tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-76070548679310009032024-03-13T06:35:48.691-04:00The Driftwood HouseA stay-at-home mother's perspective on children, child-rearing philosophies, and commentary on pertinent newsworthy events that relate to kids. Plus anything else that happens to be on my mind!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.comBlogger63125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-29407862118367144642014-04-03T12:13:00.002-04:002014-04-03T12:13:38.220-04:00Granite Falls Spring Tri - Just Around the Corner!I can hardly believe it, but here we are in April already and the Granite Falls Tri is on Sunday. That's three days away! Not sure how the heck this happened, but I have a few last minute thoughts to share.<br />
<br />
First, I haven't trained nearly as much as I should have. The weather this week has been the first nice week we've had all winter and that is unusual for North Carolina, but true. So, there have been multiple day stretches in which I couldn't even get to the club to work out, and weeks in which outside training was not really possible. PLUS, my family has been SICK this winter! We're NEVER sick. But there it was - a stomach bug for my daughter, then myself, then my husband. Then a viral infection for my daughter this week, which has left all of us praying we won't catch it, at least not until after Sunday. All of which have kept me from training consistently. And I have realized that life gets in the way. That I have other priorities - my kids, my family, my other activities - that are just as important and I don't know how people whose actual job isn't in the fitness field find time to seriously train for these events. I mean, this is a sprint and I can't find time. To do a half or even a full Ironman - the training required. I know it's only an hour or two a day when you break it down, but it's nearly every day. And that's really hard to maintain.<br />
<br />
So, although I have pushed myself, have run in 20 degree temperatures, and in 40 degree raw, cold rain it still has not truly been enough to get me where I wanted to be. There are members of my group who have been way more dedicated than me and who are way more competitive and I'm proud of them. They are the ones who have been at the club for nearly every cycle class, every run club, every evening Masters Swim class. They have done bricks on top of bricks, and practiced transitions in the rain. I, on the other hand, have been to Masters here and there and have been satisfied to know that somehow, my 400 yard swim time improved by a full minute, that I can swim 2800 yards without paying for it for the entire rest of the day, and figured out that I will go just as fast by swimming my nice, easy stroke as if I blew myself out trying to kill it. I somehow improved my run pace by a minute, and have probably run more than anything else during this training period because it's so easily doable no matter the weather. I have ridden the course twice and know I can average out at about 17 mph though I'll be pushing pretty hard to achieve that. Still, today I biked about three miles and followed with an immediate one and a half mile run and I was struggling a bit. I should have trained more!<br />
<br />
Next, that this whole thing has been really great and informative, but also really overwhelming. I have learned so much - the benefits of lace locks and body glide for my running shoes, how to utilize a foam roller to stretch properly, the absolutely unequivocal benefit of decent running shoes, how clip-ins work, how to do dynamic stretching to warm up for a run, how to do an open-water turn properly and why I like them so much better than flipping. But this is an overwhelming process, and this is just a sprint! Who would think that a short swim, a bike, and a run would be so involved?? I am actually okay with all of it insomuch as I have done this once before. But still... And the folks in my group - only one of them aside from myself have ever competed before and so most of them are way nervous and overwhelmed about all of this. Our trainers have covered every aspect of the race in depth - packet pick-up, race day set-up including body-marking, timing chip, race number placement, transition area set-up. They've practiced how to deal with passing in the pool, the chaos that may ensue in the pool, the pool to bike transition, the bike course, the bike to run transition, proper pre-race and race-day nutrition. (All I can hear is Janice yelling at me "NO DAIRY! NO WHEAT BREAD! CARBS! CARBS! SUGAR!). Sigh. It's no wonder that even my very even-keeled husband is not willing to discuss the race at this point, that one of our group has been unable to sleep, and others have been on the verge of outright throwing up. I do want to tell them to calm down and keep things in perspective. Overall, it IS just a sprint. An hour and 15 minutes. They just need to swim. Then bike. Then run. They do this stuff nearly every day. No big deal!<br />
<br />
Finally, I realize that I guess I'm more competitive than I am willing to admit. I have been checking the participant list, and I know that, at last count, there were about ten women registered in my category (female age group 40 - 44). I would really like to come in top three. I feel I can potentially finish this race in an hour and 12 minutes IF everything goes right. But I also know I'm not all that realistic. I can probably do the swim in five minutes, as long as no one in front of me holds me up. I would have to maintain an average 17 mph pace to finish the bike portion in 35 minutes. That's going to be hard with that hill on the 98 bypass. My speed will probably be faster than 17 mph going down Rogers, right at 17 mph on Heritage Lake and Averette, and 11 mph on 98. We will see. And then my legs are going to be tired with a capital "T" and depending on whether they've changed the run course or not, that's going to really slow me down. The original run course is all uphill for the first mile and a half, then downhill, then uphill, uphill, uphill. The revised course, if they use it, is more flat. Either way, I'll be lucky to keep a 10 minute pace and more likely it will be 10:30. So right there, with transitions, I'm at an hour and 12 minutes. So.<br />
<br />
That's it. I feel bad for my husband. I know he's nervous and there's nothing I can say to him that will make him feel less nervous. I feel bad for me - I'm a little nervous, too and I know it will increase as Sunday approaches. At least the weather is still looking okay, and we know we'll feel better when it's all over. And we can start training for Smile Train in June! Wish us luck!<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-14629006056823477502014-03-18T11:15:00.001-04:002014-03-18T11:15:29.695-04:00Tri Training UpdateIt is three weeks away, the Granite Falls Triathlon. Three weeks. And while we have had a smattering of days in the 60's, when it's been possible and even quite pleasant to bike outside, today is, yet again, cold, rainy, and even a bit icy.<br />
<br />
This three months of training has been a challenge for me. We've had the most lousy winter North Carolina has seen in years, with at least four separate weather events that have closed schools and kept us trapped indoors. My family, who never gets sick, has been taken DOWN with stomach bugs and sinus infections. And while it is feasible, possible even, that I could have spent a whole lot more time training inside, for one reason or another, I just haven't.<br />
<br />
Don't get me wrong. I have ridden the bike course twice, ridden it and then followed with the full run course once, and I was fine. I will have no problem completing this tri and I feel my time will be decent. But I wanted to be out riding a whole lot more and ... oh well.<br />
<br />
So here's what we have been doing, for what it's worth:<br />
<br />
We've ridden the bike course, which is probably the single biggest benefit to us. You never know what the bike course is really going to be like until you ride it. You can drive it, and imagine how the hills and terrain are going to be, but it's no substitute for the actual thing. <br />
<br />
This one was worrying us - we've heard endless horror stories about the windy, narrow, busy Rogers Road, the enormous hill on 98, and the traffic. <br />
<br />
So, hubby went out with the group on a Sunday about four weeks ago. I was sick with a stomach bug. The weather for them that day was beautiful, and he said it went fine. The following week, when I was feeling much better, and the weather was beautiful again, he and I went out again, this time with our friend Ella who is doing the tri as well but not training with our group. A week after that, I went out with the tri group, and followed up the ride by completing the run course. Hubby was sick with the stomach bug and missed that one.<br />
<br />
On that day, there were some additional riders with us that were not part of our group, but who I knew. We agreed that the guys would go first with Robert, and the ladies would go as a separate group, with Janice taking up the rear. Six women in all started off and two of them who were more experienced riders quickly took the lead. Erica from my group and I kept close to each other - our pacing was about the same - but the women in front of us were always visible. At some point down Rogers we realized that Janet and Janice were nowhere to be found behind us. Rogers Road is fine, by the way. Nearly all downhill save for one short but annoyingly steep hill down toward the shopping centers. But with a moderate shoulder and traffic, it is not bad.<br />
<br />
When we got to the corner at Heritage Lakes and caught up with the first two ladies, one of the riders called Janice to find out if all was okay. Turns out Janet's chain came loose and they were unable to get it fixed and so had to turn back. So we continued on without them. <br />
<br />
Heritage Lakes is busy, but wide, but had the most debris to contend with, plus a couple of small but annoying hills. The traffic is fairly heavy on this stretch, too, as it's a major cut-through to the bypass. We managed it fine, again keeping a decent pace and keeping the two riders ahead of us in view at all times. I took the lead in front of Erica this time, but she was always right on my heel. <br />
<br />
We got to the intersection of 98, and went on through, then stopped at the Jones Dairy light. When the light turned, we headed off, tackling the first hill which is not too terrible, before leveling out for a bit as the road narrows. This is a rural stretch of road with fields and some minor subdivision entrances on the sides, but there is a LOT of traffic and not much shoulder in spots. Traffic is going about 50 miles an hour, people don't tend to slow down or move over and it's hairy, I won't lie. You just have to focus on keeping your bike straight and staying as far to the right as possible, avoiding the occasional pavement drop off and rutted shoulder. <br />
<br />
So after the road is level for a bit, you start to come into the second hill - the one everyone talks about. As has been my experience in the past, it's not as bad as people make it out to be. It's a hill - one hill - and you just do it and get through it and then it's done. You are definitely going to be in the lowest gears. Your pace is definitely going to be slow. It's maybe five minutes. No big deal. And the nice thing is, when you're done, you come to the intersection at Averette and that road is a piece of cake. It's relatively flat, wide, and easy. The only issue there is the potential for wind because it's pretty open. <br />
<br />
At Averette, the two front riders got some pretty good distance between themselves and me. But all in all, I think the ride took about 30 - 35 minutes. We left at around 1:50 or 2:00 and were done by 2:35. We pulled into the parking lot at Granite Falls and I took a little time putting my bike in the truck (I had to go inside for my keys to unlock the tailgate, then go back inside to store the keys again). Then I was off and running. <br />
<br />
I struggled at the beginning of the run, I won't lie. I haven't been doing enough brick training and my legs were tired. I think this is the biggest obstacle with this race. Because the hills are tough, your legs are particularly tired. Robert and Brandy quickly caught up to me and passed me on the first hill in Granite Crest. Brandy was always just a little bit ahead of me for the rest of the run. The first hill there is STEEP and it sucks. Then the course levels out, then it climbs again, through a gravel path and then up a hill into the next part of the neighborhood where you finally, upon reaching the top, turn around. Then you head to another off-road path that is very gravelly and rutted and none of like it and all of us are pushing for the race organizers to change it because it truly invites the possibility of rolling an ankle. That part of the course is all downhill. Erica was walking back up it as I was headed down (she was okay, just taking a break). Brandy was headed back up as I approached the bottom. And at the bottom, you turn and face a pretty steep climb back up. When I finally got back up to the top and onto the pavement, Robert was there waiting for me, and we ran together back to the club, which included one more moderate hill, a steep downhill, and then another moderate uphill climb back to the parking lot. It's a pretty ugly run course if you ask me. Anyway, we all talked for a while in the parking lot and I learned that most of the men's group were pretty far ahead from the get go (how do they do that???), with one member of the group lagging in the middle of the men and women, and then us. We all agreed that traffic was the biggest obstacle to the bike ride and that hopefully it would be much better the day of the race with it being earlier in the day and with police presence. <br />
<br />
I feel pretty good now that I've been able to ride the course twice, with one of those being a ride and run. I don't think I'll probably ride the bike course again before the race. I feel I've sufficiently taken my chances and don't want to tempt fate. Even our experienced road cyclists in the group feel that particular route is not worth the risk. Like I said, just an awful lot of traffic and a very narrow road. <br />
<br />
So today, I will probably train in the evening by swimming in the club's master's swim class (I haven't been in the pool in two weeks. Yikes!!!!) and doing something else - maybe strength training - in addition. The weather is supposed to improve over the weekend and maybe, just maybe, we will be done with this crappy winter once and for all. But I'm not holding my breath.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-88537262152801559682014-02-27T20:13:00.001-05:002014-02-27T20:13:09.313-05:00Supporting North Carolina's Teachers Regardless of Political AffiliationA friend of mine posted a photo on Facebook today of himself with several other people and Governor Pat McCrory. He was excited because the Governor had come to Franklin Academy, the charter school his children attend, and my friend had the opportunity to participate in a parent panel with him. <br />
<br />
I try very hard to temper my opinions when it comes to social media. I really don't want to alienate friends and I realize we all have our differing opinions. However, I often also question exactly how much I should hold my opinions back and why I should do so. <br />
<br />
It's tough. People post stuff to Facebook, so they're opening themselves up to criticism as much as they are to compliments, but let's be honest - it's really the compliments that we want and expect. Yet, a vital part of this country's health is founded on the ability to have lively and hopefully thought-provoking discussion and disagreement on a wide variety of issues and so, should I really hold myself back when it pertains to an issue that is very much in the news right now, and on which I am quite passionate in my opinion?<br />
<br />
In regard to this friend's post I did, after some consideration, make the comment that perhaps the Governor might want to come to a public school and see firsthand the effects of his administration's policies, and experience what our teaching professionals thought about it. I mean, really, a visit to a charter school that isn't subjected to the same academic requirements and for which admission is totally based either on a lottery system or who you might know? Nothing more than a photo op. Big deal.<br />
<br />
Of course, my comment generated an immediate response from someone, obviously a Republican, who argued that Wake County's problems preceded the current Governor (meaning she was blaming Democrats for all of the school system's failings), and went on about how hard she "fought" to get her kids into Franklin, and then went on to throw in a dig at the Common Core.<br />
<br />
Whoah. Way to stay on point, lady. But isn't this is the problem with the dialogue today? Ignore the actual argument I was making (that NC teacher pay ranks at the bottom nationally, that the current administration has cut any incentive for teachers to pursue a master's in education, that veteran teachers still aren't going to get a raise, that our lawmakers bitch about our lack of academic excellence but refuse to fund that excellence, that the expectations of teachers are so drastically out of whack with reality), and instead make it about politics, and then go off on a tangent about things that have nothing to do with the specific argument - Wake County schools and Common Core.<br />
<br />
It's nice, by the way, that this woman got her kids into a charter school Yay for her! I applied to some charters and magnets, but not being a particularly lucky person, I didn't get my number pulled out of the hat. I don't really think Franklin Academy is all it's made out to be anyway, and I wouldn't be proud of the fact that I got to jump ship from my local public school rather than support it. Way to be one of the privileged few sweetie. I also don't believe the Common Core is some liberal conspiracy designed to indoctrinate our children but that's a story for another post.<br />
<br />
The fact of the matter is, previous administrations did fail to provide teacher raises, because the economy was in the toilet and doing so would have been fiscally irresponsible at the time. Today, the economy is improving and North Carolina is one of the fastest growing states in terms of population. The Republican administration has the opportunity to really be groundbreaking in terms of its support of public education but through many well-documented missteps, it's decided to vilify our teachers instead, and throw the public education system to the wolves. What's the excuse right now for not reinstating routine pay raises? Oh, that's right - tax breaks, because they're more politically popular.<br />
<br />
Here's an ugly truth - public programs like schools require government funding. Taxes are a necessity - they pay for our public services. If anyone - Republican or Democrat - really believes we can function as a society without government intervention in paying for these things, they are living in la la land.<br />
<br />
North Carolina has ridiculously low property taxes. That's really nice, and I enjoy that fact. But, with the huge influx of people coming into this area, I think it's reasonable to take a look at increasing those taxes. We're talking a minute increase here folks - less that what you'd pay for a new 60" flat screen tv. And it would go miles toward improving our ability to fund education and restore faith in our teachers. And yet, no one is willing to float that idea. Why not? Does McCrory really believe we can continue to get by the way things are? Or is he just that unskilled as a politician that he doesn't have the chops to make a publicly unpopular thing happen even though it's necessary and right. A little of both, I think.<br />
<br />
Look, I know there are bad teachers out there, but this vilification of the profession as a whole is ridiculous. It's time we started treating teachers with respect. They attend four years of college. Their office is filled with 20+ kids in various stages of discipline, various stages of treatment for social issues, with varying family situations, all of which impact their ability to successfully teach these kids. They teach underachievers, middle of the road kids, and overachievers. They are creative, tireless, enthusiastic, and they love what they do. <br />
<br />
Are there bad teachers out there? Yes, there are. But it's time the principals bore the responsibility for them. After all, the principals interview them, make the hiring decision, and (should be) monitoring them for effectiveness. That doesn't always happen though. In fact, I believe a lot of the issues people have with teacher pay and how to effectively pay them on a merit-based pay system could be solved by refocusing our attention on the principals of the school and redefining their responsibility within the whole mix. <br />
<br />
Individual teachers who are creative, who teach the curriculum in innovative ways, who reach their students even if those students don't perform well on the standardized test, who make their kids want to learn - those teachers should not be penalized because their class, as a whole, falls below some politician's predetermined benchmark for success. <br />
<br />
But I digress. <br />
<br />
I just get so frustrated when I hear otherwise educated folks, who would never NEVER stand for the type of treatment from their own employers that these teachers must put up with, stand on their soapbox and make this a political blame game, while ignoring some very obvious facts. And those facts are that we need to make education a priority in the state of North Carolina, and in the country, that we need to treat the teaching profession with respect, that we need to clean up the top heavy bureaucracy that encompass the school boards and the administrations. We need to stop arguing about the situation and DO something useful about it. <br />
<br />
So, in all due respect to my friend, and to his legion of Facebook friends who will either silently nod their heads in agreement with Governor McCrory's policies or vocally disagree with me, I simply can't get excited about his elbow rubbing with the Governor at his kids' school, nor can I sit by silently and ignore the multitude of enthusiastic Facebook "likes" about it. <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-85085160749496837492014-01-30T13:37:00.001-05:002014-01-30T13:37:50.865-05:00This Winter WeatherNorth Carolina is not known for having particularly rough winter weather. From time to time, we might get a significant snowfall, or perhaps ice, but most often it's a dusting of snow or temps in the 30's for a period of time.<br />
<br />
This winter has been on the rougher side for us. It's been cold, off and on, for a while, with temps down in the single digits and this week in particular has been a wild weather ride.<br />
<br />
It was 67 degrees all the way back on Monday. I was at the park with the dog in jeans and a long sleeve shirt enjoying the beautiful day.<br />
<br />
On Tuesday, it started in the 50's and dropped to the 20's and we had four inches of snow on the ground by Wednesday morning. School was closed Tuesday, even though the snow didn't start until 5:30 p.m. or so, and if you want to know why, just google Atlanta, GA, January 2014 snowstorm, or Raleigh, NC, January 2005 snowstorm. <br />
<br />
Anyway, my tri training has derailed a bit this week. Yes, I could have done something Monday, but I didn't, as they are my designated day off. And I could have swam on Tuesday morning, but the girls were off of school and I didn't quite make it to the 9:30 a.m. class, and I worked at 1:00, so ...<br />
<br />
Wednesday was too icy and snowy, and today the option for Run Club was to run inside on the treadmills. Ugh. Big sour face. Just shoot me, thanks! Tomorrow I will finally jump back into the fray with an hour long cycle class followed by another hour in the pool. <br />
<br />
I sort of feel guilty about missing four days. Even with tomorrow's exercise, there's no way I can make up the time missed. While I want to say that it's not that big of a deal to me, I know I need to keep my momentum going strong and I know I could have exercised this week and was basically too lazy to do so. I used the weather as a handy excuse to complement my lack of motivation.<br />
<br />
Ah well. Here's hoping this is the last of this wintry nonsense. I moved south for a reason after all. (Oh my God, I can't imagine if I were still in Baltimore right now - I'd be going INSANE). Saturday is the first day of February, which is the real start to my New Year's resolutions anyway. January is always a lot of nonsense to me - a lot of new year noise if you will. I'm ready for February, to take the new year by storm, to welcome warmer weather, and to be able to ride my bike outside again without packing on two or three extra layers. So ... Bye bye snow, don't let the door hit ya'. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-74253939690528024192014-01-28T11:55:00.001-05:002014-01-28T11:55:27.505-05:00Tri Training Week 2Tri Club training is in it's second week, and already it seems like it's been longer than that. But things are going swimmingly (ha!).<br />
<br />
Hubby came by a decent racing bike, via a generous co-worker who does longer length races and bought a newer one a while back. Price was a donation to the animal shelter and we can deal with that. The bike is currently being tuned up, with some new parts and tires, at Spoke Cycles, a new shop in Wake Forest for roughly $200 or so - not too bad. Bike currently has clip-in pedals and he's going to give that a go as that will be new for him. I prefer to stick with my regular pedals on my Giant Escape hybrid. I have no desire for a racing bike right now. I was able to eek out a respectable 16 mph in my first race and I expect to do better this time around. So, I'm good.<br />
<br />
First night of training was Run Club, where we did warm-ups and dynamic stretching, a timed 1 mile test (10:30 for me, 7:30 for hubby), etc. First night of Tri Club training included core weight training - lots of planks and TRX - and a half hour of swimming (about 800 yards), followed by four days of stomach soreness like you would not believe. Guess my core needs some work! <br />
<br />
A 400 yard and 100 yard swim test a few days later put me at about 1:45 or thereabout for my swim time. Also expecting that to improve. Haven't really been in the water much lately, after all.<br />
<br />
The following week included time in the pool - 2000 yards of snaking, alternating easy and fast swimming, more core work and cycling, Run Club with hill repeats, more cycling class (too cold to go outside), then another class with 600 yards of snaking (sets of 150 followed by running up and back down the outside stairs to get used to the transition for the race), and a 5k run-through of the run course. I was supposed to swim today, but it's supposed to snow and the kiddos are off school, so I will do it later this week! <br />
<br />
All in all, it's going well. I tweaked a stomach muscle during the timed swim test, but that seems to be improving, and my core muscle soreness has subsided. Right calf is tight, but that is pretty usual for me. I did not like the run course for the race. There's a fair amount of off road / loose gravel to it and I can't really understand why the race organizers couldn't come up with an all-paved option. It's a weird course, and kind of dicey if you ask me. But, I'm easily completing a 5k now and that's a huge improvement over last year. Running is not my thing.<br />
<br />
In all events, I can safely say that I am built more for endurance than speed. Sigh. Hubby is better than me. And he's competitive - voted most likely to get caught up in the whole race thing, but more on that later. It's been fun, and nice to know that a 43-year-old broad can still hang. Cheers!<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-47813961487704847342014-01-09T15:13:00.000-05:002014-01-09T18:57:40.860-05:00Triathlon Training in the New YearWell, it's a new year folks, and guess what? I am not immune to the new year's resolution craze. <br />
<br />
I work at a gym, so that doesn't help either, nor does the fact that our club does a Biggest Chooser fitness challenge that kicks off every January. I participated in that last year as age has not been kind to me and I had reached a weight threshold I never thought would happen (I broke 140 pounds - a little too much on my 5'5" frame and a good 15 pound over my personal ideal weight). I lost ten pounds or so, but over the past year, some of that has found its way back onto my stomach and so, here I am again.<br />
<br />
This year, though, I am doing the tri club. So is my husband, though we have somewhat different goals. I want to run a few races this year, stay in shape, and prove that a 40-something broad can still kick ass. My husband also has these goals, but he thinks he'd like to work toward a half Iron Man - a little too ambitious for my taste. <br />
<br />
A side note ... My husband and I are both in our early forties. We <i>totally</i> fall into the cliche. I laughed at a recent Frazz comic strip, (you know, the one with the main character who looks like an adult Calvin) in which one of the characters basically said that running triathlons are what people do when they hit 40. It's sadly so true.<br />
<br />
For those unfamiliar with the specifics, I will outline them to the best of my knowledge. A sprint or mini tri, is typically a 250 to 500 yard swim, a 10 - 14 mile bike, and a 5k. Distances can vary depending on the race, but they typically can be completed in an hour and half to two hours tops. They're great for a beginner to get their feet wet. A half Ironman is a huge jump in my opinion. That typically involves a 1.2 mile swim, usually open water, a 56 mile bike, and a 13.1 mile run.<br />
<br />
I ran a sprint tri last year - the Smile Train - in June. I'd never done one before and wanted to prove to myself that I could. And, like I said, I'm in my early forties. The Smile Train tri is a 250 yard swim, 12 mile bike and 5k and I finished with a respectable time of 01:31:27:000. Considering I could not swim 25 yards across a pool three years or so ago, I feel I've come a long way. My husband has never done a sprint tri, yet I feel confident he would still kick my butt in time. <br />
<br />
So we ponied up the money, and went to the "meet and greet" last night, hosted by our trainers, Janice and Robert. I know them both - Robert is a phenomenal swimmer but has been only doing sprint tri's for three years or so. Still, he usually finishes in the top three overall. Janice does half Ironman races. She's short, loud, and abrupt, and you either love her or hate her. Me being a fellow Yankee in a sea of southerners, and having a tendency to be abrupt sometimes myself, I don't mind her so much. <br />
<br />
Janice spent an hour and a half discussing the training. It's my opinion that with some training of her own, she could have easily shaved 30 minutes off that time. <br />
<br />
Anyway, the long and the short of it is, I'm middle of the pack in terms of how serious I will be taking the training and the races. By this, I mean people who are REALLY into it, are REALLY into it. I, however, do not intend to buy $150 running shoes, or a $1000 race bike and I know that my $400 hybrid will do just fine as that's what I used for the Smile Train, and I'm quite happy with it. I will probably not spend $75 to get my bike professionally fit and I won't be buying cold weather gear for outside biking. My $2.50 knit gloves from Five Below are just fine. This is a short race, not Kona. My husband, since I know him so well, may get a little more carried away with things.<br />
<br />
That being said, I am excited about the regimen. There are nine of us in all - some have done tri's, some are swimmers, some are runners only. We all have something to gain. We're looking at two hours each week of each event - so six hours training. That's not too bad. A couple of hour-long swims, two bike rides or cycle classes, and two runs per week. I can handle that in my busy mom schedule. I'm also looking very forward to learning some tips and improving my swim-to-bike transition and transition times in general (they weren't so good for Smile Train!), and hopefully keeping myself from getting injured.<br />
<br />
I will post more info as the training begins (next week). I did hop on the bike today for a nice 12-mile ride on the greenways and clearly, it's been a while since I biked (a new teenage puppy in October seriously derailed me (no pun intended!!!) But here I go, into a bold new year!!<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-59014499159702048592013-12-10T10:39:00.003-05:002013-12-10T11:12:19.948-05:00Gobbler's Run<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QvEhb5Fq7e8/Uqc2K8z_oCI/AAAAAAAAAHQ/oocl32Hviv8/s1600/IMG_2350.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QvEhb5Fq7e8/Uqc2K8z_oCI/AAAAAAAAAHQ/oocl32Hviv8/s320/IMG_2350.JPG" width="320" /></a>M and I ran the Wake Forest Gobbler's Run, benefitting the Boys and Girls Club, on Thanksgiving morning. I'd been wanting to do this for a while, and I'd also been promising her we'd do a 5k together, for about six months now.<br />
<br />
So, off we went, a 7:30 a.m. in the 23 degree wind. We found a parking space, got registered just in time - a mere $55 but it was for a good cause and they still had t-shirts (bonus!) - and lined up with the other 2500 or so participants. And we ran! M did great. I was so proud of her - she doesn't exactly run often. She stopped occasionally, not to catch her breath but to rest her legs, then kept on going - what a trouper. We finished in just under 36 minutes. Awesome! All in all, it was a great run. Maybe because there were so many people there, or maybe because it was a new route, or maybe because I was focused more on M, it seemed like a fairly easy 3.1 miles to me. This is just crazy because a year ago, someone would have had to been seriously chasing me to get me to run. Anywhere.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dCWHO2VwKg8/Uqc18qkwmpI/AAAAAAAAAHI/QpgBFTqbvh4/s1600/IMG_2352.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dCWHO2VwKg8/Uqc18qkwmpI/AAAAAAAAAHI/QpgBFTqbvh4/s320/IMG_2352.JPG" width="320" /></a>Hubby and G and Molson the dog met us at the finish line, where we hung around for a little while before finally taking off. It was in the shade, the temps hadn't risen to much more than 28 degrees, and we were COLD, COLD, COLD.<br />
<br />
This turned out to be a very fun event where we saw lots of people from the community that we knew - teachers, friends, members and trainers at the club where I work. People were running with their families, their dogs, strollers. I think we'll definitely make it a tradition going forward. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-19359911844769748382013-12-10T09:54:00.003-05:002013-12-10T10:44:47.201-05:00Rain Rain Go AwayIt's raining again today. It's Tuesday and it's been gray and wet since Saturday. <br />
<br />
No, no. Don't get me wrong. I'm not complaining too much. It's about 50 degrees out and it's not snow or ice. Most of the country has snow and/or ice and is dealing with miserable conditions. <br />
<br />
But, when you have a one-year-old, 80 pound golden retriever puppy who needs his daily playtime outside chasing squirrels, the rain presents a problem.<br />
<br />
We have walked him, twice a day, in the drizzling rain, allowed him to play in the garage, and taken him on a car ride or two. Ah, but is now day four and he is having great difficulty dealing with the birds and squirrels that are mocking him on the other side of the windows.<br />
<br />
Why, do you ask, will I not let him out in the yard off leash? <br />
<br />
Apparently, there is quite the mud pit underneath our front lorapetalum bushes, which is also where the little birds roost and where he subsequently loves to play. My husband let him out on Saturday and he came back caked in mud. Forty-five minutes later of cleaning up, and I was instructed by hubby to never let him out in the yard unattended again. Until the rain stops and things dry out. Fair enough, but here's hoping he can keep it together for one more day.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-71082977191729573502013-12-10T09:54:00.002-05:002013-12-10T11:06:40.933-05:00No TV for You!I am sitting here trying to write and my girls, who are tracked out, are behind me watching My Little Pony on Netflix. <br />
<br />
We got rid of all but broadcast cable because Time Warner Cable sucks, as do all of the other three pay for services television companies. We figured Netflix would serve our needs, and it has, but clearly I need to put some parental controls on some of these obnoxious "kid" oriented shows.<br />
<br />
After telling the girls three times to "turn that crap down" I finally made them turn it off and leave the room, because I simply cannot write anything when Pinkie Pie is whining in the background about her muffins not being baked correctly. <br />
<br />
How on earth do we expect our daughters to rise above middle school drama contests that start to take shape in third grade and younger, when they're watching blazing examples of this same drama going on between these day-glo sherbert rainbow colored monsters created by some sadistic Disney wannabe production company????<br />
<br />
My oldest stomped away but I don't really care that she's mad at me because she's TEN and I simply can't understand why she would even want to watch that show anyway!<br />
<br />
Now, it's quiet, and I can get back to some quality writing!<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-24153142193529169862013-12-10T09:36:00.001-05:002013-12-10T10:44:58.067-05:00Bird Dog<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">So ... dog breaks through the invisible fence this morning (too tempted watching husband walk down the court without him). He takes off. We went looking for him. Dog apparently finds a neighbor way down the street who keeps chickens and gets himself one. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">While I am talking to the chicken lady, (can't find dog at this point), husband sees dog run back down through the neighborhood with chicken</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;">in his mouth. Chase ensues. Dog runs through back yard of new family just moving in this morning. Husband hears new kids say "that dog has a chicken!" Dog brings chicken back to house, drops it at end of driveway, jumps high over invisible fence line apparently thinking it would keep him from getting shocked (it didn't). Husband gets dog inside, comes back out, can't find chicken. Gets in truck to look for chicken, stopping at neighbor's houses along the way asking them if they've seen a chicken. Never finds it. So, the dog did his job - he can certainly retrieve birds! We owe the neighbor some money for chickens, and the new neighbors some sort of explanation. Willing to hire dog out to bird hunters for a fee.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WxD0lavX768/Uqcm0fFE4yI/AAAAAAAAAG4/x-49qwsJ7Vo/s1600/IMG_2285.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WxD0lavX768/Uqcm0fFE4yI/AAAAAAAAAG4/x-49qwsJ7Vo/s320/IMG_2285.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<i>I am a chicken thief.</i></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><br /></span></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-46258482943322340702013-12-10T09:31:00.001-05:002013-12-10T10:45:04.869-05:00Vitamins<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
My husband has decided recently that he is going to kick it up a notch when it comes to his midlife exercise and health routine. That's good. I commend him for this, and I must say that he's been looking pretty fine late sans shirt lately! </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Part of his efforts have involved monthly trips to the vitamin store to purchase whey protein (gross), which he drinks in conjunction with his workouts, and combo packs of vitamins. Some people may be familiar with these combo packs. They include all kinds of goodies - fish oil, multivitamins, tea tree something or other. While he was there, I also asked him to pick up a bottle of vitamin D, since I've been reading up on its benefits regarding cancer prevention.</div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
His daily combo pack also includes two multivitamins which he feels is a bit of overkill, so he's been giving me his extra vitamin each morning. He leaves them on the counter in the kitchen or the bathroom for me to find them when I finally pry my eyes open with the help of contact lenses or coffee.</div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I have a confession. I've been having some trouble keeping up with this daily regimen. </div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IfM6fbJkcdI/UqccfBH2gdI/AAAAAAAAAGo/gBXvfNiuRvU/s1600/vitamins.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IfM6fbJkcdI/UqccfBH2gdI/AAAAAAAAAGo/gBXvfNiuRvU/s320/vitamins.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
This is the second time in less than three weeks in which little piles of the buggers have started to pile up. I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed. Everywhere I go, there they are. My husband keeps adding more every day. He keeps asking me about them!</div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I'm supposed to take them, especially the vitamin D, with food and I just don't always remember to do it. The last time this happened (last week), I ended up throwing the extras away. Some of them had been exposed to the inevitable water that splashes around the counter each day. Some were sitting on the microwave for a while and were looking a little moldy. </div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
That was last week, and damn it, here I am again in the same predicament. What do I do with all of these extra vitamins? I'm never going to be able to catch up. I feel like a hoarder. Maybe I should slip them to the kids at the bus stop. Would that be bad? Is there a black market for vitamins? I hate to waste them. I do not have a solution to this problem.</div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-39771998333892526682013-10-25T09:24:00.003-04:002013-10-25T09:24:40.948-04:00Molson the DogIt has been nearly three weeks since our home visit with Molson and his foster family. The Thursday after they were out, his foster mom called to say she had chosen us to be his new family. That was really cool - the girls were super-excited about it and so were we. They brought him to us on the following Sunday. Papers were signed, and a few tears shed by the foster mom, and then they were gone and he was here.<br />
<br />
He's a good dog, but I won't say that the first week wasn't tough. The weather, which had been gray and damp for seven full days already, continued on. The first morning we had him, I had to work and figure out what to do with him while I was gone. The crate we'd borrowed from a friend was too small and I ended up puppy-proofing our bedroom and closing him in it, with fingers crossed as I headed to work a half-hour late. He barked and whined, and I wondered what we'd gotten ourselves into. <br />
<br />
That week, we bought a larger crate, tried out three different walking leads, got used to daily drags (him dragging us), agonized over getting the invisible fence fixed, took him to an off-leash dog park, and read infinite articles about training (Cesar Milan truly is the ultimate Dog Whisperer). It was like having a newborn again. We didn't know him and he didn't know us and there was definitely a breaking-in period. I wondered on several occasions whether this had been the right choice, and I decided right then and there that people who foster dogs are very special indeed.<br />
<br />
The second week has been much better. The sun came out to stay for a while, the fence got fixed and training has begun. We found the right lead for Molson and he is doing so well with heeling (thank you Cesar). He likes his larger crate and will tolerate it for short periods of time while we're gone. He has left the guinea pigs alone for the most part, having really been interested in them more as playmates than food. He still tries to sneak the girls stuffed animals when he thinks we're not looking, even though he knows he's not supposed to. I am back to cleaning the house obsessively so the hair does not overtake everything else. I am anxiously awaiting the Facebook post from NRGRR that he has been adopted by a nice family that will give him lots of attention and love.<br />
<br />
All is well.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-62822142626641676232013-10-07T15:32:00.001-04:002013-12-10T14:30:52.883-05:00A Golden Time?Ten months after we lost our sweet girl, Monday, to cancer, we have decided it's time to bring a new dog into the family.<br />
<br />
We were not ready before. Monday's death hit us hard. She was a twelve-year-old member of the family and we were sad to see her go. But we've also missed the company of a dog, we've been promising the girls, the summer is over, and our busy travel schedule has slowed down.<br />
<br />
We applied with Neuse River Golden Retriever Rescue in August, and have been looking at other rescue organizations as well. NRGRR is our first choice, though, because Monday was a golden mix and we fell in love with the temperament of the breed, shedding be damned. Whose heart doesn't melt every time they see a picture of one of these wonderful dogs at the site of a tragedy, like the Boston Marathon bombing, or Newtown, lending their calm, docile personalities to people most in need?<br />
<br />
Anyway, we finally went out on Saturday to one of their twice monthly events, to meet a few dogs. There were some puppies we were interested in, but some slightly older dogs, too, and we thought we'd have a look.<br />
<br />
The puppies were cute, but they were more labrador than golden and not quite what we were looking for. Hubby liked a little golden mix named Diddie but G and I couldn't stop looking at Molson, a beautiful 10-month-old who was exactly the opposite of what we thought we might want. Opposite in that he wasn't a she, and he was BIG. <br />
<br />
But isn't that the way it goes? After the event, and some discussion, we decided to put our names in the hat for Molson. <br />
<br />
His foster and her son brought him out to the house yesterday which is a really beneficial thing for both parties involved. It was a great opportunity for us to get to see him again, and on our own turf! He is a big boy, a surprise for us since Monday was so short! He was incredibly sweet and well-behaved. He made himself quite comfortable as he checked out every room. The guinea pigs were of great interest to him. <br />
<br />
I think the visit went well, but who knows? Rescue organizations, especially breed-specific ones, can be very picky as they really want to ensure a good match. We have two kids, a good-sized yard, previous experience with goldens, and a flexible work schedule. But, we have an electric fence, not a wooden one, and no other dogs for him to play with. Will it matter? Time will tell.<br />
<br />
The foster and Molson have some other home visits to make this week. We will have to be patient and see. I wouldn't allow hubby to slip a $20 under Molson's collar. Bribery is tacky after all! Stay tuned for more info!<br />
<br />
<em>To check out available dogs and learn more about Neuse River Golden Retriever Rescue:</em><br />
<a href="http://www.goldenrescuenc.org/" target="_blank"><em>http://www.goldenrescuenc.org/</em></a><br />
<em></em><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-1100833752672856372013-05-28T10:15:00.003-04:002013-05-28T10:15:34.340-04:00Crazy HairMy father's family has some crazy in it. From severe control issues to basic OCD, it's watered itself down through the generations, but I can attest that it sneaks out in me when it comes to a few certain issues. Sadly, for my girls, one of those issues has to do with their hair.<br />
<br />
My girls have fine, flyaway hair with just a touch of a natural wave. Throw in a weird part and some cowlicks, it's a recipe for disaster. G's is the worst, M's is more normal, but by the end of the day, they both have the ability to look like someone has held a hand mixer to the back of their heads for a while.<br />
<br />
From shampoo to haircuts, this has been a terrible, frustrating nine-year quest for me, one that has spurred an argument or five between me, my husband, and my kids but one that is thankfully winding down as they have gotten older and we have found solutions to the issues.<br />
<br />
Let's start by discussing the haircuts. As someone who is still traumatized from many a bad haircut when I was a kid, I can't quite express the level of stress I experience when it's time to get my own hair done. My very mild OCD comes out at its worst at these times because cutting my hair is not something I can do myself, thus I cannot personally control the outcome. I am terrified of being stuck with a style that makes me look horribly ugly until it grows out, and I obsess when it's done over whether it's even on both sides, and on and on. <br />
<br />
This obsession has, of course, transferred to my worries over my girls hair. I know it needs to be cut. I want a nice style for them that doesn't look butchered. I want it even. For M's very fine and relatively straight hair, should we do a rounded bob, a blunt cut, a straight-across trim? What would look best? What would work best for her hair? For G, whose hair is, literally, all over her head, grows so freaking slow, and truly has reminded me of Jeff Daniel's hair in Dumb and Dumber, I need someone who can work magic on it with some masterful style that will make it look normal. I need someone who will not screw it up, because I know if they do, it will take two years to correct.<br />
<br />
I don't want to pay big bucks for a kids 'do, but also don't want some random person at a walk-in to botch it. I won't have my children going around looking like they've been attacked by a Flowbee. So, I literally hyperventilate at the thought of getting their hair done. I mean it. I hyperventilate. <br />
<br />
I have found that there are really just three options for a kids cut. You can go to your salon and have your person do it. This will cost anywhere from $25 with tip. You can go to one of the specialty kid salons and pay $18. Or you can pay $10 at one of the walk-ins and hope for the best. I have done all of these options and have yet to be satisfied by any experience. <br />
<br />
At the froo-froo salon, it came down to an issue of value. It's hard to justify $25 for a kids cut. I mean, it's a trim. I didn't feel, as far as the cut itself was concerned, that I was getting my money's worth. The ONLY advantage to it is my stress level was mitigated. I felt a lot better about my person cutting their hair because my person is really, really good and I knew if nothing else, the cut would be straight. Plus, she gave me a really good tip about taming the flyaway frizz that involved adding just a little bit of regular conditioner to a spray bottle and fill the rest with water. It will help tame the tangles, it won't make their hair look greasy (I swear!), it makes it soft, and is all around the best advice I've gotten so far. <br />
<br />
The kids cut place - the one that specializes in children - yielded mixed results. They were nice in that they put in a video for the kids to keep them still and quiet during the cut. And usually, I was okay with the results. They did a really good job for a while and they put up with me hawking over them as they cut the girls' hair. But, they are also the place that gave G the bad bang cut - the one that started way too far back on her head. They also had a tendency to rush during the busy times (like holidays) and for $18, I'm not putting up with that. I usually avoid haircuts during the holidays but sometimes it's unavoidable. After one particularly rushed cut, I went back for a re-do, and that was the end of things for me. Besides, once your kids get to be about eight or nine-years-old they're too cool to go there anymore.<br />
<br />
The walk-in places are so hit or miss. You never know who you're going to get - stylists move in and out of those places like a carnie after the show is over - so you might find someone you really like only to have them disappear forever after a year or so. You basically walk in and get whoever's next on the queue, unless you do have someone you like that you can request. Not to disparage all those in the haircutting profession, but I don't like having to choose between the chain-smoking 60-year-old who's been around the block and has "uneven bowl-cut" written all over her, or the 40-something chick with the dyed-black Motley Crue hair and tats. <br />
<br />
The most recent haircut we got was at a walk-in. There is one woman there who has done an okay job with G's hair in the past, so I have asked for her a few times now. It's pretty much a dry-cut, which I've had to work hard to deal with, and she sort of just goes at it, but for G's wave and frizz, I guess it seems to work. But I wasn't happy with the job she did with M's, who has straighter hair. The same approach yielded a really uneven mess with long little pieces here and there amongst what was supposed to be a straight, even line. Of course it wasn't obvious until we got home, sent me into a controlled fit in the bathroom, and found us back at the strip mall several hours later where Motley Crue re-cut it for me so that it was straight. But, because of this experience, I am no closer now than I ever was to knowing what we will do the next time we must go get their hair cut. I have actually considered taking a course on cutting hair, just so I could do theirs well, a basic trim, until they're old enough to warrant a trip to the more expensive place. It drives me nuts that I can't cut their hair myself. I have managed to control the urge more than once, knowing, thank goodness, my limitations. <br />
<br />
I've often thought how lucky the moms are who have boys. A quick buzz cut on number two, and they're done. Unless they're the weird mom who insists on giving her kid a bowl cut well into his later elementary school years. Sorry, but bowl cuts on boys are so dumb. But I digress. <br />
<br />
On to the maintenance. <br />
<br />
All was well when it came to hair maintenance until my girls became old enough to shower on their own. Then all hell broke loose. When I suddenly was not the one overseeing the lathering, rinsing, conditioning and rinsing of the hair, the OCD issues reared their ugly head. My poor kids. We spent endless nights going over how to properly wash their hair. A quarter-size amount of shampoo. No, a little more. Don't twirl with your fingers - get in there and scrub it! Don't forget the sides, the top, the back. Rinse it. Rinse it all! RINSE IT!!! Oh, and the conditioner... wow, they just can't get that right. We have tried kids 2-in-1 products, adult 2-in-1 products, separate shampoo and conditioner and just shampoo, with a light spray of the conditioner in a bottle. Eureka. In the end, that was the solution that finally worked for us.<br />
<br />
Add to this the fact that I work two nights a week and must therefore relinquish control to my husband and to the girls. I have sent my children back to the showers in the morning more than once to correct what I perceived were inadequacies in their hair washing prowess. Oh, the arguments between them, and me, and my husband over this nonsense! Oh, but he just doesn't understand the long-lasting social issues that it will cause my daughters if they go to school with bad hair. <br />
<br />
He insists that if they end up on the psychiatrist's couch as adults, my hair issues will be one of the main reasons. I don't disagree. <br />
<br />
Where are my poor daughters in all of this? Well, they've learned to put up with me. M, God love her, is patient beyond her years, and just goes along with me. They both know that the hair is just my weak point. They (barely) put up with fifteen minutes of hair brushing to get their ponytails just right - no bumps, no weird separations. They put their feet down at me blow-drying and styling each day. <br />
<br />
They are older now, and I have just, in the last 6 months, gotten to the point where I leave them alone about their hair. Usually. I know I have to let it go, and let them feel good about what they're doing. <br />
<br />
I feel only mildly better when I talk to my friends and realize they have their own OCD trigger points. One mom goes ballistic over how her daughters brush their teeth. Now, I don't do that too much. That's just really crazy!<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-19903441958246552112013-02-04T15:31:00.003-05:002013-02-04T15:31:59.203-05:00The Ravens won the Super Bowl last night! Woo Hoo! <br />
<br />
I'm a Baltimore girl and I just have to say that I'm pretty darned excited about it!<br />
<br />
I love the Ravens. Love them all! Ray Lewis, Ray Rice, Terrell Suggs, Jacoby Jones, Ayanbadejo, Ngata, Pierce, Flacco, Harbaugh. Love these guys!<br />
<br />
It was a real nail-biter of a game, too. The Ravens were about to run away with it, until the lights went out. Talk about a game-changer. But they pulled it off in the end.<br />
<br />
They deserved the win. They really did. They've had such a tough year, starting, really, with the crushing defeat against the Patriots in last year's AFC Championship. There were so many injuries, family tragedies. There were careers on the line. They have an excellent coach, and a whole lot of heart. I'm glad they won.<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-71687005350457491632012-10-17T06:27:00.001-04:002012-10-17T06:27:04.315-04:00Stay at Home MomsI am feeling sentimental and overly thoughtful these last few days. There's no particular reason for it. It's just that sometimes, time catches up with me, I become acutely aware of it's constant passage, and I begin to think too much about it.<br />
<br />
I am thinking, specifically, about my girls. They are nine- and seven-years-old now, time that has passed in the blink of an eye. I truly don't know where it went. One day, I was bringing my oldest home from the hospital, all five pounds, 14 ounces of her, and the next, she's a sassy, smart, pretty 4th grader practicing her katas in a white tae kwan do uniform every Tuesday and Friday night. <br />
<br />
I often tell new mothers to enjoy their little ones, for it goes so fast. I think it falls on somewhat deaf ears - they think they have all the time in the world, that the days drag in a slow, neverending stream of feedings and diaper changes. But. It goes so fast.<br />
<br />
It's especially ironic that, as my girls get older, they occasionally look back on their baby years and marvel at the fact that they crawled around the floor <em>so long ago. </em>For indeed, to them, it was a lifetime ago, something they don't remember. Only nine and seven years, yet so much time has passed for them, filled with school and friends and games and play. Time truly is relative.<br />
<br />
So with all that being said, I must weigh in on the mommy wars debate a little, not to stir the pot, for I have no judgment one way or another for how women choose to live their lives, or for the circumstances that guide their choices. No, not to stir the pot, but as testimony to my own particular situation in my own little portion of the universe.<br />
<br />
When our oldest was born, I was a working mom. I worked for a financial company in the south and boy I hated working there. It was a man's company all the way, it was stressful, and I remain convinced to this day that my daughter's tiny birthweight was entirely attributed to that stress, and financial stress brought on in part by our own financial issues and in part by uncertainty imparted by my employer in regard to maternity leave coverage.<br />
<br />
So she was born, and I was off for three months. I came back to work for five, cried nearly every day for those first weeks, and spent every lunch hour down the street at the daycare which was doing my job raising my daughter.<br />
<br />
Needless to say, I quit. I was not cut out for the working mother thing. I simply couldn't juggle the household chores, the schedule fluctuations of an eight-month-old, the husband, successfully. And two weeks after I quit, I learned I was pregnant again, so fate was definitely at work.<br />
<br />
Financially, it was the most enormous struggle. We had no money, I started a home-based business, we borrowed money from my parents to get our heads above water. We soon had two children under the age of two, and I was stressed. For five years, we struggled financially - the business failed, I put it to rest, we cleaned up our financial house once again... we struggled!<br />
<br />
Yet, I will never be so grateful for the time, because looking back on it now, when finances are considerably improved, I know it is time with my girls that I was so fortunate to have and which I would never be able to get back. I needed that time with them. I needed, nine years down the road, to know that I gave them that time even though I see myself as the most imperfect mother who made so many mistakes. Though I could have worked, pushed through and made it work so that finances weren't such an issue, I realize that, for me, doing so would have brought a different set of frustrations altogether. No answer is perfect, but staying home was the particular answer for me.<br />
<br />
I am glad I gave them our own vision of childhood - the ability to sleep in when they were tired, curl up with me when they were sick, play in the sprinkler on a nice day outside, go to the park, take a walk, give me a hug, whenever they, or I, wanted to. I am grateful to my husband for, although we struggled, he ultimately supported what we were doing. I'm grateful for the time, the fleeting, fleeting time, even now as I feel I am always grasping, trying to hold on to them, touching only their coattails as they continue to move forward, grow up, grow away. Thank God for the time.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-81996707044794678272012-07-31T15:26:00.004-04:002012-07-31T15:26:52.521-04:00Deep BreathsOne day at a time, one day at a time, one day at a time. I find myself saying these words a lot these days. <br />
<br />
Maybe it's because I'm feeling old and am seeking a means to slow down time. Maybe it's because I'm feeling increasingly anxious lately over the ever-growing list of things I want to do and things I need to do, and things I fear I will never get done. (Franklin Covey and its prioritized lists be damned!!! I don't feel an endorphin rush for having checked one item off a list of 100). <br />
<br />
Many years ago, in BK time (Before Kids), I silently ridiculed acquaintances who lived overscheduled lives, their kids in three different activities every season, who never have time to attend parties because little Johnny has a soccer game. I still ridicule them, but I realize now how difficult it is, realistically, not to be them.<br />
<br />
I want my children to have the opportunity to try things. I want them to be around other kids and develop strong social skills. But damn, that takes a lot of friggin' time!<br />
<br />
Last year was the first time the girls were really involved in structured activities. At seven- and eight-years-old, I figured I'd put it off for as long as I could. M did chorus, year-round swim team, and art classes. G did gymnastics and Indian Princesses. So we jumped in with both feet, arms, hands, legs, what have you... I rationalized. Chorus was before school one day a week so no big deal. Gymnastics and art class were both on Tuesday evening, so two birds with one stone. Year-round swimming was two nights a week and we could pick and choose and it was only for 45 minutes. Indian Princesses was sporadic - maybe once every two weeks at best. <br />
<br />
Ha. <br />
<br />
So .... I wasn't crying when M decided to drop swimming after her initial, required three-month commitment. And I won't deny I did a little dance when G broke her arm at the Spring Outing and had to drop the last month of gymnastics (I filled out that cancellation form faster than a squirrel on crack). <br />
<br />
In late May, art classes ended for the season and we had a breather. In June, summer swim started up which required practice three- to- four nights a week plus meets every Tuesday evening but it only lasted until mid-July. And then, I reasoned, we were done and we wouldn't make the same (over)scheduling mistakes again.<br />
<br />
Now, here it is, late July and I have found that I am wrong, wrong, wrong!<br />
<br />
Here's where it all went awry - I signed up G for gymnastics on Saturday mornings. How smart! No after-school homework conflicts. M will be taking art on Thursdays at 4:30 pm (if the instructor ever calls me back but I digress - that's another story) which allows me to drop her off right after school, head to my part-time job, then have her dad pick her up an hour later on his way home from work. No problem! <br />
<br />
But wait. M is also going to try Tae Kwan Do this year, which is on Tuesdays and Fridays at 7:00 pm. Granted, it's right across the street from our neighborhood, but it's still taking up time on our schedule. And ... we still haven't decided about chorus for M this year. And ... we're now a "seasonal" family, meaning we have an activity going on every stinking season. <br />
<br />
How... Did... This... Happen?????? <br />
<br />
And yet, I tell myself, I should do this for my girls. I must. Because even though my particular parents didn't participate in this nonsense, it doesn't mean that it wasn't still going on back then. We didn't participate because my mom ran a home daycare and couldn't spend all of her time running us around. And, because my rather old-school father wanted the family home in the evenings, with dinner waiting on the table. Part of me can't blame him at all (see my rantings during the whole first part of this post). But then part of me believes that maybe if I'd been allowed to do some activities myself, I wouldn't have been quite so shy, I might have been more motivated in school, I might have been better off.<br />
<br />
What I want is to find a happy medium between no participation at all and the balls to the wall craziness that comprises travel softball, travel soccer, multiple activities starting from the age of two, or any other sort of all-consuming activities that cause parents to forget that they are, in addition to being parents, a family unit as well, and that family unit has lots of other aspects to it outside of the kids' enrichment needs.<br />
<br />
We'll see if I can achieve that happy medium. Until then, deep breaths, deep breaths, deep breaths.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-14579191351182790812012-05-08T13:41:00.004-04:002012-05-08T13:41:59.772-04:00I attended mass on Sunday, during which time a priest for whom I do not particularly care, utilized the homily to tell me how I should vote, and that I should, if my children expressed that they thought they were gay, try to turn them back toward heterosexuality. <br />
<br />
I am disappointed, though not surprised, that the Catholic Church, or any church, feels they have the right to dictate how I vote, and more disappointed that they care more about admonishing homosexuality than teaching love and tolerance. Through recent actions of priests in regard to homosexuality, such as a priest who denied a lesbian the right to receive communion at her mother's funeral mass, they are portraying themselves more as an institution of hate. If they wish to view homosexuals as not living in a state of grace, and therefore choose to deny the sacraments to them, I suppose that is their choice, though an unfortunate one, and one that does not apparently apply to their own clergy. But they have no business attempting to browbeat their parishioners in an attempt to dictate public policy. There is a very good reason why our founding fathers encouraged the separation of church and state. <br />
<br />
On another note, Father Buckler should pay more attention to the number of parishioners who routinely walk out on his homilies because of his dismal failure to communicate to them with respect, or in a way that relates the homily in any way to our daily lives. He has angered and alienated more people than I care to admit. Perhaps he should consider that the priesthood is not his true calling. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-38860276708009583492011-11-15T14:44:00.000-05:002011-11-15T14:44:01.034-05:00A Story Excerpt<!--StartFragment--> <br />
<div class="MsoNormal">Orange-red embers pulsed and flickered in the bottom of the copper saucer, now dirty, dented and stained from exposure to the elements over the course of several years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The last remnants of the fire still shared some heat, warming the man’s legs as he sat, transfixed, in the warm November night.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He poked at it occasionally with a stick, startling the dog that lay in the leaves next to him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">“Go back to bed Charlie,” he mumbled, and the dog dutifully laid its head back down on the ground, though its ears still perked up occasionally as it parsed out the sounds beyond camp – leaves falling with each gust of wind, crickets chirping, an animal sneaking through the shadows.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Above the man and the dog a string of lights had been suspended between two trees and now, even with intermittent burnt out bulbs, they lit the perimeter satisfactorily, swaying in the pleasant, breeze.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He stared beyond them, at the silhouettes of leaves against the sky, wondering absently what planet was lit so brightly against the dark. Then he tilted his head to the left, looking into the distance at the milky blue-white illumination of the clouds, as the waning moon struggled to make itself seen.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">A siren from a police car, or perhaps an ambulance, sounded in the background amidst a dull quiet roar of traffic noise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was never certain where that noise came from.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There wasn’t a major highway nearby – just Capital Boulevard, the main thoroughfare that brought folks out to the suburbs from downtown, and Main Street, a not-terribly-busy road either.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Neither</span> were heavily traveled at night.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Either way, it reminded him of Maryland where the house he grew up in had the same sound – the constant, dull roar of traffic from I-95 that ran several miles from his neighborhood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It reminded him, too, of his grandparents’ house, off of Liberty Road, where he lay in their bed late into the night while the adults celebrated the holidays downstairs, and the noise was more constant and sirens were commonplace beyond their bedroom window.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was oddly comforting to him.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">He sighed, staring back at the fire, savoring the evening that was devoid of the day, devoid of progress, of electronics, of everything 21<sup>st</sup> century.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yet still, he felt compelled to pull out his phone just, he thought, to check the time.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">A few moments later, perhaps because of the quickly approaching midnight hour or perhaps because the spell had broken, he decided the night must end.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He lifted himself out of the plastic Adirondack chair, poked the fire one more time, and threw his phone into it, before heading inside.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On his way, he unplugged the lights and called the dog, who lumbered along, nonplussed by the course of events.</div><!--EndFragment-->Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-43786904860540707232011-10-06T09:51:00.000-04:002011-10-06T09:51:21.331-04:00MorningsWell, school is back in session. Track out has ended and here I find myself again, trying to regroup. It's one thing I'm not sure I like about year round - the back and forth between lives - nine weeks in one mindset, three weeks in another. <br />
<br />
In traditional calendar schools, one knows there will be one long summer break, and that is one life. That is long, lazy summer days, endless time at the pool, kids home, lunches whenever, mornings in slow motion. Then September comes and back to school and lunches and busy-ness that way and one can settle into it for a good nine months.<br />
<br />
But in year-round it's constant motion and change. Nine weeks in, time to get projects at home started and complete, lunches, papers, homework, field trips, volunteering, conferences, end of quarter celebrations, done. Then kids home all the time and projects are put on hold. A week easing into track out time, planning play dates around an ever-decreasing number of time slots in friends' busy lives, fitting in activities, packing and shopping for vacation, late nights for a short time, then easing quickly back to earlier bedtimes for track out ends in just a week, four days, tomorrow.<br />
<br />
My head spins and it seems like as the kids get older, the time is quicker, crazier, busier. I don't know that we ever really get to relax, not the way one does during summer vacation.<br />
<br />
But then, isn't that the way the world goes now? Few of us are fortunate enough to even be able to stay home. This economy isn't very forgiving in matters of family time - it is nearly impossible to get by on one income and has been for a long time. And for those of us who are able to (sort of) make it work, we still struggle to slow things down, if not for us, then for our kids, so that they might still, somehow, enjoy being a kid when the world is pushing them to be little adults.<br />
<br />
That is my struggle with year-round in a nutshell. Sure it's nice to have flexibility in vacation time, and it's nice for the kids to theoretically get a routine break, and sure, I'd probably get tired of the long summer days after a while. But summer breaks force us all to slow down, remind us all to take a long deep breath, make us all learn to enjoy each other's company again. <br />
<br />
Even in today's world where every kid is in a sport and parents enroll their children in travel leagues that become a whole family activity, and many families see both parents working, I can't help but feel that the year-round calendar complicates things, makes schedules crazier, imposes an unnecessary burden on our lives. I wonder, in twenty years when society looks back and evaluates its success, what they will determine.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-42412122184657311462011-10-02T00:35:00.001-04:002011-10-02T07:38:15.784-04:00RainbowsWe left Myrtle Beach late yesterday afternoon. It was 84 degrees and sunny, but as we approached the I-95 corridor the sky was looking stormy due to the line of thunderstorms crossing the Carolinas from west to east. By the time we'd been on I-95 for 30 minutes or so, we were smack in the middle of the storms, my husband driving precariously through intermittent bands of heavy, windshield spattering rain as I desperately fiddled with the defrost mode to find the right setting that would allow a clear view of the road ahead. The temperature reading on our dash was dropping quickly, first 75 degrees, then 70, then 64.<br />
<br />
At some point, as we marveled at the beautiful sunshine to our left, the ominous deep gray sky in front, and the stormy mottled sky to our right, my husband remarked that he hadn't found the rainbow yet, for surely there would be one.<br />
<br />
And shortly after, sure enough, it came in the form of a brilliant double bow, one whose clarity and depth of color I have never witnessed before. The arc stretched out before us on the right and we were able to see the full bow, end to end, for many miles as we traveled. I tried to snap some pictures, but the quality of color was lost. It was something that had to be seen in person.<br />
<br />
It was a lovely moment in a very stressful drive, in a very stressful and busy time in our lives, after a weeklong vacation that fit the description dubiously at best. Rainbows always seem to portend good things, a purging of sorts of all bad thoughts and worries. <br />
<br />
As the remnants of a long, hot, ho-hum summer pass on by us, I hope this rainbow does, indeed, mean good things.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-79850520655241336962011-06-01T09:33:00.000-04:002011-06-01T09:33:02.712-04:00AliensLast night, G was afraid to go to sleep (an on-again, off-again, but recurring theme). She had a serious conversation with her father when he came up to see what was wrong that went as follows:<br />
<br />
Her: "I saw something green flash outside my window. I think it was an alien."<br />
<br />
Him: "There are no aliens around here. I'm pretty certain it was a lightening bug."<br />
<br />
Her: "Well okay, but if there <i>are</i> aliens around here, I'm moving to Florida!"<br />
<br />
Him: "I think you'll find there are a lot more aliens in Florida than there are here."<br />
<br />
<br />
Really, Florida? <br />
<br />
Well, we are going to be spending some vacation time there this summer (no, we're not going to see the rat), so clearly that was fresh in her mind and I'm impressed that she retrieved and used it so effectively.<br />
<br />
I'm also amused at my husband's bit of sarcastic humor there. But the joke is likely to be on us. If I know our daughter well, the alien / Florida theme is likely to re-occur, and if it does, it will most certainly be just in time for our trip.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-18880311584438486902011-05-03T10:27:00.003-04:002011-05-03T16:38:18.097-04:00ConfessionalsMy seven-year-old daughter, the apple of my eye, the perfect child, has been misbehaving. She came to us in a bout of guilt-induced tears last night to tell us so.<br />
<br />
Her heavy heart was lifted some when she got these tidbits off her chest: she'd embellished a photograph from her school writing folder of her sister stooping over a bucket of shells at the beach by adding poop coming from her behind. She'd drawn pictures of hairy butts and things during free time at school. She'd watched Chowder even though she wasn't supposed to. She'd thought the drawings were funny at the time, but now apparently she just feels weird. She said she'd tried to wipe off the markered poop but it just smeared and looked that much worse.<br />
<br />
It is very hard indeed to keep a straight face when your daughter confesses her biggest sins and they all center around potty humor. Hairy butts, really? Well, I guess she ought to feel weird! We had to leave the table several times because the hits just kept on coming and at 40 years of age, I guess none of us is to immune to a good poop story once in a while.<br />
<br />
These little confessionals of hers have become a habit lately, surfacing every month or so when her laundry list of misbehaviors get the best of her. It seems to me she's figured out a rather crafty way to do something wrong and not really get gravely punished for it. I have to marvel at exactly how deeply Catholicism is ingrained within her DNA!<br />
<br />
Anyway, we've caught on to her. After last night's confessional, she'll be serving a punishment of no tv for the foreseeable future. I don't care too much about the drawings, though we tried to stress the inappropriateness of the subject matter. But she is in trouble for watching "Chowder" on Cartoon Network (a perfectly awful little cartoon that she has no business watching) when she'd been specifically told not to do so. <br />
<br />
Meanwhile, I need to work on my poker face because it's so hard not to laugh at this sort of stuff. In ten years, when she's coming to me about more adult matters, I know I'll want the times back when the worst thing on her conscience were some hairy butt drawings that sent me from the table in a fit of private laughter.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-83059587279582966292011-04-27T09:50:00.002-04:002011-04-27T10:14:26.263-04:00Watching the Grass GrowIt's raining again today. This is a good thing, as North Carolina has been flirting with drought status for several seasons now and we need the infusion of water. Plus, my little three-quarter acre has some grass growing on it in nearly every spot, which is nothing short of a miracle!<br />
<br />
Growing things here in the south is not the same easy endeavor as up north. Our neighbors, also Maryland transplants, would attest to that fact. Our soil is not the rich, healthy, black soil of Maryland in which anything will grow. Plants and grass do not thrive here, they merely survive, struggling to stretch their roots into nutrient-deprived hard-packed, clumpy, red clay. I cannot simply pick up a beautiful flower from Lowes, bring it home, and pop it into the ground. I must dig, and till, and amend, and supplement. And if I'm lucky, in three or four years, the flower will flourish. Ah, so frustrating for wannabe gardeners like us. When I visit my sister north of Baltimore and listen to her complain about how invasive my grandmother's roses are, and I stare longingly at the massive lilac just planted last season and which is now covered in impossibly fragrant late spring blooms ... well, I just want to smack her.<br />
<br />
We have been in our house for nearly nine years now. When I think about it, our yard and garden is largely reflective of our time here in North Carolina, which is going on 13 years altogether. When we bought the house, the yard was nothing more than a tangle of trees and overgrown vines and weeds. It begged for someone to transform it, clean it up, make it work. Similarly, when we moved here from the beach, our lives were just starting out, our future uncertain. We faced difficult times that made us want to turn back, return to what we knew. We had no money, we had no friends. We had difficult issues from back home that pulled at us, complicating our choices.<br />
<br />
But we had a vision. We wanted to look out from our windows and see a lawn stretch out before us, with paths and little spots to sit and reflect on the day - something successful from what was once a tangled mess. <br />
<br />
Like our relocation south, it was so soon apparent that we'd bitten off way more than we could chew. We cut and dug and tilled and raked and threw way too much money into the dirt. We fussed about the hickory nuts, the oak saplings that sprung up everywhere, the spiky balls from those useless gum trees, the gross, slimy masses of mushrooms that cropped up everywhere, the mosquitos! We seeded, fertilized, limed, and then called in professionals. <br />
<br />
This spring, nine years into it, we feel pretty good about what we see. As I said, the grass and weeds are green and growing. Some of the things we've planted over the years are actually thriving. The mature hardwoods have been thinned to a manageable level. There is even a bench. Our lives, too, have paralleled. We have managed to weather the hard times here, set down a few roots, grow a few kids successfully. In our path back to the beach, we are, dare I say, happily wandering along. <br />
<br />
I am realistic. I know that in a month or so, when the hot southern heat sets in, and the rain showers become fewer and further in between, the grass will fade, and I will once again fuss about the five gallon buckets I must lug around the yard to keep things alive. I know we will eventually need to don our regular protective coating of Deep Woods Off just to be able to sit on the bench at all. I know I will sigh in frustration at the failure of a plant or two. I know, too, we will face bumps in our own path. That is life. But I feel a sure sense of accomplishment at what I see when I look around, and I have learned to enjoy the heck out of the times when it flourishes, and weather the times when it does not.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7607054867931000903.post-82322950965206377632011-04-11T10:05:00.000-04:002011-04-11T10:05:17.345-04:00Malfunctioning KeyboardsI just got the keyboard fixed on my Mac. It was not more than a month ago that I schlepped over to Crabtree, waited my turn at the Genius Bar, and left my laptop with the nice folks there who replaced fixed it for me, for free.<br />
<br />
Now here I am with a faulty <i>delete</i> and <i>enter</i> key, neither of which work at all, because I got the laptop a little too close to the sink while making a dinner recipe from Allrecipes.com. <br />
<br />
It is a pain in the neck to attempt to type without a <i>delete</i> or <i>enter</i> key. Thanks much to my husband who three days into it, showed me that there was another <i>enter</i> key one over from the space key, and who, five days into it, told me about <i>control H</i>. <br />
<br />
But these are in no way substitutes for the normal placement of the properly functioning keys and I have learned that a very fast typer does not an accurate typer make. What would I have done in the days of mechanical typewriters and correction tape? Gotten my ass fired, that's what. <br />
<br />
Here's hoping the Genius people will take mercy on me one more time.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14182685974316705810noreply@blogger.com0