As a little girl growing up in Pensacola, I always went to the parades downtown. Mardi Gras parades, Fiesta of Five Flags parades, Veterans Day, Christmas. Of all the Krewes that took part, my favorite was the Mayoki Indian Krewe. They always had the best floats, the shiniest costumes, and threw the best beads and prizes. Even Moonpies! (You gotta be from the area of New Orleans-Mobile-Pensacola-Ft. Walton beach to get that one.)
As a college student, I remember being in a Village Inn at 1:30 in the morning after a parade night, and the resturant was totally empty. Next thing we knew, 60 Mayoki Indians come in, in full costume, drunk as skunks. They were hilarious - so much fun!
As an adult, I was so thrilled to be approached by a Mayoki to attend a prospective membership event. (It is very difficult to become a Mayoki. You have to be invited to join.) Unfortunately, Bart and I moved to Atlanta before we could pursue my Mayoki dream.
Fast Forward 10 years. We now live in Tampa, home of the Gasparilla Pirate Fest. I have a minor obsession with all things Pirate, and I don't quite know why. It may be that I have some far-back realtions to the infamous female Pirate Anne Bonney. It may be that I've listened to too many Jimmy Buffett songs. It may be that I wish I had a sailboat that I could putter around in and fly the Jolly Roger. In any case, a Pirate Festival that happens every year is right up my alley.
As in Pensacola, the Krewes in Tampa are notoriously hard to get into. Many are by invite only, and even if they aren't, there is a rigourous application process. You have to attend events as a non-member. You have to pay a HUGE fee. You have to be interviewed, and sometimes provide references.
Not one to be put off by such trivialities, I began searching for a Krewe. Not only would it allow me to live out my Mayoki dreams, but it might also tie into my whole Pirate thing too. AND it's a great chance to meet some new people and also participate in some very worthwile charitable endeavors.
My search began by limiting the search to all-female Krewes. (Bart's 100% not interested in doing this at all...) There are quite a few in Tampa - 10 or so. next I looked for Krewes that had been established for awhile. Then I cut out the ones that were invitation only (that would be the Bonney-Read Krewe, which I was greatly interested in). Then I reviewed the charities (some are social only.) Then I read the history of the Krewes left, and the story of how they were named.
One stood out from the rest: The Thieves of San Lorenzo. They are a large Krewe (capped at 130 members), established in the late 90's. They will accept applications, but you have to go through the process to be considered. You have to be 30 or older, so that eliminates all the drunk and puking 22 year olds. They are named after a bunch of women who had their homes sacked and their belongings stolen while their husbands were at war. So they stole back what was theirs. They are generally Pirate-themed, and the pics look like they have a great time.
I can afford the fees (sort of. Bart can.) I like the charities. I have the references (I can produce my Mayoki contact as well as references from my parent's Krewe. (My mom and dad, along with my Godparents, were longtime members of the Krewe de Bienville in Mobile, Alabama. I was actually "presented" by my Dad to the King of Mardi Gras at a ball in 1992.) I have the time, I have the interest. So I'm going to go. I'm hoping I can persuade a few people to do it with me, but if not I'll forge ahead alone.
I doubt the process will move fast enough for me to make it on a float this year, but maybe next year. I will keep you posted on my aspiration to become a "Thieve".
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Better Today
OK...after my depressive, manic, fairly lengthy rant yesterday, I am better today.
Imagine you've been in Disney World for a month, and then someone tells you you have to leave. It's sort of like that. It's not that you don't LIKE your house - it's just that it's not as fun as Disney World.
I will adjust. And buying new clothes and shoes online last night helped too. Retail therapy.
Oh - and I came home to an empty sink today. NO DISHES! Makes things muuuuuuuccccch better.
Bear with me folks - the journey may be bumpy, but at least I'm still a'going.
Imagine you've been in Disney World for a month, and then someone tells you you have to leave. It's sort of like that. It's not that you don't LIKE your house - it's just that it's not as fun as Disney World.
I will adjust. And buying new clothes and shoes online last night helped too. Retail therapy.
Oh - and I came home to an empty sink today. NO DISHES! Makes things muuuuuuuccccch better.
Bear with me folks - the journey may be bumpy, but at least I'm still a'going.
Monday, September 27, 2010
What's In A Name
As a semi-permanent Kindergarten Aide, I get to work with five classes of 5 and 6 year olds - a total of about 90 kids. Names are my current fascination. I mean, you usually have 1 or 2 doozies - crazy-ass names that no one would have ever thought of unless they were on crack of acid. But this year, it seems as if the parents were TRYING to make things difficult, not only for the child, but also for anyone who needs to know the child's name.
Exhibit A: Taylor. Lots of kids are named Taylor. Mostly girls, a few boys here and there. But one family CHOSE to name their child "T-A-Y-E-L-O-R." WTF?
Exhibit B: There are 2-3 Chases at our school, mine being one of them. Today, a new student transferred in. A boy named "C-H-A-Y-S-E".
Exhibit C: The new trend is to change "Sophia" to "S-O-F-I-A."
I lean a little out on the weird branch with "Karlin", but still...are these people nuts? It's like someone said "Hey - let's take a perfectly good name and throw some extra letters in there!"
I have more... Madison - we have Madison, Madisen, and Madisyn. Jackson and Jakson. Emeline (Emma-LINE). Dalaney. Rowan (girl). Ronen (boy). Alayna/Alana. Annabella/Anabella. Aiden/Aidan. Sidney/Sydney. Naveah.
I guess every coin has a 2nd side, though. There's an Eleanore, an Ava Catherine, an Elizabeth, a Joseph, a Stephen. A Gabrielle, a Laura, and a Alicia. (Although that last one is pronounced A LIH See A) A Luke, a William, a Gregory. A Julia.
My poor nephews have FOUR names, thanks to their British father. Don't even ask me how they are going to fill our Tests or Driver's Licence Applications or really
anything.
No Jessicas. No Julies. No Katies. No Brads or Kevins or Dans.
A sign o the times, I guess...
Exhibit A: Taylor. Lots of kids are named Taylor. Mostly girls, a few boys here and there. But one family CHOSE to name their child "T-A-Y-E-L-O-R." WTF?
Exhibit B: There are 2-3 Chases at our school, mine being one of them. Today, a new student transferred in. A boy named "C-H-A-Y-S-E".
Exhibit C: The new trend is to change "Sophia" to "S-O-F-I-A."
I lean a little out on the weird branch with "Karlin", but still...are these people nuts? It's like someone said "Hey - let's take a perfectly good name and throw some extra letters in there!"
I have more... Madison - we have Madison, Madisen, and Madisyn. Jackson and Jakson. Emeline (Emma-LINE). Dalaney. Rowan (girl). Ronen (boy). Alayna/Alana. Annabella/Anabella. Aiden/Aidan. Sidney/Sydney. Naveah.
I guess every coin has a 2nd side, though. There's an Eleanore, an Ava Catherine, an Elizabeth, a Joseph, a Stephen. A Gabrielle, a Laura, and a Alicia. (Although that last one is pronounced A LIH See A) A Luke, a William, a Gregory. A Julia.
My poor nephews have FOUR names, thanks to their British father. Don't even ask me how they are going to fill our Tests or Driver's Licence Applications or really
anything.
No Jessicas. No Julies. No Katies. No Brads or Kevins or Dans.
A sign o the times, I guess...
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Guilty or Lazy?
So it's Thursday. Bart has been gone pretty much all week. I am working full-time for now, and I spend the bulk of my day with 5 year olds. Upon arriving home, my kids commence the 2010 Drama Extravaganza. There's whining. There's bickering. There's crankiness.
So I'm outside. By myself. Drinking a beer. Ok - 2 beers.
Am I lazy? 'Cause I'm feeling a little guilty. It's almost 7 pm and we haven't had dinner yet. (in all fairness, I asked the kids if they were hungry yet and they said no - they are playing with the neighborhood kids at the moment.) The pool deck is a disaster zone. I have some work to do, and the house is a wreck. And don't even get me started on the laundry.
So why exactly am I sitting outside, listening to the pool spillover, drinking a beer (or two), and wasting time on the computer? Dunno. Maybe I am lazy.
I don't know if I will employed past the end of the month, and I can't decide if that's a good thing or a bad thing. On the plus side: the extra money is nice. I like the school and I like the kids and I like my teachers. I mostly like the job (it's getting better now that the teachers are actually trusting me to do stuff with the kids.) It is kind of nice to be doing something every day that someone says "Hey - thanks for coming. How bout we give you a paycheck?" Bart thinks I am making the world a better place, but I think he's overestimating what I do. The commute rocks - .4 of a mile. I haven't had to get gas in weeks. The hours are the same as the kids are in school. This is great because I mostly don't have to worry about child care. But it sucks because it means I get no time to myself. Ever.
On the minus side? Note to the world: getting up to go to a job every day SUCKS. I got busted today for being 4 minutes late. I have spent the last 7 years bring my own boss, so I'm unaccustomed to being on someone else's schedule. That list of things you have to do - laundry, groceries, cooking, cleaning, etc. - it doesn't go away when you get a job. My house is a train wreck, which makes me a little stressed.
(this is the part where one might say - "Then damn girl, get off the computer and go get your shit done.")
I knew I would go back to work someday. But I tell you what - I guess I always thought giving up the freedom and the flexibility would be for a WHOLE LOT MORE MONEY. That cashier at the Girl Scout store? She makes $3 an hour more than I do. Hey - that Janitor at the City Park? Beats me by almost $2. I have a college degree, some post-grad study, 5+ years in educations/curriculum development, 5+ years in various communications and marketing roles, non-profit fundraising experience, and public speaking experience. It's a little hard to stomach the low pay. The full-time job I considered taking last year paid $47,000 MORE than the one I'm in now. Ouch.
You know another negative? I miss being able to spend time in my kid's classes. The reading, the helping with Fun Fridays, the crafts, the scrapbooks - I really miss that. Sure - I'm at the school. But I'm not as involved in the classroom as I have been in past years.
So say my position gets eliminated in 2 weeks - which there is at least a 50/50 chance of happening. Am I happy? Sad? Upset?
I honestly don't know. I have Mommy guilt because I'm not in the kid's classrooms, I'm way exhausted at the end of the day, and the house and laundry are a disaster.
And I miss the freedom. The leisure to go shopping when I want, or work on house projects, or exercise. I miss having lunch with Bart. I miss my girl's nights out, which I haven't been to lately because I have to get up for work the next day.
So I don't know. My perfect compromise would be part-time, but that's not likely to happen.
In the meantime, I sit. And drink beer. And wonder exactly why it's fair that the dumb bastards who created The Snuggie and Silly Bandz are laughing all the way to the bank.
The answer to Life, The Universe, and Everything? That would be 42.
So I'm outside. By myself. Drinking a beer. Ok - 2 beers.
Am I lazy? 'Cause I'm feeling a little guilty. It's almost 7 pm and we haven't had dinner yet. (in all fairness, I asked the kids if they were hungry yet and they said no - they are playing with the neighborhood kids at the moment.) The pool deck is a disaster zone. I have some work to do, and the house is a wreck. And don't even get me started on the laundry.
So why exactly am I sitting outside, listening to the pool spillover, drinking a beer (or two), and wasting time on the computer? Dunno. Maybe I am lazy.
I don't know if I will employed past the end of the month, and I can't decide if that's a good thing or a bad thing. On the plus side: the extra money is nice. I like the school and I like the kids and I like my teachers. I mostly like the job (it's getting better now that the teachers are actually trusting me to do stuff with the kids.) It is kind of nice to be doing something every day that someone says "Hey - thanks for coming. How bout we give you a paycheck?" Bart thinks I am making the world a better place, but I think he's overestimating what I do. The commute rocks - .4 of a mile. I haven't had to get gas in weeks. The hours are the same as the kids are in school. This is great because I mostly don't have to worry about child care. But it sucks because it means I get no time to myself. Ever.
On the minus side? Note to the world: getting up to go to a job every day SUCKS. I got busted today for being 4 minutes late. I have spent the last 7 years bring my own boss, so I'm unaccustomed to being on someone else's schedule. That list of things you have to do - laundry, groceries, cooking, cleaning, etc. - it doesn't go away when you get a job. My house is a train wreck, which makes me a little stressed.
(this is the part where one might say - "Then damn girl, get off the computer and go get your shit done.")
I knew I would go back to work someday. But I tell you what - I guess I always thought giving up the freedom and the flexibility would be for a WHOLE LOT MORE MONEY. That cashier at the Girl Scout store? She makes $3 an hour more than I do. Hey - that Janitor at the City Park? Beats me by almost $2. I have a college degree, some post-grad study, 5+ years in educations/curriculum development, 5+ years in various communications and marketing roles, non-profit fundraising experience, and public speaking experience. It's a little hard to stomach the low pay. The full-time job I considered taking last year paid $47,000 MORE than the one I'm in now. Ouch.
You know another negative? I miss being able to spend time in my kid's classes. The reading, the helping with Fun Fridays, the crafts, the scrapbooks - I really miss that. Sure - I'm at the school. But I'm not as involved in the classroom as I have been in past years.
So say my position gets eliminated in 2 weeks - which there is at least a 50/50 chance of happening. Am I happy? Sad? Upset?
I honestly don't know. I have Mommy guilt because I'm not in the kid's classrooms, I'm way exhausted at the end of the day, and the house and laundry are a disaster.
And I miss the freedom. The leisure to go shopping when I want, or work on house projects, or exercise. I miss having lunch with Bart. I miss my girl's nights out, which I haven't been to lately because I have to get up for work the next day.
So I don't know. My perfect compromise would be part-time, but that's not likely to happen.
In the meantime, I sit. And drink beer. And wonder exactly why it's fair that the dumb bastards who created The Snuggie and Silly Bandz are laughing all the way to the bank.
The answer to Life, The Universe, and Everything? That would be 42.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Random Thoughts
I have been too damned busy (work) and tired (work) to do much blogging. or to really even think about doing much blogging. So here's a bunch a useless thoughts than are running through my head. Consider this a stream of consciousness sort of thing - one though leading to the next.
* It is so freaking hot outside. The heat index yesterday - Sept. 14th - was 98 degrees. Actual temp was 94. I'm a warm weather girl, but would a few days of 86 degrees kill anyone?
* If you go back to work, the list of stuff you have to get done doesn't get any smaller. You just have less time to do it in.
* You would fall out of your chair if you saw some of the behaviors parents send their kids to school with.
* Teachers are grossly underpaid.
* Parents should really take some time to volunteer in the classroom. I mean - your kid is with that teacher and with those kids for more hours each week than they are with you. Don't you think you should have a handle on who they know and what they are doing?
* No, my son. You may not have any kind of Chocolate Cereal for breakfast.
* By the way - if you send your kids to school for the free breakfast, you should know that at least once a week they serve pizza and corn dogs. For breakfast.
* I think I'd like to live the life of my lazy spoiled cat.
* Gray Rat Snakes are really freaking fast.
* Only 15 more days until I can start hanging up my Halloween decorations!
* On rare occasions, if you put book holds on 15 books at the Public Library, they may all come in at once.
* You don't have much time to read if you have a job.
* It's really frustrating to not know if you'll have a job much longer, whether you need the job or not.
* It's a good day when someone refers to your hair roots as "low lights."
* Next week is International Talk Like Pirate Day.
* I bought a new Pirate Flag this weekend. It shows a Skull chugging a drink and says "Time Flies When You're Having Rum."
* I wish Jimmy Buffett would set his spring concert dates.
* I wish Zac Brown was playing anywhere near Tampa.
That's it - my thoughts are exhausted. Hopefully I'll have the energy to tackle the next topics in my mind soon. It's a toss up between "Why I Think It's Wrong to Build a Mosque Anywhere Near the Site of the World Trade Center (subtitled "I Don't Care if That Pastor Wants to Burn the Book") or "Why can't we get some Hurrican Action Here?"
* It is so freaking hot outside. The heat index yesterday - Sept. 14th - was 98 degrees. Actual temp was 94. I'm a warm weather girl, but would a few days of 86 degrees kill anyone?
* If you go back to work, the list of stuff you have to get done doesn't get any smaller. You just have less time to do it in.
* You would fall out of your chair if you saw some of the behaviors parents send their kids to school with.
* Teachers are grossly underpaid.
* Parents should really take some time to volunteer in the classroom. I mean - your kid is with that teacher and with those kids for more hours each week than they are with you. Don't you think you should have a handle on who they know and what they are doing?
* No, my son. You may not have any kind of Chocolate Cereal for breakfast.
* By the way - if you send your kids to school for the free breakfast, you should know that at least once a week they serve pizza and corn dogs. For breakfast.
* I think I'd like to live the life of my lazy spoiled cat.
* Gray Rat Snakes are really freaking fast.
* Only 15 more days until I can start hanging up my Halloween decorations!
* On rare occasions, if you put book holds on 15 books at the Public Library, they may all come in at once.
* You don't have much time to read if you have a job.
* It's really frustrating to not know if you'll have a job much longer, whether you need the job or not.
* It's a good day when someone refers to your hair roots as "low lights."
* Next week is International Talk Like Pirate Day.
* I bought a new Pirate Flag this weekend. It shows a Skull chugging a drink and says "Time Flies When You're Having Rum."
* I wish Jimmy Buffett would set his spring concert dates.
* I wish Zac Brown was playing anywhere near Tampa.
That's it - my thoughts are exhausted. Hopefully I'll have the energy to tackle the next topics in my mind soon. It's a toss up between "Why I Think It's Wrong to Build a Mosque Anywhere Near the Site of the World Trade Center (subtitled "I Don't Care if That Pastor Wants to Burn the Book") or "Why can't we get some Hurrican Action Here?"
Friday, August 13, 2010
Yes! I am an "Escapist"!
Thanks to the opening chapter of J. Maarten Troost's Getting Stoned With Savages, I now understand why I am the way that I am. I am always trying to get away from it all: get lost on vacation, get lost in a bottle of tequila - you name it. Bart has never understood why - when our life is so great (which it is) - why do I always want to get away? Now I get it - it's becuase I am an escapist.
As Mr. Troost points out, an escapist doesn't want to get ahead. He/she just wants to get away. I totally get that.
Unfortunately, uprooting my whole family and moving to an island in the South Pacific isn't really realistic. Especially since adventure and risk are not hallmarks of the man I married. (Hence our great life and lifestyle - lack of risk and adventure does have some benefits...)
Last week I read about this family sold their house and all their belongings, quit their jobs, bought an RV, and plan to spend the next year travelling the country together. Is it weird that I found that appealing?
Is it weird that sometimes I think about selling our 2300 square foot house, with 2 car garage, 2 1/2 bathrooms, and swimming pool, in order to buy a really small house somewhere on the water? Could we live in 1300 square feet if all of the windows looked out on the Gulf of Mexico?
I admit that we could probably do well - quite well - with a LOT less stuff. But some days I feel like the kids are right on top of me, even with 2300 square feet. And don't even get me started on the cost of the insurance for living by the water in Florida. It would most likely be more than the mortgage, that is IF you can get anyone to insure you at all.
I had a dream last night that we bought a Houseboat and lived on that. (This is what happens when you read Troost at bedtime.) How cool would that be? Not much to clean (considering that I'm blogging right now just to avoid cleaning the remaining 2100 square feet of my house I didn't get to yesterday...) No big elaborate meals in a galley. Want to go somewhere - pull anchor and head out. Need dinner? Grab a fishing pole. There are some definite benefits.
No wonder I woke up with "If I had a boat" by Lyle Lovett on the brain. Damn Troost.
But alas - that's not our path right now. Bart works from home, and needs to have good proximity to an airport. The kids go to school and I work .4 miles from the house. The school is EXCELLENT. We have all the modern conveniences nearby (except for a decent sized bookstore.) The beach is 20 minutes away. Downtown is 20 minutes away. Disney is close by. I could walk to the 2 grocery stores and about 10very decent restaurants if I wasn't so lazy. It's a good place to live.
That doesn't stop me, though, from humming "If I had a boat, I'd go out on the ocean..." for the rest of the day.
"Kiss my ass I bought a bought, I'm going out to sea..." ;)
As Mr. Troost points out, an escapist doesn't want to get ahead. He/she just wants to get away. I totally get that.
Unfortunately, uprooting my whole family and moving to an island in the South Pacific isn't really realistic. Especially since adventure and risk are not hallmarks of the man I married. (Hence our great life and lifestyle - lack of risk and adventure does have some benefits...)
Last week I read about this family sold their house and all their belongings, quit their jobs, bought an RV, and plan to spend the next year travelling the country together. Is it weird that I found that appealing?
Is it weird that sometimes I think about selling our 2300 square foot house, with 2 car garage, 2 1/2 bathrooms, and swimming pool, in order to buy a really small house somewhere on the water? Could we live in 1300 square feet if all of the windows looked out on the Gulf of Mexico?
I admit that we could probably do well - quite well - with a LOT less stuff. But some days I feel like the kids are right on top of me, even with 2300 square feet. And don't even get me started on the cost of the insurance for living by the water in Florida. It would most likely be more than the mortgage, that is IF you can get anyone to insure you at all.
I had a dream last night that we bought a Houseboat and lived on that. (This is what happens when you read Troost at bedtime.) How cool would that be? Not much to clean (considering that I'm blogging right now just to avoid cleaning the remaining 2100 square feet of my house I didn't get to yesterday...) No big elaborate meals in a galley. Want to go somewhere - pull anchor and head out. Need dinner? Grab a fishing pole. There are some definite benefits.
No wonder I woke up with "If I had a boat" by Lyle Lovett on the brain. Damn Troost.
But alas - that's not our path right now. Bart works from home, and needs to have good proximity to an airport. The kids go to school and I work .4 miles from the house. The school is EXCELLENT. We have all the modern conveniences nearby (except for a decent sized bookstore.) The beach is 20 minutes away. Downtown is 20 minutes away. Disney is close by. I could walk to the 2 grocery stores and about 10very decent restaurants if I wasn't so lazy. It's a good place to live.
That doesn't stop me, though, from humming "If I had a boat, I'd go out on the ocean..." for the rest of the day.
"Kiss my ass I bought a bought, I'm going out to sea..." ;)
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
"Hello Newman....." Where have all the SitComs gone?
I will admit that - as a young adult in the 90's - I was full-on into the golden age of the SitCom. The gloriously funny ones like Seinfeld and Friends. The short-lived ones like Sports Night. The smart ones like Murphy Brown. The trashy ones like Roseanne. The family ones like The Cosby Show. The Golden Girls. Will and Grace. Cheers. Coach. Designing Women.
Then there are some of the older ones too: WKRP in Cincinnati, Laverne and Shirly, Soap, Mork and Mindy, Taxi.
Where did all that GREAT TV go? I blame the Writer's Strike. A few years ago (10? 7?) There was a big Writer's Strike. This was just as the whole Reality TV thing was gaining momentum. The Real World was a bit for MTV, as was it's spin off Road Rules. Survivor was H-U-G-E. But when the writers went on strike, there was no one writing script. No one creating new characters and show ideas. So the networks looked at Survivor and MTV and said "Hey - those shows are doing really well, and there are no high-paid actors. You don't have to pay writers. You just throw a bunch of people in a situation, add a host and some cameramen, and voila! Hit TV Show. Cheap.
Don't get me wrong. Once upon a time I was a BIG Survivor fan. Deadliest Catch is one of the only shows I watch. And lately I've gotten into the show Cupcake Wars. Love Mythbusters too, and the occasional Dirty Jobs.
The only exception to this general Reality TV movement seemed to be towards Criminal TV. Shows like CSI and CSI Miami and CSI Las Vegas and CSI Texarkana and CSI Hoboken became the norm. I guess these are OK if that's your thing, but really...how many shows like that do you need? There were something in the neighborhood of 12 CSI shows, and then a whole plethora of shows just like it. I was never into the whole digging around in decomposed bodies thing, so I never watched much of that.
Some of these shows are great, but they just don't leave the mark on our popular culture like some of the famous SitComs did. Walk up to anyone - ANYONE - in their 30's and 40's and say "Could I BE wearing anymore clothes?" and they will know EXACTLY what you are referring to. Ditto with phrases like "There was no pick!"; "Going commando"; and "Norm!". I will never again hear Ray Charles's "Night Time is the Right Time" without seeing the entire Huxtable Family doing the anniversary Lip Sync. Julia Sugarbaker's rousing defense of her sister's participation in the Miss Georgia Pageant (I believe the episode was called "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia.") made me view family loyalty in a whole new way. Spicy Blanche Devereaux made me thing there's hope for old biddys to still get their groove on. Will doing the "Footloose" dance with Kevin Bacon? Priceless.
And long before Mythbusters did their alcohol episode, Venus Flytrap and Johnny Fever were getting hammered on the air, with Johnny stumping the state patrolman. Remember the turkeys bombing out of the airplane? or Les Nessman saying Chichi Rodriguez's name as "Chy Chy Rodreegueeze"? I actually had Purple Cows on my 21st birthday (thank you Mr. Carlson...)
These shows changed the way we looked at life; the way we spoke; the way we interacted with each other. I have yet to find anything on TV right now that has that kind of impact. And to be quite honest, I just miss LAUGHING. I want to see Herb Tarlek wear some ridiculous outfit. I want to hear Chandler Bing say something razor sharp. I miss Kramer crashing into the room. I still laugh my ass off when I think of Ross - stuck in a date's bathroom, trying to use baby powder and Vaseline to get off the new leather pants he wore. And you KNOW you know all the words to "Smelly Cat."
So this is my plea to any network folks out there who may stumble upon this blog: please bring back some funny, senseless, quality SitComs. The world is a scary, depressing place sometimes, and we really miss our old friends who made weekly appearances into our lives.
Then there are some of the older ones too: WKRP in Cincinnati, Laverne and Shirly, Soap, Mork and Mindy, Taxi.
Where did all that GREAT TV go? I blame the Writer's Strike. A few years ago (10? 7?) There was a big Writer's Strike. This was just as the whole Reality TV thing was gaining momentum. The Real World was a bit for MTV, as was it's spin off Road Rules. Survivor was H-U-G-E. But when the writers went on strike, there was no one writing script. No one creating new characters and show ideas. So the networks looked at Survivor and MTV and said "Hey - those shows are doing really well, and there are no high-paid actors. You don't have to pay writers. You just throw a bunch of people in a situation, add a host and some cameramen, and voila! Hit TV Show. Cheap.
Don't get me wrong. Once upon a time I was a BIG Survivor fan. Deadliest Catch is one of the only shows I watch. And lately I've gotten into the show Cupcake Wars. Love Mythbusters too, and the occasional Dirty Jobs.
The only exception to this general Reality TV movement seemed to be towards Criminal TV. Shows like CSI and CSI Miami and CSI Las Vegas and CSI Texarkana and CSI Hoboken became the norm. I guess these are OK if that's your thing, but really...how many shows like that do you need? There were something in the neighborhood of 12 CSI shows, and then a whole plethora of shows just like it. I was never into the whole digging around in decomposed bodies thing, so I never watched much of that.
Some of these shows are great, but they just don't leave the mark on our popular culture like some of the famous SitComs did. Walk up to anyone - ANYONE - in their 30's and 40's and say "Could I BE wearing anymore clothes?" and they will know EXACTLY what you are referring to. Ditto with phrases like "There was no pick!"; "Going commando"; and "Norm!". I will never again hear Ray Charles's "Night Time is the Right Time" without seeing the entire Huxtable Family doing the anniversary Lip Sync. Julia Sugarbaker's rousing defense of her sister's participation in the Miss Georgia Pageant (I believe the episode was called "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia.") made me view family loyalty in a whole new way. Spicy Blanche Devereaux made me thing there's hope for old biddys to still get their groove on. Will doing the "Footloose" dance with Kevin Bacon? Priceless.
And long before Mythbusters did their alcohol episode, Venus Flytrap and Johnny Fever were getting hammered on the air, with Johnny stumping the state patrolman. Remember the turkeys bombing out of the airplane? or Les Nessman saying Chichi Rodriguez's name as "Chy Chy Rodreegueeze"? I actually had Purple Cows on my 21st birthday (thank you Mr. Carlson...)
These shows changed the way we looked at life; the way we spoke; the way we interacted with each other. I have yet to find anything on TV right now that has that kind of impact. And to be quite honest, I just miss LAUGHING. I want to see Herb Tarlek wear some ridiculous outfit. I want to hear Chandler Bing say something razor sharp. I miss Kramer crashing into the room. I still laugh my ass off when I think of Ross - stuck in a date's bathroom, trying to use baby powder and Vaseline to get off the new leather pants he wore. And you KNOW you know all the words to "Smelly Cat."
So this is my plea to any network folks out there who may stumble upon this blog: please bring back some funny, senseless, quality SitComs. The world is a scary, depressing place sometimes, and we really miss our old friends who made weekly appearances into our lives.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Maybe Your GPS Can Help You Find Your Kindle
OK - so I'm now that cranky old woman who hates technology. I don't really hate it. I mean...I want an iphone. I wish I had a nice flatscreen outside for football games. I think air cards are too cool. But there are a few things that really turn me off, electronically speaking.
The first? GPS machines for the car. Last night on the drive home from Savannah, we passed multiple cars with their GPS units prominently displayed on the dashboard. What did they all show? One big, straight, blue line showing I-75 South. I mean seriously....do you really think you're going to get lost on the Interstate? I have had a few personal experiences with the old GPS units in the past. Last summer, our rental car had one while we were in West Palm Beach. It managed to take us to the wrong place not once, not twice, but three times. And it's not like we were looking for really obscure locations, either. Once was a T.G.I. fridays that is located on a major thoroughfare. The GPS took us to an empty lot. A few weeks back, my mother-in-law used her GPS to drive down to Tampa. She called from the train wreck that is I-275, trying to figure out where in the heck she was. She was a good 20-25 minutes south of where she was supposed to be, and since it was rush hour, it added over an hour to her trip. Last week, the mom of one of Chase's classmates showed up late to a Spray park playdate. She said "I don't know what happened! My GPS took me all over the place! How did you find it?" I replied evenly "I used a map." The other moms all laughed like I was making a joke. Ha ha - but I really DID use a map. I had a general idea of where I was going - I just referenced my handy-dandy PAPER MAP to get the name of the correct road to turn onto.
So this got me thinking....what on Earth do you even need a GPS for? Unless you are a travelling Sales Rep or someone who visits new towns and cities a lot, what do you need one for? On the average day, where do you go that would require a GPS? Are you off-roading in the Everglades? Driving dirt roads in Bryce Canyon, Utah? WHAT? Do you need your GPS to get you to the grocery store? Or the movie theater? The best is those folks (and you know who you are) who live in a smallish town (Pensacola) and who have lived there their entire lives, and they have a GPS. I haven't lived in Pensacola for 10 years, and I still know my way around. It's craziness, I tell you. Some people buy the electronic device just to have one.
Then there's my other nemesis. The KINDLE. I don't have one, I don't want one. I LOVE books. I have always LOVED books. Ever since I was at Cordova Park Elementary School and came in 2nd every damned year in the reading competitions (thanks Ashley Weaver.) Bart and I have a great collection of well-worn favorites. Some paper back, some hardback. Some picture books, some reference books. I still have the Britannica Children's Atlas that I had as a child. Even though a lot of the countries no longer exist, and some new ones have come into existence, I remember that book. I used to look at the pictures and read the description and dream about visiting some of the places. I still have the beaten and abused Richard Scary books that I used to LOVE to read and look at at my Aunt Biddy's house when I was little. I have my Dad's copy of Treasure Island (the one he used in High School) that is so used it fell apart when I re-read it a few months back.
For me, books have always been an escape. A way to be someone else, go someplace else, and experience new things. I loved that when I finished reading The Lord of the Rings trilogy, I had been so involved in the story and the characters, that I felt like I had lost a good friend. I love dog-earring pages that have some of my favorite parts, and going back again and again to re-read those pages. There's something about thumbing through pages - actual paper and ink - that is comforting and rewarding. The phrase "it's a real page turner" just won't work with a Kindle.
I think it's really cool that in this day and age of emails and ebooks, me and my friend Deb have reconnected through BOOKS. That's right - we have taken to finding really great books, reading them, and then mailing them to each other. In a real box through the postal service. It's such a treat to get something in the mail that's not a bill or advertising crap. Then, you open it up and a little treasure is inside, full of laughs or tears or adventures. And you feel a little closer to that friend who sent it to you, because you recognize why she loved that book, and why she thinks you will like it too.
It makes me sad, too, that the Public Libraries are going to start having the digital books. We love the Public Library, and I still think it's the coolest thing ever that you can go there and they let you take BOOKS home in good faith. I loved the little branch libraries that used to be in Pensacola. It makes me sad that my kids are just as inclined to go to the Library for the computers as they are to go get books. It makes me sad to know that someday, my grand kids may not even own books printed on paper. It may all be electronic by then.
So I'm standing - stubbornly and proudly - by my paper maps and my paper books. I'm going to keep stockpiling my favorite books, so that one day maybe my grand kids might read them. Part of the adventure is finding your way, and sometimes that means getting a little lost.
** Post Script: In all fairness to my beloved daughter, she loves books too. Her copies of the first 4 Harry Potter books, her Percy Jackson books, and her entire Narnia Series books are all bent and dog-earred to death. In the past, I have had to literally take the book out of her hands because she was reading in the shower. So maybe some of our love of books has rubbed off on her...
The first? GPS machines for the car. Last night on the drive home from Savannah, we passed multiple cars with their GPS units prominently displayed on the dashboard. What did they all show? One big, straight, blue line showing I-75 South. I mean seriously....do you really think you're going to get lost on the Interstate? I have had a few personal experiences with the old GPS units in the past. Last summer, our rental car had one while we were in West Palm Beach. It managed to take us to the wrong place not once, not twice, but three times. And it's not like we were looking for really obscure locations, either. Once was a T.G.I. fridays that is located on a major thoroughfare. The GPS took us to an empty lot. A few weeks back, my mother-in-law used her GPS to drive down to Tampa. She called from the train wreck that is I-275, trying to figure out where in the heck she was. She was a good 20-25 minutes south of where she was supposed to be, and since it was rush hour, it added over an hour to her trip. Last week, the mom of one of Chase's classmates showed up late to a Spray park playdate. She said "I don't know what happened! My GPS took me all over the place! How did you find it?" I replied evenly "I used a map." The other moms all laughed like I was making a joke. Ha ha - but I really DID use a map. I had a general idea of where I was going - I just referenced my handy-dandy PAPER MAP to get the name of the correct road to turn onto.
So this got me thinking....what on Earth do you even need a GPS for? Unless you are a travelling Sales Rep or someone who visits new towns and cities a lot, what do you need one for? On the average day, where do you go that would require a GPS? Are you off-roading in the Everglades? Driving dirt roads in Bryce Canyon, Utah? WHAT? Do you need your GPS to get you to the grocery store? Or the movie theater? The best is those folks (and you know who you are) who live in a smallish town (Pensacola) and who have lived there their entire lives, and they have a GPS. I haven't lived in Pensacola for 10 years, and I still know my way around. It's craziness, I tell you. Some people buy the electronic device just to have one.
Then there's my other nemesis. The KINDLE. I don't have one, I don't want one. I LOVE books. I have always LOVED books. Ever since I was at Cordova Park Elementary School and came in 2nd every damned year in the reading competitions (thanks Ashley Weaver.) Bart and I have a great collection of well-worn favorites. Some paper back, some hardback. Some picture books, some reference books. I still have the Britannica Children's Atlas that I had as a child. Even though a lot of the countries no longer exist, and some new ones have come into existence, I remember that book. I used to look at the pictures and read the description and dream about visiting some of the places. I still have the beaten and abused Richard Scary books that I used to LOVE to read and look at at my Aunt Biddy's house when I was little. I have my Dad's copy of Treasure Island (the one he used in High School) that is so used it fell apart when I re-read it a few months back.
For me, books have always been an escape. A way to be someone else, go someplace else, and experience new things. I loved that when I finished reading The Lord of the Rings trilogy, I had been so involved in the story and the characters, that I felt like I had lost a good friend. I love dog-earring pages that have some of my favorite parts, and going back again and again to re-read those pages. There's something about thumbing through pages - actual paper and ink - that is comforting and rewarding. The phrase "it's a real page turner" just won't work with a Kindle.
I think it's really cool that in this day and age of emails and ebooks, me and my friend Deb have reconnected through BOOKS. That's right - we have taken to finding really great books, reading them, and then mailing them to each other. In a real box through the postal service. It's such a treat to get something in the mail that's not a bill or advertising crap. Then, you open it up and a little treasure is inside, full of laughs or tears or adventures. And you feel a little closer to that friend who sent it to you, because you recognize why she loved that book, and why she thinks you will like it too.
It makes me sad, too, that the Public Libraries are going to start having the digital books. We love the Public Library, and I still think it's the coolest thing ever that you can go there and they let you take BOOKS home in good faith. I loved the little branch libraries that used to be in Pensacola. It makes me sad that my kids are just as inclined to go to the Library for the computers as they are to go get books. It makes me sad to know that someday, my grand kids may not even own books printed on paper. It may all be electronic by then.
So I'm standing - stubbornly and proudly - by my paper maps and my paper books. I'm going to keep stockpiling my favorite books, so that one day maybe my grand kids might read them. Part of the adventure is finding your way, and sometimes that means getting a little lost.
** Post Script: In all fairness to my beloved daughter, she loves books too. Her copies of the first 4 Harry Potter books, her Percy Jackson books, and her entire Narnia Series books are all bent and dog-earred to death. In the past, I have had to literally take the book out of her hands because she was reading in the shower. So maybe some of our love of books has rubbed off on her...
Friday, May 28, 2010
Failure with a Capital F
My exercise for 25 days plan..well, didn't really happen. I did really, really well for the first 3 days. Day #3 was a session from hell with the Wii Active lady. She made me do approximately 2 million squats, and 1 million lunges. The result being that I could barely move for 2 days. I seriously didn't start feeling back to normal for 4 days. So I started over on day #8. But then Tuesday I had to work, and Bart was out of town, so there was no one to watch the kids so I could go exercise. Wednesday it just didn't happen. Thursday was a repeat performance of Tuesday. (This whole working thing interferes with my life of leaisure, damn it!) Today I could have fit in a workout, but I decided to give myself a rare treat and go see a movie with some friends. I feel like I should get partial credit for only having a diet coke, and not eating any popcorn or snacks.
So this year, I was going to get all fit for a) my Soroity 20 year reunion; b) my 12th annual 28th birthday; and c) the trip to Mexico.
So far I have accomplished Nada. Although I am down about 10-12 pounds from the beginning of the year, it's still no where near where I had hoped to be.
So I get to look forward to dodging all pictures while in Mexico, and being all self-conscious about how I look in a bathing suit. I wish I had more self discipline. I wish I had less ass. I wish I had gluten issues.
Mexico is in exactly 14 days. Although I spent some time in CVS today looking over the various lose-weight-really-fast options (If you know of one that really works on the short-term, let me know please!), I didn't buy anything. I figure I could probably put that $40 to better use.
I wonder how you say Failure in Spanish?
So this year, I was going to get all fit for a) my Soroity 20 year reunion; b) my 12th annual 28th birthday; and c) the trip to Mexico.
So far I have accomplished Nada. Although I am down about 10-12 pounds from the beginning of the year, it's still no where near where I had hoped to be.
So I get to look forward to dodging all pictures while in Mexico, and being all self-conscious about how I look in a bathing suit. I wish I had more self discipline. I wish I had less ass. I wish I had gluten issues.
Mexico is in exactly 14 days. Although I spent some time in CVS today looking over the various lose-weight-really-fast options (If you know of one that really works on the short-term, let me know please!), I didn't buy anything. I figure I could probably put that $40 to better use.
I wonder how you say Failure in Spanish?
Monday, May 17, 2010
Why Do I ALWAYS Have To Learn My Lessons the Hard Way?
I didn't volunteer on the PTA for glory or fame or recognition. I did it becuase I genuinely want the place where my kids spend most of their time to be the BEST place it can be. I have served 2 years on the PTA Board, and 2 years on the School Advisory Council. I have been a Homeroom mom 2 of the past 3 years. I have been a reading coach 2 of the past 3 years. I will help any teacher with anything they ask. Always.
This year was different. I did NOT come back to the PTA Board after last year because of the AWFUL experience it was. I only came back because some people who are near and dear to me asked me to. I did my job, plus another person's job. Then halfway through the year I took on the about 1/2 of a third person's job.
I really have never done any of it for recognition. But this year I feel like I really REALLY went above and beyond. I didn't quit, not when people's promises to me proved to be empty ones. I picked up the slack - any of it - whenever other people dropped the ball. For the first time ever, I truly feel like I did more than anyone else for the betterment of the school. I honestly believe that not one single person on this planet put in more hours this year than i did.
So why am I sitting at home crying my eyes out? Because I was overlooked for an award? Maybe. Because they are about to give all my herd work and accomplishments back to the person who left me a mess to begin with? Probably.
I honest to God feel like I've been kicked in the gut. I should have never expected it, but I guess this year I kind of did. In the real world, the "Thank Yous" are sometimes - most times - not equal to the tasks.
Sometimes it takes a cold, hard slap in the face to show you the whole picture. I guess I just got mine.
This year was different. I did NOT come back to the PTA Board after last year because of the AWFUL experience it was. I only came back because some people who are near and dear to me asked me to. I did my job, plus another person's job. Then halfway through the year I took on the about 1/2 of a third person's job.
I really have never done any of it for recognition. But this year I feel like I really REALLY went above and beyond. I didn't quit, not when people's promises to me proved to be empty ones. I picked up the slack - any of it - whenever other people dropped the ball. For the first time ever, I truly feel like I did more than anyone else for the betterment of the school. I honestly believe that not one single person on this planet put in more hours this year than i did.
So why am I sitting at home crying my eyes out? Because I was overlooked for an award? Maybe. Because they are about to give all my herd work and accomplishments back to the person who left me a mess to begin with? Probably.
I honest to God feel like I've been kicked in the gut. I should have never expected it, but I guess this year I kind of did. In the real world, the "Thank Yous" are sometimes - most times - not equal to the tasks.
Sometimes it takes a cold, hard slap in the face to show you the whole picture. I guess I just got mine.
25 Days of Exercise
So I turned 40 last week. 40 doesn't look like I had hoped it would. The one bright spot is that MEXICO is only 25 days away.
Since realizing that I won't loose any significant amount of weight in the next 25 days, I came up with a plan B. If I can't LOSE it, maybe I can beat it into submission so that it will look a little different.
So today I embark on my 25 days of exercise. I plan to do something - at least 30 minutes of it - every single day until I get on that damned plane.
Day #1 (today) consisted of 30 minutes on the treadmill, and 20 minutes on the elliptical. I was forced to exercise inside (which I hate) because of the rain. But at least day #1 is done.
I hope to update every few days just to document my progress.
This goal is furthered by the mean, extremely over-weight nurse at my Cardiologist's office who gave me a hard time about gaining a little weight since my last visit. That cow can bite me - I mean, she easily weighed 300+ pounds. What in the hell is she doing working at a CARDIOLOGIST'S office anyway?
And speaking of the Cardiologist's office...I find it extremely ironic how many people stand or sit outside the doors frantically puffing on their cigarettes. I mean...seriously. Some of them are in wheelchairs and on respirators! Get a CLUE you idiots!
OK. Enough of that rant. I'm off to prepare to insult and berate some PTA Board members for making idiotic decisions. Oh the fun that is being me.
Since realizing that I won't loose any significant amount of weight in the next 25 days, I came up with a plan B. If I can't LOSE it, maybe I can beat it into submission so that it will look a little different.
So today I embark on my 25 days of exercise. I plan to do something - at least 30 minutes of it - every single day until I get on that damned plane.
Day #1 (today) consisted of 30 minutes on the treadmill, and 20 minutes on the elliptical. I was forced to exercise inside (which I hate) because of the rain. But at least day #1 is done.
I hope to update every few days just to document my progress.
This goal is furthered by the mean, extremely over-weight nurse at my Cardiologist's office who gave me a hard time about gaining a little weight since my last visit. That cow can bite me - I mean, she easily weighed 300+ pounds. What in the hell is she doing working at a CARDIOLOGIST'S office anyway?
And speaking of the Cardiologist's office...I find it extremely ironic how many people stand or sit outside the doors frantically puffing on their cigarettes. I mean...seriously. Some of them are in wheelchairs and on respirators! Get a CLUE you idiots!
OK. Enough of that rant. I'm off to prepare to insult and berate some PTA Board members for making idiotic decisions. Oh the fun that is being me.
Monday, May 3, 2010
Post-Camping Update...
OK! So our little cross-state experiment went pretty well! I had to exhibit some flexibility in the schedule (which is difficult for me), and there are a few things I would change. But overall, "we done good!"
The 2 nights at Aunt Courtney's were a breeze, and the Goofy Golf and day at the Magic Kingdom were great too. Then we headed over to St. Augustine. It was a relatively short (2 hours) drive through the town of Christmas (I'm a nerd and made the kids get out and take a pic in front of the "Welcome to Christmas" sign...). We then hit St. Augustine, and went immediately to the lighthouse. It was amazing! We all climbed to the top for amazing views of the Atlantic on one side, and historic St. Augustine on the other. Although the kids weren't super-interested in the Educational and Historical stuff, I did make them learn 3 things: How many steps to the top (219), how old it was (122 years), and how high it was (40 stories). Then we went for a hike on the trails around the grounds, and headed over to the old city.
We crossed the "Bridge of Lions", which I honestly thought had lion statues on it (wrong.) Then we took a quick left and parked at the Castillo de San Marcos national Monument. This was a REALLY COOL fort. Spectacular views, awesome architecture, great history. They even had cannons! Karlin and I could have wandered and read the signs all day but Chase's cranky stomach had other ideas, so after an hour of exploring we headed out. We opted out of the Fountain of Youth when we found out that a) no one can actually confirm that Ponce de Leon was ever there, and b) most historians now think the whole fountain was a ruse to begin with - just a way to get the Spaniards to leave the natives alone. We had a quick lunch, and then went to check in at Anastasia State Park. We had a great, clean campsite on a relatively secluded tent-only loop. The campsite kind of backed up to another, but it wasn't too bad. The bathrooms were only about 50 steps away (but out of sight), and the kids could ride their scooters on the loop. We set the tent up (Karlin and I rocked it), then drove the 3/4 mile down to the beach.
The Atlantic beach is a little different than the Gulf. The water is much more rough, and the sand is more hard-packed. It was a little overcast and a little drizzly while we were there, but the kids loved it anyway. I sat a read, and they played tag with the waves, chased sea gulls, and built sand forts. It was too windy to fly kites, so we just hung out and watched the sun set behind the dunes.
Sunset was our signal to get back to camp and light the grill. I can honestly say that I - by myself - lit the charcoal and grilled cheeseburgers that were to die for! (I don't know what it is about being outside that makes food taste so damned good, but it does!) We had our Christmas lights up on the tent, the lantern hung from the post near the fire, 2 paper lanterns hung about the campsite, and two flameless candles on the picnic table. Cheeseburgers were YUMMY! And - being the consummate Girl Scout - I then HAD to make smores. These were also fantastic! There's something about being all sticky with marshmallow goo and listening to some chillin tunes on the Ipod that just make it seem like all is right with the world. It helped, too, that we could hear the surf from our campsite!
After quick showers, we all hit the rack. The trees were dropping these little seed pod thingies - small like sand, but if you left your drink or food unattended for more than a few minuted, you'd have tree seed thingies in it. The up side of this was that during the night, the seed thingies fell lightly on the tent, sounding a little like light rain. Made for a GREAT night's sleep!
The next morning we had a quick breakfast, packed up camp, and headed back to the beach for a little bit. Then we struck out headed West...I had Oysters on my mind! :)
This part of the journey was my first miscalculation. It took a LOT longer to get from St. Augustine to Apalachicola than I thought. Mapquest said just over 4 hours, but Mapquest doesn't factor in the miles and miles of roads out in the middle of nowhere. These roads had speed limits of 60 to 25, and usually had a cop hidden out somewhere to catch unsuspecting city folk who came blazing through. Fortunately, this city girl used to be a small town girl, so I knew what to look for. Reality was closer to 5 1/2 hours, which is a long time to be in the car. The country between Tallahassee is beautiful - gorgeous coastlines, quaint little beach houses (no mega-mansions), small Mom & Pop stores. The down side is that is is quite literally in the middle of nowhere.
Eventually, we crossed the bridge into Apalachicola. I had never been before, and it looked a lot like I expected it to. A little historic downtown, lost of waterways and shrimp/fish/oyster boats. We ate at a little place called Papa Joe's, where I had 2 dozen scrumptious oysters and a vat of seafood Gumbo. (It should be noted here that it's REALLY, REALLY hard to get this kind of food in Tampa.) After our late lunch, we were off to St. Joseph's Peninsula State Park in Cape San Blas.
It was only about 30 minutes from Papa Joe's to the park, but man, you may as well have driven off the planet. There was about 20 minutes of nothin. And I mean nothin - no gas stations, no CVS...NOTHIN. Then you turned left to get onto the cape, and finally....something! Houses...TONS of them. Mack-daddy million dollar homes, right along beautiful gulf beaches and shore-side waterways. But still not much else. There was a small gas station, a pizza shop...maybe a few other things. I kept thinking: "Where do these people buy groceries? Where do they work?"
Once we got into the park, we found our campsite. It was gorgeous - you could see the dunes on one side, and some wetlands from another. It was a little close to the neighbors, but we manages to block them with the truck and the tent. The boardwalk to the beach was 25 steps away, and the beach was right there. And what a beach it was! GORGEOUS! White sands, sand dunes, shells, blue water. After setting up camp, we went down to the beach for the rest of the afternoon, and this time watched the sun set over the gulf. That night, we took a nightwalk and saw quite literally the most stars I have ever seen! It was really cool.
Of course, there was a bad side (or two.) Our neighbors kept a steady stream of smoke flowing into our campsite, even though they weren't using their fire pit 75% of the time. There were no "tent only" loops at this campground, so we had a wide array of $100,000 RVs all around us. The bathrooms and showers were a bit of a hike. And we were off the grid. I mean Off. The. Grid. No Wi Fi (which I expected.) No cell service (which almost caused Bart to have a coronary.) I had to run around camp with my phone in the air and one leg sticking up trying to get enough of a signal to send him a text saying we were OK. Then there was Chase, who managed to lock himself in the shower stall not once, but twice. And then he pulled the tent stakes up while all the stuff was still inside the tent.
But overall it was pretty cool. The next morning we spent a half-day at the beach, and then headed west to Pensacola. (We opted out of the Marianna caves in order to spend more time on the beach.)
What would I do differently?
1) I would make the drives a little shorter. I should have spaced the campgrounds out so that we never had to go more than 3 1/2 hours to get to one.
2) I would have planned to stay more than one night at each campsite. It's really hard to set up a whole camp, and then break it down 12 to 14 hours later. Plus, when you only stay 1 night, you never really get a chance to explore the campground (ours were both in State Parks). There were hiking trails and sand dune walks and all kinds of stuff we never got to see ot do.
3) I will never, ever drive Highway 98 through the Panhandle again. I looked at the map, and decided "It's more than 60 miles back up to I-10 - it will probably be faster to just take 98 on over." Bart seconded this decision, but we were both WRONG. The drive that should have taken about 3 hours took 5. In heavy stop-and-go traffic. With stop lights every 1/2 mile. Miserable.
Overall though I thought it was a success. I was really tired when we got to Pensacola. It's hard being the Full-time parent when you are off your home turf. But now that I've had a few weeks to reflect back on it, I think I would do it again.
The kids and I are eyeballing the Keys for next year. If we spread things out a bit, i think it might work. Maybe Bart can even go with us next time...
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Camping Crazy
I am taking a road trip through the state of Florida over spring break - just me and the kids. Am I crazy? Likely, but I'm doing it anyway. Let me 'splain...
There are generally two schools of thought about how much interaction you should have with your kids. One school - I'll call this the "Family Fun" method - is based on spending most of your free time with your kids, usually involved in some craft or activity. Family Fun magazine promotes this mindset, with intricate and time-consuming crafts and activities that usually leave me either cussing or in tears. The goal here is to engage your children in lots of creative, mind-stimulating activities, and to spend lots of "quality time" with them. This will ensure that they have wonderful, life-long memories of your time spent together.
School # 2 - and I'll call this the "John Rosemond" method, basically advocates the "you have more toys than Toys R Us - go find something to do" approach. Also known as the "go outside and play" approach. John Rosemond (a pretty well-known parenting guru) feels pretty strongly that adults were not put on this earth to entertain their children. He believes we are not raising children. We are raising people, and forcing them to entertain themselves and be creative and imaginative on their own is a great way to do that.
I'd like to think I am somewhere in the middle, but in reality I fall closer to the John Rosemond school. More often times than not, I send the kids out to play, or tell them to go find something to do.
So I'm feeling a little guilt that I don't make more of an effort to do cool things with my kids. Disney World aside, of course. And trips to Mexico.
So this is where my idea was born. I love camping. The kids love camping. Bart hates camping. I love exploring and visiting new places and just hitting the road. Bart hates that stuff, unless it involves a golf course and a nice hotel. I USED to - back before I got all grown up - love to just fly by the seat of my pants and head out somewhere. Bart never did that. (God bless the boy, he is the Yin to my Yang...) The kids have a week off for Spring Break, but Bart has to work. Rather than having them here, bouncing off the walls and generally driving me crazy all week, I decided to plan a trip. We have to be in Pensacola at the end of that week anyway for my sorority reunion, so why not take our sweet time getting there?
So - we're spending 2 nights at Aunt Courtney's house, and doing a day at Disney in between. Then we hit the open road. We're heading up to St. Augustine, mainly because I've never been there. We're going to visit the lighthouse and climb to the top. We're going to visit the Castillo de San Marcos. We're going to - OF COURSE -visit the Fountain of Youth. Then we're camping for the night at Anastasia State Park. In a tent.
The next morning, we get up and head west. We're going to Apalachicola, mainly because I've never been there. And because they have the world's best oysters. (The beaches down that way are supposed to be good too...) We're going to the world-famous Papa Joe's Oyster House, where I fully intend to eat as many of the little bivalves as humanly possible. Then we head about 30 minutes west on the coast to camp at St. Joseph's Peninsula State Park. The beach and nature preserve are supposed to be awesome.
The next day, we head north to Marianna to do the Cavern Tour. Now, I have actually done this before, and I thought it was pretty cool. So I'm taking the kids there. We'll have lunch at the park, and then head on to Pensacola. We're making one other minor side trip. On Friday, we're going to The Northwest Florida Zoo (formerly known as The ZOO and Botanical Gardens.) This is the Zoo where I worked for 4 years, and still look back on it as the most fun job I have ever had. It closed down last year for financial reasons, but now it's back open. I want to take my kids there, and show them where I worked. They probably won't appreciate that this was where I got my vast - and mostly useless - knowledge about all things animal. I ll probably tell them how I made friends there that I still have to this day, and how I had to drive my Geo Tracker across the bridge in a Tropical Storm in order to help secure the animals. I might show them the on-site trailer I lived in for 6 months, and tell them how I used to hand-feed and pet Eland every evening after work. I'll tell them how -at my job interview - I was thrown on a safari train to narrate, and then tossed into a cage with a rather ornery King Vulture. It was a great place to work, and I want to support the new ownership. So we're going.
I'm hoping that I can pass on my love of adventure, my love of cheesy tourist attractions, and my love of some unique Floridana to my kids. I hope one day maybe they'll tell their kids about the time mom took them on a road trip through Florida. I'm bringing the DVD player, but it's use will be severly limited. I want the kids to play license plate games, and I Spy, and we'll all sing stupid songs. (Can I get a rousing chorus of "On Top Of Sphagetti", please?) I want it to be more like the road trips families took when I was a kid, complete with Mad Libs and orange soda. We're gonna camp, and ride our bikes, and walk on nature trails. We're gonna do cheesy touristy things and eat ice cream and fly kites at the beach. It's gonna be great.
Bart says I'm nuts. He says it's too much for the kids to do in one week. I think I can handle it, though. We'll stop at Publix every day and get the food for the next 24 hours. If it rains, we'll sleep in my truck. If it rains A LOT, we'll check into a hotel. If we're miserable, we throw in the towel and head straight to Pensacola.
My friend's husband Barry said "Your are such a cool mom. Can you adopt me?" I guess we'll see who is right.
It should make for some amusing stories, and hopefully some good times. Maybe I'll make it an annual thing. I've been dying to take them on a road trip through the Keys (another part of Florida Bart dislikes...) Maybe that will be our Spring Break 2011?
Wish me luck - and happy camping, of course!
There are generally two schools of thought about how much interaction you should have with your kids. One school - I'll call this the "Family Fun" method - is based on spending most of your free time with your kids, usually involved in some craft or activity. Family Fun magazine promotes this mindset, with intricate and time-consuming crafts and activities that usually leave me either cussing or in tears. The goal here is to engage your children in lots of creative, mind-stimulating activities, and to spend lots of "quality time" with them. This will ensure that they have wonderful, life-long memories of your time spent together.
School # 2 - and I'll call this the "John Rosemond" method, basically advocates the "you have more toys than Toys R Us - go find something to do" approach. Also known as the "go outside and play" approach. John Rosemond (a pretty well-known parenting guru) feels pretty strongly that adults were not put on this earth to entertain their children. He believes we are not raising children. We are raising people, and forcing them to entertain themselves and be creative and imaginative on their own is a great way to do that.
I'd like to think I am somewhere in the middle, but in reality I fall closer to the John Rosemond school. More often times than not, I send the kids out to play, or tell them to go find something to do.
So I'm feeling a little guilt that I don't make more of an effort to do cool things with my kids. Disney World aside, of course. And trips to Mexico.
So this is where my idea was born. I love camping. The kids love camping. Bart hates camping. I love exploring and visiting new places and just hitting the road. Bart hates that stuff, unless it involves a golf course and a nice hotel. I USED to - back before I got all grown up - love to just fly by the seat of my pants and head out somewhere. Bart never did that. (God bless the boy, he is the Yin to my Yang...) The kids have a week off for Spring Break, but Bart has to work. Rather than having them here, bouncing off the walls and generally driving me crazy all week, I decided to plan a trip. We have to be in Pensacola at the end of that week anyway for my sorority reunion, so why not take our sweet time getting there?
So - we're spending 2 nights at Aunt Courtney's house, and doing a day at Disney in between. Then we hit the open road. We're heading up to St. Augustine, mainly because I've never been there. We're going to visit the lighthouse and climb to the top. We're going to visit the Castillo de San Marcos. We're going to - OF COURSE -visit the Fountain of Youth. Then we're camping for the night at Anastasia State Park. In a tent.
The next morning, we get up and head west. We're going to Apalachicola, mainly because I've never been there. And because they have the world's best oysters. (The beaches down that way are supposed to be good too...) We're going to the world-famous Papa Joe's Oyster House, where I fully intend to eat as many of the little bivalves as humanly possible. Then we head about 30 minutes west on the coast to camp at St. Joseph's Peninsula State Park. The beach and nature preserve are supposed to be awesome.
The next day, we head north to Marianna to do the Cavern Tour. Now, I have actually done this before, and I thought it was pretty cool. So I'm taking the kids there. We'll have lunch at the park, and then head on to Pensacola. We're making one other minor side trip. On Friday, we're going to The Northwest Florida Zoo (formerly known as The ZOO and Botanical Gardens.) This is the Zoo where I worked for 4 years, and still look back on it as the most fun job I have ever had. It closed down last year for financial reasons, but now it's back open. I want to take my kids there, and show them where I worked. They probably won't appreciate that this was where I got my vast - and mostly useless - knowledge about all things animal. I ll probably tell them how I made friends there that I still have to this day, and how I had to drive my Geo Tracker across the bridge in a Tropical Storm in order to help secure the animals. I might show them the on-site trailer I lived in for 6 months, and tell them how I used to hand-feed and pet Eland every evening after work. I'll tell them how -at my job interview - I was thrown on a safari train to narrate, and then tossed into a cage with a rather ornery King Vulture. It was a great place to work, and I want to support the new ownership. So we're going.
I'm hoping that I can pass on my love of adventure, my love of cheesy tourist attractions, and my love of some unique Floridana to my kids. I hope one day maybe they'll tell their kids about the time mom took them on a road trip through Florida. I'm bringing the DVD player, but it's use will be severly limited. I want the kids to play license plate games, and I Spy, and we'll all sing stupid songs. (Can I get a rousing chorus of "On Top Of Sphagetti", please?) I want it to be more like the road trips families took when I was a kid, complete with Mad Libs and orange soda. We're gonna camp, and ride our bikes, and walk on nature trails. We're gonna do cheesy touristy things and eat ice cream and fly kites at the beach. It's gonna be great.
Bart says I'm nuts. He says it's too much for the kids to do in one week. I think I can handle it, though. We'll stop at Publix every day and get the food for the next 24 hours. If it rains, we'll sleep in my truck. If it rains A LOT, we'll check into a hotel. If we're miserable, we throw in the towel and head straight to Pensacola.
My friend's husband Barry said "Your are such a cool mom. Can you adopt me?" I guess we'll see who is right.
It should make for some amusing stories, and hopefully some good times. Maybe I'll make it an annual thing. I've been dying to take them on a road trip through the Keys (another part of Florida Bart dislikes...) Maybe that will be our Spring Break 2011?
Wish me luck - and happy camping, of course!
Saturday, March 13, 2010
A Parenting Success
OK. I still haven't caught up yet, but the worst is behind me. The school carnival is over, Chase's birthday is over, and the trip to NC is over (although that last one was fun...) I have firmly let the PTA know I will NOT be back next year.
I'm still not a Travel Agent, but I am doing research.
On the up side, I performed what I think was a stellar little bit o' parenting in NC. We flew up there to see our friends the Reeds. We spent 1 day hanging out at their house in Denver, NC. We spend the 2nd day tubing at Hawksnest in Seven Devils, NC. The third day we head up to Sugar Mountain NC to do some skiing.
Now, we all know that travel is not cheap. And skiing is not cheap either. So when we pay money to go all the way up there and then put our kids in ski school, I call that a moderate investment. What you don't want to happen is to have the Ski School instructor call 1 hour into the kid's lesson and say "Chase is done and ready to leave." And yet it happened.
I sent Bart back up the lift, and I headed down to deal with "the boy." He was in the office pouting and complaining about how hard it is, and how he wants to go home.
First, I explained to him - very patiently - how it takes practice, and everyone falls, yadda yadda yadda. Then it comes to light that what he's really upset about is that Karlin was doing it better than he was. So I took some time to point out all of the things he does better than she does. I almost had him, and then he went back into pout mode.
So then I got tough. I gave him 2 choices. He could stay with his group at ski school, learn to ski, and get hot chocolate. OR...he could sit at a picnic table for the rest of the day. What I said exactly was: "There's no babysitting here. No game room. No TV. No Video games. No playground. If you quit, you will sit at this picnic table for the REST OF THE DAY." He then said he wanted to go home (and this was at about 11 am). I said "No Chase - no one's going home until at least 4:30 today. If you quit you will sit at this picnic table for the rest of the day. Do you understand that?"
Then he changed tactics on me and said "I want some hot chocolate." So I said "No - only kids in ski school get hot chocolate. Do you want to stay with your group, have hot chocolate, and then try to ski again? Or do you want to have some water and sit at this picnic table for the rest of the day?"
I am happy to say he chose ski school, and ended up doing really well. I was proud of myself for not losing my temper (because I was watching a lot of money potentially going down the drain, and I knew that if he sat out Bart and I would have to take turns sitting with him. That meant less ski time for us.) I am also glad that I gave him a choice, but made it very clear how things were going to be.
By the end of the day, he and his sister were both riding the beginner ski lift, and riding down the green trails. They even say they want to go skiing again next winter.
Well done all around! :)
I'm still not a Travel Agent, but I am doing research.
On the up side, I performed what I think was a stellar little bit o' parenting in NC. We flew up there to see our friends the Reeds. We spent 1 day hanging out at their house in Denver, NC. We spend the 2nd day tubing at Hawksnest in Seven Devils, NC. The third day we head up to Sugar Mountain NC to do some skiing.
Now, we all know that travel is not cheap. And skiing is not cheap either. So when we pay money to go all the way up there and then put our kids in ski school, I call that a moderate investment. What you don't want to happen is to have the Ski School instructor call 1 hour into the kid's lesson and say "Chase is done and ready to leave." And yet it happened.
I sent Bart back up the lift, and I headed down to deal with "the boy." He was in the office pouting and complaining about how hard it is, and how he wants to go home.
First, I explained to him - very patiently - how it takes practice, and everyone falls, yadda yadda yadda. Then it comes to light that what he's really upset about is that Karlin was doing it better than he was. So I took some time to point out all of the things he does better than she does. I almost had him, and then he went back into pout mode.
So then I got tough. I gave him 2 choices. He could stay with his group at ski school, learn to ski, and get hot chocolate. OR...he could sit at a picnic table for the rest of the day. What I said exactly was: "There's no babysitting here. No game room. No TV. No Video games. No playground. If you quit, you will sit at this picnic table for the REST OF THE DAY." He then said he wanted to go home (and this was at about 11 am). I said "No Chase - no one's going home until at least 4:30 today. If you quit you will sit at this picnic table for the rest of the day. Do you understand that?"
Then he changed tactics on me and said "I want some hot chocolate." So I said "No - only kids in ski school get hot chocolate. Do you want to stay with your group, have hot chocolate, and then try to ski again? Or do you want to have some water and sit at this picnic table for the rest of the day?"
I am happy to say he chose ski school, and ended up doing really well. I was proud of myself for not losing my temper (because I was watching a lot of money potentially going down the drain, and I knew that if he sat out Bart and I would have to take turns sitting with him. That meant less ski time for us.) I am also glad that I gave him a choice, but made it very clear how things were going to be.
By the end of the day, he and his sister were both riding the beginner ski lift, and riding down the green trails. They even say they want to go skiing again next winter.
Well done all around! :)
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Oops. I Did It Again.
I think I may be losing my mind. Or maybe it's just old age. Maybe both.
I am generally very organized, at least in my own way. I don't have a 'real job", so I make sure to try and be a present as I can with my kids. Not in an overwhelming sense, but enough to know what's going on, and enough that they know I'm interested.
Seems like I can't even do that right, though. Three times in the past 3 weeks, I have flat-out forgotten to do something that I said I would do. Once was a School Advisory Council Meeting. The original date got changed, and I knew that. But I didn't write it down anywhere, so I forgot to go to the new meeting time. The next two are really bad, because they are both times when I said I would help Chase's teacher. The first time, I just had the time wrong. She told me 10:00, and my fried little brain heard - and wrote down - 10:30. But today...I have no excuse. It's in my day Planner , which I check every Sunday night. It's on the wall calendar, which I quite literally walk past every single time I leave or enter the house. I just forgot.
In between trying to get the food ready for the School Carnival that's next week; trying to get everything ready for Chase's birthday party (in 4 days) - cake, gift bags, etc...; getting the house ready for family visiting (in 3 days); trying to get Girl Scout camps set up; trying to get the park reserved and activities set for the next Girl Scout Meeting (in 2 weeks); trying to get the Volunteers and signage all set for Chase's class booth at the School carnival; Ramping up my exercise program; trying to plan trips to North Carolina (in 2 1/2 weeks) and Mexico (in 4 months); trying to finish up Chase's 5 year scrapbook before his SIXTH birthday; trying to get Uniform sale information all ready for the PTA Board meeting next Monday; trying to beg volunteers to help cook burgers and dogs at the School Carnival; trying to find time to get my Mother-In-law a birthday gift; trying to find time to go get new running shoes; getting doughnuts for Karlin's class booth at the carnival; etc. All this on top of the mountains of laundry that I can never seem to get done; the dog washing and cleaning; the staying on the kids for homework/piano/horsebackriding; the everyday stuff - buying groceries, cooking and planning meals, packing lunches.
The point is, I am FAILING. The house is a wreck. I'm not getting stuff done. The stuff I AM getting done is sometimes half-ass. The kids are snotty and disrespectful, and to be quite honest, not much fun to be around lately. Everything costs too much. We follow up a long discussion about paying off bills with a $600 airline ticket purchase. My car may die at any moment. It is literally falling apart one piece at a time. Christmas stuff is still down. I have stuff that needs to be sold on Ebay. Furniture that needs to be sold on Craigs List. A bunkbed to find and purchase.
I'm just not doing too well. I feel like I am juggling 100 plates at once, and sooner than later one of those plates is gonna fall to the ground and shatter. And I'll try to catch it, which will cause me to drop them all.
Bart doesn't understand why I am constantly dreaming of leaving...to Mexico, to Key West, to anywhere. Home is work to me. Home is not fun, or relaxing. Home is a never-ending list of a million things that I have to get to that I will never finish. He sees a great pool in the backyard. When I look at the pool, what I see is the leaves in the bottom becuase the pool cleaner has been broken for 6 months; the hole ripped in the screen 4 1/2 months ago that still needs to be fixed; the pavers that need to be pressure-washed and sealed; the pavers that need to be re-sanded; the plants that need to be re-potted/fertilized/tended to in some way shape or form; the patio furniture that I started painting 2 months ago that I still haven't finished.
I could seriously go on and on and on. But I think you get the point.
How does everyone else do it? How do I start to relax and enjoy my life again? I don't even have any answers to that. Getting a job isn't the solution. All that will do is add to the list of things I have to get done, and minimize the time I have to do them. Then there's the guilt for bailing on the kids.
FAILING. How does one go to their happy place when there IS no happy place?
I am generally very organized, at least in my own way. I don't have a 'real job", so I make sure to try and be a present as I can with my kids. Not in an overwhelming sense, but enough to know what's going on, and enough that they know I'm interested.
Seems like I can't even do that right, though. Three times in the past 3 weeks, I have flat-out forgotten to do something that I said I would do. Once was a School Advisory Council Meeting. The original date got changed, and I knew that. But I didn't write it down anywhere, so I forgot to go to the new meeting time. The next two are really bad, because they are both times when I said I would help Chase's teacher. The first time, I just had the time wrong. She told me 10:00, and my fried little brain heard - and wrote down - 10:30. But today...I have no excuse. It's in my day Planner , which I check every Sunday night. It's on the wall calendar, which I quite literally walk past every single time I leave or enter the house. I just forgot.
In between trying to get the food ready for the School Carnival that's next week; trying to get everything ready for Chase's birthday party (in 4 days) - cake, gift bags, etc...; getting the house ready for family visiting (in 3 days); trying to get Girl Scout camps set up; trying to get the park reserved and activities set for the next Girl Scout Meeting (in 2 weeks); trying to get the Volunteers and signage all set for Chase's class booth at the School carnival; Ramping up my exercise program; trying to plan trips to North Carolina (in 2 1/2 weeks) and Mexico (in 4 months); trying to finish up Chase's 5 year scrapbook before his SIXTH birthday; trying to get Uniform sale information all ready for the PTA Board meeting next Monday; trying to beg volunteers to help cook burgers and dogs at the School Carnival; trying to find time to get my Mother-In-law a birthday gift; trying to find time to go get new running shoes; getting doughnuts for Karlin's class booth at the carnival; etc. All this on top of the mountains of laundry that I can never seem to get done; the dog washing and cleaning; the staying on the kids for homework/piano/horsebackriding; the everyday stuff - buying groceries, cooking and planning meals, packing lunches.
The point is, I am FAILING. The house is a wreck. I'm not getting stuff done. The stuff I AM getting done is sometimes half-ass. The kids are snotty and disrespectful, and to be quite honest, not much fun to be around lately. Everything costs too much. We follow up a long discussion about paying off bills with a $600 airline ticket purchase. My car may die at any moment. It is literally falling apart one piece at a time. Christmas stuff is still down. I have stuff that needs to be sold on Ebay. Furniture that needs to be sold on Craigs List. A bunkbed to find and purchase.
I'm just not doing too well. I feel like I am juggling 100 plates at once, and sooner than later one of those plates is gonna fall to the ground and shatter. And I'll try to catch it, which will cause me to drop them all.
Bart doesn't understand why I am constantly dreaming of leaving...to Mexico, to Key West, to anywhere. Home is work to me. Home is not fun, or relaxing. Home is a never-ending list of a million things that I have to get to that I will never finish. He sees a great pool in the backyard. When I look at the pool, what I see is the leaves in the bottom becuase the pool cleaner has been broken for 6 months; the hole ripped in the screen 4 1/2 months ago that still needs to be fixed; the pavers that need to be pressure-washed and sealed; the pavers that need to be re-sanded; the plants that need to be re-potted/fertilized/tended to in some way shape or form; the patio furniture that I started painting 2 months ago that I still haven't finished.
I could seriously go on and on and on. But I think you get the point.
How does everyone else do it? How do I start to relax and enjoy my life again? I don't even have any answers to that. Getting a job isn't the solution. All that will do is add to the list of things I have to get done, and minimize the time I have to do them. Then there's the guilt for bailing on the kids.
FAILING. How does one go to their happy place when there IS no happy place?
Monday, February 15, 2010
When I Grow Up...Part 2
OK. So in our last episode, our heroine decided she wanted to be a Travel Agent. Cool. Got a direction - so let's move that way.
So I Googled/Binged "How To Become a Travel Agent." The results were numerous web sites that all say something along the lines of "If you pay us $395, we can make you a Travel Agent!" Ummmmmmmmmm....no.
So then I looked up "Travel Careers" and "Travel Jobs." Similar results, but with a few job web sites mixed in. So I went to Career Builder and Monster and search on Travel Jobs. There aren't many. I did see two postings for AAA Travel Services, and one for Amex Travel Services, but they both said "experience needed." The rest of the jobs were for Car Rental Companies. NOT the direction I was aiming for. I also don't really want to work at the front desk of a hotel.
My travel agent - who is a really nice lady - recently sent me a hotel quote for our Mexico trip. This particular hotel was offering a free upgrade for the group leader, a free room for every 5 booked, and a group coordinator at the resort. Then - in very tiny print at the bottom - it said "The group seller will receive 5 complimentary nights at any of our Real brand resorts."
See - THAT'S what I'm talking about! She gets us to Mexico, and she gets a FREE TRIP. I want to be the girl who gets the free trip.
My friend Tia says her sister-in-law does Travel Stuff on the side. Doesn't make much money at it, but mainly uses it for the discounts and perks. She also sub-contracts out with a Cruise Line.
Now, with this Mexico trip on the horizon, Bart and I (OK - really just me) started doing research on resorts. Our first choice - the place we stayed last year - won't cut us any deals, even though we're threatening to bring between 8 and 15 rooms full of people with us. No group rate, no upgrades - nada. So I thought... screw them. Let's see who else out there will work with us. There are 15 bazillion all-inclusive resorts in Mexico. Surely we can find one that wants a fun, festive group of folks to come down for a little Fiesta.
So I started looking. I had it narrowed to 7 resorts. Then 6. Then I tied Bart down and forced him to look at my findings so we could narrow it down to 4.
Let's talk about my "findings" for a minute. I am OCD. I am anal. I am a control freak. We alllllllll know this. So - in an effort to compare and contrast the various resorts, I made little brochures. One for each resort. They contained all the pertinent info - number of restaurants, number of pools, kid's club info, etc. I also included posted internet rates and offered incentives. I mapped them on Google Earth. I added color photos. I even threw in 3-4 reviews on each resort posted on Trip Advisor.
(Ok - I know you started laughing at Google Earth Deb, so quit it...)
My point here is this: there is no way in hell the Travel Agent knows as much about these resorts as I do. I know everything. Show me a picture and I can name the resort. I know how long the shuttle rides from the airport are, and I know which resorts have gators on the grounds. I know which resorts have noisier maids. I have researched these place inside and out, and know everything you can know without actually visiting them.
This is EXACTLY the kind of research a Travel Agent should do. I mean, if a Mom out there is thinking about taking her kids to Mexico for the first time, she needs to know that there is a Kid's Club, and that the staff is CPR certified. She needs to know that they can always do burgers, dogs, chicken nuggets, and mac and cheese on request, even if it's not on the menu. She needs to know that the surf is rough, but that there's a little shallow shelterd area to the left. She needs to know that all the water is bottled, and they have their own water treatment facilities on grounds. She needs to know if there is an abundance of topless Europen women on the beach. She needs to know if the shuttle ride is 2 hours long, so she can prep the kids with snacks.
I know all of that, and then some. I am detail oriented. I am good with people. I love learning about new places. I would make a kick-ass Travel Agent. But I still don't know how to become one.
With the internet having failed me completely, I have turned to Old Faithful...the Library. I have 3 books on request that may be able to point me down the right path.
There is the thought that most people don't use Travel Agents anymore, becuase they can do it all themsleves on the web. I think that's true to an extent. Domestic travel is pretty easy to do on-line. But when you are considering a Foreign Country - especially with kids - the sheer volume of information on the internet is overwhelming. IF I were able to completely relinquish control (which I can't), I would LOVE it if soneone were to present me with the info that I have in my possession now.
So once my books come in, I'm going to get busy. Hopefully soon I can become a home-based Travel Agent, willing and able to help YOU with your Travel needs!
PS The first person who books with me gets to go on the free trip with me! ha ha ha Not entirely kidding.
So I Googled/Binged "How To Become a Travel Agent." The results were numerous web sites that all say something along the lines of "If you pay us $395, we can make you a Travel Agent!" Ummmmmmmmmm....no.
So then I looked up "Travel Careers" and "Travel Jobs." Similar results, but with a few job web sites mixed in. So I went to Career Builder and Monster and search on Travel Jobs. There aren't many. I did see two postings for AAA Travel Services, and one for Amex Travel Services, but they both said "experience needed." The rest of the jobs were for Car Rental Companies. NOT the direction I was aiming for. I also don't really want to work at the front desk of a hotel.
My travel agent - who is a really nice lady - recently sent me a hotel quote for our Mexico trip. This particular hotel was offering a free upgrade for the group leader, a free room for every 5 booked, and a group coordinator at the resort. Then - in very tiny print at the bottom - it said "The group seller will receive 5 complimentary nights at any of our Real brand resorts."
See - THAT'S what I'm talking about! She gets us to Mexico, and she gets a FREE TRIP. I want to be the girl who gets the free trip.
My friend Tia says her sister-in-law does Travel Stuff on the side. Doesn't make much money at it, but mainly uses it for the discounts and perks. She also sub-contracts out with a Cruise Line.
Now, with this Mexico trip on the horizon, Bart and I (OK - really just me) started doing research on resorts. Our first choice - the place we stayed last year - won't cut us any deals, even though we're threatening to bring between 8 and 15 rooms full of people with us. No group rate, no upgrades - nada. So I thought... screw them. Let's see who else out there will work with us. There are 15 bazillion all-inclusive resorts in Mexico. Surely we can find one that wants a fun, festive group of folks to come down for a little Fiesta.
So I started looking. I had it narrowed to 7 resorts. Then 6. Then I tied Bart down and forced him to look at my findings so we could narrow it down to 4.
Let's talk about my "findings" for a minute. I am OCD. I am anal. I am a control freak. We alllllllll know this. So - in an effort to compare and contrast the various resorts, I made little brochures. One for each resort. They contained all the pertinent info - number of restaurants, number of pools, kid's club info, etc. I also included posted internet rates and offered incentives. I mapped them on Google Earth. I added color photos. I even threw in 3-4 reviews on each resort posted on Trip Advisor.
(Ok - I know you started laughing at Google Earth Deb, so quit it...)
My point here is this: there is no way in hell the Travel Agent knows as much about these resorts as I do. I know everything. Show me a picture and I can name the resort. I know how long the shuttle rides from the airport are, and I know which resorts have gators on the grounds. I know which resorts have noisier maids. I have researched these place inside and out, and know everything you can know without actually visiting them.
This is EXACTLY the kind of research a Travel Agent should do. I mean, if a Mom out there is thinking about taking her kids to Mexico for the first time, she needs to know that there is a Kid's Club, and that the staff is CPR certified. She needs to know that they can always do burgers, dogs, chicken nuggets, and mac and cheese on request, even if it's not on the menu. She needs to know that the surf is rough, but that there's a little shallow shelterd area to the left. She needs to know that all the water is bottled, and they have their own water treatment facilities on grounds. She needs to know if there is an abundance of topless Europen women on the beach. She needs to know if the shuttle ride is 2 hours long, so she can prep the kids with snacks.
I know all of that, and then some. I am detail oriented. I am good with people. I love learning about new places. I would make a kick-ass Travel Agent. But I still don't know how to become one.
With the internet having failed me completely, I have turned to Old Faithful...the Library. I have 3 books on request that may be able to point me down the right path.
There is the thought that most people don't use Travel Agents anymore, becuase they can do it all themsleves on the web. I think that's true to an extent. Domestic travel is pretty easy to do on-line. But when you are considering a Foreign Country - especially with kids - the sheer volume of information on the internet is overwhelming. IF I were able to completely relinquish control (which I can't), I would LOVE it if soneone were to present me with the info that I have in my possession now.
So once my books come in, I'm going to get busy. Hopefully soon I can become a home-based Travel Agent, willing and able to help YOU with your Travel needs!
PS The first person who books with me gets to go on the free trip with me! ha ha ha Not entirely kidding.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Like A Train Wreck, You Just Can't Look Away
OK - I have to derail from my dreams of being a travel agent to fill you in on a sad diversion I embraked on last night. It's called "Celebrity Fit Club" and it's on VH1.
I have never seen this show before, but a friend's Facebook post piqued my interest. Specifically, he wrote; "Bobby Brown, Nicole Eggert, and K Fed on Celebrity Fit Club. DVR don't fail me now." Well, that sounded entertaining enough, and Bart is away in the snowy white north, so I figured what the hell.
I then spent an hour watching fat ex-celebrities vomit. OK - so not ALL of them vomited. But there were two distinct vomit moments in the first 15 minutes. Hell - who doesn't find THAT entertaining!
Here's the run down: 8 "B" list (maybe "C" list) celebrities do a 9 week boot camp with the drill instructor from hell. On the slate this time around: K Fed, his ex Shar Jackson (which is fun in and of itself, since apparently they hate each other, and neither one of them realized the other was going to be on the show.) Bobby Brown (yes - the former rap/pop star); Nicole Eggert from Baywatch and Charles in Charge (who is not fat enough to be on this show); some reality show chick that I have never heard of (but she's way fat and was the first to puke); Sebastian Bach (lead singer of Skid Row); The fat girl from High School Musical; and some guy who won some fashion reality show.
All of them are pretty tubby except for Eggert. Who should be slapped for being on the show and being unhappy with her 134 pounds. Bitch.
Anyway, it was hilarious. On the first night, they put all this food out. Bobby Brown ate fried chicken and beer, bless his heart. Sebastian Bach was the 2nd person to vomit. They had the drummer from Def Leppard on to inspire them. K Fed had to dig holes for stumps as punishment for quitting. Fun fun fun!
My three favorite quotes of the night?
#1. The celebs were complaining about the clothes they had to wear, and the barracks they were sleeping in. Bobby Brown said matter-of-factly; "It's better than jail."
#2. When they asked Sebastian Bach why he was there, he replied: "No one likes a fat rock star."
#3. When the nutritionist doctor cam into the mess hall, the big reality chick said "Jean Claude Van DAMME he is fine!" I laughed out loud at that one.
I can't wait till next week. Who's going to vomit next? Are the girls all going to beat Nicole Eggert senseless? Is someone finally going to explain why the hell all these women find K Fed so attractive? Will Shar have K Fed killed in his sleep?
See what I men? Train Wreck.
(Comes on Monday nights, by the way...) ;)
I have never seen this show before, but a friend's Facebook post piqued my interest. Specifically, he wrote; "Bobby Brown, Nicole Eggert, and K Fed on Celebrity Fit Club. DVR don't fail me now." Well, that sounded entertaining enough, and Bart is away in the snowy white north, so I figured what the hell.
I then spent an hour watching fat ex-celebrities vomit. OK - so not ALL of them vomited. But there were two distinct vomit moments in the first 15 minutes. Hell - who doesn't find THAT entertaining!
Here's the run down: 8 "B" list (maybe "C" list) celebrities do a 9 week boot camp with the drill instructor from hell. On the slate this time around: K Fed, his ex Shar Jackson (which is fun in and of itself, since apparently they hate each other, and neither one of them realized the other was going to be on the show.) Bobby Brown (yes - the former rap/pop star); Nicole Eggert from Baywatch and Charles in Charge (who is not fat enough to be on this show); some reality show chick that I have never heard of (but she's way fat and was the first to puke); Sebastian Bach (lead singer of Skid Row); The fat girl from High School Musical; and some guy who won some fashion reality show.
All of them are pretty tubby except for Eggert. Who should be slapped for being on the show and being unhappy with her 134 pounds. Bitch.
Anyway, it was hilarious. On the first night, they put all this food out. Bobby Brown ate fried chicken and beer, bless his heart. Sebastian Bach was the 2nd person to vomit. They had the drummer from Def Leppard on to inspire them. K Fed had to dig holes for stumps as punishment for quitting. Fun fun fun!
My three favorite quotes of the night?
#1. The celebs were complaining about the clothes they had to wear, and the barracks they were sleeping in. Bobby Brown said matter-of-factly; "It's better than jail."
#2. When they asked Sebastian Bach why he was there, he replied: "No one likes a fat rock star."
#3. When the nutritionist doctor cam into the mess hall, the big reality chick said "Jean Claude Van DAMME he is fine!" I laughed out loud at that one.
I can't wait till next week. Who's going to vomit next? Are the girls all going to beat Nicole Eggert senseless? Is someone finally going to explain why the hell all these women find K Fed so attractive? Will Shar have K Fed killed in his sleep?
See what I men? Train Wreck.
(Comes on Monday nights, by the way...) ;)
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
When I Grow Up
I'm always thinking and re-thinking and over-thinking the whole "what do I want to be when I grow up" thing. (The fact that I will be 40 in 3 months has no relevance to this whatsoever...)
On the one hand, I am busy as hell right now, even with no job. I hold 2 Board positions with the PTA, and a homeroom mom, a Brownie leader, on the School Advisory Council, and a reading assistant for Chase's class. On the average I am either up at the school or doing something for the school 12-20 hours a week. Sometimes more.
I have started to have to make lists of what I need to do when, becuase crap is starting to slip through the cracks. I am fairly organized (at least in my own mind), so it's really, really unlike me to do things like totally forget a meeting I was supposed to attend, or show up at the wrong time to help in the classroom. (Again - the fact that I will be 40 in 3 months has no bearing whatsoever on this...)
I also spend a fair amount of time driving kids to and from places. And it's easy right now, because Chase is off from soccer. But on the average week we have piano lessons on Monday, Girls Scouts every other Tuesday, Riding lessons on Wednesday, and Science Club on Thursdays. And that's just the one child.
Then there's the mundane stuff like laundry, cleaning, doctor's appointments, gift shopping, yard work, etc. I try to squeeze in workouts 3 times a week. Oh - and a playdate here or there. And birthday parties (usually 2-3 a month.) And if I'm lucky, a girls night out once in awhile.
Then there's the extra stuff - like Karlin's big travel brochure assignment on Melbourne Australia. No - I didn't do it for her. But she's 8, and she is still learning basic computer stuff. I helped her get to the right web sites for the research. I brought her home two travel guides from the Library. I had her type 99.9% of the info (which god bless her baby heart took her like 4 hours.) I changed the font to make it pretty, set the margins up so it would print correctly, and helped her cut it out. I also - after she had established her facts - printed some corresponding photos for her. She did the rest. The point here is that helping with a project like this takes a little time.
And in the middle of all this you have to pack lunches, make dinner, make breakfast. Then the cat throws up on the carpet. And you step in it wearing shoes so you don't know it. Which results in about 8 cat-vomit foot steps all over the recently cleaned carpet. Which seems big until your son dunps his humidifier all over his bedroom carpet in an attempt to "flood the Dinosaurs." It's going to take a week for that to dry out.
Anywho...so when I think about going back to work, I think "When in the HELL am I supposed to do that?" And if I did it, how in the hell would all this stuff get done?
So in one of my recent internet forays into Mexican all-inclusives, I decided - hey - I LOVE to travel. I wish I could travel more. All I need is time and money. Then it dawned on me...waaaaiiiiiit a sec. What if I could get PAID to TRAVEL?
That's it! I want to be a TRAVEL AGENT when I grown up!
(To be continued in part 2 - coming to a theater to you soon...)
On the one hand, I am busy as hell right now, even with no job. I hold 2 Board positions with the PTA, and a homeroom mom, a Brownie leader, on the School Advisory Council, and a reading assistant for Chase's class. On the average I am either up at the school or doing something for the school 12-20 hours a week. Sometimes more.
I have started to have to make lists of what I need to do when, becuase crap is starting to slip through the cracks. I am fairly organized (at least in my own mind), so it's really, really unlike me to do things like totally forget a meeting I was supposed to attend, or show up at the wrong time to help in the classroom. (Again - the fact that I will be 40 in 3 months has no bearing whatsoever on this...)
I also spend a fair amount of time driving kids to and from places. And it's easy right now, because Chase is off from soccer. But on the average week we have piano lessons on Monday, Girls Scouts every other Tuesday, Riding lessons on Wednesday, and Science Club on Thursdays. And that's just the one child.
Then there's the mundane stuff like laundry, cleaning, doctor's appointments, gift shopping, yard work, etc. I try to squeeze in workouts 3 times a week. Oh - and a playdate here or there. And birthday parties (usually 2-3 a month.) And if I'm lucky, a girls night out once in awhile.
Then there's the extra stuff - like Karlin's big travel brochure assignment on Melbourne Australia. No - I didn't do it for her. But she's 8, and she is still learning basic computer stuff. I helped her get to the right web sites for the research. I brought her home two travel guides from the Library. I had her type 99.9% of the info (which god bless her baby heart took her like 4 hours.) I changed the font to make it pretty, set the margins up so it would print correctly, and helped her cut it out. I also - after she had established her facts - printed some corresponding photos for her. She did the rest. The point here is that helping with a project like this takes a little time.
And in the middle of all this you have to pack lunches, make dinner, make breakfast. Then the cat throws up on the carpet. And you step in it wearing shoes so you don't know it. Which results in about 8 cat-vomit foot steps all over the recently cleaned carpet. Which seems big until your son dunps his humidifier all over his bedroom carpet in an attempt to "flood the Dinosaurs." It's going to take a week for that to dry out.
Anywho...so when I think about going back to work, I think "When in the HELL am I supposed to do that?" And if I did it, how in the hell would all this stuff get done?
So in one of my recent internet forays into Mexican all-inclusives, I decided - hey - I LOVE to travel. I wish I could travel more. All I need is time and money. Then it dawned on me...waaaaiiiiiit a sec. What if I could get PAID to TRAVEL?
That's it! I want to be a TRAVEL AGENT when I grown up!
(To be continued in part 2 - coming to a theater to you soon...)
Saturday, January 30, 2010
My Roller Coaster Ride
This has been a crazy month from a parenting perspective. How is it possible to love and hate your kids so much at the same time?
Take Karlin. Karlin is 8. This month she rode in her first-ever Horse Show. She did so well, and showed so much composure, that I thought I would burst with pride. She looked so little and so grown up all at the same time. She was on a giant animal, in front of a crowd and judges. Her foot slipped the stirrup once. Her horse took a big dump in the middle of her reverse. She handled it all in stride. She even managed to show a little humor with an eyeroll when her barn-mate placed ahead of her. Amazing. She also (finally) learned to ride her bike, prompted by the success of her ambitious little brother (see below.)
Then there's the evil side. The side of my brilliant beautiful daughter that throws her homework at me. That snatches a dollar bill from my friend when it was offered to her, without so much as a thank you. That refuses to acknowledge when grown ups are speaking to her. That throws a hissy fit at Girl Scouts when she doesn't win the estimations game. That is generally mouthy, disrespectful, and spoiled.
Take Chase. I taught Chase to ride his bike this month. Without training wheels. All by myself. He did it before his sister (although when she got home from Science Club that day, she immediately learned to ride her too.) Chase has also "officially" started reading. He's taking AR tests at school. He has been identified as a "higher level student", so now he spends 45 minutes of every school day in a 1st Grade class. Unbelievable.
Then there's the evil side of Chase. The side of my funny, smart son that threw a fit when it was time to leave a local play area. Threw a fit as in won't-stand-up-so-I-literally-had-to-drag-him-out fit. Said mean things to his friend just because. Crumpled up and scribbled all over his homework. Generally tantrumy, disrespectful, and spoiled.
So I had a Super Nanny moment. I sat them down on the couch and went through one day's behavior step by step. I pointed out what they did wrong. I let them know how mortified and disappointed I was by their behaviors. I told them that effective immediately, things were going to change. Then I sent them to their rooms. And bawled for 15 minutes.
I mean really - the kids have some horrendous behaviors. But who's fault is that? MINE. So shouldn't I be just as mad at myself as I am at them? Because when it comes down to it, the behave the way they do because I LET THEM.
I love my kids, and I am so proud of them. But lately they have not been very pleasant to be around. They have been cut off from all "extras" until they can demonstrate some significant behavior modifications. They must start using their manners. They must do what I ask them to do, the first time. They must stop being disrespectful. They WILL respond to adults when they are spoken to. They will do their chores.
This was put to the test yesterday. Karlin said "Can I have dessert?" And I calmly said "No - you are cut off from desserts for while, remember?" And she started to respond - in a VERY nasty tone of voice - "Why can't I have..." and I cut her off right there. I said "That tone of voice is EXACTLY why." Chase wanted to watch a movie. Same thing with him.
I am hopeful that in the coming weeks things will improve. The ups of being proud of them and the downs of wanting to kill them are starting to get to me.
I'm ready to get off this roller coaster.
Take Karlin. Karlin is 8. This month she rode in her first-ever Horse Show. She did so well, and showed so much composure, that I thought I would burst with pride. She looked so little and so grown up all at the same time. She was on a giant animal, in front of a crowd and judges. Her foot slipped the stirrup once. Her horse took a big dump in the middle of her reverse. She handled it all in stride. She even managed to show a little humor with an eyeroll when her barn-mate placed ahead of her. Amazing. She also (finally) learned to ride her bike, prompted by the success of her ambitious little brother (see below.)
Then there's the evil side. The side of my brilliant beautiful daughter that throws her homework at me. That snatches a dollar bill from my friend when it was offered to her, without so much as a thank you. That refuses to acknowledge when grown ups are speaking to her. That throws a hissy fit at Girl Scouts when she doesn't win the estimations game. That is generally mouthy, disrespectful, and spoiled.
Take Chase. I taught Chase to ride his bike this month. Without training wheels. All by myself. He did it before his sister (although when she got home from Science Club that day, she immediately learned to ride her too.) Chase has also "officially" started reading. He's taking AR tests at school. He has been identified as a "higher level student", so now he spends 45 minutes of every school day in a 1st Grade class. Unbelievable.
Then there's the evil side of Chase. The side of my funny, smart son that threw a fit when it was time to leave a local play area. Threw a fit as in won't-stand-up-so-I-literally-had-to-drag-him-out fit. Said mean things to his friend just because. Crumpled up and scribbled all over his homework. Generally tantrumy, disrespectful, and spoiled.
So I had a Super Nanny moment. I sat them down on the couch and went through one day's behavior step by step. I pointed out what they did wrong. I let them know how mortified and disappointed I was by their behaviors. I told them that effective immediately, things were going to change. Then I sent them to their rooms. And bawled for 15 minutes.
I mean really - the kids have some horrendous behaviors. But who's fault is that? MINE. So shouldn't I be just as mad at myself as I am at them? Because when it comes down to it, the behave the way they do because I LET THEM.
I love my kids, and I am so proud of them. But lately they have not been very pleasant to be around. They have been cut off from all "extras" until they can demonstrate some significant behavior modifications. They must start using their manners. They must do what I ask them to do, the first time. They must stop being disrespectful. They WILL respond to adults when they are spoken to. They will do their chores.
This was put to the test yesterday. Karlin said "Can I have dessert?" And I calmly said "No - you are cut off from desserts for while, remember?" And she started to respond - in a VERY nasty tone of voice - "Why can't I have..." and I cut her off right there. I said "That tone of voice is EXACTLY why." Chase wanted to watch a movie. Same thing with him.
I am hopeful that in the coming weeks things will improve. The ups of being proud of them and the downs of wanting to kill them are starting to get to me.
I'm ready to get off this roller coaster.
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