Long Day

Today ended up being good, and reasonably productive. At this moment, I am sitting on the couch, blogging, watching a cheesy movie, and drinking a mug of relaxing tea. Soon, I will brush and floss, take some vitamins, set out clothes for tomorrow, and crash into bed.

This morning, I awoke after a late night out dancing with the Newark Swing Kids. I had a nice time snuggling and laughing with the Little Bug. Then we rolled out of bed and the day unfolded thus:
Get us both dressed and ready for the day, although the Bug never did bother to put on pants.
Make breakfast, packed it up.
Go to Caribou Coffee for our nice weekly coffee time. They are used to us there, although I'm not sure how fond they are of having a regular 2-year-old visitor.
Go to church.
Come home from church.
Make and eat lunch-- easy because it was sandwiches.
Try to put Little Bug down for a nap. This always takes a while. No success, but at least I tried.
Watch Thomas the Tank Engine and Bob the Builder and play trains with the Little Bug because it is too rainy to go outside.
Skype chat with Little Bug's daddy.
Make dinner-- pretty easy because I'm working on cleaning out the freezer.
Eat dinner, clean up.
Research compost bins and chat online with Willow, while the Little Bug plays some more.
Go out and play in the rain with the Little Bug. Because every kid should do that once in a while.
Put the Little Bug to bed. This always takes a while. He doesn't like to sleep.
Shower.
Start load of laundry.
Scoop cat litter, take out trash.
Wash dishes.
Start dish washer.
Make lunches for tomorrow.
Remember that I need to bring cookies to Little Bug's daycare. Oh noes! No time to bake cookies! But wait-- I had a spate of cookie-making in the past few weeks and actually have homemade cookies stored in the freezer, ready to go. Super-Mom is on the job!!
Make chamomile tea.
Switch laundry to dryer, and hang laundry on clothes rack.
Put in another load of laundry.
Make to-do list for tomorrow.
Give into hunger pangs and eat a spoonful of peanut butter to last me through till morning.
Go to check laundry (it needs a bit more time in the dryer), and floss and brush my teeth.
In the midst of flossing, I hear a sharp cry. @#%$%$^@$^*(%$! Sometimes the Little Bug will wake up in the middle of the night. I don't go rushing in, because he will often roll over and go back to sleep. At the second cry, I go to the bedroom, and he is already out of the bed and staggering to find me, wailing all the while. I pick him up and cuddle him, asking if he is hungry. He asserts that he is, so I get him juice and part of a bagel. He sips the juice and munches part of the bagel, but soon is done with them and wants susu instead. @(%@%^$%()()!!! Oh well, maybe he'll go to sleep. He does relax and fall asleep. It takes more than 20 minutes. I finally slip out of the bed to finish flossing, brush my teeth, and take my vitamins. He wakes up and cries again. #*%)&^! He comes out into the hall and is in no mood to sleep. I ask if he wants to come out and sit with me in the front room. "Watch Thomas Train movie", he insists. At this point, WHY NOT?! We settle down on the couch to watch Thomas (who knows, maybe he'll really fall asleep this time) and I continue writing my ever-crankier blog post.
It's all worth it when he turns to me with a sleepy smile and says, "Thank you, Mommy".
Now all that remains is to set out clothes for tomorrow (might not get to that-- depends on laundry status) and then somehow get us both to bed.

I hope everyone else had a good day and is ready to start another fun-filled week.

Teh Cyoots Dey Are Overwelmin

Get ready to say "Awwww!" and possibly shed a tear or two at this heartwarming story of US Marines having a heart to care for stray kitties in Afghanistan.

World Cup Football - final match heartbreak

The match went into double overtime, but ultimately, Spain scored in minute 116 to triumph over Netherlands 1-0. Despite their disappointment, however, the Dutch have no reason for anything but pride regarding the way that they played. There were many (including Paul the Octopus) who predicted that Spain would emerge the winners, and while they were vindicated in the end, there were nearly two hours of intense football between two equally-matched teams, with numerous moments when the balance was very nearly tipped in favor of the Dutch team. If the Spanish were really that much better and more dominant, they would have scored early and kept the run of the game (as is their usual custom). Snarky post-game commentary indicated that "the Dutch got what they deserved" because they just weren't up to snuff, and it wasn't the "beautiful and artistic game" that viewers expected. Well, the Dutch were just fine, and there was some good footwork.

My pick for MVP of this final game comes out to be a tie between Stekelenburg (Netherlands goalie) and Casillas (Spain goalie). Okay, there is a reason why they are the goalkeepers for the #1 and #2 teams in the world. They are amazing. Stekelenburg was really the backbone of his side, performing save after save and seeming to be a calm presence that reassured his teammates and urged them forward. Casillas seems at times as if he can actually fly--he gets a lot of height in his jumps and seems to hang there, sometimes almost horizontal. In fact, the one consolation I had in seeing the Spanish team receive the cup was watching Casillas (as team captain) kiss it and hold it aloft, weeping. My impressions of him have always been that he is an outstanding athlete and sportsman and a very decent human being: a great ambassador for his sport, as well as his country.

All in all, it was wonderful to kind of join in with the whole world and celebrate something so universal as soccer/football, and I'm not weeping because I'm already looking ahead to the Netherlands' amazing success in future European and World Cup tournaments.

It's funny because it's true

This is how the fine people of the US see the World Cup... and the world in general.*


*Yes, yes, I know it's a generalization.

World Cup Football update - semi-finals 2

Germany and Spain battled it out in a tight match that ran 0-0 for the majority of the time. The Germans seemed to fall back onto a defensive game that stood them well as far as preventing the Spanish from scoring, yet ultimately was their downfall due to their failure to take the game down to the other end of the field and push Spain to rely on their own defense. Spain had a good offensive/defensive balance, yet seemed to have uncharacteristic difficulty in handling the ball. They took multiple shots that flew wide of the goal, and managed to score only when Puyol headed the ball in off of a corner kick in minute 73. That was the only goal of the game, and so the final score was Spain 1:0 Germany.

Now it is Germany vs Uruguay on Saturday, playing to determine who will take third place, and then NETHERLANDS VS ESPANA on Sunday, fighting for ultimate glory and first place in the World Cup. Interestingly, it's Red (or Red Fury-- La Furia Roja) versus Orange (Oranje). This is probably the only time in my life that I would pick orange over any other color.

PS Sorry, Mia! Looks like Germany didn't come through this time. But they might win that game with Uruguay on Saturday.

World Cup Football update - semi-finals

It was a tight match today but the Netherlands prevailed over Uruguay 3-2. I was at work, but was able to follow along via the handy live blog at National Post. The Dutch scored early on but then lost their lead and it was 1-1 for a while. At 70-something minutes, the Dutch pulled ahead again, but it was still a narrow win, as the Uruguay team (props to you, Uruguay!) fought to literally the last minutes.

So now, the Netherlands are through to the final game! They must stay focused and fight for the Cup! Who will my flying Dutchmen face next Sunday? The match for their contender will be battled out tomorrow between Germany and Spain. I'd say that Germany is most likely to be the winner, but this whole tournament has been so unpredictable that it's really anybody's game to win.

Glee

I watched a few episodes of Glee that are on Hulu. I don't know why, other than the fact that I've been doing random stuff around the apartment (including cleaning out my fridge/freezer, which explains my sudden spike in consumption of key lime pie, frozen pizza, and even raspberry-flavored vodka--but NOT all at the same time, of course), so I've been able to relax every so often.

Interestingly, I've found Glee to be far more addictive than Lost, another TV show I tried recently on Hulu. As far as I can tell from the first few episodes, the real themes are finding within yourself the power and confidence to be yourself and the need to have courage to believe in your dreams. Ideas like these are nothing new, of course, but in Glee, they are presented in such a way as to be inspiring without being preachy. In fact, it sort of reminds me of Buffy, in that it utilizes a high school setting to present deeper lessons of life.

My favorite moments so far have been when Curt tried out for the football team (so that his dad wouldn't find out he was gay and/or make him quit the glee club) and danced up to the ball (to the tune of "Single Ladies") and then kicked it right through the goalposts; and then later in the episode when he repeated the performance in the game to score the goal and cinch the win for the William McKinley High school (the first win in a very long time).

Wow, it's late here.

World Cup Football update - moving to semifinals

I think football fans all over the world were stunned by the quarter-finals' one-two punch of both Brazil and Argentina falling to European teams. Germany dominated the pitch to win over Argentina 4-0 earlier today. Spain beat Paraguay, but that was less unexpected I think. Now it will be Uruguay vs Netherlands and Spain vs Germany next week.

World Cup Football update - quarterfinals for Netherlands

Against pretty much all expectations, the Netherlands blew past Brazil to win their quarterfinals match 2-1. Powerhouse Brazil was heavily favored and dominated the first half, but Netherlands came from behind (aided once by Brazilian team member Melo accidentally knocking the ball into his own goal) and once they were ahead, the Dutch controlled it all to the end. The Brazilian teamed seemed too confused and demoralized to pull together and take back the pitch.

I was working during the majority of the Netherlands/Brazil matchup, but managed to catch the last 15 minutes during lunch at a sports bar. The pulse-pounding action was really over by that point. It was just fun to see the Dutch team essentially playing around and keeping the ball moving while waiting for the clock to run out. When the game ended, the Brazilian team and fans seemed stunned: It was over for them, and definitely not with the results they had anticipated.

Now Netherlands will face Uruguay, I believe, in the semi-finals. I actually didn't believe Netherlands would win over Brazil, but they accomplished it, and so now, Uruguay will be an easy win for them.

World Cup Football update

Well, despite the temporary elation of last week (a few people in the US actually cared about soccer for a split second), the US team is now down and out of the FIFA World Cup tournament, having been beaten rather neatly by Ghana. Bye-bye, Mr. American Pie!

The Netherlands, on the other hand, are doing splendidly and moved into the quarter-finals, with a 2:1 victory over Slovakia. I was able to only see the highlights reel, but my guess is that overall, there was a solid game of football as it should be played. That second goal by the Dutch was lovely, with a simple pass from Kuyt to Sneijder, who then slammed the ball straight back, right past the Slovak goalie. The Netherlands are now set to hit their first real challengers of this World Cup, battling it out with highly-ranked Brazil on Friday. Has their series of straight wins been just a fluke, or is the Netherlands team (traditionally underachievers) really playing on a higher level in South Africa?

West Coast Represent

Now put your hands up!

Am I the only person who finds Katy Perry's new single "California Gurls" to be both tragically lame and diabolically catchy? And who, for that matter, also thinks that Ms. Perry is not a very good singer?

Never-the-less, we California girls* do appreciate a shout-out now and then.


*I'll always be a California girl in my heart!

Friday Five

Yes, I actually did something this Friday, and it's a list of Faves for the week.

• Finding some plastic storage containers on clearance at Target. I’m in a constant battle with clutter, and while I’m working on getting rid of stuff, I need sturdy containers to store the stuff that I keep.


• Finding Marie Callendar’s Key Lime Pie on sale at the grocery store. Some weeks, it’s the little things that count!


• The Netherlands coming out of Stage 1 of World Cup competitions undefeated. This is a great start for the Dutch team, but they will face solid and skilled opponents in many of the other top-ranked teams during Stage 2 and beyond. Yes, I’ve decided to return to my roots and begin following world football in earnest. Football (American soccer) is one of the few sports in which I excelled as a child, as well as one of the few that I sort of intrinsically understand.


• The Little Bug being given a gold star! He had his 2-year check-up at the pediatrician and was pronounced to be in excellent health and progressing very well in development. He demonstrated good manners (he says “please” and “thank you” without being prompted most of the time) and behaved so nicely that the doctor observed that he was rather better than other toddlers at their 2-year check-ups. Also impressive: His vocabulary and the fact that he says basic sentences rather than just two word phrases, not to mention his knowledge of shapes, colors, letters, and numbers.


• The joy of anticipation. I’ll be spending much of tomorrow relaxing, doing crafts (inspiration boards), baking, and getting a facial, with some lovely friends.

Math and the Touchdown Jesus - answers!

Thanks to everyone who partipated in our mathlympics related to the Jesus statue! So, pretty much, thanks to Jeff Feely.

His second answer, of 8.33ish, is the one I was seeking, though technically the first answer (Jesus should be wearing the 7) is also correct, in a manner of speaking.

Here is how we addressed it:

Self:
My own approach was less orthodox. I tried to go the route of the geometric mean, in which 7:x = x:10, => x^2 = 70 => x=8.3666. If this is the correct solution, then 8.3666*12 = 10^2. We see that 8.3666*12 is actually 100.3992, the square root of which is 10.0199. Oooh, so close but not exact!
Note: Yes, I was all wrong. Serves me right for trying to assume a geometric relationship in an arithmetic number sequence.

Coworker #1
7 + 1.33333 = 8.3333
8.33333 + 1.6666667 = 10
10 + 2 = 12
So increments of 1.3333, 1.66666, 2.
Like Lost I guess, except my numbers make sense!


Coworker #2
Made a graph.

Math and the Touchdown Jesus

The Touchdown Jesus in Monroe (Dayton/Cincinnati area) actually burned down last night! Touchdown Jesus was a landmark of both cultural and physical variety, and I never saw it, but its destruction is big news in Ohio. The event has spawned much discussion as to what it meant if God struck down statue of Jesus with lightning. I would not be surprised at a sudden onslaught of theories regarding the coming judgment and doom to befall Dayton, OH. [Editor's note: Oh, puh-lease.]

My own view is that the Creator God is simply sending a message that physical objects are subject to the operating physical laws of the universe, and if there is any judgment to be had, it falls upon the Solid Rock Church for their stupidity in erecting what was essentially a flammable lightning rod in the midst of a region regularly beset by heavy thunder storms.



For my part, my attention was drawn more toward a photo that a coworker sent out of the statue prior to its fiery demise.


Clearly, the REAL question is: What number should Jesus be wearing to complete the sequence?


I posed this question to some coworkers, and a few of us obtained a solution via a variety of methods. Can you figure it out? Hint: It's not an integer. Have at it.

Gone but not forgotten

Happy Birthday to my favorite performer (and shirttail relative!) Judy Garland.

It's low quality, but here is a clip of one of her most famous song-and-dance numbers. It doesn't get any better than this, ladies and gentlemen.

Mommy Life

Why yes, there IS a reason why I walked into church an hour late and carrying an unpainted balsa wood toy fire truck. Thanks for asking.

UO On the Rocks

This video right here very nearly justifies the existence of Lady Gaga.

Awesome Mad Skills

Okay, I have no idea what is driving this sudden spate of work-related clumsiness, but I've had SO MANY incidents in the past few weeks. Is it fatigue? Too many things on my plate? Something of both?

I was in the lab yesterday doing some trouble-shooting on one of my projects. I was sitting on a chair backward, with my arms resting on the seat back. The chair was one of those adjustable-type office chairs, and so the back was leaning with me as I leaned forward. Suddenly, the chair went toppling over, and there I was spilled all over the lab floor. Naturally, instead of rushing forward to assist me and ascertain that I was unharmed, the guys in the room just stood around and laughed. They are very accustomed to my klutziness, and since I usually just pick myself up, dust myself off, and start back into whatever I was doing before I stumbled (or fell over or bumped into something or dropped or spilled something, et cetera), I guess they figure I'm pretty much unbreakable (which, clearly, I am).

I'm more than ready for the weekend!

Fun times

I went out to the Big Bang Bar in Columbus tonight with Amy and Spencer. They encouraged me to take some time for myself and do something fun with friends.

Quote of the Day

Emma Caulfield on female comic book superheroes' costumes, and Wonder Woman's in particular: "There's no sense in making her look slutty. Unless she's a slut, and then that makes sense!"

See the entire clip of Crazy Sexy Geeks.

I have strange thoughts.

You know what would be totally awesome?

A Bollywood production of "As You Like It".

Even Madder Skills

Yesterday at work, I managed to walk into a partly-open door and hit my nose pretty hard. It hurt! I don't have noticeable swelling or a bruise, but it is still painful to touch the area. It doesn't hurt so much, though, that I am unable to see the humor in the situation. How I've managed to live through more than three decades without ever even breaking a bone is a complete mystery, right?!

Further Mad Skills

This afternoon, I managed to top (or bottom) myself: I cut my thumb on my umbrella! No, really!

Mad Skills

I still has dem!

So today at work, I was sitting at my desk discussing something with my boss. I had been hungry, so I'd popped a bag of microwave popcorn and had a bowl of it in my lap. Suddenly, popcorn went flying everywhere!
Cookie Boss: [staring at me in consternation] How did that even happen?!
Me: It's a gift.
Cookie Boss: But there was no reason! You didn't even move. It was like some quantum thing.
Me: How long have you been laughing at me for dropping things, spilling things, and tripping over my own feet? I've been here almost a year now. You should know that I have a high level of klutziness, even when the very law of physics countermand it.*

It's true. I am terminally clumsy (I blame my long limbs). And there really was no logical reason that my popcorn suddenly spilled all over me and the floor. It's just one of those constant things in my life, and I've come to accept it.

*Okay, I admit that I probably did not use the word countermand in a conversation, but I don't remember the exact wording, so I'm putting this as "close enough".

A moment nearly 11 years in the making

I paid off my student loans in one fell swoop!

I just sent the check to Sallie Mae and wanted to share the joy with the world.

Zoo Visit

Early March, and just warm enough that we could wear light jackets during the day.

Tackle-It Tuesday

I am not very good about updating here lately, and I am definitely not very good about keeping up with regular weekly things like Tackle-It Tuesday. Today, however, I'm counting some stuff toward this effort: Today I'm tackling the paying of bills and sending some money as donations and such.

Review of Friday Five: Did I do what I said I might?

• Stare out at the snow. YES!! Did this.
  
• Hope the snow stops falling so we can run errands tomorrow. YES!! Did this. And then ran those errands.
  
• Rest and get better. Started on this, but we both have a long way to go until we're all the way better.
  
• Craft with paper. Hmm, started to do it, but didn't get far.
  
• Watch Elmo with my Little Bug. YES, I definitely did this.
  

Quite Possibly Best Cupcakes Ever

Created by artist Alicia Traveria: Brain Slugs!

I wonder if she could do a matching Hypnotoad cake...

Friday Five: Things I Plan To Do This Weekend

• Stare out at the snow.
• Hope the snow stops falling so we can run errands tomorrow.
• Rest and get better.
• Craft with paper.
• Watch Elmo with my Little Bug.

Caption Contest Winner

Remember how we had the caption contest last month?

We had some great submissions, and I hereby declare the winner to be... The Real Deal from The Road to Valinor. Similar to the dead deer in the truck at McDonald's, your prize will be truly representative of life in central Ohio.


That's right, Mr. Real Deal! Official Ohio State University Buckeye Candy! Congratulations!

Send me your address via e-mail (your wife can hook you up with my contact info) and I'll send your prize through the postal mail.

The Question

The Question: Where have I been for the past few weeks?
The Answer: I have had the sickies, and so has the baby bug! I got a cold more than two weeks ago, and the cough and sore throat are persisting even now. My poor little bug got so sick that his sinuses got infected and overly congested and mucus starting seeping out of his eyes! Ew!! Right?! He is on antibiotics and well on the road to recovery.

I also just haven't felt inspired to blog, mostly because I just don't know how much to share or what would be interesting.

Sweet Eleanor

Some of my readers may know Wendy over at Fish Crackers. She has mentioned that she has a good friend whose 2-year-old daughter was recently diagnosed with cancer, has already had one operation and is now beginning chemo treatments. God is using Eleanor (the little cancer patient) to touch hearts and lives already, and you can read about her progress on her Caring Bridge site (posted with her parents' permission):
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/eleanorruthdickson


Wendy, who is very gifted in all areas crafty and creative, designed and knitted a chemo hat for little Eleanor, and is now making the pattern available to knitters everywhere.
It is only $5 (a real bargain for a knitting pattern), and all profits will go to the Dickson family to defray the cost of their many medical expenses that are not covered by insurance. In just the past few days, Wendy has already sold more than 100. The pattern is that good!

Read more information about the Sweet Eleanor pattern on Wendy's craft blog, and find ways to purchase it.

Or Buy It Now directly from this link to Ravelry.

I realize that many of my readers are not knitters. However, perhaps you know someone who does knit and would be happy to get a great pattern and reach out to a family (and a tiny little girl) going through a difficult time. Pass it along. Sweet Eleanor can go viral!

Now the Face of BCBG Max Azria in Their SS 2010 Campaign!

And as a glamorous supermodel, I can now become a jet setter and escape my life of daily toil...

Just kidding! When in Austin with Elizabeth and Sara, we went to the outlet mall and found the most amazing dress in the BCBG MA shop. I tried it on and Sara took these pictures.

Midnight blue, great lines, great price (designer dress under $100)... I didn't buy it because I really had no reason to own it. Maybe someday!

Great for dancing!Am I fierce?!?!

Elizabeth also modeled the dress and it was fantastic on her, but sadly, my pictures of her did not turn out as well. She looked gorgeous.

I'll LOL you into a false sense of security...

Despite my assertion that my awesome picture does not NEED a caption, it has received a few anyway.

From Frisbee Guy at work:

From me:

Got a better punchline in mind? Post it in the comments! Or post the captioned picture on your blog and put a link to it in the comments here. In fact, let's have a contest. The creator of the best and funniest caption will receive a small prize of some yet-undetermined nature (Picture of Nathan? Genuine buckeye artifact?). Have at it!

Delurk

Someone, somewhere, made it so that January 14 was National Delurking Day. Obviously, I totally missed the boat on that one, but since it's not actually a law or whatever, I'll just do my own delurking event. It can last as long as I want.

So, readers! If you read this blog, however rarely or frequently, just go ahead and leave a comment. Please! It will make me feel all warm and fuzzy.

Mad Skillz

I haz dem.

I just managed to cut my finger while using a blunt table knife to make a peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich. How is that even possible?!

I'm just naturally klutzy, I guess.

I Want Candy!

Or, It's Like a Party In My Mouth... And Everybody's Throwing Up!

I have, in the past, waxed nostalgic regarding Asian and European sweets and their availability (or lack thereof) in the United States. I miss a lot of those often offbeat treats, and definitely think that the US would be a better place for having more tropical fruit. However, I am definitely convinced that there are a number of confections that will simply never find much of a market here in North America. There's a story to back that up, of course.

A dear friend of mine recently traveled to China, and she brought back an assortment of candy and gave them to me last week. I'm not sure how much she understood about the candy, which is no reflection on her, since all the information on the package was written in Chinese, and while she is fluent in a few languages, it just so happens that Chinese isn't one of them. Her train of thought was basically, "Asian candy... Deb is from Asia and likes candy... I'll give it to her." This is all well and good, for the majority of the candy (coconut milk or tea flavor? yum), but included were some oddities that even I found a trifle offputting.
Meat Candy: I could not get to the website listed on the packaging (the only English writing there, in fact) of this confection, but I was clued into the probability of the content of the candy bag by the picture of an overly perky cow on the front. Meat is a luxury in many parts of Asia, so making a meat-flavored candy makes sense from that perspective, but meat candy is an odd concept to most of the western world (although a lot of people eat jerky, not to mention recent fancy bacon stuffs, which are not far off). While I was somewhat familiar with it, I am very nearly a vegetarian and generally eat white meat if I eat meat at all (mainly at restaurants and other people's houses), so beef candy just did not appeal to me, straight up.
Durian Candy: Durian, nicknamed "the king of fruits", is a love-it-or-hate-it kind of thing for most people. It's a not-that-bad-but-I'm-really-not-fond-of-it thing for me, primarily because (unlike a lot of westerners) I can handle the smell well enough but I'm just not a fan of the taste or texture of the fruit. Durian is popular enough in Southeast Asia that it has its own sort of subculture, and it's not surprising that people make durian-flavored candy, too.


Anyway, in the spirit of generosity (and, I confess, hilarity), I opted to bring the candies in to work and share them. Cookie Boss, in particular, is quite fond of Japanese food and delicacies, so I thought he'd appreciate a chance to relish some other authentic tidbits of Asian cuisine. I gave him the durian candies (there were four in total), and he tried one after his lunch. Never one to mince words, he responded thus: "It was like somebody punched me in the taste buds with brass knuckles made of horribleness. It tasted like what I would imagine the inside of a toilet in South America would taste like." Likewise not one to let a good opportunity go to waste, he then set about tricking other people into trying them. One of the unlucky victims exclaimed, "It's like a mix of phlegm, vomit, and some other bodily fluids." The other declared, "Like a mix of pineapple and rotten onion," which, by the way, is as good a description of durian flavor as I've ever heard. [My opinion, for the record: "I am not a fan of durian, but come on, it still tastes better than beer!"]

Cookie Boss would not even sample the meat candy, but he got someone else to eat one of them, and that person spit it out and proclaimed it to be nasty, best described as tasting rather like bullion. I kind of thought more people could handle the meat candy, seeing as how most folks in the US eat meat all the time, but I guess the concept was still too extreme.

The moral of the story is, of course, that if Cookie Boss is handing out candy, don't eat it!!

BESTEST PIKCHER EVAR!!!

Rural Central Ohio.

Any further captioning would just be superfluous, don't you think?

Street cred...

...for Ellie and Fred!



Eleanor Powell and Fred Astaire do a little hoofing in Broadway Melody of 1940, aided and updated by one DJ Erick E. The music added to the clip is inspired and precisely edited. The dancing is, quite simply, amazing (and notice how he is clearly working to keep up with her). The best of the best, viewed in a new way. File this one under awesome!

Happiness is contagious

At least, that's the message I received from the wrapper on my Dove's Dark Chocolate Promises candy.

Is happiness contagious? I don't know, really. I suppose that happiness could be contagious, sometimes. But my general impression is that isn't necessarily so. The Declaration of Independence* asserts that all individuals possess the right of the pursuit of happiness, but makes no statement whatsoever regarding the actual state of being happy. I'm guessing the question of attaining happiness made even the founding fathers a little bit uncomfortable.

*Of course, one's judgement on whether or not the Declaration of Independence serves as any sort of authoritative document, whether philosophically or otherwise, is entirely subjective.

Happy (Late) Birthday, Luise Rainer!

Born on 12 Jan 1910, Luise Rainer is 100 years old yesterday AND the oldest living Oscar winner! She won back-to-back Best Actress awards for The Great Ziegfeld (1936) and The Good Earth (1937), but her career soon foundered due to her inability to conform herself to the Hollywood ideal of what a movie star should be. I've never been a fan of Luise's style of acting, but learning about her life story has given me respect for her, and while her contemporaries have spent the past half-century or so dying off one by one, she is still around, getting the last laugh (literally, if she chuckles about anything at all).

Merry Christmas!

Here I am to wish everyone a Merry Christmas!

And, in the light of inclusiveness coupled with a respect for history, allow me to also wish you a belated Happy Hanukkah, a jolly Jul, a festive Winter Solstice and Sol Invictus celebration, a fabulous Saturnalia, and so forth.

Syncretism. What would we do without it?

To-Do: Airport Countdown

Store – Buy quart plastic bag, travel size eye stuff
Go to bank
Check mail
Pack bags
Dependent care forms
Clean carpet spots
Vacuum
Take out trash, recycling, compost
Clean bathroom
Dishes
Clean kitchen, fridge
Laundry
Clean out purse
Clean porch
Send out non-resident mail
Feed & water cats
Pack car
Go to Spencer’s place
Go to airport

Week update

It seems as though I've suddenly turned into "can't catch a break" girl. In the past week:

• The Little Bug had a cold and cough.
• The Little Bug had stomach flu.
• I had stomach flu.
• I missed a lot of work due to aforementioned illnesses.
• I am way behind on cleaning the apartment.
• We had at least 4 inches of snow over the weekend.
• The Little Bug was climbing on a chair (though he has been told not to, again and again) and fell and hurt his foot.
• And so forth.

I hope Christmas brings some respite for both of us. A mere 38 hours remain until we depart for California!

Snow!

The Little Bug walks out into snow for the first time.


Editor's Note: I would just like to add that I am fully aware of the fact that I have the most annoying recorded voice on the planet. I cringe when I hear myself.

Vintage Sesame Street

A new-found dedication to Elmo, combined with a lack of actual television access, has led to a fair amount of time spent viewing Sesame Street video clips on Youtube. There is a decent selection, and there is always the fun of clicking on a "Related Videos" link and being transported to other venues of awesomeness, which is how I happened upon this clip, featuring folk singer Buffy Sainte-Marie teaching Big Bird about early pediatric nutrition.



I think this is so amazing, with the amusing but logical setup (of course Big Bird thinks nursing is a funny way to feed a baby: he's a bird, and females in his species do not lactate) and the simple way that breastfeeding is presented as a natural and healthy action, while at the same time respectfully avoiding condemnation of mothers who don't breastfeed.

I wonder if Sesame Street would ever broadcast a segment today with a celebrity mama nursing her baby in this day and age. I hope so. I'd watch it.

Let it snow, let it snow!

Winter arrived with a vengeance some time last night, here in Buckeye Land. When I awoke this morning, there was a dusting of real snow over everything, and the temperature has been hovering in the low 20s F all day. Fortunately, I had an inkling (i.e. the weather report) that winter would soon be upon us, and so I'd prepared for it just two days ago. I went to the mall to purchase some items for someone else, and while I was there, I got a few items for myself:

Eddie Bauer coat (30% off), nearly identical to this one below, except that mine has fur lining on the hood. Warm, wind-resistant, relatively chic. I wish the coat was longer (full length instead of 3/4 length) but I have to admit, the Eddie Bauer folks totally know what they are doing when it comes to making cold-weather gear.

Bear Paw boots (40% off), very much in the style of the popular Ugg boots. I've always hated Ugg boots, but then I've always seen them worn in California with mini skirts or short shorts, which is just about as crazy a trend as anyone could find. I swore I would never wear boots like this, but then again, I also swore that I would never live any place that had snow. And with heavy denim trousers and a sensible jacket, these boots look great, utterly appropriate, and are water-proof, snow-proof, and extremely comfortable. Again, these manufacturers totally know what they are doing.

And never fear: Baby Bug also has his own cold-weather clothing, with a puffy down coat, a snow bunny suit from L.L. Bean (gift from Grandma Debbie), and water-proof baby Ecco boots (that cost, I might add, 25% more than a pair of my own boots).

Seriously?!

Seen at Barnes & Noble:
You really expect me to believe this book was written by an individual with the name of "Rosetta Stone"?

Elmo's Song

The little Bug LOVES this video. He is crazy about Elmo (or rather, about Melmo, as he's known around here).

Words of Wisdom

Eating leftover pumpkin cheesecake TOTALLY COUNTS as doing chores. It is cleaning out the fridge.

Virtue is her own reward.

No Business Like... Snow Business?

It snowed this morning. I didn't get all hyped up about it because it wasn't very much and I knew it wasn't going to stick. You can see in this picture that it was mostly melting on contact anyway.


You can see that there is a significant layer of fluff on the car, though.

Nathan was surprisingly unimpressed with the "snow" thing I kept mentioning, although I'm sure that when we get more of it, and it stays around for a while, he will be much more interested. The cats, by contrast, were rather intrigued, even disturbed. I realized that my hyper-aware and intelligent ninja cats had never seen snow before, and they were very cognizant of the fact that the white flakey stuff in the air and on the ground was something very new. They are inside-only cats, so they were not able to directly experience it, but let me know something was going on: They ran around my ankles meowing, then paced back and forth on the windowsill, their noses pressed against the window glass while their tails twitched and swished in slightly alarmed agitation.

The first snow of the winter season!

Friday Five: Thanksgiving Edition

In keeping with the spirit of this weekend (Thanksgiving Day is on Thursday, but I can be thankful for a few extra days, right?), I offer a list of a few things for which I am thankful.

1. My adored Baby Bug.
2. Caffeine.
3. My job, which provides me with a paycheck and which I generally enjoy very much.
4. Lovely kind friends Erica and Jill, who invited Nathan and me to join their family and friends for Thanksgiving dinner in their new home. [Why didn't I remember to get a picture?!]
5. My family, scattered from southern to northern California.
   

Giving Thanks

Happy Thanksgiving from the Buckeye State!

Career Day Volunteers

I'm sitting here at work on the day before Thanksgiving, and I found myself fighting to stay awake (not enough sleep last night, of course), so I decided to take a quick break to wake myself up.

And now, I present to you yet another conversation from work. Hey, it's my best material!
Context: It started out work-related, as some of our engineers had gone to a local school to do a presentation for Career Day.

ME: Best (or worst?) idea ever: Volunteer for Career Day and show up dressed as a cheerleader or Mexican wrestler or something. When the (probably startled) teacher asks, “What career are you here to talk about?” just give her an Are-you-stupid? look and say, “I’m here to share about engineering”, as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world.
HIM: That would be great. Go dressed as a giant fish or something. Or a sports mascot.
ME: A giant fish?! I don’t get it.
HIM: Oh yeah, the cheerleader and Mexican wrestler made a TON of sense. But GIANT FISH?? THAT’S STUPID!!!
ME: Because, you see, fish don’t have careers! Although now that I think of it, I wonder why they don’t. They do spend all their time in schools.
HIM: *RIM SHOT!*

Ohio High Holy Day

Yesterday was the Most Important Day of the Year. Bigger than Independence Day, Christmas, New Year Day. No holiday, no day of personal significance, nothing can compare to... the Ohio State versus Michigan football game.

After all, everybody supports Ohio State on game day. Even us.

We don't have a television, so we never watch any games, but we do like to go to the shopping mall (the mall, mind you, not even near the OSU campus) to see the hundreds and thousands of people decked out in OSU gear. I took a lot of pictures at first, because it really is a sight to behold; I've never seen anything like it in SoCal. However, I guess I've kind of gotten used to it lately.

Anyway, Ohio State beat Michigan pretty soundly, which is good; I won't have to deal with Cookie Boss being all mopey. He is obsessed with OSU, but I guess it's understandable in his case because (unlike most of the people around here) he actually went to school there.

Catch-up

If I can get my posts for November up to thirteen, I'll be fine for NaBloPoMo, right? Right?!

Well, this week has been crazy. Baby Bug has been fighting some sort of virus. He has no symptoms like coughing or sneezing, and just ran a low-grade fever some nights and has had low appetite. I was concerned enough to take him to the pediatrician (if he doesn't eat like the proverbial horse, I do get worried), but he is really okay and (per the doctor) just needs time, cuddles, and plenty of fluids in order to get better. That is all well and good, but the practical impact is that the Bug has trouble sleeping, which means that I get little or no sleep at all.

So, I'm TOTALLY EXHAUSTED. I fell asleep while putting Nathan to bed, three nights in a row. I have barely read e-mail and (obviously) haven't posted on any of my blogs. My apartment is a total mess, and nothing on my to-do list has been accomplished for something like a week. I don't concentrate well at work, and I have tasks piling up. In a word: WRETCHED.

Button, button, who's got the button?

Today, I discovered an otherwise accomplished person who does not know how to sew a button onto a garment. For reasons that I do not entirely understand, I was utterly flabbergasted. I guess I thought that things like sewing buttons and mending ripped seams were tasks that all adults just kind of knew how to do.

Numbers

A few numbers from my day so far:

Number of eggs Baby Bug and I ate for breakfast: 3
Thomas raisin English muffins, same event: 1.5
Incidental egg-to-muffin ratio: 2
Frappuccinos obtained: 1
Diapers changed: 3
Dead deer seen by the side of the road: 8 (The last one in a ditch by Arby's. Yeah, I know, right?! I so wanted a picture but I was driving.)
Live deer seen by the side of the road: 0 (But they're usually not out and about in the middle of the day anyway.)

Kiss the Girl

I'm not a big Little Mermaid fan, but for some reason I'm finding Colbie Caillat's rendition of "Kiss the Girl" to be very addictive. I saw the music video playing in a Justice shop at the mall, and looked it up on Youtube.


Enjoy!

Yesterday's post

I wanted to do a nice, informative post on some fun topic, last night. I truly did. I need to get disciplined about writing, if only because goodness knows I need to be disciplined about something. However, things went, as things in my life are wont to go, aft agley.

The most significant issue was the fact that my Baby Bug just refused to go to sleep. If you've ever spent more than 24 hours with him, you know that it is a huge challenge for me to get him down to bed, whether for a nap or for the night. He just doesn't like to sleep, and if I am present, he thinks he needs to be nursing because that is what he likes to do. It's not always bad; most nights, we have a routine that he knows and generally finds reassuring and that I enjoy as well, because it's good and healthy to have regularly scheduled time for bonding. Every so often, however, he gets fitful and throws the routine to the proverbial winds, and then gets even more upset because (I think) he is out of sorts and out of his comfort zone. Then I get frustrated, which feeds his frustration, and then we are both exhausted and short-tempered and building on each other.

So, yeah. It is really awful. I know every parent has hard times like that, but it's doubly difficult when one is a single parent. There's a feeling of isolation and despair, because there's no one else to turn to for help, and while God is ever-present, that knowledge doesn't really help in the moment. Maybe my faith is too small. I don't know.

Anyway, beyond the frustration of just having to deal with the horror of a fussy, sleepless child, there is the anger of having a to-do list that isn't getting done. I had several things that I really wanted to do, and they just didn't happen last night. I'm not talking about some ephemeral plans for fancy nonsense; I'm meaning things like just washing the dishes.

Finally, I just gave up and said "Screw it", and laid myself down on the bed next to Baby Bug, holding him and letting him feel that it was okay to relax and drift off to sleep. At least I was well-rested when I awoke at 5 am, but I hadn't showered or gotten our clothes out or put together our breakfasts and lunches. And the little guy still wouldn't let up. I went to shower this morning, and he came and stood in the bathroom and howled. I have no idea why he was upset, really. Then he insisted on opening the shower door (crying all the while), so that he got sprinkled with stray spray and I got a cold draft of morning air while soaking wet, and I rinsed shampoo from my hair while fuming, "Why? Why me? Why, why, why?!"

My cheeks, jaw, neck, and shoulders are constantly tense. I know that I'm clenching my jaw at night when I sleep. I can't go on this way. Seriously.

The only thing that makes this all okay is the fact that at least I'm not doing NaNoWriMo, so at least I'm not failing at that.

The Zeitgeist Bus? I missed it.

During a discussion of horror movies (we've been having those a lot around here, perhaps because of Halloween), someone (not me) mentioned that Vincent Price had starred in an earlier incarnation of a recent scifi/horror pic.

COWORKER: Who's Vincent Price?
ME: Vincent Price? He's famous!
COWORKER: Famous? I've never heard of him. When was he famous?
ME: He was in movies maybe 1940-1990. He did a lot of horror, like stuff based around Poe. He's legendary! He was in Laura.
BOSS: (popping around the corner from the next cubicle) He did the narration for the "Thriller" video.
COWORKER: Oh, gotcha.
ME: Huh?!

What can I say? I didn't live in the US or have a television during most of the 1980s.

Penguin

Candy

In the wake of Halloween, there are thousands of parents attempting to dispose of thousands of pounds of leftover candy. We have some here at work, right this minute, and in my opinion, it never hurts anyone to have the occasional sugar high in the office. But one unforeseen side effect of this year's post-Halloween sugarfest is the triggering of another memory, this one primarily gustatory.

In the US, there is a popular candy called Smarties. I do not care for them. They taste like sweetened schoolroom chalk.

US Smarties are a huge disappointment because in Europe and Asia, there is another kind of Smarties, and these are a Nestle version of M&Ms: chocolate candies with a hard coloured shell. Infinitely preferable.


I have occasionally wondered, but with no satisfactory answer: Why is there such a great divide between confections available in the USA and those in other parts of the world (including Canada, just to the north)?
Nutella is now available stateside, but whither my Pocket Coffee?

My Silver Queen bars?

My kue lapis?

My es cendol?


People in the US have so much, and yet... so little.

A bit of funny

Here is an excerpt from an actual conversation I had with my boss regarding horror movies.

Him: I do like zombies as a horror antagonist.
Me: I can’t handle real horror [movies]. Nothing bloody or really scary. I think real life is awful and scary enough as it is, so I don’t understand why people feel the need to make fake nasty stuff.
Him: I think if you’ve lived next door to cannibals maybe zombies hit a little too close to home.

I'd add a bit of exposition, but I think it's funnier left as it is.

November already

November, and NaBloPoMo, crept up on me. I already didn't post on the first day of National Blog Posting Month (which someone, I don't know who, perhaps the Astronomer Royal, made up as a counterpart to National Novel Writing Month), so I'm a loser.

I don't know if I'll be able to even come up with anything entertaining enough to sustain 30 posts. We shall see.

Happy Reformation Day

On 31 October 1517, Martin Luther afixed his 95 Theses to the door of the castle church in Wittenburg, Germany.

He did end up bringing change to the world.

I'm a Barbie Girl

Do you ever have a memory that you didn't find significant enough at the time of its occurrence to file it away for conscious recall, but then have it unexpectedly be triggered, years later, by something totally random, and it's there in your mind, as fresh as if it happened yesterday?

I was in a situation at work wherein I was griping to my boss (Cookie Boss, yes) about how I was at a disadvantage in our industry, being female and blonde. I suddenly had a recollection of something that happened when I was a very young engineer at the Humongous Anonymous Technical Company, and apparently I had repressed the memory or just did not think much about it for the past nine or so years.

I was a lively young thing in a world of older, socially stunted men, and quite a few of them were holdovers from the era preceding political correctness (or just plain courteous treatment of others). One fellow was from somewhere on the east coast, and was known for (is still known for, in point of fact) being rather noisy and opinionated about a good many things, with a New England accent that just makes things funnier. I, too, am opinionated and can be noisy when I deem it appropriate. He and I had a discussion about some technical matter; I'd been less than a year at the HATC, so I had very little knowledge and no expertise, but that didn't stop me from being assertive, and I ended up questioning his methods and conclusions, and ultimately, disagreeing with him.

He looked at me, astonished at my audacity, and declaimed, "Oh, what, so now you're rocket scientist Barbie?!"

I may have found the Best Halloween Costume Idea Ever.

Friday Five

Five Books I Have Read Multiple Times

1. Mister God, This Is Anna
2. The Blue Castle
3. The Movies, Mr. Griffith, and Me
4. A Child's History of the World
   
5. The Bible
   

Dear beloved people,

I miss you! I'm so tired and I know I'm boring. I'm just trying to keep my head above water. Tomorrow is Friday. Till then, let's get some rest.

Love and hugs,
Me

Friday Five

A new feature in which I publish random lists of things for no particular reason, other than alliteration, really.

Friday Five: Five Reasons Why I'm Slightly Odd and Occasionally Socially Awkward

In no particular order:

1. I make inappropriate jokes inside my head. For example, there is a billboard on a road where I drive often, with a picture of a little girl and a caption, "Every 20 minutes, a child is diagnosed with autism." And every time I see it, I mentally complete the sentence, "...and boy, is she getting tired of it!"
   
2. I say unwittingly inappropriate things out loud. When my verbal filter fails to catch the output from #1 above, as well as other faux pas. Like this one time, years ago, I asked a pregnant woman, "Is it like having a parasite?" and she didn't take to the question very nicely. [Note: This woman's lack of understanding aside, I can assure you that being pregnant IS like having a parasite. So the query was valid, but not appreciated.]
   
3. I will tell you when you're wrong about something. And then provide you with all the pertinent facts so that you can change your views and become right. I consider this a public service. You're welcome.
4. I know a lot of dry facts and don't mind trotting them out on seemingly random occasions. Part of the reason for this is that I see connections between ideas that a lot of people don't, and so a conversation about, say, color blindness, is (to me) an obvious precursor to in-depth discussion and analysis of the Russian revolution.
5. I subconsciously check and correct the grammar, spelling, and punctuation of EVERYTHING I read. I can't help myself.

Weekend to-do

I know this is boring, but as Mia has noted, sometimes it helps to post to-do lists online, to provide an imaginary sense of accountability.

• Go to bank - Done!
  
• Sort mail
• Check e-mail
• Take N to park
• Grocery shopping
• Heath city forms
• County forms
• ADP dependent care
• Advertise Acura
• Post on blogs
• Make phone calls
• Send e-mails
• Send in support donations
• Post pictures on Picasa and Facebook
• Clean fridge
• Do dishes
• Clean cat box - Done!
  
• Clean bathroom - Done!
  
• Hand-washed laundry
• Fold and put away all other laundry
• Clean and organize bedroom closet
• Go through one box
• File N's daycare papers
• Make dr appts (do on Monday)
• Pediatrician - bill and insurance (do on Monday)
• Passport paperwork (do next week - finally)
• Send in for diploma (finally)

Buckeyes!!

See how far I've come! Or, how far I've fallen...

But I decided that Baby Bug and I are real Ohians (Ohio-ans?) and Buckeyes now. If I'm going to move most of the way across the country and totally change my life around, I'm not going to be half-hearted about it. Maybe together, the two of us can enjoy being part of a larger community here.

And let me tell you, the Buckeyes are a HUGE part of the community here. People are CRAZY about Ohio State, especially now that football season has arrived. People are rabid OSU fans, even if they've never been to college (heck, they probably can't even spell it!). So it's sort of self-preservation to start showing a little spirit right about now; I'm beginning to fear that if I don't put an Ohio State pennant in my window, my neighbors will slash my tires.

Oh, I kid, I kid! [But only a little.]

Vera Lynn Has Not Yet Grown Too Old to Dream

Vera Lynn, the legendary singer, has set a record for being the oldest living person ever to have a number one album.

Pithy title reference: Vera Lynn singing Noel Coward.

Busy

Busy is when you have to eat lunch at your desk at work.

By contrast, ridiculous is when you pause to catch your breath and realize that you've eaten all three of your meals today at your desk at work.

I'm willowy

Stop with the "skinny" already. Seriously.

Experiencing technical difficulties

My home internet is not working, and though I am trouble-shooting, it is still down for the count. I have oodles of post ideas, as well as dozens of photos to put on Picasa and share, and it just might not happen this weekend.

On the plus side, my beloved Elizabeth is visiting for several days, so we're having girl time and I'm looking forward to a great weekend with her.

My new friend from work, Spencer, is getting married on Sunday. He and his fiancee Amy deserve great happiness, so send up a prayer for them, if you think of it. I'll be enjoying their wedding myself, going out for fun with my sister Elizabeth while Naters is with a babysitter; sometimes it's important to get out and about without the baby, you know.

Have a restful and blessed holiday weekend.

Busy

I have been keeping busy, and God is blessing Nathan and me.

I'm excited to be permanent and get even more deeply into work at the Medium Anonymous Technical Company (MATC). My problem is that I just do not have enough hours in the day, and thanks to Nathan, I can't stay at work at all hours anymore, so my workaholic tendencies are tempered.

On a less happy note, my boss is losing heart points, as he told me that now that I'm a permanent employee, I have to get my own cookies. He will rue this day. Rue it, I say!

Jodi's Meme: My Life According to Judy Garland (via Heather's Eden)

I have no idea who Jodi is, but I got this meme from Heather's Eden. I picked Judy Garland as my artist of choice. She is my favorite singer and actress, plus she's recorded so many songs, and such a variety of them, that I thought she would provide some good answer choices. [Fun Judy Garland factoid: My brother-in-law Tim is related to her--his grandma was her first cousin. Thus, I am related to Judy Garland by marriage!]

Using only song names from ONE ARTIST, cleverly answer these questions. Try not to repeat a song title. It's a lot harder than you think! Post as "Jodi's Meme: My Life According to (BAND/ARTIST NAME)"

-Are you a male or female? (Poor Little Rich Girl; A Pretty Girl Milking Her Cow)

-Describe yourself (I Got Rhythm; Little Girl Blue)

-How do you feel right now? (I Don't Care; I Feel a Song Coming On)

-If you could go anywhere, where would you go? (Somewhere Over the Rainbow; Fly Me to the Moon)

-Your favorite form of transportation (The Trolley Song; On the Atchison, Topeka, and the Santa Fe)

-Describe Your Morning Routine (Stompin' at the Savoy; Skip to My Lou)

-Your best friend is (The Boy Next Door; FDR Jones)

-What's the weather like (Stormy Weather; Come Rain or Come Shine)

-Pet Peeve? (It Never Rains But What It Pours; Ya-ta-ta Ya-ta-ta Talk Talk Talk)

-If your life was a TV show, what would it be called (That's Entertainment; There's No Business Like Show Business)

-Your relationship (I Wish I Were In Love Again; I'm Nobody's Baby)

-Your Fear (Blues in the Night; The Man that Got Away)

-What is the best advice you have to give? (Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas; Everybody Sing)

-If you could change your name, you would change it to (Liza; Mary's a Grand Old Name)

-What do you say when you are frustrated? (Who's Sorry Now?; What Now, My Love?)

-Thought for the day (It's a Great Day for the Irish; Lucky Day)

-How you would like to die (Jitterbug; When You're Smiling)

-Your soul's present condition (Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart; Lost in the Stars)

-Your motto (Get Happy; Look for the Silver Lining)

Okay, so I had enough options available to find at least TWO songs for each category. Yet another reason why Judy Garland is the most awesome entertainer ever.

Oh, hi, Ohio!

Well, it looks as though I will be living in rural central Ohio for the time being. I have received and accepted an offer of permanent employment with the company where I've been a contractor. God provides, and I know that He brought us here for His purposes, and so here we will remain until we have accomplished what He intends for us. Meanwhile, I'll work on putting down some roots and giving Nathan the best life possible. Also, I might have to get myself a Buckeyes t-shirt in self-defense. People around here are CRAZY.

The Great Cookie Thief

Or, I Heart My Boss, Part the Second

On Thursday last, there was some kind of meeting (hereafter referred to as "the meeting") at work, with attendant VIPs from the company's main facility in Connecticut. I was not invited to the meeting, which was fine with me, since I had no interest in sitting around in a freezing conference room listening to people yammer on about goodness knows what. I discovered that the VIPs warranted a catered lunch. Still no interest on my part, particularly as the catering was done by Quiznos (Note 1: Bleh. Note 2: Shouldn't there be an apostrophe in that name?), until I saw that they had brought along some very large COOKIES. I made up my mind, then and there, that even though I technically was not allowed to partake of the catered lunch, being not VIP enough to go to the meeting, I was going to get my hands on a cookie!

My boss, whom you have already met, so to speak, was in fact an invited attendee of the meeting, and so had the all-important right to at least one cookie. He happened to wander into the kitchen area while I was there. Aha! Target acquired. Scene set.

Me: [trying to look innocent] So, how many people are there in the meeting?
Him: [is no fool] Fewer people than there are cookies.
Drat! He must have noticed me eyeing them with ill-concealed lust.
Me: [giving up on the "innocent" ploy] You'll get me a cookie just in case, though, right?
Him: [smirks in amusement as he walks away]

Hmm. No good so far. Undeterred in my pursuit of cookies, I send him a quick e-mail: "You don't want your cookie, right?"
Several minutes later, he comes to my cubicle. "There are plenty of cookies. You should be fine."
"Should be isn't the same as absolutely will be." He sighs and shakes his head, and turns to go. "Oh, come on, please!" I beg. I have no shame when it comes to obtaining cookies, as you can see.
"Oh, I'll get you a cookie." He is either really irritated or just thinks the whole thing is funny.

True to his word, he comes back a bit later and presents me with a CHOCOLATE CHUNK COOKIE. I am transported to realms of bliss. A few minutes later, I send him another e-mail, vis: "It would be awesome if I could get TWO cookies. Can I make it my stretch goal?"

Then, a few minutes after that, the manager of the electrical group comes to my cubicle and hands me a CINNAMON SUGAR COOKIE. He had heard me asking for a cookie, and he has a medical reason why he couldn't eat his, so he brought it over for me. Sweetness!! In every sense of the word. When I next see my boss, I wear a smirk myself, and announce, "I achieved my stretch goal."

And then, and then, all the VIPs finished eating, and there were still cookies left, so all of us humble peons were given permission to glean from the corners of the fields, to make an entirely relevant biblical allusion. And so I got a THIRD cookie, this one a CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE CHUNK COOKIE.

I send off yet another e-mail: "THREE cookies and counting!" Quick as a flash, he shoots back, "Now you're a collector!"

Yes, I collect cookies. In my mouth.

Night-time

So I fell asleep last night some time between 21:00 and 21:30 (9:00 and 9:30 pm, for those of us who don't use military, i.e. sensible, time), because I was putting the Bug down to bed and it was just sooooo nice to close my own eyes and drift away... This is great, especially as I needed the sleep. However, I was awakened a few hours later by the sound of my cell phone going off (even when set to vibrate, it makes a lot of noise), and while I missed the call, it jolted me out of a sound sleep and left me wide awake. I didn't much mind, as it gave me the opportunity to brush my teeth and shower and all those things I would have liked to do before falling asleep. But now I'm still awake, and facing the prospect of having to get up in less than three hours, whether I like it or not, and go to work groggy because of my crazy night-time schedule.

Hope the rest of you are sleeping better than I tonight.

I Heart My Boss

This is a tale of love. True love, in fact. The transcendent love between a girl and her tropical fruit. By my best estimation, fortunate readers, this is the first time such a love has been chronicled and revealed to the world at large.

A few weeks ago, my manager at work described to me his family's planned trip to a very large and awe-inspiring grocery store by the name of Jungle Jim’s. [He occasionally feels the need to tell me these kinds of things, for reasons known entirely to himself.] He mentioned that the store was known for its large selection of produce, including tropical fruit. Any Asian MK knows that the only proper response to such a revelation is: “OMG, DO THEY HAVE RAMBUTANS?!?!” Also acceptable: “OMG, DO THEY HAVE GUAVAS?!” Or “OMG, DO THEY HAVE JAMBU AIR?!” [“OMG, DO THEY HAVE DURIAN?!”, while not, strictly speaking, incorrect, is of a dubious nature. If that is your go-to reaction, you and I may be friends till death parts us, but we will never be roommates. I’m just sayin’.]

At any rate, my manager was unfamiliar with the rambutan, so I explained it to him, described it, and even drew one on my whiteboard. He is reasonably astute, and asked, "So, does the name mean something about it being all hairy?" Yes. Yes, it does. I also tried to explain durian, but he wasn't too sure about that one. As I said, he's astute.

Several days passed, and I actually completely forgot about the conversation. So imagine my surprise when he came into my cubicle this morning and, with a giant grin, dropped a bag containing five rambutans onto my desk! O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay! I was extremely happy and excited, to say the least. I made him try one, as he had claimed that he didn't eat any before because he didn't know how they were to be eaten (Seriously? It's not rocket science.). He also insisted that while he saw guavas there, he didn't dare get some, because he couldn't know to pick the appropriate level of ripeness (A valid point; I'm picky about my guavas.). No matter: I was duly impressed by his intrepidity in getting rambutans at all.

I love my tropical fruit, and I'm so grateful to my (nameless) boss for remembering me and braving the mysteries of the international produce section!

The immortal Bard relates to us this truism: "That which we call a rose, By any other name would smell as sweet". It is by no means clear to me, however, that a rambutan by any other name would be quite as wonderful.

Double Entendre

Ever have one of those occasions when you say or write something, quite innocently, and then come back some time later and realize that your choice of words had an unintended consequence of humorous and possibly even risque meaning? You know, one of THOSE occasions.

At work, we use an office messaging program (instant message, essentially) and while it can be very useful, it mostly serves as a venue for useless chatter. Today, I was having some chat with my friend Spencer, mixing useless and useful in varying proportions from time to time, and this ensued:

Spencer: Writes a lot of useful, important stuff about work.
Me: Writes a lot of useful, important stuff about work.
Spencer: Be right back. Going to go talk to Jon.*
Me: (remembering that I need to talk to this same Jon) Ok... hold him for me.
I get up and rush over to Spencer's cubicle, but Jon is already gone. No biggie, I run into him in the hall on my way back to my desk and get the answer I need. Having returned to my own cubicle, I look at my computer and read Spence's response.
Spencer: Oh yeah, he's real cuddly.

*Our program manager.

Grief

Received news that our dear brave friend Ojan has gone on to be with the Lord.

He was beating the cancer again, only to be taken in a freak accident. It's so tragic and far too soon. I am in shock now, but know that I will soon be experiencing anger and resentment, in addition to sorrow.

Here is Ojan with a bunch of friends: Philip Scharer, Roland Morgan, Dan Price, Ojan, me, Michael Nance.

The Prices loved you!!

Happy 18 Months, Nater-bug!

Naters is 18 months old today. He is a lovely, happy, healthy little boy. He is, as always, very smart. He hasn't been talking as much as some children his age do, and I was starting to get a bit worried. I knew he understood a lot of what I would say to him, because he would respond very intelligently. But why didn't he speak?! My conclusion is, he didn't bother to talk very much, because he didn't really need to; he could get what he wanted without it. He'll say some words if he wants to.

Now, he says "Mama", which he's said for a long time, actually. He also says, "Nah!", which means "nose": he will point to (or bite) your nose while saying it. I taught both of those to him. I nearly missed the first word that I didn't teach him that he said. At daycare one day, I had come to pick him up, and he was playing in the main room. I came over, and he said, "Bah!" He will produce a lot of syllables all the time, so I don't much pay attention to them, since most of them are unintelligible. This time, however, I noticed that while he said it, he was pointing to a round object a few meters away. "Bah!" Oh, yes yes yes!! I went over and rolled it back toward him. "Yes, sweetie, it's a BALL!!" I don't think I'll ever be prouder, even when he wins a Nobel Prize.

Furthermore, last weekend, we visited with my friend Spencer from work, and he has a little fluffy dog. Nathan likes cats and dogs, and he LOVES to shriek with laughter and chase them around. When he saw Spence's dog, he said, "Beppie, beppie!" Yes, PUPPY!!

He's learning more and more about everything in the world, every day.

I love you, Nater-bug!

Oh, yes, he's mine, all right!

Gryffindor!

We went to see Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Grandma Willow made Naters a Hogwarts scarf, and she is pretty certain he belongs in the Gryffindor House.


So, dear readers, please leave a comment and tell us to which Hogwarts House YOU belong, and why.

Tackle-it Tuesday

To Do:

Work on getting Ohio driver license and car registration.

Oh, joy.

The Problem of Evil? More Like the Problem of Theodicy!

I had an interesting discussion at work, prompted by someone else (You know who you are, if you bothered to find my blog. And if so, ha! I am onto you, and you definitely have better things to be doing with your time.) reading about the Old Testament law and wisdom literature and then coming to talk to me about (among other things) Job and Ecclesiastes. Yes, I sometimes talk about this stuff at work, and it prompts me to think about things.

The "problem of evil" has been a popular topic of discussion for centuries, or millenia, rather. As Christianity (and the Hebrew religion prior to it) professes a God Who is both all-powerful and completely good, philosophers and other people have been drawn to grapple with the question of how such a God could and would permit evil to exist. The idea of the "theodicy" developed as a means to vindicate God with respect to the existence of evil.

Now, why do we think God needs our help? While I grieve as deeply as anyone for the suffering of the innocent in the world (I would rescue and care for all babies and kittens, if I could... puppies, too, on a generous day.), I have never felt that I needed to defend God with respect to anything of this nature. He is more than capable of taking care of Himself, and my duty is rather to live as a redeemed person and spread His Good to a hurting world.

Interestingly, Herch put up a post about this very topic. His view of God is similar to mine, and I would add that while people like to whine about their suffering and pretend that they reject God's Lordship out of some sense of outraged justice (And how amusing is this, really?), in reality, the vast majority of unbelievers that I know refuse to turn to God out of pride and a desire to maintain lordship of their own lives. They have no desire to live in such a way as to open their lives up to God's blessings and allow themselves to be turned into blessings themselves, to mitigate the evil they pretend to be protesting. And so I challenge the whiney people: You don't do what GOD wants. So why all this fuss when God won't do what YOU want? I know, that seems a bit overly simple. There is more to it. And yet, when you get right down to it, the bottom line is just simple.

God is God. You are not. The evil that you see as a problem comes from YOU, from YOUR heart, spilling out through YOUR actions. God doesn't want evil to happen, but He has not yet crushed it out of existence because to do so would mean crushing you (and all of us human beings) out of existence, and He is giving you (and all of us) opportunity after opportunity to make things right with Him. Eventually, evil will stop existing (Rev 21-22).

Happy 17th!

Nathan is 17 months old TODAY.

He has been working on some more teeth, and is putting out some molars!

Happy Birthday! In the past week

Sara Brown
Christie Hallett
Laurel Yoshimoto