Posts
I realized this week that I do not see as many butterflies as I used to. I do not know if there are really fewer of them, or if I just do not notice, or if I am never outside. Do you see very many butterflies? I had the caterpillars of a black or blue swallowtail on my parsley, but they ate it all and left. I had looked the caterpillar up in a book. I think next year I shall plant more flowers that bloom all summer; maybe I will see butterflies again. Maybe they have all been at your house this summer.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Do you see very many butterflies?
I realized this week that I do not see as many butterflies as I used to. I do not know if there are really fewer of them, or if I just do not notice, or if I am never outside. Do you see very many butterflies? I had the caterpillars of a black or blue swallowtail on my parsley, but they ate it all and left. I had looked the caterpillar up in a book. I think next year I shall plant more flowers that bloom all summer; maybe I will see butterflies again. Maybe they have all been at your house this summer.
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
I thought I had posted about this a while back
I double dog dare you. I thought I had posted about this a while back, but I can't find the discussion. I probably used a weird title. I like using weird titles, but it's probably not real efficient for searching.
Anyway, growing up we lived on a cul de sac. We were right at the spot where the straight part ran into the circle. And we had these neighbors who lived in one of the two houses at the end of the circle, sort of diagonally from us. The mom liked to back out of her driveway in a long arc in the direction of our driveway.
One day we went out and saw that our mailbox had been knocked over. No big deal, my dad was pretty handy, so he went and bought a new pole (or straightened the old one, I forget), put the mailbox on it, and cemented it into the ground.
All was well until one day we went out, and the mailbox had been creamed again. Well this time dad got smart and cemented a hollow pipe into the ground, and inserted the mailbox pole into the pipe. That way, if the mailbox got clobbered again, he could just pull the pole out and either replace it or fix it without having to redo the cement.
We were suspecting this particular neighbor, because we knew how she backed out of her driveway. And then one morning I was up in my bedroom, which faced the street, and BOOM. I looked out the window, and there she was, her car pretty much on top of what was left of the mailbox. Caught!
I told my parents what I had seen, and dad went over there and asked her about it. She denied having anything to do with it. Next time dad put the mailbox up, he put a large target on the front of it. She must have gotten the point, as the mailbox was never clobbered again, at least not by her. Some years later, one of our next door neighbors had her accelerator stick, her car got out of control, and she banded into a lot of things, including our mailbox.
It wasn't a good spot for a mailbox, I guess.
Anyway, I bring this up because my sister just recently joined Facebook, and she e-mailed me that she had located the two sons of the mailbox lady. So I evilly suggested that I might send them a friend request, and mention that we all forgave their mother for the mailbox.
She double dog dared me.
I sent the older son, the one I remember, a friend request. Seem to have forgotten to mention the mailbox. (insert chicken noises here)
PS Some years later, we bought this fancy shmanzy looking mailbox for our house in West Hills. My father-in-law creamed it...
Anyway, growing up we lived on a cul de sac. We were right at the spot where the straight part ran into the circle. And we had these neighbors who lived in one of the two houses at the end of the circle, sort of diagonally from us. The mom liked to back out of her driveway in a long arc in the direction of our driveway.
One day we went out and saw that our mailbox had been knocked over. No big deal, my dad was pretty handy, so he went and bought a new pole (or straightened the old one, I forget), put the mailbox on it, and cemented it into the ground.
All was well until one day we went out, and the mailbox had been creamed again. Well this time dad got smart and cemented a hollow pipe into the ground, and inserted the mailbox pole into the pipe. That way, if the mailbox got clobbered again, he could just pull the pole out and either replace it or fix it without having to redo the cement.
We were suspecting this particular neighbor, because we knew how she backed out of her driveway. And then one morning I was up in my bedroom, which faced the street, and BOOM. I looked out the window, and there she was, her car pretty much on top of what was left of the mailbox. Caught!
I told my parents what I had seen, and dad went over there and asked her about it. She denied having anything to do with it. Next time dad put the mailbox up, he put a large target on the front of it. She must have gotten the point, as the mailbox was never clobbered again, at least not by her. Some years later, one of our next door neighbors had her accelerator stick, her car got out of control, and she banded into a lot of things, including our mailbox.
It wasn't a good spot for a mailbox, I guess.
Anyway, I bring this up because my sister just recently joined Facebook, and she e-mailed me that she had located the two sons of the mailbox lady. So I evilly suggested that I might send them a friend request, and mention that we all forgave their mother for the mailbox.
She double dog dared me.
I sent the older son, the one I remember, a friend request. Seem to have forgotten to mention the mailbox. (insert chicken noises here)
PS Some years later, we bought this fancy shmanzy looking mailbox for our house in West Hills. My father-in-law creamed it...
Friday, May 20, 2011
Do you walk?
I actually took a walk this morning. Hubby leaves at 6:15 am and I went for a walk. It was kind of slow. I am so out of shape. Do you walk? Is it for pleasure or for fitness, or some of both? For me I would say it is some of both. I want to get fit, and I really enjoy walking. I took some pictures of downtown McPherson. Do you do other fitness activities, and are they inside or outside? I like to swim, but seldom does it. We have been to the lake two or three times this summer. Sometimes I like to do yard work, which is also a way to keep fit. Mostly I am just here at the computer.
Monday, May 16, 2011
What's your latest "not fair" story?
Tomorrow I have the day off work. The twins have no school. Teacher development day or something. So I get a four day weekend.
Dearra's little nose is bent out of shape. She has school.
I pointed out to her that she gets out of school a week earlier than the twins. That didn't help. It was sort of like, "what do I get NOW?"
What can I say, life doesn't always deal exactly the same thing to each of us, and we need to learn how to deal with it.
What's your latest "not fair" story?
Dearra's little nose is bent out of shape. She has school.
I pointed out to her that she gets out of school a week earlier than the twins. That didn't help. It was sort of like, "what do I get NOW?"
What can I say, life doesn't always deal exactly the same thing to each of us, and we need to learn how to deal with it.
What's your latest "not fair" story?
WARNING: Female topic, guys you have been warned...
So I went to the OB/Gyn today. I had this stupid, annoying bleeding problem, and it got bad enough last weeks that it freaked me out. So I called on Friday, and she told me to start taking iron supplements, come in for a blood test and make an appointment.
So I did all that, and it slowed down over the weekend, thank goodness, and I went in for my appointment this morning.
So the nurse has me undress, and she puts down one of those big incontinence pads for me to sit on.
Well I don't know why this struck me so funny, but after she left the room, and I had undressed and sat down on it, I just broke down in hysterical laughter. And then I remembered a funny incident from the past.
We had a big party for my father-in-law's 70th birthday, and his sister Isolde was coming from Germany. She had never gone farther than 20 miles in any direction, and my in-laws had to lie to her about the length of the flight, and the distance of the drive from Northern California to Southern California, or she wouldn't have agreed to come.
Apparently, she had a wee bit of an incontinence problem, and was a bit worried about how she was going to hold up. Well she made it here, and never once said word that I heard about how the supposed 2 hour flight and 1 hour drive were more like 11 hours and 8 hours.
When she arrived, my mother-in-law pulled out these incontinence pads that she had bought (just like the one in the doctor's office), and some Depends. The Aunt looked at them, and started laughing, and said she wasn't nearly that bad.
Ah yes, well that side of the family is ever so helpful and always prepared. I wonder what MIL ever did with that stuff. Probably asked around and found somebody who needed them.
So I did all that, and it slowed down over the weekend, thank goodness, and I went in for my appointment this morning.
So the nurse has me undress, and she puts down one of those big incontinence pads for me to sit on.
Well I don't know why this struck me so funny, but after she left the room, and I had undressed and sat down on it, I just broke down in hysterical laughter. And then I remembered a funny incident from the past.
We had a big party for my father-in-law's 70th birthday, and his sister Isolde was coming from Germany. She had never gone farther than 20 miles in any direction, and my in-laws had to lie to her about the length of the flight, and the distance of the drive from Northern California to Southern California, or she wouldn't have agreed to come.
Apparently, she had a wee bit of an incontinence problem, and was a bit worried about how she was going to hold up. Well she made it here, and never once said word that I heard about how the supposed 2 hour flight and 1 hour drive were more like 11 hours and 8 hours.
When she arrived, my mother-in-law pulled out these incontinence pads that she had bought (just like the one in the doctor's office), and some Depends. The Aunt looked at them, and started laughing, and said she wasn't nearly that bad.
Ah yes, well that side of the family is ever so helpful and always prepared. I wonder what MIL ever did with that stuff. Probably asked around and found somebody who needed them.
I became lazier ever since I discovered how to cook rice in the rice cooke
I must admit that I became lazier ever since I discovered how to cook rice in the rice cooker. I usually have monstrous disaster when cooking rice in a stove. When I'm doing it in the rice cooker, I have more peace of mind and more time on my hands. I agree that the power outs forces me to cook back again to the stove but it cannot be helped. I remember the first time when I tried to cook rice - I put the rice and the water in the caldero in the previous night to cook it later in the morning. I got an earful and everybody got an extra helping of rice..
I know that cooking rice is supposed to be easy, however, I still find it to be a challenge for me at times. I have not yet perfected it and usually end up with either too much rice or too hard rice. I realize that cooking it is all about balance. Can you cook rice? Are you good at it? What's your technique?
I know that cooking rice is supposed to be easy, however, I still find it to be a challenge for me at times. I have not yet perfected it and usually end up with either too much rice or too hard rice. I realize that cooking it is all about balance. Can you cook rice? Are you good at it? What's your technique?
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Dear Abby
The first Dear Abby is about a mother who confides in her son, tells the son not to tell anybody including his wife, and is not happy when the son not only tells the wife, but the wife tells people too.
The second Dear Abby has to do with a couple where the wife is paying far more attention to the cat than to the husband.
And how come my newspaper didn't even print the third one? :D
Read all about it here:
(http://news.yahoo.com/s/ucda/20100902/lf_ucda/sonsnosecretspolicyirkshisconfidingmother;_ylt=Av4RW110CgDyxd9yoZOB1XnNbbUC;_ylu=X3oDMTNoMWVic3BxBGFzc2V0A3VjZGEvMjAxMDA5MDIvc29uc25vc2VjcmV0c3BvbGljeWlya3NoaXNjb25maWRpbmdtb3RoZXIEcG9zAzEEc2VjA3luX3BhZ2luYXRlX3N1bW1hcnlfbGlzdARzbGsDc29uc25vc2VjcmV0)
I think in the first case, the mom should not be asking the son to keep things from the wife, and the son should straight out tell his mom that he's not going to do that. He should also have a word with the wife about her blabbing, and tell her he's not going to confide in her if she can't zip her lip.
In the second case, I think what the counselor said was very interesting.
People turn to excessive engagement with animals because animals provide warmth in easy, reliable ways.
and what Dear Abby said:
when a spouse (of either sex, by the way) feels ignored, unappreciated, unloved or unimportant, it is not uncommon for him or her to seek validation elsewhere
Sounds actually a lot like my marriage early on, and I wish I had known enough at the time to see the signs. I suspect the husband and the wife were not meeting each other's needs in some way, but it does sound more like the wife turned away from the husband. They need to figure out what the problem is before it's too late.
Opinions?
The second Dear Abby has to do with a couple where the wife is paying far more attention to the cat than to the husband.
And how come my newspaper didn't even print the third one? :D
Read all about it here:
(http://news.yahoo.com/s/ucda/20100902/lf_ucda/sonsnosecretspolicyirkshisconfidingmother;_ylt=Av4RW110CgDyxd9yoZOB1XnNbbUC;_ylu=X3oDMTNoMWVic3BxBGFzc2V0A3VjZGEvMjAxMDA5MDIvc29uc25vc2VjcmV0c3BvbGljeWlya3NoaXNjb25maWRpbmdtb3RoZXIEcG9zAzEEc2VjA3luX3BhZ2luYXRlX3N1bW1hcnlfbGlzdARzbGsDc29uc25vc2VjcmV0)
I think in the first case, the mom should not be asking the son to keep things from the wife, and the son should straight out tell his mom that he's not going to do that. He should also have a word with the wife about her blabbing, and tell her he's not going to confide in her if she can't zip her lip.
In the second case, I think what the counselor said was very interesting.
People turn to excessive engagement with animals because animals provide warmth in easy, reliable ways.
and what Dear Abby said:
when a spouse (of either sex, by the way) feels ignored, unappreciated, unloved or unimportant, it is not uncommon for him or her to seek validation elsewhere
Sounds actually a lot like my marriage early on, and I wish I had known enough at the time to see the signs. I suspect the husband and the wife were not meeting each other's needs in some way, but it does sound more like the wife turned away from the husband. They need to figure out what the problem is before it's too late.
Opinions?
Friday, May 13, 2011
awesome w-o-m-a-n,
So it's lunch time, and we decide to have sandwiches for us, Lunchables for the kids. All but Naomi. She doesn't like the bologna Lunchable I bought for her, go figger, I mean she likes hot dogs for heavens sake. So we're eating our sandwiches, and Cary and Dearra are eating their Lunchables, and Naomi says, "where's my lunch". And I said, "well Miss Picky, I guess that Lunchable that I spent money on is going to end up in the trash unless I eat it, I suppose you want a hot dog?" So I put the hot dog on to boil and put the bun (frozen) into the microwave. A bit later I get the bun out, and I go to get the hot dog out, and she says, "so where's my lunch?" R says, "do you want me to make you a hot dog?" And I say, "yeah can you make her one?" As I take the tongs and put the hot dog into the bun. So he gets up, and turns around, and I hand him the hot dog and say, "can you give that to Naomi?"
Lunchable that probably won't get eaten - $4.99
Hot dog and bun probably less than - $1.00
Look on his face as I hand him the already prepared hot dog - PRICELESS
hahahahahahaha
Lunchable that probably won't get eaten - $4.99
Hot dog and bun probably less than - $1.00
Look on his face as I hand him the already prepared hot dog - PRICELESS
hahahahahahaha
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Arguments
Interesting dynamics in the family with R and me and Dearra. Couple of times he has snapped at me about something and I've spoken up and defended myself. Dearra's gotten right in my face about it, almost as if it's my fault or as if it's my job to calm him down.
Ex. 1: R - "You didn't put the honey on the table for me."
D - "You didn't bring out the mayo for me the other night when you made
burgers, what's your point?"
Dearra - "Stop it, it's just a jar of honey, what's the big deal?" Goes
and gets honey.
Ex. 2: D - "Oh, we forgot Cary's haircut." Goes upstairs to get SuperCuts card to
call.
R - Comes upstairs and says something about taking Cary.
D - "I was just going to call and see what the wait was."
R - "DAWN I'm taking him to my place." Said in loud, you should have known,
kind of voice.
D - "Hey, I didn't know you had plans to take him."
Dearra - "Stop arguing about such stupid things." And she was very in MY
face when she said that.
Well the nice counselor (one time when I was in there alone) did say that I was the voice of calm in the family. So I'm sitting here wondering if Dearra has this idea that it's my job to calm Dad down.
I spose I could ask her, but I'd have to find a way to do it without criticizing her Dad. Hmm...
Ex. 1: R - "You didn't put the honey on the table for me."
D - "You didn't bring out the mayo for me the other night when you made
burgers, what's your point?"
Dearra - "Stop it, it's just a jar of honey, what's the big deal?" Goes
and gets honey.
Ex. 2: D - "Oh, we forgot Cary's haircut." Goes upstairs to get SuperCuts card to
call.
R - Comes upstairs and says something about taking Cary.
D - "I was just going to call and see what the wait was."
R - "DAWN I'm taking him to my place." Said in loud, you should have known,
kind of voice.
D - "Hey, I didn't know you had plans to take him."
Dearra - "Stop arguing about such stupid things." And she was very in MY
face when she said that.
Well the nice counselor (one time when I was in there alone) did say that I was the voice of calm in the family. So I'm sitting here wondering if Dearra has this idea that it's my job to calm Dad down.
I spose I could ask her, but I'd have to find a way to do it without criticizing her Dad. Hmm...
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Back in my day
I got to hear a full blown Dearra rant this morning. I saw in the newspaper that the school districts were not going to require all 8th graders to take Algebra. Apparently that was last year's failed experiment. Now they determine whether the child is ready first, and only the ones who are ready have to do Algebra in 8th grade.
That started Dearra on a rant about all the torture she had to endure last year for no good reason. She's also ticked about the fact that this year's 8th grade science project has been canceled, because "it puts too much stress on the students". She had to do hers last year right in the middle of her anxiety mess.
Full blown Dearra rants are so much fun. If you're standing back about 6 feet.
She got me back too. She said something to Naomi about something she'd seen online, caught me rolling my eyes, and said "I see you rolling your eyes" just as I was swallowing some pills.
Don't make me laugh when I'm swallowing pills...
Anyway, I'm glad the school district has decided to be more sensible about Algebra, but why did they have to experiment on my kid with the Algebra aversion?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
