Rockin' pneumonia and the boogie-woogie flu

Hope everyone is recovering with all deliberate speed from last week!

It is so gorgeous outside that I can't help feeling a little like dancing.  And OK, the musical reference is dated, but so am I.  So there.

Gotta dance or something because of the substantial unbloggables.  And the committee from heck.  

I drafted a long and angry letter to these people who are trying to scam us, saying we owe money to an insurance company for something that happened the night our car was stolen and crashed.  My beloved wrote a better one today.  Consumer fraud:  fun for the whole family.

AW:  Sweet dove nesting in our yard!  We have managed to not scare her away permanently!

What's rockin' in your worlds?

Red Hot Awards

Our sweet Esperanza wins the Red Hot Host Award for hosting through a kidney-style UTI, the silverware-rearranging Aunt's visit, a simultaneous visit from Aunt Flo, and now pneumonia, among other travails.  Pneumonia!  This award comes with good soup, lots of liquids, even more antibiotics, some GS cookies because they never hurt, and a sash of glory.  Hope you are feeling better pronto!  Also, the universe can expect a little visit from The Cluestick Posse, because seriously, how much in one week is reasonable?  This was waaayyy too much more.

Apologies for the brevity of the rest of the awards.

Liz wins the  Silver Lining Award for pointing out that Esperanza is getting it all over with at once.  ;) 

The Revolution Award goes to Sarah, who's enjoying yoga and getting out -- and when her soon-to-be-ex made a face while visiting the kids, she realized, "I don't have to respond to that anymore."  Go, Sarah!  The Posse will follow up with a little cluesticking as needed.

Sue wins the Fashionista Award, for bad hair day, good hair day, and a new haircut anyway!  And congratulations on plowing past that early-sabbatical migraine!

The So True Award goes to Liz, for pointing out that sometimes our bodies just fall apart, once the intense pressure is off.

Lexicon Kudos to Esperanza and Sue, for the the discussion of "pulling" vs. "throwing" a fit.  Our verbal horizons are broadened.

Hugs to NL!  Say more next time!

Thanks for playing!

Feverish Ramblings

Yes, that's correct. Mama has a 101 temp *with* ibuprofen in my system. Hit me during the middle of the second church service this morning--chills, aches. This cannot end well.

Grandparents and great-grandmother are here. On the one hand, that's nice to have help with the Baboos and resting time in bed. On the other hand, I do *not* want 93-yr-old to get sick. Silverware meddling aunt is supposed to arrive tomorrow. I just sent her a text explaining the situation.

I sincerely hope no other pixies are experiencing this calamity, but I know you have whines. Lay 'em on us.

Better Late Than Never

Apologies for the lateness of the ceremony.  One of those weeks, you know?

The Old Skool Award goes this week to Sarah, who bought her boy nice pants for first communion this weekend, and they were too small!  Five tries later, suitable attire was achieved.  Pants shopping:  a classic.

Esperanza wins the Relatives! Incoming! Award, with grandparental units this week, and the silverware drawer re-arranger next week.  Whee!

The coveted Elevated Risk of Mullet Award goes to our own Neighbor Lady, who suggests:  "maybe you should get your silverware drawer into a disreputable state of disarray before she arrives. Then, she will have something to do that will keep her out of trouble in other drawers, and who knows....maybe she'll actually put it back the way you like it this time!"  Brilliant!

Liz wins the Blue Plate Special for her culinary W/AW combo:  "W: Why does Chipotle taste so good in the eating, but then makes my mouth feel sour and disgusting for hours afterwards?  AW: Company store sells mints." 

AntiWhine of the Week Award goes to Sue, whose hubby's neurologist reports "glacial" progress on his MS.  Happy dance! 

Pixie Meetup Award to Liz and Redzils, who got to see one another live and in person!  We are jealous. 

Much love to Liz, who lost her beloved cousin this week.  Hugs also to Sue, who lost a lovely member of her congregation.

Thanks for playing!

The Flowers That Bloom in the Spring, tra-laaa!

After the Great Downpour of Last Week in my area, we are having some glorious weather here. And the days are long enough now that the winter enthusiasm slump seems firmly packed away for the season.

In fact, I'm feeling positively accomplished! Of course, that meant working all weekend, but I'm finally getting some significant things done on the long list for the big giant project. Yay!

There is a bunch of enthusiasm locally for a new library -- the old one is cramped, antiquated, inadequate, not much parking -- and lots of good ideas floating around for a new site with modern features, something to serve all ages and function as a community hub. And some people got organized to get this to happen! There is even talk of small complimentary businesses at one possible site, a large empty location right in the heart of town -- a counter to the "we need a tax base" and "no more taxes" naysayers. Yay! I'm signed up as a supporter, and hope this doesn't turn into something like a bad committee.

National political whine: Never has a campaign season been so long and ugly, and we haven't even gotten past the primary. I'm truly mortified that a central theme is doing as much as possible to destroy women's reproductive rights and access to care. Now it comes to a reprise of the Mommy Wars -- can we just put that sucker to rest again? I love women who work because they want to; women who work because they need to; women who are mothers, and women who are not. I think all women should make their own choices about work inside and outside the home; and that all women should make their own health and family planning choices. And that anyone who thinks contraception is a "side issue" and unrelated to "the economy" has no concept of how things work for most women in the real world.

I am not usually moved to whine so directly about politics, but damn. My mother was quite conservative, and she both used birth control and worked outside the home. This stuff is crazy talk.

Small whine: people on a work-related list-serve have totally forgotten how to reply just to one person. Arrgh! "Hey, what time's your flight?" is not something we all need to read.

What's blooming in your world?

Spring is Sprung!

The program this week naturally included a number of festive seasonal whines/anti-whines, and thankfully they were not all from your humble whiny host.

Rather forgetting the joyful celebration thing, a complete stranger at an Easter party admonished Esperanza and her baboos because the girls splashed a little in the birdbath. The Posse has some leftover boiled eggs, which ought to make a good thank-you gift when they ripen in a few weeks.

Sue wins the Fashionista Award for preaching in bare feet, which was both true to the customs of the honoree, and a lot better than wearing those heels for one more event in this long week.

The coveted Elevated Risk of Mullet Award goes to Miranda for this most excellent holiday whine: " I'm thinking of boycotting drunk Seder next year with relatives." Boundaries, sister. We'll back you up.

The Sage Advice Award goes to Sarah, who reassures us (well, me): "I think we're all allowed to have our own germ issues and think other people's are weird." On the other hand, Esperanza wins the Walmart Toilet Parenting Challenge, which I think we all agree is extremely gross, but totally Old Skool.

Miranda wins the Stupid Work-Related Mess Award, for something foolish that somebody did that wasn't even the fault of her own workplace, and yet she gets collared on her private time by people who think her workplace has something to do with it. This award comes with a complimentary Cluesticking: Grade A for those who did the foolish thing, and just a little wake-up clue for the church people.

The We're Not In High School Award goes to Sarah, who got mired in some real-life and FB gameplaying. Ugh. The Posse is on top of this one, too.

AntiWhines of the Week belongs to Sue, who is on sabbatical! And to Sarah, who whisked the kids off for a fun-filled getaway! Woo hooo!

Esperanza takes that time-tested parental threat to a new level, and wins the Vehicular Behavior Correction Award for this: "And you know that thing where you say 'if you do that one more time Imma turn this car around?' Yep. Turned those strollers around .... Grrr." Sue is runner up for explaining the importance of the parental crazy-eyes technique.

Much Love and good thoughts to little Waylon, who is fighting cancer and just had surgery, and to Esperanza's friend's daughter, who was in ICU following the stillbirth of her baby.

Thanks to Liz and others for thoughts on my own holiday angst.

And thanks, everybody, for playing!

Weekend Edition

The must-do holidays in my house are Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. At Thanksgiving, there must be turkey. At Christmas, there must be a tree and stockings. And at Easter, there must be baskets. (And apparently dyed eggs. My beloved insists, even though nobody really eats them. Whatever.)

So, naturally I got the eggs and forgot the dye. Have the basket makings, but there are serious deficiencies in the preparations, considering the other holiday must-do: make the front of the house look like it is not inhabited by feral creatures. (Which of course it is, but that's kind of embarrassing.)

Up sides: daughter cleaned the front bathroom! And she is picking up egg dye! And the food appears to be under control! And the cool cousins are coming over!

Also, we only need to clean to cool cousin specs, not MIL specs. Still, some dust bunnies and a considerable load of cat fur will soon go to the great beyond. Surely I can get my act together by tomorrow noonish...

Being a time of families gathering, we're opening the Brigadoon early, in case of emergency (or mundane) whine or antiwhine needs.

Show Time!

Let me just pull this very classy stepstool up to the podium. OK, there. Pixies of all altitudes are now set. Please remove any painful footwear for the ceremony. Passing the mac & cheese, matzoh, popcorn, chocolate eggs, peeps, and beverages of choice.

It is not every week that begins with St. Stupid's Day and extends to holy days for two major religious traditions. Best to all who are/were celebrating! -- and to all who slogged through the challenges of this week.

Esperanza wins the Old Skool Award for a Pixie classic: completing her list at the new huge confusing store, then finding she forgot the milk. At least she was still in the parking lot.

The Nature Whine Award goes to Emily, for her excellent whine about dead things in the yard and killer deer in the road. Runner up to Sarah, who noted: "I always used to joke I like nature just fine, but only on the other side of glass."

In the Nature category, we are glad that Texas friends escaped the tornadoes.

The Hop Hop Hop Awards go to Esperanza, for: "I am trying, without success, to find a redeeming quality to an Easter egg hunt. Seems to me it promotes greediness, entitlement, 'me first,' etc. Apparently some people find them fun, but I am an Easter grinch." And, to Liz's son: "My son likes hiding Easter Eggs better than finding them, so he encourages the other kids his age to join him in the challenge of who can find the sneakiest hiding places that have the eggs in plain sight. Then they get the joy of watching "the babies" find them (or not!)" Go, MM!

Soft Yummy Foods and Good Healing to Liz, who popped her jaw and triggered the TMJ, all with a sneeze! That is so not fair.

Sarah wins the Super Mama Super Spring Break Surprise Award, for planning a big woo-hoo fun getaway with the kids!! Shhh, it's a secret! But very exciting, and a real antidote to the whatever unbloggable.

We Love Baboo Award to Esperanza, who learned 5 years ago she was expecting Sweet!

The Cluestick Posse will be accompanied this week by a polka band, for emphasis. (Plus, we needed to get the band out of the choir loft.) The Posse is mainly saddling up for Sue's Clueless Colleague, who managed the following in just one week (which you will recall is Holy Week): [1] freaking out a family in grief by insisting she had to be a full participant in the funeral, though she did not know them or their loved one; leading to [2] reconsideration of the policy with the church's board, and saying she would not participate; except [3] then she did participate and charge full fees for the grieving family she didn't even know; which kept her from preparing for the Good Friday joint service, where [4] she surprised a number of clergy whose congregations were participating by giving them assignments 5 minutes before the service began. Very impressive.

Hugs to all in need. And calming thoughts to the universe.

Thanks for playing! We'll start next week early, to accommodate holiday/family needs, should such arise.

A satisfying St. Stupid's Day

Nobody April fooled me! That I know of....

Sunday was utterly gorgeous, after a very soggy week! So naturally, I spent the day hauling boxes of paper I don't need right now out of my office, sorting current papers in the file piles, organizing this big project that will consume my life until August, laying in some necessary supplies, etc.

Also cooked a nice dinner, including a very sinful mac & cheese (with brie that was somehow neglected and needed using -- how did that happen?). Anyway, here is my plan for avoiding sheer panic: alternate manageable tasks with comfort, happy diversions, and going for walks. And get out of that committee that makes me crazy.

What's cooking up your way?