Saturday, June 4, 2005
whoofdy.
225 miles, two boys to look out for (three if you count strat, and he would argue vociferously that you should - the way he complains about "not being fed" is shameful), family to visit, places to be, things to do, exwife to deal with, skeeters to fend off....
man. my butt is numb. ;) did i mention i did all the driving today? except for the last little stretch home, after (despite deciding we have no money to spare) hubby and i felt we'd been doing for others all day (exceedingly willingly, i should add), and deserved a treat, so i took us out for steak (for both) and wine (for me). so hubby drove us first to the grocery, so i could pick up half and half for our coffee/tea/mutual caffeine fixes in the morning, then home.
since then, i've been playing a virtual aquarium game (think fish sims) and nursing a few blisters (how this is possible with thong shoes that barely exist, i'll never understand), and he's been watching Stupid TV with the cat.
*deep exhale* fans are blowing, relaxation is being acheived, and sleep is soon to follow. :) miles to go, indeed.
:: scribbled at
11:51 PM ...
...
o
Friday, June 3, 2005
something that struck me the other day, for no reason other than my brain is wired that way, apparently:
the general inanity of the statement - question, really - 'why is it always in the last place i look?' when you find something.
well, duh.
:: scribbled at
10:15 PM ...
...
o
ah, the insanity of our household. :)
the balloon twisting adventure continues. and The Dane is now working off of a DVD narrated by the scariest clown ever. i've never had an issue with clowns, but seeing this one? i can see why some people are freaked out by them. orange hair, exceptionally long faux lashes, and purple gloves. all of this in addition to face makeup. and then there's the audio. 'leave an inch or so at the end of the balloon, and then twist the nipple...' oh, and it only gets better. ;)
the upside is, my hubby has been making me bouquets of flowers, which is really sweet.
:: scribbled at
2:36 AM ...
...
o
Thursday, June 2, 2005
y'know, i'm occasionally reminded of how very spoiled i am.
when The Dane initially suggested we move to Our Small Hometown, i was very resistant, in no small part due to the fact that the exwife wanted us to live here. (set aside that she had lived here and thought it was a shit town... oh, wait... i couldn't set that aside, since she was gunning for us to suffer.)
also contributing to the resistance was the very human desire to stay with what is familiar. i'd lived near the big city for a long time, and in very urban neighborhoods for much of the last decade.
what i wasn't able to see in the moment (altho those of you who have been keeping score certainly know how much i complained at the time) was how very unhappy my situation was. yes, i had my own place, but at what cost? not being able to sleep, because of the fear of breakins? or simply because the rest of the tenants were dickwads who felt the need to crank up the amps at 2 am? or because i could no longer trust my landlord? bleargh. it was most definitely time for change. and despite my resistance, for what turned out to be superficial reasons, we moved to Our Small Hometown.
it's OSH because it takes *maybe* 15 minutes to walk downtown. once you're there, it takes less than 5 to walk the entire length of downtown. everyone knows everyone else, or at least your neighbor.
and i find, the longer we're here, that this is something i've missed. this is how my hometown, growing up, was. there are values here that i miss, and that i'd like to pass along to LS (who loves seeing his friends in the market). there are certainly things that i wish LS didn't have to see or deal with, but by and large, i think that's just how the world is these days. and this town... this is a wonderfully family friendly place. i went to the bank today, and the teller said 'oh, no, i don't need to see your ID - i know you.' and then we talked about how our families are doing. ah... small town benefits.
and here's the kicker, the reason i knew i've been spoiled lately, and that i love OSH. The Dane and i shut off our alarms for a few minutes extra sleep.
and i got pissed off at the person standing two houses up the street, because i could hear his conversation with crystal clarity. when you live in a place that is quiet enough that you can tell where the conversationalists are standing, and you're irritated that you can't hear the owls you usually hear... you're spoiled. this is a great town, and a wonderful neighorhood. and i'm grateful every day that i listened to my hubby about why we should live here. :)
:: scribbled at
1:07 AM ...
...
o
Tuesday, May 31, 2005
have i mentioned that life with hubby is never boring? :)
he's been working on balloon twisting lately. so, of course, LS is also working on balloon twisting.
oh. mi. god.
the completely inappropriate subtext running in my head as i listen to the lessons...
hubby and LS are downstairs, and what i can hear is:
'you need to hold on to the end of it, and just roll a bit on to the end. don't roll on too much, because the pressure will break it. now, be careful with how you handle it...'
*squeeeeeee* *plorp* *bang!* *insane laughter*
all these lessons will be repeated, hopefully many years hence, in a completely different context.and i have to be careful to not come down the stairs laughing, because the most deadly question is LS, looking me square in the eyes, asking 'what's so funny?' :)
:: scribbled at
12:16 AM ...
...
o
Monday, May 30, 2005
miscellaneous scattershot for the holiday weekend:
Serenditpity Happens. the whole thing with the flat tire? i was happy enough to have TripleA cover the change. then, turns out, today when i went to put the duster that i bought (on a whim, for a dollar, for the car) in the glove compartment, i found the paperwork for the tires. i'd bought a new set at Sears a few years back, and gotten the extended road warranty. served me well at the time, because i blew out two of the tires a week later. (did i mention i was learning to drive at the time?) at $7 a tire for coverage, it was a steal - complete replacement, rim work, rebalancing - for nada. so. brought all the paperwork in there today, on a holiday, big sale, store is crazy busy, i have no idea if the warranty is still in force, and i just put all the paperwork on the counter.
Sales Guy is helpful, but takes aeons tinkering around with the screen. i finally hear him say to his boss, 'i can't get the system to take the sales price.' so i ask what the sales price is. he was trying to save me $3.54, god love him. put it thru, i don't care, it's all still money i didn't have this morning. i got back the price of the tire and the labor, minus the sales diff (negligible) and the road warranty for the new tire (well worth it!).
okay, so that was a bit more than buckshot... ;)
LS had a great weekend, as far as i can tell: good day messing around on Saturday (we spent it in various parks playing), breakfast treat on Sunday (the Best French Toast in the World), and participating in the local parade, as part of what turned out to be a prize winning float.
hubby... more of a mixed bag for him. the weather is killing him, because he makes his living outside. rain? lost money. cool, or overcast? dicey. sunny weather is excellent, but in short supply lately.
as for me... hrmph. i love the sunny days. sun = good outlook. as for the rest, it's a continuing adventure to balance being a mom, a wife, a homebody, dealing with the exwife as part of ... the parenting consortium? ... working thru issues at school, thinking about where we're going to be, both long and short term, as a family, making dinner, emptying the trash, remembering to take time to just look at the sunset, considering how and when to spend our money, thinking about the fact that it's *our* money now, not just mine, hoping for a good night to grill... and on and on.
one of the things that i loved about the Memorial Day parade was that it was the first full-on parade i've seen in ages, complete with bagpipes. also, all the grade schools had floats. and it was immensely touching to see all the vets taking part. they all got huge rounds of applause, as well they should.
i had a great conversation with the woman sitting on the curb with me. her dad was one of the vets participating. she works as an LMS (library media specialist) around here, and we had a great talk about how important learning how to do research in the virtual age is. i loved hearing her talk about 'her kids', and describing what she's teaching them.
also? loved getting Mardi Gras beads from one of the floats. ;)
hope all y'all had a great holiday weekend!
:: scribbled at
11:30 PM ... ... o
home
