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Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Post-Labor Day hang-over post

What is it about three-day-weekends that makes the four-day-week that follows them feel like it will never end?

Here it is, not quite noon on Tuesday and I'm wondering where Friday is.

So is today a Monday for you?

59 comments:

esperanza said...

Whining on behalf of my state, which is on fire. Unbelievable. It's very smoky at our house, but no fires super close. Sweet is definitely staying inside, which is a shame, because the weather is (AW) beautiful.

I'm sure I'll be back with more later.

kathy a. said...

oh, esperanza. those wildfires are so awful -- huge, and hard to stop once they get going. and the smoke, it can travel quite a distance -- good to keep the baboos indoors.

i worked over the weekend, so today's just another day. but my plan of having most of something big done by sunday is not moving along so well. seem to have misplaced the overdrive feature on my motivation gearshift.

Sue said...

Thoughts and prayers for Texans dealing with the fires. How terrible!

W: similar to Liz and her slow-motion week. I get my next set of medical Botox injections on the 19th of this month. This appears to be a date that taunts me with how far away it is. My solution in the meantime (re: head pain) is to be prepared for the cartoon coyote to come and hit me on the head with a large ACME mallet.

AW: at least I have the appointment! Yay!

AW: I was off today (stat day) and realized again how easily my hubby can make me laugh. Srsly, he cracks me up.

kathy a. said...

running my errands this morning, i ran into a wonderful woman who founded my kids' former school. the parkinson's has put her in a wheelchair -- and it's been years -- but she was lovely as ever, remembering and asking about the kids. "you were some of the good parents," she said -- which you know is the way to a parent's heart.

but the truth is that there were lots of great parents and kids; she set up a place for families to flourish, even in the bumpy patches. here's to all those who make things go well in life. we don't always get a chance to thank them, a few years on.

Sarah at ratatat said...

Esperanza - that's terrible. Would hate that smoke smell getting in everything.

Sue - hang in there. That does seem long away. Hope the coyote gets lost.

KathyA - hope your motivation kicks in. maybe it is hanging out with mine - at the beach.

Whine/Anti-Whine - after the loss of appetite and weight loss, CT scan ruled out gallbladder issues, visit to GI doctor, he diagnoses an ulcer. Today was my upper GI scope to see. Wrong. Not an ulcer. No irritation.

My stomach is still tender when I eat. I am now down 20 lb (the antiwhine!). But I don't think they are too worried - I don't have a follow up for 2-3 weeks.

Antiwhine: knock on wood, start of school is going really well. Feel v lucky.

Anonymous said...

Hugs for Sarah...keep checking for the GI stuff...glad they are not worried though. BTW, I had a bacterial overgrowth in the intestine (bad bacteria outcompeted good bacteria) and was losing weight, and getting vitamin deficiencies, etc. Also tenderness, etc. It was diagnosed due to results from a lactose intolerance test (the baseline readings from the beginning of the test were off, which tipped them off to the problem)...Just a thought-- if you haven't had a lactose intolerance test, you might get a double dose of info at one time..

Hugs to esperanza and sue, and the kudos posse to the woman who was so good for Kathy a.'s kids!

A question to the pixies:
I love to quilt, but my current Singer 9410 is not a terrific quilting machine, as its feed dogs do not lower easily (or maybe at all). I am looking for a new sewing machine (not *too* expensive) that would particularly be good for quilting. Any pixies have suggestions? Thanks!!

:)

--Neighbor Lady

esperanza said...

NL, I'm on a sewing kick, but quilts are *not* my forte. Waaaay too much precision required. So I have no suggestions. On the other hand, I put in a zipper all by myself last night, on a dress for myself. Yay me!

W: Feeling overwhelmed by other peoples' tragedies. Occupational hazard.

Sarah at ratatat said...

ooh NL - that's interesting the lactose idea. I have a mild milk allergy so I never drink it, but I do use butter and cheese. Did you have the allergist lead the charge?

KathyA - your teacher story made me smile. We had preschool Meet the Teacher today. I love that place. Bella liked it, but she did decide tonight to not have her 3rd birthday on Friday so she is too little to go to school. She is far deeper than she seems.

amy said...

I just opened my mouth on FB and experienced some, um, splashback. The short of it is my friend list is one person lighter, over a stupid petty thing that we've fought about before and really means nothing in the grand scheme of things.

Funny thing is, my inbox and notifications have been EXPLODING ever since. Nothing like a public trainwreck to bring out your real friends. xoxo ;)

Sarah at ratatat said...

Amy - isn't that intense - in mostly a bad way because we're grown-ups? I can see how teens could get caught up in creating that drama.

kathy a. said...

((( sue ))) danged coyote. in the cartoons, the roadrunner always comes out ahead. we're rooting for you. meep meep!

[yes, i have a close personal relationship with the gospel according to looney tunes.]

sarah, at least they are ruling things out, and good news that they are not considering it urgent. NL has a great suggestion, as always.

i bet bella will decide to turn 3 soon. :)

NL -- i like making quilts, but they are the fast and cheaty kind, where i use yarn or floss ties and only sew through all the layers around the edges. which is a considerable challenge for my machine. so i've got nothin', but am interested in what you turn up!

very impressed with the zipper, esperanza! i'm so zipper-phobic.

oh, amy. boo on train wrecks!

Elizabeth said...

I've been AWOL on WW for quite a while, but it's lovely to see all of you. My motivation has definitely wandered off.

AW: Had a lovely one-month vacation with the family, went to Japan and China and saw marvelous things, and spent more extended time with the boys than in years. They're pretty cool people.

Great honking W: My mother died while we were gone. She had a liver transplant just under 2 years ago, which was a success, but the hepatitis recurred. We knew she was fading when we left, and she wanted us to go, but still...

Combined W/AW: I've been back almost a month, but between visiting my father and other planned trips, I still haven't had a full week back in the office.

W: I'm having trouble getting my groove on. Between the total insanity of American politics at the moment, and the fact that the office did not in fact fall apart while I was gone for a month, I'm having trouble convincing myself that it really matters that I do what I do.

Liz Miller said...

(((Elizabeth))). I'm so sorry about your loss. And I totally get your questioning whether what you do matters.

The truth is: What YOU do matters. It matters that you are working for the world to be better, for the country to be better. It matters. It matters in the larger scope of things, but it also matters on the micro-level. Your family, your friends, your connections everywhere feel pride in what you do and, because you do what you do, we all make an effort to make the world better too.

kathy a. said...

part of my motivation displacement is the BIG distraction, daughter's transition from college to internship, and our trip to DC next week. so many details; and this is the first time she has ventured forth without the protection of school support. it would be easier if we weren't working with 3 locations distant from each other: home, college in another state, and DC way the hell across the country.

she just finished this medical anthropology class yesterday. interesting, no? it bothered the living heck out of her, because she felt the teacher was promoting an agenda of "western medicine is bad," with a focus on childbirth practices, and a side of woo-woo. many intense discussions were had with the child-bearing parental unit. this is just a great topic, but perhaps not well suited for an intensive 3 week undergraduate course.

kathy a. said...

((( elizabeth ))) i'm so sorry about the loss of your mother. losing a parent is always hard -- expected or not, if you are there or not, if you were close or not.

and what liz said, about your work.

xoxoxox

esperanza said...

((elizabeth)), great to see you. Sorry for the sad news.

My efficiency has run off with everyone's motivation.

W: Sweet's (gulp) 4th birthday is coming up. She's never had a party, except for grandparents etc. She says she wants her friends to come over for her bd. However, she almost always has a meltdown during present-opening time at previous birthdays/Christmases AND had a meltdown yesterday when we sang "Happy Birthday" to Daddy. She has reacted the same way every birthday party we've been to.

So, the no singing part is a no-brainer. And the rest of it is going to be extremely low-key, though apparently not low-key enough to let me sleep last night. The stumper is this: can we ask people NOT to bring a present? We'd rather her not get a bunch of silly junk for presents; she has more than enough everything already; and she doesn't like opening them. I covet some pixie wisdom.

Elizabeth said...

You can ask, although some people may not listen. I've also been to parties where they've asked for a paperback book for a swap among the the guests.

kathy a. said...

you can ask, but good luck -- everybody brings presents. you might have more luck with asking for only *small* presents or cards if they must, and saving any present-opening for after guests leave.

kids that age usually just like to run around and play, anyway. and eat, but they're too excited to do real meals, most of them. and you can keep the party short; you can invite parents to stay, which is a nice bonding opportunity; and that's going to be a good party.

kathy a. said...

oh, elizabeth has a great idea about a book exchange!

Sue said...

((((Elizabeth))))) I'm so sorry for your loss.

Love the idea about a book exchange!!

Liz Miller said...

Books. Definitely books.

I am giggling. A local blogger sent out a long questionnaire to every candidate for the BOS, but s/he is an anonymous blogger, and the questionnaire was long and the response rate has been poor.

I sent out one and only one question to BOS/HOD/Sen candidates, and I am assuredly NOT an anonymous blogger (anymore), and I've gotten a terrific response rate.

The combo of low effort combined with my having accountability has made me look like a local politics-blogging rock star.

May I gloat? Yes. I think I will gloat.

kathy a. said...

go, liz!

Anonymous said...

Esperanza--wow!! on the zipper. I haven't been able to pull that off yet!
Sarah--I did it through my primary care, since i don't have an allergist, but I bet your allergist could lead the charge too. Also, it could be a different food allergy perhaps?
((Elizabeth)), so sorry for your loss!

Esperanza, love the book swap idea, and also the opening presents afterwards idea.

Also, gloat on Liz!

--Neighbor Lady

kathy a. said...

i did a zipper once, but it was traumatic. and 25 years ago.

esperanza, my friend in san antonio is sending fire updates. he's ok, but things are bad bad bad in general. i keep hoping my state will send some tankers and fire crews, but haven't seen word of that yet.

Gary said...

My whine is that individual eyebrow follicles have become ambitious colonialists. Last week I plucked one that was growing on my eyelid in the otherwise hairless zone between eyebrow and eyelash. Then this evening I found one growing close to my temple below the line where my eyelids join when I blink. I don't know if it was hoping to join my sideburn hair or my cheek whiskers, but I pluckerated it with extreme prejudice before its nefarious plan to make me look like a brunette version of Yosemite Sam could come to fruition.

kathy a. said...

gary! hi!

in my opinion, any and all hair follicle whines are prize-worthy.

esperanza said...

Zipper advice: get something called an "invisible zipper." I had a traumatic experience with the regular kind. But this invisible deal--just follow the directions, as wacky as they seem, and it works out easily. Truly.

Fire stuff: the giganto one blowing smoke in our direction is 30% contained. The San Antonio one is in an area of a military installation (quite positive we don't want to know what would be burning there) and lots of homes. It's pretty bad. Thanks for the concern. We need some rain is what we need.

Gary: hair follicles, either over- or under-enthusiastic, are perfect candidates for Old Skool whines, IMO.

Sue said...

I agree - hair where it don't belong - that's just wrong. (hey, that's a poem!)

My hair horror takes the form of teeny little stray hairs that feel just like Brillo pads - but they are (oh the shame) on my chin. They fight the tweezers too, these little freakish hairs.

Seriously Universe? I get to be older and wiser and more HAIRY????? Wha????? *shakes head*

Andy said...

Corn Dog! Been too long.

Sorry for your loss, Elizabeth.

Liz, you've knocked on every single door in the county twice canvassing. How exactly were you not already a political blogging rock star?

Amy, my family has a funny relationship with Facebook. One of my sisters posts statuses with the sole purpose of starting fights with people. My dad, on the other hand, has 14 friends: his wife, his two nieces, his nephew, the five of us who are on Facebook, and our spouses. He refuses to friend anyone else due to the ever-present threat of Big Brother learning too much about him. He mostly sends us links to New York Times articles warning of the ever-expanding reach of Big Brother.

Also, I know this may shock you all, but I don't know a thing about sewing.

My whine: The Houston Chronicle has the web's best comic page. They just did a site redesign, and for some ridiculous reason, they removed the "Build-Your-Own Comic" Feature that let you read all the strips you want to read on a single page. Now reading the comics, which was a nice 5 minute break at work, has ballooned into a 20 minute clickfest on my crappy home computer that barely works. Curses upon you, Houston Chronicle Web Design Team!

kathy a. said...

my cat is so grounded.

Sue said...

FB whine: I had a great discussion going on over on FB last night. Hubby decided it was "too theological" and was concerned that the half dozen folks from the church who are FB friends might react negatively (ie they might disagree).

My feeling was that disagreement would be a great place to begin a dialogue and I had not said anything that I would not preach on any given Sunday.

But he was still worried, so I took the post down. It's a shame because there were some really valid points made by other people who posted there.

Argh. Worry. What is it good for? Absolutely nothing. Huh. :)

kathy a - I hesitate to even ask, but I've been in the "cat is grounded" place too many times to count. Definitely award-worthy, that whine.

Happy Whining Pixies - I'm off to the office where we have no intarwebs until Friday. Apparently our local service provider thinks schools that are having internet trouble take precedent over us. Just because it's the first week of school! Imagine!

*kidding!* (of course they take precedent, but we have no internet!!!! Whatever shall we do?)

Have a great day everyone!

Liz Miller said...

Hey Gary!

Sue, IMO, you should put it back up. If it got a good, polite, respectful discussion going then you were right to post it in the first place.

Sarah at ratatat said...

So sorry for your loss, Elizabeth. What a hard time.

And Sue deserves an award for the truth of Worry. What is it good for? Absolutely nothing. Huh. :)

Hairdresser and doctor friend are now convinced stress is reason for my weight loss. What me worry? I think I should get a tattoo of Sue's phrase.

kathy a. said...

spot took off last night for a few hours. i eventually saw him in various neighbor yards, but he wouldn't come home when asked. i'm too old to be worrying about a reckless kid strutting around at night, ignoring curfew and looking for trouble.

Sue said...

Liz, it was a good discussion. I don't think I know how to get a FB post back once it's deleted. It's okay though. I'm over it.

AW: it's quite remarkable how much work I can accomplish at the office when there is no Internet. It helps that it was a slow day - the phone didn't even ring.

Wait.....I wonder if the phone is out of order too. I guess I should have checked. Oops.

KLee said...

Elizabeth, I am so sorry about your mother. Losing a loved one is always painful, and you have my sympathy. Please let us know if there's anything we can do.

Dr. Dog -- good to see you! I also empathize on the stray lone hairs that seem to take up residence in odd places. I have one (just one!) hair that appears on my chin. I say we stand fast in the follicle fight! I have no wish to end up looking like Martin Scorsese.

Piggybacking off of Amy's FB whine -- I have a truly appalling story to relate. Yesterday, in my city, a small boy was struck by a car while he waited for the school bus and was killed. Apparently, he was wearing headphones, and did not hear a truck back out of a neighbor's driveway. The driver did not see the child, and did not feel an impact. and so left the scene. The child was discovered by his siblings when they came down to the bus stop a few minutes later. The whole story is just tragic beyond belief, but here's where it becomes awful beyond imagining.

A neighbor sees all the commotion, and all of the emergency vehicles, and begins taking pictures of the accident. She then posts those pictures on Facebook, including one *of the child's body, lying in the driveway.* I do not know this person, but we have mutual friends in common, so that's how I heard about it. Now, there's a firefight between my friend (who reported the photo and defriended the photo-taker, and asked everyone she knows to defriend the photo-taker) and the photo-taker. The person who took the photos later took then down, and claimed she had simply "made a mistake", but it's my personal thought that if you EVER thought it was appropriate to post things like that, you are surely an awful person.

Now, we have a community of people here up in arms, but I still can't feel anything but disgust for someone who would hurt a poor, grieving family like that.

Sue said...

Oh KLee, how terribly tragic! What a heart-breaking way for your community to begin the school year.

kathy a. said...

oh, klee. that is so very awful, all of it.

way long ago, a same-age cousin [2d cousin? 1st once removed?] i never met was hit by a school bus when he was beginning 1st grade. his mom saw it. the whole family was beyond ruined with the tragedy; it is still hard, 45 years later. it's unfathomable that anyone would share those kinds of horrible photos with the universe, especially when the tragedy is so raw and involves a kid known to those she was contacting.

esperanza said...

KLee, every part of that story is heartbreaking.

AW (mostly): my dad got laid-off today. It was mostly voluntary (he's thisclose to retirement), and he got some nice perks with it. But the reason he volunteered? So someone else's job could be saved. Proud of him tonight. I don't have that feeling too frequently, but it's good to be reminded what an honorable guy he is.

amy said...

I have, unfortunately, witnessed several deaths. Though I am not squeamish in the slightest, the idea of taking pictures of any of it has *never* crossed my mind. Anyone who would publish photos of another person's dead loved one is a heartless b*stard who should have to experience similar suffering. While they are waiting to serve that penance, they need to grow up and do the right thing, starting with going to the funeral to pay some fireplacing respect.

I'm sorry. I'm just so, so angry about that.

kathy a. said...

oh, amy. totally with you on the anger. but omg, a person like this is not a person you'd want at your loved one's funeral. this is not a person one can trust to act civil in a heart-wrenching situation. actually, the family is probably planning defensive measures in case she shows up and wants to say something. i vote for missing the service and finding some better way to make up for her horrible misconduct.

kathy a. said...

esperanza, kudos to your dad, looking out for someone else's job. and still, i bet that's a big transition for him, a little sooner than expected. xoxo

esperanza said...

Thanks, kathy a. It's actually going to be a much harder transition for my mom, I think.

kathy a. said...

ok, then. project find dad a cause?

KLee said...

The thing is, I don't know if the family knows what happened with the pictures or not. The photos were taken by a neighbor of theirs, so conceivably, they could have mutual friends in common on FB, but who wants to run to these grieving parents with news like this?!?

I know the media outlets in our town are still (as yet) unaware of it, and if I didn't think it would cause more heartache for that poor family, I would be sorely tempted to let said media outlets know. However, doing that would cause problems for everyone even peripherally related to the original photo-taker. Problems for her, I don't care about, but all the innocent people around her would be tarred with the same brush.

I am also of the camp that I would not want this person within a thousand feet of me, my home, or any of my loved ones. Funeral or not. If your guilt is gnawing at you that much, and you want to make amends -- the family is having trouble paying for a burial plot: send in a LARGE anonymous donation to the fund.

I am still so heartsick for that poor child. He was only 11. That family. At times like these, I wish there was something to say that wasn't half-assed and trite sounding.

Liz Miller said...

Oh, KLee, that is awful.

Folks, keep going, I'll do awards later tonight or tomorrow.

amy said...

no, no, i'm with you, kathy. hence the "grow up" component. they need to grow up. it won't happen, though.

i like the idea of a donation to the family, but they won't do it, and even if they did, i honestly believe it would be an empty gesture.

kathy a. said...

klee -- there aren't very good words at a time like this. the family will want to know people remember their son -- not just now, but later. photos and memories are good. (he won't have disappeared from their thoughts, but people may refrain from mentioning him for fear of prodding the sorrow. i think ignoring the elephant in the room makes families feel even more isolated and alone.)

things like dinner, or helping in practical ways, can make a difference in the coming weeks, too. just ideas. the mourning won't end with the funeral.

kathy a. said...

pre-trip obsessiveness -- a totally privileged whine. pretty much everything is done but the packing. boxes shipped! upgrade to early check-in! raingear in case the monsoons persist! metro passes! utilities arranged at the apartment! some meet-ups, yay!! there is even a semi-fancy event related to my work, and i've got both a ticket and appropriate attire!

so, i should be getting some real work done, but instead i keep adding things to the "must pack" piles, and otherwise driving myself nuts. it's not helping that everybody is running 9/11 anniversary stories, or that there's some vague threat out there. LA LA LA LA, we're traveling anyway.

Days said...

KLee - that is truly appalling. What a terrible tragedy for that family.

Many mighty whines this week. Welcome back to the long absent Pixies.

The kids are all back in school(thank goodness), we're having a coffee date with an old friend and her new puppy tomorrow, and the sun is shining, so things seem to be on the upswing around here today.

A happy weekend to all the Pixies.

kathy a. said...

hooray! days for best anti-whine!

Elizabeth said...

So sorry to hear that KLee. And yay for esperanza's dad.

Thanks for the kind words about my mother. I am sad that her hepatitis recurred and sad that she was so sick, but frankly sort of relieved that she's out of her pain. She was at NYU/Tisch Hospital the last few weeks, and when they evacuated for Irene, all I could think was that I was grateful that she didn't have to go through that ordeal.

Whine: Monsoon-like weather. School was closed today due to flooding.

Anti-whine: No flooding inside the house.

esperanza said...

kathy a, I've been thinking about your trip today.

AW: most of the day to myself in Big City

W: for a committee meeting

Further W: and someone died this morning, so I spent the whole day feeling guilty that hubby was home with the girls instead of ministering to the family. Though it was partially his choice--I offered to arrange a babysitter.

In any case, Mama's Day Off was not very fulfilling.

And, yes, Dad needs a Project. He's a bit Type A. :)

JenR said...

Late check-in .... newborns do that to me. I can't be on time for anything. Hugs to everyone.

My whines are small compared to many above, but I'll ramble them off anyway:
- B00bs that don't work as needed
- Babies that lose too much weight (see whine #1)
- Toddler meltdowns
- pain pills that make sleepy mommies even more sleepy
- herbs that supposedly fix whine #1 that instead make mommy sick and don't work anyway
- and from last week: construction on the floor under the maternity ward and NICU. Cancer patients get fancy new digs. Mommies and newborns are not happy with the timing.

AW:
- weight almost completely gained back for the baby
- mommy down 8 lbs from pre-pregnancy (woo hoo!)
- friends who come to visit at the hospital (the only friends - what's with that? - thanks sarah)
- recovery is much easier when the c-section is not an emergency

kathy a. said...

congratulations, jenr! so sorry about the whiney parts. i nominate you for remembering what it's all about!

esperanza said...

Yay JenR! I had the c-section recovery surprise too. MUCH easier when it was scheduled rather than emergency. Very grateful for that, and good luck to the boobs.

Liz said...

Yay JenR! My computer is having issues, keep whining. Awards will go up as soon as I can beat my computer into submission.

kathy a. said...

packing packing packing. i am so glad i'm not at the move-out-of-apartment end of this operation, only at the "mom, can you also pack XYZ for me?" end back home.

my beloved is a saint, a SAINT, i tell you. he keeps a cooler head with the last-minute and the clean-up, and will drive her excess stuff home tomorrow. 9 hour drive, after the 4 hours of shuttling her up to the airport later today.

Sarah at ratatat said...

Jen R - well, I'm glad I went. You were one of 2 to visit me with baby #3. Has visiting at the hospital gone out of style?

Good luck Kathy! Have a great trip! We'll be thinking of you.