You are currently browsing the monthly archive for August 2008.
1. Just Who Will You Be? - I have enjoyed Maria’s other books very much. Although I don’t agree with her politics, I enjoy her humanity and it comes through very well in her writing.
2. Bird By Bird - This was a recent birthday gift and I am looking forward to reading it. I have read several good reviews of it and I hope it will give me some good information about writing.
3. Too Busy Not To Pray - This is the text for a bible study group I am in. We are getting started in a few days so I have to get through the 1st chapter before our 1st meeting.
4. Making A Literary Life - Another book about writing…this one was an “impulse buy.” So far, I think it was a good one. This is one of the places where I read about writing 1000 words a day and I am giving that a try this week.
5. Bookstore – This is the story of Jeannette Watson and the famous Books & Co. in New York. It’s a great history book and wonderful to read about other people that love bookstores as an experience as much or more than as a marketplace.
My daughter says some very funny things. She says some profound things also, even if she doesn’t know they are profound.
Today, she asked…
“Mom, does God lower the screen at church?” — (our church uses a projection screen during the worship service)
After telling her that someone in the back of the church lowered the screen when we needed it, I thought how wonderful it would be to feel so close to God in the sanctuary as to think that HE, himself, was lowering the screen!
When I wrote “Standing Beside Silda” and “I Expect I Would Like Her”, I certainly never expected to find out that John Edwards had cheated on his wife. In fact no one expected that rumors of an extramarital affair in which he participated could even be conceived, much less that they would turn out to be true! When the rumors did surface and they did turn out to be true, not even his great smile, good hair and cute children could keep the media from turning on him. Or could they?
In the news coverage that has followed his admission of the affair and the interview on ABC, much of the “outrage” and anger toward Edwards has been directed at the fact that he was engaged in the affair while his wife was battling cancer. During the interview, he takes care to clarify that the affair happened while his wife’s cancer was in remission. He also, more than once, indicates that the affair was totally his responsibility and that he should be the person to suffer any consequences associated with it.
Certainly, I agree that HE is the one to blame for the affair. But I must also take some issue with HOW the media covered the story (not, mind you, who got the story first). The fact is that the man cheated on his wife and committed adultery. That is wrong on so many levels! Whether or not Elizabeth Edwards’ cancer was in remission at the time doesn’t matter. Listening to and reading coverage about the story, however, might lead you to believe otherwise. Everyone seems to be very indignant about the fact that he lied while his wife was sick. Does that mean that, if he had confessed sooner and/or if her cancer had not returned, we should be willing to chalk the affair up to another politician who can’t control himself?
What a shame to think that so many people don’t know, understand and/or acknowledge that lying and cheating were wrong, whether his wife was healthy or not!
With apologies to Robert Fulghum, I had an experience last week with my refrigerator and a repair man that has me remembering his book “All I Need To Know I Learned In Kindergarten”. Here’s what happened…
We bought a new, Maytag refrigerator in 2001 when we moved into our current home. At the time, the model that we bought was new, flashy and very trendy. Since that time, we have had to repair it several times. If I add the costs, we have probably paid as much or more to repair it as we did to purchase it the first time!
Last week, on more than one occasion, I found pools of water outside the freezer door. I have relatively new hardwood floors in the kitchen so I am particularly picky about anything that’s on my floor, especially when it’s water that is not supposed to be there. After the water appeared outside the freezer, ice appeared inside the freezer (and not in the icemaker where it should have been). I called the repair company and they came. During the course of the repair and my conversations with the technician, I learned a lot:
- Maytag after 1997 is VERY different than Maytag before that. My parents have a Maytag washer and dryer that’s more than 30 years old. You can count the service calls those machines have had (combined) on less than one hand.
- If you pay attention, you can learn how to repair your own refrigerator. Thanks to a tip from an honest and knowledgeable technician, I was able to see some very quick and easy things that I can do to before I call for service again. Sometimes, what needs to be done to fix a problem can be tedious and time consuming. That doesn’t mean it’s hard. If you can learn to do it yourself, you can save money in the future.
- The more complicated the machine, the more possibility of things that can go wrong. If you can find “simple” appliances, buy them. They don’t break as often and, when they do, they are easier to repair.
- It makes sense (and cents) to research what you buy. Brand names that represented good, consistent, stable companies and engineering years ago are not necessarily the same as they have been in years past. Because companies get bought and sold with some regularity, brand names are not a guarantee of quality that they have traditionally been.
- Paperwork is the key! I am going to write a letter to the company to express my dissatisfaction with the number of repairs. In order for the letter to be as effective as possible, I need to have specific information – receipts, warranties, information about what repairs have been done, etc. Also, anytime warranties are in effect, ORIGINAL PAPERWORK will probably be required.
Hopefully, it will be a long time before I have to have my refrigerator repaired again. Before I call, though, I’ll apply all I ever need (or want) to know about refrigerators.
If you notice that it’s a little different here today, you are right!
As of 7:27 a.m. CST this morning, my 2nd grade son and my 5K daughter loaded into their carpool and headed off for the first day of school. They are very happy to be schoolmates!
Happy Schoolmates!
One of the reasons that I have any sanity left is that I get a massage every couple of weeks. It is a routine VERY dear to me. In fact, I think I would rather give up food than give up my massage night. Even my children, ages 7 and 5, know that massage night is NOT something to be tampered with!
The massage place is very close to my house (approximately 2 minutes in the car). I usually go after dinner while the kids are finishing homework and getting bathed. Usually, I am one of the last clients of the day so I rarely see anyone other than the staff. My routine is to finish cleaning the kitchen after dinner, change into “lounging clothes” (a fancy way of saying pajamas as far as I am concerned), go get my massage, come straight home and get in bed to read and relax until bedtime.
Recently, I came out of the house wearing some pajama pants and a t-shirt. My husband and kids were playing in the yard. I went over to let them know I was leaving and my daughter came FLYING to the carport…
“Mom,” she called, “do you know you are wearing your pajamas outside?”
“Yes,” I answered. “I am going to see Mr. Massage so I am wearing comfortable clothes.”
She accepted my answer but didn’t seem convinced that it was OK for me to be wearing my pajamas out of the house. As I turned toward the car, she headed back to the game. Just as she reached the edge of the carport, she spun around.
“Mom?” she called.
“Yes,” I answered.
“Are you allowed to do that?” she questioned.
“Only for special reasons,” I told her.
When she’s old enough to enjoy a massage, she’ll understand!
I don’t have any trouble understanding the Food Pyramid. But understanding it doesn’t mean that I follow it as closely as I should!
I am very much a “meat and potato” kind of person. I like very few condiments (my husband refers to me as “condiment challenged”) and I eat my salads without dressing. Like a lot of people, I could stand to lose a few pounds. Coupled with the fact that I am in my 40’s, I do try to pay attention to eating a more healthy diet. One of the ways I do that is to add lettuce and tomato to my sandwiches. For some reason, eating them on a sandwich is more preferable to me than eating a salad?
I have been doing a pretty good job of remembering to order my sandwiches with L & T and remembering to keep L & T in the house so I would have them handy when eating at home. In the midst of congratulating myself for that, I noticed a headline proclaiming “Adults Who Eat Eggs For Breakfast Lose 65% More Weight”. The article, published in the International Journal of Obesity, detailed a study where people eating eggs for breakfast lost more weight than people that ate bagels for breakfast. Apparently, eggs are considered a “high-quality” protein and they help you feel satisfied longer than other types of food.
I’m not much of a breakfast eater so adding eggs to my morning routine may take a little doing. I am willing to give it a try though. Even if I would rather have a bagel!
It’s the time of year when even the water in the pool is hot! Yesterday morning, my friend and I gathered kids and headed for the bowling alley. Normally, bowling alleys can be great places for people watching. At 10:00 a.m. on a Wednesday morning, though, we had it to ourselves.
After we got our lane assignments and shoes, we divided into groups – 3 boys on one lane and 3 girls on the other. I know that males and females are different – VERY different. Even knowing that, I am constantly amazed at just how different they are without even realizing it.
ON THE BOY LANE…
It was like a race from the first minute. They couldn’t get the ball down the lane fast enough. When they were waiting for the ball to show up in the return, they were reaching in to try to get it out faster. They each knew that each person got 2 chances per frame, yet they went running up to start the next turn before the person ahead of them was finished. They checked the score after EVERY SINGLE ball. The scoring is computerized, yet they did the math in their heads just to make sure. One boy had to be reminded repeatedly to wait until the setting machine was finished before rolling the ball.
The boys were barreling through to see how fast they could go, how many turns they could get and who would win.
MEANWHILE, ON THE GIRL LANE…
They were only occasionally aware of the scoreboard. When they did pay attention to it, it was because they thought it was fun to see their names on the screen. They laughed and talked and spinned around and jumped up and down between each ball. They never rushed the player in front of them and they used whatever ball appeared in the return as they were standing there. They thought the shoes were funny. They didn’t finish the 1st game until the boys were about 1/3 of the way through the 2nd one. They didn’t once ask “what are we doing after this?” When both games were over, they couldn’t remember who had won the first game because they hadn’t been paying attention.
For the girls, it was more about being there and being together and twirling around in funny shoes!
In the end, the boys and the girls killed some time on a very hot summer day; played together, and came one day closer to the beginning of school. They just accomplished those things in very different ways!
I am an erratic grocery shopper. Some weeks, we have well-planned, balanced meals and food to spare in the pantry. Other weeks, we look like a family that is just moving in with empty shelves in the refrigerator and the cabinets to prove it!
When I do shop, I like to think I am pretty good at it. I usually manage to get home with all the things I need to prepare said “well-planned, balanced” meals. I use a list and I know the store layout well enough that I don’t do too much backtracking. During the times when we are living “meal to meal” and I shop daily, I tell myself that I am becoming more European. After all, they shop for the fresh ingredients they can find that day and prepare meals from what is available.
I saw an add for a guaranteed 100% recyclable, reusable bag and I had to smile. I have bought a couple of those “green” reusuable bags for my short shopping trips when I am not doing “big shopping”. If practice makes perfect, I should be getting pretty close to perfect on my daily runs! I can get in and out to the aisles I need and, if I am lucky, I can use the 10 items or less lane and find that everything actually fits in the green bag.
Usually, about the time the cashier asks “Paper or plastic?”, I am digging around in my purse trying to locate my keys and/or wallet. That’s when it hits me…
“Paper or plastic?”
If you have to ask, that means my reusable bags (and all my good intentions about helping save the earth) are still in the car. So much for no backtracking!
In sports, it is not unusual to hear of someone “playing hurt”. That means that the normal cuts and bruises and muscle aches don’t sideline most of the players getting LOTS of money for what they do on the field.
Last week, I was in the kitchen while both kids were playing in the backyard. My back was turned until I heard the blood-curdling scream from outside. By the time I reached the back door, my son was standing there with blood all over his mouth and running down his chin. I managed to get him inside and on the couch with an ice pack and a rag but it was several minutes before I could get him calmed down enough to tell me what had happened.
Once we got some of the mess cleaned up, I found a terribly fat lip, a cut inside his mouth and his two front teeth intact. He hasn’t had great luck with his two front teeth so to find them still attached to his gums is more of a relief than you might imagine! When he could finally tell me what happened, he explained “I hit myself in the mouth with my baseball bat.” It’s been several days and I still haven’t figured out how he managed to do that!
Eventually, the screaming and the bleeding and the swelling stopped and we moved on to other things. Later that afternoon, we were preparing for some friends to join us for dinner and a cookout. In anticipation of playing with his friend at the cookout, my son, barely able to eat and speaking with some difficulty said to me, “Even though it hurt, hitting myself with a bat will make me a scarier mummy.”
Sometimes, the only way to play is through the pain!
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