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Monday, May 4, 2015

Albatross #2 Whining: Return of Mr. Pompous Know-it-All

Well, the title really says it all. Committee member from Albatross #2 wants to invite Mr. PKiA to present his findings to us. Sigh. Mr. PKiA's schedule isn't meshing with our meeting, so we may have to schedule an additional meeting to accommodate him. I'm super thrilled about this.

I'm trying to use my last few weeks of freedom well. I'm kind of dreading summer (sorry, Neighbor Lady and KLee and other teaching types).

How's the whining going for you?

58 comments:

kathy a. said...

The posse shall have words with Mr. PKiA. And how very classic that not only is he butting in, but making it look like everybody has to bend to his schedule.

Think I will go with lasagne for dinner. Haven't made it in a while.

kathy a. said...

AW: Daughter's day off, and I persuaded her to do the dishes.

W [old skool]: Critical post-it shortage. Down to the last pad. We use these for the grocery list, phone messages, urgent alerts, to do lists, appointment reminders, etc. And I had so many, thought they'd never run out.

AW: The very shy second cat has become a regular feature at my feet during the night! She prefers humans in the non-threatening unconscious state.

Sue said...

Cluesticks on the way for Mr. PKiA. He can't rearrange his schedule to suit yours? Surprise, surprise... Ugh.

kathy a - boo on running out of post-its. On the other hand, it requires a trip to the Magic Store of Pens, Pencils, Paper, and All Things Good!!!

AW: Winter tires off the car.

esperanza said...

Well, to be clear:
* we are inviting Mr. PKiA; he did not initiate the meeting
* He is volunteering his time (as are the rest of us), and his conflict with the meeting time is his paying job.
* the rest of us have had this meeting on our calendar for a couple months, but we just now invited him.

So I'm just grumpy because I don't want him to come at all, but the rest of the committee is willing to make adjustments for him to be there.

kathy a. said...

Someone (a good friend is my guess) on the committee suggested inviting Mr. PKiA, no? Just think you are entitled to the grumps about this development. Fingers crossed that he does not have a lot of pontificating interest in this particular albatross.

Emergency postit cube acquired. All is not lost. ;)

esperanza said...

You would be quite correct in your guess. You must have worked on Albatross Committees before! I am asking him to target his pomposity onto the particular subject that we are in charge of, rather than spreading it all over the place.

esperanza said...

I am actually not quite sure what the Inviter's interest is. I'm not sure what he is gaining by being Mr. PKiA's yes man, but he is very dedicated to the task.

Queen of West Procrastination said...

I'm just peeking in quickly. The day after returning from the farm has proven to be the day when the grief feelings really hit, and I've mostly lost my words. As many of you might understand, grief gets complicated when dementia is involved. In ways, I've been losing Grandma for a few years now. I'm grieving the person she once was, and also the person she still was. I'm feeling a large hole in my life, right now, and I'm also angry at the disease that robbed me of her before she was gone.

AW: my brother is home from his big trip. We all, as a family, went to greet him at the airport, and that made him really happy. Even though E didn't nap today, and his flight landed about fifteen minutes after she should have been in bed, we dragged her to the airport (in her pyjamas), so that she could see her uncle. And her uncle was very happy to see her, and happy that she was excited to see him. (She used to be a little shy of him.) I have to say: cheerful toddlers are a relief, in the midst of grief. (Although I can say from experience that grouchy toddlers are not so much of a relief. Although they're still a distraction.)

Anonymous said...

(((((QWP)))))
--Neighbor Lady

Liz Miller said...

((((QWP)))

esperanza said...

((QWP))

And good work, Lil E! Keep up the cheerful toddler bit.

Sue said...

(((QWP)))

kathy a. said...

((( QWP ))) Glad your brother is home. The grief *is* complicated. Don't know why people assume the service puts it to rest, but it doesn't for someone we love.

esperanza said...

Is it bad that I am quietly snickering to myself, because Mr PKiA's schedule is too busy to meet with us in the time frame we need? We'll likely do a Skype call, but won't have to actually be in his presence.

I am weary of scheduling meetings for 10 people.

kathy a. said...

Oh, scheduling a time for that many people sucks. And distance is good. (One might speculate PKiA has a disinterest, but one might also be snarky....)

W/AW: This is why I need talk therapy, which fortunately happens again this week. Have been struggling way too much over a bad breakup with a close family member, and the last thing she said to me was that she did not know what it would take for me to do, in order for her to "forgive" me for blah blah. And, wow. Because putting things on a forgiveness scale -- her advantage is never backing down, and she has done and said some awful things. Unforgivable, one might say -- and I just do not think an unforgivability matchup will be, shall we say, productive.

It's just a broken relationship. Wish I was not so stuck on it.

Queen of West Procrastination said...

(((Kathy))) It's the most natural thing in the world, that you're feeling hurt and stuck on a broken close relationship, especially one where you didn't feel heard.

W: so, this morning, Mr. Q said, "We're both so tired, let's just do absolutely nothing this weekend. Let's tell our families were not available and just rest." It sounded heavenly. I really started looking forward to it. And then I looked at the calendar.

Fireplace. It's Mother's Day this weekend. One of our busiest weekends of the year, since we live in the same city as both our mothers. And I really, really can't skip it this year, when my own mother lost her mom a few days ago. (And I'm really trying to avoid the whole "I'm clearly not going to get a Mother's Day of my own, in the midst of everything else" whine.)

And now I feel guilty that I'm even whining about it, because I'm incredibly privileged to have a kid, and to have both our moms in the same city as us (not to mention kind mothers, with whom we are on very good terms). But Mother's Day is hard.

esperanza said...

I detest Mother's Day. Right there with you, QWP, except without the familial obligations. Luckily Mr. E knows my feelings and won't do anything. The Baboos will bring home something sweet from school, which is more than enough. I'd really prefer to skip it completely.

Miranda said...

This Mother's Day will be a morass of hurt feelings that I will shove so far down that it would take traveling through a black hole to find them because Newly Teen Son wants to plan a special brunch for me and my mother. Then I will host an alternate event later for the new mother and her mother in law because my mom has issues and apparently I will let my kid's desire to host his grandmother (who prolly won't show up like she didn't show up for Christmas or other events we have invited her to) over take my desire to invite whoever I fireplace want into my own fire placing house.

AW: My friends are all pretty nice and they make up for my judge mental, small minded, mean spirited family of origin.

kathy a. said...

Bleah on mother's day (except of course the heartfelt handcrafted gifts and kisses from the little people). Best to everyone. xxoox

Queen of West Procrastination said...

Hugs to everyone, but especially to Miranda. We're going to get through this weekend together.

AW: the conservative province to the west of me just elected a leftist government!

W: we're still stuck with our dud government here, AND people on Book of Faces keep acting like my political party ruined this province in the 90s (as opposed to rebuilding from the corruption of the RW party of the 80s). So I'm hanging out here, to get a break from all the "THE SKY IS FALLING! LEFTIES HAVE TAKEN OVER!" posts on Book of Faces.

Sue said...

(((kathy))) I'm sorry this is such a difficult time for you. I hope the talk therapy helps ease the burden.

(((Miranda))) and all the Pixie Moms who dislike Mothers Day as much as I do. I truly despise it.

My boys know that a phone call is all I want or need. We will have a family dinner next week so we can also celebrate my MIL's birthday. It's getting more difficult for her to get out, so doing both events together is good. My own beloved Mom passed away 23 years ago. Still miss her. Always will.

My Dad's wife does not get a nod from me on Mother's Day. She's not my mother. Also, she's horrid and treats my father very badly. So, no.

AW: Yay Canadian Prairie province for an historic shift in political leadership!!!! So exciting!

W: Insomnia - it sucketh.

kathy a. said...

Boo on insomnia. Yes on choosing who to honor on hallmark holidays, should one be in an honoring mood. Hippo birdie, MIL of Sue!

Miranda, glad you have good friends. Also, your kid is sweet.

A political commenter said this about the election: "A Canadian friend of mine emailed me this morning to say it's the American equivalent of Bernie Sanders winning in 'both Houston and Austin on a platform of raising corporate taxes.'" Wow!

esperanza said...

I think Bernie could win in Austin regardless. Houston, no way. So, congratulations to the smart Canadians in neighbouring province!

Sue, sorry about the insomnia. And the wicked stepmother. Mr E had one of those.

People of the world: it helps me to schedule meetings when you return emails. Thank you.

kathy a. said...

SIL news: The alternative treatment will start this week. AND, they are really interested in putting together a "Music and Memory" playlist for her -- things she liked in the past that might bring happy memories or feelings. Which is absolutely wonderful.

Just need to get my beloved to fill the forms out as best he can, since he knows more about what she liked. (That is the kind of nagging I do not mind doing.)

esperanza said...

Oh, what a great idea on the music. You probably already know this, but music memory is stored in a different part of the brain than speech, so sometimes it can be accessible long after speech is gone or impaired. Kudos to her caregivers for that one.

kathy a. said...

One of the (several) reasons we like this place for SIL is that they have live music nearly daily. But I really like trying to make more personalized music available, too. SIL could not possibly initiate this, or say what she used to like.

A couple people in the support group for SIL's dementia talked about how their loved ones could sing with a group, even after they lost speech! Amazing.

Sue said...

What a great idea re: music memory!

Queen of West Procrastination said...

Kathy, that is a great idea! We did a lot of that, when my grandpa got Alzheimer's. The staff at his care home ended up asking my mom to record a tape of herself singing and playing on the guitar, because he was calmest when she was singing. (And musical memory is amazing: I remember how, long after he'd forgotten who we all were, he sang along through all the verses of Christmas carols.)

Queen of West Procrastination said...

W: my stomach is pretty bunk today. Actually, it's been off all week. I kept thinking that stress and grief were the cause, but I think I actually have a bit of something. And E caught a cold on the trip, so we're quite the pair. (She tells me that her nose and ears are "a little bit grumpy," but her throat and tummy are happy.)

Miranda said...

Thanks. I'm glad I see the nice lady who validate my feelings for 45 minutes every two weeks this Friday.

AW: the straps are fixed for prom. The last hurdle use arming enough $ for nails. Prom was easier in my day.

kathy a. said...

Grumpy Lady response to Miranda: What? They don't sell nail polish at the drug store anymore?

xoxo

kathy a. said...

AW: my son appears to be on the brink of a big-step-up job offer. Knock wood. He's ok if this doesn't happen, but it is looking good! Wave garlic.

Sue said...

QWP, I hope your tummy and E's "grumpy" nose and ears feel better soon.

All appendages crossed kathy. I hope your son gets the job!!

Miranda, I'm thinking you will be celebrating prom night with a huge sigh of relief and possibly some well-deserved refreshments!

AW: Slept much better last night.

AW: Next weekend is my niece's wedding in the Big Pretty City (it's cleaned up for all the diplomats and politicians who visit). It's a quick trip, leave Thurs, wedding is on Fri, back home Saturday night, work Sunday morning.

W: That means I'm writing two sermons this week. So far, I've got nothing.

esperanza said...

Oh, Sue. Two sermon weeks are not so fun.

W? AW? Sweet got her first kindergarten time-out today. In gym class. For chasing on the playground. I'm unclear as to why there is a rule against chasing, but I'm also assuming there was an initial warning which she and her chaser ignored. But--chasing! When it hasn't been all that long ago that she finally learned to run! I'm kind of secretly thrilled.

kathy a. said...

Esperanza -- sounds like good news to me! My son was very shy at school (not so much at home), and his K teacher was secretly happy the first time she had to reprimand him. Which was also for something silly.

Best with the writing, Sue.

I have an anxiety group tonight, which as you might guess, is making me a little anxious since this is new to me. Lately, I've dealt with anxiety by bailing a lot; trying not to do that this time.

Sue said...

That sounds like good news esperanza!

I hope your group goes well tonight kathy. I'll be thinking of you and sending non-anxious vibes your way. You've got this.

AW: One sermon done. One to go. Woot!

esperanza said...

Go, Sue, Go!

Kathy a, deep breaths.

kathy a. said...

The group was fine. I think this actually will give me some tools for better managing the anxiety. The facilitator is good, and I like the other people. Only 6 of us anxious people, so it is a manageable size.

esperanza said...

yay!

Miranda said...

That sounds great Kathy.

Queen of West Procrastination said...

I'm glad that you've started with an anxiety group, Kathy! I was in one a couple of years ago, and I found it to be really helpful. I hope they can help you learn some tools for anxiety management.

Miranda said...

Pixies: we are only one hour from pictures. This is not a drill. I repeat: THIS IS NOT A DRILL. The hair do dis not work as planned. There is no alternate plan. Is it terrible I wish we could slip her some of Kathy A's sil's new meds right now?

kathy a. said...

Oh, my new meds would not work fast enough. Not that I've started them yet.

Your best bet is -- do something with a curling iron and/or hair spray, keep saying she is gorgeous, make sure she is hydrated. Fresh flower in the hair, that always does a little something.

Jeepers, prom.

esperanza said...

Oh mercy, Miranda. By tomorrow, it will all be over.

kathy a, she doesn't want *your* meds, but your SiL's new meds ;) Maybe Miranda could use some too?

kathy a. said...

I think that might be kinda illegal. ;)

Miranda said...

It's legal as medicine here.

If she doesn't get a move on, the teen boy and I won't be able to eat at the sushi cafeteria with the amazing fish. :/

kathy a. said...

Happy sushi!

I'm taking Spot the cat to the vet tomorrow. He is a recovering feral rescue, and he hasn't seen the vet in about 7 years due to extreme vet anxiety, but he's gotten so much more social that I think I can catch him and stuff him in a cage now. And, worried that it is not so good, because he has lost a lot of weight despite a voracious hunger and loud frequent pleading for food. Still active and ever-so-friendly compared to the years past. (We have a merry band of misfit cats here. Won't be able to catch Polly unless she is on her last legs, although the past couple weeks, she has been sleeping at my feet sometimes. VICTORY!)

kathy a. said...

Spot 1; mom 0. No vet today.

Miranda said...

After a stressful evening where we did not get the sushi we wanted, I can now say I am the mother of a Prom Princess. And there is a sash.

kathy a. said...

Oooh, a sash! Bummer about the stress and the lack of appropriate sushi, but at least that piece of drama can be filed away.

esperanza said...

No time for awards this week. I wanted to do a ceremony, just so Miranda could get an "I survived prom" award. I hope you will accept this poor substitute, Miranda :)

Hugs to all whiny pixies.

Miranda said...

BTW, my mom bailed on my son and refused to tell him so she made Daughter do it. Daughter thought that was inappropriate but relayed the message anyhow. I'm so glad I made back up plans with nice people for the evening.

esperanza said...

Posse on the way for Miranda's mom. ((Miranda))

kathy a. said...

Yep, count me in on the Posse.

kathy a. said...

I just do not like this forced-march holiday much. My mom did a number on me and the sibs; it is hard to move past those memories, even though she is gone. Another friend had a crazy mom who was actually friends with my mom! I asked if she had any photos she liked of her and her mom, and she doesn't, either. Think we have both done a lot better with our own kids, but....

xoxo

kathy a. said...

On the other hand, my son's longtime (almost 10 years) girlfriend just sent me a fb note saying she loves me, happy mother's day. :)

Miranda said...

That's wonderful Kathy a.

Liz Miller said...

I had a nice low-key Mother's Day that included dim sum and madeleines. And no-stress calls to my grandma, mom, and step mom. No stress, because we sent cards ahead of time.