Month: August 2008

  • Twins? I Think Not

    I got a phone call this morning from a friend.

    “Hey, I turned on the TV yesterday and said to my wife, ‘Honey, they nominated Teacherperson as vice president!’”

    Yes, Sarah Palin has brown hair and five children.  And, she’s a pro-life Republican, NRA-loving, glasses-wearing gal. But, twins? I should be so lucky. No one has ever called me “Mary Barracuda.”

    Maybe if I started wearing my hair up all the time I could meet John McCain?

  • First Tomato

    It’s enough to tempt a Cullen.

  • Sunrise, Stormstown





    I have this thing for looking out windows. When I wake up in the night (or early morning), I feel compelled to look out the window in our bathroom. This morning, everything in the backyard was bathed in an orange glow. 

    “There must be a killer sunrise out the front window,” thought I.

    Sure enough, there was. I grabbed my camera, took a few shots, hassled poor, sleeping TGD to look out the window, and went back to bed.


    Yes, I am savoring every moment of the rest of summer vacation.

  • More Stupidity

    One small extra to the dog saga was omitted. To pacify the children who were longing for a dog, I said that we could get a kitten at the end of the summer. I thought the news of a dog would supersede this promise.  Oh, boy. Was I wrong.

    So, as we were dog-shopping, we also had to kitten shop.  My plans were for a gray and white female.  But, I decided to let LibbyK and Little Miss make the call as they were the ones wild for a kitten.  Eight week old Jasper stole their hearts.  (Whether this was due to how cute he was or his Twilight-themed name, I am not totally sure.)

    Once our adoption is approved and we fork over a lot of money, a little tan and orange tabby with big, blue eyes and a penchant for sitting up on his haunches will come home with us.  I’ll be sure to put up a picture when this happens.

  • What Stupid Thing Did I Do Now?

    Debbie says it’s been too long
    since I updated.  So, just for her, I shall answer the question posed
    in my title. But first, I shall give you background.

    It may
    surprise you to know that I’m not an animal lover. Sure, I make a good
    show of it when someone’s dog comes bounding along in that slobbery dog
    way or when a guinea pig is handed over.  But, truthfully, other than a
    cat I can ignore, I’d rather leave the animals somewhere else. TDG is
    of the same mind as I.

    Somehow, this couple birthed some animal
    lovers. Gockle in particular, is a huge fan of all furry things,
    especially dogs.  He has been begging for a dog for years and years,
    but we have always firmly said, “NO! We refuse to let our lives be
    ruled by a dog’s bladder. We don’t want a shedding, smelling creature
    wandering around our house.” This decision was always reinforced when we
    would watch Mom and John’s dog, Molly, who is the easiest animal in the
    universe to dog sit.  There is no dog on the planet more low-key and
    unobtrusive. (Unless she decides to take a nap on the pile of clean,
    fresh-from-the-dryer laundry you were about to fold right after you
    finished your Hersey bar with almonds)  Even she was too much dog for
    my taste.

    But, Gockle kept praying.

    About two weeks ago, I really felt like God was saying, “You really should let Gockle get a dog.”

    BUT, BUT, But, but…  All my “buts” were stamped out (except for the fact that I still don’t like animals).


    I mentioned this revelation to TGD who promptly said, “Have you gone
    mad?”  The matter was dropped.  That was– until Saturday morning when I heard,
    “You know, honey, I’ve been thinking that we should let Gockle get a
    dog.”


    Gockle was so excited by the news, he had tears in his eyes. 


    Saturday and today were spent dog-shopping at various SPCA-type places.
    So far, no dog meeting our specifications has been found. (Mine–small,
    25 pounds or less, able to play games and run around with Gockle,
    easy-going around strangers, kids, and loud noises; TGD’s–One that
    people won’t laugh at if we have it on a leash; Gockle’s–alive)


    We shall keep you posted on my potential folly.


    Here’s a dog that didn’t make the cut. It’s a full-grown mix of something or other.


  • Would You Rather…

    Let’s imagine the Magic Wish Fairy came to visit and offered you one of these things. Which would you choose? 

    • To look 10 years younger
    • To weigh 10 pounds less than you do now
    • To add 10 points to your IQ
    • To earn 10% more money
    • To have 10 new friends


    (That Magic Wish Fairy has a thing for 10s.)

  • Guess Who I Met?

    I’m so delighted you can’t even see my eyes!


    You’re probably scratching your heads (metaphorically, of course, unless you have some skin condition), wondering, “Should I know her? Is that someone famous?”  To me, she is. It’s aj1965!

    I was just flopped in my recliner, laptop in it’s well-named place, debating what to do with my day when the phone rang. 

    Mary?  This is aj1965. (She actually said her real name.)
    Oh my gosh!
    We happen to be in Pennsylvania and were wondering if we could come visit you today.
    YES!!!!

    So, aj1965 and her family drove several hours out of their way just to spend a few hours with me.  I talked too much and too fast (har har, B.), but I so enjoyed meeting her and her family and giving her as many garden plants and seeds as I could shove in their car. As they pulled out, Little Miss and C. called to each other, “Tomorrow, 2:00, yellow!” (which is some sort of Webkins thing really unknown to me)  In other words, I was not the only one who enjoyed herself.

    This makes the fourth person I have known only from Xanga whom I have met. AimeeAnne, LadyoftheManse, and sportsgoddess were the other three. (Am I missing anyone? I’d hate to think I’d forgotten someone.)   Such fun! 

  • I Should Have More to Say

    Did you ever eat a donut for breakfast and regret it? Yeah, me too. Today. 

    I am hoping to write a nice entry about our last two trips in England–Wales and Bath.  Perhaps an August Armchair Vacation is just the thing. But that would require my actually making the effort to write.  I’m such a slug.

    So, instead, I’ll mop the kitchen floor and go to lunch at Olive Garden where I can make regretful lunch choices.

    May your day be free from remorse!


    EDIT–I got very curious and looked at Michael Phelp’s the amazing Olympic swimmer’s meals according to the New York Post.

    Phelps lends a new spin to the phrase “Breakfast of Champions” by
    starting off his day by eating three fried-egg sandwiches loaded with
    cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, fried onions and mayonnaise.

    He follows that up with two cups of coffee, a five-egg omelet, a
    bowl of grits, three slices of French toast topped with powdered sugar
    and three chocolate-chip pancakes.

    showvideo(“PostSportsFeed”,”1458_365045″);


    At lunch, Phelps gobbles up a pound of enriched pasta and two large
    ham and cheese sandwiches slathered with mayo on white bread – capping
    off the meal by chugging about 1,000 calories worth of energy drinks.

    For dinner, Phelps really loads up on the carbs – what he needs to
    give him plenty of energy for his five-hours-a-day, six-days-a-week
    regimen – with a pound of pasta and an entire pizza.

    He washes all that down with another 1,000 calories worth of energy drinks.


  •  Lurking on My Own Site


    Can one really lurk at her own site? I feel like I have been lately.  I sneak in, see if anyone posted anything, and sneak away.  I’m not sure why I’ve not been much interested in posting all those wonderful details of my life of late. Ah, well. 

    I’m pretty giddy happy today, even though my ragweed allergies are over-the-top annoying and I feel exhausted. And, I’m STILL waiting for at least ONE ripe tomato from my six plants.  Yup, mid-August, and I’ve not even had one tomato yet. Nor a cucumber.  They all look healthy, though, with little green things on them.

    Cheerleading, football, and soccer practice have started. I’m coaching LibbyK’s squad this year (technically second-in-command, but first-in- command for a few weeks).  Wit will find out Friday if he makes the high school team this year.  And, in big news, we’ve decided that LibbyK and Gockle are going to take part-time classes at the middle school this year.  Math, Science, German/French, and Home Ec/Tech Ed (which runs the days the language does not). It will be a change, but a happy one, I think.

    But I still need to get busy and buy some homeschool stuff. Before I know it, it will be September 2!  Do you have any big changes (or small ones) coming up?

    And just so you have a picture or two, here are some shots from camping at Prince Gallitzin in July.

    Wit made the square one. TF made the tall one.

  • Happy
    18th Anniversary to me and to the best husband in the world!