This is just a quick post-bedtime post about how we now FINALLY have access to local network channels (ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, PBS, CW) and can therefore watch the game (Alabama vs. LSU) tomorrow. I can't believe how much I missed my network television. I could do without this cable television junk, really. I actually could do without television altogether, methinks, but there's someone else in my house who likes to watch sports.
On the bright side, since we lacked locals, I started watching HGTV. Okay, so maybe that's not a bright side. BUT, they do have 30-minutes programs so that I can watch them and fold clothes and simulteneously get good ideas for what to do with the house one day when we have money to spend. I like to watch Holmes on Homes, House Crashers, Yard Crashers, Bath Crashers, Color Splash: Miami (David Bromstad!), Property Virgins, Income Property, Designed to Sell, The Unsellables, Bang for Your Buck, and particularly House Hunters International. Oh, and there's a new show this season that I can't remember what it's called, but the people try to do their own renovation for cheaper than the pros guess it costs them, and they win the difference if they renovated for less. It's addicting, particularly since I'm a homeowner now. But it's also easy to turn it off since it's only 30 minutes at a sitting and there are frequent reruns.
Anyway, it's bedtime. It's drill weekend and MIL is here to see the grand kiddos while I get some stuff done around the house. We are taking some time out to go tailgate tomorrow, though. That should be a lot of fun. :)
Cheers.
Friday, November 5, 2010
Thursday, November 4, 2010
12 Weeks of O
I just can't believe it. It felt like it would never get here. Oscar is 12 weeks old. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the hallmark I have been waiting for. Oscar is now old enough to go to the nursery at church! FINALLY!!!! Let's just say that not having Oscar stay with me during church will relieve A LOT of Sunday stress for me and enable me to start attending Sunday school again. And I'll probably, hopefully, enjoy going to church instead of dreading it. And maybe, just maybe, I can look at the last three months as a small sacrifice instead of a grand martyrdom. We'll see. Ironically, I've been anticipating this week, but I'm not even sure if we will be at church since it's Eli's drill weekend. C'est la vie.
Elsie is definitely going to be a good big sister. The other day she was holding a baby wipe up to Oscar's nose and making nose blowing sounds for him. And when I turned around a while later, she was holding a stacking cup up to his mouth and then taking it away and saying a refreshing "aaaaah" for him. It was too cute. And she tries to give him hugs and kisses, which sometimes represent sumo wrestling moves, but it's the thought that counts, right? I'm sure he'll appreciate it later, though now it just terrifies him. :)
Cheers.
Elsie is definitely going to be a good big sister. The other day she was holding a baby wipe up to Oscar's nose and making nose blowing sounds for him. And when I turned around a while later, she was holding a stacking cup up to his mouth and then taking it away and saying a refreshing "aaaaah" for him. It was too cute. And she tries to give him hugs and kisses, which sometimes represent sumo wrestling moves, but it's the thought that counts, right? I'm sure he'll appreciate it later, though now it just terrifies him. :)
Cheers.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Orbitals
I was at Sylvan tonight and the director was on the phone with a parent, and she said, could you do high school chemistry, and I told her that yes, I could probably do it if I had a book, but that it has been 16 years since I've actually used the stuff. The parent was desperate for help and was willing to chance it. So, I'm thinking that someday soon this child will be sitting at my table.
Nope. He came the next hour. (!) I was emotionally unprepared for that. Haha.
It was the strangest sensation, looking over his notes. I have mentioned it before, but it was very much the "I-used-to-be-smart-WHAT-THE-HECK-HAPPENED?" feeling. The material was familiar, tugging on cobwebs in my brain; I knew there was information that was key, but I just couldn't come up with it. For the first 15 minutes he sat and watched me fumble through his textbook trying to get my bearings. I'm pretty sure I was talking to myself. And he just sat there, because he honestly had no idea. He couldn't even really tell you what the model of an atom looked like, so we started there.
And then, I figured out that key piece of information (the atomic number is also the number of electrons) and WHAM! It all made sense again. I took cues from his messy textbooks, highlighted text, and makeshift flashcards that he was a visual learner, so I made it visual. And after 16 years of sitting in my brain unused, I got to exercise my knowledge of how to notate electron configurations. Glory BE!!
And it was incredible to see that light in his brain not just turn on, but GLARE back at me as he made those connections and FINALLY something about high school chemistry made a little bit of sense, even if he wasn't entirely sure how it applied to a greater context.
I was very glad that the outcome was good because I was almost starting to panic that his mother was paying for this emergency tutoring service and that I was wasting their money. Now I'm just thinking that Sylvan needs to pay me more (hint, hint). Haha.
I also want to mention that this brought me back to how I worked my tail off in high school chemistry back in the day. I had a TERRIBLE teacher who was more preoccupied with being pregnant and having cankles (I remember once she stood up in front of the class and said, "Please don't look at my feet." Of course, the first thing the 30 of us did was look at her extremely bloated/swollen feet. I don't think we would have even noticed if she hadn't said anything.) than teaching chemistry. And I had a different teacher than my other friends (except one) and their teacher was so easy. Life just wasn't fair back then. But Lauri and I kicked some chemistry butt and made As in our class. The only two As. Rock on. I'm still very proud of that achievement.
And I'm feelin' good tonight.
Cheers.
Nope. He came the next hour. (!) I was emotionally unprepared for that. Haha.
It was the strangest sensation, looking over his notes. I have mentioned it before, but it was very much the "I-used-to-be-smart-WHAT-THE-HECK-HAPPENED?" feeling. The material was familiar, tugging on cobwebs in my brain; I knew there was information that was key, but I just couldn't come up with it. For the first 15 minutes he sat and watched me fumble through his textbook trying to get my bearings. I'm pretty sure I was talking to myself. And he just sat there, because he honestly had no idea. He couldn't even really tell you what the model of an atom looked like, so we started there.
And then, I figured out that key piece of information (the atomic number is also the number of electrons) and WHAM! It all made sense again. I took cues from his messy textbooks, highlighted text, and makeshift flashcards that he was a visual learner, so I made it visual. And after 16 years of sitting in my brain unused, I got to exercise my knowledge of how to notate electron configurations. Glory BE!!
And it was incredible to see that light in his brain not just turn on, but GLARE back at me as he made those connections and FINALLY something about high school chemistry made a little bit of sense, even if he wasn't entirely sure how it applied to a greater context.
I was very glad that the outcome was good because I was almost starting to panic that his mother was paying for this emergency tutoring service and that I was wasting their money. Now I'm just thinking that Sylvan needs to pay me more (hint, hint). Haha.
I also want to mention that this brought me back to how I worked my tail off in high school chemistry back in the day. I had a TERRIBLE teacher who was more preoccupied with being pregnant and having cankles (I remember once she stood up in front of the class and said, "Please don't look at my feet." Of course, the first thing the 30 of us did was look at her extremely bloated/swollen feet. I don't think we would have even noticed if she hadn't said anything.) than teaching chemistry. And I had a different teacher than my other friends (except one) and their teacher was so easy. Life just wasn't fair back then. But Lauri and I kicked some chemistry butt and made As in our class. The only two As. Rock on. I'm still very proud of that achievement.
And I'm feelin' good tonight.
Cheers.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Voted
I exercised my right to vote today.
Since we officially moved in June, I was voting at a new location. It was a much larger polling place than our old Frank Brown Recreation Center locale. On the bright side, when I walked in, there was a really long line in front of me...for whatever names included last names that begin with P (I saw some church family members there, that's how I knew), but the A-B line was nonexistent, so I waltzed up, they checked my name, the old man made a lame "Leave it to Beaver" joke, they handed me my ballot, and I went and sat down and connected some arrows. Not all of them, mind you. Just some of them.
Do you know anything about the Alabama constitution? No? Well, my education about it started in my Texas State and Local Government class that I had to have as a part of my teaching certificate in Texas. Yes, I learned about Alabama's constitution in Texas. Why, you ask? Well, because Texas has a really old, really messed up state constitution. However, when they start feeling bad about having the second most horrendously organized constitution (and the second most amendments of all 50 states), they look to the fat kid in class to make them feel better. And when I say fat, I mean FAT. To put this in perspective, the U.S. Constitution was ratified in 1787 and has 27 amendments (approx. 0.12 amendments per year). The Texas constitution has been in effect since 1876 and has 467 amendments (approx. 3.5 amendments per year since its inception). The Alabama constitution has been around since 1901 and has 827 amendments (to date, making that approx. 7.5 amendments per year). Gee whiz! And you want to get all factoid on me? Here's the dish from Wikipedia:
At 357,157 words, the document is 12 times longer than the average state constitution, 40 times longer than the U.S. Constitution, and is the longest still-operative constitution anywhere in the world. (The English translation of the Constitution of India, the longest national constitution, is about 117,369 words long, a third of the length.)
Anyway, Alabama's law puts amendments up for approval that affect a specific county and the entire state gets to vote on the law. So, for instance (and this is a totally made up example), if Jefferson County wanted to raise property taxes, it would go to the whole state to vote on. Why should I care what is happening up in Jefferson County, and who am I to make that decision for them? I think it's stupid, and Alabama desperately needs constitutional reform. And that is partly why I only completed some arrows on my ballot.
Another reason I don't complete the arrow is if the person is running unchallenged. One vote wins it, and I just don't care that much. But, I was surprised to see Eli's former boss on the ballot--unchallenged, to boot--and contrary to my usual practice, I completed that arrow.
My last thought for today is something I have never thought about before: County Coroner is an elected position. Weird. (This year's candidate was running unchallenged. I'm not really that surprised....)
Cheers.
Since we officially moved in June, I was voting at a new location. It was a much larger polling place than our old Frank Brown Recreation Center locale. On the bright side, when I walked in, there was a really long line in front of me...for whatever names included last names that begin with P (I saw some church family members there, that's how I knew), but the A-B line was nonexistent, so I waltzed up, they checked my name, the old man made a lame "Leave it to Beaver" joke, they handed me my ballot, and I went and sat down and connected some arrows. Not all of them, mind you. Just some of them.
Do you know anything about the Alabama constitution? No? Well, my education about it started in my Texas State and Local Government class that I had to have as a part of my teaching certificate in Texas. Yes, I learned about Alabama's constitution in Texas. Why, you ask? Well, because Texas has a really old, really messed up state constitution. However, when they start feeling bad about having the second most horrendously organized constitution (and the second most amendments of all 50 states), they look to the fat kid in class to make them feel better. And when I say fat, I mean FAT. To put this in perspective, the U.S. Constitution was ratified in 1787 and has 27 amendments (approx. 0.12 amendments per year). The Texas constitution has been in effect since 1876 and has 467 amendments (approx. 3.5 amendments per year since its inception). The Alabama constitution has been around since 1901 and has 827 amendments (to date, making that approx. 7.5 amendments per year). Gee whiz! And you want to get all factoid on me? Here's the dish from Wikipedia:
At 357,157 words, the document is 12 times longer than the average state constitution, 40 times longer than the U.S. Constitution, and is the longest still-operative constitution anywhere in the world. (The English translation of the Constitution of India, the longest national constitution, is about 117,369 words long, a third of the length.)
Anyway, Alabama's law puts amendments up for approval that affect a specific county and the entire state gets to vote on the law. So, for instance (and this is a totally made up example), if Jefferson County wanted to raise property taxes, it would go to the whole state to vote on. Why should I care what is happening up in Jefferson County, and who am I to make that decision for them? I think it's stupid, and Alabama desperately needs constitutional reform. And that is partly why I only completed some arrows on my ballot.
Another reason I don't complete the arrow is if the person is running unchallenged. One vote wins it, and I just don't care that much. But, I was surprised to see Eli's former boss on the ballot--unchallenged, to boot--and contrary to my usual practice, I completed that arrow.
My last thought for today is something I have never thought about before: County Coroner is an elected position. Weird. (This year's candidate was running unchallenged. I'm not really that surprised....)
Cheers.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Teeth, Tangles, and Tangents
It's November and Elsie has two more teeth coming in! It's a good thing, too, because I would have hated for last week's diarrhea, diaper rash, and general malaise to go to waste! Haha. She has two more bottom teeth that broke through sometime recently--the two to either side of her bottom center teeth. So, she now has six on top and four on bottom. Ten! Ha. Ha. Ha. (Think of Sesame Street's Count and go back and read that again.)
Also, I must tell you that the bottle of detangling spray that I purchased while singing and dancing in "How to Succeed in Business" when I had to tease my hair into a rat's nest has come to be of great value in our household. No matter what we do, Elsie ends up with a wad of nasty matted hair on the back of her head where it rests against the carseat and where she sleeps on it. Sometimes I even find food tangled up in there (what?). Well, yanking on that mess does nothing but cause screaming, so we don't yank. And brushing it with a hairbrush only makes it worse, not better! So, we spray. And comb with successive combs, from a wide-tooth comb, smaller and smaller, to a man's pocket comb. And, like it says on the bottle, there is no more screaming. Success. And thank you, Theatre Tuscaloosa, for bringing the original impetus for this apple-scented miracle spray!
And on a side note, I'm a little OCD. I kid, I kid. But perhaps I don't? Now that I've spent time in my yard getting down and dirty with my weeds, I notice the same weeds all over Opelika and I just want to yank them out! I did the same thing with straightening merchandise at other stores when I worked at Books-A-Million. And while you may not follow my train of thought, I started this paragraph to tell you that my sink is still shining. I let it go one day and felt...sad and unfulfilled. So, last night, I stayed up until almost 11 getting it shined again. Another fabulous thing that has happened as a result of the clean sink is that the front seat of my car remains clean, too! I realize that the effort required to bring my trash and belongings inside with me is pretty much nil. I just need to do it. So, for the last two weeks or more, I have been keeping the front seat of the Saturn clean, too! (I vacuumed and Armor-alled it one day while the kids were asleep and I haven't gone back! It's nice!) Now for the backseat...
So, how's that for my first NaBloPoMo post? Sweet. Now to come up with 29 more.
Cheers!
Also, I must tell you that the bottle of detangling spray that I purchased while singing and dancing in "How to Succeed in Business" when I had to tease my hair into a rat's nest has come to be of great value in our household. No matter what we do, Elsie ends up with a wad of nasty matted hair on the back of her head where it rests against the carseat and where she sleeps on it. Sometimes I even find food tangled up in there (what?). Well, yanking on that mess does nothing but cause screaming, so we don't yank. And brushing it with a hairbrush only makes it worse, not better! So, we spray. And comb with successive combs, from a wide-tooth comb, smaller and smaller, to a man's pocket comb. And, like it says on the bottle, there is no more screaming. Success. And thank you, Theatre Tuscaloosa, for bringing the original impetus for this apple-scented miracle spray!
And on a side note, I'm a little OCD. I kid, I kid. But perhaps I don't? Now that I've spent time in my yard getting down and dirty with my weeds, I notice the same weeds all over Opelika and I just want to yank them out! I did the same thing with straightening merchandise at other stores when I worked at Books-A-Million. And while you may not follow my train of thought, I started this paragraph to tell you that my sink is still shining. I let it go one day and felt...sad and unfulfilled. So, last night, I stayed up until almost 11 getting it shined again. Another fabulous thing that has happened as a result of the clean sink is that the front seat of my car remains clean, too! I realize that the effort required to bring my trash and belongings inside with me is pretty much nil. I just need to do it. So, for the last two weeks or more, I have been keeping the front seat of the Saturn clean, too! (I vacuumed and Armor-alled it one day while the kids were asleep and I haven't gone back! It's nice!) Now for the backseat...
So, how's that for my first NaBloPoMo post? Sweet. Now to come up with 29 more.
Cheers!
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