. I learn about neat words like misprize, tintinnabulation, and vociferous. Admittedly, I forget most of the definitions as soon as I delete the email but for a second I feel brilliant. I also feel like I'm back in school, memorizing spelling words and practicing use in a sentence.

It's a fun site. Check it out.

Don't Dress Me Like a Girl

Yesterday as I was dressing Matthew and putting his brown sandals on:

"Mom, do these shoes look like a lady when I get them 'strapled' on?"

"No, they don't. You look very handsome."

He asked in total innocence and seemed to believe my response but my life as I know it is coming to an end. I will now be under scrutiny for any hint of dressing him like a girl. Is this what happens when they start preschool?

Expectation Issues

All Aboard for Matthew's 4th Birthday.

I am having expectation issues today. (They actually occur daily but some days are worse than others.) Today I am expecting to have the best 4th birthday party ever on the planet. Not mine of course, (oh to be a kid again) but Matthew's next Saturday. I have one week to be ready for the blessed event. This is a magical time for him in his childhood. He's been counting down the days for weeks (even months). See previous post about "age" and recall that we all want to be older when we are young.

Since Matthew loves trains, we are having a train theme for the second time in his life. Actually, 50% of his birthdays now have been adorned with trains. I have this weird, psycho compulsion to make his day so special that he will be glowing for weeks. It's to the point where I'm calculating how much sleep I can lose to make, create and organize everything just the way I want it to present. Last night I decided that it would be fabulous to have a large engine made out of plywood that the kids could play in. I don't think that one is going to fly. If I was skilled with a saw and hammer, I could probably pull it off myself. . . .but, I'm not. I've downgraded and I'm being really nice to Mr. Sly to see if I can twist his arm into making one out of a measly cardboard box. It's not as cool as a real wooden one but I have to accept that my desires don't always translate into those of the remaining family members.

Well, anyway, you see where I'm going. I must be kept in check. For the last several years, FOUR to be exact, I've pretty much scaled my life back to a point of survival sprinkled with frivolity only as traditional holidays require. I've had to--to maintain some resemblence of sanity. My mother seemed to can and freeze and maintain a spotless house while making meals for the sick neighbor down the street, NEVER sat pans on the table, and served the jam in a glass dish with a spoon. I don't know how she did it. We lost classy a while back. Heck, most of our people don't wear clothes half the time. . .I'll let you guess which ones they are. I know the party is not critical in the big scheme of things but since I time-skimp on so many things let me go for this one motherly indulgence no matter how much time or energy it requires. After all, my baby will never be four again.

Gratitude

Yesterday I participated in a work-sponsored United Way service project. It was a paid day and I didn't have to come to the office, so why not. We also finished at 12:30 and got to go home, so why not again. I'm usually off on Thursdays but I felt it was a good gig to make up some hours.

Boy, what a humbling experience. We went to the winter facility for the Road Home, a local homeless shelter. The building is currently unoccupied but will be used when the weather turns cold. The building was extremely hard to find and sat with the freeway on one side and the railroad tracks on the other (literally on the other side of the tracks). The building was presumably an old warehouse, a long rectangular unfriendly unit with minimal upkeep. There was a small chain link fenced area in the front of the building where I assume the children can play to prohibit wandering. The interior of the building displays two giant rooms with no partitians. They just line cots up across the room. I can't imagine getting any sleep. There are two rooms--one for women and children and one for men. Both have cement floors and appear completely unfriendly and as far from inviting as I can imagine.

Our job was to power wash the few hundred cots. The cots looked uncomfortable and were soiled and a little smelly. I tried to imagine coming there with Matthew and Spencer. I say that not on a snobby level but out of humility for everything I have. I tried to imagine the circumstances that might make an individual arrive there. Certainly some arrive in disbelief at the situation life has dealt. Others may come out of disabling mental or physical illnesses and the inability to care for their own needs. Whatever the circumstance, I am grateful that they have a roof over their heads but that literally is about all it is.

In speaking with the worker, she mentioned that Road Home is a non-profit which receives about 60% of it's operating funds from the private sector in the form of donations. It made me happy that people have big hearts and share. I wish that the news reported more stories about people with big hearts than the junk they do, but I'm not in charge. I have donated some toiletries to the local Scouts for Road Home drives but have never seen the facility. I'm glad that I had a chance to see where the donations are actually used. Certainly I can give a bottle of shampoo or a toothbrush when the flyer is taped to my door. That's simple compared to what most of these folks need. I only wish I could give more. I would love to be a philanthropist. Alas, that is not my calling in this life but I can still give something.

I came away with renewed gratitude. We all face challenges that can place us in circumstances that we can't comprehend. I was happy to donate my very small piece of time to hopefully make one day or night in someone else's life a little brighter and hopefully someone would do the same for me if I ever needed it.

HOW TO BE HAPPY
Are you almost disgusted with life, little man?
I'll tell you a wonderful trick
that will bring you contentment, if anything can
Do something for somebody, quick!

Are you awfully tired with play, little girl?
Wearied, discouraged, and sick-
I'll tell you the loveliest game in the world,
Do something for somebody quick!

Though it rains like the rain of the flood, little man
and the clouds are forbidding and thick,
You can make the sun shine in your soul, little man
Do something for somebody, quick!

Though the stars are like brass overhead, little girl,
and the walks like a well-heated brick
and our earthly affairs in a terrible whirl,
Do something for somebody, quick!
-- author unknown From the Best Loved Poems of the American People

The Perfect Last Official Saturday of Summer

Saturday, August 30, 2008 I suppose this was the last official Saturday of the summer. I'm still clinging to the idea that it's summer despite the roll of the calendar. I think summer really goes until it's too cold to wear sandals anymore. No matter what the calendar says, it was a great day.

It was high 90's but that didn't stop the kids and I from taking a bike ride in the morning. Matthew just got the pedaling thing a month or so ago. Then Matthew and I picked peaches off the tree. That says "summer" to me. We love our juicy peaches, especially with yogurt. Mmmmm. Matthew played outside with his little safari animals in the water table. The alligator and rhino (or elephant) were the animals du jour. It looked like the perfect kid activity. Grandma E. stopped by for a minute. We always like to see her. Spence took a little nap until I woke him up trying to show Grandma my new shoes. He continued practicing his newly acquired balancing and walking skills. Matthew and I chased down the ice cream truck to buy a ninja turtle popsicle and then sat on the front porch to eat it. I vacuumed, cleaned three toilets and a shower which literally took almost nine hours, with interruptions , of course. No matter--it was still a great day. Corbin performed the dreaded summer ritual of cleaning out the garage. (We need to make way for 20 large boxes of educational playbooks from the Philippines. Mommy really enjoys spreading herself thin as I started another venture a few months back. More about that later) He didn't come close to finishing and now the car is not even in the garage, but no matter, it's summer. I had a blast from the past going through my childhood souvenir box. It's amazing how objects not seen for years will trigger memories. I looked at some pictures in a book and it felt like I knew their every detail even though I probably would not have remembered the book if you tried to describe it to me. I also came across my old yearbooks and letters and silly things from school. I found items my best friend, Ellen, and I made. (I will do another post about her because she's been deserving of one for awhile.) I looked at my Avon pin collection and all my baretts and pony tail holders wondering why I kept them but still couldn't bring myself to a mutual parting. Maybe someday I'll need a strawberry ponytail holder and I won't have to go buy one. Corbin sprayed us with squirt guns and Matthew made bubbles with his little bubble making machine while Spence and I sat on the back porch observing. We ate pizza and took baths and Matthew watched "The Polar Express" in my bed. No matter, it's summer and it's only cold on the video.

Goodbye Summer. We've had alot of fun. Come see us again soon.