Thinking Thankful

Tis the season for giving thanks- so here's what's popped into my head this month.

I'm thankful I have a job.

In this economy, that's a real blessing.

Especially one where I like both the work and the people.
Really?  People can do that??  Awesome.

I'm grateful I can paint my walls my favorite blue.
Since I pretty much have to live in the condo forever, it's a good thing it turned out cute.

I am thankful for my car.
It's the Prius' 6th birthday.  She sure is a good sport.  She has more than 106,000 miles and is still a great investment.  I especially love driving in the carpool lane all by myself.

But I am also grateful for walking.
A friend crutched over for dinner 2 weeks post ACL replacement.  It reminded me that the summer I had that done was the most tedious of my life and I'm so thankful it's over.  And I really enjoy walking with my friends every week- how else would we solve the problems of the universe?

I was glad to visit Utah.
Especially for a joyful occasion like the marriage of an old friend from San Diego.  I was there Nov. 11-15.  Then the Utahns (three of my siblings and their families) were in Cali for Thanksgiving.  I'll see them again at Christmas.  Lucky me!!

But I'm really glad I don't live there!
I'm still not a fan of snow.  And it snows there.  A lot.

I'm grateful for friends, family, family of friends, and family that are also friends.
What more could anybody ask for?  I'm blessed, blessed, blessed!

Halloween

I didn't carve a pumpkin.

I didn't hang a ghost.

I didn't pass out candy-

We had two kids at most.

I skipped the scary movie,

I avoid each haunted house.

Too much time at home alone
Makes me timid as a mouse.

I did go to a party,
To dance and to be seen.
I got to be the mermaid,
So I still love Halloween!

Roommate rundown

Today, we invite the Inquisitive Investigator to the Casita for a quick tour.

Heidi: Hi! Come on in.
I: Nice piano. Is that your roommate's?
H: Well, no. It's Diana's. She was my roommate for a year, but she just bought a house.
I: If she has a house, why do you have her piano? And two tables?
H: The house reeked of dog and was last painted the world's ugliest blue color in 1998. It needed a lot of TLC before the piano could move in. I helped her paint, but she's on her own for new flooring. One table is hers. The other is Erika's.
I: Who's Erika? And why haven't I met her?
H: Diana's replacement. She goes to school in criminal justice, works, has a boyfriend in the Bay Area, and goes to church in her old neighborhood. You can only meet her by special appointment.
I: How do I get an appointment?
H: You have to be named Ben.
I: Oh. Don't you think Inquisitive Investigator is a catchier name than Ben?
H: Ben's her boyfriend.
I: Oh, of course. Is this their cute picture on the fridge?
H: No, that's Heather and her fiance' Gunnar.
I: Fiance'?? Didn't Heather move in because she was NOT getting married?
H: Yep. But in 9 weeks she changed her mind, got engaged, moved out, and is getting married next Friday. It's a good move. I'm happy for her.
I: Is that your shortest roommate term ever?
H: Well, no. Rebecca came from London just for 8 weeks, but we knew from the beginning that she was only livening up the Casita while she worked for Music Circus. She was such a fun summer addition!
I: Are all your roommates short term?
H: Goodness no! Virginia Castillo was my roommate, confidante, and wingman for THREE years!
I: What happened to her?
H: This spring, she moved to the Bay Area for nursing school, met a guy on EHarmony, and got married Oct. 5. She became a student, nurse, wife, and stepmother all in one semester. Talk about life changing decisions!
I: That's amazing.
H: I know. Thanks for stopping by. I have to get going so I can cash this deposit check.
I: So you're getting a new roommate already?
H: Yes. This one is named Annie. See?
I: But your address is on the check already! Isn't that a bit premature?
H: It's actually a little delayed. Annie lived here before, and her checks have this address even though she moved out over a year ago. When her other roommates split up, she figured it was easier to move back to the Casita than to get new checks.
I: Wowser. Why do your roommates keep fleeing?
H: They're not fleeing. We polish them up and send them out to bigger and better things.
I: Well, you do have a lot of roommates.
H: 37 and counting. Do I have to count Annie twice? Like Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton?
I: ACK! ACK! I ask the questions!!
H: Do you think Erika will get engaged by Christmas? Do you know any exceptionally cool ladies who will be needing a place around January? Especially if they come with a table?
I: AAAUGH! (Inquisitor's head explodes.)
H: Well, good thing it's Erika's week to clean the kitchen. (She smiles and leaves.)

I'm a fan fan.

It's not entirely a secret that the Casita is my responsibility. Though I love having a home, I do NOT love Home Depot. A store with 80,000 things and not one thing I can recognize?? You could get lost in there for days and stil not come out with what you want. I quake in my kitten heels just thinking about it. My home improvement projects are usually limited to painting and hiring.

Luckily, my parents were in town this weekend. Not for me- for the grandkids, of course. But they graciously agreed to help put up some ceiling fans so my roommates would have central lights. In the summer, the upstairs gets pretty toasty and the a/c plays favorites to my side of the house. With a little help from Heather, Gunnar, and Bro. Dunnaway, we managed to get one up in 10 hours and a second up in 1 hour. I even went to Home Depot and emerged intact. Isn't that refreshing?

Why I do what I do

Some quotable moments:

We were reading a book about pumpkins. Each of the kids had a couple of words on cards. They are supposed to listen for their words and raise their hands when they hear them. One little guy had "weeds." At every page turn, he shouted "I GOT WEED! I GOT WEED! DO YA WANT IT NOW?" In honor of Red Ribbon week, I just said no.

A 3rd grader put the stamp on the ink pad upside down on purpose. I told him he had to clean it and gave him a Clorox wipe. After a few seconds of scrubbing he brought it back, looking startled. He handed it to me, saying "Look! I erased it!" Sure enough, he had completely wiped clean the back of the stamp- including the picture that indicates what the stamp looks like!

When I went to put the wipes away, the same little guy was amazed by the large undersink cabinet (no shelves). He immediately tried to climb in. I talked him out of it. That was good practice for later in the evening. I was glad to see my estatically engaged roommate, Heather, although her twirly giddiness made her ask "Do you sometimes feel like you're roommates with a five year old?" Well, maybe- but five minutes later, when I took this picture, I had to take it back as too harsh. She is obviously acting like an EIGHT year old!

Mayhem and Messes

One fun fact about the Washington Unified School District is that they have weird ideas about where saving money and being smart intersect. Two years ago, I opened a brand new campus (Stonegate) with many of my Evergreen teacher friends. They were still building the cafeteria, office, playing field, and fences until about November, but the campus is beautiful and everything is new and the people are great, so it was worth it.
I hate moving!! After that gig, I ducked out of opening another new campus the next year by taking Stonegate and a little, quiet school called Westmore Oaks. That plan only worked for one year. The district built a brand new, state-of-the-art high school and attempted to relocate the entire school midyear over Christmas break. Lucky them. The old 1950s high school was decrepit, outdated, and crowded. Part of it is condemned and the other part is ugly.
Here comes the moment of real brilliance: they slapped some paint on the old high school, and moved our little elementary plus the neighborhood 6-8 graders in. We didn't get on campus until the week before school, and the poor kindergarten teachers couldn't even set foot in their classrooms until after 2 pm on the day before school started. You can't fake kindergarten- it's not like you can give them worksheets until the materials turn up. Yikes.

I finally was assigned an office off the library. It has a window, and it's not the smallest space I've worked in, so for an SLP that's pretty good. But it was COMPLETELY EMPTY. No furniture, no boxes, no nothing. When I asked where I could get a desk, the custodian escorted me to the condemned middle section of the campus. 8 classrooms were completely full, floor to ceiling, with abandoned high-school sized desks, chairs, bookshelves, and rubbish. I was basically told "If you can find it, you can have it." Great. Eventually I scavenged out a set of shelves, a bookcase, and a file cabinet. The table is so big, the kindergarteners can slide under it while sitting in their chairs. I made a desk out of my two small filing cabinets and a board that Diana cut for me. On the 8th day of school, I got a phone. I'm still waiting to get my hands on a computer. The boxes were discovered in the art room, minus a bin that I borrowed from a friend. Also missing was the box marked "open first," which has the file cabinet key and all the desk stuff. Of course. The unpacking task was almost too overwhelming, but my friend Julie saved the day by whipping it into shape in an hour.

I was proud of myself for getting the room together and the schedule up and running by the second week of school. My kids weren't as impressed. One third grader came in and yelped, "Hey! This is the smallest teacher room ever! It's smaller than my bathroom!" Well, yes. Maybe next move, I'll set my sights high and ask for a remodeled lavatory. On second thought, some school things simply can't be remodeled enough. I'd better be content with my window instead.

S & H Excellent Adventure- alive on the other side!

Shannon, how do you feel about reaching the Virginia mountains?

And where are you now?

Why, that's your cute new house with the defiinitely dangerous driveway! Welcome home! There's grown-up art on the walls and a room for a recording studio. You will be happy here.

After we unload the car, talk the ears of your fab new roommates, dress Marquette for the weather, and blow up your air mattress, what should we do next?

Good idea. We are in Washington DC, after all. Don't forget to show off what you learned at the Spy Museum.

Apparently they knew you were coming. Happy hunting. Maybe you can even find someone to buy you an Icee. Although, you really will have to get someone besides Bob to take you to the temple.

Sorry, Heidi, even a long lasting tarp and all-powerful duct tape cannot protect you from the weather. Just when you thought you were headed home, thundershowers will close the Houston airport, turning a 3 hour trip into an overnight disaster. At least you can get a hotel if you have a cell phone and nice friends with internet. And otherwise, you would have missed Texas on this trip.

Ok, that wasn'tthat fun. But was the trip worth it?

YES!

S & H Excellent Adventure- the rest of the drive

Now, why is that sitting down doing nothing all day is so exhausting when you're in the car? Days 3-6 went generally like this: Roll over, drag ourselves out to some sort of provided breakfast, adjust the car rack, gawk at the holes in the tarp, get in the car, argue with Bob (the unreliable GPS who changes his mind a lot), drive, listen to the Mikey's Masterful Playlist, get gas, switch drivers, drive, wave to truckers, wave to corn, wave to the far off horizon, drive, take pictures, drive.... until we pull into our destination and collapse. Shannon mixed it up by sometimes sleeping and sometimes singing along. I mixed it up by navigating from the right or the left seat. Every conversation started with the phrase "there's a short version of this story, but the long one is longer so I'll tell that!"
We saw some beautiful country, divided into the basic areas of tall mountains with trees, nasty Nevada, more tall mountains, flowered rolling hills, corn, little hills with trees. We ping-ponged between I-70 and I-80 everyday so we could get in a few highlights: our families in Utah; Shannon's friends in Aurora, CO and Oswego, IL; St. Louis (this whole long trip, and that's the only big destination I hadn't seen before); Nauvoo, IL; Winter Quarters and Omaha, NE; her family in Miamitown, OH. I'll let the photos and the map tell their own stories. All told, we passed through 14 states, traveled 36197 miles, took six days, ate 3 dozen cookies, got dozens of amused or confused looks, drove for roughly 52 hours, had a great time, and are still friends!!

H&S Excellent Adventure- Day 2

D.C. WITH BUST

I was driving through more of Nowhere, Nevada while Shannon wisely slept.  Honestly, she wasn't missing anything.  Suddenly, she startled awake and nearly vaulted through the windshield.  She had dreamed that she was supposed to be driving and realized she was asleep.  After a moment of extreme panic, she curled up in her seat and went straight back to sleep.  That's why I'm here- to make sure Shannon separates the sleeping and the driving!

Today the rain caught up to us.  We got the tarp on, but it was promptly shredded as we drove to Orem.  We met up with Shannon's sister's family, who pointed us to the ubiquitous Walmart.  Her brother-in-law took on the master repacker job.  Tarp and duct tape save the day!  We love tarp.  

Then it started raining- inside the car! The amazing roof rack keeps the door from sealing tight.  Fortunately, my grandma had saved a special towel from 1962 just for this occasion.   Day saved again.

We found some paint and decorated the windows, which makes this feel like a real roadtrip.   Now when people get stuck behind us, instead of just staring worriedly at the National Lampoon-style body on the roof, they sometimes smile and wave.

The body on the roof is Marquette, shannon's other traveling companion.  Yeah, I'd better be nice to her or I might be next.... To make up for tying her to the roof, we found her a boyfriend in Aspen.  You know those Aspen boys, they are rich and handsome!

The drive on I 70  through Colorado is beautiful- red rocks give way to green and lush mountains.  Shannon served part of her mission in the Denver area, so for her it was a kind of homecoming.  She has kept in touch with a family called the Campbells, who are apparently the best hook up friends ever.   They graciously let us stay the night at their beautiful home, then insisted on using Marriott points for our hotel stay in Omaha.   NICE!

Two days down and we're still friends, so hopefully I can stay inside the car tomorrow...

H&S Excellent Adventure- Day 1

Day 1- Heidi Hates Nevada

Shannon Simmons is moving to Washington, DC.  I have a week until school starts.  So, for the sake of "Go, while you still can!", we are driving cross country from Sac to DC.  Oh yeah, bring on the memories!

Photos will be added after the adventure, as internet is pretty spotty. 

Shannon's car was so full, that on Thursday night, they alloted me 4x16".  I repacked down to just one shoulder bag for 8 days.  Fortunately, it fit.  Fortunately, I fit. But just barely!  We jumped in and headed out Friday morning.

Mike, Shannon's gifted cousin, made us a monster playlist that guarantees car dancing, excitement, and good times.  It does not guarantee on time departures, but that is just asking too much.

Nevada is everything I expected it to be, which is desolate and boring.  Bleh.  Excessive packing, a little bit of speeding, and drag from the motley assortment on the the roof rack sufficiently reduced gas mileage to give us a major scare coming across the salt flats.  Shannon was asleep and the E light came on way before Tooele.  I woke up Shannon and she prayed.  We literally coasted in thanks to fumes and angels.  It was absolutely a blessing.

We arrived in Ogden only an hour late, where I was overjoyed to see my cutest nieces and newphew and their grown-ups.   Of course, Grandma had BBQ in the freezer.  She wanted us to eat some, but the sibs ordered pizza.  We were afraid we might have to eat it for breakfast, but in the end the Crispix tradition prevailed and we escaped with only cookies, chips, drinks, towels, and dozens of reminders to drive safe.  Gotta love grandma's!

Sea 2 See!

All the photos from my cross country trip, August 14-22, 2009.

http://picasaweb.google.com/HNebeker/Sea2See?authkey=Gv1sRgCPeijYLLzOyLlgE#slideshow/5374831217889782802

Let's Talk Trek

The Why
First, a little background. After the organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, the members (often called "Mormons") were driven from state to state by perscution and injustice. In 1846, most of them were living in Illinois. They had sufficiently irritated the neighbors to the point that the Govenor issued an "extermination order" for any Mormon in the state. They were forced to flee their homes and cities in the dead of winter. Shortly thereafter, a massive migration was organized as Brigham Young encouraged the Saints to gather to the distant desert of what is now Utah. Most came in wagon trains along the Mormon trail, including about 30 of my direct ancestors.
From 1856-1860, ten groups that were too poor to afford wagons pushed and pulled their meager belongings in handcarts. In honor of their sacrifice and faith, the Sacramento East stake organized a pioneer handcart trek for the youth and young single adults.
The Prep
Each member of the company had a five gallon bucket for all their personal items. I had no problem getting everything on the list in my bucket. It's easy to pack when you don't take any clothes, makeup, or entertainment! I wore this charming outfit for all three days. I know you wish you had one just like it.
Respect the bloomers! You can sleep in them and they keep your legs from getting NAAASTY. Still having a little trouble with the bonnet. I never was very good at hats.
The Peeps
My ward sent almost 40 people, which filled three carts. They called each cart a "family," and by the time we were done, we absolutely were. We have a beloved couple in our ward, the Stoeltzings, who even though they are in their late 70s, were staunch supporters of the trek from the beginning. When Sister Stoeltzing's health took a turn for the worse, they could not attend. We put their picture on each cart so they could "travel" with us. Aren't they sweet?
The Path
For three days (Aug.5-7), we pushed and pulled on a dirt path in the forest near Sly Park, starting on Mormon Emmigrant road. We topped out about 1.5 miles per hour, so 10 miles made for a long day. The uphill was hard, the downhill was a little dangerous, the scenery was beautiful, the dust was intense, and the waterfalls made the whole day worthwhile. At night we camped, shared stories about pioneers, danced at a hoedown, and ate "meager meals"- although bread, meat, and trail mix or broth and a roll does not seem like much for a Mormon activity, it was a lot more than the handcart pioneers had after their rations were halved again and again. With one lunch, they gave us a bag of unpeeled carrots. No one was hungry enough to eat them, so we obviously weren't starving! I did cut bread with hands so dirty that normally I would be disgusted, but I figured I had chewed so much trail dust already, a little more wouldn't hurt.
http://photographyyoufeel.com/trekpreview/
The Personal Effect
Today I am really thankful for a car, a bed, and a shower!! But even more, I am amazed and impressed by those who did this for three months, over mountain ranges and across desolate wastelands, without a water truck or Handiwipes. Many of them were sick, got frostbite, or even died along the way. They were people of faith, strength, and courage. Learning their stories and walking their path made me see them as real people, not just names on a page. I honor their legacy by facing my own challenges and saying "Tough, but at least it's not Nebraska!"

p.s. If you would like to know about specific pioneers, you can search here for individuals or companies. Nebs, ask me for stories. Adamsons, ask Gma A.

It's summer- why are you still here?

I did all my traditional summer school start up things this week: took a long drive, unpacked, met my new roommate, found my new school site using GPS, scheduled, met the staff, rescheduled, met the kids, rescheduled, went to the water, went out to dinner, went kayaking. The main difference this year is where I'm staying-- in my own house!

In March, I was asked back to do a third year of summer school for Monterey County Office of Education, my favorite sweet working holiday. All the plans were set and I was ready to go, when at the last minute, budget cuts forced Monterey to eliminate the position. Panicked by the thought of my garden having to sustain me all summer, I started searching for anything in the area. Fortunately, the Rocklin school district SLPs are apparently rich enough to live in Rocklin without working summers. They hired me on the day before I left for vacation. I started literally 7hours after making it back from Yellowstone. One week down, three to go, and it has been going as well as can be expected when you don't know what you are doing! I don't know what I have against working in my own county, but I'll take what I can get. At least I won't have to eat the calla lillies.

*For a great review of Yellowstone, see Ruthie's blog. I was having so much fun, I didn't bother with pictures. But it was great to see all the Nebs together (minus Alan, of course, who's on a mission). And my nieces and nephews are so dang cute!!

My lucky day.

It's been a crazy couple of days since school finished on Thursday. Friday I worked on school stuff and went to a play at my favorite outdoor theater, CalShakes in Orinda. Saturday was spent entirely on Virginia's moving out/ heading to The City/ quitting the old job/ first day of school/ dreams-do-come-true engagement party! Man, I do make some good pulled pork. Lots of people came to wish her well and meet the mysterious fiance. We put them to good use and they moved everything from upstairs to downstairs in just a few minutes. I am going to miss her!!

Sunday was Sunday- family history, church, a meeting for this summer's trek, people over for games.

Today was a continuous stream of errands. Note to self: get picture taken at DMV before getting cavities filled at the dentist. 2nd note to self: your driver's license may expire on your birthday, even if they don't send you a renewal notice!! (oops.)

My old dentist had huge, hairy, gorilla hands that could individually cover my whole face. Although I'm not normally scared of the dentist, I made an exception for him! My new dentist is normal sized and gentle, and quite handsome. And, oddly, he talked to me like a real person and not an appointment. He wasn't even mean when he told me step up the flossing. Even the receptionist suggested I get the cavities done right away before another dr. was on duty. I decided I would come back because when he fixed my two cavities, he said, "it's your lucky day! You don't need a root canal." Everybody, consider right now if it a lucky day for you. Did you need a root canal? No? Ok then! Count your blessings!

I should be packing for Yellowstone. See you in a week.

Friends, food, fun, and free cider= a fabulous birthday!

I decided to celebrate my birthday this year Jewish style- that is from sundown to sundown, starting the night before. I threw in a little African and Greek and whatever Wolfgang Puck's is, and it turned out delightful.
Myself always knows what to get me for my birthday. This year myself decided to take me to the touring production of the Lion King, which is here in Sacramento. My spunky friend Shannon and I enjoyed preshow dinner and music at Wolfgang Puck's, then found our way to our seats. The show was absolutely brilliant! Each new animal had us on the edge of our seats, wide eyed like little kids. The costuming was so imaginative, that sometimes we forgot there were even people working the animals. My favorites were the giraffes, and the hyenas, and the on stage percussion, and the stampede..... Anyway, it was a great night.
The next day I met some dear friends at Opa Opa after work. We took up almost the whole patio, laughing and having a good time and generally making the restaraunt look popular. Someone bought me a divine fruit tart from Sweeties. I also got a cupcake, which I happily devoured for breakfast the next morning, and homemade cookies, which counted as visiting teaching. But the funniest food gift was from the owner. Just as we were finishing eating, he brought out a handful of wine glasses and offered to pour "on the house." Most of the people were LDS, so we explained we actually weren't drinking at all. He looked shocked and very, very confused. 10 minutes later, he came out with four little bottles of chilled apple juice. We passed them around and had a first rate toast: to friends, to food, to fun, and to free cider. Opa!

Genius in the gym!

Ok, so I have a little trouble with combination locks. I had two, and I could never keep the two combinations straight. One day I spent twenty minutes in the gym trying to unlock it, and finally had to get the girl with the HUGE, uh, bolt cutters come and cut it off. I stopped on the way home and immediately bought a lock that allows you to set the combination. I set it, and haven't had any trouble for about a year.
Until last night. I was making a token payment on the guilt bill from dinner at Garcia's. When I couldn't get into my locker, I realized that the little switch had been flipped that resets the combination. When you close the lock, whatever it is set to is the new combo. I briefly considered trying all 9999 possibilities, while siting on the floor and getting dripped on by some old lady's towel, but that was never going to work. So I went, redfaced, and pulled the kid on duty away from his impressive biceps friends to cut the lock off. The lock worked in that I never forgot the combination, but it failed to spare me the embarrassment of bolt cutters!

Where's V? Next to U.

V is Virginia, my roommate and right hand woman and wingman. U is Kenny, her new fiance. V actually said this line to Kenny's 4 year old daughter while they were singing the alphabet. Virginia and Kenny got engaged 2 days before their one month anniversary of meeting. Yeah, sometimes things move fast around here. They are getting married in December and I am happy for them!! (when I'm not freaked out)
Yes, they met on e-harmony. No, he's not LDS but he is open minded about the church. Yes, I like him and think he's a good guy. No, it's not what I expected- but then, it seldom is.
I was already prepared for her to move out because she's going to San Francisco for nursing school in two weeks. That's closer to Kenny in San Jose, but farther from her adopted Sacto home. I'm going to miss her, and someone else will have to assume the job of dragging me out to dances!

Huntington Beach

Virginia and I spent the weekend in Huntington Beach. It's the only place in the world that recognizes Mormons 31-45 still know how to have fun. Yes, I'm 31, and NO, I am not interested in any activities that involve mostly 60+ year olds! Problem solved here- plenty of food, dancing, beach, and fun. There were 1150 people at church on Sunday for the singles conference. Good times. And yeah, I was working the numbers and handing out digits!

Virginia and I took off on Saturday night to go to the Camp Del Corazon gala in Universal Studios. We couldn't afford $250 a plate, so we volunteered in the silent auction. Virginia volunteers every summer as a counselor at this camp, because she is awesome and the cause is impotant to her. A lot of the real staff and campers were recently in a ER episode, so it was cool to meet them in person.

I was hoping for John Stamos, but Tom Arnold is good enough!

The grass is not always greener on the other side...

especially if you are a plant.

Our neighbors have a lush tropical paradise in their tiny patio space, covered in bamboo and well tended, flourishing plants of all varieties. I have one bush and 10 feet of barren dirt.
One of the neighbors' plants was apparently suicidal. I know it was suicidal, because it kept trying to crawl over the fence. It started out just peeking over, then it got one arm over the fence, then it tried jumping. The first time we found it hanging crazily half out of its pot on the fence rail, the neighbor tucked it back into its cozy bed. A few days later, the plant made a successful escape, hurling itself over the fence towards hard concrete, toxic soil, and oblivion. We didn't even notice it for a couple of days. The neighbor, recognizing that even the best plant whisperer can't save them all, told us to keep the unstable plant. At first, I tried to recreate its former home, dubiously repotting it near the window. After only a little neglect, it made another dive for the concrete. Frustrated, I plopped it down in the middle of the flowerbed that even the irises won't return to. I left it there- dry, ignored, and lonely- and figured it was only a matter of time before the plant succumbed to the forces that have wiped out dozens of other flora in the same space.
Yeah, well, the dang thing is growing. Go figure. I guess nothing rekindles the fight for life like coming face to face with death. I felt guilty for ignoring the thing, so I spent the better part of Saturday putting other plants in the flower bed so it looks a little more intentional. Too soon to tell if they'll survive, but their rehabbed buddy gives me hope.

A winning proposition

I'm taking an ASL religion class just for fun. There is one guy in there in his mid-thirties who lately has been flirting with me. Not the casual, you're-kinda-cute kind of flirting, but the full-force- high-school- boy-obvious kind of flirting. I'd explain, but you probably remember being a freshman.

Anyway, after class on Thursday, I edged toward my car for half an hour while he ranted about preparing for the coming anarchy. Given my aversion to firearms, he did allow that I could get a samuri sword if I learned how to use it. While I pondered my options for self defense, the following TOP TEN list gradually became apparent.

Top 10 reasons the guy in my Institute class is not for me:

10. He's read three books in the last 5 years.  One of them was a pamphlet on aliens.

9. YouTube is his primary source of information.  He considers things reportedly overheard in a government office by anonymous tipsters to have special credibility.

8. He referred to President Obama, whom I respect,  as a “Black Hitler.”

7. He's currently unemployed.

6. He loves guns and carries a loaded one on his person at home, even with his kids.

5. Home is living with his mom.

4. He's knows Armegeddon is coming soon.  He can't wait because it will be a great fight.

3. He claims to have seen Satan in his backyard.

2. He's married.

And the number one reason this guy is not for me:
1.  I failed to appreciate this gallant offer:
“I'll give you my mom's address so when the anarchy starts, you can come over and I'll protect you, too! We have plenty of guns, my mom has a big ol' garden, and my wife wouldn't even care!”  Anarchy, armament, unemployment, and polygamy all rolled into one- how could I resist?

Greening

I try to be conscientious about the environment and stuff. We are really good about recycling and all the light fixtures have twisty bulbs. Still, I can't get a handle on the plastic carrier bags. We use them in every trash can and to carry wet clothes and as back up lunch bags, and still they accumulate faster than raindrops on a newly washed car. They can't go in the recycle bin, but you can take them back to several stores. Since that takes an extra step, we just keep stuffing them under the sink until it is a solid wall of plastic.
To help, Virginia wrapped her Christmas gifts in reusable carrier bags (good idea, V!). I picked up a couple more. I tried putting them in with the plastic bags, but they were immediately buried. Then I tried putting them in my trunk, but I always forgot to get them out. Finally, I put them on the floor of the front seat. Now I never fail to remember them-
as I'm going through the checkout line!
Anybody need some plastic bags? I know where there's a mountain of them....

Blame Eragon if I haven't called you back.

I roll most of my calls somewhere on the 30-45 minute commute home. I could do it in the morning, but mentally picking a book to read with my first group is as close as I get to lesson plans. I have a bluetooth headset, so I'm (mostly) legal. Lately though, I've been getting behind. Why? It's Eragon's fault.

The blasted dragon rider has 3 books. The last of which, Brisingr, is 23 CDs long!! Listening to the books keeps me from getting agitated in traffic and spares me the unpleasantness of trying to make imaginary spellings phonetically possible. Especially in the rainy season, I need something to help pass the time in the car. It does not save me any time, though, as I frequently find myself in the parking lot hoping Eragon will eventually get to some resolution, some how.

Lack of resolution is how I got roped into this saga in the first place. Being too cheap to buy CDs I will only listen to once, I get them from the library. Unfortunately, I was happily going through book 2 when I suddenly ran out of CDs. Not that I lost any; the book just stops in the middle of a battle- leaving Eragon in the middle of a war, with an unresolved girl, unresolved secrets, a suddenly returned long lost relative, and no apparent plan. Arrgh, Dragon Rider, don't leave me hanging like that! Of course, I immediately put my name on the waiting list for Brisingr at the library, but I was 73 in line for 8 copies. So for the last 4 months, Eragon has been hanging out on the back of a dragon, waiting for his enemy to attack, and there was nothing I could do about it. Well, I could read the book, but then I'd have to deal with all those unpleasant spellings, and people generally frown on reading and driving at the same time.

So when my number came up, I had to immediately get the dragon out of the perpetual holding pattern. And therefore, your calls have been on hold. We're still fricai, right? (hey, "friends" isn't phonetic either.)

Read it? Love it? Hate it? Just watched the movie and think that's all there is to it? Anyone else following the dragon rider?

Administration

My principal was ranting about a perceived lack of judgement in a collegue's email. He showed it to me, saying "Seriously, why would anyone do something like that?" At that moment, he saw a mosquito on the wall. In a show of prowess, he smacked the wall, widely missing the bug, but causing some framed award to crash down on his hand and then slide into the tiny space behind the desk. I deadpanned, "Sometimes people act without thinking the consequences all the way through. It happens to the best of us." It took me the whole time he was retreiving the fallen frame to stop laughing at his impressive timing. :-)

Snowed in-- in SoCal!

I'm not kidding! I didn't make it in for work today because I was snowed in and couldn't get back from San Diego!
I dragged Virginia down for the three day weekend. We saw our old friends Bill, Heather, and Mercedes, and I stopped in on Karen and Gina. It rained the whole time, which may have tempered V's experience. But we did have an interesting visit to the La Brea Tar Pits, a wet trip to Mission Beach, a stroll through the Prado, and enough beach to hold me over for a bit longer.
On Monday, we left around noon for the 8-9 hour trip. Not long after, our friends were calling saying that I-5 was closed at the Grapevine due to snow and ice. We stopped in LA to reconsider our options. Rallying all our technology, from the laptop to the phones to the Thomas Guide, we decided not to die and instead take the 101 north. Traffic continued to crawl. At 7 pm, we had gone 215 miles in about 6 hours and were approaching Santa Barbara. We discovered we were able to love technology and LaSalsa at the same time, finding the city's last cheap hotel room between bites of burrito. The room didn't have a heater, but it was welcome and warm compared to the pounding rain. We slept, had breakfast in the Danish town of Solvang, and tackled the remaining 7 hours of our trip in the scant daylight. When I said I went to San Diego because I wanted to see the water, this is not what I had in mind!

Ms. N's Valentine's Day

This is why I like being a school speech therapist.

As my group of second graders glued pink hearts on their paper valentines (fortunately, Valentines require some form of writing and can therefore be considered a literacy activity), they inadvertently opened the can of worms forbidden even to my family.

2nd grader A, busy gluing her fingers together: Are you going to make a Valentine for your husband?
Ms. N: No, I'm not married.
2nd grader B, writing her name from right to left: Yes you are!
Ms. N: (surpised) Really? (checks finger for unnoticed rock) I don't think so.
2A to 2B: Nuh- uh! She lives alone.
Ms. N: Actually, I live with some friends.
2A: Are they girl friends?
Ms. N: Yes.
2A: You live with your GIRLFRIEND?
Ms. N: yeah, no, um... just friends that are girls.
2B: How come you aren't married?
Ms. N: Well, that's a million dollar question.
2B: Is it cuz your boyfriend is too old?
Ms. N (startled by this previously unconsidered potential complication): Nope, I don't have that problem.
2A: I know. It's cuz you're too young to get married.
Ms. N (smiling): Yes, that must be it.
2A: So pretty soon you'll get old and then you'll get married and have some kids?
Ms. N: (sort of smiling) Uh, possibly. And apparently in that order. Unless you guys make me reconsider.
2A & 2B: Ok!

Rosca de Reyes

What, you ask, is Rosca de Reyes? Let me show you, as I am now an expert. In many European and Latin American countries, 3 Kings Day is celebrated on January 6. Traditionally, 12 days after Christmas, the Wise Men (las Reyes) came to worship the baby Jesus. In Mexico, the celebration involves a special bread (la Rosca) with little dolls baked inside. They are supposed to symbolize the baby Jesus, but they kind of look like white aliens with big heads. Whoever gets the baby doll gets to host the next party on Candlemas (Feb. 2). So what is Dia de Reyes? An excuse for a Casita party, with another excuse for a party baked right in! Sweet.

Virginia and Diana were practically dared to have a 3 Kings Day party by a guy in their ward. Never ones to back down from a dare or back away from a party, we took a week to get the people together, and celebrated our first Dia de Reyes on Jan.13th.

In many countries, children leave out their shoes with grass or treats for the camels, and the "wise men" leave the children presents. We did NOT want any stinky shoes left out, so we opted for white elephant instead. Notice Scott laughing his head off at a light up plastic cup. It's probably because he brought the whitest elephant of all: spikes to keep birds off a roof (like you see in the "O" of BigLots), cleverly wrapped in a heater box. Glad I didn't get that one.

So, to recap: bread on Jan 6 = tamales on Feb 2. Wise men always welcome at the Casita. Gifts. What's not to love about Dia de Reyes?

New Year's Blast

I'm a sucker for water and fireworks, for city lights and novel experiences. When the chance came up to go on a NYE cruise in San Francisco Bay, I jumped on board. It didn't hurt that the SF midsingles sponsored it, either. My friends Paula and Amanda joined me.

On the way in, Amanda called to say the neighborhood of the motel looked dodgy- great, that's all we need. But when we went in, someone had taken a lot of care to make the place look cute. Paula exclaimed "It looks like they raided Ikea! I love Ikea! I love this place!" It turned out to be a perfect little spot, and only dodgy on the downhill side.

We stopped to watch a fire dancer on the sidewalk. The crowd was cold and quiet. I pulled out one of my two talents and whooped it up for him. He appreciated it enough to wave fire in my face, which made me squeal. Everybody laughed and he gave me a high five. How's that for hot?

Although there were glaringly few people on the cruise, we had a good time. The fireworks were some of the best ever. We were as close as the Coast Guard would allow as we watched them from the uncrowded, very cold boat, while half of Northern California watched from the jam-packed Embarcadero. Incredible!

p.s. I don't know how many dozens of times I've driven over the Bay Bridge, gritting my teeth and anxious to get off. This was the first time I ever stopped at Treasure Island, and I have to say it was WORTH IT! The views are gorgeous!