Yes, I'm Back... and I've Got a Cool Website With Me...

I know, I've been awful with keeping updated lately. It seems that I'm having trouble getting myself on a schedule now that I'm home for a little while. I'm worse than my preschooler.

So in the wee moments I get to steal in between viewings of I Spy and Dora the Explorer, I've gotten hooked on an actual grown-up site, BooksPrice.com. It's the greatest idea - it's one-screen comparison shopping. So I don't have six different screens open anymore, driving myself nuts looking at what Amazon's charging, versus B&N, versus BooksaMillion - it's basically like Geico for books. How cool is that? You can even customize it to include your memberships, and it takes that into consideration when it's adjusting the price. I've been nerding out on it, searching for my newest obsession, cookbooks (I'm on a Paula Deen kick at the moment - lots of buttah...). SO cool. And so free, which is always a sweet thing.

I'll post more later; need to go get Will from school. I'll talk about the school trip from the Black Lagoon when I get back...

Wreckage

Pretty much sums up where I've been coming from. But hopefully, on the mend now. It's three weeks of bronchitis (still coughing), school (ending on Monday, final exam and project done as of last Monday), holiday stress and new beginnings all weighing in. I'm looking forward to some time to get my head together; I haven't been very good to myself lately.

New beginnings - there's always an ending at the start of a beginning - does that even make sense?

Thanksgiving was nice. I love that we stay home for it now; while I enjoy reconnecting with family and friends, it is nice to not have to drive around for an hour looking for parking. Or take the kids upstairs and wait for Mike to find a spot while the boys fight over which episode of "I Spy" or "Crashbox" to watch.

Mike and I cooked up a feast. He made three turkey breasts, cranberry sauce, gravy and stuffing; I whipped up some cappuccino custards (I baked them in my Corelle mugs - so cute!), maple-glazed carrots with pecans, and mashed sweet potatoes with nutmeg & sour cream. Even Will got into the act, making white chocolate-coated pretzel logs with sprinkles and later, sugar cookies with turkey faces on them (candy corn feathers... mmm...). Mom and Rich came over, and Christian, my brother-in-law, arrived the night before. It was a nice, small group.

Knitting Blogs

I'm always on the search for a good knitting blog, and in my quest for cute skull and crossbones patterns (don't ask), I've found a great site called DomiKNITrix - how cool is that? She's got a book coming out, so I'll be putting that on my Amazon wish list. And yes, she's got a skull pattern. Rockin'. Even more rockin' - she posts links to other cool knitting blogs. Love it, so I'm going to post a few here myself:

Glampyre Knits - and yes, she has a skull pattern.

Ysolda has a skull illusion scarf - after doing the Alien Invasion scarf from Stitch & Bitch a couple of years, ago, I'm so psyched to do this.

MagKnits has skull wrist warmers - including one with a bow in its... um, head. How cute is that?

I'm off to photojournal my scary apartment in the hopes that journaling it on Domestic Goddesses will actually make me do something about it.

I've been sick...

I've been sick all week with an absolutely irritating case of bronchitis. I hate being sick. But it did give me a nice weeklong respite on the couch catching up with Dexter and rewatching Sex & The City, both On Demand. I love cable. We had the brother-in-law's wedding last week, which was fun and the kids looked gorgeous (as always). Think I joke?



Yes, Will looks like a dazed deer in the headlights, but look beyond it. The boy looks sharp in a suit; they both do. Alex ran around like a nutcase on the dance floor and Will decided at the last minute to punk out and not dance with me. Bah! Overall, it was a fun wedding.

I also spent quality time with the knitting needles during my almost-week of convalesence, figuring out finally how to knit in the round and creating preemie hats that I have to wash and pack over the weekend in order to send out to a few hospitals. We're doing this Knit-Out on ClubMom's knitting board and since none of the local hospitals returned my calls, I'm going to send them on to a hospital that the moderator's already noted. I can't figure out how to do the extra-small preemie hats on circular needles, though - even on 16" needles, they are so tiny that when I join the yarn, there is still a huge divide between the stitches. And I can't sew them because the seams hurt their little heads. I need to figure this out.

More pictures to come, but I need to post first about this great knitting site I found. And she warrants her own post.

You Must Check This Site Out...

YogaBeans! is the Internet Source for Plastic Action Figures Demonstrating Ashtanga Yoga. You really need to see it - awesomeness.

I'm home anticipating my brother in law's wedding at 4 p.m. today. The kids will be in suits - how adorable will that look? You'll see when I post pictures in the next day or two, but I can guarantee it's going to be pretty darned adorable. Right now, though, Alex is cranky and whiny and I'm ready to run away. I think I should probably eat some breakfast before I lock myself in a closet and scream.

Bizarro...

Something weird is going on with my blog... the right hand side - profile, links, amusing crap I find as I troll the Web... is alllll the way down. Can anyone explain why this is happening?

I'm so Bloggy today...

I think I need to take up cross stitch.

This is Awesome!

PunkKnits.com has knitting needles with skulls on them!




There is also a t-shirt out there with a skull and knitting needle crossbones. I need this.

I am still knitting. I knit a beautiful pink baby blanket with a diamond pattern and cables on each side for my mom's friend - but forgot to take a picture of it. Argh. I'm finishing a cardigan for the same person now that I will shoot when it's done. It's a seed stitch cardigan with the cutest little pockets! I love how it's turned out, I hate my seaming a little less this time around, and I'm doing the final finishing in single crochet now - give me another few days. I'm tired.

The Future of Television...

If the writers don't try to pull a "Lost" on us and stay focused, this could quite possibly be the coolest series ever. Solid writing, funny characters, and just enough mystery to keep us coming back for more. Heroes is everything I hoped it would be. And Hiro Nakamura is officially the most awesome character on television. Anyone who can quote Star Trek while at the same time recalling an issue of X-Men featuring Kitty Pryde - and still manage to dole out some Star Wars morality (using one's powers for personal gain - surely the path to the Dark Side) - is my hero (or is that, my Hiro? Ouch, that was sooo bad.)

Hiro's blog is even dated using the Stardate system (Captain's Log: 1764.3, his latest blog entry). How awesome is that? I love when TV studios and executives let fanboys do the writing.

I'm so nerdy today.

WTF Moment - LOST

The Lost Castaways, in happier days...

Who else is getting really pissed off at Lost this season? Last night's episode almost turned me off to the show completely. It's all about bizarre incidences that raise questions but provide no answers - what the hell is The Others' deal about? "We're the good guys," Benry (Henry Gale, apparently now known as Benjamin) tells Michael last season - how then do we explain the mindfcks (that's not a typo; I promised Will I would curb the language) that follow - the capture and imprisonment of Jack, Kate and Sawyer, under insanely inhumane conditions, no less: Sawyer and Kate in cages, doing forced labor (while Kate wears a sundress, no less - what would SJP do?); Jack, kept in a drained dolphin tank while some bizarro woman brings him grilled cheese sandwiches and reads his dossier to him; Sawyer led to believe he's had a pacemaker implanted in him which will make his heart explode if his heart rate goes above a certain level - and then told that the only thing they put in him "was doubt". It's like watching Marathon Man on 'roids.

But where are the answers this season? Last season, at least we had clues that made sense, that led us to ideas, if not answers, from time to time. If the writers think they're weaving this great series of events in the hopes of leading up to sweeps when all will be semi-revealed, they may find that a good part of their viewership has given up on them in disgust by then.

And what about this hiatus they're going on in another week or two? Will they just leave all these loose threads out there and go away for six weeks or whatever it is they're planning? Again, they may find that a lot of people are going elsewhere for their entertainment by the time they come back.

Maybe everyone involved should go back and watch Season 1 on DVD and remember how to make good, compelling television. In the meantime, I'll be reading up on my newest obsession, Heroes.

Dilbert + Coffee Humor x Star Wars Geek References = Genius






EDIT 10/30/06: If you think you need glasses, don't fret - I had to shrink the size of the comic strip to try and rescue my poor blog's formatting. Click on the picture; you should be able to access it in a more readable format.

Heroes Rocks! And Other Nerd-dom


Where LOST is starting to get on my nerves, Heroes has become my runaway favorite show this season (but Battlestar has been insane - it's a tough call!). Any show where the geek fanboy gets a chance to save the world while quoting Star Trek and X-Men is a show for me. Hiro (Masi Oka) is a breakout character because he's so lovable and is totally into his powers and saving the world. Let's keep fingers crossed that the writers keep up the great pace they've set.

Lost... I love lost, but man... can you answer some questions before throwing more at us? To keep this crazy stuff up with the Others without any sort of explanation or insight into what it is they're doing - and yet, insisting that they're "the good guys" - well, it's getting old and irritating. So 'the good guys' lock people up in cages and torture them? Is this a 'good guy' situation like the Nazis felt they were the 'good guys'? Talk to me, please! Make sense of it all for me!

That said, I did enjoy the Locke-centric episode last week, with his mystical journey and background. I think some people were turned off by it, but I thought it was interesting to get a little more background on him and how he knew so much about survival on the island. Now I'm just waiting for the pivotal moment when we realize that he and Sawyer are connected... Yes, I'm still sticking to my firm belief that the infamous "Sawyer" of Sawyer/James' childhood is actually Locke's sleazy dad.

Do I need to tell anyone that I screamed like a lunatic watching Battlestar this weekend? This is one show that continues to get better and better - it's awesome. I just got the novel, The Cylons' Secret which I only now realize is book three - hope I don't need one and two to go along for the ride. As soon as I finish the books I'm working on for reader reports, I'll dive in. I love reading tie-ins, but they have to be good - the 24 one I read was excellent, the Lost one was awful.

Speaking of tie-ins, a little late but apparently the WWE is doing novels now. The wrestlers... well, let me paste the back cover copy here. Enjoy:

"... a new covert black-ops group using the Superstars of World Wrestling Entertainment. The WWE's talented men and women are perfect. Highly skilled athletes with the ideal cover, they travel all across the country and the globe; no one would find it unusual to find them in a town one day and gone the next. The government would train and support the wrestlers in every way possible except one: no one must know the truth."

It's almost like the premise of Zoolander, but these people are serious. Ye gods.

More pop culture geekery to come.

Dilbert Gets Better and Better


I believe I have actually threatened someone in a similar manner.

And yes, I'm drinking my third big cuppa as I write this. Ahhh... coffee...

More Dilbert Genius

Apparently, Dilbert's doing a coffee week - awesome!

My God, It All Makes Sense Now

This is What Happens at Bridal Showers...

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you, the wrapping paper hat and wedding dress.

Karen's getting married, as I've mentioned earlier; we had her bridal shower up at her sister's home in Westchester this past weekend (thanks again, Dana!) She was SO surprised; it was awesome. I love that look of complete confusion, followed by the look of realization that sets in when someone walks into their own surprise party.

So Karen received beautiful gifts, and Shauna went to work on the hat and dress. Shauna's the unofficial tailor at showers, having made a beautiful Star Wars wrapping paper dress for me at my wedding and another dress at my baby shower. We're creating our own shower tradition! Karen was a great sport about it, and Dana got into the act by holding the tissue paper train Shauna attached to the dress. It was a blast and everyone had a great time.

Had a girls' night out on Friday with Nancy and Stacey, which was so much fun. Just the three of us, let loose in Roosevelt Field; it was so nice to have girlfriend bonding time. It felt weird coming home to an empty apartment (Mike took the boys upstate to see his grandmother), but I just went to sleep so I didn't have too much time to ruminate. Saturday morning was nice - got up early (well, 8 a.m. is actually late for me these days), worked out, had my coffee and was on my way upstate for Karen's shower. Coming home to have Alex and Will yell "MOMMY!" and run at me is the best way to come home.

I finished the baby blanket - and darnit, forgot to take a picture of it! Maybe if my mom stays over tonight, I can snap a pic when I come home from school. Otherwise, she's taking it with her. Poo. I have the baby cardigan to put together - I'm already stressing it.

More later, including the new addition to my mom's household...

Step into my Time Machine... put on your heavy eyeliner and spandex, please...

...and click here:

Be Vewwy Vewwy Quiet...

I know, I know, I've been too quiet. My home system is in revolt, letting my Internet access blink at me like a confused kid in a calc class and intermittently shutting down my e-mail access. So basically, being at home makes me a lame duck. Grr. (Leaves more time for knitting, though...) While I'm at work, there's only so much I can do. So for everyone who's wondering why I haven't been on, there you go.

ClubMom friends, I'll get on eventually - just doing some actual work for now. I know, I know, I don't know what that's all about, either...

BTW...

...anyone check out the PopCandy blog on USA Today's site? Whitney Matheson, who writes it, is a total Battlestar and Lost geek like most of us here are and I love the way she writes. She's got a lot to say on the BSG upcoming season, which sounds like it is very, very cool stuff. She's also a fan of The Office - basically, she should be hanging out with us. Go check her out, I'll wait.

LOST Season Three!

Okay, hands up - who's more confused by Lost now that we've actually kicked off the third season? I looked at Mike and said, "I'm worse off now than I was at the end of Season 2."

I have questions. If you haven't seen the episode yet, go away and come back when you've read it. I don't want to be spoiler girl.

WTF?!

Who thinks Carl, the kid in the cage opposite Sawyer, is a plant? I told Mike that the only reason he was 'captured' is to lull Sawyer into thinking he can trust the kid. Hope the con man can spot a long con when he sees it.

Henry Gale (BEN?!) tells Michael that The Others are 'the good guys' in the Season 2 finale. Do good guys lock people up in bear cages? Or dress ladies up in pretty dresses, take them out to breakfast, and tell them that the next two weeks will be very unpleasant and stick them in a cage? WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?!

WHY do they have dossiers on the lives of the survivors (you seriously don't think it's just Jack, do you?)?? Do they only have dossiers on a few people - maybe the people on "the list"?

What the heck is with Othersville, like we saw in the beginning of the episode. And is the fact that they're reading Stephen King's Carrie supposed to be telling me something, or are they just reading a book?

I NEED ANSWERS!

I think I need to geek out and see if anything's going on at the Hanso Foundation site now.

Halloween's Coming!

I LOVE Halloween. It's one of my favorite holidays - probably rivaling Christmas for the top spot. Every year, I tell myself I'm going to decorate for Halloween like I do for Christmas; get the whole apartment involved, and for one reason or other, I only stick a couple of scary faces on my door by the time it arrives. Not so this year! This weekend, I head to Party City and get ready to pimp the crib, Spook Style! (Wow, I sound so nerdy when I try to talk street.)

So Alex and Will, who were going to make me the happiest geeky mommy around by being Captain Hook and Captain Jack Sparrow for Halloween, have forsaken me and gone with different costumes completely. I'm never getting pirate kids for Halloween, I know it. But I have to admit, seeing Will go berserk for a Clone Trooper costume brought a tear to my eye. My boy, a Star Wars nerd like his mom... so what if he likes the new ones and I remain faithful to the original Holy Trilogy?

Alex has decided to go the Power Rangers route and will be the Red Ranger, naturally. The costume has muscles and a six-pack as part of the costume and with Alex's bulldog build, it's just about the cutest and most hilarious thing to see.

28 days 'til Halloween!!

Has it really been 11 days?

I had no idea I hadn't posted in 11 days. What's wrong with me?

So I'm in the midst of trying to update my apartment, which looks like a Toys R Us after a nuclear attack. With a Barnes & Noble thrown in. Not pretty. But I'm trying.

I've got two bridal showers and two weddings rapidly approaching, and I'm nowhere near the dress size I want to be. Grr.

At least I start school tonight - my final class for the Publishing Certificate! Whoo hoo!

I'll write more later, I'm going to post my manic Martha energies on Domestic Goddesses now.

Project Runway

I prided myself on the fact that I was NOT watching Project Runway. It's one more reality show I don't need to be teased about watching. Then, I board a JetBlue flight to my Dad's, nothing's on TV - not even on my beloved VH-1 - and I ended up watching three straight hours of a Project Runway marathon. I blame them and Stacey for the fact that I knit my little fingers to the bone, up past the bedtime I said I was going to adhere to, to watch the new one last night.

How did I miss out on this before? What was wrong with me? It's so snarky, it's delicious. It's like eating candy without the calories.

Let the bitchery fly!

Knitting Fever

I'm a knitting fiend. I'm working on a cute cardigan and hat set and a cable-knit blanket for my mom's friend (remember the baby booties from hell? That's the one.) The cardigan, ever since I abandoned the original pattern and took up a less stressful one, is coming along nicely. But moss stitch is VERY time consuming, so I took a little break. The back and left front are done, and the right front is 3/4 done so I really don't have much more to go. But I needed something new. Which probably explains why I have so many UFO (unfinished objects) strewn about the apartment...

So this blanket is adorable. It's got a cable running up each side and a diamond pattern in between. I may go cross-eyed from looking at the chart before this is over, but we'll deal with that later. Pictures will come when I'm all done.

What's with the Banks?

So everyone familiar with Forest Hills knows it's like Bank Mecca. You literally can't spit without hitting a bank. Then I read this in this morning's Daily News and almost fell off my chair. What is with the banks? Are we becoming our own little Wall Street or something?

Flushing Savings Bank plans to open its newest branch at 107-11 71st Avenue, the former site of The Zone clothing store, where it will compete with more than 10 other banks in a ONE BLOCK radius, according to construction workers at the site.

There are even rumors that a bank will move into the former site of Value Depot, a 71st Avenue bargain store that closed last month.

What in the world is this all about?

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The Lights of 9/11

From Karen's terrace, the lights where the Twin Towers once stood. The lights reflected off of a cloud and created an amazing effect - it looked like the cloud opened up for them.

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The Hunt for Red November

For the past several months, I've been telling myself that I'm going to find a dress for Karen's wedding. I'm one of her bridesmaids and, in a move that is magnanimous on her part, she informed us that we only need show up in a red dress. Perhaps, I suggested, we go with a David's Bridal-type situation where we do the mix and match so we're all in the same type of outfit, a la Stacey's wedding? No, too much restriction. So with less than 60 days to go, women are scrambling and freaking out at being told that getting a dress can take up to 12 weeks if you're going to David's Bridal.

Not that I'm any different, and I've been a bridesmaid before. I just didn't feel like trying on dresses at this point, but finally I broke down and the good and kind Stacey and I embarked on Roosevelt Field this past weekend. Wow, we saw some humdingers. But finally, in Ann Taylor of all places, I found a dress! On sale! While the size I was hoping for was not zipping past the boobage, I upgraded and will likely take it to the cleaners to have a minor nip and tuck here and there. Why my boobs are a size bigger than the rest of my body is a fact left best to modern science to figure out. Ah, the wonders of womanhood and childbirthing.

So the dress is deep wine/burgundy, tank top with a bit of a scoop neck, and has a little bow at the waist with a center pleat that I am assured is flattering. I am doing 30 minutes of cardio a day just to make sure it STAYS flattering. We then went on to the holy land, aka DSW, where we were disappointed in the lack of ridiculous shoes - that is, until we happened upon this work of art:

Yes, that is pasta on the shoe. And a tomato. And, as Stacey noted, basil. We have a complete Italian dinner for two on one shoe! For only a mere $299! Mangia!

I did hit the jackpot for myself, finding a cute pair of strappy heels that match the color of the dress perfectly, so I am a complete bridesmaid now! I also found a cute pair of red Kenneth Cole loafers marked down to a price that challenged me NOT to buy them. And then, the big coup - a pair of black Charles David mock-croc pumps with deep purple piping on them. Marked down from $148 to a ridiculously low price. After conferring with Stacey and my mom via cell phone, it was decided that I should treat myself to all three pairs. My DSW Reward Your Style card hasn't seen this much action in ages.

Last night, headed over to Karen's to stuff wedding invites. Karen, Shauna and I sat around a small table, ate Chinese food, and assembled invites. I am a fully-dressed bridesmaid. Cue the huge sigh of relief.

I know I've been quiet today but September 11 is never a good day for me. A bunch of friends on ClubMom have been taking part in this Legacy.com tribute, where you select someone who was lost that day and memorialize them. As usual, my powers of technology were not with me and I think my tribute is somewhere in the ether so let me just blog it directly.

Christine Lee Hanson was 2 1/2 on September 11, 2001. About the same age as Will. She was going on vacation with her mommy and daddy, and was probably really excited to fly in a big plane, like Will and Alex get.

You know, once you become a parent, you don't deal very well with bad news stories involving children. So you're going to have to bear with me here. Because every child becomes your child when something goes wrong.

So little Christine was probably very excited. Her parents were probably smiling and laughing with her, pointing out the big engines or giving her gum to chew so her little ears didn't pop when the plane took off. But little Christine and all the potential ahead of her ended at the World Trade Center that morning.

Christine's not going to have the same opportunities Will has. She's never going to be excited over seeing her first movie in a big movie theatre. She never got to start Kindergarten and make new friends. She won't get to pick out Hello Kitty or Barbie school supplies. Christine's mom will never drop her off on her first day of school and cry when she gets home because her baby is growing up.

Poor Christine didn't have enough of a life to warrant her own obituary; she was part of her father's and her mother's. But she'll never be forgotten.

Every time Will reaches a milestone, be it a science project or be it mastering a two-wheel bike, my mind will wander to Christine. Because like the saying goes, there but for the grace of God, went Will and I.

There is no justification for this act.

School Daze

I sent my big boy off to second grade this morning, so I'm a little misty-eyed. Will was so excited to be back at school and with his buddies. We got his supplies ready last night and portioned out which he's bringing in which day - it's going to take a full week to bring everything in. Public school kids - how do these kids not graduate stooped over? I have FOUR BAGS of supplies, including three rolls of paper towel, two boxes of tissues, and a box of baby wipes - am I a parent or the local Costco?

X-Men folders? Check. Wacky Packages pencils? Got 'em. Tony Hawk folder - check - and do you actually know who Tony Hawk is? "Yeah, Mom, he's the skateboarder guy." Wow, I'm impressed. My son is turning into a pop culture freak like his mother.

We assembled school supplies, watched Revenge of the Sith and the Clone Wars I DVDs, and then he made some calls to his friends - who he'd be seeing not 24 hours from then - and all I could think of was, "Wow. He's a kid. He's not a little boy anymore." He's totally become this real kid, as opposed to the little boy I sent off to first grade last year. I may still have written his name in indelible ink on all his posessions this year, but he's growing up.

He even chooses his own shoes now. We went to Payless to pick up some new sneakers for him and he announced that he no longer wanted "any shoes or socks with cartoons on them." It was like a dagger in my heart, as I was eyeing up the cool Batman sneaks in his size. He chose a black pair of Shaq sneakers ("Do you know who he is?" "I think he plays basketball - but they're COOL SHOES!") and a pair of white and black hi-top Shaq sneakers. He loved them and was so proud that he chose them. For a sec, he looked at me and wavered, but I couldn't be selfish. I told him, "You have to wear them. You're... a big kid now. What shoes do you want?" "I don't want the Batman ones, Mom."

So we now have two pairs of Shaq sneakers at home - some guy who plays basketball. He couldn't wait to lace up the black ones this morning. He spiked up his hair (he chose the haircut, too) and was ready to go.

Oh, well... I still have a modicum of say in Alex's stuff for the time being. :-)

Mope

I've been very mopey these last few days. It's a combination of the usual hormonal insanity plus change, and I'm just not a big fan of change no matter how often it comes. Even if changes bring good things, I just tend to resist it and make myself miserable, wishing for things to stay the way they were, no matter how improbable it may be. I'm trying very hard to kick that habit, but I can't say it will be easy. I just ask that my friends understand where my insanity comes from and roll with it for a little while. You know me, I always even out in the end. :-)

In my neverending quest to get back to wedding day weight, I made carrot cake bars using a Cooking Light recipe I've been meaning to try out for about two years now. While I am suspicious of any carrot cake recipe that doesn't involve cream cheese frosting, I will roll with this and try it at lunch. If it's good, I'll post the recipe on Domestic Goddesses - that's the Martha blog after all!

I think this blog needs a picture of Duran Duran on it to cheer me up today.

Why stop at just one? Here's a yesterday/today kind of thing. Ahhh... so much better now.

Emmys Hilarity

A friend of mine sent me this link to Conan O'Brien's Emmy opening. Hilarious.

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Sometimes I really miss working in NYC. Little things like seeing this sweet mopey bulldog, being a quick walk or hop away from lunch with friends - it is an adjustment.

We're Doomed...

At least, that's what this pretty hilarious site thinks. Check it out.

Happy Birthday Boy

Alex had a great birthday yesterday, and the pics will come later. He got some toys and ran around like a psycho with big brother Will last night, and a lovely time was had by all. Now he eagerly awaits his birthday celebration with uncles Keith and Adam and aunts Nancy and Stacey. I figure this is the last year I could get away with having the quick 'n dirty family party at home, next year we're looking at McDonald's at the very least.

I still can't quite wrap my head around Alex being three. He's still a baby, at least I feel like he should be. They don't stay little long enough.

Don't get me wrong, I love that Will and I can kick back on the couch together and watch Who Wants to be a Superhero? and laugh like maniacs (I haven't watched last week's yet, waiting for Will to come home - so don't tell me who was eliminated!) and have an hour-long conversation about our favorite X-Men. But I feel like I didn't get to hold that squirmy baby for long enough. I miss the feeling his of their little heads resting on my shoulder at 4 a.m. when I'd burp them and watch Insomniac Music Theatre on VH-1.

When Will was at the height of his colic bouts, we stayed up and watched Donna Summer's comeback concert on VH-1 (I'm 35, I watch a lot of VH-1). I sang along while he screamed and I just told myself he was singing backup. By the time Donna was belting out her last encore, he was finally asleep and I felt like I had really accomplished something. I had gotten my colicky baby to sleep with no nervous breakdown. (Thanks, Donna!) I stayed up for another hour, just holding him and watching him sleep. His little mouth was half open and his eyelashes dusted his face, they were already so long and lush.

Alex and I would wake up for a little while, and I'd keep him curled in to me while I just sat awake, watching him in the moonlight coming through the window. He'd give a satisfied little sigh and push his head against me, falling back to sleep. Those are the moments we don't have long enough. Maybe that's why I appreciate them so much now.

The End of Summer is Nigh!

Alex is three today. How did that happen? I still remember waddling around Bookspan feeling him beat the tar out of me. And getting together with our friends on Friday nights, only to fall asleep on them by 9.

Mike and I were up last night frosting mini-cupcakes for his party at school this morning. Only thing was, we forgot to mention it to school on Friday so his teacher just called me up and said, "If I had known, I'd have told the parents." I started feeling bad, but he's 3 - and he's got cupcakes. I think we're all good. Plus, do I need more presents than I know he'll be getting? They'll sing, he'll eat cupcakes, life will be good. Because he's three.

Went to Michelle's birthday extravaganza at Barca 18 on Saturday night, which I highly recommend if you like Spanish food and/or tapas. It's on Park Avenue South between 18th & 19th and it really wasn't as expensive a night out as I feared. The food was awesome, the company was great, and I got to sit with David and Robb, which is a pretty good formula for a good evening. I even thought it may be fun for us to consider for the Sex & The City Girls' Night Out that Stacey and I have talked about for four years now.

I can't believe we're almost into September already. Man, time is going by faster than ever. Next thing I know, I'll have to worry about Christmas shopping.

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The bootie from hell!

It looks so unassuming. So cute... but this little sucker is giving me some grey hair. I have followed the instructions to the letter, and yet I keep getting this hole between where I shape the instep and where I continue on with the rest of the bootie. GRRRR!

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Pigeon on the windowsill!

How the heck did it get to be Mid-August?

I'm sitting here scratching my head in wonder. How is it that school is just around the corner(for both me and Will)? I still have half a reading list to get him through! I haven't lost all the weight in time for bathing suit season yet!

But yes, summer is rapidly coming to a close and that means that shorter days and cooler temperatures will be here before we know it. While I love Fall and Winter, the inevitable shortening of the days is sure to bring me down like it always does. I wish I could figure out a way to get past that.

Anyway. I finally finished some knitting projects - you know by now how horrible I am at actually sewing the projects up once they're done - this weekend. I met Karenala for a stitch & bitch at our Starbuck's on Queens Blvd and instead of starting yet another project, I brought stuff I needed to finish before I could move on.

So I finally finished my goddaughter's poncho, which I promised her roughly four months ago. Just in time for Fall, right? And I sewed up the little infant hat I made for Helene's pregnant friend, Helena, in Sweden. (Gab, if you're reading this, surprise! I'll be sending out a package soon!) Now I just have to find the three letters I've written to Helene while I was waiting to finish the projects for Helena. Good lord, I am a mess.

Pictures to come, I just have to pull them off the camera... who says I finally finish what I start?

Multimedia message

Mighty Will at the sprinklers in Russell Sage park.

Awesome, I geeked out and sent a pic from my phone. It's a couple of weeks old, but still cool. Thanks to Stacey for leading me into a new level of geekdom, hee hee.

I'm Back!

I haven't disappeared! I've been on vacation, glorious, vacation. Yes, it was 104 degrees in Virginia and mid-90s in Florida, but so was New York! And I wasn't working, I was in the swimming pool in my Dad's complex or at Busch Gardens. So I'll take it. I'll post more later, but for now... the boys.

Linda nominated this as her favorite picture, and I'm inclined to agree. I don't know what's funnier, the gorilla hanging out in the background (which is why I posed the shot like I did), or the hilarious faces on the boys.

It's root beer, don't call Child Services on me. But I still can't shake the nagging feeling that I'm looking about 15 years into the future...

Alex and Will enjoy a frosty (root beer) one on a hot day. It hit about 100 this day at Williamsburg, down from 104 the previous day.

More later.

More posting later... with pictures...

But in the meantime, I did the Google thing where you type your name and "needs" in (i.e., "Rosemary needs"), here's what I need lately:

- Rosemary needs a family! (thanks, got one, leaving soon to get home to them)
- Rosemary needs to ensure that current court authorizations for children using. psychotropic medication are maintained. (ummm... okay...)
- Rosemary needs to be spayed! (what the hell?)
- Rosemary needs shield from cold. (I do get cold really easily.)
- Rosemary needs full sun to partial shade, and a well drained area. (that helps, sure)
- Rosemary needs at least 6 hours of full sun every day. (definitely)
- Rosemary needs only occasional watering. (hence, the well-drained area)

Summer in the City...

..sucks. I'm marinating in my own juices at lunchtime, and it ain't pretty. Tasti DLite for two days' running serves as lunch because I'm just too hot and cranky to eat food.

But thankfully so far, my neighborhood has dodged the blackout/brownout bullet that seems to be plaguing some of the other Queens neighborhoods, Stacey's included. I feel like the axe is going to fall. Last night, the a/c wasn't putting much out in the way of cool air. But I shall keep the faith that Con Ed's wrath will pass us over. Should I paint freon on my door as a sign of my penitence?

Bleah.

It's freakin' hot. I went out to lunch - grabbed a Cookies & Cream Tasti D-Lite, took a little stroll as I ate (it wasn't so freakin' hot while eating Tasti D-Lite), got some iced coffee, and came back to work.

I feel like going wandering more. Or knitting. But I'm at work and don't know how it would go over, me busting out my knitting in my whopping four-person office.

So I'll do what I do best and obsess over my weight. Because I still feel like a cow. I stopped going to Weight Watchers because I was getting depressed - I'd stick to program for the week, work out, feel great about myself, and then weigh in and see nothing - no loss. In fact, sometimes I'd gain. I was getting nothing from the meetings after a point. And I was unbearable to live with after them, so I decided that for now, going to meetings is actually doing more damage that not going. So I am taking a break.

And feeling like some pathetic weight loss dropout.

Why the heck do I make a stupid number so damned powerful? Why do I wrap up my self-worth in a size of jeans? Because I'm female, probably. And because I've never been famous for my fabulous self-esteem.

I feel like crap about myself today. Moreso than normal. I'm tired of looking at myself in store windows, trying to gauge how fat I look today. Or looking at other women in the street and trying to figure out if I'm fat compared to them. I just want to stop and be okay with what I've got. I eat pretty well. I exercise often. That should be good enough, right? But no. And I can't make it right.

I was supposed to have my thyroid tested. I keep forgetting to go to the lab - I know I'm putting it off. Because if I get it tested and there's nothing wrong with my thyroid, that means that I'm a cow because I'm a cow, not because there's something wrong with me. I'm hoping there is actually something wrong with me - nothing life-threatening, just something that can explain why I can't get this weight off. And the prospect that there's nothing wrong with me that can cause this is almost unbearable.

I was going to do it today. Honest. And when I looked in my bag, it was the wrong paperwork. Crap.

Ummm... read it for yourself.

Thieves Steal 14-Foot Inflatable Sheep

Hip Hop Yoda!

This is hilarious. And apparently, somewhere on the Episode III DVD... I've got to find it.

Support ALL Books! My Friday WTF Rant

My friend Greg sent this to me and asked me to shout it from the rooftops - like I need an excuse to get on the soapbox?

My schpiel - pretty much everyone who knows me knows how I feel about the stuff you're going to read below, so I don't need to explain. Don't like gay books? Don't read them. Don't like gay people? It's really none of your business, unless you want people to start being concerned with what goes on in your bedroom.

When you start messing with books, you really piss me off. Think it's just gay books? Oh, keep reading then. Any Harry Potter fan worth their glow-in-the-dark wand will tell you that there have been Harry Potter book burning parties. Remember who else used to burn books? Little guy, dark hair, strange little mustache, yelled a lot? Oh, and killed over 6 million people for being different from what he thought was the 'right' way to be. 'Nuff said.

Outwrite Books, one of the best GLBTQ booksellers in the country, has come under attack in Atlanta by what I can only describe as a gang of Christian hoodlums who have no respect (gasp) for the Constitution.

I am sending books to support the store. I have posted this email on my blog and am sending it to every writer in my address book. I ask that you do the same.

When one voice is silenced, it becomes easier to silence others.

Sadly a group of some 15-20 anti-gay protesters have gathered in front of Outwrite Bookstore & Coffeehouse, Atlanta, Ga., at least three Saturdays in a row, according to the Southern Voice. A few customers and activists have staged smaller counter-protests. A store e-mail said the protestors have vowed to demonstrate every Saturday through election day in November.

Owner Philip Rafshoon told the Voice that local police said the protestors have a right to free speech; he is seeking help from the city council. Besides its business impact, Rafshoon said he is concerned about a possibly
"volatile situation."

In its e-mail, Outwrite said, "We are grateful to everyone that flocked to the store during these demonstrations and showed these protestors that their fear tactics will not work in our community."

Peter Glassman of Books of Wonder in NYC was moved to write in: Forthright Support for Outwrite
Peter Glassman, owner of Books of Wonder, New York City, writes about an item in Monday's Shelf Awareness:

I was deeply disturbed to read about the protests being waged in front of Outwrite Bookstore & Coffeehouse in Atlanta. It is clearly the intention of the protesters to intimidate would-be customers and so drive the store out
of business. Reading your article brought back so clearly to me a truly upsetting incident at Books of Wonder nearly 15 years ago when we were still on the corner of 7th Avenue and 18th Street.

A woman walked into the store and called out to us and the other customers how we were evil people for corrupting innocent children with our satanic literature. The books she was referring to as "corrupting" and "satanic" included My Father's Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett, A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula LeGuin, The Borrowers by Mary Norton, Half Magic by Edward Eager, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. At first we all just stood there in silence, totally stunned by this bizarre occurrence. My initial reaction was to assume that
she was being ironic--surely no one in their right mind could object to these wonderful books? Then, realizing that she was serious, I marched over to her and evicted her from the store, stating to her in no uncertain terms
that she was never to come back and that she was the evil one for trying to stop children from experiencing these great books that would open their minds and imaginations to all the incredible possibilities that the universe
had to offer.

I'm happy to say that this was the one and only incident of its kind to ever occur at my store in the 26 years since I opened Books of Wonder. But I am also keenly aware that this sort of thing can happen to any of us at any
time.

That is why I am going to be contacting Philip Rafshoon and offering to send him a donation of books that he can give for free to any customers who come in when there are protesters outside. I want him to know that there are others in the bookselling community who stand behind him. I hope he'll put up a large sign letting people know they can get free books just for coming inside and defying the intimidation efforts of the protestors--regardless of whether they are straight, gay or whatever. Or he can give them to anyone willing to stand outside and counter protest. Or however he thinks best. I just want him to know he is not alone.

If we as a community do not stand up to this sort of harassment--even if it is legal--then none of us are safe. Before long every bookstore will have protesters out front demanding we stop carrying the books they don't agree with. It's one of the worst quandaries that free speech presents--that others can use their right to free speech in an attempt to censor others through intimidation.

I hope everyone in the bookselling community--booksellers, publishers, distributors, authors, and artists--will do what they can to show support against this threat to the right of bookstores to sell whatever they choose
to whomever they choose. If not, we may all wake up one day to find ourselves in a future all too close to the one George Orwell predicted.

Huzzah! I love book people!
Nicki Leone
Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance
nicki@sibaweb.com
www.sibaweb.com

Okay, I'm back and ready to rant. You read it right, folks. THE WIZARD OF OZ. THE HOBBIT AND LORD OF THE RINGS, written by a devout Catholic, J.R. R. Tolkien. You know, The Lord of the Rings? Where the wizard dies in a fiery battle with a demon from a pit, rises from the dead bathed in light and swathed in white? You may have heard that story somewhere else before...

The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe? Who is this woman? C.S. Lewis - a contemporary of J.R.R. Tolkien - wrote more on the Christian religion than he did fiction. Did she even bother to read The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe? The lion is killed by the witch, but gets to rise from the dead because he was a pure soul making a sacrifice to save another? Where the humans are knows as Sons of Adam and Daughters of Eve?

A Wrinkle in Time? WTF? Again, did she even bother to read these books before making these sweeping judgements? Probably not, I know - I'm being foolish again, expecting people to be educated on their topics before becoming so passionate about them. Or was shshe just freaking out at the prospect of kids reading a book where Hell is a place where they expect you to conform.

For Chrissakes, if you're going to be an idiot, at least educate yourself before opening your mouth. Has anyone actually read the Bible? Where rape, incest and murder are freely written about and praised? Where Lot's daughters decide to get their father drunk and have sex with him so they'll become pregnant and continue the family line? Where Lot tells the drunken mob at Sodom & Gomorrah that they can have his virgin daughters, but heavens to betsy, leave those poor visiting angels alone! King David - dude that hit Goliath with the lucky shot on the slingshot - sleeps with a married woman, gets her pregnant, and decides to avoid the sticky situation that would arise when her husband finds out - by having him murdered. Classy.

My point is not that we should be burning the Bible or banning the Bible. Nor should we be burning or banning Harry Potter (unless Rowling kills Harry off in Book 7 - then I'll light the first match) or Wanna Wrestle or any book. If frickin' Mein Kampf is still allowed to be in print, how dare anyone dispute a gay book?

Well Greg, if you're reading this, you opened up my personal can of worms. Enjoy. ;-)

Whoo hoo!

You Passed 8th Grade Science

Congratulations, you got 7/8 correct!

Could You Pass 8th Grade Science?

I'm addicted to these BlogThing quizzes.

Your Pimp Name Is...

Bootylicious Skillz

What's Your Pimp Name?

Yeeeeeaaaahhhh....

What Kind of Coffee Am I?

You are a Black Coffee

At your best, you are: low maintenance, friendly, and adaptable At your worst, you are: cheap and angsty You drink coffee when: you can get your hands on it Your caffeine addiction level: high

What Kind of Coffee Are You?

How do they know these things? I am, however, not cheap. Angsty, maybe, but not cheap.

Friday!

TGI freakin' F.

Still Working Out...

Props to Lore, who mentioned the virtues of Cathe Friedrich to me a week or two ago. I've since done an upper body workout of hers that rocks - and while I'm in no way ready to take on her step workout, I did DVR her Stretch Max workout this morning.

I've also stuck a toe in the pool and started doing some In Shape with Sharon Mann. Her yoga, weights and balance ball workouts have been really good! There is life beyond Denise Austin! (I'm not dissing Denise, just branching out.)

One would think with all the working out I've been doing that I'd look like Joanie Laurer, aka Chyna. Why I still resemble a 35-year old doughy mom is beyond me. But I'm still journaling and working out, so perhaps the goddess will smile upon me and help with this blasted belly one day.

I'm at work and have absolutely no desire to do a blessed thing.

I think I need to get coffee...

Daily Ranting

I'm tired and irritable. And a little embarrassed at my state, which apparently refused to recognize same-sex marriage today. How the heck does New York of all places refuse this?

I normally don't go all crazy on this here on my blog, but I'm just sitting here, astounded. I know the entire state is not metro NY - but you've got to be kidding.

And quite frankly, don't we have far more pressing issues to worry about than whether or not two men or two women are planning to spend the rest of their lives together?

I've said this before - this is not a 'straight' right. It should not be a 'gay' right. The right to marry should be a human right.

Wake me when it's 2008 and we can try this again.

School's Out for Summer...

I think Will may be old enough for me to introduce Alice Cooper's anthem to him at last! School is out as of 11:55 this morning. PS139 was a mass of swarming humanity - it was crazy!


Took Will and George, his buddy, along with George's little sister and Alex, to McDonald's in Forest Hills and then Barnes & Noble. Holy crap, it's hot. I think I sweated off a pound (from my lips to God's ears) just waiting on the 20-minute line at McDonald's. Yes, you read that right. George's mom, Theresa, and I were on line for 20 minutes. Take that fact as a testament to the love I hold for my children. Points be damned, by the time I got to the counter I was famished so I treated myself to a BLT Ranch chicken sandwich and a LARGE iced coffee. (How awesome is it that McDonald's has iced coffee now?)



Will and George chose the same books - maybe a summer reading book club? - Dracula vs. Grampa at the Monster Truck Spectacular and The Day My Butt Went Psycho. I love my son.

I feel the need to pull a descriptive quote from The Day My Butt Went Psycho, which could possibly be my favorite title of all time: "the story of a brave young boy and his crazy runaway butt... It's a story you and your butt will never forget!"






And as for Dracula vs. Grampa: "Grampa and Wiley meet Colonel Dracula, whose primo vampire truck turns out to feed on some pretty sinister "gas".

I think I see a pattern in my son's reading habits.

I Knew It All Along!




You are "Kraft Macaroni and Cheese". You cost a little more,
due to your promotional shapes and packaging, but the kids
won't stand for less. You try and be individual in
spite of this though. You prefer to be called "Cheese and
Macaroni" thank you very much.

Take the What Kind of Macaroni and Cheese Are You? Quiz

Created by LJ User RobProv222

E-mail newsletters

Why do I automatically sign up for e-mail newsletters that I know I'll never read? It's like I get seized by the moment and say, "Yes! I will want to read about this from 25 different sites at least once a week!" And 110 e-mails in my inbox later, I want to scream. Stop the madness!

Prevention published an article for me!

This article could have been written just for me... now I just have to convince my boss of the veracity and importance...

Ta-Da! New Phone!

Stacey's blog post about her new phone prompted me to post a picture of mine. Because in the comments section of the blog, the URL didn't post right.

So here it is - my pretty pink RAZR that Mike is convinced I will break ever since the guy in the cell phone store emphasized how fragile they are. Like I'm throwing it down a flight of stairs.

Just as long as neither Alex nor Will (dear God, especially not Alex) get a hold of it, I'm safe.

This is Why We Love DiscoveryChannel.com

Even the animal world has its fart jokes:

June 20,2006 — Norwegian killer whales slap their tails underwater to disorient and kill herring, which sometimes defend themselves from the assault by disappearing under the cover of their own bubbly flatulence, according to a new study.

The study is one of two papers presented at the recent Acoustical Society of America Meeting in Rhode Island that addressed some of the clever techniques whales employ to catch their dinner.

While whales often are successful, some herring escape. The study's authors perhaps say it best: “Farting may save their lives.”

Hump Day

Wednesday... Hump Day... getting over the hump of the week, it's smooth sailing from here. BLEAH.

No good magazines yet. I finally got my Marie Claire in the mail, at least two weeks after it's been on the newsstand - explain to me how it's more effective to have a subscription?

Worked out this morning. Denise Austin is much happier than anyone before 10 a.m. and two cups of coffee should be. As much as I actually do like the workouts (I watch her shows on Lifetime - yes, you read that right, I watch something on "The Network for Women" - they also show Will & Grace reruns, so stop mocking me) sometimes I feel like I'm watching a 30-minute commercial for her products. She hawks her new line of workout clothing for Sears during the workout - I'm trying to achieve Zen and thin thighs, lady! Her commercials for Oster and her latest food product zip by as I fast-forward (what did I do before DVR?) to continue the workout. Denise, you're killing me.

Gilad just scares the crap outta me. He yells at me! "Thank you for trusting me with your BODY!" Um... go away? Trusting you with my body, that sounds like a lot of commitment. Just show me how to sculpt my abs. Sharon Mann is like watching the Energizer Bunny work out, and Caribbean Workout just irritates me because they're always in such perfect sync. I just want to see someone trip. So while FitTV started out promising, it's really just ended up back to me and Denise.

But if it's yoga we're talking about, Sarah Ivanhoe is the person to watch. I've got both of her yoga workouts from All Star Workouts on DVD and when I have the 45 minutes to spend, I'm there. I also have a DVD of hers that has two workouts that are challenging and relaxing.

Wow, I totally did not intend to post about working out, but there it is. Now I can nap.

How we suffer for beauty...

Just got back from having my brows and lip done at the threading place nearby. Now don't get me wrong, as grooming goes, in my humble opinion, threading beats out waxing by a mile - the finish is so much cleaner, more defined - but sweet bird of youth, why does it have to sting like that?

I know some, like my darling hubby, would say, "Why do you have to DO things like that? Why would you pay to have someone yank the hair out by the root from your face like that?" And time and again, I respond, "Because I choose not to look like a cavewoman." I'm from frickin' French stock, for crying out loud - I know what happens when I let things go.

Pour hot wax on the most tender areas of our bodies? Sure, bring it on! (Just not the face, please - it's a threading-only zone.) Take a razor blade and attack our extremities every three days? Have you seen the weather outside? Of course, it's time for skirts and strappy sandals!

I'm not complaining - but man, it does take some intestinal fortitude to be a gal these days.

Slapstick is Funny!

So we're watching the commercial for Nacho Libre the other night and during the clip where the bull tosses Jack Black into the air, I let out a giggle. Mike mentions that I love pain and suffering. Hardly.

Slapstick is funny stuff, people. Three Stooges? Grew up on 'em. Dodgeball? Give Rip Torn a wrench and the line, "If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball!" and I'm off the couch. In real life we'd be horrified, but it's a movie and it's a comedy for a reason - it's so outlandish, it's hilarious.

No, I do not find human suffering funny - well, maybe Mike's once in a while, but he's my husband so it's expected. But on the big and small screens, a banana peel and a running waiter go a looong way.

Bleah.

I'm sleepy. And under-caffeinated. I think I need to put up some water for coffee.

Will wants to watch Bruce Almighty, so I have to cue up the DVD. I tried to convince him that Dodgeball was funnier, but he wants to see Jim Carrey walk on water. I told him that Rip Torn throwing wrenches at people is far more amusing, but he's having none of it.

Kids.

By the Way...

It's almost 11 a.m., and I have yet to do anything productive. In the workplace, I mean. I've moderated my ClubMom forum, posted to this blog and Domestic Goddesses (mm... tostones...) and checked out who's going to be in Spider-Man 3 so far. Oh, and I've hit the Sisterhood's blogs, checked in with TheSuperficial and GoFugYourself.com.

So I guess I've actually been pretty productive so far. Now I feel better.

Domestic Goddesses, Assemble!

I realize that the little Domestic Goddesses blog has been neglected. So I started posting some mroe recipes there, and maybe I'll throw in some amusing anecdotes about my daily struggle to keep my apartment clean (despite living with two children, some fish, a cat and a husband). Are my other Domestic Goddesses doing anything interesting that you'd like to share?

We had Will's celebratory weekend this past weekend, taking him to see Cars which was very cute, but at 117 minutes, a bit long for a kids' movie. Alex was very rambunctious. If you go, stick with the movie through the credits. Pixar always throws fun stuff in at the end. Larry the Cable Guy was hilarious as Mater, Owen Wilson was lots of fun as Lightning McQueen, and Paul Newman was sweet and gruff as Doc Hudson. We also had a pizza lunch and he got a video game from us and from my mom, so I think he's pretty happy with life as he knows it. ;-)

Alex is determined to ride out the 'Terrible 2s' to its bitter end, with a lovely screaming fit in Bed Bath & Beyond yesterday. Sigh... serenity now... He did some yoga poses with me yesterday - now, if only the Zen bit would kick in for him!

It's definitely a 3-cup of coffee morning. And I've only had 2. Bleah.

By the way, Will ROCKS.

Just wanted to crow about Will, who's been invited into the Kappa program at his school for next year, which is a beginning level gifted class. They have the same curriculum as the rest of the classes but it's accelerated and enriched. He really kicked butt this school year, and this invitation is just the culmination of it. I'm so proud of him that I had to mention it here, because I know he'll also dig seeing his name in print. I'm sure I'll have to have a whole photo session to commemorate this, because he's also a camera hog. Hey, it's his moment in the sun, he's earned it.

And, giving equal time here, Alex has taken it upon himself to count on his own when we read his favorite counting book, Teeth Tales and Tentacles. He can get up to 10 before veering off into his own numerical system ("10, 14, 12, 18, 20! I did it!") so he's quite pleased with himself.

Magazine-less...

So after a rain-soaked run to B&N yesterday, I came back empty-handed. I saw no magazines that demanded I purchase them immediately, no matter how much I wandered through the racks.

Vogue Knitting? Still too intimidating at this fragile juncture of my knitting career. Creative Knitting? Wasn't feeling the pattern love. Knit.1? It's become horribly disappointing after the first two issues. Cutting Edge? Still not sure whether or not to commit to that many craft projects that will fall by the wayside.

Natural Health? I couldn't decide whether or not to buy it. Which probably means I'll get it this weekend. The yoga magazines (except for YogaLife, which I already have) are all too Zen for me at the moment. I can't contort myself that deeply yet, I'm lucky I can get both feet on the ground for a downward facing dog.

Saw a somewhat promising one, SheKnows, that seems like another entry into the health/wellness/fitness foray. I've been hemming and hawing for at least two weeks on this one, maybe I should just buy the damned thing.

I think I suffer from a surfeit of choice. Life was good when there was Prevention for Health and Glamour for everything else, but now there's 80 different magazines on every subject. You know I melt down when faced with big decisions, and at $5-$6 a pop, buying a magazine is becoming a big frickin' decision.

I'm meeting my mother for lunch today. I can't go back in there, or the BN security people will think I'm casing the joint.

Oh, and did 45 minutes of yoga again today. Serenity Now!

I'm in a Magazine-y Mood.

Ever get like that? When you just want to buy all these magazines, lock yourself in your apartment with the hot (or cold) beverage of your choice and read magazines?

I'm in that mood. I feel like wandering down to B&N and just gorging myself. The problem is, most mags are like $5-$6 a pop. If I spend $50 on magazines, I will smack the crap out of myself.

Maybe one. Or two? I can stop at 3. I'm sure.

Crap. I'm going to spend $50 on magazines.

The Zen of Kicking Ass

Did 45 minutes of yoga with weights this morning. Achieved Zen in the knowledge that after working out for 45 minutes doing yoga poses while holding 5-pound hand weights I am becoming an ass-kicking machine.

I will not be tempted by chocolate. Or junk food. I will stick to the food I brought with me today.

I am a Zen terminator!

Forget Homer...

...my friend Piera's trip home on Friday night made Odysseus' little sojourn back from the Trojan War look like a walk to the grocery store to get a gallon of milk. Witness:

"We witnessed the downpour that took place at 4 p.m. The skies darkened and an eerie silence fell over the city right before the water came crashing down.

So we leave at 5. Instinctively, I knew that the V, E, R, and N were not working. I knew it. However, we walked to the 53rd/Lexington Avenue station. No V or E service. The MTA suggested for all us Queens people to take the 6 train to Times Square and take the 7 train. So I walk with my co-worker to the 6 since she has to take the 6 two stops to get home. IT WAS RIDICULOUS! I'm already a bit claustrophobic and that platform was ridiculous. My co-worker decides that she can walk the 20 blocks home. So we leave and by that time, the rain has subsided and the weather was now a misty rain. We walk and I realize that the Q101 bus is nearby. Salvation! I temporarily erase all memories of me taking that horrible, horrible bus from high school. It never came then. I always had to walk 30 blocks home, everyday, in high school for 4 years. (But damn, did I have some great legs!)

The line wasn't so bad. I was the 10th person in. NO BUS! Three Q101s pass by with a "Not in Service" sign. After waiting for about an hour (now it's 6:30 p.m.), I decide to grab McDonald's and head back to the office (5 blocks away) to wait out the rush. So I head back, go upstairs, eat my Quarter Pounder, and pay some bills online.

At about 7:30, I decide that the best course of action would be for me to walk to Times Square (20 blocks away - about a 15-20 minute walk) and take the 7 train to Woodside and have my father pick me up from there. If the 7 train is not working, then I can just hang out at one of the hotels and hail a cab from there. The 7 train wasn't running (lying MTA bastards!), so I head off to one of the hotels. Seems like everyone else had that idea because there were CROWDS at each and every hotel in Times Square.

So, off I go. I walk over to 58th and 8th and stop in front of a hotel there. Three cabbies come by (after trying to hail one for an hour) and no one wanted to go into Queens. One guy said, "I do not like Queens." I told him, "I do not like you!" I walk over to 9th Avenue and stop in front of a small hotel there. I see a man getting out of a cab and the hotel attendant assisting him. Of course, I am on that in two seconds. I hesitantly ask, "Queens please?" and he tells me to hop in. HOP IN! The two most magical words in the world for me.

So now, it's about 9 p.m. To get to the 59th Street Bridge lower level via 3rd Avenue is HELL. So he asks if I'm okay if he takes an alternate route. Of course - as long as I'm out of the city, I'm fine. So he calls his other cabbie friend to make sure another route is available. His friend is telling my cabbie that he's crazy to drive into Queens. My cabbie, my hero, tells his friend that I need to get home. Awww... God bless that man.

So by the time he pulls up in front of my house, it's 10:15 p.m. I tip the man well - he deserves it! I thank him a million and one times and get out.

So that was may tale. I hope you enjoyed it."

Piera, you have no idea...

Marooned in Jersey!

So apparently, the NYC Transit authority mistook some rain for the next flood and screwed commuters yet again. Methinks another raise hike is imminent and they needed some ammunition.

Anyway, the F train announced at 42nd Street that there was no Queensbound service, and invited us all to try our chances on the number 7 train. Anyone who knows me knows I'd almost rather watch Bush address the nation (I said almost) than ride the 7 train. And considering that every underground line was discharging Queensbound passengers and telling them to take the 7, which is already a clusterf*ck of human proportions at best, I opted to head for my mom's. I left the station, left a profanity-laced voicemail on my mother's cellphone, informing her that I'd be meeting her at home, and headed for Port Authority.

Got to Port Authority at 5:40, got on a bus, the bus took off. (Turns out my mom's E train took almost 40 MINUTES to go three stops, so she was two buses behind me.) I was in Jersey by 6:40. Watching the news that night, seeing what people were continuing to go through in order to get home, I could only sit back and realize that going to Jersey most likely saved someone's life, because I know I would have gone Berserker-Rage Wolverine on someone had I tried.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch (dressing), I have got to get my crap together and start eating right. Working out 3 days a week isn't going to do a blessed thing for my backside if I keep diving into Will's Doritos stash. I just don't know if I want to be aggravated by logging into SelfDietClub.com every day to put all my meals in. As cool as the site is, the logging in thing gets tedious and the inner brat in me doesn't wanna do it. I have to figure this out and be done with it already. Argh.

Oh yeah... I'm still knitting...

I haven't slacked off, I am still a knitting fool. Mike got me a book, One Skein, which features 30 things I can knit, allegedly with one skein of yarn. Since I have many 'one skeins' in my stash, I decided to go for it. I've finished the cable scarf, which looks mighty nifty if I may say so myself. It's a ribbed scarf with a single cable running up the side. Easily knit up on size 9 needles on a regular worsted weight yarn.


Next up, I'm back to an old issue of "Knit It" magazine (Fall 2005, to be exact- and I can't find its site, what the hell?) where there is a very cute baby blanket I'm currently working on for Helene's friend, Helena, who is having a baby girl at some point this year. I'm using a different gauge, but it's going to be a lighter, airier blanket. It's a checkerboard pattern (stockinette/garter) and it's another worsted weight yarn on size 9 needles. I'm using one of those "Pound of Love" monster skeins my mom picked up to crochet a blanket for someone whose child is probably near college age by now (hee hee, Mom). Anyway, it's knitting up nicely so hopefully I'll be posting a photo soon.

I see by the clock on my lower right hand side of the monitor that it's time for me to head out and pick Will up. Ta ta for now, all.

Amendment To My Former Post

All of that stands, except for anything pertaining to Ash Wednesday. All bets are off for Ash Wednesday. For 12 years, I got herded into Church on Ash Wednesday and inevitably ended up with the priest with the biggest thumb. I hated walking around with that giant blob on my head. I'd try to cover it up with my bangs, and my mom would shove them out of the way. Argh!

The last day I got ashes was Ash Wednesday, 1988. I was a senior in high school. Catch my drift?

Catholicism... WOW!

I hope you recognize the Dogma reference and don't think that I've been somehow "saved". ;-)

Anyway, Will had the closing liturgy to his religious ed class (for the school year) last night so we went. He was so cute singing that I had to hug him during one of the songs. I'm not sure how much he appreciated that, what with me spoiling his street cred, but I'm a mom, we do wacky things like that.

It was pretty funny... he kept glancing up at me as I repeated all the responsorial phrases and nudged him when it was time to kneel, sit or stand. Finally, he says, "How do you know all this?" I told him, "I did this for 12 years in Catholic school."

Which got me thinking. Wow, it never really leaves you, does it? In some way, shape or form, no matter how lapsed a Catholic I've become (in some ways), the Mass is there, ingrained in me. Which, to be honest, is kind of comforting. Although for a while now I've said that I'm a Catholic in my own sense of the word, sometimes the old habits of Mass are nice to come back to.

Not my usual post, but just something that I've been thinking about today. That, and how adorable my boys are. But I think about that every day...

Weekend!!

So, Memorial Day weekend has come and gone, the BBQ coals have been doused, and we're all ready to head back to Weight Watchers to do penance. Hope you all had a great weekend. We headed upstate to the Catskills to visit Mike's grandmother, who is doing astonishingly well considering she just had major surgery at 88 years old. As you can see, Will and Alex thoroughly enjoyed their weekend, too.

Saw X-Men 3 at the drive-in. I have issues. No, seriously, aside from the normal ones, I have got HUGE issues with the movie. I won't go into detail here in case anyone who hasn't seen the movie happens upon my rant, but - WTF?!?! There were some great standalone scenes, and Magneto is just such a great character (as is Sir Ian McKellen, who I would see if he were at the opening of an envelope), but there were quite a few things they did with the characters that threw me for a loop. And yes, pissed me off. Grrr.

God, I love being up in the country. It's peaceful, relaxing... and yet, I would give a lung for good Chinese takeout. I'm such a creature of convenience, yet I never realize how much I've become so dependent on it until I'm upstate. But I do wonder if I could toss it all to live up there. Sometimes I think, no way; sometimes I think, yeah, I think I could.

Could I live a 45-minute minimum drive from the nearest Barnes & Noble or Borders?

I'm thinking like this again because 'the house', the house that I've been in love with for over a year, is STILL on the market. The 6-8 bedroom Victorian on 3 acres of land that needs tons of work? That's dropped $20K over the past year? That I can't conceivably think of because the mortgage would equal my rent, and lord knows I can't afford two rents, nor can I afford to move that far upstate where there are no jobs I would be interested in taking? Yeah, that house.

To quote Homer Simpson, "Shut up brain, before I stab you with a Q-Tip."

Pictures to come, Blogger is being very cranky today.

LOST

So I finally watched the season finale last night and gotta admit, yes - I was angry again. Not at the show, but at the fact that I now have to wait until the FALL to find out what the heck is happening to Sawyer, Jack and Kate! Someone needs to firebomb Michael's boat, btw. Asshat.

Now excuse me, I have to go wander around the Hanso Foundation boards for another hour to see what new information I can geek out on...

The DaVinci Ho

No, it's not the porn version of the Dan Brown book, but a self-description because of my love of all things DaVinci Code lately. At BEA, DaVinci was on everyone's brains, lips, and book tables - a combination of the overwhelming success and controversy the book's received, the trial that's just been completed, and the movie's opening on BEA weekend. Every publisher in the world is trying to cash in on DaVinci (and I'm no exception - I am a shameless marketer, after all. I've got Cosimo's Secret Societies books front and center on our website) and I was there to check it out.

Fodor's was giving away their Guide to the DaVinci Code: On the Trail of the Bestselling Novel, and of course they were, being owned by Random, the publisher of The DaVinci Code. The book is a tour guide to the novel, allowing you to follow the paths the characters took in the book, providing photography and info on the artwork and locations Brown mentions, and all that fun stuff. Right into my overstuffed tote bag, that baby went, along with two other tour guides on Ireland and Costa Rica, both of which I'm hoping to get back to. I may actually give the Costa Rica one to Karen if she ends up booking her honeymoon there like she's been saying she wants to. I'll hyperlink the tour titles once I remember whose they are...

Frommer's was giving away their Washington DC guides, so I picked one up, on the outside chance I'd be awake enough to enjoy some nightlife after BEA and before my 5 a.m. journey began the next morning. I ended up looking up a restaurant for Michelle actually, so it wasn't in vain.

Anyway, I also ended up snagging myself a hilarious DaVinci parody, The DaVinci Mole, by a pseudonymous author, Dr. Ian Browne. Apparently, this is a pseudonym for a well-known figure who must remain anonymous for "reasons of security." There's actually a contest if you can figure out who it is - you'll know the minute you read the description, and the introduction by "Dr. Browne" is pretty hilarious. I read it on the plane back from DC and thought it was very funny and well done.

So while I wouldn't spend any more money on DaVinci or his code, yeah - I'm a DaVinci Ho. What can I say, I like books that make me think.

More BEA later.

Whatta Day!


I know I promised to blog more about the BEA booty I scored, but Will's birthday was yesterday, so I have to, of course, stop everything in recognition and tribute to that.

Yesterday was one of those days, kind of like the day Ray Liotta's character in GoodFellas finally gets brought down. You know how he's narrating about all the crazy errands he has to run that day? That was my day.

I get up, work out, get Will up and moving. We're walking to school, talking about his birthday party he's going to have in class at 1:45 and he asks me if I've got the goody bags done. Being the slick mother I am, I smoothly reassure him that yes, of course, the goody bags are all ready to go.

There are no goody bags. Oh, crap. I'll have 28 first graders after me with pitchforks.

Drop Will off at school, run to Dunkin' Donuts to get a box of munchkins for Will's party. He doesn't eat cake, but loves himself some munchkins. And it's easier to clean up, too, so the teacher should love me. Right? Right. I have to get the munchkins early, because if I go there around lunchtime, there will be none. And then I'll have 28 first graders after with me with pitchforks. Or one very pissed-off first grader because I'd have to buy a birthday cake and he's just not having that.

Go home, attempt to work for a few hours.

At noon, I run to the party store in Forest Hills to pick up Hulk party gear - cups, napkins, plates, and yes, GOODY BAGS. I find a "pinata party bag" - two pounds of assorted candy and toys to stuff into a pinata and figure, perfect. Two pounds should take care of 28 kids, right? (Wrong.) Pay for everything, run down to the train station where I stuff goody bags as I await my train. Anyone who is not a parent is staring at me like I'm clearly insane. Which I am - I'm a parent.

I get off at the stop by Will's school only to realize that two pounds of candy and toys are not enough for 28 first graders. I run upstairs into Rite Aid, buy three small bags of candy and two bottles of apple juice. Run into the school office and ask the staff to allow me to stuff goody bags. I sit there on a bench outside the principal's office, sorting goody bags.

Twenty dollars doesn't buy a lot in the way of candy anymore.

Drop the stuff off upstairs, I think the teacher thought I was just dropping stuff off because she thanked me and I kind of got the feeling I was supposed to leave. So I was a little bemused, but split. And yes, I did have to explain why I wasn't there to Will, who was not very happy. But everyone had goody bags, there were enough munchkins and juice to go around, so at least my reputation as Mom Extraordinaire is secure.

Had about an hour to kill, so went to Dunkin' Donuts again for a nice, large iced coffee. Wandered into Old Navy, but didn't see much. Headed back to pick Will up from school, and rushed him off to the train station to get him to religion class. Getting there early, he asked for Tasty D-Lite. Ate his usual 5 bites before pronouncing himself full, so I pretended to eat it and offer him bites all the way to school. He finished it.

Will's under the impression that I am keeping a big birthday surprise for him. I told Mike not to hand him three video games in a Best Buy bag on the way to his party, dammit. I drop him off at religion, run upstairs to the library to register him for next year (two sacraments, cha-ching), run down to treat myself to a brow threading, and run to get Will a surprise. First it's back to the party store to get him a Spongebob lollipop I saw earlier, then to Barnes & Noble because the comic book store had squat I'd buy for him. Yes, my son needs more books like I do, but cut me a break here. Got him two X-Men tie-in books and a Pirates of the Caribbean one, then rushed back to get him from school.

Got him home, helped him with homework, and got the laundry together. Mike picked us up a little after six, and then we were off to pick up Alex and catch a showing of Over the Hedge in College Point.

Got home after 9. And no, I haven't watched Lost yet - I am not visiting anyone's blog until I do, either. I'll watch it tonight, because last night, a visit from Sawyer himself probably couldn't have kept my eyes open long enough.

I am mother. I am frickin' exhausted. But my baby boy is 7 years old (when did that happen?) and happy, and that's all that matters to me.