The Meal That Doesn't Want to Be

Every once in a while, the best intentions just go awry.

It's 7:08 and we have still not eaten supper.

I started the fire at 5:30. But I waited to put the pork chops on until the potatoes were nearly done.

By the time I decided to put the chops on, the fire had completely burned up.

Re-started the fire.

I just put the chops on.

The potatoes are very close to being burnt.

Table Conversation

"Talk about the pot calling the kettle black," I said.

"Well, now...that doesn't make sense. What if the pot isn't black?" Nate wanted to know.

And from there it all degenerated.

One thing I will definitely miss about having Taylor in 6th grade is his constant references to his two male teachers.

"Mr. B-- says this,"
"Mr. B--thinks that."
"I think Mr. P plays 'Warcraft' when we are all doing our deskwork."
"I'm worried that Mr. B--is addicted to caffeine."
"Mr. P--is always saying we should think outside the box."

I sure do hope he gets 7th grade teachers that are half as good as the team he had this year. He struggled in math and gotten a little lazy periodically in Social Studies, but for the most part he's had a great year.

New 7 Wonders of the World

So we've all heard about the Seven Ancient Wonders of the World:

The commonly known Seven Ancient Wonders of the World were all man-made monuments, selected by Philon of Byzantium in 200 B.C. Today, only the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt remain.His selection of wonders was essentially a travel guide for fellow Athenians, and the stunning sites were all located around the Mediterranean basin, the then-known world.
The monuments he chose, to be remembered in perpetuity, were:

The Lighthouse of Alexandria
The Temple of Artemis
The Statue of Zeus
The Colossus of Rhodes
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus
The Pyramids of Egypt

All had been built between 2,500 B.C. and 200 B.C.

Well, since only the Pyramids remain, there is an organization now that has decided it would be good if new wonders were selected. But rather than having the sites chosen by only one guy, they have launched a project enabling people from all over the world to vote on them.

21 sites are listed on their website. Votes will be collected until July 7.

New 7 Wonders

Bed Perspectives

3:11 a.m.

ME: "Hey!"

HE: "You've got all the covers!"

6:07 a.m.

ME: "Yeah...look. I don't have hardly any covers."

HE: "You gave 'em to me."

I've Been Remiss

I haven't posted since late April. And here it is almost the middle of May.

School is winding down and so of course there is stuff going on over there. Now we are in the middle of standardized tests, so I'm helping monitor test-takers each day. 5 days in all. It's not too bad. I take a book and just glance around. There are two adults for each group. Each day it's about 3 hours.

Mensa Boy has done quite a bit of traveling these past few weeks and there will be more coming up. I think things won't die down until the second week of June.

Nate needs to find a job for the summer. I suggested to him last night that he list a few places he'd like to work. He mentioned Lowe's Home Improvement, but that would be a bit of a drive. I'd like to see him within 10 minutes of home, since I'll be taking him to and from work most of the time.

Taylor does not have plans for the summer at this point. Our boy Freddy, who comes here after school, will be with us most of the summer and they will have a good time. We've also talked about Taylor taking some pottery lessons from a friend of mine, and he may also go to Minnesota for a week-long visit before we go up there.

I do not have summer plans. The school stories will of course fall away, so I'll be hoping to pick up some other interesting things to write about. But I would also like to do some painting here at the house. We still have a few rooms that have not any paint at all. Still the contractor's flat cream color from 2002. Yeah, we are slow about stuff like that.

So this is a dull post. Sorry about that. Perhaps one of these days I'll post a message full of righteous indignation that my least favorite people won "The Amazing Race." Maybe I'll save that for when "American Idol" and "Survivor" all wind up.

Oh. The snake. I didn't mention the 12-foot python.

There are not too many people who can get me to stuff like this. Best friend Rena was able to talk me into going to her brother's to take a photo of the 12-foot, dead python they found in their shed. My photos did not turn out...as it was all crawling with MAGGOTS! The assumption is that someone had it for a pet and could not care for it any longer, releasing it outside.

hmpf. Just tried to put Eric's photo on here and it won't upload.

I Don't Wanna

Listen to songs from the 70s again.
Donny Osmond

Pushed Over the Edge

bread
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

The bread I normally buy was not available at the grocery store the other day. So I bought some different stuff.

Let me just say that I always buy whole wheat bread. I never buy white bread.

But apparently Taylor took exception to this particular brand of bread that I bought the other day. Yesterday he left me this note.

This morning Mensa Boy took the offending loaf out of the bread drawer and said, "Is this the bread that pushed Taylor over the edge?"

(In very tiny print on the lower left side of this note, Mensa Boy put a comment: "Whole wheat bread is really fun." Taylor is not amused)

Evidence

Evidence
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

Found this in Taylor's room this morning when I went in to wake him up.

How do you suppose he so neatly got the tops off all these cans?

PERHAPS WITH A CAN OPENER???

Disappearing and Reappearing

Yesterday I made goulash, a family favorite. It requires opening a can or two of tomatoes.

I searched high and low for the can opener. I pulled everything out of the drawer...which is no mean feat. That drawer is very very large and is the standard kitchen catch-all drawer.

Fleeting through my mind was that Mom and Dad had walked off with it.

Of course they wouldn't have done that.

I was so desperate that I called Mensa Boy. He's out of town.

"Have you seen the can opener?"

"No. It's not in the...."

"Of course not."

"Of course not."

(drives me crazy when he asks me if whatever I'm looking for isn't in the place it belongs...)

So after a minute or so of questioning (I thought perhaps he'd used it for a project a while back), We hung up. I got the opener from the camping box, finished supper.

After supper I did the dishes.

And dropped the carrot peeler back into the drawer.

Right on top of the can opener.

No one is fessing up.

Snotty

Mensa Boy is being very snotty.

He has a terrible cold and has blown his way through two boxes of kleenex. So there are little trash cans around that are totally full of used kleenex.

I feel bad for him. But I don't want to be around him!

The Great Big Vegetable Challenge

Many many thanks to my buddy Chris for sending me the link to this blog. It is fantastic!

The Great Big Vegetable Challenge

Kurt Vonnegut

Kurt Vonnegut has died. It's hard to imagine. The first thing that pops into my mind is a ratty paperback copy of "Breakfast of Champions."

His first novel was published in 1952 ("Player Piano") and his last in 1972 ("Timequake"). The only one I remember reading was "Breakfast" (1973). Just about anyone born between 1940 and now has undoubtably read at least one of his books.

The write-up in today's paper mentions "Dog-eared paperback copies of his books could be found in the back pockets of blue jeans and in dorm rooms on campuses throughout the United States."

How true.

"New knowledge is the most valuable commodity on earth. The more truth we have to work with, the richer we become."
Kurt Vonnegut, Breakfast of Champions

A Poem by Taylor

A book is a human
It can say anything
A book is a game
But you can never fail

A book is a friend
You can have a lot
A book is a feeling
It can make you feel different

A book is life
Anything can happen
A book is a human
It can say anything

Churchin' Around

Yesterday morning I hit the road at 6:30 to go to a sunrise service at the local state park.

It was 23-freakin'-degrees out, by the way. Cold even by my standards.

The service was in an ampitheatre in the woods at the park, so there was obviously not going to be any opportunity to get any actual sunrise shots. I stayed just a few minutes, shooting the pastor on stage with his microphone, all decked out in his "tobaggan" (stocking cap) and mittens, his wife wrapped in a huge coat, playing the keyboard.

I decided to run back up the road to my own church's sunrise service, held at our sister church. (the Dodge Gr. Caravan really cruises along smoothly at 85 mph)

The sissies had all wimped out and taken their service inside. Moreover, cars were parked in front of the lawn cross, so there was no chance of getting a decent photo of that with the sun coming up behind it.

So I decided to go further up the road to my favorite Lutheran church.

But on the way, I glanced over to the little Baptist Church and lo! There were a dozen hardy souls out in the backyard having a little service. Whipped in there and joined them, shooting away.

Their service ended around 7:15 so, declining their offer of a donut and coffee, I jumped back into Big Greenie and beat it up the highway to the Lutherans.

They were inside as well. By this time I was thoroughly chilled and feeling more charitable about sissies. I stopped in there and shot a few photos of the children doing a project.

Then went to our church in time for the dual-church breakfast. Shot some photos of that crowd and thawed out while rubbing elbows. And teasing the two preachers about being inside while the pentecostals and Baptists were gutting out the cold.

I was home by 8:15. It was a good morning. I got some decent shots I think, which I sent in to the paper. I hope they use some of them. But this is one time when I hardly care. I had a lot of fun, so it was well worth the effort.

Eagles

Check out this Eagle cam...if you have a high-speed internet connection. (thanks Julie!)

http://www.wvec.com/cams/eagle.html

Mom and Dad arrived yesterday and will stay for the next two weeks at the local state park. We had a nice meal last night of cornish game hens, green beans and tomatoes (a Giada deLaurentiis recipe), and wild rice with cranberries and almonds. Topped it all off with chocolate chip cookies.

Everyone was dragged out from a busy day, so they pretty much left right after giving the dog a bath. I teased Mom about us just being a dog-washing depot for them. They give that dog a bath first thing every time they get here.

Mensa Boy and Taylor painted Taylor's room yesterday. It's a very shocking blue. Kind of a post-it note blue, actually. Today they will do a second coat and then they've been talking about going on a hike.

Mom and I need to find something for me to wear. I have no spring/summer clothes that fit. So I should get started and Easter seems like a logical time.

OH YEAH...AND! How much screwier is "American Idol" going to get? Gina Glocksen is gone now?

Concern/Unconcern

A new medication I'm taking lists "lack of concern" as a potential side effect.

Apparently a "lack of concern" is considered to be a more serious side effect, because you are supposed to contact your doctor immediately if you are experiencing it.

hmmmmm

[Do I need to spell out my snarky comment on that? Or Kristen, would you like to?]

Gotta Look Good

readytomow
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

Here is Mensa Boy, "getting ready to mow the lawn."

It was 1:30 in the afternoon.

Amazing what you can come up with to do when you should be mowing the lawn...

Something for Everyone, it Seems

Last night I was lying on my bed, reading a book, drinking water. I asked Taylor if he would kindly get me a straw.

He came back a few minutes later, poked a nice little red-and-white number into my cup and chuckled.

"Thank you. What?" I asked.

"The box of straws says 'Sanitary, disposable and FUN.'" He said.

A Rare Personal Account

I tend not to get too insanely personal on my blog, but here you go.

Today was a no good, very bad day. Up to a point.

I had a doctor's appointment scheduled for 9:15 a.m.

At least, I had on my calendar that the appointment was at that time. I planned for it for two weeks. I had my notes all written down, my list of prescriptions, and I was prepared to go in there and launch a full-scale assault on this thing I've lately been calling MenoMania.

I arrived at the clinic 10 minutes before the appointment time. When I checked in, I could see the receptionist was concerned.

They did not have my appointment in the system.

I stood there in stunned silence for a moment. I was afraid to speak. I had no idea what was going to come out of my mouth.

"We'll figure out something," she said. "I'll find some time today when you can get in. What are you here for?"

When I told her I was there for menopause issues...well...you can imagine the expression on her face.

I held it all together long enough to hear their apologies and agree to come back at 2:30.

I went home and stayed there. Watching TV and staring at the walls. By around noon I started to feel a bit better.

I went back at 2:30 and locked my keys in the car in the clinic parking lot.

"How did the appointment go?" You may be asking.

Fine. He's a very very good doctor. Validated my feelings and suspicions, did some medication adjustments, and I came out of there feeling like I have a new plan.

And when I got out of the appointment, my keys were laying there on the counter. Thank you, dear Kristen, for driving half-way across town with Mensa Boy's keys to get mine out of my car.

As I was saying good-bye to the doctor, he said "By the way...locking your keys in the car? Classic menopause!"

Community Policing

We have a campus resource officer from the sheriff's department at our high school. He actually covers all three of the schools, but his primary office is at the high school.

Today I realized that the scope of his job is much more than handling assaults and traffic issues.

Today he was spray-painting the school rock.

He's covered one side of the rock with orange paint and then sprayed "buckle up" on it.

I didn't see him do the deed. I saw him walking away from it after he'd completed it. I stopped and said "Boy. I wish I'd gotten a photo of that for the paper."

He said he does that periodically, to cover up less-than-uplifting messages that get painted on there from time to time.