"The track 'Hot Shot City' is particularly good"

Looks like I stumbled across an internet phenomenon today. Apparently David Hasselhoff, of Knight Rider, and more recently Baywatch fame, has a singing career. So much so, in fact, that he's even released an album of greatest hits called "Looking for - Best of David Hasselhoff."

You should see the glowing reviews on Amazon! Go ahead, click the link. (caveat: this could be addictive). There's 1008 reviews of this album, and most everyone gives it 5 stars. Those who do not must be ogres or deaf, apparently.

Here's a sampling:

Like the Colossi of antiquity, his magnificence is both awe inspiring and humbling. His oeuvre is living proof that the Dumbing Down phenomenon theory is just speculation.

Never before and never again will such genius and mastery of the senses coalesce into a body of pure bliss as has in this work of blinding brilliance by David Hasseldorf.

David Hassenbloff Has made me see the lyrical light. Pre Hoff i used to listen to acts like Zepplin, Elvis, Marvin Gaye until i discovered the Sultan of Song himself David Hasseldorf.

Mr Hasselkidds has here encapsulated the epitome of all that is music. . . .I simply cannot recommend this album highly enough. The song "Hot Shot City" is particularly good.

Shame on you, world!! How could you spend so many years alive without discovering the thrilling, godlike music of David Honkerpoff?!

This engaging, challenging type of art not only transcends one's expectations of expression but creates new forms of aural communication. This is the art invented by the one and only Darvis Hypercraft.

If someone were to ask me what my definition of "timeless" was, I would open my shirt and show this CD hanging from its gold chain.

...and the raves go on! It will suck you in if you go there. Just take my word for it. I don't want to tell you how long I've been sitting here, reading the reviews and laughing my head off. Too long.

Go write a review yourself if you like, and be part of the next All Your Base! :)

3 Things Meme--Tag free, so don't worry!

Mrs. Blythe hit me with this one, and I didn't remember until just now. :)


3 Things That Scare Me:
1. Spiders
2. Hairballs
3. Drowning (the whole idea of suffocation)

3 People That Make Me Laugh:
1. My husband
2. My kids
3. Monk (from the TV Show. I know, he's not a "real" person, but there it is)

3 Things I Love:
1. Rainy days, an afghan, a book, a mug of coffee and no time committments. This is ONE thing. :)
2. The smell of freshly mowed grass
3. Strawberries and cream

3 Things I Hate:
1. People interrupting me while I'm playing the piano
2. People misunderstanding me
3. Sales calls

3 Things I Don't Understand:
1. Sewing
2. Advanced mathematics
3. The affinity for rap music

3 Things On My Desk:
1. Godzilla: Pack of Destruction box (this belongs to my son)
2. A flyer for MegaBloks "Dragons: Metal Ages" (this is something my son wants)
3. A bottle of cough suppressant left over from when A. was as sick as a dog back in Mar/Apr.

3 Things I'm Doing Right Now:
1. Listening to my son practice piano ("Iroquois Lullaby")
2. Listening to my daughter play Pajama Sam on her computer
3. Baking a blueberry pie with the blueberries taken from our bushes :)


3 Things I Want to Do Before I Die:
(whoa, like heavy, dude)
1. Visit Europe. Specifically the British Isles.
2. Learn to play a stringed instrument. Cello or guitar.
3. Write.

3 Things I Can Do:
1. erm... ooh, here's one: I read reallyfast. Shockingly fast. Like, "I can't believe you finished that already?!" fast. UNLESS it is nonfiction. Or Moby Dick (LOL)
2. Cook
3. Sing like Aretha Franklin. well, I try.

3 Ways to Describe My Personality:
1. Loyal
2. A bit spacey. But I really do have a few brains here.
3. Friendly. Golden retriever-type.

3 Things I Can't Do:
1. Sew
2. Make my checkbook register match my bank statement. That's why there's Microsoft Money.
3. Lie and get away with it.

3 Things I Think You Should Listen To:
1. God, as revealed in the Word
2. Bach. as in, the dad. Johann Sebastian.
3. Barry Manilow. JUST kidding! (That was for Mrs. Blythe's benefit)

3 Things I Think You Should Never Listen To:
1. Yourself, when you are feeling down.
2. Anyone who advises you to live contrary to God's revealed Word.
3. Enya. (Ye gods, does her music EVER sound different?)

3 Absolute Favorite Foods:
1. Mexican food. All kinds. Carnitas especially!
2. Strawberries. Chandler variety grown in coastal California.
3. Popcorn

3 Things I'd Like to Learn:
1. To understand the ins and outs of how to manage finances/invest/save! But I'd like to learn it by osmosis, rather than expend any effort.
2. To speak Spanish fluently
3. To play Baroque music well. ugh. so fussy.

Beverages I Drink Regularly:
1. Water
2. Coffee
3. Iced Tea

3 Shows I Watched as a Kid:
1. Wonder Woman
2. Laverne and Shirley
3. Dukes of Hazzard

"They have a [blog] troll."

Today I've been pondering 'Net safety, anonymity, and the responsibility that Christians have to let our speech be always "seasoned with salt."

Let me be clear: I am not against personal privacy. It's only reasonable to guard your personal information zealously. I don't even have a problem with anonymous posters dropping by and leaving their two cents *coughRichardcough*.

What I do have a problem with is those persons who, under the cloak of the "Anonymous" label, decide to flame, harass, and otherwise be just plain stinky to those with whom they disagree. If your opinion on a matter is different from mine, great. Tell me. But be polite. You draw more bees with honey than you do vinegar, anyway. Take some classes in persuasive speech and see if I'm right.

If you don't like something I do, or something I believe, fine! You may tell me, respectfully. And I may ignore you, also respectfully. To my own Master (my Lord Christ) I stand or fall. Not you, nor your opinion of me. I have done away with slavery to fallible (wo)man's opinions.

You do not have to be a sheep bleating your approval to me. You are allowed to disagree, and should. But man up/woman up/alien up (jk) and take ownership of your comments if you do.

I post this as a preventive measure, rather than a reactive one. I've just witnessed a troll on another blog make ad hominem, denigrating comments to the blog author under the cowardly flag of "anonymous." Any such behavior here to me or my four readers will not be tolerated.

So, enjoy your visit here at and so it goes...

.....and don't feed the trolls.

Letterboxing

Since Rebecca's all fired up about geocaching these days, I learned about something new today that sounds really cool - vy. similar to geocaching - called letterboxing.

It's like a big treasure hunt. People post clues on the 'Net about how to find their letterboxes, and when you find their (waterproof!) box, inside it is a journal, a rubber stamp/ink pad, and whatever else. You carry a sketch book, rubber stamp and pad with you, and you stamp their journal with your stamp, and then you stamp their journal with your stamp! It's like leaving a calling card.

I've already looked at letterboxing.org and a few other places and there's lots of sites in Washington to explore--including 7 or 8 here in my town. I plan to do this with the kids. I just have to find a rubber stamp that represents our family. Maybe a turtle stamp, or an olive stamp! :)

THen again, maybe I should just let the kids have their own stamps. I know D will have some sort of dino, and S will choose a kitty, or a puppy, or a horse... :)

I"ll have to see if I can get A. interested in doing this too. I know there's a letterbox at the local Bubble Tea shop. A good reason to go in--I've just never made the time to do it!

If we like this well enough, we can make and hide our own letterboxes. I didn't see any listed for DeCoursey Park, though there's about 5-6 at Wildwood Park.

Anyway. That's my new interesting thing of the day.

Day 3: The Main Event

I learned my lesson: close the blinds and the kids will sleep in longer.

Saturday morning we decided to go out to breakfast. We'd seen a sign for "Sambo's" further back on Hwy 101, and having fond memories of both the book and the restaurant chain, decided to give it a go.

Well, it turned out that the restaurant wasn't part of the chain; it's a local landmark-type place. I should have taken a picture of the tiger with the parasol out front of the building for Rebecca, but I forgot the camera.

The place was packed: a good sign. The food was all made from scratch, and the portions were huge! We had the most fabulous dining-out breakfast that we've had in years. It was comparable to the Sunbreak Cafe in Auburn, WA, but even a little better. I have half a Denver omelette that we're going to share today before we leave for home.

After breakfast, back down to the beach. I had a bridal tea to attend at noon, so I was down on the sand for about 1 hr before having to leave. I did actually go into the ocean at this time, just so nobody could say I wimped out. But really, I've spent a great deal of time in the Pacific Ocean as I grew up, and I know how to body surf, and really, I'd much rather be WARM and DRY now!! Still, you can't convince your kids of that. So I was out there, very briefly, earning some "cool points" in the waves.

The bridal tea was close-knit and special. Ruthanne and Kelly came up with some good eats, too! :) I always love cucumber and cream cheese sandwiches, and Kelly also made some toasted bread spread with a mix of creme fraiche, dill, shallots, and dijon, then topped with smoked salmon. We spent the afternoon laughing and trading stories, then finished with a time of prayer for Lora and Dave as they embark on their new life together.

I returned to the hotel to find the family in the warm pool. They'd spent about 3 hours at the beach (A. was turning pink, most surprisingly; he rarely burns)---then after a brief lunch they decided to hit the pool, where they'd been for about 1.5 hours. I joined them (warm water, you know) and the kids stayed in for another 1.5 hours.

For the wedding, Lora and Dave changed the order of things about. Due to sunset lighting issues (for pictures), we had the wedding feast FIRST! That was fine by the kids, because they were ravenous. The caterers served scallops in a white wine cream sauce (I had seconds), planked salmon with mango-cilantro salsa, garlic mashed potatoes, shrimp cocktail, clam chowder.... it was all good. I was wishing I was still hungry, because it all tasted so good. (This is not what they wore to the wedding, btw!)






After dinner, we headed back over to Fishing Rock for the wedding ceremony. It was beautiful in every way, except for my son sneaking off different places, and the fact that my battery was going dead on my (Audra's) digital camera. With the setting sun and the roaring surf, we stood and watched Lora and Dave exchange their vows. Sniff.


Here's a family shot following the wedding:

Uncle Bob, Aunt Naomi, Dan, Ruthanne, Dave, Lora, Donna, John, Kelly, Loren. My batteries were virtually worthless by this point, so it was "snap" and hope for the best!


Following the ceremony and pictures at Fishing Rock, we returned to the beach house for cake, etc. I was given the honor of cutting the cake, which the groom's mother had brought down with her from Bellevue. It was a 16" (diameter) Latvian torte. (I didn't realize Latvia had its very own torte recipe! lol) Dear mother said she was told that the cake would serve about 40 people. Uhm....no, in my experience, more like 80+ ~! There were plenty of leftovers. The torted cake was white with 2 filling layers of bavarian cream, and the middle filling layer of apricot. The outer frosting was like a French buttercream, or a Swiss meringue buttercream in a light mocha or chocolate, I couldn't decide which. Buttercream frosting in the US is a cold-whipping process; French, Italian, Swiss buttercreams all involve cooking. It gives a lighter taste, textured more like a buttery whipped cream but with greater stability.

Heh. Listen to me wax rhapsodic about cakes. Sorry.


The kids had had enough fun and excitement by 10 p.m., so we made our farewells and promised to almost possibly keep in contact just slightly better than we have done in times past (a nebulous promise; much safety here) and returned back to the hotel, where the kids collapsed, and so did we.

So this is my last post from the road. It's a lovely, foggy morning, much like I grew up with on California's Central Coast. I can hardly see the sea! When I began this post, there was a bit of sunshine hanging about, but then the fog rolled in, obliviating it. Everything's a misty shade of grey. And now that it's 8:30 a.m., I'd better be the one to get the ball rolling, get the show on the road, and any other cliche you can think of. After all, A. has to lead Bible study at church tonight, and we have miles to go before we sleep.

Don't worry. We will not be taking any hypoteneuses on our return journey.

Day 2: Beach, Bookstores and BBQ

Sing Ho for the life of a tourist!!

I neglected to shut the drapes our first night in the hotel room. After all, the sunset over the Pacific was beautiful, and it was even better by night, curled up in a squishy, swively rocking chair. And the sound of the waves coupled with the breeze coming through the window was soporific... for adults.

But once the sun came up on Day 2, the photoreceptor cells in both kids went into overdrive. Beginning about 6 am, the kids started to make subtle crashes, bumps and bangs calculated to wake up us lazy grownups! After all, there was a beach to be explored! Holes to be dug! Shells to be discovered! Waves to jump over!

It's hard to be filled with the Spirit at 6 a.m. and you're wakened from a sound sleep. Especially the "longsuffering" part, and the "joy" part. I eventually crawled out of bed, snarling, around 7:30. Better me than Andy. I quickly started the coffeemaker (mood enhancer!) and forced the kids to eat breakfast ("no beach until you eat").

Three of us made it down to the beach by 8:30 a.m. We left the fourth upstairs until he, too, could be "filled with the Spirit" ! (lol) I sat in my beach chair, digging my feet into the soft sand, whilst the kids buried themselves in it. When A came down later, he took the kids into the surf (the average temperature of the Pacific Ocean is like 51 degrees--BRR) while I continued to stay warm and dry!

For lunch we went up to the room and I whipped up some mean Trader Joe's white macaroni and cheese (no preservatives or fake colors), and a few organic beef hot dogs (no nitrates, nitrites, or other nasty cack) while we polished off my Crab Louie from the night before.

Then we trekked out and saw the sights of the town.

It is an established fact that when you go on vacation with my husband, you will invariably end up at a used book shop and/or a zoo. It's just the way things are. I had a few other things planned too: going to the glass foundry where they blow the glass floats that used to be used by fisherman (and are now objets d'art) -- you can blow your own for a mere $65! (no thanks) I also wanted to hit a candystore for some saltwater taffy. Something about beach towns and saltwater taffy going together. I think all-told we went to 3 different book stores and A. didn't buy a single book. Kids got a couple though! We also went to the outlet malls. A waste of time. S. decided she had to have a purple Old Navy lunchbox, so she squandered her hard-earned cash and bought one.

After shopping it was time for the pool--warm water, you know, instead of frigid salt water. I sat in the greenhouse that passed for an indoor pool until I felt ready to faint. I noticed the inside air temperature was 100 degrees! So I moved my chair to just outside the greenhouse/pool , still close enough to "watch" my kids, but much more temperature-friendly.

And by dinner, it was time to embark on the reason we came down to Oregon--the rehearsal dinner, day-before-the-wedding-type of festivities! We met up with the wedding party at a place called Fishing Rock in Depoe Bay. Beautiful--but a good place to stay away from the edges. :) The wedding will be Saturday at sunset. We followed the party back to an extended family member's beach house (did that even make sense?) and enjoyed a catered dinner of BBQ pork and chicken, red beans and rice, cornbread and orange honey, potato salad and pea/cheese salad, watermelon triangles and lemon curd/blueberry tartlets.

Some of my four readers will recognize these people, so I'll post our dinner companions, just for your edification and enjoyment. Even if you don't know them, they're such old friends that they're like family, so consider this an introduction to my family--albeit a spiritual one. :)
Loren and Kelly live in Seattle's Wallingford district now. That's near the Woodland Park Zoo, ask me how I know (*rolling eyes*) Loren's a financial planner at what he called a "boutique" firm--meaning, small firm with rich clients. Kelly works at World Vision in Federal Way. Loren thinks that 29 is still a little too young for him to be having children. (HE volunteered that information; I never have the guts to ask ANYBODY "when are you having kids?" because I feel it's not my business! But since HE said it and I know some of you will WONDER about it... there it is.



Ruthanne and Dan live in Kentucky, where they are in the youth ministry. I just realized that with Dan wearing his hair that way, he looks like Josh Groban! He tells me he cannot sing like Josh, however. Ruthanne, this time next year, will have her PhD and be Dr. Crapo. By the way, she would have me say that's pronounced "CRAY-po." She's in the process of writing Chapter 2 of her dissertation. I have trouble understanding what it's all about. Something involving Hegel, Sophocles and Antigone. She will defend her dissertation in Holland! And not Holland, Michigan....the REAL Holland.


And now, for the lady and gentleman of the weekend: Lora and Dave! Love the matching shirt and dress!! Dave's parents went to Hawaii when he was 6 years old (this was before Lora was even born), and they wore these outfits. Now they've passed them on to Dave and Lora for their beach wedding! :) Actually, they only planned to wear these for the rehearsal.

Dave and Lora are both nurses at Good Sam hospital in Puyallup. He's a critical care nurse; she's in the ER. They met on a medical mission team to Sri Lanka following the tsunami of 2004.

And it's time to go. Wedding time! (I'm blogging one day late, so these are Friday's events).

More photos to come!

Day 1: Traveling is SUCH fun!

Word, people: shortcuts on Oregon highways do not take less time.

We attempted to take the hypoteneuse of a right triangle to save time getting to Tillamook. What we got was a loooong and windyyyyy roaaaaddd..... (but it didn't "lead to your door" as the song goes...)


After rapidly pulling over twice for my dear daughter, forcibly ejecting her from the car before she ejected her lunch - we were ready to forego the adventure of traveling on any more hypoteneuses and just taking the longer, but straighter way. Be it known, however, that the atlas did NOT indicate said road's windiness before we turned off on it. There ought to be a "Truth In Maps Act!" Citizens and fellow explorers across the fruited plain, stand up and be counted! We WILL NOT STAND for shoddy cartography any longer! We will dispense with all incorrectly marked maps forthwith. Forthwith!

By the time we arrived in Tillamook (not our final destination, but a tourist stop on the way) the kids were NOT interested in anything to do with cheesemaking. They looked like green cheeses themselves. However, being in the fresh air perked them up, and watching the factory production of cheese took their minds off motion sickness. Woot.

Arriving in Lincoln City (7 hours after leaving home), we immediately checked into our hotel and walked to the nearest seafood restaurant to enjoy fish and chips, soup and sandwich, Crab/shrimp louie salad, and pan-fried razor clams. (That's four different meals, not one!) Heading back to the motel, we decided to walk down the beach a ways. Kids put on their swimsuits. It's dusk, mind you, and getting chilly, but who cares about such details? Everyone else on the beach is in sweatshirts, but my halflings are out in their swim gear, oblivious to cold, and consumed with the thrill of being AT THE BEACH! We finally got them up to the room again, and tucked into the hide-a-bed in the living room.

And the afternoon and the evening were the first day.

Vacating

"Elvis has left the building!"

We're leaving today for the Oregon Coast! WOOT! That is, we'll be leaving once I've packed...

I'm taking my laptop along, but I don't know if there will be free wireless internet down there. And I don't plan to go wardriving.

This is where we're staying! Oh, goody! There IS WiFi!

So, see you Sunday night! Perhaps sooner, if I feel like logging on.

Five Things

Well, Tammy tagged me to do this meme, my first ever! :) BTW, a "meme," paraphrased from Wikipedia, is a replicated bit of cultural information. Memes on the internet are replicated by the power of hitting "send" or "publish." There, more than you ever wanted to know.

So, here goes. I have to change it at the end, because I don't have five blog friends! lol well at least not that I know well enough to "tag" them.


5 Things in my Refrigerator:
1. Rice Dream Horchata
2. Colby-Jack cheese slices
3. Trader Joe's Chocolate Soy Milk
4. Tortillas
5. Butter

5 Things in My Closet:
1. Wrapping paper
2. Calvin & Hobbes comic books
3. Suitcases
4. Bed linens
5. My clothes =)

5 Things in My Purse:
1. 2 pens
2. My checkbook
3. 2 Handi-wipes I saved from Famous Dave's
4. My wallet
5. Debit-card receipts that I need to write into my checkbook! evil, evil. sigh.

5 Things in My Car:
1. A sack of concrete
2. Beach towel
3. Expandable cooler for keeping groceries cold
4. 5-gallon bucket
5. Vegetable seeds

3 People I am Tagging: (but only if they want to!! I don't want to be a Meme Nazi.)
1. Crystal
2. Mrs. Blythe
3. Joysnatcher

Ciao! Off to have a cooking, cleaning, get-ready-for-a-party-tomorrow frenzy! :) it will be fun.

More books polished off

Last night I read A Gathering of Days...(etc) - Newbery winner from 1980.

My review: "zzzzzzzz." Written in diary style (anticipatory of the current "diary" trend in authors? Possibly), it chronicles the life of a young girl and her sister being raised by their father in New England. Their mother died; a neighbor woman is teaching the main character how to maintain a home.

I have no problem with that. It's just that the character never really went anywhere. Oh, sure, she had to adjust to when her father brought home a new wife-----there were some trivial feelings of resentment that were eventually overcome. And she gives a homemade quilt to a stranger who's been lurking in the woods, freezing of cold. She learns later he's a runaway slave. Her punishment (by the new wife) is to make a replacement quilt, so she knows just how much work it is, and not something to be given away lightly.

Overall, I thought this was rather BLAH. "Moralistic," and a little preachy. No harm in it, but nowt to it. (That's my best Yorkshire dialect of "nothing" to it. Hooray for James Herriot books, and Wallace and Gromit to teach me these things! hehe).

Tonight I read Because of Winn-Dixie. This did not win the Newbery medal, but it received the silver medal of honor. This book grabbed me much more than last night's! (No, I haven't seen the movie. I like to read books first so I can make snarky comments about "original intent" and "artistic licence" whilst I watch the movie). I lived in the South for a while, so this was rather like sitting back and listening to the natives talk. Kate DiCamillo grabs the north Florida dialect masterfully (she's a native), and the personalities of each of her characters are vivid and entertaining. "Winn-Dixie" is the name of a supermarket in the South; it's also the place where Opal (main character) finds a stray dog and brings it home. The dog's winning ways help her make friends in her new town. Oh, and her father is a preacher - and hoorah, hoorah, Christians/Christianity are presented in a positive light. How rare, and how refreshing.

Too much time online today, must get off. Tomorrow I take a sabbatical from the net. See if I stick to it! :)

Spurgeon on Romans 7

Since two weeks ago I was stewing on this selfsame passage here, it's encouraging to see what this godly saint of times past had to say.

Cookie Recipe

Tammy wants to do a cookie (recipe) exchange, and it's not even December! :) Go figure!

So here's a recipe for Turtle Cookies that I first made with Tammy's SIL Rebecca, hm, many years ago--like probably 15 years?! (am i really getting that old?) Oooh, the date on the recipe says "27 Feb 92." 14 years!! These are "fussy" cookies (read: not a "drop" cookie) that I usually reserve for holiday baking. Here goes:

Turtle Cookies (from Rebecca)

• 1/2 c. brown sugar
• 1/2 c. margarine or butter
• 1/4 tsp. vanilla
• 1/8 tsp. maple flavor (optional)
• 2 eggs (reserve one white)
• 1 1/2 c. flour
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 1/2 - 2 c. pecan halves

Frosting:

• 1/3 c. chocolate chips
• 3 Tbsp. milk
• 1 Tbsp. margarine or butter
• 1 c. powdered sugar (approximate)
  

Method:
Preheat oven to 350º F (180º C). Cream butter and sugar. Add vanilla, one egg and one yolk; beat. Stir in flour, soda, and salt. Chill dough.

Arrange pecan pieces in groups of 3-5. (I like to do 4 so they look like legs). Roll dough into balls, dip into remaining egg white (which has been beaten slightly), and press ball lightly onto pecans. Bake 10-12 minutes. Do not overbake! Cool.

Meanwhile, melt chocolate chips, milk, and margarine. Add powdered sugar until desired consistency. Generously frost cooled cookies.

Makes about 2 dozen.

Summer Reading List

"If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time."

Heeeeey, that's like....a 100% success rate!! ROFL


Rebecca has inspired me with her list of books to read. Taking a page out of her book (ahem), I plan to read all the Newbery Award winners from 1922- present (85 books). I hope to finish before December 31 of this year. Some of these I've read many times, so I plan to read the ones I haven't yet read. Ohhh, okay, maybe I'll read some of the ones I've read before! :) But the complete list can be found here.


As I scan the list, there's about 40 books that I haven't read!!! I'd better get cracking.

YAY for DELAY!

Fun with graphics, not fun interpreting them.

"and I alone am escaped to tell thee..."

I finished Moby Dick!

Yowza, yowza~!

I still think the Cliff's Notes version would have been better. As a child of the 80's, adult of the 90's, living in the "soundbite" generation --Melville's verbosity hurts my brain and my eyes.

So it took me, what, a month? to read this book. Shameful. But I can now add it to the list.






And since it's 92º outside today, I think kids and I will DRIVE to the library in an AIR CONDITIONED CAR and hang out for a while.

Hm. Second thought, they just turned on a movie, and I need to make dinner. So postpone library to Tuesday. Which is our normal day anyway!

I got a lot done around the home today, finally. I was going to have "all this free time!" with A. gone to Michigan! Riiiiiiiiiiiight. (Said in best Bill Cosby tone)

But today (prepare for the bulleted list!) I:

• finished putting away all laundry
• washed all bed linens and comforters (a yummy, sunny day to dry them outside!)
• ironed all the short sleeved shirts
• "dryer-ironed" some of the long-sleeved ones (still have about 15 left to do. rrrrgh.)
• polished and dusted the wood furniture in the living room
• took down all the silk plants in the LR and washed them in the sink, putting them out in the sun to dry (dusty, dusty! yuck!!)
• removed all vestiges of SCHOOL from the living room fireplace hearth
• put the consumable school books in the recycle bin (YES!)
• saved the "important" papers and artwork in kids' binders
• mopped the kitchen floor
• mopped the main bathroom floor
• reorganized the CD tower so there's no longer big stacks of CD's awaiting re-filing
• set up the Slip-n-Slide that D got at his birthday party (my backyard is now a mud heaven)
• PUT ALL THE SOCKS in a BIN for ANDY TO MATCH when he gets home!!! LOL!!

It feels so good to have finally gotten something done today, and the key was this: I stayed home, I didn't answer the phone (unless I wanted to), and didn't guilt-trip myself about what I WASN"T getting done, but focusing on what I DID do.

There's always tomorrow. I still have a list of chores to do, but I can tackle them 15 minutes at a time. thank you, Flylady! :)

Blast and tarnation. I keep looking at flightview.com to see where A's flight is. It should have left at 7:40. Now it is 9:03 (eastern daylight time) and that plane is still on the ground in Detroit. He has like 25 min to make his connection in Denver.... oy! Hope he does!

Pollinated!

Why I keep Benadryl on hand when the grass goes to flower:

No, he hasn't been punched in the eye; he was at DeCoursey Park pretending to be the Dreaded Park Monster in the tall grass, and some grass pollen got in his left eye, effectively swelling it shut and giving it some lovely purply-red undertones.

This happened while my friend Audra was watching the kids. I was off getting a haircut.

The last time Audra watched the kids, he got stung by a bee.

Audra is getting a complex about watching my kids!

The swelling was completely gone by the end of the second day, but it took a total of 5 Benadryl tablets to do it.

Postscript

The Washington Virtual Academy (WAVA) Expo was very good, BTW.

We met the new head of school, Randall Greenway (I think?), and there were about 250 people in attendance. The expo was spread between the Tacoma Art Museum and the Marriott Courtyard downtown, where we heard Dr. Bror Saxberg speak.

He was witty, intelligent, had us in stitches, and really explained the big ideas behind K12. This guy has a degree from U-Dub (that would be the University of Washington, for you non-local readers) in electronic engineering, a couple of masters' degrees, and an MD from Harvard, and a PhD from MIT. Yet the man can talk, and well! (Usually geeknoids can't verbalize well.)

But the highlight for the kids was being able to see their teacher, Mrs. Shaw, and RIDE THE LINK TRAIN in Tacoma.

Summer Math

Math equation:
85º day
+ a lake stocked with 2 lb. trout
+ 5 fishing poles (more or less)
+ 8 primary-aged children
+ 7 adults
+ hot-pink trout bait
+ nightcrawlers that squirm frantically as their bodies are pierced by the cruel hooks
+ melting cake and ice cream
+ random dogs and owners coming by for a look see
+ a pinata that wouldn't stay up in the tree
+ tangled up fishing lines
+ Godzilla, Mothra, Gigan, Manda, Spiga, and all buddies

EQUALS=
0- fish caught (frightened away by the child who decided to swim instead of fish!)
1 - child who got dust in his eyes when the pinata broke (we used the pinata as a bat, rather than use a bat on the pinata)
2- children who were soaked up to the waist in lake water (one was my daughter)
3- snarled up fishing lines (all mine)
4- children who wanted to take home the Godzilla toys on the cake
5 - pieces of half-eaten cake
6- Hershey's bars used to make buildings
7 - adults thankful when it was all over!
8- extremely happy children with scads of candy to take home
9- candles that would not light in the breeze
1- magenta-hued, dehydrated mommy who is drinking ice water and hoping she doesn't peel!!


See? Godzilla & Co. are storming the town! See the flames on the buildings? For an added effect, the chocolate city began to melt, lending authenticity to the visualization of mass mayhem and destruction.

My son wrote the word "Happy," I wrote "Birth," and my daughter followed with "day."

The kids at the party helped put in the city and place the monsters.

On the remaining sides of the cake, I wrote "Godzilla," "Deividdo" and the number "Kyu" (9) using Japanese Katakana script. Let's hear it for the internet~!




My happy child in white, with his sister peeking in on the right side of the photo.

All the boys thought the toys were SO COOL and wanted to take them home.

I counted to be sure we had them all.








Argh, now my daughter is saying, "Hey, let's have some REAL food to eat! All we've had is party junk food!!"
I asked her what she wants, and her rejoinder was, "Macaroni and cheese!!"

UGHHHHHHH. I want a HUGE glass of iced tea, some COLD, CRISPY SALAD (I want frozen peas on it, that's important), and, hm. Thats about it. Maybe some hot wings with celery sticks and blue cheese dipping sauce.

So maybe we're going to Applebees!!!

Single Moms Rock.

How do they manage, honestly?

My dear husband is on a trip to MI right now and that's why I've not been blogging. There's been PLENTY of things goin' on (D's birthday party planning, bike rides, karate, D's party planning, bike rides, etc.) but by the time I get the kids to bed I don't have the strength left to blog.

Busy day today: we're going to the K12 expo at Tacoma Art Museum to hear Dr. Bror Saxburg, one of the masterminds behind K12. I hear he is a FABOO speaker, so I decided to go park at Freighthouse Square, then take the free LINK rail system to the museum.

Crazy me. Then we have D's fishing/birthday party this afternoon. Hope I don't forget anything: cake, icecream, pinata, cooler with ice, water, and ziploc baggies for any fish caught........etc.

Must go. Time to head to tacoma.

Remind me to post a pic of D after he'd come across some grass pollen Weds afternoon! (Pollen and D. do NOT MIX!).