I love this weather! Time to break out the sweaters and boots. And the jackets! Can’t forget the jackets.
Archive for the ‘life’ Category
sweaters and boots
Thursday, October 2nd, 2008kids say the darndest things
Wednesday, October 1st, 2008Conversation I never thought I’d have with two 9-year-old boys:
me: <breaks up horseplay between two of my students, scratching one with my ring in the process>
li’l n: Oh, wow! Is that a diamond?
me: Yes, it’s a diamond.
me in my head: Because I’m a MARRIED GROWN UP LADY and we wear such things on our hands.
li’l g: Oh, is that white gold?
me: No, it’s platinum.
li’l g: Oh wow, that’s better than white gold. <5 minute discourse on white gold, the nickel it contains, why wouldn’t you want your gold to just look like gold>
li’l n: <inspects my ring closely> Oh, it’s just like my mom’s.
me in my head: Exactly. Because I am old enough to be your mom.
not the only one
Thursday, September 18th, 2008As I made my way from the parking lot to my building the other morning, I noticed one of my colleagues running up the steps.
Maybe it’s contagious …
things no one ever tells you
Thursday, September 4th, 2008I was hoping I’d outgrow my oxy 10 before I started plucking the grays, but, alas, it’s not to be. How can my head be so conflicted? How can it still be producing plenty of t-zone shine when it’s already starting to give up on that pesky hair color?
Ah, well, I guess that’s what Ms. Clairol is for.
when I grow up?
Sunday, August 24th, 2008Today in my sunday school class, my nine-year-olds decided they wanted to discuss what they wanted to be when they grew up. Turns out, I have a future video game programmer, lawyer and composer in my class. (In his defense, li’l g wants to be a lawyer because that’s what his dad is - and since he’s only 9, his dad is his hero. It’ll be interesting to see what he wants to be when he’s 13 …)
I know it shouldn’t catch me off guard, but one of the kids asked me what I wanted to be. You know, when I grow up.
Instead of telling them I wanted to be a travel-writer (which would be so totally awesome - but I’m pretty sure that doesn’t actually pay any sort of bills), I informed them that I was grown up and I was a software engineer. (A SENIOR software engineer at that! I apparently just made the jump with years of experience, that’s my new job title at my new job!)
Ironically, the programmer-to-be wrinkled his nose and asked what that was. Li’l g informed him that it had to do with computers, and I said that yes, I write computer software. I think it caught the kids by surprise - both that I was really a grown-up AND that I had such a serious-sounding job.
Hopefully now they’ll remember that I’m a real-live grown up. Old enough, even, to be their mother.
flexibility, shmexibility
Saturday, August 16th, 2008The husband and I recently joined a gym (yay for us!!) and we went in this week for our free fitness profile. They asked us bunches of questions (them: how active are your jobs? us: um, we sit in front of computers all day. but we move our arms! and hands and fingers!), pinched our skin fats, took our weights and measurements, and then it was time for the physical tests.
hahahahahaha!
I’m proud to say, we survived it! And I have to say, I think we did quite well, considering the fact that we have done little more than sit for the last 6 years. Sure, sometimes I vacuum or walk through the grocery store - but that’s about all the physical activity my life demands these days.
I survived 15 minutes on the treadmill, did 28 sit-ups in a minute, and did 20 (girl) push-ups before my arms started shaking so much I feared I might find myself square on my face.
But then there was the flexibility test.
I have never, in my life, been able to touch my toes. When I’ve worked on it for months, I can get kinda close - like the lower part of my shin. When I was 8 and working on my presidential fitness stuff - I could do the mile, the sit-ups, more pull-ups than any of the other girls - but the darn flexibility test was just impossible. I remember being met with disbelief when I stretched as far as I could go, when my legs were trembling with the strain, my knees begging to bend, and my fingertips were still nowhere near my toes.
So I failed the flexibility test miserably. Couldn’t even register on their little measurement device, I think I only made it just past my knees.
I’ve never believed much in the whole touch-your-toes test, I guess because I’ve never been able to. I don’t think it’s kept me from accomplishing anything physical that I’ve ever wanted to. I’ve hiked up and down mountains, done round-house kicks, managed to get 80-pound boxes into my house. The only thing I’ve missed out on is, well, the satisfaction of touching my toes.
so it’s been ten years?
Sunday, August 10th, 2008My ten year reunion was this last weekend, I just got a report from my ’spy’ that there was some serious drunkenness and the cops were called in.
That’s right, R.A. Long class of ‘98 … ten years later and still not sober …
eighty pounds?!? I sure could use a husband about now …
Saturday, August 9th, 2008So, last night I picked up some bookcases at ikea. Bookcases that get packaged in nice, neat flat boxes. Nice, neat 65 and 80 pound flat boxes.
I got them into the baja ok (which, turns out, is kind of pretty awesome - with the pass-thru open and the bed extender down, the 7 ft boxes were no problem), by lifting one end at a time and sliding, it wasn’t too difficult.
But then the task of getting them into the house: up a curb and then three steps. An 80-pound bookshelf and two 65-pounders. Being your average girl, I can’t really carry half my body weight - I’m good for a quick burst (i.e., get the 70-pound luggage into the back of a car), but into the house isn’t really a quick burst.
Luckily we have a dolly, and none of the neighbors were out to watch me attempt things way beyond my ability. I managed to get the boxes into the house without doing major damage to myself (or the bookcases).
But it sure woulda been easier with a husband … I guess they are good for something. 
lisp, third edition
Saturday, August 9th, 2008I finally bought some new bookcases last night, so this morning I took on the task of filling them up with all the dvds, cds and books that have been boxed up for months.
And I ran across a box of the husbands old text books - text books that I’m sure he thought would be useful once he entered the working world, but books I am sure he has never looked at.
So, yeah, those stayed in their box, and are gonna hang out in the utility room. Because, you know, computer science text books get more relevant the older they get …
on my own
Tuesday, August 5th, 2008The husband is in Vegas for the rest of the week for work and play. So that means that I get to do whatever I want! woohoo! I sent him off with a walletful of play money, so I think that means I get to go on a shopping spree …
So the first order of business for tonight was to stop off randomly on my way home from work for a cheeseless taco and burrito. (Which are surprisingly not bad - way better, than, say, a cheeseless pizza …) And now I’m working on a box of teddy grahams. And there’s no guilt about spoiling my dinner, because I just had my dinner! And no worries about what the husband is going to eat. I suspect Toby Keith will take care of him.
Second order of business was to turn the thermostat up. To 73! mwuhahahaha, farewell couch blankets.
Ok, that was fun. I’m starting to get lonely now ….