Ruby Tuesday: What’s with all the noise?

Sometimes my dad can be really loud.  He has these machines and I don’t like them.  He was tearing up the floor with this one.  Something about a leak or something.  Whatever, I don’t know why anyone would cut a big hole in the floor.  That’s just asking rats and mice and stuff to come in the house.  Sometimes I wonder if people ever think things through.

See, that big ol’ machine, just cutting a huge hole in the floor. Then they were all impressed with the big thick wood.  La-de-da!  Yea, people!  That wood was there for a reason — to keep out the rats!  And mice.  And squirrels.  And all the other vermin!  Moles could come in now.  They never listen to me.

It wasn’t all noisy this weekend though.  Mom did get some stuff put away.  I think the kitchen might start having food in it again soon!  I hope so!  Toes crossed!

 

Eye check

Lately, things have been looking a little blurry to me. In particular, I find that my arm isn’t quite long enough to read small print. This has been a bit disturbing to me as I have always had great vision. I do take comfort from the fact that my younger sister also needs glasses now as her arms were getting shorter too. Weird, huh? Along with that, I’ve also noticed that I can’t read things far away as well as I used to. More disturbing. So, on Saturday, I took myself in to see Ruthie’s eye doctor. I got good news and expected news. The good news, my distance vision is fine — my eyes are just not relaxing when I look in the distance so they aren’t focusing the way they should. Fixing the near vision should help and then my eyes can relax better. The expected news was that I am getting glasses.

My doctor calls them “detail” glasses. She says I need them for near and middle work. I can wear them as much as I want to and they will help my eyes to not be working so hard. That’s good news. My eye doctor is wonderful because she totally took my lifestyle into account when discussing my options with me. First of all, building a new habit is hard and using “detail” glasses only some of the time would be hard. It would be much easier to put something on my face and leave it there. So, she took that into account. We also discussed how I would inevitably push them up on the top of my head so she said I need plastic frames with a spring in the hinge. Done and done.

I ended up ordering Coach frames in a lovely and flattering burgandy color. Here is a link to the frames I’m getting for sale on eBay [click].  They looked great when I tried them on — although they were in black not the burgundy — I did try on a couple pairs in the burgundy and it looked great too.

At the appointment, she also dilated my eyes so the rest of the afternoon, things looked like that flower: blurry, too bright, and pretty irritating. Best of all, I forgot my sunglasses — it’s understandable, I only have 43 pairs after all. So, I got to wear this sad little roll up sunglasses as I ran my errands that afternoon. I was a sight to see, I’ll tell you.

 

Happy Mother’s Day, Mom!

All I am, or can be, I owe to my angel mother.
Abraham Lincoln

Lincoln’s mother may well have been an angel. For me, personally, an angelic mother sounds awfully boring. My own mother is — forgive me, Mom! — far from angelic. However, the main point of Lincoln’s sentiment holds true for me as well. All I am, all I can be is from my mom.

My mother is an amazing person. She doesn’t know that about herself but when I look back on what she has done, what she has accomplished, what she continues to do and be, I am truly dazzled by her. She has overcome some pretty profound hardships with grace and growth. She raised my sister and me to be strong, opinionated, prickly women with huge capacities for love. She taught me how to be a mother — and a damned good one, if I do say so myself.

I don’t always show it the way I should (see above comment about prickly) and I don’t always honor her the way I should but I do feel it. I love you, Mom! See you next weekend!

 

A new published author in the family

Our county office of education puts on a Student Author Book Fair each year.  They do it at our local shopping mall.  Schools have a table set up and display the books written by their students each year.  Mrs Jackson, Gage’s teacher does it every year.  Ruthie was a published author in 2nd grade as well because she had Mrs Jackson, too.  Now Gage joins those ranks.

(I would like to point out that I still beat them — I was published first in first grade!)

Mrs. Jackson does an amazing job with her kids.  They write the stories, illustrate them, and then bind them into books.  Most of it is done in class.  Each family helps their child make a book cover.  I made both kids’ book covers the same way — well, I guided.  The kids did most of the work.

The culminating event was having the kids read their books to the assembled masses at the book fair.  In the picture above, Gage is reading it to me and a 4th grade teacher at our school, Ms. Cress.  I believe Ms. Cress had just made a funny observation about his book.

When the kids read their books, they get to sit in the Author’s Chair and are interviewed with a microphone and then they read their book.  It is a fantastic event and the children really grow as people with rich possibilities because of it.  I’m so proud of my two published author’s.

I know my own experience with having a poem chosen to be a part of a published book of poems and essays for my school district when I was in first grade is the reason I have always known I was a writer.  I had actual proof — my name in a book.  Isn’t it amazing how we can open children up to life by giving them experiences like this when they are so young?

 

Kitchen Update

Greg has installed nearly all the handles we picked out at IKEA.  I love them.  They add a real finishing touch to the cabinetry.  This weekend, he’ll finish that up.  My mother-in-law and I will probably finish the painting.  I will clean everything within an inch of its life and — floor or no floor — we’re moving back in.  My family is so done with eating out that it isn’t even funny.

The only thing I’ll be missing is my morning visit to our local coffee shop.  Jenna Sue’s has become our regular breakfast place — me and the kids.  We leave the house extra early.  I get a “triple mocha, non-fat, no whip” with either a mixed berry scone or a cranberry muffin.  Ruthie gets a toasted bagel with butter and sometimes strawberry jam if she’s feeling wild.  Gage gets a morning bun or a piece of their amazing coffee cake.  I hate to think what all this eating out has done to our budget but the reception and greetings we get there every morning are so worth it.  Still, even in the mornings, I’ll be okay with skipping the amazing mocha that someone else made me and the friendly welcome I get there in order to get a little extra time and my own kitchen back.  I can still go to Jenna Sue’s on the mornings I go in early for staff meetings!  Once a week ought to give me that small town time I crave!

And, I make a pretty mean triple mocha, nonfat, no whip myself!

 

Thoughts

Several kind souls have asked me what I intend on writing now that I am having my bluff called! I don’t have a good answer to that. In one way or another, I have always been a writer. I have not, however, always taken it seriously. I write a lot of poetry. Poetry makes me happy and gives me a creative outlet. I have, in the past, written a lot of short stories as well.

But, let’s be honest, the type of writing I’m talking about doing has a goal and that goal is to write something that someone might pay me for the privelege of reading — something that could be would be read beyond my family. So, what to write . . .

I have had a novel swimming around in my head for a long time — it’s a fantasy story set in another world — a tolkein-mccaffrey-jordan type of world. That is the one swimming around the most right now. But, I am also considering something more romantic — I used to read romance novels by the bazillions so that has its appeal as well.

My son has become a published author — as his sister did before him when she was in 2nd grade. (More on this in a future post after I figure out how to solve my picture problem with the new computer!) He sees himself as a writer now (I love you, Mrs Jackson!!!). He knows that Greg bought me this computer to further my writing career and he wants to help. “Let’s talk about what sort of book you are going to write, Mom.”

He wants me to write a children’s book with really good illustrations.

Looks like I’m going to be a busy writer, if nothing else.

I hope to share excerpts here in the future but I’m not feeling brave enough yet. Too scary just yet.

 

Wordless Wednesday — For Let

 

Ruby Tuesday — A Very Smart Dogger

Ruby is a very smart dog.  She is also a dog with very little coat and she gets cold.  Our bed is the warmest bed in the house.  It’s a 1970’s era water bed so it’s always warm.  She loves it.  Greg — for all his many fantastic atributes — does not like sleeping with a dog.  So, she is not allowed to sleep with us.  Ruby usually solves this dilemma by sleeping with the kids — not much is warmer than sleeping kids, after all.

But Ruby would like to sleep with us, in our bed, our warm bed.  She occasionally tries to join us — I will half-awakedly push her off.  This is when she usually goes to sleep with the kids. And, all is well.

Ruby is a very smart dog, however.  This morning, I woke up and she was sleeping at my feet.  She’d found a warm spot and crept up there and curled up quietly and was asleep.  At my feet.  Quietly.

I gave her a silent pat on the head and went on my way.  She’s a good girl.  What Greg doesn’t know, won’t hurt him! 

 

Will he still need me? Will he still feed me?

My husband borrowed my camera for his meeting today. So my plans for my post went out the window. No worries. With a backlog of photos (even out of focus ones), I can always find something to yammer on about.

I am very excited today because I am getting a new computer. Greg is picking it up today while he is out and about. I should clarify . . . it’s a new to ME computer. We love Craig’s List! I am getting a laptop — a Powerbook G4. Like this . . .

Isn’t it beautiful? And, because I am all about the accessories and all about the stuff and all about the tools and the stuff (did I mention the stuff?), I ordered some accessories last night . . .

It’s going to be the pinkest Powerbook evah! My husband is appalled (which only makes it all the better!)

So, the really exciting thing about this is why I am getting it. Summer is coming. I will have a lot of free time. My husband — who really does love and understand me — is calling my bluff. Bad things happen when people call my bluffs — I generally end up doing what I said I was going to do. I do things like get tattoos when I turn 40 and things like that. So anyway, this particular bluff isn’t about tattoos, body piercing, or anything like that. It’s about doing something I’ve always said I would do. Doing something that I think I’m good at. Doing something I’ve always dreamed of doing. Writing.

My husband is calling my bluff, buying me a laptop, and telling me to write. A book, a story, poems, articles — whatever it is that comes out. Just write. Focus on the writing. Make time and space for writing. Write.

Is it any wonder that I love him so much? What a guy. He knew my dreams when I was 18. He honors them when I’m 44.  I’m guessing he’ll feel the same when I’m 64.

 

Bird Report from Morro Bay

My Morro Bay trip was more about family fun and frivolity than birding. Still, I did manage a little birding while I was there. Some (the Turkeys) seemed to come and find me. Others were there at just the right moment. Still others flew by but were not id’d. There was a few tiny birds in the trees around our campsites but I never saw them well enough to id them. They were totally flitters — never settled anywhere long enough to be id’d. Probably Vireos or Kinglets but no way to tell for sure.

Wild Turkey - Meleagris gallopavo 3
California Quail - Callipepla californica X
Western Grebe - Aechmophorus occidentalis 1
Great Blue Heron - Ardea herodias 1
Great Egret - Ardea alba 2
Snowy Egret - Egretta thula 2
Turkey Vulture - Cathartes aura X
Anna’s Hummingbird - Calypte anna X
Costa’s Hummingbird - Calypte costae 1 LIFER!
Chestnut-backed Chickadee - Poecile rufescens X
Bewick’s Wren - Thryomanes bewickii 1 LIFER! Oops - not a lifer.  Already on my list.  Sigh.
Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon) - Junco hyemalis [oreganus Group] X
House Finch - Carpodacus mexicanus 4

“Go away! You’re giving away my hiding place! Stop taking pictures! GO AWAY! NOW!”

I think my favorite bird of the trip was this irritated female House Sparrow. Don’t you love the way she’s giving me the hairy eyeball? My crime, you ask? Well, I found her nest! She was nesting under the eaves of a little cafe by the water. She was not happy to see me, I’ll tell you.

So, yes, I went away!