Tuesday, September 30, 2008

things i'm grateful for...

1. pumpkin anything (bread, penne pasta w/ pumpkin sauce, muffins, ice cream)
2. knowing i'm going to kick ass at work today!
3. knowing river is with justin harvesting in oakland and having fun!
4. being fiscally responsible and accountable for my own future
5. pulling off an outfit last minute that i actually like (red tee, brown pinstripe)

Friday, September 26, 2008

#40-join a bookclub-check!


My first bookclub experience was awesome! Mainly because it was something I had NEVER, EVER done before. I mean paronoid nervous nelly me, meeting a group of women that I connected with on Craigslist for crying out loud? I was 50% expecting to be greeted by a psychopathic serial killer, but no, it was just another Jenny! There were six of us there: Aimee, Tray, Kate, Hilary, Jenny and Jeni (me). And would you believe that we are all red wine drinkers? That's just cool. So, we started by going around the room and introducing ourselves. That was a great idea. That's were I learned that I was the oldest one. Nice. Two teachers, two ex peace corps members, one Americorp member. Lots of personalities and great conversation. The cool thing about the group was that I interacted with women that have a much different perspective than I , so it was educational. Good thing the topic never turned to politics. I have a sneaking suspicion that I would have been in the conservative minority (what's new really?).

My thoughts on this book? I read the Kite Runner as well and thankfully most of the other girls had to so it was inevitable that we would compare. My thoughts? The Kite Runner has a dark cloud weighing over head. ATSS is a breath of fresh air with sunshine over it. Not that it is all laughter and unicorns. Au contraire. This author likes to have you fall in love with his protagonists just to destroy you and break your heart! It was an indicator of how life is for a lot of people, living abroad, probably even some living in our country. The freedom we have in the U. S of A should never be taken for granted. Not to mention the freedoms that we have as women in our country. I don't think I would fare well in Taliban run Afghanistan. You want me to wear a burqa? And only leave my house with a family male escort? And don't make eye contact with anyone? Huh? Yea, it'd be off with my head in a matter of days. But, I can't help respect their culture and although present day Afghanistan does not repress (my words, my opinion) women, it is still out there. Who am I to judge what is working for some?

All in all, a great experience. I look forward to our next meeting.

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

from the mouths of babes...

river is a lot of things, lacking intelligence is not one of them....so,
last week, he was mad and threw his $1 cell phone at me (hey, it
hurt!!), just so happened it was trash day, so i made a big production
of saying, "oh bummer, you threw your cell phone at me, now i'm going to
throw it away, in the trash. we do NOT throw things when we are
mad"...and then, i marched to the curb, threw the thing away and it
seemed to have the desired effect on the young man, i walked back in the
house and he was crying(big tears), saying, "i'm sorry mom, i'm
SORRY!!!"...it was all i could do, not to say, "it's okay baby, i'll go
get the phone for you", but i didn't and we learned a valuable
lesson....

so, fast forward to this week....i have been trying to teach rw his
birthday..and he has not appeared interested....but, yesterday, i asked
him, "when is your birthday?"...to which he replied, "march 31"....so,
we jumped up and down and yelled, "yaaay yaaay yaay"....so, both grandma
bear and daddy said, next we need to teach him our address and our phone
number...

so, this morning, i ask river "do you know your phone number?"...and he
replies, "NOOO, i don't have a phone number anymore, REMEMBER??...you
threw my cell phone in the trash"....what made me laugh so hard was that
he was 100% dead serious....oh, he's so innocent and sweet...

Thursday, September 11, 2008

September 11, Patriot Day



I was living in Lakewood, Colorado with my childhood friend, Keri. It was 9:00 in the morning, she came into my room and told me to turn on the t.v. An airplane had flown into one of the World Trade Center Towers in New York City. At this point, it was not known if it were an accident or an attack. Minutes later our questions were answered as another plane flew into the 2nd tower of the World Trade Center. Another plane flew into the Pentagon. A 4th plane failed to complete it's intended mission as it nosedived into a plane in Pennsylvania, Flight 93. The victims aboard Flight 93, after hearing of the three attacks, fought like hell to keep their plane from reaching it's destination. They are heroes. They are all heroes. All the innocent people on the airplanes, all the innocent lives taken in the towers, all those hit at the Pentagon, are all heroes. They are angels, they are in my heart forever.

God Bless America, land that I love!

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

This is my day so far....

Woke up quick. At about noon. Just thought that I had to be in Compton soon.

I digress and break out my inner gangster from time to time. But really, this is my day so far.

RW came a callin' about 7:45. Climbs into my bed for a snuggle. Daddy has been working/staying in Colorado Springs for days a week. Boo. RW announces perhaps he'd like to have pannycakes for breakfast. Mommy gives the option of a breakfast burrito or cereal. We agree on frozen french toast sticks. Not before he requests the french toast that is made in the pan. No way kid, not today. So, being a multi-tasking mommy, I throw his sticks in the microwave and get my coffee brewing. I just love coffee. Best time of the day. He eats his breakfast (8 french toast sticks), I have my coffee. Then I have my breakfast burrito.

Apparently, the lawn is not going to mow itself. And someway, somehow, I've become the official lawn mower of the family. In my opinion, this is total bullshit. But, if you want it done, sometimes, you do it your damn self. So, I pull out my trusty 'lawnboy'. Dammit to hell if the starter is busted. So, I pull out the husbands piece of crap John Deere. Yes, we have two mowers. And always argue about which one is better. Mine is an easy start (was) and is NOT self-propelled. His is impossible to start (you have to wind a piece of string intricately around the motor and pull), but is self propelled. I'm near tears at the point. Because if I can't get his goddamn piece of crap started, I may kill something. An act of God occured, and his mower started. So, I mowed the lawn.

Then I watered the flowers while RW enjoyed the City of Westminster working on our street with their bulldozers and diggers. They have no idea how many hours of entertainment they have provided. Seriously, a digger/bulldozer working on your street is the highlight of any 3 1/2 year old boy.

Time to go inside. RW in the bath (seriously disrupting his routine, usually a night bather, but the boy is dirty and there is NO time after work for this practice). RW out of the bath, dressed. Me in the shower. Me out of the shower. Me dressed. If I coud wear this outfit everyday I would be happy. Brown pants, blue and white striped teeshirt. I feel hot in this outfit. Anyway, we go to Bev's. I plead with him not to be jerky tonight when I pick him up and get ready for bed. He nods as if to say, "i'll think about it, but no guarantees"

Drive to work. Radio sucks. No one calls me. I don't call anyone. Atleast the sun is out and the temperature is not too terrible.

Walk in office. Phone rings. It's the mother of a fella that chose by his actions to be removed from our facility last night. She hurls the usual insults at me such as "you just kicked him out because he doesn't have the money to pay", "you don't want to deal with his disease/medical problem, so you kicked him out", "he needs help for his addiction, and you are just throwing him into prison", "don't you care that he is going to die in prison?".

I maintain my professional demeanor. Doing the whole, "i hear what you are saying and i am sure you are frustrated with this whole situation. please stay pro-active with the prison medical staff and i'm sure they will do their best to stay on top of his condition. i wish the best for you and your son. i hope he chooses to participate in all the programs offered him and perhaps in the future, we will consider taking him back"

Meanwhile, what i'm really thinking is: "this is MOSTLY your fault. you are enabling him by supporting his criminal behaviors. covering for him, saying he is in the shower, when we call to do curfew monitors is unacceptable. covering for him, when you know that he has been drinking, is unacceptable. hello? HELLO? your son's NR placement was expedited b/c of his kidney disease and you think our facility is not working with him? and he got ARRESTED for drinking underage and marijuana possession and we STILL kept him on NR and worked with him??? and now, two months later, he is drinking again, after it was clearly stated that he would be revoked if he had any more violations??...how is this my fault? how is this the facilities fault? how is this NOT HIS FAULT???....seriously....some people's parents...some people's children....job security man, job security.

Anyway, that was two hours ago. After my conversation with the mother, i went to my boss. I notified him that the Wrath of Mrs. Mother had hit, that I had dealt with it and thought it was over. He looked relieved. We both knew we were going to have to deal with it today. We just didn't know who. It was 50/50. And I won?

So, I think I'm going to go order some yoga pants from Victoria Secret. This is why I love my job. Relaxed supevisors allow me to handle the stress of my job the best way I know how. Shopping.

And that is me today so far!!