One of my mom's favorite stories about me from when I was little was the time that I was "back-talking" in the car. She was so upset, she pulled over to give me a swat. When she finished, she asked me: "Do you know why you got a spanking?" "Yes," I said tearfully, "because I was talking backwards!"
It's one thing to talk back to your mother, but it's another thing to talk back to a security officer.
Like yesterday. I had to go downtown for a training. Unfortunately, each of our district's various buildings are all in really bad parts of town. You know, the part of town where it's not unusual to see shady looking characters drinking out of a paper bag, or the occasional drug deal go down.
Also? Parking is tricky.... especially when you have two GIANT crates of very heavy confidential folders you've been asked by your supervisor to drop by. So I decided to park in the closest lot, the one that I think is reserved for all the supervisors. I laboriously lugged up one crate of folders.
As I was carrying the second load, OBVIOUSLY struggling with each step and with each door, the security officer in the building stops me.
"Where did you park?" she demands. "Because if you parked in that lot over there, you're not supposed to."
And... I kinda snapped at her.
"LOOK! The only reason I parked over there was because I had to lug two huge crates up to the fifth floor. I'll move my car when I'm good and ready!"
In my defense, though, I was in the middle of trying to juggle fifty pounds of paper, navigate around the crazies outside, and open the door without using my hands. I was a little too busy to be polite, uniform or not.
21 August 2010
at least I didn’t get a spanking this time
Comments Off
14 August 2010
taking a bow
There's nothing like a pat on the back once in a while! The fabulous Renee from Closed on Sunday has given me an award! And I didn't have to bribe her or anything!
So I think this means that I'm a versatile blogger, which is just a really nice way of saying that I can't stay focused on just one topic. Yay for variety!
Okay. Like any good blog award, there are strings attached. I must...
A. Thank the person who gave me the award
Thanks, Renee! If you haven't checked out Closed on Sunday yet, you totally should. She'll regale you with tales of cupcakes gone wrong!
B. Share seven things about myself
1. I have three cats. If I lived alone and didn't have my husband to keep me in check, I'd have about three dozen cats. I guess this means I'm that crazy cat lady on the inside.
2. I drink black tea every morning. I used to drink coffee, but I was making it so strong that it was starting to give me headaches. And what's the point of drinking coffee if it doesn't look like mud?
3. I think regret is the worst feeling in the world, because there's absolutely nothing you can do to make it better.
4. I've thrown a tantrum or two in my classroom (once the kids were gone and the door was shut).
5. I've always wanted to host a murder mystery dinner party. I've been to a couple, and they were so fun!
6. My second grade teacher slapped me in the face once because I corrected my work in pencil instead of black pen (this was in France, though, so perfectly legal). It was our first year in France, and I still remember my dad chewing out my teacher in his broken French. I think the worst insult he came up with was: "YOU MEAN LITTLE OLD LADY!"
7. When I was in high school, I refused to stay home from school when I felt sick. Unless I was throwing up, I'd go. My parents would urge me to stay in bed, but I wouldn't. I was too afraid on missing out on something very cool or important!
C. Pass the award onto 15 other bloggers
FIFTEEN?? Really?! This teacher is too busy for fifteen. Let's just bend the rules a little.... Since I did seven things about me, I'll pass this award on to seven other bloggers. And if you'd like to grab this award for yourself, too, I won't stop you!
So here they are:
I'd love to read your "seven things about me"! If you have such a post, please link up in the comments :)
So I think this means that I'm a versatile blogger, which is just a really nice way of saying that I can't stay focused on just one topic. Yay for variety!
Okay. Like any good blog award, there are strings attached. I must...
A. Thank the person who gave me the award
Thanks, Renee! If you haven't checked out Closed on Sunday yet, you totally should. She'll regale you with tales of cupcakes gone wrong!
B. Share seven things about myself
1. I have three cats. If I lived alone and didn't have my husband to keep me in check, I'd have about three dozen cats. I guess this means I'm that crazy cat lady on the inside.
2. I drink black tea every morning. I used to drink coffee, but I was making it so strong that it was starting to give me headaches. And what's the point of drinking coffee if it doesn't look like mud?
3. I think regret is the worst feeling in the world, because there's absolutely nothing you can do to make it better.
4. I've thrown a tantrum or two in my classroom (once the kids were gone and the door was shut).
5. I've always wanted to host a murder mystery dinner party. I've been to a couple, and they were so fun!
6. My second grade teacher slapped me in the face once because I corrected my work in pencil instead of black pen (this was in France, though, so perfectly legal). It was our first year in France, and I still remember my dad chewing out my teacher in his broken French. I think the worst insult he came up with was: "YOU MEAN LITTLE OLD LADY!"
7. When I was in high school, I refused to stay home from school when I felt sick. Unless I was throwing up, I'd go. My parents would urge me to stay in bed, but I wouldn't. I was too afraid on missing out on something very cool or important!
C. Pass the award onto 15 other bloggers
FIFTEEN?? Really?! This teacher is too busy for fifteen. Let's just bend the rules a little.... Since I did seven things about me, I'll pass this award on to seven other bloggers. And if you'd like to grab this award for yourself, too, I won't stop you!
So here they are:
I'd love to read your "seven things about me"! If you have such a post, please link up in the comments :)
Comments Off
8 August 2010
even writing this makes me want to throw up
I had no idea what to blog about today until I saw my most recent comment from Unicycle Rose. She wondered about the M&M story I referred to in passing in my previous post. So, go away Inspiration, I just got a writing prompt!
I was five years old and living in California. I don't remember where we were going or why I was given M&Ms, but somehow I ended up sitting in the back of our station wagon. The back, as in behind the seats... in the storage space. With no seat belts. Because I guess in 1987 everyone wasn't all hung up about children's safety.
So there I was, peering out of the back windshield, eating my plain M&Ms and watching the traffic behind us. It was dark and I entertained myself by figuring out which side of the highway was going faster: the cars with the red lights stopped on the opposite side, or the cars with the white lights on our side.
I still hadn't figured out who was winning when I suddenly got very carsick. And I was feeling quite uncomfortable with my belly full of plain M&Ms. I threw up before I could stop myself.
I don't remember what happened next but I'm guessing that we had to pull over and mom probably got the fun job of cleaning me up.
And since that day, the very thought of plain M&Ms makes me want to vomit. Peanut ones? I love! Plain ones? Bleeecchhh.
Years later, my psychologist husband assures me that I'm not crazy (at least not in that sense!)... that I have developed what's called: "learned taste aversion".
So what foods make you want to barf?
I was five years old and living in California. I don't remember where we were going or why I was given M&Ms, but somehow I ended up sitting in the back of our station wagon. The back, as in behind the seats... in the storage space. With no seat belts. Because I guess in 1987 everyone wasn't all hung up about children's safety.
So there I was, peering out of the back windshield, eating my plain M&Ms and watching the traffic behind us. It was dark and I entertained myself by figuring out which side of the highway was going faster: the cars with the red lights stopped on the opposite side, or the cars with the white lights on our side.
I still hadn't figured out who was winning when I suddenly got very carsick. And I was feeling quite uncomfortable with my belly full of plain M&Ms. I threw up before I could stop myself.
I don't remember what happened next but I'm guessing that we had to pull over and mom probably got the fun job of cleaning me up.
And since that day, the very thought of plain M&Ms makes me want to vomit. Peanut ones? I love! Plain ones? Bleeecchhh.
Years later, my psychologist husband assures me that I'm not crazy (at least not in that sense!)... that I have developed what's called: "learned taste aversion".
So what foods make you want to barf?
Comments Off
6 August 2010
This is the extent of my patriotism
I've got McDonald's on the brain. I think it's probably because I'm sitting in one, mooching off their free Wi-Fi and sipping an iced coffee.
When I was growing up in France, (oh hey, if you're new here: I lived in France from age seven to about high school. Good, now you're all caught up.) the only fast food available was McDonalds. Well, okay, there was this other establishment called Quik Burger but somehow it just wasn't American enough for us. So by default, whenever our family decided to go out for fast food, we would inevitably end up at McDonalds.
When I moved to Michigan for college, I avoided McDonalds like the plague. Why go there when there were so many other tantalizing options? Now I had a choice between places like Taco Bell, Burger King, Wendy's, Subway, Arby's.... All that yummy food and so CHEAP! I was giddy with the possibilities.
At the time, Max tried to get me to accept McDonalds into my repertoire of fast food options. It was a slow, uphill battle, and when we married he sounded even more convincing as my husband: I eventually relented and learned to love the place again.
A few weeks ago, I was at my local McDonalds all by myself. I was all alone because Max had taken the good car (the one with air conditioning and an automatic transmission) all the way to Oregon for some kind of "conference". So I was left with the other car, trapped inside the house for more than a week unless I could brave the stick shift around town. So every day, I would plan an Outing. It had to be in the morning (because of the AC situation) and it had to be within a two mile radius away from any hills (I was still shaky about the manual transmission thing).
So I landed at McDonalds for an early lunch. I ordered a hamburger and fries during a really busy lunch hour for them. So busy, in fact, that when the credit card swipey thing didn't work, they lady just told me to go sit down and enjoy my free lunch.
Wow! Food tastes so much better when it's free!
When the line had died down, I decided to treat myself to a McFlurry for dessert since I hadn't spent anything on lunch.
I ordered an Oreo McFlurry. The young white guy behind the counter punched some buttons, then asked if I wanted Ranch or Italian with that. "What, now?? No, I said I'd like an Oreo McFlurry!" So he got a cup and started filling it with.... M&Ms.
"NOOOOOOOO!" I practically shouted to him as he proceeded to mix the vanilla ice cream with it. M&M's are not at all my thing (it's a long story that involves vomit).
So he makes me an Oreo McFlurry and gives me BOTH McFlurrys since he doesn't know what to do with the other one. And that's how I got eight dollars worth of food for a little over two bucks.
Gotta love America!
When I was growing up in France, (oh hey, if you're new here: I lived in France from age seven to about high school. Good, now you're all caught up.) the only fast food available was McDonalds. Well, okay, there was this other establishment called Quik Burger but somehow it just wasn't American enough for us. So by default, whenever our family decided to go out for fast food, we would inevitably end up at McDonalds.
When I moved to Michigan for college, I avoided McDonalds like the plague. Why go there when there were so many other tantalizing options? Now I had a choice between places like Taco Bell, Burger King, Wendy's, Subway, Arby's.... All that yummy food and so CHEAP! I was giddy with the possibilities.
At the time, Max tried to get me to accept McDonalds into my repertoire of fast food options. It was a slow, uphill battle, and when we married he sounded even more convincing as my husband: I eventually relented and learned to love the place again.
A few weeks ago, I was at my local McDonalds all by myself. I was all alone because Max had taken the good car (the one with air conditioning and an automatic transmission) all the way to Oregon for some kind of "conference". So I was left with the other car, trapped inside the house for more than a week unless I could brave the stick shift around town. So every day, I would plan an Outing. It had to be in the morning (because of the AC situation) and it had to be within a two mile radius away from any hills (I was still shaky about the manual transmission thing).
So I landed at McDonalds for an early lunch. I ordered a hamburger and fries during a really busy lunch hour for them. So busy, in fact, that when the credit card swipey thing didn't work, they lady just told me to go sit down and enjoy my free lunch.
Wow! Food tastes so much better when it's free!
When the line had died down, I decided to treat myself to a McFlurry for dessert since I hadn't spent anything on lunch.
I ordered an Oreo McFlurry. The young white guy behind the counter punched some buttons, then asked if I wanted Ranch or Italian with that. "What, now?? No, I said I'd like an Oreo McFlurry!" So he got a cup and started filling it with.... M&Ms.
"NOOOOOOOO!" I practically shouted to him as he proceeded to mix the vanilla ice cream with it. M&M's are not at all my thing (it's a long story that involves vomit).
So he makes me an Oreo McFlurry and gives me BOTH McFlurrys since he doesn't know what to do with the other one. And that's how I got eight dollars worth of food for a little over two bucks.
Gotta love America!
Comments Off
4 August 2010
i didn’t lose the sweet tooth
We drove from Alabama to Michigan in one long eighteen hour drive on Monday.
I knew my pleas to split it up into two days would be useless in the face of my husband's perfect logic: Why ruin two days instead of one? Why spend money on a hotel room when we can sleep in our own bed at mom and dad's house?
So we left at 5:00 AM and got there at 11:30 PM. But there's no real need to feel sorry for me because I've developed some pretty good coping mechanisms over the years. My first strategy (and the most effective one) is simply to conk out. Sleeping for four hours takes an 18 hour drive to a 14 hour drive. Much better. My other strategies are to call people and chit chat on the phone, listen to podcasts, and.... munch on munchies!
There's just something about eating junk food on a long car ride that makes the trip a bit more enjoyable. That's why when we stopped to get gas, I came out of the rest stop with some Skittles and some gum.
I happily tore into the Skittles after lunch. I told Max I'd eat the first half of the package while he was busy polishing off the Doritos. I was almost at the end of my candy allotment when I felt a loud crunch in my mouth.
I moaned. This was either going to turn out to be a really stale lemon Skittle, or....
...my tooth. My crown, to be exact. The crown I'd had put in to the top right hand side of my mouth a mere two years ago by my incompetent dentist. So I spit out the lemony mass, and salvaged the crown by wrapping it in a napkin in my purse. When I looked in the mirror to survey the damage, this is kinda what I saw:
Okay, so I don't really look like that, but in the absence of an actual picture from my camera, you'll just have to trust me that I am now Hillbilly Sarah (at least until I see the dentist tomorrow).
There are three good things to come of this:
I knew my pleas to split it up into two days would be useless in the face of my husband's perfect logic: Why ruin two days instead of one? Why spend money on a hotel room when we can sleep in our own bed at mom and dad's house?
So we left at 5:00 AM and got there at 11:30 PM. But there's no real need to feel sorry for me because I've developed some pretty good coping mechanisms over the years. My first strategy (and the most effective one) is simply to conk out. Sleeping for four hours takes an 18 hour drive to a 14 hour drive. Much better. My other strategies are to call people and chit chat on the phone, listen to podcasts, and.... munch on munchies!
There's just something about eating junk food on a long car ride that makes the trip a bit more enjoyable. That's why when we stopped to get gas, I came out of the rest stop with some Skittles and some gum.
I happily tore into the Skittles after lunch. I told Max I'd eat the first half of the package while he was busy polishing off the Doritos. I was almost at the end of my candy allotment when I felt a loud crunch in my mouth.
I moaned. This was either going to turn out to be a really stale lemon Skittle, or....
...my tooth. My crown, to be exact. The crown I'd had put in to the top right hand side of my mouth a mere two years ago by my incompetent dentist. So I spit out the lemony mass, and salvaged the crown by wrapping it in a napkin in my purse. When I looked in the mirror to survey the damage, this is kinda what I saw:
Okay, so I don't really look like that, but in the absence of an actual picture from my camera, you'll just have to trust me that I am now Hillbilly Sarah (at least until I see the dentist tomorrow).
There are three good things to come of this:
- THANK THE LORD it didn't happen until after my ten year reunion. My vanity could not have handled it!
- There's no pain involved.
- This is a golden opportunity to convince myself and others that the best thing for my poor mouth right now is to just eat ice cream until my dentist's appointment.
Comments Off
31 July 2010
a delicious mistake
This is day two in Alabama with the grandfolks, and day two of all-you-can-eat buffet dinners.
Each time, the food has been quite delicious, but there's just something about a buffet that makes you forget all of your common sense and ignore that little voice that keeps telling you: "Stop eating, you pig! Do you want to end up like that oversized lady over there?" Instead, you're like "I can't hear you lalalalalalala" as you stuff more ribs into your mouth.
And eating at a buffet when you're on vacation is a double-whammy because you think: "I don't need to eat healthy - I'm on VACATION". So you pile on the fried shrimp and get a second helping of ice cream.
And then when it's time to leave, you find yourself struggling to get up from the table... all of that deliciousness is keeping you anchored to your chair.
If you had been eavesdropping on our party of seven tonight as werolled walked back to the car, you would have heard us say:
"I won't need to eat again. Ever."
"Grandma, do you have any laxatives?"
"Where's the vomitorium?"
"I've got a 'food baby' in my stomach."
"That was a mistake."
Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go pass out on the couch while I try to digest....
Each time, the food has been quite delicious, but there's just something about a buffet that makes you forget all of your common sense and ignore that little voice that keeps telling you: "Stop eating, you pig! Do you want to end up like that oversized lady over there?" Instead, you're like "I can't hear you lalalalalalala" as you stuff more ribs into your mouth.
And eating at a buffet when you're on vacation is a double-whammy because you think: "I don't need to eat healthy - I'm on VACATION". So you pile on the fried shrimp and get a second helping of ice cream.
And then when it's time to leave, you find yourself struggling to get up from the table... all of that deliciousness is keeping you anchored to your chair.
If you had been eavesdropping on our party of seven tonight as we
"I won't need to eat again. Ever."
"Grandma, do you have any laxatives?"
"Where's the vomitorium?"
"I've got a 'food baby' in my stomach."
"That was a mistake."
Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go pass out on the couch while I try to digest....
Comments Off
16 July 2010
at least I wasn’t arrested
Today, we're jumping on a plane headed for my ten year high school reunion. Actually, we probably won't literally be jumping on a plane. There's always lots of fun security and shoe-removing before there's any actual jumping.
I've always been terrified of walking through that little archway that's supposed to detect any metal on you. It's silly because the worst that could happen is that it beeps and then you embarrassingly remember you left your keys in your pocket. But still. I end up holding my breath walking through that thing.
One time a few years back, as Max and I had our luggage on the conveyor belt for the see-through thingy, they stopped me and my bag.
"There's a knife in your bag," the TSA agent told me.
WHAT?
I didn't pack any knives. I was sure of it! I left all of my knives, guns, and explosives at home. Promise!
Then she unzipped the front pocket of my backpack and pulled out a butter knife from our silverware set. It was left over from a picnic or some such nonsense. We obviously couldn't board with it (you know, butter knives being as sharp and dangerous as they are) so we had to throw it away right then and there.
So much for being a seasoned traveler....
I've always been terrified of walking through that little archway that's supposed to detect any metal on you. It's silly because the worst that could happen is that it beeps and then you embarrassingly remember you left your keys in your pocket. But still. I end up holding my breath walking through that thing.
One time a few years back, as Max and I had our luggage on the conveyor belt for the see-through thingy, they stopped me and my bag.
"There's a knife in your bag," the TSA agent told me.
WHAT?
I didn't pack any knives. I was sure of it! I left all of my knives, guns, and explosives at home. Promise!
Then she unzipped the front pocket of my backpack and pulled out a butter knife from our silverware set. It was left over from a picnic or some such nonsense. We obviously couldn't board with it (you know, butter knives being as sharp and dangerous as they are) so we had to throw it away right then and there.
So much for being a seasoned traveler....
Comments Off
14 July 2010
words from ten years ago
This morning, I've been looking through my high school journals. Because before there was blogging, there was journaling... And the thing about journals is that they are so much more CANDID. The words were only meant for me, and as a result my diaries are absolutely dripping with teenage angst and melodrama!
I had originally thought that transcribing a journal entry would make for a fun blog post, but as I leafed through the entries, I realized that most of it is just simply too CRINGE-WORTHY to repeat here. Case in point: I wrote twenty-two pages (front and back!) of a phone call conversation I had with a boy I liked in the tenth grade. Yes! I actually taped the phone conversation and transcribed it into my diary. To relive forever!!
I especially enjoyed reading what I had to say after I had graduated from my international high school in Germany:
and
Little did I know that I would be celebrating my FIVE YEAR ANNIVERSARY when I was 25!!
And here's one more little clip that I look back on with a smile (written just before I moved to the States for college):
Did you keep a diary when you were younger?
I had originally thought that transcribing a journal entry would make for a fun blog post, but as I leafed through the entries, I realized that most of it is just simply too CRINGE-WORTHY to repeat here. Case in point: I wrote twenty-two pages (front and back!) of a phone call conversation I had with a boy I liked in the tenth grade. Yes! I actually taped the phone conversation and transcribed it into my diary. To relive forever!!
I especially enjoyed reading what I had to say after I had graduated from my international high school in Germany:
"I will have no problem falling for college guys (if there are any worth falling for...)"
and
"I'm definitely NOT going to marry before the age of 25"
Little did I know that I would be celebrating my FIVE YEAR ANNIVERSARY when I was 25!!
And here's one more little clip that I look back on with a smile (written just before I moved to the States for college):
"I'm terrified of starting over from scratch, of leaving Europe, of leaving home, of closing the doors of my high school world, of saying goodbye to all that is dear to me.... My biggest fear in life, my absolute biggest fear, is that I will look back on my high school years as the best years of my life. I don't want my life to go downhill from here. I want my high school years to be great ones, but I also want experiences that will be even better!"I smiled when I read those words because my biggest fear didn't come true! The best years of my life are right now (thank you, Lord!!)
Did you keep a diary when you were younger?
Comments Off
11 July 2010
Father knows best
Way back a long time ago, when I was just a high school nerd looking into various colleges, my dad urged me to minor in Business (no matter what I chose as a major).
Little did he know that around that very same time, my best friend and I had a habit of going to the local coffee shop and dreaming about our futures. I went to an international boarding school in Germany and most of my friends were headed back to the States for college.... so my friend and I would Talk Big about our plans after high school. We were going to travel the world. We were going to join the peace corps. We were going to eat different foods, do amazing things, and immerse ourselves in other cultures.
"Can you imagine how boring it would be to, like, own a store and just live in one place forever?"
To a couple of kids who were used to country-hopping with their parents every few years, this was indeed the worst fate imaginable. So you can imagine my reaction to my father's suggestion about minoring in Business ("What? Why? Ewwww.")
Fast forward ten years into the future. Since going to college and starting my career, all I have wanted is to put down some roots somewhere. Suddenly owning a store and living in one place forever sounds very exotic. I'll still always have a thirst for traveling, but my priorities have definitely changed.
And dad's advice about Business? I maybe should have listened. Case in point. But I'll go ahead and blame my passion for teaching on that one :)
Little did he know that around that very same time, my best friend and I had a habit of going to the local coffee shop and dreaming about our futures. I went to an international boarding school in Germany and most of my friends were headed back to the States for college.... so my friend and I would Talk Big about our plans after high school. We were going to travel the world. We were going to join the peace corps. We were going to eat different foods, do amazing things, and immerse ourselves in other cultures.
"Can you imagine how boring it would be to, like, own a store and just live in one place forever?"
To a couple of kids who were used to country-hopping with their parents every few years, this was indeed the worst fate imaginable. So you can imagine my reaction to my father's suggestion about minoring in Business ("What? Why? Ewwww.")
Fast forward ten years into the future. Since going to college and starting my career, all I have wanted is to put down some roots somewhere. Suddenly owning a store and living in one place forever sounds very exotic. I'll still always have a thirst for traveling, but my priorities have definitely changed.
And dad's advice about Business? I maybe should have listened. Case in point. But I'll go ahead and blame my passion for teaching on that one :)
Comments Off
23 June 2010
Sleeping beauties
It was a joyful reunion yesterday, albeit a sleepy one. Something about being in the car for 27 hours straight, only having stopped for forty minutes to "sleep" during the night.
Not long after Max came home, Sawyer (the dog I was taking care of for the week) went home with his owners. As soon as he left, Barney collapsed in an exhausted heap in Max's lap, who was himself frozen in position on the couch, fatigue overpowering his will to move. Max managed to stay awake until about 7:30 at which point we all gave up and went to sleep (aren't we such EXCITING people?!?).
This morning, after eating breakfast in front of the morning news, everyone fell asleep again. Max is snoozing under the couch pillows and Barney is in another deep slumber on top of the couch. Even all three cats are sleeping.
I can't wait until all of my sleeping beauties finally wake up for the day so we can move on to more exciting things likeunpacking, cleaning, going to our favorite pizza place!
Not long after Max came home, Sawyer (the dog I was taking care of for the week) went home with his owners. As soon as he left, Barney collapsed in an exhausted heap in Max's lap, who was himself frozen in position on the couch, fatigue overpowering his will to move. Max managed to stay awake until about 7:30 at which point we all gave up and went to sleep (aren't we such EXCITING people?!?).
This morning, after eating breakfast in front of the morning news, everyone fell asleep again. Max is snoozing under the couch pillows and Barney is in another deep slumber on top of the couch. Even all three cats are sleeping.
I can't wait until all of my sleeping beauties finally wake up for the day so we can move on to more exciting things like
Comments Off
21 June 2010
Don’t play with your food
Well, you learn something new every day! From the comments in the post below, I discovered that neither my husband, my dad, nor my father-in-law like pasta salad. Is this a guy thing?
But for all you ladies out there with sensible taste buds, you can find the recipe here. Make sure you add halved cherry tomatoes, though (you'll thank me later).
Guess who comes home tomorrow?? MY OTHER HALF!! Here's a recap of the past eight days (as reenacted by our salt and pepper shakers):
First, Max left for a state far, far away to go to some alleged "conference".
Which left me feeling sad and all alone. Also, with lots of pets.
But tomorrow, he will COME BACK!
And all will be right in the world again.
But for all you ladies out there with sensible taste buds, you can find the recipe here. Make sure you add halved cherry tomatoes, though (you'll thank me later).
Guess who comes home tomorrow?? MY OTHER HALF!! Here's a recap of the past eight days (as reenacted by our salt and pepper shakers):
First, Max left for a state far, far away to go to some alleged "conference".
Which left me feeling sad and all alone. Also, with lots of pets.
But tomorrow, he will COME BACK!
And all will be right in the world again.
Comments Off
17 June 2010
A cautionary tale
My husband is out of town for a little more than a week to go to a conference. Apparently, he couldn't handle driving 40+ hours across the country with no cruise control and no air, so he took MY car... leaving me with the car with no cruise control, no air, and MANUAL TRANSMISSION.
In preparation for his departure, he had been teaching me how to drive wtih a stick shift. I kinda have the hang of it, but it doesn't stop me from having a heart attack every time I need to use the car.
So last night when I decided I needed a gourmet sandwich with some gourmet ingredients, I thought to myself: "Why not avoid a panic attack and just walk the half mile to the store?"
It was a great idea! Except that it was 98 degrees outside and positively sweltering. When I finally made it to the store, I just about collapsed into a sweaty heap in the produce department.
When I recovered, I made my way to the deli counter and asked the nice 40-something lady behind the counter how much the prosciutto was. $12.99 a pound. Then she asked me how much I wanted.
"Three ounces", I said.
Meat Lady: "Okay, there's sixteen ounces in a pound, so.... that's about half a pound, right?"
Me: "..."
Me [once I picked my jaw up off the floor]: "Ummm. I think it's actually closer to less than a quarter pound"
The moral of the story?
Be cool, stay in school!
Oh, and Don't be a wuss, and just drive the car already!
In preparation for his departure, he had been teaching me how to drive wtih a stick shift. I kinda have the hang of it, but it doesn't stop me from having a heart attack every time I need to use the car.
So last night when I decided I needed a gourmet sandwich with some gourmet ingredients, I thought to myself: "Why not avoid a panic attack and just walk the half mile to the store?"
It was a great idea! Except that it was 98 degrees outside and positively sweltering. When I finally made it to the store, I just about collapsed into a sweaty heap in the produce department.
When I recovered, I made my way to the deli counter and asked the nice 40-something lady behind the counter how much the prosciutto was. $12.99 a pound. Then she asked me how much I wanted.
"Three ounces", I said.
Meat Lady: "Okay, there's sixteen ounces in a pound, so.... that's about half a pound, right?"
Me: "..."
Me [once I picked my jaw up off the floor]: "Ummm. I think it's actually closer to less than a quarter pound"
The moral of the story?
Be cool, stay in school!
Oh, and Don't be a wuss, and just drive the car already!
Comments Off
25 May 2010
We like to do things backwards
Since moving into our new house at the end of August last year, we've been slowly furnishing it so it looks the way we want it to. Last weekend, we broke down and went to Ikea to get one last thing I felt that the living room was missing: a bookshelf. We got a "great" deal (let's not kid ourselves: it's just some particle board and some screws) and I was so excited about it that Max was kind enough to tackle putting it together right away!
And then I had fun filling it with all of our little treasures:

On the top of the bookshelf is a clock that belonged to Max's grandfather (a gift from GM, in fact!). On the first two rows are my scrapbooks and journals, some hand drawn paintings of various European cities, a handmade pottery vase (a wedding gift from a college roommate), and some wedding pictures. On the bottom two rows are Max's various textbooks: religion, languages, and psychology. Oh, and can you spot the cat? She's probably wondering if that will be a safe place to hide from the dog...
Here's the view from the other side of the living room:
Now we just need to cover up all of this nice furniture so we can paint the walls!!
And then I had fun filling it with all of our little treasures:

On the top of the bookshelf is a clock that belonged to Max's grandfather (a gift from GM, in fact!). On the first two rows are my scrapbooks and journals, some hand drawn paintings of various European cities, a handmade pottery vase (a wedding gift from a college roommate), and some wedding pictures. On the bottom two rows are Max's various textbooks: religion, languages, and psychology. Oh, and can you spot the cat? She's probably wondering if that will be a safe place to hide from the dog...
Here's the view from the other side of the living room:
Now we just need to cover up all of this nice furniture so we can paint the walls!!
Comments Off
23 May 2010
Happy Birthday, Romeo!
I can't believe that one year ago this past Friday, this little cutie was born:

When I won a custom canvas painting from Initial Designs, I thought of my wonderful nephew right away! I asked her to paint Romeo's name surrounded by a jungle scene (his nursery is in a jungle theme). She finished it recently and even sent it straight to my sister-in-law so it would get there on time for his birthday. Here's the finished masterpiece:

Isn't it just darling?? I think that frog is my favorite. Anyways, the family loves it and Romeo had fun pointing at all of the animals!
If you're looking for a fantastic personalized gift, keep Initial Designs in mind; Melissa was wonderful to work with!!

When I won a custom canvas painting from Initial Designs, I thought of my wonderful nephew right away! I asked her to paint Romeo's name surrounded by a jungle scene (his nursery is in a jungle theme). She finished it recently and even sent it straight to my sister-in-law so it would get there on time for his birthday. Here's the finished masterpiece:

Isn't it just darling?? I think that frog is my favorite. Anyways, the family loves it and Romeo had fun pointing at all of the animals!
If you're looking for a fantastic personalized gift, keep Initial Designs in mind; Melissa was wonderful to work with!!
Comments Off
13 May 2010
Birthday Boy
Yesterday was Max's birthday. That's him, pretending to pick his nose...
Anyway, I took the afternoon off and we went to see Iron Man 2. Then we came home, had pizza, and ate Phish Food, which is Max's new favorite Ben and Jerry's ice cream flavor.
It was so fun, gallivanting around town yesterday afternoon, it really made me long for summer!!
Are we there yet?
Comments Off
26 April 2010
Gold Star

I happened to catch this secret on PostSecret the other day (from the website: PostSecret is an ongoing community art project where people mail in their secrets anonymously on one side of a postcard).
Did you ever get stickers on your work when you were young? I vaguely remember receiving some. I know my fourth graders still love getting them (they're not stars though, they're Spongebob and Batman and other commercial heroes!).
Star stickers represent work well done. How often do we commend our students for their good work? How specific are we with our praise? "Good job" means a lot less than "I'm so proud of you for remembering all of your capitals and periods!"
And as we grow into adulthood, accolades seem to fade altogether. They'll come in the form of "employee of the month" or a small raise, or something. But I think we're all kids at heart, and we all like to be recognized for work well done. I know I feel good about myself when another teacher asks to borrow an idea I've had or some materials I've created.
And I certainly felt good about myself when Melissa of Me:Daily passed on this nice award to me this morning!

I'm blushing.
But nothing in life is free, and there are rules for this award! I'm going to share ten things about me, and then spread the love onto three other bloggers. Ready? Let's play.
- I've never had highlights in my hair. I've always wanted to do it, but at the heart of me, I'm just too cheap.
- Someday I'm going to write a novel (and you can't stop me!)
- I have a serious addiction to ice cream.
- I've eaten the same school lunch for two and a half years (recipe here). Yes, I still enjoy it!
- I think it would be great fun to be a school librarian.
- I thought Chicago was in northern California until I was in tenth grade.
- I tend to lose Scrabble games because I'm too preoccupied with finding the most creative word instead of getting points.
- I once held a rhinoceros beetle on my arm when we were in Costa Rica.
- I'm fluent in French (for all the good it does me with my students' Spanish speaking parents...)
- I was nineteen years old when I learned that gas isn't actually sold in the gas cans. Who knew?
Momma May Be Mad: I'm so glad I found her! I love reading her honest and insightful look into her own life and struggles.
Life-Based Education (TeachEnEspanol): I love reading her reflections on her life in the classroom!
Anne-Marie with a Dash: a French teacher in Canada who blogs about things other than school (What? You mean teachers can have a life outside the classroom?!?)
And now that I have completed the steps for accepting this award, I'd love to see an "About me" list of ten random things about you! Post your list (or link to your blog post) in the comments section if you'd like to play along :).
Comments Off
8 April 2010
Smooch your pooch
The sign on the local pizzeria read: "Smooch your pooch for a free large cheese pizza ... Wednesdays in April!"

What would YOU do for a free pizza?

What would YOU do for a free pizza?
Comments Off
15 February 2010
Can you tell it’s dinnertime right now?
I was talking about lunch yesterday with Max and he was saying something about not wanting to have a sandwich because that's what he has for lunch every day at school.
I have a homemade burrito every day at school (basic recipe here). I make them every three weeks in big batches and then freeze them. If I could, I would eat them on the weekends too, because I love them THAT MUCH. And I've been eating these for lunch for.... two years now. I had a teacher recently tell me that when she sees me, she thinks of burritos (and it makes sense since I only see her in the lounge at lunch).... which isn't a bad thing to be associated with I guess.
Anyways, it got me thinking... if you could only eat one food (or dish) for the rest of your life, what would it be?
When I lived in France, the answer would have been Oreos. Wait, maybe donuts. When I was in college, I would have said French cheese and French bread. But now? I think the answer would be cake balls!
I have a homemade burrito every day at school (basic recipe here). I make them every three weeks in big batches and then freeze them. If I could, I would eat them on the weekends too, because I love them THAT MUCH. And I've been eating these for lunch for.... two years now. I had a teacher recently tell me that when she sees me, she thinks of burritos (and it makes sense since I only see her in the lounge at lunch).... which isn't a bad thing to be associated with I guess.
Anyways, it got me thinking... if you could only eat one food (or dish) for the rest of your life, what would it be?
When I lived in France, the answer would have been Oreos. Wait, maybe donuts. When I was in college, I would have said French cheese and French bread. But now? I think the answer would be cake balls!
Comments Off
14 February 2010
The best Valentine’s yet!
For me, Valentine's Day is never some huge romantic thing. It's mostly an excuse to get ice cream. And we did! We went to an awesome frozen yogurt place downtown...
But Max got inspired this year. First, he spent lots of time he didn't have putting up our new curtains for me. I knew he didn't want to, but he did it anyway (if that's not love, then what is?). The curtains turned out wonderfully and this picture doesn't do them justice:

Then, he made me a special treat! He made a chocolate cake (from scratch, in secret, while I was showering!), then used a cookie cutter to make them into little hearts. Then cut them in half, lengthwise and filled them with homemade butter cream frosting. See?

We've decided to call his creations "heart throbs". Here's a closeup. They were delicious!

I am a spoiled woman, I tell you. Spoiled!
But Max got inspired this year. First, he spent lots of time he didn't have putting up our new curtains for me. I knew he didn't want to, but he did it anyway (if that's not love, then what is?). The curtains turned out wonderfully and this picture doesn't do them justice:

Then, he made me a special treat! He made a chocolate cake (from scratch, in secret, while I was showering!), then used a cookie cutter to make them into little hearts. Then cut them in half, lengthwise and filled them with homemade butter cream frosting. See?

We've decided to call his creations "heart throbs". Here's a closeup. They were delicious!

I am a spoiled woman, I tell you. Spoiled!
Comments Off
31 January 2010
Costco wins again
Here is the latest addition to our home:

A fade-free, stain-free 7x10 ft rug we got for $99 at Costco (where else?). It sure does make our living room and dining area look so much cozier!
Also? This is the fifth item of furniture/home decor we have bought from there! They should really start paying us for all the good press we give them....

A fade-free, stain-free 7x10 ft rug we got for $99 at Costco (where else?). It sure does make our living room and dining area look so much cozier!
Also? This is the fifth item of furniture/home decor we have bought from there! They should really start paying us for all the good press we give them....
Comments Off






