As I slowly recovered from the sight of Brian's report card, Megan's showed up in the mail. She completed another year with nothing less than an A, and in fact, mostly A+'s. Since these are all in honors classes, they will be weighted more heavily than a regular, non-honors class would be. So when they calculate class rank in two years, this year will give her a boost. and, hopefully, she can keep it up, although she has some really tough classes next year, including honors chemistry and a second math class in addition to the required geometry.
Anyway, that was one small consolation, although not an unexpected one. And if only she could put that kind of effort into cleaning her room, or washing her face and hair, or even caring for these warts that she has on her foot, another source of angst for me. About two years ago, they were only one wart. She had a pedicure, and the wart was filed. It blossomed. I took her to the podiatrist, where we had had such luck the last time, and he started the same treatments. It seemed like they were working really well, you couldn't see anything, but he said that he could still see a small bit of it, and freezing would take care of it. So he blasted it with the liquid nitrogen, and it responded by multiplying like chipmunks. Now it is a pile of warts, and I will not go back to him. He said the next step was laser surgery to remove it.
But we have appointments at the dermatologist next month so I'll show it to him. He's very good, too. Really, they are not a problem, but they are unsightly. I have told her to try what he recommended, 'wart stick' followed by duct tape, but she doesn't like to use the wart stick because it makes them stand out more initially. So that's a saga for another day. She also has a mole on her shoulder that is looking scarier, and Brian has his large 'congenital nevus' that needs to be rechecked. I'm sure it hasn't changed, but I try to stay on top of it anyway.
The Christ Church Pilgrims left on Friday for their pilgrimage to Northumbria, England. They left without Megan, and two others from their group, but one of the two is a disabled boy so that is a different story. I have been feeling slightly guilty about not having sent her. I regularly follow a few caringbridge sites, and I am still following the page of the swimmer with the brain tumor.
This girl was an Olympic hopeful a few years ago, at the age of 15, when she was stricken with brain cancer. An initial surgery was supposed to be all it would take to halt this non-aggressive cancer, but three months later, it was back, and it was aggressive. A second surgery rendered her unable to use one side of her body effectively, and dramatically stunted her speech. Over the past few years, she has been fighting, with her parents (mostly her mother) by her side the whole way.
Through it all, she has never stopped swimming. Her father got a new job in Seattle, so they moved across the country and had to find all new doctors, friends, and schools. She continued to swim. The tumor was back and she was told there was no hope, but they found a clinical trial for her. That held the tumor at bay for quite some time, and then there was a change again. Still, she swam. Just over the past few months, she was selected to represent the US in Beijing at the paralympic trials.
Then she got sick again. One of the tumor sites (I guess) bled into her brain as a result of the radiation it received. Also at the same time, they discovered cancer cells in her brain stem. She had more surgery to clean up the bleed, and just underwent more radiation on the brain stem; it was her only hope of halting this dizziness, which had put her Olympic dreams on hold again.
Anyway, in reading this blog for the past few years, I have followed her many travels to exotic places, and read of the things she has done with her family. It all makes me feel very small and insignificant in my little world where I didn't want to allow my daughter to travel to Northern England to tour monasteries and revisit the roots of the Episcopal church. I am not so much saying that I wish I had let her go, as I think that we need to do more of these things. The Fresh Air Fund and the exchange student are a step in this direction, but we are still keeping ourselves in this little world, and part of the problem is swimming. It is so all-consuming that there is no time to live. For any of us...and for what?
Well, those are my thoughts for the day. In other news, C called us yesterday morning! All he said to me was "yes" or "no" but then he got on the phone with Brian and talked a little more. I was surprised to hear that he is only going into 5th grade, which is two years behind where he should be, which is probably not unusual, but is unfortunate nonetheless. We have still been emailing back and forth with E, but now she is off to a week-long adventure at an outdoor concert series. I hope she never asks me to allow her to do anything like this! I'll have to defer to the agency rep. I wouldn't want to allow her to do anything where she might potentially not survive! Finally, we are off to the Blue Claws game this afternoon. Our church bought a bunch of tickets, and then they were unable to sell many of them. I bought five to bring a friend for Megan, thinking Brian's group would be there anyway. But we were the only family in the group that bought tickets, and Megan couldn't find anyone to go. So it's just us, and our one extra ticket. They were only $6, so I consider it a donation to the church.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Damn those Ducks.
Not enough wine in California, I say. It's just been one of those days. I let Megan skip her beach club practice because she had two Y practices yesterday and was just worn out. I dragged Brian out of bed and took him, because he needs it. I went for my walk and was sweating bullets from the humidity. I thought I must have bullet holes in my face and blood was pouring out, but I was just sweating.
Anyway, come back to find out that between bees and lane line issues, they did a beach practice instead of a pool one. Waste of time. Then it started to rain. But at least I wasn't the one to crash my car into the seawall, as the Favorite Boy's sister did. Oh well. A lesson learned about the hood of your car being longer than you think it is.
So then our E saga continued. I realized the paper she had been sent told her almost nothing about us. She had Megan's Facebook, but that is mostly meaningless banter, plus it says she is married to someone named Michael, before that she was married to Charlie and before that Michael and Charlie were married to one another. But E doesn't know that. So I sent her a whole email telling her about the town and the school, and attached a few pictures of us, and, lo and behold, she still wants to come! So she will be here sometime between August 21 and 26. She said her original date was the 23rd, but other students are leaving on the 21 and 26, so she will travel with them if possible. I told her the 21st is better, but we will work it out no matter what. We have our physical appointments for the school sports forms on the 26th in the morning.
Oh, by the way, the board approved her enrollment last night. Now we just need an official letter.
But then, the mail came. Sigh. Oh, make it stop. In the mail was a letter from the schools. I thought it would be Brian's test scores, but worse, it was his report card. He received three C's this marking period: spanish, science, and language arts. I am so upset about this. Somehow I feel the school will not think it is worth getting this upset over, but I certainly do. Social studies was a B+, as was math; math should have been an A. I do not know what to do with this kid anymore. So I took him to baseball, and came home and poured myself the largest glass of wine that I could hold. It just never ends with him. I was expecting report cards tomorrow. And I still have the test scores to look forward to. Oh, help me, please.
Oh, yeah, and Megan's SAT2 scores were finally available online. Her friends texted her and said they got a 540 and a 560. I couldn't log in and then finally managed to. She got a 530. Not so good. The others studied and prepared more, but honestly, that is out of 800, so none of them are getting into any school based on those scores. Any school that requires an SAT2 in the first place will look for a grade of 700 or higher - perhaps even an 800. But I don't think most schools actually even require them anyway, which renders this nothing more than an exercise in test taking. The girl who got the highest score left the most blank. The others must have lost points on their guesses. Megan, rocket scientist, answered them all.
So that is that. In other news, um. Well, we have strange white bugs in the soil under one of the plants in the yard. I am going to try to trap some and take them to a garden center. Hopefully they are easily eliminated; I hope the plant will at least bloom. It looked like it had been doing so well up till now! Oh, and the shed. Kevin's shed is being delivered on Saturday. He is so excited! And the neighbors who already hate us because our pool ran water past their driveway for ten days will be really furious when they see this thing show up!! Haha!
Anyway, come back to find out that between bees and lane line issues, they did a beach practice instead of a pool one. Waste of time. Then it started to rain. But at least I wasn't the one to crash my car into the seawall, as the Favorite Boy's sister did. Oh well. A lesson learned about the hood of your car being longer than you think it is.
So then our E saga continued. I realized the paper she had been sent told her almost nothing about us. She had Megan's Facebook, but that is mostly meaningless banter, plus it says she is married to someone named Michael, before that she was married to Charlie and before that Michael and Charlie were married to one another. But E doesn't know that. So I sent her a whole email telling her about the town and the school, and attached a few pictures of us, and, lo and behold, she still wants to come! So she will be here sometime between August 21 and 26. She said her original date was the 23rd, but other students are leaving on the 21 and 26, so she will travel with them if possible. I told her the 21st is better, but we will work it out no matter what. We have our physical appointments for the school sports forms on the 26th in the morning.
Oh, by the way, the board approved her enrollment last night. Now we just need an official letter.
But then, the mail came. Sigh. Oh, make it stop. In the mail was a letter from the schools. I thought it would be Brian's test scores, but worse, it was his report card. He received three C's this marking period: spanish, science, and language arts. I am so upset about this. Somehow I feel the school will not think it is worth getting this upset over, but I certainly do. Social studies was a B+, as was math; math should have been an A. I do not know what to do with this kid anymore. So I took him to baseball, and came home and poured myself the largest glass of wine that I could hold. It just never ends with him. I was expecting report cards tomorrow. And I still have the test scores to look forward to. Oh, help me, please.
Oh, yeah, and Megan's SAT2 scores were finally available online. Her friends texted her and said they got a 540 and a 560. I couldn't log in and then finally managed to. She got a 530. Not so good. The others studied and prepared more, but honestly, that is out of 800, so none of them are getting into any school based on those scores. Any school that requires an SAT2 in the first place will look for a grade of 700 or higher - perhaps even an 800. But I don't think most schools actually even require them anyway, which renders this nothing more than an exercise in test taking. The girl who got the highest score left the most blank. The others must have lost points on their guesses. Megan, rocket scientist, answered them all.
So that is that. In other news, um. Well, we have strange white bugs in the soil under one of the plants in the yard. I am going to try to trap some and take them to a garden center. Hopefully they are easily eliminated; I hope the plant will at least bloom. It looked like it had been doing so well up till now! Oh, and the shed. Kevin's shed is being delivered on Saturday. He is so excited! And the neighbors who already hate us because our pool ran water past their driveway for ten days will be really furious when they see this thing show up!! Haha!
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Little Update
This morning, in my gmail, was an email! It was from E! She received by mail a piece of paper notifying her of her placement. It didn't have any of the additional information that I rushed to fill in, in fact, I think I know what it was, it was the "placement notification" form that I had to complete.
So I have written her back and she has written me again, but I have also turned her loose on Megan, and vice versa, so the two of them are Facebook friends. Since she hadn't been sent any pictures, these are the first images she is having of our world. However, the only one in those pictures who is identified is Megan, so she still has no idea what the rest of us look like.
The board meeting is scheduled for tonight, but they have lost a member. On Sunday night, one of them died. I don't see any notification on the website that they have postponed the meeting, although the wakes are today. The funeral is tomorrow, so perhaps they either went to the early wake or will adjourn from the meeting and go straight to the evening session. At any rate, perhaps I will have a confirmation on the approval by later tonight; then we can start to make plans with the school.
In other news, the beach club swim team people have helped me out a little by adding C's name to the roster, so he will be able to receive a swim team t-shirt, and practice with them, and also swim in the two meets scheduled for the week he is here (if he is so inclined). They waived the $50 charge, but I did say I would pay the guest fee if we were staying at the club. All he has to do to race is swim one lap of freestyle, so hopefully he can do that. Maybe Megan can work with him a little before the first meet. Oh, and Brian's neck seems to be better. Maybe he just slept on it wrong, or perhaps it was something to do with the cold water when he swam that morning. That was my little reality check, in case I was getting too comfortable in life, the way the ducks were lining up and all.
So I have written her back and she has written me again, but I have also turned her loose on Megan, and vice versa, so the two of them are Facebook friends. Since she hadn't been sent any pictures, these are the first images she is having of our world. However, the only one in those pictures who is identified is Megan, so she still has no idea what the rest of us look like.
The board meeting is scheduled for tonight, but they have lost a member. On Sunday night, one of them died. I don't see any notification on the website that they have postponed the meeting, although the wakes are today. The funeral is tomorrow, so perhaps they either went to the early wake or will adjourn from the meeting and go straight to the evening session. At any rate, perhaps I will have a confirmation on the approval by later tonight; then we can start to make plans with the school.
In other news, the beach club swim team people have helped me out a little by adding C's name to the roster, so he will be able to receive a swim team t-shirt, and practice with them, and also swim in the two meets scheduled for the week he is here (if he is so inclined). They waived the $50 charge, but I did say I would pay the guest fee if we were staying at the club. All he has to do to race is swim one lap of freestyle, so hopefully he can do that. Maybe Megan can work with him a little before the first meet. Oh, and Brian's neck seems to be better. Maybe he just slept on it wrong, or perhaps it was something to do with the cold water when he swam that morning. That was my little reality check, in case I was getting too comfortable in life, the way the ducks were lining up and all.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Crazy Weather!
This is a crazy week - storms, sun, hot, cool, humid, dry. It never stays one way for long! This morning at the beach, it seemed like it was going to be a postcard-perfect day, but then at around 1, our skies opened up. It was raining so hard that the street couldn't even accommodate all the water and it was running like a river. Now it's all gone and the sun is shining brightly.
Megan is babysitting next door again, so we didn't get to stay at the beach. It may not have even rained there, although there was a huge blob moving across the radar. I'm trying to decide how to spend my time, and that is how I seem to have spent most of it!
Brian has put me into a near panic by complaining of neck pain. He said it started to hurt him yesterday, while he was swimming in the practice. Of course, my blood runs cold and my heart beats out of my chest when he has these complaints. Invariably he produces some new complaint each July, so I can begin to panic for our August doctor's appointment. This year, of course, we have no MRI scheduled, and I would *really* like for there NOT to be one. I am just not up for it. I think it's time for a break. So I am making him lay low. I gave him some motrin, and he didn't go to practice today anyway because he had to get his teeth cleaned.
Anyway, that is it. Life is quite boring and slow right now. I need to get all the humdrum daily chores caught up before we go away on July 6; and I am still trying to decide how to best furnish the guest bedroom, and what to do with the computer set-up and rolltop desk. I am now leaning towards leaving the desk, and getting a smaller one for the computer in the family room. Then we can move back in there when E leaves; just in case we never do this again, I don't want to completely rearrange our lives permanently. After all, we do have the guest room in the basement. I just can't stick her there, it wouldn't be right.
I keep finding things on online sites, and then I wish it were possible to see them in person. I wanted to drive up to Ikea today, but then Brian mumbled and grumbled. Tomorrow, maybe I won't give him a choice. I can't go alone, the packages are huge, and you need someone to wait with your things while you go get the car anyway. Plus, it is a long ride of about 40 minutes. I also found a nice Captain's Bed for pretty cheap at an online store, and they have a showroom in NJ, but it's in Newark. And then I'd have to get a mattress, too. And there is also the option of dismantling Brian's bunk and putting one bed in the guest room. That's currently my second choice, to buying a cheap bed from Ikea and sticking a twin mattress on it.
I also want to get new carpet for Brian's room (his stinks) and he needs a new dresser (his drawers don't slide properly). But I don't know where to go to get it, and then the bed will have to be dismantled anyway, to get it out of the room, and that would be the perfect time to put the other half as the guest bed. So all of these things are intertwined. Buying the new carpet will be like opening a can of worms.
So, in other news, report cards will be mailed out on Friday. The board meeting where we expect approval for E is tomorrow night, so maybe the blog will be a little more interesting after that. I put together a card and a little photo essay and sent it along to C in the Bronx, so he can see our house, pool, beach, and the race track. I also enclosed the church portrait we had done. I hope I don't get a call in a few days saying he's changed his mind!
Megan is babysitting next door again, so we didn't get to stay at the beach. It may not have even rained there, although there was a huge blob moving across the radar. I'm trying to decide how to spend my time, and that is how I seem to have spent most of it!
Brian has put me into a near panic by complaining of neck pain. He said it started to hurt him yesterday, while he was swimming in the practice. Of course, my blood runs cold and my heart beats out of my chest when he has these complaints. Invariably he produces some new complaint each July, so I can begin to panic for our August doctor's appointment. This year, of course, we have no MRI scheduled, and I would *really* like for there NOT to be one. I am just not up for it. I think it's time for a break. So I am making him lay low. I gave him some motrin, and he didn't go to practice today anyway because he had to get his teeth cleaned.
Anyway, that is it. Life is quite boring and slow right now. I need to get all the humdrum daily chores caught up before we go away on July 6; and I am still trying to decide how to best furnish the guest bedroom, and what to do with the computer set-up and rolltop desk. I am now leaning towards leaving the desk, and getting a smaller one for the computer in the family room. Then we can move back in there when E leaves; just in case we never do this again, I don't want to completely rearrange our lives permanently. After all, we do have the guest room in the basement. I just can't stick her there, it wouldn't be right.
I keep finding things on online sites, and then I wish it were possible to see them in person. I wanted to drive up to Ikea today, but then Brian mumbled and grumbled. Tomorrow, maybe I won't give him a choice. I can't go alone, the packages are huge, and you need someone to wait with your things while you go get the car anyway. Plus, it is a long ride of about 40 minutes. I also found a nice Captain's Bed for pretty cheap at an online store, and they have a showroom in NJ, but it's in Newark. And then I'd have to get a mattress, too. And there is also the option of dismantling Brian's bunk and putting one bed in the guest room. That's currently my second choice, to buying a cheap bed from Ikea and sticking a twin mattress on it.
I also want to get new carpet for Brian's room (his stinks) and he needs a new dresser (his drawers don't slide properly). But I don't know where to go to get it, and then the bed will have to be dismantled anyway, to get it out of the room, and that would be the perfect time to put the other half as the guest bed. So all of these things are intertwined. Buying the new carpet will be like opening a can of worms.
So, in other news, report cards will be mailed out on Friday. The board meeting where we expect approval for E is tomorrow night, so maybe the blog will be a little more interesting after that. I put together a card and a little photo essay and sent it along to C in the Bronx, so he can see our house, pool, beach, and the race track. I also enclosed the church portrait we had done. I hope I don't get a call in a few days saying he's changed his mind!
Monday, June 23, 2008
Lining up the Ducks
I always like to have my ducks in a row, so these past few weeks and months have been hard on me with all the uncertainty of the fresh air, exchange, and national cut mysteries. But now we are almost on the way to having all the ducks in a row. The fresh air is obviously settled, the exchange student has just one alleged formality of an obstacle set to take place in two days, and the Y has finally, finally, made public the times for the national meet in 2009, and we're still going!!! Now we have to find an affordable hotel and worry about what E will or won't want to do, but that's just minor for now.
So we are off to the beach club for the morning practices this week. Brian won't be able to take part in the swim team much this year, but that's Ok with him. He will go the first few weeks, then he has baseball camp, then we are away. Also, while we have C from Fresh Air, I'm not sure how he will like it, so we might not bother to go down all the time. Megan will be working her MWF volunteer job anyway, so she will only practice with them on Tuesdays and Thursdays. She has Y practices anyway, these are just for fun for her.
Well, I hear the dryer beeping, so I can go and get ready to leave. I'll take my morning walk while they swim. In other news, I discovered why my blood pressure has been so low: my arm has been too high! So I have had to start taking new readings and a couple of times the bottom number was around 82-85. This morning it was just 74 so I was encouraged. I'll see how that goes, and will get back to the elimination of salt and fat, and the daily walks. (disclaimer: post not proofread)
So we are off to the beach club for the morning practices this week. Brian won't be able to take part in the swim team much this year, but that's Ok with him. He will go the first few weeks, then he has baseball camp, then we are away. Also, while we have C from Fresh Air, I'm not sure how he will like it, so we might not bother to go down all the time. Megan will be working her MWF volunteer job anyway, so she will only practice with them on Tuesdays and Thursdays. She has Y practices anyway, these are just for fun for her.
Well, I hear the dryer beeping, so I can go and get ready to leave. I'll take my morning walk while they swim. In other news, I discovered why my blood pressure has been so low: my arm has been too high! So I have had to start taking new readings and a couple of times the bottom number was around 82-85. This morning it was just 74 so I was encouraged. I'll see how that goes, and will get back to the elimination of salt and fat, and the daily walks. (disclaimer: post not proofread)
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Sunday Stories
I am home alone. Kevin and Megan went to the Yankee game - or I should say Reds game - at the courtesy of the Favorite Boy's dad's contact. Well, on the ride up to the game, the contact was banished back to the minor leagues! So he is not even at the stadium, he is packing up his things. The rest of them did manage to get seats, but I don't think they got any special privileges. I will update later.
Brian had baseball practice in preparation for a tournament over July 4th weekend, and now he is at a friend's house. I came home to make sure Molly wasn't in the yard, and to have some lunch. The house is a mess but I don't think it's fair that while everyone else plays, I have to stay home and shuffle their stuff around. But I supposed at the very least I can scoop the litterboxes. All the cats are here, they haven't abandoned me.
And so after waiting since literally the first day of Nationals in April, they finally posted the time standards on the web site. It turns out they have been out since June 1, but they forgot to put them up for the world to see. Now they have the link posted, and it doesn't work! I am about to lose my mind over this one!!!
Anyway, that's about it. In other news, I am trying to figure out how to best rearrange the guest bedroom for E when she comes (seems more like 'when' than 'if' now). C from the Fresh Air Fund will probably share Brian's room and sleep on the bottom bunk, but I can't make E share a double bed with Megan. So I have to either take apart Brian's bunks or buy her a new twin bed and stick it in that room; without breaking the bank. I should start garage-saling! Anyway, it's fun to have a project like that.
Brian had baseball practice in preparation for a tournament over July 4th weekend, and now he is at a friend's house. I came home to make sure Molly wasn't in the yard, and to have some lunch. The house is a mess but I don't think it's fair that while everyone else plays, I have to stay home and shuffle their stuff around. But I supposed at the very least I can scoop the litterboxes. All the cats are here, they haven't abandoned me.
And so after waiting since literally the first day of Nationals in April, they finally posted the time standards on the web site. It turns out they have been out since June 1, but they forgot to put them up for the world to see. Now they have the link posted, and it doesn't work! I am about to lose my mind over this one!!!
Anyway, that's about it. In other news, I am trying to figure out how to best rearrange the guest bedroom for E when she comes (seems more like 'when' than 'if' now). C from the Fresh Air Fund will probably share Brian's room and sleep on the bottom bunk, but I can't make E share a double bed with Megan. So I have to either take apart Brian's bunks or buy her a new twin bed and stick it in that room; without breaking the bank. I should start garage-saling! Anyway, it's fun to have a project like that.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Beach Bums
Today was absolutely perfect at the beach! I almost didn't want to go, I just didn't feel like it, and as we got to the bridge and the thermometer in my car read 74 degrees, I was really getting anxious. Last time we went it was about 90 at home, and the beach was freezing and windswept. Not so today. It was perfect weather, a nice breeze, no bugs, no ocean pests, barely a cloud in the sky, and a nice warm (not too hot) sun. No waves to speak of, but we weren't there to surf, so that was fine. And for the first time, I chose the spot rather than joining other people, and I chose it right on the crest of the sand-hill, so we had a perfect view of the ocean the entire time. Megan was happy because most of her favorite people were there: her two friends from school snuck across from the 'free' beach next door, and her Favorite Boy was also there.
We got there at 12:30 and stayed till about 6, when we had to leave to go to a party for the 'pilgrims' from church, who are about to embark on their 13 day pilgrimage to England to follow the ancient history of the Episcopal church. This is the trip on which we chose not to send Megan, for several reasons, and I am feeling pretty glad that I stuck with my feeling on that. We left Brian at the beach and he was thrilled. His group didn't leave until 9:30, so we all got home at 10.
So, tomorrow, Megan and Kevin are invited to the Yankee game with the Favorite Boy and his dad. The dad is in some sort of clothing business, and makes these shirts that have become quite a hit with the jet setters. He gives them out complimenentarily (?) to most of them, in fact I believe they were even featured on Oprah. So he is able to get them tickets to the game not through the Yankees, but through his customers, the Reds! They will be sitting with the Reds wives, and MAY be able to get onto the field! But I warned them not to dress as Yankee fans! Not that either one of them are, anyway.
In other news, now that it looks as if our fresh air and exchange student issues have been resolved, we await the word of the time cuts for the 2009 Y meet. They had been guaranteed to be posted by June 1, which has clearly come and gone. There is a message forum, and I have been checking every day to see what is going on. Just today, someone asked again when they might be available. The reply was that the webmaster would post them soon. Finally, we will have answers to all of the mysteries, hopefully by the middle of next week!
We got there at 12:30 and stayed till about 6, when we had to leave to go to a party for the 'pilgrims' from church, who are about to embark on their 13 day pilgrimage to England to follow the ancient history of the Episcopal church. This is the trip on which we chose not to send Megan, for several reasons, and I am feeling pretty glad that I stuck with my feeling on that. We left Brian at the beach and he was thrilled. His group didn't leave until 9:30, so we all got home at 10.
So, tomorrow, Megan and Kevin are invited to the Yankee game with the Favorite Boy and his dad. The dad is in some sort of clothing business, and makes these shirts that have become quite a hit with the jet setters. He gives them out complimenentarily (?) to most of them, in fact I believe they were even featured on Oprah. So he is able to get them tickets to the game not through the Yankees, but through his customers, the Reds! They will be sitting with the Reds wives, and MAY be able to get onto the field! But I warned them not to dress as Yankee fans! Not that either one of them are, anyway.
In other news, now that it looks as if our fresh air and exchange student issues have been resolved, we await the word of the time cuts for the 2009 Y meet. They had been guaranteed to be posted by June 1, which has clearly come and gone. There is a message forum, and I have been checking every day to see what is going on. Just today, someone asked again when they might be available. The reply was that the webmaster would post them soon. Finally, we will have answers to all of the mysteries, hopefully by the middle of next week!
Friday, June 20, 2008
Summer: Day 1
My day:
Headache from two glasses of wine
No milk in the house, artificial creamer is congealed
Cat pukes three times while I drink black coffee with a headache
Megan shows up with small boy from next door before I get to vacuum the pool
Ants invade my rose planter
My accomplishments:
Ran dishwasher
Changed Litterboxes
Watered shrubs outside of fence
Did some laundry
Got rid of headache
Walked and fed dog
ate lunch
Vacuumed pool
And so it begins.
In other news today, Brian invited a new kid over, and the kid came...within a minute, they were riding their bikes up to the shopping center. Now they are at this kid's house, and nobody is home. This will NOT be the way the whole summer goes. Megan is back, and worrying about her volunteer swim lessons. Yesterday, when she went to do it, the guy asked her and the only other girl to write the names of the kids on certificates (they had to ask the kids for their names) and the other girl ditched the chore and jumped in the pool with the kids. Megan was stuck writing certificates for two hours, and nobody helped her. She's afraid she will be stuck with that again today. Oh, and our neighbor drove by and told Megan to tell me that E is on the agenda for the Wednesday meeting! Seems like it may end up happening after all!!! Stay tuned!
Headache from two glasses of wine
No milk in the house, artificial creamer is congealed
Cat pukes three times while I drink black coffee with a headache
Megan shows up with small boy from next door before I get to vacuum the pool
Ants invade my rose planter
My accomplishments:
Ran dishwasher
Changed Litterboxes
Watered shrubs outside of fence
Did some laundry
Got rid of headache
Walked and fed dog
ate lunch
Vacuumed pool
And so it begins.
In other news today, Brian invited a new kid over, and the kid came...within a minute, they were riding their bikes up to the shopping center. Now they are at this kid's house, and nobody is home. This will NOT be the way the whole summer goes. Megan is back, and worrying about her volunteer swim lessons. Yesterday, when she went to do it, the guy asked her and the only other girl to write the names of the kids on certificates (they had to ask the kids for their names) and the other girl ditched the chore and jumped in the pool with the kids. Megan was stuck writing certificates for two hours, and nobody helped her. She's afraid she will be stuck with that again today. Oh, and our neighbor drove by and told Megan to tell me that E is on the agenda for the Wednesday meeting! Seems like it may end up happening after all!!! Stay tuned!
Thursday, June 19, 2008
School's Out for the Summer!!! o/ o/
The last day! It's here and it's over! And it is beautiful outside. Brian is at a party (not much of one, thank God, I was worried about the guest list but most of the ones I worried about decided it would be too boring and didn't go) and Megan is at the Y teaching the week-long Learn to Swim lessons and then practicing afterwards. It's very quiet in the house, and Puff is even out. She just hopped down from the window, but she is ignoring me, pretending not to hear.
It was a fairly uneventful week aside from one inappropriate comment made by a 5 year old yesterday, I told the counselor about it and the little girl was sent home. Nobody really seemed too affected today, she was back and seemed as happy as could be. I hate when things like that happen on my watch, but I couldn't just ignore it.
This morning we had a brief power reduction (not quite outage) and the carbon monoxide detector was going off in the basement. I unplugged it and went out for a walk. There was a dead mouse in the driveway! I passed a fire truck responding to a call about a neighbors CO detector. I cut my walk to two miles and came home to find the dead mouse was nowhere to be seen, and the lights were back on. I put the CO detector back in the basement, and it's been fine. The only problem is that there is another chipmunk in the pool, as well as a big dark spot by the drain. Gah. I want to go sit out there and read my book, it's so beautiful out, but I don't want to scoop the munk (or munks!), but I don't want to know it's there, either.
The big news is that they have reopened one of the roads that was closed about six weeks ago in town. It was slated for these HUGE improvements, which one would assume were done to improve traffic flow. Well. I just sat in traffic for ten-plus minutes to go through a light that would normally have taken three or four at the most. About five lanes of traffic were all trying to get into one lane to make a left turn for the Parkway. Ridiculous. These people call themselves engineers and planners!?! Maybe their goal was just to make people hate that area so much that they will continue to find alternate routes, thereby cutting down on bothersome traffic in residential areas.
In other news, everything is pretty mellow for now. Megan got her letter from the summer program so we know she will be in a class with autistic kids, probably 2nd and 3rd grade or so. It should be a good class. I spoke to my board neighbor briefly this morning and she told me she is working with Dr. NoCallBack and they are "doing everything they can". I found this odd, as she had also been gung-ho about it when last we spoke.
It's like Dr. NoCallBack has some big concern, that she can't tell me about, but she tells all my supporters and then they become non-committal about the whole thing. All I know is that if they end up rejecting it, after all of the hoops they made us jump through and all their rude inattention to our messages, emails, and calls, I will be furious. Not even so much because we won't be able to host the student, but because this will have taken nearly two months, wasted the time of the two ladies at the agency, wasted my time, gotten my kids' hopes up, and, most of all, wasted the time of poor E, who has done nothing but apply for a year abroad. This is honestly the most blatant display of inefficiency I have experienced so far in this district; and if they reject her, I think I will send my letter straight to the superintendent. If there is something missing, we have not been made aware, if there is a concern, nothing has been said. They just seem content to drag it out forever, which implies that they are processing the information; but something nags at me that there is more to it than that.
It was a fairly uneventful week aside from one inappropriate comment made by a 5 year old yesterday, I told the counselor about it and the little girl was sent home. Nobody really seemed too affected today, she was back and seemed as happy as could be. I hate when things like that happen on my watch, but I couldn't just ignore it.
This morning we had a brief power reduction (not quite outage) and the carbon monoxide detector was going off in the basement. I unplugged it and went out for a walk. There was a dead mouse in the driveway! I passed a fire truck responding to a call about a neighbors CO detector. I cut my walk to two miles and came home to find the dead mouse was nowhere to be seen, and the lights were back on. I put the CO detector back in the basement, and it's been fine. The only problem is that there is another chipmunk in the pool, as well as a big dark spot by the drain. Gah. I want to go sit out there and read my book, it's so beautiful out, but I don't want to scoop the munk (or munks!), but I don't want to know it's there, either.
The big news is that they have reopened one of the roads that was closed about six weeks ago in town. It was slated for these HUGE improvements, which one would assume were done to improve traffic flow. Well. I just sat in traffic for ten-plus minutes to go through a light that would normally have taken three or four at the most. About five lanes of traffic were all trying to get into one lane to make a left turn for the Parkway. Ridiculous. These people call themselves engineers and planners!?! Maybe their goal was just to make people hate that area so much that they will continue to find alternate routes, thereby cutting down on bothersome traffic in residential areas.
In other news, everything is pretty mellow for now. Megan got her letter from the summer program so we know she will be in a class with autistic kids, probably 2nd and 3rd grade or so. It should be a good class. I spoke to my board neighbor briefly this morning and she told me she is working with Dr. NoCallBack and they are "doing everything they can". I found this odd, as she had also been gung-ho about it when last we spoke.
It's like Dr. NoCallBack has some big concern, that she can't tell me about, but she tells all my supporters and then they become non-committal about the whole thing. All I know is that if they end up rejecting it, after all of the hoops they made us jump through and all their rude inattention to our messages, emails, and calls, I will be furious. Not even so much because we won't be able to host the student, but because this will have taken nearly two months, wasted the time of the two ladies at the agency, wasted my time, gotten my kids' hopes up, and, most of all, wasted the time of poor E, who has done nothing but apply for a year abroad. This is honestly the most blatant display of inefficiency I have experienced so far in this district; and if they reject her, I think I will send my letter straight to the superintendent. If there is something missing, we have not been made aware, if there is a concern, nothing has been said. They just seem content to drag it out forever, which implies that they are processing the information; but something nags at me that there is more to it than that.
Monday, June 16, 2008
A Handle on the Pulse
The blood pressure monitor arrived! It is my latest toy. I am no longer afraid I am a high blood pressure candidate although I will continue to monitor, and to try to lose ten pounds. The first reading I got was a little high - 128/75 - but the pulse was 92!!! I was afraid of myself! I took a couple more readings, a few minutes apart, and as the pulse came down, so did the BP. By the final reading, it was under 120/80 and the pulse was 78.
Megan asked me to take hers. Her pulse was low, of course, somewhere in the 50s and she had the BP to match. I had had a glass of chardonnay, which I had read can raise your blood pressure, so I was not sure what to expect. Well. My pulse was 66 and the bp was 117/70-something. Hah. The secret must be that I have to schedule all my doctor's appointments after Happy Hour.
So one mystery is solved: Megan emailed the woman from the special ed program and she is, in fact, accepted. So she will be working in the special ed classes for the summer on MWF from 8:30-12:30. That's really OK. It leaves us the entire afternoon for activities and leaves her with much less idle time. Now we just have to wait to see to which class she has been assigned.
Otherwise, the package from the exchange student agency will go out in the morning, and Dr. NoCallBack will have it on her desk by Wednesday at noon. I'll let my board President neighbor know so she can be on the lookout for it, and she will go and thumb through to try to ensure that it gets on the agenda by the 25th. And so we should have no news before then as far as that goes, but once the 25th rolls around, we will know for absolute certain if we are approved.
In other news, it's the last week of school, I spent the day with my kindergarten friends and we had a lovely time. Tonight I convinced Megan not to go to swim practice, she has her algebra and Spanish finals tomorrow, her worst day, and it's a late night for swimming tonight. Also, we were expecting violent rains. I hear the pool was closed at 7, but the storm had pretty much blown through here by the time that they were supposed to have gotten in the pool. I had Wren at the vet today for her rabies shot and he said she looks good. I was a little concerned she had gotten thin, but she was half a pound heavier than last year, so she must just be thin compared to the rest of the tub-o-lards we have around here. She was not happy with the whole experience. She managed to get herself under the towel I had put for her to sit on, and when the tech came out to call her, the receptionist said, "Wren's not here."
Megan asked me to take hers. Her pulse was low, of course, somewhere in the 50s and she had the BP to match. I had had a glass of chardonnay, which I had read can raise your blood pressure, so I was not sure what to expect. Well. My pulse was 66 and the bp was 117/70-something. Hah. The secret must be that I have to schedule all my doctor's appointments after Happy Hour.
So one mystery is solved: Megan emailed the woman from the special ed program and she is, in fact, accepted. So she will be working in the special ed classes for the summer on MWF from 8:30-12:30. That's really OK. It leaves us the entire afternoon for activities and leaves her with much less idle time. Now we just have to wait to see to which class she has been assigned.
Otherwise, the package from the exchange student agency will go out in the morning, and Dr. NoCallBack will have it on her desk by Wednesday at noon. I'll let my board President neighbor know so she can be on the lookout for it, and she will go and thumb through to try to ensure that it gets on the agenda by the 25th. And so we should have no news before then as far as that goes, but once the 25th rolls around, we will know for absolute certain if we are approved.
In other news, it's the last week of school, I spent the day with my kindergarten friends and we had a lovely time. Tonight I convinced Megan not to go to swim practice, she has her algebra and Spanish finals tomorrow, her worst day, and it's a late night for swimming tonight. Also, we were expecting violent rains. I hear the pool was closed at 7, but the storm had pretty much blown through here by the time that they were supposed to have gotten in the pool. I had Wren at the vet today for her rabies shot and he said she looks good. I was a little concerned she had gotten thin, but she was half a pound heavier than last year, so she must just be thin compared to the rest of the tub-o-lards we have around here. She was not happy with the whole experience. She managed to get herself under the towel I had put for her to sit on, and when the tech came out to call her, the receptionist said, "Wren's not here."
Sunday, June 15, 2008
National Honor What?
OK, so the story goes that in order to be on the National Honor Society (in?) at our high school, you must satisfy a list of requirements. Among them is the community service hour quota. A student must have completed at least 100 volunteer hours by the time that they make their application. Which is not too bad, considering you do have about four years in which to do this, right? Hmm. But what if nobody tells you about the requirement before you're a senior? I don't even know how I found out about it, but I did. The guidance counselors do not tell the freshmen about it. But I have been on Megan to get to work on these hours.
In order to try to knock off a chunk of the hours in one summer, Megan applied to work at the school district's extended school year program. She had to fill in an application, write an essay on why she wanted to do this, and another paragraph summarizing her extracurricular activities. Then she had to get a letter from a teacher or guidance counselor, recommending her. She did all of this, and I dropped it off before the due date. (This was the first time I tried to get in touch with them regarding the exchange student)
The volunteers were supposed to be notified by today. She has heard nothing. Two of her friends received letters with assignments. She has not even recieved a letter turning her down, or thanking her for making the effort to apply. One of the girls who is doing it did it last year. The other, like Megan, was applying for the first time, but her mother is active in the PFA at the middle school, and probably at the high school as well. Anyway, it's demoralizing, as there is no apparent reason for her to have been passed over; not to mention that it's just plain inconsiderate of them not to even contact her with a letter of rejection.
So we're having to scramble to figure out what she should do this summer instead. Honestly, if not for the insult of it, it is not such a bad thing. She was going to have to miss a couple of the five weeks of the school for trips, and then she was going to have to work MWF from 9-1 until the middle of August, including the week when we will have C. If she doesn't have to do this, she can volunteer at the church's vacation bible school, and get 15 hours while having fun. So she will do that as soon as I get the mail tomorrow and confirm she has in fact not been assigned to a class. Then we will be free to entertain C as a whole family for the entire week. It's too bad she can't get some hours for that. I am going to email them and ask if they have opportunities for her to help. There's a picnic for the kids in July and maybe she can help out at that.
We also tallied up her church volunteer hours and found she has already gotten 26 just from her acolyting, then another 25 from the 30 hour famine (she skipped some!) and she will do some community swim lesson volunteering on Friday at the Y. Then add on Vacation Bible School for another 15, and she should be at 75 or so hours by the end of this year, with two years still to go. So we should be able to get the 100 without their help, but it still makes me so mad.
But the one thing that really burned me about this is that, in typical Middletown fashion, the Superintendent's newsletter says that students who missed too much school this year to advance a grade (more than 16 days unexcused) may make this up by volunteering the hours in the extended year program. Beautiful, right? Take the kids who skipped too many days of school and put them in the positions instead of the straight A honors kids, who work their butts off the whole year and DON'T go to the drinking and pot smoking parties. I am quickly beginning to think our new administration may be worse then the ones we have had in the past. It's really not a nice thought that this would be their priority. I'm seriously considering getting Brian out of the system after 8th grade and sending him to one of the Catholic high schools. I wish he would show some interest in the county schools, but he insists he does not. This should be the topic of many blogs-to-come once the new school year begins.
So that is all for now. In other news, we had a nice day at the track despite some violent storms that passed through. After that we had dinner with the Doll for her birthday and Father's Day. It was a nice day. Finals are this week for Megan, and I am working four half days; three of them will be applied towards by sub certificate, which is good for the next five years. After that (if not before) I suspect I will have had enough!
In order to try to knock off a chunk of the hours in one summer, Megan applied to work at the school district's extended school year program. She had to fill in an application, write an essay on why she wanted to do this, and another paragraph summarizing her extracurricular activities. Then she had to get a letter from a teacher or guidance counselor, recommending her. She did all of this, and I dropped it off before the due date. (This was the first time I tried to get in touch with them regarding the exchange student)
The volunteers were supposed to be notified by today. She has heard nothing. Two of her friends received letters with assignments. She has not even recieved a letter turning her down, or thanking her for making the effort to apply. One of the girls who is doing it did it last year. The other, like Megan, was applying for the first time, but her mother is active in the PFA at the middle school, and probably at the high school as well. Anyway, it's demoralizing, as there is no apparent reason for her to have been passed over; not to mention that it's just plain inconsiderate of them not to even contact her with a letter of rejection.
So we're having to scramble to figure out what she should do this summer instead. Honestly, if not for the insult of it, it is not such a bad thing. She was going to have to miss a couple of the five weeks of the school for trips, and then she was going to have to work MWF from 9-1 until the middle of August, including the week when we will have C. If she doesn't have to do this, she can volunteer at the church's vacation bible school, and get 15 hours while having fun. So she will do that as soon as I get the mail tomorrow and confirm she has in fact not been assigned to a class. Then we will be free to entertain C as a whole family for the entire week. It's too bad she can't get some hours for that. I am going to email them and ask if they have opportunities for her to help. There's a picnic for the kids in July and maybe she can help out at that.
We also tallied up her church volunteer hours and found she has already gotten 26 just from her acolyting, then another 25 from the 30 hour famine (she skipped some!) and she will do some community swim lesson volunteering on Friday at the Y. Then add on Vacation Bible School for another 15, and she should be at 75 or so hours by the end of this year, with two years still to go. So we should be able to get the 100 without their help, but it still makes me so mad.
But the one thing that really burned me about this is that, in typical Middletown fashion, the Superintendent's newsletter says that students who missed too much school this year to advance a grade (more than 16 days unexcused) may make this up by volunteering the hours in the extended year program. Beautiful, right? Take the kids who skipped too many days of school and put them in the positions instead of the straight A honors kids, who work their butts off the whole year and DON'T go to the drinking and pot smoking parties. I am quickly beginning to think our new administration may be worse then the ones we have had in the past. It's really not a nice thought that this would be their priority. I'm seriously considering getting Brian out of the system after 8th grade and sending him to one of the Catholic high schools. I wish he would show some interest in the county schools, but he insists he does not. This should be the topic of many blogs-to-come once the new school year begins.
So that is all for now. In other news, we had a nice day at the track despite some violent storms that passed through. After that we had dinner with the Doll for her birthday and Father's Day. It was a nice day. Finals are this week for Megan, and I am working four half days; three of them will be applied towards by sub certificate, which is good for the next five years. After that (if not before) I suspect I will have had enough!
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Friday the 13th
All in all, it was not such a bad day. First, no news from the exchange agency, so I don't even know if she has sent off the package. I need to find out, because I did my part and had the affidavit notarized, then overnighted it to the rep so she could stick it in the package. I also called my neighbor, who happens to be the president of the board, and filled her in, and she said to let her know on what day the package will arrive, and she will make a point of looking into it. I relayed this to the rep, but she hasn't gotten in touch with me at all. So I don't know if there's a hold-up, or if she just assumes I know all has gone according to plan. I sent her another mail late last night, so maybe she will answer. She is the one who is "on the ball" but sometimes she isn't that good about following up with news.
The other rep is still on vacation until the 19th. But I won't dwell on it. I'm sure we'll hear soon enough. I would have expected to have heard from E by now, so I don't know what it means that we haven't. But when I opened my link to her profile, her status showed as 'placed'. However, that's on our end. She may have a different status with the agency in Denmark; I don't know how that works.
Yesterday I just did some walking and went to buy some more orange lilies for the yard, because the ones I got last year came in so lovely this year. I only have them in one small spot, and if they were in a few, there would be splashes of color all over. So I or Kevin will have to dig them into the ground this morning. I have to spend the day housecleaning, because some of the baseball boys from the Little League team are coming over to swim at 4. Megan has to study for her midterms, which are next week, because we have the race track and the Doll's birthday dinner tomorrow, and won't be around for much of the day.
Then last night, we had to go to a swim meet at Princeton. Megan was in three events, but she scratched the 200 breast because it's not one of her stronger events and she wanted to save some strength for the 400 free at the end of the night. It worked out well because she came in second, and her time was pretty good, considering that that was the first time she's been in a 50 meter pool since last July. She came in 11th in the 200 back, she didn't really swim that so well, but again - first time in a long course pool in almost a year. Luckily, they swam the events last night from fastest to slowest, so she was in the first heat of the 400 free, which went off at 8:00. The last heat was scheduled to go off at 9, so we would have been there a whole extra hour if they had done it the way they normally do. We were out so early that we decided to stop by and surprise our friends in Princeton, so that was fun. We sat and talked with them for an hour or so before heading home.
So that was that. In other news, Kevin took Brian to the fair and he won all sorts of junk prizes, for the mere sum of $32. Brian informs me that his current score on the Spanish final is a 93 out of 102, and that is not including the written part that he took on Friday. This from the kid who had dropped to a C in the class. He told me one of the questions, it went something like this:
If Johnny likes cats and dogs, which class would he prefer:
art
something else
biology
He chose art. I am quite sure it's biology.
Anyway, Megan plans to rest and then study - she is awaiting mail from the school letting her know if she got accepted to the volunteer program at the extended year program for the special ed kids. Two other girls got their letters already, so we don't know why she didn't, other than hoping that it's just our backwoods post office. There have been other times when we get our mailings the day after everyone else, because of the ZIP code. One of the other girls does live in the same ZIP as the school, but the other does not. However, she doesn't live in our ZIP, she lives in a different one. So we will be watching the mail today.
The other rep is still on vacation until the 19th. But I won't dwell on it. I'm sure we'll hear soon enough. I would have expected to have heard from E by now, so I don't know what it means that we haven't. But when I opened my link to her profile, her status showed as 'placed'. However, that's on our end. She may have a different status with the agency in Denmark; I don't know how that works.
Yesterday I just did some walking and went to buy some more orange lilies for the yard, because the ones I got last year came in so lovely this year. I only have them in one small spot, and if they were in a few, there would be splashes of color all over. So I or Kevin will have to dig them into the ground this morning. I have to spend the day housecleaning, because some of the baseball boys from the Little League team are coming over to swim at 4. Megan has to study for her midterms, which are next week, because we have the race track and the Doll's birthday dinner tomorrow, and won't be around for much of the day.
Then last night, we had to go to a swim meet at Princeton. Megan was in three events, but she scratched the 200 breast because it's not one of her stronger events and she wanted to save some strength for the 400 free at the end of the night. It worked out well because she came in second, and her time was pretty good, considering that that was the first time she's been in a 50 meter pool since last July. She came in 11th in the 200 back, she didn't really swim that so well, but again - first time in a long course pool in almost a year. Luckily, they swam the events last night from fastest to slowest, so she was in the first heat of the 400 free, which went off at 8:00. The last heat was scheduled to go off at 9, so we would have been there a whole extra hour if they had done it the way they normally do. We were out so early that we decided to stop by and surprise our friends in Princeton, so that was fun. We sat and talked with them for an hour or so before heading home.
So that was that. In other news, Kevin took Brian to the fair and he won all sorts of junk prizes, for the mere sum of $32. Brian informs me that his current score on the Spanish final is a 93 out of 102, and that is not including the written part that he took on Friday. This from the kid who had dropped to a C in the class. He told me one of the questions, it went something like this:
If Johnny likes cats and dogs, which class would he prefer:
art
something else
biology
He chose art. I am quite sure it's biology.
Anyway, Megan plans to rest and then study - she is awaiting mail from the school letting her know if she got accepted to the volunteer program at the extended year program for the special ed kids. Two other girls got their letters already, so we don't know why she didn't, other than hoping that it's just our backwoods post office. There have been other times when we get our mailings the day after everyone else, because of the ZIP code. One of the other girls does live in the same ZIP as the school, but the other does not. However, she doesn't live in our ZIP, she lives in a different one. So we will be watching the mail today.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
A Little Bit of Luck
So one positive twist finally twisted: I got a call from the regional rep, the one who knows her stuff, and after talking to her I feel like everything is under control, as usual. She is going to get the affidavits on her end, and I will write up a quick letter stating that I take responsibility for E while she is with us, and should any problems arise, I will handle them and notify the agency, who will follow their protocol at that point. I can stop by the bank and have it notarized, then drop it at the district office tomorrow after my dentist appointment. Also, the local rep is going on vacation on Friday, so the regional rep will take it from here, for now.
She also said that she is going to let E know who we are, and she will have the option to refuse us (she didn't say this, I asked), of course, although the rep doesn't think this will happen, she says it never does in this part of the country; occasionally in some random desolate part of Idaho where they really only want exchange students to keep them company, but not normally in the major metropolitan areas. She first said E would have our info maybe tomorrow, but then I got another email telling me we had to give our details for background checks online (we had been waiting for approval from the school) so I just did that. I don't think it takes very long, but I don't know if it's done in less than a day. So soon we will at least be able to correspond.
The rep also told me that she found out a friend of hers is the one who got J2. J2 apparently has a boyfriend and has been asking if he can come visit (this is against the agency rules, actually) and has some other "issues". So she told me that I am better off with E anyway, despite my initial infatuation and heartbreak over losing J2.
More later. No other news.
She also said that she is going to let E know who we are, and she will have the option to refuse us (she didn't say this, I asked), of course, although the rep doesn't think this will happen, she says it never does in this part of the country; occasionally in some random desolate part of Idaho where they really only want exchange students to keep them company, but not normally in the major metropolitan areas. She first said E would have our info maybe tomorrow, but then I got another email telling me we had to give our details for background checks online (we had been waiting for approval from the school) so I just did that. I don't think it takes very long, but I don't know if it's done in less than a day. So soon we will at least be able to correspond.
The rep also told me that she found out a friend of hers is the one who got J2. J2 apparently has a boyfriend and has been asking if he can come visit (this is against the agency rules, actually) and has some other "issues". So she told me that I am better off with E anyway, despite my initial infatuation and heartbreak over losing J2.
More later. No other news.
Minor Irritant
OK, well I was mistaken. There is a board meeting on June 20. We will not have to wait until July after all. I was so irritated by all of this that I called a neighbor who happens to be the president of the board of ed this year, and explained it all to her. She said that there is a meeting on June 20 and she will do everything she can to ensure that it gets on the agenda for that meeting, as long as we have handed in all the information that has been requested.
This morning, when I opened my email, there was one from the woman at the other agency, saying that she had gotten enrollment approval. I took this to mean that she considers this as good as a verbal OK, where the woman I am dealing with has her head all in a tizzy because a few simple documents have been requested. They want three affidavits: one stating that there will be no expense to the district, another stating that the student does not expect to graduate with a diploma, and a third (from me) stating that I take responsibility for the girl while she is here.
My rep objected to the third, which concerned me. I have said it before, I am not sure she is on the ball. She doesn't always read her emails before she writes to me or calls, and she can't accomplish anything without checking first with the regional rep. I'm also a little concerned that her role is going to be so great that she will get under my skin. She keeps reminding me that she will be here for me if there is a problem, but also that she will be here if the student has any problems. I just feel like she is going to be intrusive. It's almost like she wants us to have problems, so she can get involved. She even said she will be at the airport too, when we meet the plane.
She also thought it was unreasonable for the school to want to see her proof of insurance, and I don't know why that would be a big deal either.
And that is where we stand for today. I guess I am just waiting to hear from the agency as far as if they have been able to compile all of this paperwork. I don't know why it is a big deal. If I had gone with the other agency, we would be able to correspond with our student, and to make plans. I'm not going to go ahead and get a room ready until I know someone will be living in it. After all this, the girl could still turn us down. Maybe she wanted California or something, I don't know.
This morning, when I opened my email, there was one from the woman at the other agency, saying that she had gotten enrollment approval. I took this to mean that she considers this as good as a verbal OK, where the woman I am dealing with has her head all in a tizzy because a few simple documents have been requested. They want three affidavits: one stating that there will be no expense to the district, another stating that the student does not expect to graduate with a diploma, and a third (from me) stating that I take responsibility for the girl while she is here.
My rep objected to the third, which concerned me. I have said it before, I am not sure she is on the ball. She doesn't always read her emails before she writes to me or calls, and she can't accomplish anything without checking first with the regional rep. I'm also a little concerned that her role is going to be so great that she will get under my skin. She keeps reminding me that she will be here for me if there is a problem, but also that she will be here if the student has any problems. I just feel like she is going to be intrusive. It's almost like she wants us to have problems, so she can get involved. She even said she will be at the airport too, when we meet the plane.
She also thought it was unreasonable for the school to want to see her proof of insurance, and I don't know why that would be a big deal either.
And that is where we stand for today. I guess I am just waiting to hear from the agency as far as if they have been able to compile all of this paperwork. I don't know why it is a big deal. If I had gone with the other agency, we would be able to correspond with our student, and to make plans. I'm not going to go ahead and get a room ready until I know someone will be living in it. After all this, the girl could still turn us down. Maybe she wanted California or something, I don't know.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Many Things are Happening!
So this afternoon, as I was playing with photobucket, I suddenly noticed that there was an email in my gmail! I looked and it was from Dr. NoCallBack!!! Of course, gmail freezes on my desktop so I had to hold my breath while I waited for it to open. All that it was was a quick note saying, thank you for your patience, and if you will review the attached and forward to my office I will submit it for board approval.
I opened the attached document, and all that was was a list of procedures apparently set forth for handling foreign exchange students in the schools, written a year ago. Some of this we have already provided, but they are asking for a few other things as well. The area rep has now also gotten involved, but she misunderstood the 'request by' date of June 19 to be the date of the voting meeting, which is in fact not until July. There are two main issues: permission from the Principal (shouldn't be a problem, I don't think) and approval of the board (I don't think this will be either, but one never knows). I'm going to email the board woman that I spoke to and just let her know that I did hear back at last, and to expect this to come up at their July meeting. I wish I could have spoken to the regional rep, she is really on the ball at all times, and makes me feel more confident that things are going smoothly. The other woman is very nice and helpful, as I said, but does not exude experience and confidence. She is the one we will deal with the entire year; but I think she will be fine for that. This is just something she never had to handle before.
So I don't know if this constitutes a verbal OK or not, but I guess I will find out about that later on tonight, when area speaks to regional. I'm still not sure the process is in confident hands, which makes us seem a little unprepared, but hopefully not enough to make a difference. I think we're on a learning curve in more ways than one. Had we had this list a month ago, we could have put it all together and sent them exactly what they needed, instead of a bunch of random information. They got more than they needed, and they're probably appalled at having to sort through it all.
So, more later. I don't know if it can be a verbal OK without the principal's permission, but he is the one who referred us to the others in the first place. So, stay tuned. They want the girl to sign the school handbook, and they can't very well ask her to do that without telling her what school it is. Also, she has the right to refuse us; so it isn't fair to ask her to commit to a school without knowing with whom she will live.
In other news, the church fair began last night and Megan wants to go there after swimming. I must get down and figure out what's for dinner, since it took me over an hour to upload the photos for the below slideshow, and then to have some back-and-forths with the exchange student issues. And tonight, I must call C!
I opened the attached document, and all that was was a list of procedures apparently set forth for handling foreign exchange students in the schools, written a year ago. Some of this we have already provided, but they are asking for a few other things as well. The area rep has now also gotten involved, but she misunderstood the 'request by' date of June 19 to be the date of the voting meeting, which is in fact not until July. There are two main issues: permission from the Principal (shouldn't be a problem, I don't think) and approval of the board (I don't think this will be either, but one never knows). I'm going to email the board woman that I spoke to and just let her know that I did hear back at last, and to expect this to come up at their July meeting. I wish I could have spoken to the regional rep, she is really on the ball at all times, and makes me feel more confident that things are going smoothly. The other woman is very nice and helpful, as I said, but does not exude experience and confidence. She is the one we will deal with the entire year; but I think she will be fine for that. This is just something she never had to handle before.
So I don't know if this constitutes a verbal OK or not, but I guess I will find out about that later on tonight, when area speaks to regional. I'm still not sure the process is in confident hands, which makes us seem a little unprepared, but hopefully not enough to make a difference. I think we're on a learning curve in more ways than one. Had we had this list a month ago, we could have put it all together and sent them exactly what they needed, instead of a bunch of random information. They got more than they needed, and they're probably appalled at having to sort through it all.
So, more later. I don't know if it can be a verbal OK without the principal's permission, but he is the one who referred us to the others in the first place. So, stay tuned. They want the girl to sign the school handbook, and they can't very well ask her to do that without telling her what school it is. Also, she has the right to refuse us; so it isn't fair to ask her to commit to a school without knowing with whom she will live.
In other news, the church fair began last night and Megan wants to go there after swimming. I must get down and figure out what's for dinner, since it took me over an hour to upload the photos for the below slideshow, and then to have some back-and-forths with the exchange student issues. And tonight, I must call C!
Monday, June 9, 2008
It's a Match!
We heard from the Fresh Air lady at last! We have a match! Our boy, we will call him C, will be arriving on July 10th on the bus to Ocean County. We'll have to go down to Toms River to get him and then return him to the same, I believe on the 21st. I think his visit will be from a Thursday through a Monday (ten days). The Monday is the day that Brian starts his baseball camp, so depending on how it all goes, I may or may not have him skip the first few hours to come and wave goodbye to the bus. I guess it will be up to him.
Unfortunately, C will not be able to attend the camp with Brian. I don't know if he was offered it and declined, or if the Fresh Air people just decided it was too much trouble. But if all goes well and we get along, he can certainly do it next year, if Brian is still signing up and the weeks correspond. The woman told me he had "accepted the invitation", so he was shown our application and knows all the things that we said we like to do: baseball, water parks, beach, and swimming.
So now I am all sorts of nervous. C is from the Bronx, and his 'guardian' is a man! I expected to be calling a mom with my introduction, so I have to take a little time to think about what I should say. He is 11, but he will turn 12 on the 11th of July, so the day after he gets here! We'll have to plan something special for him that day.
All of this dwelling on the school and their answers about the exchange student have somewhat lessened the anxiety of awaiting the word from Fresh Air. I was thinking of calling the woman this week, just to make sure our offer to take in a child for the camp wasn't causing too much confusion.
So that is the news of the night. There is, of course, not an iota of news on the exchange student front - not so much as an email responding to my emails last night to the agency reps about the emails I received from the assistant superintendent. I know that the school district is not being responsive; but I can't help but wonder if part of the delay is the agency rep herself. It may not be at all, for sure this woman at the schools is awfully rude; but perhaps someone with a lot of school experience would have known the right thing to say to break down the barriers. This rep is very nice, and she isn't at all annoying; but she comes across as a little inexperienced, like the time that she sent the wrong file to the Principal when we thought we were getting J2 from Sweden, and before that she had attached the same profile twice when she thought she had sent me two. On the other hand, they're not getting back to ME either, so I can only hope this neglectful woman is doing a more thorough job in the other aspects of her position.
Unfortunately, C will not be able to attend the camp with Brian. I don't know if he was offered it and declined, or if the Fresh Air people just decided it was too much trouble. But if all goes well and we get along, he can certainly do it next year, if Brian is still signing up and the weeks correspond. The woman told me he had "accepted the invitation", so he was shown our application and knows all the things that we said we like to do: baseball, water parks, beach, and swimming.
So now I am all sorts of nervous. C is from the Bronx, and his 'guardian' is a man! I expected to be calling a mom with my introduction, so I have to take a little time to think about what I should say. He is 11, but he will turn 12 on the 11th of July, so the day after he gets here! We'll have to plan something special for him that day.
All of this dwelling on the school and their answers about the exchange student have somewhat lessened the anxiety of awaiting the word from Fresh Air. I was thinking of calling the woman this week, just to make sure our offer to take in a child for the camp wasn't causing too much confusion.
So that is the news of the night. There is, of course, not an iota of news on the exchange student front - not so much as an email responding to my emails last night to the agency reps about the emails I received from the assistant superintendent. I know that the school district is not being responsive; but I can't help but wonder if part of the delay is the agency rep herself. It may not be at all, for sure this woman at the schools is awfully rude; but perhaps someone with a lot of school experience would have known the right thing to say to break down the barriers. This rep is very nice, and she isn't at all annoying; but she comes across as a little inexperienced, like the time that she sent the wrong file to the Principal when we thought we were getting J2 from Sweden, and before that she had attached the same profile twice when she thought she had sent me two. On the other hand, they're not getting back to ME either, so I can only hope this neglectful woman is doing a more thorough job in the other aspects of her position.
Stop the Insanity
So we still await response from the district office. I am somewhat at my wits' end and about ready to throw in the towel, but that would be admitting defeat and giving in to the bureaucrats. I had emailed the assistant superintendent on Friday, assuming he'd see it this morning and maybe get back to me. He must have checked in last night, because he sent me a quick note telling me he had given it all to the no-call-back woman.
So again, at a standstill. I emailed him back and thanked him, but mentioned that unfortunately, she is the one who has not returned our calls for nearly a month. He replied again that he would speak to her today. I am finding this whole experience disheartening. Incidentally, I have not seen either of my kids' state test scores either, which is her supposed function, and the reason for her inattention. And I stand behind my allegation that if she is that busy, she shouldn't be leaving at 4. Too busy to even call back and let us know what the delay is? So I sent her another email and explained that if she is not going to allow this, we need to know, so we can release this student and allow her to find a tolerant and cooperative school, one that perhaps appreciates the fact that its residents pay $12,000 a year in taxes for less services than neighboring districts provide. (I did not use these exact words, but I did realize too late that I had addressed her majesty as 'Ms.' instead of 'Dr.'. I suppose that is another strike against us.)
I am just becoming more and more disgruntled. If I don't hear something today, I will contact that board member that I kept running into. She is the one who told me the board has agreed that they support these programs, and would like to see more of it. It's making me more and more regret that when we sold our house, we didn't buy a new one in an entirely different school district!
Anyway, that's that. I ignored a sub call this morning so I could get some things done. I have so far filled and started the dishwasher, gone for a walk, and walked Molly. I have just gotten out of the shower and need to pay some bills. Then I will run some errands. Meanwhile, in other news, Brian's dreaded chorus concert scheduled for tonight has been cancelled due to the heat wave. It is now scheduled for Thursday night, when Kevin will be unable to attend. This will be our last one ever, since Brian isn't going to do chorus next year because he dislikes it almost as much as I dislike going to these concerts. In order to get a good parking spot (meaning one that will not trap you in the lot for an hour once the concert has ended) and to get a seat, you must arrive an hour or more ahead of time, and then just sit in the gym. Then it becomes increasingly crowded, and tempers start to flare. Finally, by the time the concert begins, there are people lined up in the doorways and, probably, out in the hall where they can't even see. The concert itself is fine, they do a reasonably nice job. But we've watched it for four years in a row now, twice a year, and enough is just enough. At least last year, Megan was in the elite singing group and had a few extra roles. There are about 200 kids in the chorus, it's just absolutely insane.
So again, at a standstill. I emailed him back and thanked him, but mentioned that unfortunately, she is the one who has not returned our calls for nearly a month. He replied again that he would speak to her today. I am finding this whole experience disheartening. Incidentally, I have not seen either of my kids' state test scores either, which is her supposed function, and the reason for her inattention. And I stand behind my allegation that if she is that busy, she shouldn't be leaving at 4. Too busy to even call back and let us know what the delay is? So I sent her another email and explained that if she is not going to allow this, we need to know, so we can release this student and allow her to find a tolerant and cooperative school, one that perhaps appreciates the fact that its residents pay $12,000 a year in taxes for less services than neighboring districts provide. (I did not use these exact words, but I did realize too late that I had addressed her majesty as 'Ms.' instead of 'Dr.'. I suppose that is another strike against us.)
I am just becoming more and more disgruntled. If I don't hear something today, I will contact that board member that I kept running into. She is the one who told me the board has agreed that they support these programs, and would like to see more of it. It's making me more and more regret that when we sold our house, we didn't buy a new one in an entirely different school district!
Anyway, that's that. I ignored a sub call this morning so I could get some things done. I have so far filled and started the dishwasher, gone for a walk, and walked Molly. I have just gotten out of the shower and need to pay some bills. Then I will run some errands. Meanwhile, in other news, Brian's dreaded chorus concert scheduled for tonight has been cancelled due to the heat wave. It is now scheduled for Thursday night, when Kevin will be unable to attend. This will be our last one ever, since Brian isn't going to do chorus next year because he dislikes it almost as much as I dislike going to these concerts. In order to get a good parking spot (meaning one that will not trap you in the lot for an hour once the concert has ended) and to get a seat, you must arrive an hour or more ahead of time, and then just sit in the gym. Then it becomes increasingly crowded, and tempers start to flare. Finally, by the time the concert begins, there are people lined up in the doorways and, probably, out in the hall where they can't even see. The concert itself is fine, they do a reasonably nice job. But we've watched it for four years in a row now, twice a year, and enough is just enough. At least last year, Megan was in the elite singing group and had a few extra roles. There are about 200 kids in the chorus, it's just absolutely insane.
Friday, June 6, 2008
A Trip Down Pseudomeningocele Lane
It's hot outside! I did waste some of the later part of the school day, browsing one of my favorite nurseries and buying very few new plants. I guess I am reaching the point of saturation, plus we are considering a very costly redesign of the plantings in front of the house. We are paying $300 just for the architect's drawing.
So I am sitting in the air conditioning, and was surfing through some sites I haven't seen in a while. As Megan has had headaches two days in a row now, I googled 'chiari headache'; since Brian never really had these, I didn't know where exactly they hurt. Megan's headaches are between her eyes, so possibly another sinus issue. The first approach will be to treat her again with the Claritin-D. I think the mold spores are up now that the tree pollens are down. Anyway, I digress. I happened upon the following article: http://www.conquerchiari.org/subs%20only/Volume%206/Issue%206(3)/Autologous%20Duraplasty%206(3).asp.
I read through it, and was surprised to see the name of Brian's neurosurgeon. I read the article a couple of times, it is a little confusing, and then I read the tables on the right. The doctors have reviewed 50+ cases done over ten years of which 40 had duraplasty with their own cranial tissue; 24 of these also had a syrinx. I wonder if Brian is one of those 40? Because here is the thing: they assess the post-operative complications, and say that the cases were followed for eleven months.
I just found an abstract of the article and it must be Brian. Here is a quote from the abstract: "There was an overall morbidity rate of 2.5% due to one pseudomeningocele treated with a single percutaneous tap."
But back to the study. They list the possible complications of opening the dura (duraplasty) and only report that they had one case of ANY complication: pseudomeningocele! Well. Was that Brian? It has to be - is it really possible that he is the ONLY patient of this doctor ever to develop this symptom? Wouldn't that just figure.
Anyway, I feel like Brian is famous. Haha. I guess I'll go sit by the pool and read my book now. That is what I was doing, but, as invariably happens in Burbtopia, a ride-on lawnmower appeared out of the idyllic silence, and started up on the lawn right across the street. He should be done by now.
In other news, apparently the attorney is responding to our concerns on the missing documentation of our home's previous owner. She blamed it, of course, on her former secretary, and said that the title policy was erroneously packed away in storage. So she has to dig through storage and find out what all is really going on. Who knows how long that will take, but it better not be a year!!! Megan is taking the Biology SATs tomorrow, and she has barely cracked a book to study. She is going to stay home from swimming tonight and pore through the College Board sample test, and look over her text. Then the test is tomorrow morning at 8. Obviously, no word on Fresh Air or exchange student, so that can't be a good thing on the latter. I am feeling so resentful towards our school district. But I guess they have other things on their minds, what with their party prom bus being arrested and the rowdy uprising at the last board meeting, over failure to complete a turf project at the other high school. I am going to send the assistant superintendent an email after I hear from the rep, and am sure that he really didn't get back to her. I hope it isn't that they don't want to work with that agency...
Oh, and a new problem arises. Brian will not swim in our pool, after the Chipmunk Ball ended in such tragedy. Incidentally, once they were fished out, so too was a mouse, from the skimmer. It must have been quite an evening.
So I am sitting in the air conditioning, and was surfing through some sites I haven't seen in a while. As Megan has had headaches two days in a row now, I googled 'chiari headache'; since Brian never really had these, I didn't know where exactly they hurt. Megan's headaches are between her eyes, so possibly another sinus issue. The first approach will be to treat her again with the Claritin-D. I think the mold spores are up now that the tree pollens are down. Anyway, I digress. I happened upon the following article: http://www.conquerchiari.org/subs%20only/Volume%206/Issue%206(3)/Autologous%20Duraplasty%206(3).asp.
I read through it, and was surprised to see the name of Brian's neurosurgeon. I read the article a couple of times, it is a little confusing, and then I read the tables on the right. The doctors have reviewed 50+ cases done over ten years of which 40 had duraplasty with their own cranial tissue; 24 of these also had a syrinx. I wonder if Brian is one of those 40? Because here is the thing: they assess the post-operative complications, and say that the cases were followed for eleven months.
I just found an abstract of the article and it must be Brian. Here is a quote from the abstract: "There was an overall morbidity rate of 2.5% due to one pseudomeningocele treated with a single percutaneous tap."
But back to the study. They list the possible complications of opening the dura (duraplasty) and only report that they had one case of ANY complication: pseudomeningocele! Well. Was that Brian? It has to be - is it really possible that he is the ONLY patient of this doctor ever to develop this symptom? Wouldn't that just figure.
Anyway, I feel like Brian is famous. Haha. I guess I'll go sit by the pool and read my book now. That is what I was doing, but, as invariably happens in Burbtopia, a ride-on lawnmower appeared out of the idyllic silence, and started up on the lawn right across the street. He should be done by now.
In other news, apparently the attorney is responding to our concerns on the missing documentation of our home's previous owner. She blamed it, of course, on her former secretary, and said that the title policy was erroneously packed away in storage. So she has to dig through storage and find out what all is really going on. Who knows how long that will take, but it better not be a year!!! Megan is taking the Biology SATs tomorrow, and she has barely cracked a book to study. She is going to stay home from swimming tonight and pore through the College Board sample test, and look over her text. Then the test is tomorrow morning at 8. Obviously, no word on Fresh Air or exchange student, so that can't be a good thing on the latter. I am feeling so resentful towards our school district. But I guess they have other things on their minds, what with their party prom bus being arrested and the rowdy uprising at the last board meeting, over failure to complete a turf project at the other high school. I am going to send the assistant superintendent an email after I hear from the rep, and am sure that he really didn't get back to her. I hope it isn't that they don't want to work with that agency...
Oh, and a new problem arises. Brian will not swim in our pool, after the Chipmunk Ball ended in such tragedy. Incidentally, once they were fished out, so too was a mouse, from the skimmer. It must have been quite an evening.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Davy Jones' Locker
So a few blogs back I was detailing my dramatic rescue of the little chipmunk from the jaws of the Wren. I saw the little thing scurrying across the deck a couple of days later, and have managed to keep Wren inside, except for one little slip-up the other afternoon, after which Buddy also got out and remained at large for several hours.
Well, today I had a half day to work in a resource room at a different elementary school. I came home and sorted through email and various other timewasting activities. Finally, I decided it was time to check out the yard, see what is blooming and what's sprouting up since last I checked (I'm awaiting the reemergence of the hardy hibiscus from last year; one started weeks ago, but the three smaller ones have shown no signs of life, until today. I think I saw small bumps emerging from the wood sticking out of the ground!!! I hope so, because these are my red ones, and I love them.)
Anyway, Molly was out with me, as always, and we were walking around after Megan came home. I suddenly remembered a shadowy shape I had seen earlier from the bathroom window. :-O Sure enough, there, in Davy Jones' locker, laid my beloved little rescuee. I was sad. I took a moment and studied the little thing, lying there still as if he were asleep, with his eyes closed and his little paws hanging in front of him as if he were saying, "No, Davy, No! Give me back to the jaws of the Wren!" With a heavy heart, I turned away, walking around the deep end of the pool. Shock! Horror! Strife! There again, in Davy Jones' OTHER locker ... was a relative of my small ex-friend. So, it is a sad day for the chipmunks.
Other than that, the Mets have now lost their playoff berth. They actually won the second game, so they lost the first, and then won the second, which obviously entitled them to play a third, which was Tuesday. The other team had one of the best pitchers in the division, and they had whooped us in the regular season game. I didn't expect much, and headed out to watch the game. When I got there ten minutes late, it was already the bottom of the second inning. Brian was on third, but I didn't know how he had gotten there. (I later learned he had gotten a double!) He did not score. At the end of that inning, the score remained 0-0. And it just got better - throughout the beginning of the game, it remained scoreless for several innings, until the Mets took a 2-0 lead.However, their opponents were not to be outdone, and quickly regained their status, and scored two runs of their own for a score of 2-2. Normally the little league games are six innings long. In the bottom of the TENTH inning, the Mets season drew to a close. It was very exciting, though, and a well played game by all. And now that other team has to go on to the next level, which means playing Saturday, in 90 degree heat.
In other news, nothing on the exchange student or fresh air fund STILL. The rep from the agency did call the other day to say that she had spoken to the secretary of the assistant superintendent, so we are awaiting his return call. She said she'd give him till Friday (now, tomorrow) and try him again. I will email him myself if he doesn't get her an answer by the end of the day. I am getting so tired of this, as I may have mentioned. I had Kevin speak to the guy who runs the baseball camp, I was starting to envision the fresh air people calling me the night before, that week, and sending me some little boy who really wanted to be in the camp, and then having the camp be filled. This is a very nice man, thankfully, and he is really great with the kids, too. He is actually a (haha) comedian in his spare time, so he just keeps the camp moving along. He was also very open to the idea of the camper, and said, sure! just remind me right before, if he comes. So that is one thing off my mind. I still don't know if we haven't gotten an assignment because of the confusion regarding the camp, or if we just have not come up on the list yet. And now, I am off to the orthodontist. Megan has just come home with a headache - wonderful.
Well, today I had a half day to work in a resource room at a different elementary school. I came home and sorted through email and various other timewasting activities. Finally, I decided it was time to check out the yard, see what is blooming and what's sprouting up since last I checked (I'm awaiting the reemergence of the hardy hibiscus from last year; one started weeks ago, but the three smaller ones have shown no signs of life, until today. I think I saw small bumps emerging from the wood sticking out of the ground!!! I hope so, because these are my red ones, and I love them.)
Anyway, Molly was out with me, as always, and we were walking around after Megan came home. I suddenly remembered a shadowy shape I had seen earlier from the bathroom window. :-O Sure enough, there, in Davy Jones' locker, laid my beloved little rescuee. I was sad. I took a moment and studied the little thing, lying there still as if he were asleep, with his eyes closed and his little paws hanging in front of him as if he were saying, "No, Davy, No! Give me back to the jaws of the Wren!" With a heavy heart, I turned away, walking around the deep end of the pool. Shock! Horror! Strife! There again, in Davy Jones' OTHER locker ... was a relative of my small ex-friend. So, it is a sad day for the chipmunks.
Other than that, the Mets have now lost their playoff berth. They actually won the second game, so they lost the first, and then won the second, which obviously entitled them to play a third, which was Tuesday. The other team had one of the best pitchers in the division, and they had whooped us in the regular season game. I didn't expect much, and headed out to watch the game. When I got there ten minutes late, it was already the bottom of the second inning. Brian was on third, but I didn't know how he had gotten there. (I later learned he had gotten a double!) He did not score. At the end of that inning, the score remained 0-0. And it just got better - throughout the beginning of the game, it remained scoreless for several innings, until the Mets took a 2-0 lead.However, their opponents were not to be outdone, and quickly regained their status, and scored two runs of their own for a score of 2-2. Normally the little league games are six innings long. In the bottom of the TENTH inning, the Mets season drew to a close. It was very exciting, though, and a well played game by all. And now that other team has to go on to the next level, which means playing Saturday, in 90 degree heat.
In other news, nothing on the exchange student or fresh air fund STILL. The rep from the agency did call the other day to say that she had spoken to the secretary of the assistant superintendent, so we are awaiting his return call. She said she'd give him till Friday (now, tomorrow) and try him again. I will email him myself if he doesn't get her an answer by the end of the day. I am getting so tired of this, as I may have mentioned. I had Kevin speak to the guy who runs the baseball camp, I was starting to envision the fresh air people calling me the night before, that week, and sending me some little boy who really wanted to be in the camp, and then having the camp be filled. This is a very nice man, thankfully, and he is really great with the kids, too. He is actually a (haha) comedian in his spare time, so he just keeps the camp moving along. He was also very open to the idea of the camper, and said, sure! just remind me right before, if he comes. So that is one thing off my mind. I still don't know if we haven't gotten an assignment because of the confusion regarding the camp, or if we just have not come up on the list yet. And now, I am off to the orthodontist. Megan has just come home with a headache - wonderful.
Monday, June 2, 2008
Going Out with a Bang
It's a hit! Brian got a hit! And it was a good one, too. He got to first easily, and not because someone made an error. Brian has a terrible tendency to stand there and wait out the pitches, praying for walks. It's a strategy that has worked for him in the past, but I have also heard kids make fun of him for it, and it does get old quickly. However, he successfully applied this strategy in his first at-bat of the day.
The Knights were getting creamed by the other team, and Brian was up for a second time, in the bottom of the 6th with one out. We were down by, I believe, 8 runs. I always cringe when I see him come up, because when the walk-waiting strategy fails, the result is usually, "STRIKE THREE!". The coach who stands and runs a loud mouth commentary in front of the fans, he's their first base coach, started in, "come on Brian, let me see you swing, let's go out hitting, come on Brian, this is yours..." So my stomach went to knots again. I hate for Brian to just stand there like that.
The first pitch came in high, so that was a ball. Then he got a called strike. Finally, it kicked in. He swing, and fouled off two of them. One more pitch, and it actually cracked! His hits often thwack, but they don't often crack, and this one did. It went right between third base and shortstop, and the third baseman couldn't get to it in time - so it went out to left field before making its way back to the infield, and he had plenty of time to trot to first. Very exciting.
But then he was left on second; and that was the end of the game!
Otherwise (in other news) we had the Doll over for a BBQ dinner last night, since the house was already clean. Her days of employment are drawing to a close, since her employer will be closing up shop in three weeks. She loved the job, and the discount, but now that they have reduced everything by 70%, the clientele are, as she puts it, " a lower class of people". Rather than acting as personal shopper, she is more of a gopher and dressing-room cleaner, running all the clothes that people have left in piles back to the racks for the next rampage. She even wears a back brace to work now! So I am off to work for the next three days. Hopefully they will be good ones. I know I have my little special ed friends tomorrow, but today and Wednesday I must 'float', so I never know what the day holds in store. All I do know is that it usually means small blocks of time in each class, as long as the meetings are well booked throughout the entire day. If not, I am stuck with lots of down time. Finally, maybe some exchange student news today, let's hope. The agency rep will call the district this afternoon. Also nothing from Fresh Air, and it's beginning to get troublesome. I would like to know which week we will be hosting, if in fact we get anyone at all! And my other source of irritation is the YMCA National board. They still have not posted the qualifying times for the 2009 meet in Florida, although they said they would have them no later than June 1. (disclaimer: post not proofread - must go shower)
The Knights were getting creamed by the other team, and Brian was up for a second time, in the bottom of the 6th with one out. We were down by, I believe, 8 runs. I always cringe when I see him come up, because when the walk-waiting strategy fails, the result is usually, "STRIKE THREE!". The coach who stands and runs a loud mouth commentary in front of the fans, he's their first base coach, started in, "come on Brian, let me see you swing, let's go out hitting, come on Brian, this is yours..." So my stomach went to knots again. I hate for Brian to just stand there like that.
The first pitch came in high, so that was a ball. Then he got a called strike. Finally, it kicked in. He swing, and fouled off two of them. One more pitch, and it actually cracked! His hits often thwack, but they don't often crack, and this one did. It went right between third base and shortstop, and the third baseman couldn't get to it in time - so it went out to left field before making its way back to the infield, and he had plenty of time to trot to first. Very exciting.
But then he was left on second; and that was the end of the game!
Otherwise (in other news) we had the Doll over for a BBQ dinner last night, since the house was already clean. Her days of employment are drawing to a close, since her employer will be closing up shop in three weeks. She loved the job, and the discount, but now that they have reduced everything by 70%, the clientele are, as she puts it, " a lower class of people". Rather than acting as personal shopper, she is more of a gopher and dressing-room cleaner, running all the clothes that people have left in piles back to the racks for the next rampage. She even wears a back brace to work now! So I am off to work for the next three days. Hopefully they will be good ones. I know I have my little special ed friends tomorrow, but today and Wednesday I must 'float', so I never know what the day holds in store. All I do know is that it usually means small blocks of time in each class, as long as the meetings are well booked throughout the entire day. If not, I am stuck with lots of down time. Finally, maybe some exchange student news today, let's hope. The agency rep will call the district this afternoon. Also nothing from Fresh Air, and it's beginning to get troublesome. I would like to know which week we will be hosting, if in fact we get anyone at all! And my other source of irritation is the YMCA National board. They still have not posted the qualifying times for the 2009 meet in Florida, although they said they would have them no later than June 1. (disclaimer: post not proofread - must go shower)
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