Monday, March 31, 2008
Click to see it big if you can't read it. THIS coulda been way worse.
LONGEST MINUTE OF YOUR DAY
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Certainly the longest of mine! You would think with Sarah slowing down the clock all the time, I wouldn't feel like life was passing by so quickly. But alas...
Music: Minute Waltz by Chopin, played by Anthony Zanghi
PROACTIVE PANIC
Friday, March 28, 2008
So this week Sarah got her Bat Mitzvah date - August 14, 2010. Oh lordy lordy my head is spinning.
- I am old. (I knew it before, but now I have a daughter who will technically become a woman, and everyone else will know I'm old)
- I have to give a party for 150 people. Or 100. Or whoever shows up. (what if nobody shows up?!)
- I have to plan said party. And other related events. We have to pay for this party. Blar.
What if my alarm breaks and we forget to wake up for the Bat Mitzvah? What if I cry through the whole thing and miss it? What if the videographer hits the wrong button and erases the whole tape?
Of course, partly this panic is being brought on because we just got back from my friend Melissa's daughter's Bat Mitzvah last week in Boston and I got to see birds-eye style what this all entails. Melissa had it all under complete control and the events were not only fun, but flawless, and she didn't miss a trick. She made chocolate and peppermint bark. She made individual bookmarks for people to take home. Her family and her in-laws all participated in the service and the party hosting. She successfully avoided family political disasters. She survived teenage angst and some -ahem- teenage physical changes. She had a bathroom leak and just let it roll right off.
I'll have what she's having. (seriously)YOU ARE THE BEST (AND YOU, AND YOU...)
Monday, March 24, 2008
Today Becca was a "student standout" in her class. She got an award at an assembly for being loving, always coming to the rescue of people who are hurt or sad, and saying thank you.
Of course, this is 2 days after she spent some quality time in the principal's office for inflicting bodily harm of various sorts on her fellow classmates.
I shouldn't be so crass. I should be happy. Becca was beaming and she clung to her little certificate as if it was a gold bar. Still, it doesn't compute to me. When I was growing up, being a winner meant that there were losers. Winning meant you were the best at something! Nowadays, EVERYONE is a winner. EVERYONE is celebrated.
Is this good? I don't know. How are we going to compete in the global economy if we convince all the kids that they are the best when the very definition of "the best" means that this can't be true?
Well, I suppose it was all fine. At least she wasn't the kid who got the award for "doing nice artwork" or "having a pretty smile." If she's going to get an award for being fake-best, at least it's for things like love, compassion, and gratitude - virtues that can at some point help her transcend that mean left hook of hers...
TRANSFORMATION
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Here's a bit of a photo compilation of our landscaping project. There was a period of time when we didn't take pictures because it rained every other day and it was just too muddy and depressing. But still, you can see what went on... for 4 months. Every day it wasn't raining.
Started out looking like this:
Seemed so easy?!? Eck I'm glad it's over. We still have plenty to do - paint the fence, get furniture, and what have you - but it's a huge change and now we are outside all the time!
Back yard
ANNIE ANNIE ARE YOU OK?!?!
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Sarah and I got certified in CPR last night with the Girl Scouts. I think it has made us more paranoid. I saw Sarah checking Becca's pulse and Becca was walking around at the time. So if you are at our house in a deep sleep, we may assume you are dead and smack you on the forehead to find out. No offense. We're just doin' our duty.
HAU'OLI LA HANAU, BECCA!
Friday, March 14, 2008
(Happy birthday in Hawaiian!)
Ahhh birthdays. The birthday girl looks forward to it for at least 6 months. You plan it for at least a month. The cake, the present, the entertainment, the food, the decorations, the music, the blender drinks, the invitations... the cleaning of the house! And then in 3 windy, jam-packed hours, it's over. And you've aged at least 9 months.
At least we got by relatively unscathed: no boo-boos, no tantrums, no scissors mishaps... and you gotta love San Diego, you can have barefoot Hawaiian dancers in your yard in early March if you want.
Music: Nani Kauai (Guava Jam) by Troy Fernandez Ukulele
JUST IN CASE YOU ARE STUMPED
Saturday, March 08, 2008
If you are still in a quandry about what to get Becca for her birthday, here are some hints.
THANK YOU MA'AM
The other day I looked in the mirror and this LADY was looking back. She was definitely older than I remember.
Do you ever have one of those moments when you suddenly see yourself as you are? Well, the fact is, I'm 43. Actually if I think like Becca, 43 and a half. I simply don't look like I did last decade.
Not that I look terrible... I just don't think I look like me. I don't know how to describe this. Body parts are moving around. Darned gravity. Also facial features are changing. My skin is holding up ok, but I feel like the muscles underneath might be letting it down?
Fortunately I don't make my living with my looks. Still, I have to start embracing this new lady. She does take care of herself - her hair looks pretty fabulous and she is using excellent moisturizer.
It all made me think about the first time I was called "ma'am" instead of "miss". If you are a woman, you remember where you were when this happened as easily as you can recall where you were when the Twin Towers went down. If you're a guy, you're reading this thinking, really?
I was debarking a taxi in Chicago. I was 29. The cab driver was younger than me. But not by much.
Then unusual things started happening. Someone must have cut a hole in the time/space continuum starting then. The doctors started to get younger! My doctor is at least 10 years younger than me! And when I interview college seniors for jobs now, I am tempted to look at their drivers licenses... geez are those people REALLY 21?
And when I hear of someone passing away at 70, I say, WOW that's so YOUNG!
I referred to Wolfman Jack in a meeting and people didn't know what I was saying. Richard Dreyfus moved into my friend Joan's neighborhood and the kids have no idea who this is. Don told me one of our cars is 10 years old, and it actually seems pretty new to me.
I play BUNCO with a group of ladies. And I like it. I'm married to a guy who's going to turn 52 (WOW that's so YOUNG).
So next time you see me, embrace the new old me. Know I don't really care about it so much in the scheme of things, but it is kind of out-of-body experience at some level. Because my insides have NOT changed. My sense of humor is still every bit of 10-years-old as Sarah's. I still feel what I did when I was 17. I still think I'm cool. (I might be wrong, but I still think it.)
A VERY SWEET ADOPTION STORY
Sunday, March 02, 2008
Thanks Linda! The photographer wrote:
This mother doxie is fostering a baby pig for another mom who couldn't take care of him. He is just a little bigger than her other pups. She loves this little guy more than the other puppies and she is nursing him back to health. He is the cleanest puppy ever because she licks him all the time.