Ok, today’s the last day of January, right? I apologize for the week between written posts but this week was busy, no doubt, and I have much to say as a result.
I suppose I should start with the religious studies class since I referenced it last in the previous post. I’ve always respected, I think, people returning to school after extended stretches away from academics. But my experience back in the classroom, on the other side of the desk, if you will, has renewed that respect. Ok, I know the professor, have nothing to prove, and I’m still nervous on the first night. And the introductions didn’t help, when the professor asked the students to share their favorite doctrines or parts of the Bible, and I have no idea how to respond. Luckily I had the St. Francis material on which to fall back or else I would have been screwed. And the other students were all immersed in their faith seemed to enjoy quoting the Bible. But after a few minutes in a circle in the awkward desks I relaxed. By the last hour the conversation on the balance between spiritual experiences in ritual and the desire to retain uniformity in liturgical structure was quite interesting. So I guess I’m going back tomorrow. I’ve even done my homework and probably read more in this book already than in two out of three of my grad programs combined. I have nothing to prove, so I might as well both take the course seriously and have some fun at the same time.
The hurricane of the semester’s first two weeks is over. I’m glad I over-prepared before the first day of class; as a result I wasn’t overwhelmed when the emergency meetings and proverbial fires emerged. My classes seem fine, and I don’t face a new prep for the first time in years, so I can’t complain.
What else happened the rest of the week? Hm. I played a lot of facebook scrabble and I think my game is slowly improving. Friday night I got very drunk. My legs were killing me and the gym was burning me out so I skipped Friday and Saturday. On Friday night, after picking T up from a middle school trivia night, I started drinking and didn’t stop until I found myself, at 1AM, licking the frozen Rolling Rock ice out of bottles I left on the unheated front porch and swaying in the middle of the living room to Lucero’s Tennessee. Yesterday, then I read (loving the Greene and feeling slightly resentful because of the class readings), watched tv, and baked with the boys. This morning I hit the gym with a vengeance, finished my homework, and pretty soon I’m going to mail some CDs before most likely turning off the computer for the night.
I’m loving the Lucero, by the way. Great band.
I don’t care what anyone says, the sun is shining brightly, the days are lasting longer, and winter won’t last forever. Tomorrow is February first, people. The end of the winter tunnel, while maybe not in sight, is within imagination.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Saturday, January 30, 2010
The boys and I made our own frosting today! And then I gave them the decorating gun and the frosting and some gummy bears and they went to town. Here are the results. Oh, the white frosting is the already prepared kind, N changed his mind and said he wanted white. The chocolate we made ourselves. N, by the way, thinks the name "Bob" is funny so he wrote it with decorating gel. The decorating gun is harder than I thought, by the way. I can see why people have to go to school for this kind of thing.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
I’m on the couch, 2:54PM, watching the Colts/Jets game in a quiet house. M and the boys are at the YMCA with friends. The dogs are outside. My laundry is folded and in a basket on the floor.
So this morning I woke at five-thirty (I love my new analog clock that glows blue when you push a button on the top) and played facebook scrabble in bed until about six. I shouldn’t play scrabble before coffee, however, as I set up an opponent with “Quid” and she responded by adding an S to make “Squid”. Fuck! Oh well. Once downstairs the boys and I watched the Super Hero Squad before I showered, ate breakfast, and started cleaning. I listened to the “late at night” mix CD and finished the first floor within an hour. After vacuuming upstairs and getting the rooms together I threw on jeans and rain gear for a walk with Mack and Pete. The temps, by the way, are above forty and rain has pelted the town for the last twelve hours. Downtown was deserted and grey water waves with white crests battered the beach and harbor. We walked up the hill and checked out the overlook but the fog was too thick to see even the condo building just below. I love the intense, blustery rain. Sometimes, of course, Wisconsin can seem so ordinary. But when you’re standing on a bluff looking out over the lake in the pouring rain, well, Wisconsin is as exotic as you can imagine. You could drop a blindfolded Chicagoan here, let them take a look, and they’d probably think they were in Scotland.
Later M and I watched most of Julie and Julia. Good movie, so far, really. Meryl Streep is amazing. And then M and the boys went to the Y.
I wonder how happy I’ve been lately. I wonder why I keep grinding my teeth and can’t sleep. I wonder if I should just give up and take sleeping pills.
Class tomorrow, both teaching and studenting. Have a great night.
So this morning I woke at five-thirty (I love my new analog clock that glows blue when you push a button on the top) and played facebook scrabble in bed until about six. I shouldn’t play scrabble before coffee, however, as I set up an opponent with “Quid” and she responded by adding an S to make “Squid”. Fuck! Oh well. Once downstairs the boys and I watched the Super Hero Squad before I showered, ate breakfast, and started cleaning. I listened to the “late at night” mix CD and finished the first floor within an hour. After vacuuming upstairs and getting the rooms together I threw on jeans and rain gear for a walk with Mack and Pete. The temps, by the way, are above forty and rain has pelted the town for the last twelve hours. Downtown was deserted and grey water waves with white crests battered the beach and harbor. We walked up the hill and checked out the overlook but the fog was too thick to see even the condo building just below. I love the intense, blustery rain. Sometimes, of course, Wisconsin can seem so ordinary. But when you’re standing on a bluff looking out over the lake in the pouring rain, well, Wisconsin is as exotic as you can imagine. You could drop a blindfolded Chicagoan here, let them take a look, and they’d probably think they were in Scotland.
Later M and I watched most of Julie and Julia. Good movie, so far, really. Meryl Streep is amazing. And then M and the boys went to the Y.
I wonder how happy I’ve been lately. I wonder why I keep grinding my teeth and can’t sleep. I wonder if I should just give up and take sleeping pills.
Class tomorrow, both teaching and studenting. Have a great night.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
I’m in our bedroom, fan blowing, humidifier cranking, baseboard heating, um, heating. Mack is in the room, too, although I think I’m kicking him out in a minute. Well, no, he left before I could remove him, we’ll see if he returns. Normally the puppies are not allowed on the 2nd floor but T pointed out we could close the doors to each upstairs room and let the dogs roam free in the hallway. Worth a shot.
So what did I do this fine Saturday? Let’s see, I rose at 5:30 and hit the gym by 6:30 for forty minutes on that ass-kicking new vertical…elliptical…thingy. I don’t know what you call that machine, but I sweat my f—king balls off after forty minutes. I’m thinking that forty minutes of high intensity work on this machine might be better than my usual hour on devices to which I’m accustomed. After leg weights I stopped at the Redbox outside Walgreens and picked up Julia and Julia and some movie called The Seeker for the boys. M’s sick, and she never gets sick, so anything I can do to make her life easier (esp. if the cost is at the Redbox level) is worthwhile. A shower and some computing later I...well, I pretty much wasted the morning, if I’m going to be honest, channel surfing and eating cake with my hands. At 11:30 I sat in the corner of Lincoln’s gym through S’s basketball practice. I read the theology book (getting better) until Dan called and we talked about the worst teacher inservices we could remember. After my phone battery died (sorry, Dan!) S and I returned home for a quick twenty minutes before heading over to T’s last game of the weekend. A well-intended girls’ game was ending as we arrived; the bleachers were full of local parental celebrities, you know, the sad kind, the people who envision them as important within the city limits of a town with 10,000 people. Knock yourself out, ladies and gentlemen. I’m glad Northern Ozaukee kicked your team’s ass. T played well and his team won by seven or so. Later I watched both Burn Notice and (the increasingly hard to follow) Vampire Diaries. I took a long bath with the latest edition of Wired and here I am. 6:30PM, in my pajamas, Saturday night. I’m not complaining.
Back to the theology textbook for a second. I’m a little nervous about this class. Pretty much my entire undergraduate and graduate education has revolved around learning how to teach, lead, etc. in the K-12 and higher ed environment. And now I’m taking a class that has nothing to do with any of that. But even with the forty pages I’ve read in the book I feel like I’ve learned a ton. So maybe this experience will be eye-opening. God knows why I’m taking this class. I feel called to do so now, and that’s worked out for me in the past. Lead on, providence, luck, wheel of fortune. I’ve got nothing better to do on Monday nights.
So what did I do this fine Saturday? Let’s see, I rose at 5:30 and hit the gym by 6:30 for forty minutes on that ass-kicking new vertical…elliptical…thingy. I don’t know what you call that machine, but I sweat my f—king balls off after forty minutes. I’m thinking that forty minutes of high intensity work on this machine might be better than my usual hour on devices to which I’m accustomed. After leg weights I stopped at the Redbox outside Walgreens and picked up Julia and Julia and some movie called The Seeker for the boys. M’s sick, and she never gets sick, so anything I can do to make her life easier (esp. if the cost is at the Redbox level) is worthwhile. A shower and some computing later I...well, I pretty much wasted the morning, if I’m going to be honest, channel surfing and eating cake with my hands. At 11:30 I sat in the corner of Lincoln’s gym through S’s basketball practice. I read the theology book (getting better) until Dan called and we talked about the worst teacher inservices we could remember. After my phone battery died (sorry, Dan!) S and I returned home for a quick twenty minutes before heading over to T’s last game of the weekend. A well-intended girls’ game was ending as we arrived; the bleachers were full of local parental celebrities, you know, the sad kind, the people who envision them as important within the city limits of a town with 10,000 people. Knock yourself out, ladies and gentlemen. I’m glad Northern Ozaukee kicked your team’s ass. T played well and his team won by seven or so. Later I watched both Burn Notice and (the increasingly hard to follow) Vampire Diaries. I took a long bath with the latest edition of Wired and here I am. 6:30PM, in my pajamas, Saturday night. I’m not complaining.
Back to the theology textbook for a second. I’m a little nervous about this class. Pretty much my entire undergraduate and graduate education has revolved around learning how to teach, lead, etc. in the K-12 and higher ed environment. And now I’m taking a class that has nothing to do with any of that. But even with the forty pages I’ve read in the book I feel like I’ve learned a ton. So maybe this experience will be eye-opening. God knows why I’m taking this class. I feel called to do so now, and that’s worked out for me in the past. Lead on, providence, luck, wheel of fortune. I’ve got nothing better to do on Monday nights.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Good evening, Friday evening, a little before 8PM. I’m in the upstairs bedroom cranking the humidifier and wondering if I should have inhaled so much coffee in the late afternoon. Sometimes Friday evening hits and I have no idea what to do with the sudden available hours. I’m caught up in facebook Scrabble, answered most of my email, and the kids are watching television. Ooh, I just yawned. Good sign.
So this week was insomnia-ridden again, and I’m grinding my teeth. Why? I have no idea. But both Wednesday and Thursday mornings I was up by 1:00AM. Thursday was the fucking worst. After deciding I was awake for the day I considered going straight into work but at the last minute I hit the YMCA for the usual hour of cardio instead. This was smart, I think, as I was then calm and exhausted rather than jittery and exhausted. I taught pretty much straight through from 9:30-5. God knows what I said that last class. I don’t recall. And when I arrived home at work I was hallucinating. I’m not kidding. The experience was almost enjoyable, like after smoking just a little pot. I stood in the kitchen and asked myself if the curtains on the east wall windows were new. Have they always been there? They look new. That sort of thing. And then I started to feel like I had to hurl, the next frontier of the insomniac, really, but I collapsed into bed, read ten words in Greene, and fell asleep before I threw up. This morning I woke at four without the alarm (lucky I didn’t need the device, as I had set it to ring at 4PM), checked the Scrabble games (played “Zaire, the monetary unit of the country, apparently, for 45 points), and hit the Y for thirty on the elliptical and an hour of basketball. I taught my assessment class (not bad, trying to mix up the curriculum, been teaching that one too long, starting to get stale) before stopping at Target for another alarm clock (I wanted a clock with hands, yes, I know that sounds weird, and I also wanted a spare alarm clock for when I can’t find mine. It happens.) and a second cake pan so I could do the double-decker thing. Later the boys and I baked a cake (see pics). When M returned I hit the coffee shop for an hour of email and memo writing. I left the coffee shop and drove directly to T’s very exciting basketball game (they lost by one after one of T’s teammates missed a last second baseline jumper). Now I’m here.
This weekend should be ok. Rain is forecast. Man, I can’t remember the last time rain fell. I hope the rain falls hard, battering the skylights and washing away all the dirty, pissy snow. I’ll rotate the Greene with the theology textbook. Did I mention the theology book? I’m taking a theology class starting Monday night. The instructor emailed the class with a reading assignment before the goddamn class even met. That takes balls, sir. I can respect that, but I’m only taking this class for fun. I still think I’ll do the reading, though. I started already. I’m not sure what “ecclesiastical” means, though, in terms of “ecclesiastical history”. I suppose I should look up the concept as the author seems to assume I already understand the term. My bad. Maybe I should read the introduction. I skipped most of my previous grad school reading since…well…forever, but since I’m kind of excited and approaching this course without pressure I might as well jump into the theological deep end without reservation.
Ok, N wants to read. More tomorrow. Have a great Friday night.
So this week was insomnia-ridden again, and I’m grinding my teeth. Why? I have no idea. But both Wednesday and Thursday mornings I was up by 1:00AM. Thursday was the fucking worst. After deciding I was awake for the day I considered going straight into work but at the last minute I hit the YMCA for the usual hour of cardio instead. This was smart, I think, as I was then calm and exhausted rather than jittery and exhausted. I taught pretty much straight through from 9:30-5. God knows what I said that last class. I don’t recall. And when I arrived home at work I was hallucinating. I’m not kidding. The experience was almost enjoyable, like after smoking just a little pot. I stood in the kitchen and asked myself if the curtains on the east wall windows were new. Have they always been there? They look new. That sort of thing. And then I started to feel like I had to hurl, the next frontier of the insomniac, really, but I collapsed into bed, read ten words in Greene, and fell asleep before I threw up. This morning I woke at four without the alarm (lucky I didn’t need the device, as I had set it to ring at 4PM), checked the Scrabble games (played “Zaire, the monetary unit of the country, apparently, for 45 points), and hit the Y for thirty on the elliptical and an hour of basketball. I taught my assessment class (not bad, trying to mix up the curriculum, been teaching that one too long, starting to get stale) before stopping at Target for another alarm clock (I wanted a clock with hands, yes, I know that sounds weird, and I also wanted a spare alarm clock for when I can’t find mine. It happens.) and a second cake pan so I could do the double-decker thing. Later the boys and I baked a cake (see pics). When M returned I hit the coffee shop for an hour of email and memo writing. I left the coffee shop and drove directly to T’s very exciting basketball game (they lost by one after one of T’s teammates missed a last second baseline jumper). Now I’m here.
This weekend should be ok. Rain is forecast. Man, I can’t remember the last time rain fell. I hope the rain falls hard, battering the skylights and washing away all the dirty, pissy snow. I’ll rotate the Greene with the theology textbook. Did I mention the theology book? I’m taking a theology class starting Monday night. The instructor emailed the class with a reading assignment before the goddamn class even met. That takes balls, sir. I can respect that, but I’m only taking this class for fun. I still think I’ll do the reading, though. I started already. I’m not sure what “ecclesiastical” means, though, in terms of “ecclesiastical history”. I suppose I should look up the concept as the author seems to assume I already understand the term. My bad. Maybe I should read the introduction. I skipped most of my previous grad school reading since…well…forever, but since I’m kind of excited and approaching this course without pressure I might as well jump into the theological deep end without reservation.
Ok, N wants to read. More tomorrow. Have a great Friday night.
Monday, January 18, 2010
I thought I'd write a quick note while the kids are busy. T and S are upstairs supposedly finishing their homework, but they sound like they're goofing off more than anything...but that's ok...they'll finish. I can trust them. N is watching Spy Kids 2 because hes' already finished his homework. He's wrapped up in a blanket, staying warm. He also had a bad day at school today and was on "yellow" for behavior for the first time in forever. All he will tell me is he hates girls and wouldn't do his work. Well, ok, he's not in trouble much, no big deal. I'll lean on him tomorrow if he gets another yellow but he's been good for so long that I told him I expected green tomorrow and left it at that.
So today was bright and sunny, at least, and I was somewhat productive. This morning I slept (for the second time) to the ungodly hour of 8AM. M and I watched last night’s “Human Target” (pretty good) before I started laundry and answered email. Some work calls later and noon had already arrived. Later I hit the store for yogurt, frosting (chocolate), and cake mix. Then I called Freda to talk through the last of the work issues waiting in the carpool line.
I also read a little Greene before the boys came out of school. They get an hour on video games after school, so while they played I finished the laundry (still need to pull the last load out of the dryer), cleaned a little, and made dinner. I had a spinach/carrot salad, key lime pie yogurt, and six fake chicken nuggets. S and N had hot dogs and apples, but they declared the apples "gross" (they were slightly brown) so I only made them eat two slices each. They also had skim milk and chocolate milk combined. T said he had hot dogs for lunch so he made a turkey sandwich and had an orange. The dishwasher is running and I'm drinking my ceremonial pre-semester beer (a Summit Pilsener).
I hope I can sleep tonight. This morning I was up from 1:30 until about 4:30. I'm going to make lunch and get all my clothes ready. That sense that everything is already ready for tomorow lowers my stress level, I think. At dinner N asked me if I was scared about the start of the semester. That's an interesting question. There's always a rush when you're working with new students, sure, and maybe a little fear, but more than fear the cool feeling of new relationships and interactions. Tomorrow will be busy…two classes, a potentially tense student meeting, the student teaching kickoff, and I need to buy my books for that theology class at 8AM sharp or I’m afraid they’ll run out and I’ll be screwed. I’m ready. As long as I can sleep tonight and run in the morning, I’m ready.
So today was bright and sunny, at least, and I was somewhat productive. This morning I slept (for the second time) to the ungodly hour of 8AM. M and I watched last night’s “Human Target” (pretty good) before I started laundry and answered email. Some work calls later and noon had already arrived. Later I hit the store for yogurt, frosting (chocolate), and cake mix. Then I called Freda to talk through the last of the work issues waiting in the carpool line.
I also read a little Greene before the boys came out of school. They get an hour on video games after school, so while they played I finished the laundry (still need to pull the last load out of the dryer), cleaned a little, and made dinner. I had a spinach/carrot salad, key lime pie yogurt, and six fake chicken nuggets. S and N had hot dogs and apples, but they declared the apples "gross" (they were slightly brown) so I only made them eat two slices each. They also had skim milk and chocolate milk combined. T said he had hot dogs for lunch so he made a turkey sandwich and had an orange. The dishwasher is running and I'm drinking my ceremonial pre-semester beer (a Summit Pilsener).
I hope I can sleep tonight. This morning I was up from 1:30 until about 4:30. I'm going to make lunch and get all my clothes ready. That sense that everything is already ready for tomorow lowers my stress level, I think. At dinner N asked me if I was scared about the start of the semester. That's an interesting question. There's always a rush when you're working with new students, sure, and maybe a little fear, but more than fear the cool feeling of new relationships and interactions. Tomorrow will be busy…two classes, a potentially tense student meeting, the student teaching kickoff, and I need to buy my books for that theology class at 8AM sharp or I’m afraid they’ll run out and I’ll be screwed. I’m ready. As long as I can sleep tonight and run in the morning, I’m ready.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Ok, ladies and gentlemen, I am shamed by my eleven year old son. Let me explain. Tristan won his middle school geography bee as a rookie fifth grader! He was a fifth grade winner a few weeks back and went up against one girl from fifth grade and two kids from sixth, seventh, and eighth grades, respectively in an all-school competition. After he won he saw one of the girls who lost and said, "You did a great job too, Cindy! You had way hard questions!" So I suppose I should follow his example instead of trash talking so much on facebook scrabble.
By the way, the championship round came down to a "sudden death" question between Tristan and another boy. the final question was, "What Balkan European country exports the most cotton?" I said Turkey, which technically isn't in Europe, maybe, I'm not sure. Skylar said the question was stupid because Egypt is known for cotton. Tristan said Greece. The other boy said Italy. Tristan was right. I asked him later how he knew the right answer was Greece, and he said, "Well, I wasn't sure, but they always talk about cotton in the Greek myths, so I went with Greece." Yay for reading!
A few pics of Tristan with his medal, followed by one of the way tense championship round...
By the way, the championship round came down to a "sudden death" question between Tristan and another boy. the final question was, "What Balkan European country exports the most cotton?" I said Turkey, which technically isn't in Europe, maybe, I'm not sure. Skylar said the question was stupid because Egypt is known for cotton. Tristan said Greece. The other boy said Italy. Tristan was right. I asked him later how he knew the right answer was Greece, and he said, "Well, I wasn't sure, but they always talk about cotton in the Greek myths, so I went with Greece." Yay for reading!
A few pics of Tristan with his medal, followed by one of the way tense championship round...
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Quick midweek note before I collapse…yes, dear readers, insomnia has returned for reasons unknown. Usually I can trace my insomnia to some stress or the other but I can’t think of anything in particular this time. If I can sleep tonight I’ll call the stretch minor and move on. Tuesday morning I was up from midnight on and today I was up by two.
I’m feeling fairly well prepared for the semester. Tomorrow I should finish the benchmark portfolios and maybe start the schedule. I’m also staying offline, I think (heh, I’ve said that before), to get shit done without interruption. Friday is taken up with meetings in three different locations. Saturday morning will be scholarship interviews, then some more office work before a drive down to Chicago.
Tired. More later. Good night. Oh, before I forget, I finished Burrough’s The Exterminator! and I’m staring Greene’s The End of the Affair.
I’m feeling fairly well prepared for the semester. Tomorrow I should finish the benchmark portfolios and maybe start the schedule. I’m also staying offline, I think (heh, I’ve said that before), to get shit done without interruption. Friday is taken up with meetings in three different locations. Saturday morning will be scholarship interviews, then some more office work before a drive down to Chicago.
Tired. More later. Good night. Oh, before I forget, I finished Burrough’s The Exterminator! and I’m staring Greene’s The End of the Affair.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Saturday, January 09, 2010
Ok, what day is it? The ninth? The boys are downstairs watching tv. T is ill, wrapped up in blankets on the couch, and his brothers are near him watching (last I checked) Phineas and Ferb. Mack and Pete are most likely chewing their bones. M is on the phone, talking with someone from her family, from what I can tell, because the questioner seems to be grilling her on all that is bad in the Wisconsin winter. I do wish my wife would not apologize for where we live, but apparently that’s too much to ask.
I’m on the Wii room floor. This week was busy but productive. I’ve learned to pace myself the weeks before the start of the semester. You want to prepare effectively, so the first few weeks are easy and stress-free, but you don’t want to burn yourself out preparing before the intensity of the first few class sessions. Let me think…I was in the office four days, all but Thursday, which I skipped primarily because of a snowstorm that rendered traffic unappealing. All my syllabi and the first week’s handouts are on the shelf. Most of the little tasks leftover from last semester are completed but I still need to send a few notes and grade portfolios. Those should be easy on Monday morning. I’m in meetings all day Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Yay.
What else is going on this week? I’m 90 pages into Nabokov’s Invitation To a Beheading. The writing is strong but the novel feels like homework, perhaps because I’m reading for a book club. N started Taekwondo and appears to like the sessions. He’s nervous, of course, with a new activity but he takes it seriously and tries his best. N’s had such a great year at school, all the boys have, really, and I’m glad he’s finding his own activity outside his brothers. T’s geography bee was canceled and he insisted on attending school on Friday even though he was sick because he didn’t want to miss Science lab. Nerd. S’s basketball session starts in an hour. M does Zoomba and shames me by eating salad. At least I work out more than her. Oh, yesterday I did pilates and yoga from the exercise channel and holy hell, both whupped my ass. Today I might try kickboxing. My hour of YMCA cardio is getting boring. I’d run outside, maybe, but the temps are still in the mid-teens. What else? The boys are obsessed with Ace of Cakes so I checked out a couple cake decorating books from the library and tomorrow we might try snowman cupcakes made of marshmellows and pretzels and the like. Pics to follow.
I’m in a pretty good place. My legs are tired, but I need these long, social-eventless weekends for my psychological health. Others need to be around people and go to parties or whatever. Not me, thank you very much. Have a great weekend, whatever you choose.
I’m on the Wii room floor. This week was busy but productive. I’ve learned to pace myself the weeks before the start of the semester. You want to prepare effectively, so the first few weeks are easy and stress-free, but you don’t want to burn yourself out preparing before the intensity of the first few class sessions. Let me think…I was in the office four days, all but Thursday, which I skipped primarily because of a snowstorm that rendered traffic unappealing. All my syllabi and the first week’s handouts are on the shelf. Most of the little tasks leftover from last semester are completed but I still need to send a few notes and grade portfolios. Those should be easy on Monday morning. I’m in meetings all day Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Yay.
What else is going on this week? I’m 90 pages into Nabokov’s Invitation To a Beheading. The writing is strong but the novel feels like homework, perhaps because I’m reading for a book club. N started Taekwondo and appears to like the sessions. He’s nervous, of course, with a new activity but he takes it seriously and tries his best. N’s had such a great year at school, all the boys have, really, and I’m glad he’s finding his own activity outside his brothers. T’s geography bee was canceled and he insisted on attending school on Friday even though he was sick because he didn’t want to miss Science lab. Nerd. S’s basketball session starts in an hour. M does Zoomba and shames me by eating salad. At least I work out more than her. Oh, yesterday I did pilates and yoga from the exercise channel and holy hell, both whupped my ass. Today I might try kickboxing. My hour of YMCA cardio is getting boring. I’d run outside, maybe, but the temps are still in the mid-teens. What else? The boys are obsessed with Ace of Cakes so I checked out a couple cake decorating books from the library and tomorrow we might try snowman cupcakes made of marshmellows and pretzels and the like. Pics to follow.
I’m in a pretty good place. My legs are tired, but I need these long, social-eventless weekends for my psychological health. Others need to be around people and go to parties or whatever. Not me, thank you very much. Have a great weekend, whatever you choose.
Thursday, January 07, 2010
Wednesday, January 06, 2010
Sunday, January 03, 2010
I’m in the “reading closet” as N has dubbed the recently clean hallway closet. Pics to follow.
This morning I was up a little later, near six, and watched the news and folded laundry until N rose near seven. I’m glad he slept well. The boys are aware school starts tomorrow but don’t seem particularly bothered by the idea; their protests sound hollow at best. At eight I hit the gym for thirty minutes of cardio. I suppose I could have pushed an hour but I haven’t taken a day off in a week and I’m lifting later. No reason to push beyond the standard hour workout. Then I ate breakfast, checked email, and read thirty pages of Rampant. The boys tackled me in the closet and we closet-wrestled for a couple minutes until I ejected them from the space and went downstairs. Not much else going on today. Later I’ll make lunch, lay out my clothes, lift, get something cool ready for dinner, and maybe meditate. I’ll post likely stay inside. No need to go out. Have a good day.
This morning I was up a little later, near six, and watched the news and folded laundry until N rose near seven. I’m glad he slept well. The boys are aware school starts tomorrow but don’t seem particularly bothered by the idea; their protests sound hollow at best. At eight I hit the gym for thirty minutes of cardio. I suppose I could have pushed an hour but I haven’t taken a day off in a week and I’m lifting later. No reason to push beyond the standard hour workout. Then I ate breakfast, checked email, and read thirty pages of Rampant. The boys tackled me in the closet and we closet-wrestled for a couple minutes until I ejected them from the space and went downstairs. Not much else going on today. Later I’ll make lunch, lay out my clothes, lift, get something cool ready for dinner, and maybe meditate. I’ll post likely stay inside. No need to go out. Have a good day.
Saturday, January 02, 2010
Why, Happy New Year, dear readers! I’m at the dining room table, listening to Tift Merritt, drinking diet coke, and burning copies of the new eels for friends across the nation. And how are you? Let us not address my absence...let it exist as a “lost period” in my blog existence.
Ok, forget it, might as well talk about the last couple months. I wasn’t avoiding anything, ladies and gentlemen, but I wrote other letters, missives, academic prose, etc. And maybe I needed a blog break. I’m making excuses, am I not?
Ok, before I forget, my 2009 book list…
1. Architecture of Happiness-Alain de Botton
2. Waiting for the Barbarians-J.M. Coetzee
3. Revolutionary Road-Richard Yates
4. The Soul Thief-Charles Baxter
5. Leaving Microsoft to Change the World-John Wood
6. Hard Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World-Haruki Murakami
7. Bangkok 8-John Burdett
8. Made in America-Bill Bryson
9. Candyfreak-Steve Almond
10. A Cook’s Tour-Anthony Bourdain
11. Twilight-Stephenie Meyer
12. Dreamers-Knut Hamsun
13. Eleanor Rigby-Doug Coupland
14. Jewish Messiah-Arnon Grunberg
15. The Gum Thief-Doug Coupland
16. Selected Stories-Robert Walser
17. Odd Man Out-Matt McCarthy
18. Instant Enemy-Ross Macdonald
19. Hidden Camera-Zoran Zivkovic
20. After the Plague TC Boyle
21. Tunneling to The Center of the Earth: Stories Kevin Wilson
22. A Sorrow Beyond Dreams Handke
23. The Moving Target Ross Macdonald
24. For Whom The Bell Tolls Ernest Hemingway
25. Cooperstown Confidential: Heroes, Rogues, and the Inside Story of the Baseball Hall of Fame Zev Chafets
26. Death of Bunny Munro Nick Cave
27. Down the Rabbit Hole Peter Abrahams
28. Gregor the Overlander Suzanne Collins
29. All Families are Psychotic Doug Coupland
30. IV Chuck Klosterman
31. Bangkok TattooJohn Burdett
32. Eating the Dinosaurs Chuck Klosterman
33. The Crystal World, JG Ballard
34. I Drink for a Reason, David Cross
My favorite book of the year was Robert Walser’s Selected Stories. Thanks, Matty, for the tip. I owe you one. For Whom The Bell Tolls was also excellent. I was more or less classic-free this year but I loved the Hemingway. Ross Macdonald was a revelation, too. I’ll be reading more of him soon. The Jewish Messiah was brilliant, too, in the darkest sense of the term.
I read a little less non-fiction (9 of 34) this year. I acquired 23 of 34 from the library.
And what else has been going on? Shall we reply on bullet points?
• I’ll miss Vic Chesnutt. Rest in peace, sir.
• The dogs are doing well. They’re still spazzy, so don’t over unless you can handle spazzy dogs, but they’re fun dogs. Pete went through a stretch when he decided biting N and S’s hair was a fun way to get them to play. They were not amused. But right now Mack is on the couch chewing a toy football and Pete is looking out the backyard. Hold on, I’ll let him out. Now they’re both outside.
• The temps are low today but the winter has been mild. I remember last year this week was worse. Shadow was dying, too. One year since she’s gone.
• A pipe burst under our sidewalk yesterday. The repair guy (M knows him) is estimating 2 grand for the fix. You know, I get Zen calm when this type of minor tragedy occurs. Not sure why. Nothing you can do, you know? We live pretty cheaply, and we’ll live cheaper the next couple months. I take a personal pride/challenge in living cheaper when necessary. Bring on the library books and bag lunches. The timing is good, actually, with Christmas finished and the property taxes in the books.
• Christmas went well, by the way. The boys are enamored with their new Wii and DS games. N also likes this little Hex Bug Nano mechanical insects that scuttle around their habitat. I don’t feel as if we bought them as much as usual but they didn’t mind/notice.
• M visited her mom in NJ for two days this past week. Apparently Mrs. K. is on the cusp of remarrying a guy named Jim who some of the extended family kids call “Mr. Jim.” That sounds awfully weird to me. I already told the boys they could call him Jim. Dan and I also agreed “Nana and Mr. Jim” would be a great ska band name, esp. if Mr. Jim was a 300 pound guy in a bowler who didn’t sing or play an instrument but instead danced on the side of the stage.
• This semester was decent. The U is struggling economically and gossip was plentiful (the president resigned under what I assume to be pressure) but I stayed out of the way for the most part. The associate dean standoff continues. We’ll see. I don’t know if I should care or not. I know I could handle the gig but do I want it? If the promises made don’t come to pass what does that mean for my standing in the U culture? I’ll breathe through the possibilities and weigh my options. Life is good.
• I’m scheduled to take a class called “Theology of Church” on Monday nights this spring. What the hell? I can take the course for free and I suppose I need grad credits for recertification.
• The boys are good. Oh, N had an awesome first few months of first grade. He’s reading on the high end of the benchmarks and his math is way promising, too. His teacher is very cool and his confident is improving. T and S continue strong as well. T won his fifth grade geography bee.
• This is starting to sound like a holiday letter. My bad.
• I’ve been listening to The Mountain Goats lately. Some songs on “We Shall All Be Healed” kill me every time.
• I’ve been sleeping off and on in the upstairs closet. Hear me out. First, while M was out of town I cleaned a ton, including that space, and now the closet looks more like a very small spare bedroom with hanger space. Second, the radiator keeps the closet warm, the warmest room in the house. If I can move the clothes into alternative areas I may pull out the closet organizers and install a desk. Wouldn’t that be cool?
Ok, that’s enough for now, ladies and gentlemen. Have a good second day of the year. More later.
Ok, forget it, might as well talk about the last couple months. I wasn’t avoiding anything, ladies and gentlemen, but I wrote other letters, missives, academic prose, etc. And maybe I needed a blog break. I’m making excuses, am I not?
Ok, before I forget, my 2009 book list…
1. Architecture of Happiness-Alain de Botton
2. Waiting for the Barbarians-J.M. Coetzee
3. Revolutionary Road-Richard Yates
4. The Soul Thief-Charles Baxter
5. Leaving Microsoft to Change the World-John Wood
6. Hard Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World-Haruki Murakami
7. Bangkok 8-John Burdett
8. Made in America-Bill Bryson
9. Candyfreak-Steve Almond
10. A Cook’s Tour-Anthony Bourdain
11. Twilight-Stephenie Meyer
12. Dreamers-Knut Hamsun
13. Eleanor Rigby-Doug Coupland
14. Jewish Messiah-Arnon Grunberg
15. The Gum Thief-Doug Coupland
16. Selected Stories-Robert Walser
17. Odd Man Out-Matt McCarthy
18. Instant Enemy-Ross Macdonald
19. Hidden Camera-Zoran Zivkovic
20. After the Plague TC Boyle
21. Tunneling to The Center of the Earth: Stories Kevin Wilson
22. A Sorrow Beyond Dreams Handke
23. The Moving Target Ross Macdonald
24. For Whom The Bell Tolls Ernest Hemingway
25. Cooperstown Confidential: Heroes, Rogues, and the Inside Story of the Baseball Hall of Fame Zev Chafets
26. Death of Bunny Munro Nick Cave
27. Down the Rabbit Hole Peter Abrahams
28. Gregor the Overlander Suzanne Collins
29. All Families are Psychotic Doug Coupland
30. IV Chuck Klosterman
31. Bangkok TattooJohn Burdett
32. Eating the Dinosaurs Chuck Klosterman
33. The Crystal World, JG Ballard
34. I Drink for a Reason, David Cross
My favorite book of the year was Robert Walser’s Selected Stories. Thanks, Matty, for the tip. I owe you one. For Whom The Bell Tolls was also excellent. I was more or less classic-free this year but I loved the Hemingway. Ross Macdonald was a revelation, too. I’ll be reading more of him soon. The Jewish Messiah was brilliant, too, in the darkest sense of the term.
I read a little less non-fiction (9 of 34) this year. I acquired 23 of 34 from the library.
And what else has been going on? Shall we reply on bullet points?
• I’ll miss Vic Chesnutt. Rest in peace, sir.
• The dogs are doing well. They’re still spazzy, so don’t over unless you can handle spazzy dogs, but they’re fun dogs. Pete went through a stretch when he decided biting N and S’s hair was a fun way to get them to play. They were not amused. But right now Mack is on the couch chewing a toy football and Pete is looking out the backyard. Hold on, I’ll let him out. Now they’re both outside.
• The temps are low today but the winter has been mild. I remember last year this week was worse. Shadow was dying, too. One year since she’s gone.
• A pipe burst under our sidewalk yesterday. The repair guy (M knows him) is estimating 2 grand for the fix. You know, I get Zen calm when this type of minor tragedy occurs. Not sure why. Nothing you can do, you know? We live pretty cheaply, and we’ll live cheaper the next couple months. I take a personal pride/challenge in living cheaper when necessary. Bring on the library books and bag lunches. The timing is good, actually, with Christmas finished and the property taxes in the books.
• Christmas went well, by the way. The boys are enamored with their new Wii and DS games. N also likes this little Hex Bug Nano mechanical insects that scuttle around their habitat. I don’t feel as if we bought them as much as usual but they didn’t mind/notice.
• M visited her mom in NJ for two days this past week. Apparently Mrs. K. is on the cusp of remarrying a guy named Jim who some of the extended family kids call “Mr. Jim.” That sounds awfully weird to me. I already told the boys they could call him Jim. Dan and I also agreed “Nana and Mr. Jim” would be a great ska band name, esp. if Mr. Jim was a 300 pound guy in a bowler who didn’t sing or play an instrument but instead danced on the side of the stage.
• This semester was decent. The U is struggling economically and gossip was plentiful (the president resigned under what I assume to be pressure) but I stayed out of the way for the most part. The associate dean standoff continues. We’ll see. I don’t know if I should care or not. I know I could handle the gig but do I want it? If the promises made don’t come to pass what does that mean for my standing in the U culture? I’ll breathe through the possibilities and weigh my options. Life is good.
• I’m scheduled to take a class called “Theology of Church” on Monday nights this spring. What the hell? I can take the course for free and I suppose I need grad credits for recertification.
• The boys are good. Oh, N had an awesome first few months of first grade. He’s reading on the high end of the benchmarks and his math is way promising, too. His teacher is very cool and his confident is improving. T and S continue strong as well. T won his fifth grade geography bee.
• This is starting to sound like a holiday letter. My bad.
• I’ve been listening to The Mountain Goats lately. Some songs on “We Shall All Be Healed” kill me every time.
• I’ve been sleeping off and on in the upstairs closet. Hear me out. First, while M was out of town I cleaned a ton, including that space, and now the closet looks more like a very small spare bedroom with hanger space. Second, the radiator keeps the closet warm, the warmest room in the house. If I can move the clothes into alternative areas I may pull out the closet organizers and install a desk. Wouldn’t that be cool?
Ok, that’s enough for now, ladies and gentlemen. Have a good second day of the year. More later.
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