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Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Good Moooorning, Whiners!

Radio station WHNE (that's "whiney" on your AM dial) is pleased to temporarily present round-the-clock, round-the-week coverage of all your rock 'n whine favorites, provided that Bl0gger does not decide to perform more "maintenance" and crash the station and collaterally damage the collection of valuable 33 and 78 vinyl whines.

Grace under fire, good buddies. Praise the intertubes, and pass the ammunition.

Let's start out with a little number by Bruce Springsteen, Stolen Car. My day started at 1:00 a.m. with a cop pounding on the door; he came to advise us that our car had been stolen. And it was quite a tale -- the perp was being chased up the hill in another stolen car; he abandoned the car and ran through the nature center, hopped a couple of fences to get to our sleepy cul-de-sac; hotwired the car; then crashed the car and was in custody. The officer evidently had not seen so much excitement since Desert Storm, an accomplishment he mentioned in passing.

And my husband and I -- once the panic stage passed and we were wearing proper clothing -- had to do our best to keep from laughing. This criminal mastermind stole probably the crappiest car on the block, a car I've wanted to offload for years, a car my husband kept exclusively for taking the dogs to the regional park, a car we probably could not have convinced the "donate your car" people to take.

Our vigilant dogs -- the ones who alert us to the dangerous mailman's arrival every day, and to unauthorized racoons in the yard? -- they slept through the whole thing, including the strange man pounding the door and yelling "police." The delicate cat responded, as always, with a few pook accidents.

Special prizes this week for stuff that makes you laugh, and music references. Let 'er rip!

40 comments:

Sue said...

Sorry kathy a - but I laughed so hard at your (most unfortunate) car stealing/police knocking episode that I had to read it aloud to my brother-in-law, who is sitting next to me on the couch.


Yes, I did have to explain what pook meant.

AW: visiting family and doing some preliminary research for my sabbatical. I'm in Ottawa which is normally warmer than where I live, however, this week- well, not so much. Still
"We are Family......I've got all my sisters in me" so it's great to visit the one sister I don't get to see often.

Seriously, I look at her and could be looking in a mirror. It's very cool, especially since we like each other. :)

kathy a. said...

sue -- sounds like a great visit! and i'm laughing, because i let my sisters choose the music selection for my wedding, and that song was featured. :)

Liz Miller said...

In this humidity I resemble Rosanne Rosanadana.

The hair, it goes SPROING.

esperanza said...

Whines are same old thing. Overworked Daddy, busy Mama. I will *whisper* that I have no potty training whines this week. Mini is adjusting to the no boob idea. I have somehow booked myself for six Sundays in a row preaching this summer. Advance warning for those whines.

AW: kathy a., and Sue, and Liz, have now made me laugh.

P_K said...

Delightful party here . . . enjoying the chuckles.

We visited another school today that we liked much better. We got the impression that the principal and other staff here actually *liked* the kids, and the kids looked like normal kids, with the normal noises and activity rather than the previous school, which felt rather like walking around an empty graveyard even during recess (the children did play in their uniforms, but in a very quiet and muted way). Seriously, when we first got to School A we wondered if we had accidentally come on a day school wasn't in session because it was so quiet.

And, they're actually able and willing to make adjustments for kids with different learning styles and needs, unlike School A. And they expect the kids to be normal kids there, and expect to have to actually do some teaching instead of only allowing kids to enroll or stay in school if they're already practically perfect in every way.

Oh, and my lovely AJ was showing her colors, including interrupting to ask deep questions that the other school would have probably considered impertinent and inappropriate.

She told the principal she wasn't quite sure she agreed with one of their main theological tenets because of this and that reason, and her theory on a possible explanation that she felt would fit the evidence better.

His jaw dropped--with DELIGHT! He said it was so unusual to see a child of her age asking such perceptive, deep-thinking questions, and he loved it. He was obviously excited to have a child with such an active, challenging, questioning mind sitting in his office.

He didn't blink an eye at the sensory and social challenges or the giftedness (or the combination of the two) and said he'd love to have our kids in their school.

He didn't beat us over the head with Scripture quotes taken out of context to proof-text completely irrelevant things, either. :)

(Seriously, when I asked the headmaster from the first school if they would allow AJ to have a weight or heat pack in school to put on her head if she was feeling overstimulated or upset, since this helps cut down on things like hiding under chairs or trying to shove her head underneath other people or wrap herself in the curtains.

He said, "Well, the Bible says women can wear head coverings, so I don't see why a heat pack on her head would be a problem as long as it's not disrupting the rest of the class." :-O

(So if she was a boy, she wouldn't be allowed this accommodation for sensory integration issues, or what??? What does anything have to do with anything in that, anyway???? He apparently thought an IEP was a person, which of course they couldn't provide in their school, since they could only work with any differences in kids as long as they didn't actually require doing things differently or make any waves (or noise--noise is very bad).)

We really liked the teachers, classrooms, and resources we saw too. This school has WAY more and better resources, even though it's cheaper.

This school may be slightly less structured and a bit less academically challenging than our ideal would be (although it sounds like they work really hard to meet individual kids' needs and do a pretty good job of it). We'd take it over the other school any day.

We do have at least 2 or 3 others we still want to visit, but we feel much less heavy after this visit.

Liz Miller said...

I'm so glad you had a positive experience with the second school. Seems to me, that if you're seeing happy children in the building and an administration that LIKES working with children, your children will be happy and thrive there too.

kathy a. said...

PK, glad that visit went well!

Liz Miller said...

Kathy A, sounds like you could use a new set of wheels. Perhaps a Fast Car? Or maybe a Little Red Corvette. Or a 1952 Vincent Black Lightning?

kathy a. said...

LOL, liz!

Purple_Kangaroo said...

I'm supposed to get 4 dental crowns today, and I'm feeling a bit panicky about it and wishing I'd gotten a second opinion on whether they're truly necessary at this time.

It's my 4 top front teeth. Three of them already have root canals and the 4th has several fillings, and they all have more decay. Dentist says there may not be enough tooth left to retain adequate strength with more fillings. Ugh.

And it's going to be close to $2,000 after insurance--I don't know how people even afford dental work.

What's really frustrating is that I brush and floss my teeth like I'm supposed to and eat really healthy for the most part, but my teeth still keep falling apart. It's not fair!!!

Liz Miller said...

P_K, I have heard that while brushing and flossing are important, what most determines your tooth longevity is genetics.

Liz Miller said...

Aunt Flo has come for an unexpected visit. Where the hell were my forehead pimples? Where the hell was the headache at the base of my skull?

Now that the calendar is no longer reliable, I need my early warning signs!!

JenR said...

liz - I have your headache over here. I will happily send it back.

The swollen glands of last week turned into a high fever and pain intense enough to land me in the hospital for 4 days. Still not answers on what caused it. As a special bonus, I now have a never-worn bridesmaid dress if anyone needs it.

Back to bed for me. Hope everyone else is doing well this week.

esperanza said...

Oh no, JenR. Get better soon, and some answers soon, I hope. So sorry you missed the wedding, but sorrier that you feel so crummy.

kathy a. said...

oh, jenr! awful, terrible. i trust you are feeling a little better, since they let you out, but oy oy oy.

PK, another vote for genetics -- and in my case, an early lack of dental care. i had extensive work done at a dental school in my early 20's, and one of the professors introduced my mouth to a crowd of eager students as "just look at those bombed-out molars." that's a morale booster... crowns are good, though -- like armour for the weak-enamelled.

sympathies, liz. just one of the reasons to keep a fully stocked purse.

Purple_Kangaroo said...

JenR, how scary! Did they test for mono?

Crowns all done. I narrowly avoided swallowing one of them, which would not have been ideal. I'm wondering if they charge you for dental work you swallow before it gets glued on? I'm glad they didn't have to start over on making it.

But I'm going to need a couple of fillings also, apparently. I don't know how people without insurance (and even with insurance) afford dental work. Why is it so expensive when it's necessary and not just cosmetic procedures being done?

Elizabeth said...

Feeling guilty for not having checked in with my folks for a week and all craziness has broken loose. My mom's surgery was postponed because she has a stomach bug; my dad tore his rotator cuff. Meanwhile my SIL is back in the hospital with her bipolar disorder. And we're all counting down the days until my son is done with the freaking SOLs (standards of learning -- VA's standardized tests).

kathy a. said...

oh, elizabeth -- what a boatload you've got going. xoxo

Purple_Kangaroo said...

(((Elizabeth)))

On the music note, my 5-year-old came home from gymnastics today singing, "I whip my hair back and forth"--just the chorus--over and over and over and . . .

Sue said...

AW: I heart WestJet so much. There were delays at the airport where I had to make my connection to come home, so they called to see if I could take the earlier flight out of Ottawa and therefore make my connection.

My cell was off, so they called hubby, who called my niece, who was going to drive me to the airport anyway. That's a very kind gesture on the part of WestJet, and it worked. I got home at midnight, while the Air Canada flight doesn't arrive until 2 am..... Haha.

Yep, Air Canada's unofficial motto: "We're not happy until you are unhappy" - WestJet = So. Much. Better.

Sarah at ratatat said...

JenR - how scary. Hope they figure it out and you get well soon. Sleep hard.

KathyA - glad your car story made you laugh. What an absurd criminal.

Sue - happy travels and smart airline. A rare combo, yay!

PK - glad to hear such happy news about schools. Sorry for the teeth. Ouch. I don't know what people without dental insurance do - ours pays so little it feels like we don't have it. In DH's family, they tend to just not have teeth in those spots. Very odd.

Elizabeth - sorry for all of the craziness.

Sarah at ratatat said...

My next big work event (ladies night out) is tonight. Whine: 'few showers' in the forecast, mostly before the event. Please show up nice ladies, all 700 of you.

Whine: my grandmother is having a rough few weeks. Being 84 is not for a wuss.

JenR said...

PK - they tested for mono and menengitis, among other things. My arms are full of needle marks, and my lower back has a deep bruise thanks to the spinal tap. There are still blood tests out there for other things, but the doc apparently expects that they won't lead to an answer and it will all remain a mystery.

Liz Miller said...

(((JenR))) Lyme?

amy said...

I'm mad at my hands. I have had the beginnings of arthritis in a few fingers for about 2 years now, but this week I noticed that I'm starting to get age spots. WTH? I'll be 38 in a couple of weeks! No one told me I'd get age spots before 40!! Harrumph!

kathy a. said...

keep whining! awards friday.

Sue said...

AW: gifts that come in the mail as a complete surprise! Especially when said surprise is - Books!!!!

JenR said...

You know, I told them I had been somewhere with plenty of deer ticks, but I don't know if they ran a lyme's disease test. I should ask.

Liz Miller said...

It's now the first thing I think of when I hear "mystery illness" and "not meningitis"

Sue said...

What Liz said.....surprisingly common diagnosis. More often than we might imagine. It's always worth checking out Lyme disease. There's a simple blood test for it.

Liz Miller said...

Online news sites that have ads that play a soundtrack without warning are online news sites that don't want readers.

kathy a. said...

hear ya, liz. i also hate the roll-down ads, but at least they are quietly annoying as all get out.

my MIL called in a frenzy, saying she is going to have her daugher (my SILfH, who is seriously mentally ill) arrested for elder abuse after SIL physically attacked her and screamed and etc. oy to the vey. this is my beloved's family problem, but my prediction the next shoe would drop soon was sadly correct.

in AW's -- quilt for my son's birthday in progress; another quilt is lining up behind that. there is something to be said for a hobby that causes no harm.

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Purple_Kangaroo said...

Liz, I hear ya . . . there was one school we were tempted to rule out because it had annoying music that started playing automatically and couldn't be turned off on their homepage. What are people thinking???

We visited another school today . . . didn't get to see much in the way of how teachers interacted with students, and the principal was far too busy to be bothered with being introduced to prospective students. It's interesting to me how schools are all so alike and so different.

So far we're leaning toward school B. One thing that's a W/AW about it, though, is that all the classrooms had all the desks pushed together in groups of 4, facing each other.

While I think myself as a child and my younger two would LOVE that, and I overall see it as a positive--I'm not at all sure how AJ would do with that day in and day out. She has such a strong need for her own personal space, and for time that's not being "with" other people. Also she's not that great at respecting others' personal space, tolerating minor annoyances such as little noises others are making, etc. Just spending every week day in a classroom with 15 or 25 other kids will in itself be a challenge for her--I'm not sure if being in that close proximity with other kids all the time will push her over the edge or not.

Also that school has only band available in 5th grade, while the one we visited today gives the kids a choice of band or choir. She is strongly opposed to band music--too loud, harsh and annoying for her sensitive ears--but loves singing being in a choir.

My goodness, these kinds of decisions are hard!

kathy a. said...

PK, school B sounds so accomodating. the desks-together setup was common for my kids' elementary classes, but some students just needed extra space or fewer distractions at times, and the classroom teachers accomodated that without making a big deal of it.

Liz Miller said...

P_K, you know, last year Muffin Man's teacher moved MM's desk to the back of the room, not as punishment, but because he had trouble staying seated. She didn't mind him standing at his desk, but he was blocking the view of other students, so she moved his desk so he could keep standing but not disturb the other students.

I'm sure that whatever teacher your eldest gets will be willing to work with you and eldest on giving her the room she needs to do her best.

As for band...maybe you can opt out and keep her in whatever choir she's in now?

esperanza said...

Late whine. Tomorrow is my birthday. I asked for either a sleep-in morning or (what I really want) Mama's Day Off. I'm getting neither. Mr. E has a wedding and a funeral this weekend (meaning a wedding rehersal also). Rescheduling the birthday is an unhappy compromise.

kathy a. said...

well, phoooey, esperanza. No. Fair.

PK, my daughter loved chorus, too, but kept with her saxophone even when her high school made kids choose between band and chorus. [she chose chorus at school, but kept taking sax lessons and joined a youth orchestra.]

maybe band won't be quite what your daughter imagines -- beginning band is a lot about learning rhythm, learning to read music, each instrument learning to play basic notes -- and then somehow they miraculously start making music together. is there an instrument she likes?

Purple_Kangaroo said...

Thanks, all. She does like the flute and is interested in learning to play that.

I think what we're going to do is talk to the school about what options there would be if she gets overstimulated in either the classroom or the band--if there would be a quiet place she could go to calm down and decompress if needed.

Liz Miller said...

Kathy, sending hugs to you and your in-laws.

Esperanza, I'm so sorry that you're not getting what you asked for for your birthday. If I lived closer, I would so be there to give you that day.