Wild Weather!

Looks like we're in for a wild ride here in Midwest!

Yesterday we experienced a WINDY (40+ mph, white caps on ponds) warm (in the 50s) day. The boys and I drove about an hour or so north of here to meet a blacksmith in Malta Bend (Orion may be the ONLY 11 year old getting 150 lbs of coal for Christmas!).

Today finds me in the office grading papers and getting ready to post final grades for the semester. I thought it might be a good idea to come today since the weather is supposed to do an about face!

It was about 61 degrees when I got here this morning. It will be about 38 when I leave around 4:00. And 11 tonight! Yes, I said 11.

Precipitation has already started and there just might be some accumulation before the sun rises tomorrow! Snow, ice, or both!

A Good Day

Wow! It's not yet noon and I have been blessed with several little happies already! First I was greeted with the weather report as I hopped into the car at 6:30 a.m. Temperatures dropping and snow coming! Woot! I hopped out of the car and raced back inside to bring a secondary set of shoes (instead of my traditional Birks) as well as my hat and gloves. I can't wait! Bring it on!

The radar pic was from 10:30 this morning. It's coming! We're only expecting one to two inches. But I can hope for four! Right?

After tossing my 'winter gear' into Grace I made my way to Parker's Grocery to buy gas. I've watched the prices dropping (with the minor hiccup for Thanksgiving) and have held out as long as I could. With my Parker's Card I paid $1.33. We get 3 cents for being customers and a penny off for ever $10 we spend over a two week period. I do most of my shopping at Wal-Mart (prices) but I love the meat selection at Parker's. So I was able to fill my near empty gas tank for no, not $40, no, not $30, no even $20! But for less than $15 this morning. I spent $14.60 to fill my car today. And did a little happy dance in the pre-dawn glow of the gas station.

I administered my second of three finals this morning at 8:00. My students shared their creative philosophies of education. Each one different. Each one personal. Each one genuine. It was sad to say "see you later." I will miss them.

For the rest of today and Wednesday I have hundreds of papers to grade and a handful of meetings (blah!). Thursday afternoon I have my last final. And Friday Orion heads to Children's Mercy South for his G.I. check-up.

Now then, I'm off to do my snow dance and grade some papers. What's the weather like in your neck of the woods?

Crock-Pot 365

The crock-pot is an interesting invention. Some say it is nothing more than a giant Petri dish, just warm enough to grow your favorite bacteria. Others tout its money saving capabilities! Personally, I have always been attracted to the time saving factor associated with the original "set-it-and-forget-it!"

About a year ago I found the Rival Crock-Pot Cooking cookbook on my friend Ruth's shelf. It was published in 1975 and I have found it to be most useful. So much that I haven't returned Ruth's book! Last weekend while shopping the antique stores with my friend Shannon I found a copy for my very own! I was so excited I told Ruth she could have her copy back! That's when she told me about A Year of CrockPotting!

You can find a Year of CrockPotting at http://www.crockpot365.blogspot.com/. I liked this blog so much I've book marked it! I zipped Stephanie, the Crock-Pot Lady, an email asking if I could link to her blog and rave about her recipes. She was quick to respond in the affirmative. (Thank you Crock-Pot Lady: for your permission and your hard work!).

At a Year of CrockPotting you will find a diary of Crock-Pot experiences for the past year. There are breakfast recipes, veggie recipes, and dinner recipes as well as several things I never thought to use a Crock-Pot to create (Soap?). I love that Stephanie begins each post with a picture of her creation. Then she lists her recipe with the steps and provides a picture of her ingredients. Each entry ends with a "verdict." I find this most helpful as there are some creations I think I'll pass on after reading about Stephanie trying them not once, but twice!

Visit the Crock-Pot Lady and let her know what you think! It's one of the best blogs I've seen!

P.T.S.D.

Post Thanksgiving Stress Disorder that is! It's the scary realization that Christmas, Hanukkah, and other winter festivities are around the corner and you've done nothing to prepare! I hope your holidays are P.T.S.D. free this year!

I had a wonderful Thanksgiving! A friend and colleague invited me to her house for Thanksgiving dinner. There I spent the afternoon with other friends, colleagues, and a group of Latino guys and gals (friends of my friend's youngest son). We partook of some seriously tasty victuals. There was shrimp cocktail, bread, crackers, cheese ball, deviled ham spread, to start us off.

From there we found ourselves at the table consuming turkey with Panchetta hidden under the skin (yum!), duck, mashed taters, candied yams, various steamed veggies, and so much more.

The most difficult decision was deciding whether I wanted seconds (more turkey and dressing) or whether I wanted to try the deserts. You may be surprised to discover that the deserts won. I had a small slice of tasty pumpkin pie and a healthy slice of some impressive cream cheese pound cake! There were really too many wonderful choices! I split a German cookie that took me back about 30 years or so. The cookie was moist, almost cake-like. But it was not sweet. It seemed to be heavy on the ginger, orange, and possibly molasses. It reminded me of a Christmas cookie my mom and grandma used to make. This one was covered in a tiny layer of chocolate, but the ones I remember as a child were covered in powdered sugar.

Mom, if you have any idea what I am talking about send me the recipe! Amber, with your baking expertise you might know what I am talking about. Readers, can you help?

By not having to shop or make Thanksgiving dinner this year I not only saved a tremendous amount of money, I had an extra day and a half that I used to clean my house. It's still not as clean I would like it, but at least now I have an idea of where things are. All it all it was a good holiday. The best part was spent with family and friends. I hope your Thanksgivings were just a wonderful! Feel free to share in the comments, especially any tasty recipes!

Birthday Goodness...

Sunday I celebrated my 39th birthday. I know... One can very easily round up to 40... Up, up, up! I have had a very good birthday and it looks like I will continue to enjoy birthday festivities throughout the upcoming week! The joy of having one's birthday so close to Thanksgiving; one can find ways to drag it out, to prolong the celebrations.

I started celebrating on November 22nd. Explaining to Orion that for a while folks thought my birthday was on the 22nd because I was born in the middle of the night, just after 3:00 a.m. EST. Sunday the 23rd was spent at Jennifer and Aaron's house in Sedalia (about 30 miles east of here) with good friends. We snacked all day on some very tasty dip and chips. And Aaron and Jennifer provided us with plenty of pizza (I had left-overs for breakfast this morning!). Next to the company, my favorite part was rockin' out to Guitar Hero with Chad and Aaron! What fun!

In addition to the weekend fun I have received a number of electronic wishes via Facebook (Who knew?!), many cards via snail mail, gorgeous flowers from my mum-in-law, a beautiful apron from my "south of the border" sister, home-made cookies, and a pair of 480 million year old earrings (no kidding). Rumor has it, there's more to come!

I promise to take pictures of my "birthday booty" and share.

Tired and Cranky

Tired and cranky. These words are almost always associated with toddlers. However, as of late, they're quite appropriate descriptors of me. The semester is winding down at an alarming rate. I have one and a half weeks of class and a week of finals; I can hear the fat lady singing in the distance. This is been a semester of 12-14 hour days: grading, planning, researching, and writing. And the most distressing thing of all is that despite all the time I've logged, I still can't seem to catch up.

There are 'virtual' piles of papers to be graded (Ma, virtual here means they're electronic, and not hard copies.), there's a dissertation that is simmering (at least it's not cold), four research papers that are in the process of being written, grades to be posted, and plans for next semester! Yee gads!

Suffice it to say I've been terribly tired and most cranky. I am tired of eating fish sticks, frozen pizza, and corn dogs (Although I do love corn dogs!). I want chicken soup with matzo balls; I want baked chicken; I want steak! But I seem to be lacking two things: time and money.

So I've hypothesized that these two factors combined with poor nutrition have only compounded the grumpy and tired factors by several degrees.

With all this said, I see the light at the end of the tunnel. I can count on one hand the number of class periods I have left. I will have a week during Thanksgiving to rest and write and clean. Lovely! I plan to do all three. I'll have two weeks of class in December and then I'll have another three weeks to work on research (the dissertation and the four papers).

My Niece is Better Looking than Your Niece...

Okay, okay... I don't want to start a fight! I'm just stating the facts! Ellie Jelly celebrated her third birthday this past weekend! I wish I had been there to wish her a happy day! (Photos "borrowed" from Tree's blog.)

Ellie makes school look like so much fun!

What a grown-up girl! Love the uni.

Juicy Goose loves fresh juice.

First Snow

We had our first snow on Saturday. It was more of a sneet (snow mixed with sleet) and it was not very intense. But it sure was nifty to see something other than rain fall out of the sky! Perhaps the next time it snows I can hope for some ground cover.

Long Time

It's been a week since I've blogged. But it seems longer than that! A great deal has happened in the past 7 days.

I skipped bowling for the first time this season. I was feeling puny. And I just needed a little more time to work in my office.

Halloween consisted of me sitting in the house with the lights off. Orion dressed up as a bloody army doctor and made the neighbors' houses.

Saturday we went to Wal*Mart. Orion desperately needed britches. He no longer wears "boy pants." I have to buy his clothes in the MAN section now! We got home shortly before noon; Orion had his full crank on. By 2:00 p.m. we knew why! He was terribly sick! He had a 102+ temperature and was miserable. He slept in his dad's bed for the afternoon and evening. Later I moved him to his bedroom where he convalesced the rest of the evening. Loving and hating the sponge baths I was using to help lower his fever.

Sunday I day-tripped to the big city. My highlights (aside from the company!) included "Retail Rock Hounding" (just wait for Christmas), the Half-Price Books, and Cho-ga the Korean restaurant I love in Overland Park.

Orion remained at home, napping and playing video games, on Sunday. John headed to work at 3:00. I think we all over did it on Sunday.

Monday we spent at home. All three of us. John and Orion rested and played video games. I researched, napped, wrote, and did a load or two of laundry. But mostly kept activity to a minimum.

Tuesday I spent all day in the public schools. My department chair paid a special visit to our PDS schools. I had a great time showing her the three schools I visit on Tuesdays. She bought me a lovely lunch at King Chef Buffet (Chinese). But it was 2:30 and I was in the teachers' lounge at Knob thinking I had over-done it again. I had a pretty miserable afternoon. But after a 30 minute nap upon returning home at 5:00 I felt well enough to make dinner.

Tuesday we elected a new president.

And today finds me cleaning out my office. I was a bit surprised to find over 150 email in my in box and a stack of mail on my chair (seems my snail mail box in the office was full too!). What a mess. I don't remember leaving my office in such a state; but I vaguely recall feeling rather puny on Friday when I left.

What a week! We're all feeling better and taking it easy. What have you all be up to?

Embarq Free

There's a bit of irony with a dash of sarcasm in this post's title. Embarq sucks. And they're hardly free. Oh, you've read a vent here or there about my trials and tribulations with Embarq. Suffice it to say that in the past two years and three months that I have lived here I have spent more time on the phone trying to figure out my bill, contesting my bill, wondering why I do not have service, or trying to reduce my services so that I might better afford my bill. Embarq provided three services for us: land line, Internet, and cell phone. Internet being the only one that worked consistently and was relatively affordable (compared to other options). But alas, it didn't matter how we tried to work it, our bill was always $150/month. I tried a long distance package. I gave up long distance all together. We reduced the number of minutes on the cell phone. We added minutes and bundled. We tried slower Internet. The impact was never greater than $10/month.

Finally, it became a choice between phone and Internet or groceries. We chose groceries. Those of you who have tried calling me know I've not had service since the 5th or 6th of October. It's been a quiet four weeks. And aside from my minor withdrawal from the Internet at home, I've rather enjoyed the peace. I spent two years living in Eureka Springs after graduating from Hendrix without a phone. I can spend a few years living in the 'Burg without a phone.

And so today, the Embarq Saga ends... Of course, they got another 90 minutes of my life that I'll never be able to get back!

It began at 1:00 this afternoon. I called to make a payment on my bill and reevaluate my services in hopes of lowering my bill. I made said payment (and she assured me that my payment was not enough to restore my services, and I said I understood, no problem) and when I reminded the gal that I needed to discuss reducing my services, she hung up on me.

I called back. Got another gal. Explained that I needed to ask about a $159 charge on my bill (for services NOT received) and that I needed to talk about changing up my services. She explained, very patiently, that even though I did NOT have phone or Internet services, that the $159 was my charge for October, after all they didn't give my phone number away. Something about fine print. So I asked to speak to a manager to resolve the issue. The line was disconnected.

I called back. I cancelled my services. The gal assured me that I would be "pro-rated" for October, but the bill would not come out till November. She directed me to the wireless people to cancel the cell phone (which they're planning on dropping in the near future anyway!).

There I spoke with another gal. She disconnected the service. I asked her about the bill. We got to the 'hard questions' and we were disconnected (again!). I am so not kidding.

So I called back. Spoke with another gal at wireless. She said that I indeed cancelled my wireless, but that my other services had been restored. "No, they can't be! First my payment wasn't enough and secondly, I cancelled them," I moaned. "No, I show that you cancelled the wireless, but not your other services. But you're right, your services should not have been restored" She kindly connected me with a gentleman who worked in cancellations.

He was confused. He found it difficult to believe that I had been on the phone for about 75 minutes and had experienced three dropped calls. (Note: I was being very nice. No cussing or screaming.) So he began the process and provided me with a confirmation number (!) and I asked, "Should I call wireless back to make sure I the cell phone is cancelled?" "No ma'am, it's taken care of now. Is there anything else I can help you with?" "Why yes, I need to talk to somebody about my bill. There's $159... do I need to talk to billing?" "I can handle it for you, what's the problem."

And so I explained that I was being charged for services I did not receive. That I have NOT had service in four weeks, not since October 6. That I was not going to pay $159 for charges dated 10/13 - 11/12. And I asked, the gal earlier said I couldn't not be pro-rated for those days because I didn't not "cancel" my services and you were "saving" my phone number.

Long story, longer... He agreed to stop the bill on the 6th and pro-rate from there. Of course, I forsee another call to Embarq in November when I receive my final bill.

But I will no longer be using their services.

Well readers, this means that contacting me via the phone will be virtually impossible; just ask my mom or Shannon. But you can still reach me at the office (leave a message if I am in class) and you can email me at my gmail or UCM accounts.

Bye-bye Embarq!

G.I.

And I'm not talking about G.I. Joe.

Orion had his 5th colonoscopy and 3rd endoscopy on Monday, October 27 at Children's Mercy in downtown Kansas City. At 11, Orion has been living with U.C. since he was 2.5 years old, however it was his third birthday before he was diagnosed by Dr. Sarah Barlow at Cardinal Glennon in St. Louis. Since then he's been on a variety of medicines (Pentasa, Colazal, Prednisone, Imuran, Rowasa). He's had a scope every other year; he just loves the clean out procedure. Ugh!

Children's Mercy in K.C. has an interesting approach to G.I. procedures. We were in and out in less than three hours. We arrived at 8:15 (15 minutes late due to horrid traffic!). We spent half an hour waiting, half an hour filling out paperwork, less than hour for the two procedures, and about 30 minutes in recovery. Orion was completely OUT of it after the procedure. Imagine an 11 year drunk! Not pretty. But they "needed the bed" and wheeled him out, poured him into the back of Grace and we were on our way by 11:00. He slept most of the way home and felt much better by the time we arrived in the 'Burg at Noon.

Orion had no problems (other than some noxious gas) that afternoon and we spent the afternoon reading, napping, and enjoying a small fire. Both J and I felt that Children's did rather rush us. It was difficult driving with Orion (all out of it and unhappy) till he passed out again. The doctor was busy and our consult consisted of "Orion had patchy inflammation which might indicate Crohn's instead of U.C. It will be a week before the biopsies come back. But I won't be able to call you for two as I'll be out of town next week." And to top it off, we didn't get any pictures to bring home! (Orion usually enjoys a lil' show and tell in science class!)

So now we wait. We should know something in a few weeks' time. As always I'll keep you posted.

Making the Grade

Dear Readers,

The results are in! Orion has successfully survived his first quarter as a sixth grader. I don't know if it has been harder on him or me... Probably me. Letting them grow up is hard. To start of the year John took Orion to his before school social and met the teachers. We kept parent involvement to a minimum. I didn't send my usual letter describing Orion's various learning features (C.A.P.D. & Dyslexia) or his need for frequent bathroom breaks (U.C.). I held back. I wanted to see how middle school was going to work out. All the time, ready to jump in and rescue him...

But so far, there has been no need. Each of his teachers commented on his lack of organizations skills and how that's keeping him from making better grades. Each of his teachers commented on what a respectful and good student he is. The conference was student led, so he showed me work he wanted to share, explained work the teacher wanted to share, and discussed his strengths and weaknesses. He even had an "improvement" plan for Communication Arts (since his state test was a few points below "proficient" and in the "basic" pile. I told him I wasn't worried as his score might be "basic" he was still above the state average! I'm a bad mommy!). After that, he walked us through the Book Fair (I'm glad I left my purse in the car!), we took a parent survey, and went to the cafeteria for cookies and report cards.

Orion's first quarter grades are:
2 Cs
2 Bs
2 As

I am so impressed and so proud of Orion!

For those of you who would like to read more about Orion. Visit his blog. It is no longer invitation only. The Life of Orion is open to all. Enjoy!

Curious?

Curious about what Orion and I have been up to during our evening together? Bop on over to the Galactic Apple and check out my recent post about our evening readings. We're reading Roland Smith these days. He sure does write some page turners.

October Catch Up!

October has been a busy month! I've had more meetings than I can count. I've even forgotten several meetings. I'm analyzing my data. And analyzing the data of others (various papers I'm working on). But more importantly, I've not taken the time to blog and wish my friends and family happy days!

Birthdays to Note:
Dominic is 17 as of October 9!
John is way over 40 as of October 12.
My most best special brother-in-law, PD had a birthday on the 18th!
My sister had hers on the 19th!
My other brother-in-law will be 60 something on the 31st.
My friends Jim, Danny, Eric, Darryl, and Nancy all celebrated their birthdays this month too!

Our 15 th wedding anniversary was on the 2nd. I think I actually blogged about that.
Tree and PD celebrated their 10th anniversary on Friday, October 17th.
Michael and Robin celebrate their 14th or 13th anniversary today, October 22!
My Aunt Fran (Dad's little sister) and Uncle Joe (Mom's little brother) celebrate their anniversary tomorrow on October 23rd.
Mom and Dad shared that anniversary as well.

It's been a busy month! Happy days friends and family! Happy days!

Brr!

Happiness! Joy! I slept with the windows open last night. Quilt and down comforter covering me. Naked as a jaybird. The temperature dropped to 38 or so! My bedroom was a nifty 54 degree! I slept so well. Mmmm! Autumn, bring it on! I'm read.

Sleeping Weather

Finally. Some weather I can sleep to. The temperatures have dropped a bit, particularly at night. Last night we had a low of 47. The same should be true for tonight as well. I kept my windows up and hauled out my down comforter. I slept soundly for the first time in months.

Why is it that I sleep better when the bedroom temperature is 60 or less? With air-conditioning, I still cannot get my bedroom below 75 in the summer. Thankfully we had a mild summer.

Here's to a wicked winter! I'm ready. Bring it on!

Puppy, Kitten, & Dog

Castor Cat and Satan's Littlest Minion (a.k.a. Nibblet) are asleep under the coffee table. Mom and Michael will recognize the legs of said coffee table as they both previously owned and operated the above pictured coffee table (Coffee table, Lane, circa 1961).


But back to the pests, rather pets. Castor, the kitten, named for alpha star in the constellation Gemini is our last kitten left. She will be six months old at the end of October. Castor's brother, and twin, Pollux (now Dusty) has a home with our associate department chair and Helen (completely grey) is now Sassy and lives with three college gals behind the library. Truffles, a.k.a. Mama Cat, has resumed her outdoor lifestyle and thanks us regularly for her spaying by leaving us giant rodents on our front and back steps.


Satan's Littlest Minion is a wee bit of a beagle and something else; she's not supposed to be much more than 15 pounds fully grown. We troubled over her name for several weeks- trying out names like: Lola, Lolita, Leeta (She seemingly liked this name...), Whorfie (She did not like this one...), Lil'bit, Nibblet, and Satan's Littlest Minion. It seems S.L.M, or the diminutive "Minion" has stuck. I must say, she is the devil. As wee as she is, she is nothing more than a poop factory. She also seems to be able to jump, straight up in the air, about four feet. She thinks nothing of knocking things over or climbing on top of things (Like the dinner table!) to get to what she wants. The only thing that saves her is that she's so darn cute.



Nola, pictured above, has grown into a gorgeous, well-behaved, albeit slightly neurotic, dog. She has an impressive bark. She is a good big sister to Nibblet.

Yurt

I've often thought about my 'dream home.' What would it look like? Where would it be? How would I build it? Even as a little girl I would spirit away my father's plan books for second homes, country homes, and the like. While my ideal spot for a home has remained fairly constant: wooded, mountains or hills, with a lake or river close by, my ideal 'house' has taken a variety of forms. This is one of the more unusual. A yurt.

My brother often warned against living in a circular abode, but I am fascinated and drawn to the simple complexity of the yurt. The largest I've seen offered are 30' in diameter. This would afford about 750 square feet of living space. Tight, for sure, but without interior walls, possibly more roomy than my most recent rental house at 850 square feet.

There are several places where one can investigate and shop for yurts. Some of my favorite include: Pacific Yurts, Rainier Yurts, and Colorado Yurt Company. Check them out. Let me know what you think. Until then, I'll dream about living off-grid and plan how to arrange 5,000+ books in 750 square feet.

39 Beautiful Years...

If you ask my husband how long we've been married, he gets this far-away look in his eyes, smiles, and says "Thirty-nine beautiful years..." Of course folks give me the oddest look. I know, I hardly look old enough to be married at all. Ha! Interestingly, J has been using the "thirty-nine years" line for at least four or five years. Does that make yesterday our 43rd or 44th anniversary?

Actually, it makes it our 15th (October 2, 1993). Yes, that's the "Crystal Wedding Anniversary." Or now days, the gift of watches (!). Mmmm... I hear if I make it to 25 years, I might "get out early for good behavior!"

Unfortunately, I've hardly been good. :-)

115, 85, 100

I had a great game last night. Followed by a cruddy game. And and okay game. Okay for me that is.

I'm on the verge of a bigger ball. I've been using an 11 pounder. At first it was too heavy. But I had no control with the 10 pounder. Now that I seem to be more consistent, I seem to leave ONE pin. Three suggestions were made: throw the ball harder, begin your approach one step up (or back), and use a heavier ball. I've given up on the first two. And seemed to have good luck with the 12 pounder. But lord I was hurting...

Let's see what next week looks like.