Random Bullets of Accomplishment & Weather – Vacation Day 3

What I did today, after the panic attack went away (and all money cleared the bank):

  • Swifferred and mopped the kitchen floor.
  • Completed two loads of laundry.
  • Finished weather observation experiment: how much rain did we get in 12 hours (1.25 inches) and 24 hours (total of 1.50 inches). Repeating the experiment again tonight.
  • Hugged dogs and kids.
  • Made a strawberry-banana smoothie without a recipe. Was pronounced good by all.
  • Cleaned crap out of Rachel’s closet. Shredding party tomorrow.
  • Reviewed kids’ winter clothing (15 minute fashion show). Found stuff that fit and stuff that didn’t. Will repeat tomorrow and until all clothes have been reviewed.
  • Played “Battleship” against Sarah and Rachel. I won. Neener, neener, neener!
  • Hugged dogs and kids.
  • Updated syllabus and discussion grading rubric. More Fall semester prep work tomorrow!
  • Grocery-shopped at Target.

And now… the weather radio is going off:

  • At 10:20 pm. Really odd.
  • Must be another flash flood warning in the southern part of the state. Some places have had almost a foot of rain since Friday.
  • No, it’s a severe thunderstorm watch, extending all the way to the Twin Cities.
  • Valid until 4 am. WTF?

I guess if I’m going to get blown out of bed in a couple hours, I should go to bed now.

Panic Attack, Defined.

The panic attack ended this morning, when John called to tell me he FINALLY (6 days later) had his paycheck, and was on his way to deposit it at the bank. I guess that’s what it was all about — money. This is the second or third time since spring that this has happened. Unfortunately this time it was timed with the bank that sees my paycheck deposits having a computer meltdown. I had enough food and gas to get us through the weekend. But if the bank meltdown was major, we were screwed.

Maybe last night it finally hit me how vulnerable we are, even though I have things fairly financially under control. All the part-time jobs keeping us afloat. I know we have it so much better than many people. I should thank my stars.

However, next time the husband’s paycheck is late, due to boss-lack-of-planning-before-going-on-vacation, here’s what I plan to do:
— go to boss’s house
— say hello to boss’s lovely wife
— kick boss’s ass from one end of his house to the other for messing with our finances
— say goodbye and thank you to boss’s lovely wife
— write a resume for husband

If, by chance, the boss is reading this — you have been warned.

Panic Attack

I am having a panic attack right now. My heart is racing, and physically I am all upset. Here’s the reason why: I can’t seem to convince some part of my brain and body that I am on vacation and DON’T have to go to the day job tomorrow.

All the things I didn’t get done today that I usually get done in preparation for a Monday are weighing on my psyche. But I don’t HAVE to do them today/tonight. I have the time tomorrow to do them. Because I’m not working.

I’ve had a lovely day, too, and accomplished much but on a slower schedule. Plus the Shaws came by with the first season of WKRP on DVD. We had snacks, then a pizza supper. Lots of fun and relaxation. But some part of me can’t handle that this was the scope of my day today.

I think I’m going to hurl. No, my throat is too tight to barf.

This is just an insane response. I need the autopilot workhorse perfectionist to TURN OFF. Now would be an optimal time.

Maybe I should break into the Three Buck Chuck. A glass of white could calm me down — or knock me out (I’m such a lightweight). Maybe I should run around the dining room table a couple dozen times, making Three Stooges noises. It makes about as much sense as how I feel physically. Crap.

What To Do on Vacation – Simpsonize!

On the first day of vacation (at home), I decided to Simpsonize the family. The girls and I went to “The Simpsons Movie”, which was a scream, literally. I laughed so hard and so loud that I came home with a headache. I don’t think the kids have ever seen me have so much fun. I’ve already decided that I MUST own the DVD when it is released. It’s right up there with “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”. Oh, yeah.

Of course, the next step is to turn the entire (human) family into Simpsons-like characters. (www.simpsonizeme.com won’t do dogs).

So here we are:

John
Carol Anne

Sarah

Rachel

Lookin’ Good!

“SpiderPig, SpiderPig. Does whatever a SpiderPig did…”

Blathering…

To those of you who wrote, wondering where I am, thank you. Tired, not sleeping well. Only thinking of blog topics at work (writing them on yellow legal pads), then leaving missives at work.

Due to runway maintenance, the airport is using the runway path that goes right over our house. The weather has been bad, so they use the runway even more. A couple FedEx planes (DC-10s) came in a couple minutes ago.

Thrilling entry, eh? Well, as I said a paragraph or so ago, I have most of my writing at work. Vacation is coming… two more corporate work days, then I am free of corporate life until September 6th.

I’ll post something more exciting over the weekend, plus my retro blog posts. They’re worth the wait. Really. If nothing else, I’ll have a review of The Simpsons Movie. I am taking the girls, probably on Saturday.

I am a bad, bad mama to take them to the movie. We’re going to have so much fun! Lord knows, I need some fun.

Other Voices Chime in About the Bridge

Read this column by Nick Coleman (no relation to Senator “Which Way Is The Wind Blowing?” Coleman) in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune:
http://www.startribune.com/357/story/1339911.html

Rachel Maddow’s first hour was about the bridge, infrastructure, etc. Some stuff in the second hour, a good show all together. The show should be available for streaming after 9 pm CT this evening.
http://www.airamerica.com/maddow/

Here’s a comment on Rachel’s blog, from someone who knows first hand:
http://www.airamerica.com/maddow/node/2739#comment-25836

Can’t Get There From Here

Last night, before dinner, I was thinking through a blog entry on road construction. We are hot and heavy into road construction season, especially in my little corner of St. Paul. Literally half the streets are ripped up. If you’re not careful, you’ll drive in circles trying to get from point A to point B. Even if you are careful, you still feel like you’re driving in circles.

Last night, in the middle of dinner, the I-35W bridge over the Mississippi collapsed. The main span fell right into the river. There was resurfacing going on the bridge (another form of road construction), and several lanes of stop and go rush-hour traffic. One of the main arteries into Minneapolis, severed. For years.

The road of many people’s lives, at least 4 of them, also severed. Others’ lives taking a detour of undetermined length. Just follow the signs.

I’m thankful that my friends, my acquaintances, and my husband will only have to find driving-related detours. I had all three crossing the I-35W bridge yesterday.

I have so many feelings about what happened yesterday. I can’t get them all straight. I can’t get there from here. There’s some anger. There’s some amazement at the level of stupidity of people in the media. There’s amazement at the speed and skill of the Minneapolis Fire Department, the County water patrols, and other emergency personnel from all over The Cities that rolled into action.

And now, off to dinner.

Bye, Tom

Another of my idols from my youth/young adulthood died today. I adored Tom Snyder. I would sneak out of bed to watch The Tomorrow Show — which was pretty easy to do because the TV was in the basement. And at one point, my bedroom was in the basement as well. It also helped that I’m an insomniac. It’s not that I was capable of sleeping anyway. Might as well watch something interesting on the tube.

Tom always had the coolest guests. Tom was always the epitome of cool himself. I always hoped that I could look that cool, chain smoking and chatting. Fat chance.

I loved that laugh. I loved it when Dan Ackroyd did that laugh of Tom’s on SNL.

It feels like a thousand years ago, those years.

A Conversation with Rachel

Over the past two weeks, Rachel and I have been having conversations about friends, and what makes someone a real friend. Then yesterday, she shares this:

Rachel: Mama, this morning Kid X told me he hates all people in China. I thought Kid X was my friend.
Me: Did anyone else say that to you?
Rachel: No.
Me: So Friend A and Friend B didn’t say that?
Rachel: No. They like me. They like that I’m from China.
Me: They are your real friends. Real friends don’t care where you’re from or what you look like. Or what your family is like.
Rachel: They love me! My real friends love me.
Me: So, what did you do when Kid X said he hated all people in China?
Rachel: I got mad. I yelled at Kid X. Then I told on Kid X. Kid X had to eat lunch by the teachers AND say sorry to me. Kid X got in big trouble.
Me: Good for you, standing up for yourself! (give the girl a high five)

I love that girl. She is so tough, so strong. She’s been through so much, but she does have a core of self-worth and a realistic sense of right and wrong.

On the downside, this is just the beginning. She’s going to be picked on because she’s Chinese, because she’s adopted, because she’s a girl, because she’s smart, because she’s a jock, because …

Preparing her and her big sister to deal with all the outright-shit that will be thrown at them is one of the hardest things to do. It’s probably one of the most important things I have to do, too, besides loving the stuffing out of them.

I made a promise to the Chinese government to love these girls, educate them well, and raise them to be good, strong women. It’s a promise that I take seriously. Only time will tell if I have done it well.

Excuses, Excuses

Found this at my favorite paper and stamp haunt in North Minneapolis:


Too bad I can’t get away with it at work. I’d like to stamp it on every email I get asking “where is the ***fill in the blank***. I have to write even if I’m blocked. I just write MUCH slower. It’s not fun, either. No wonder my blog posting is spotty — I give it all up for the biweekly paycheck.

Found this one, too, which made me think of my friend Wava in Wisconsin.


Wava, if you’re out there — WRITE girl. Unless you’re suffering from writer’s block.