The morning after...

Thanksgiving went swell at my house. I pared down the amount I cooked this year, and I still have leftovers that will last until the end of the weekend.

On a lighter note, we've finished repainting the playroom. I bought this HUGE memory foam beanbag for the kids to play their video games on. They LOVE it. My three argued last night over who would get to sleep on it overnight. The picture is my three and two of their cousins. They were saying "gobble gobble" instead of "cheese." My oldest son even got the turkey arm action going. All five fit comfortably and sat quietly for a while.

Today I'm pulling out the Christmas lights in hopes of getting them tested and untangled. Fa la la la la.

Always look on the bright side of life....

I have tons of crap to cook, a house to clean, walls to paint, homework to complete, two finals to study for, a sick kid to take to the doctor, a yard to mow, a car that is going to cost me $1500 to fix, and papers to grade.

Have you ever wished you were like that Jeanie girl? Just flip your ponytail and things happen? Or Samantha on Bewitched....twitch your nose and voila! All is well. At this point I'd even settle for a fairy godmother. She may be an extra mouth to feed, but at least she could get crap done!

I have decided that I will try my best to enjoy the holiday and all the stress that comes with it. Stress is one of the things that reminds us we are alive, right? I think I may put my doctor on speed dial just in case though, so I can get some Valium if necessary.

I hope all of you and yours have a very happy holiday...even if you are European and don't get the day off. Take some time to remember the things you are thankful for.

Twilight

So today I went to see the much hyped movie, Twilight. It was OK. I went in with expectations way too high, like I do most movies that are made out of my favorite books. The casting was a little off in my opinion, and there were a few awkward spots (Edward and Bella laying in the grass was weird). I'd give it 3.5/5 stars I guess. It definately made me want to go back and re-read the books. The real plus was the trailer for the Harry Potter & the Half Blood Prince movie. They have really done those well so far.

My sci fi paper is almost done - only 2 more pages or so and the works cited page. I'm struggling now with thesis next semester or wait another semester. Part of me wants to get it over with, but the other part just wants to take a break. I have started a pretty big painting project that has got to be done before the holidays, and there are a few more things I'd like to do around the house, so school may wait. I flip-flop every day, so I guess it will just depend on how I feel on the last day of registration.

Shopping Time

I have officially began the Christmas shopping chore. My nieces and nephews are done. They aren't getting much this year, much like everybody else. I gave the Walmart and Target big toy book to my 5 year old and asked her to circle a couple things she might want Santa to bring this year. She takes it and circles practically everything in the books! I wonder if I can convince her that the economic crisis also affected him... The 13 year old only wants money and clothes. I'm kind of sad that we are at that point already. The 11 year old is in his "I don't know" mode when it comes to presents. He has done this INCREDIBLE movie on his computer. When he gets it done, I hope I can figure out a way to post it. He is really into Pokemon, and he has drawn up his own characters and acted out a little scene with them. It is remarkable what he can do, and I'm not just saying that because I'm his mother.

First things first, however. Thanksgiving will be here before I know it and I have a turkey in the freezer. I am assuming I will be cooking this year since Grandmother is still in Kansas (we had a cousin who passed away this week, but thats a whole 'nother ball of wax). I guess we could go to Cracker Barrel. Not too festive but a heck of a lot easier!

A fun-filled day in the ER

So yesterday I was getting out of my car to run into the grocery store. Before I got to the front door, my entire left arm decided to go numb. One hundred percent completely numb. It felt like I didn't even have the arm. I slung it around like that guy in The Fugitive movie did with his artificial limb. Needless to say, it scared the crap out of me. I slowly walked back to my car, took a few deep breaths until the feeling came back, and promptly drove myself to the hospital.

They did a MRI scan of my head and chest area and everything came back normal. Thankfully. But I was angry and upset when I left because there was still no answer as to what had happened to me. I left with the explanation that it most likely is related to my migraine headaches, and they recommended that I see my GP and perhaps get a referral to a neurologist.

I don't remember a time in my life when I felt more scared or helpless than yesterday in that parking lot.

Being a Public School Teacher is Scary

So today I started my 15 hours of required observation for my graduate class. I have to observe a high school English teacher in their element - while teaching class. The Dean of the College of Education at my school made me go into the Metropolitan Nashville area because of "diversity" issues. I was like BS...let me do it in MY county and get familiar with MY schools. We have blacks, latinos, poor kids...we're just as diverse as Nashville!

Boy was I wrong. These kids were scary. This was a 9th grade class and there were 17 year old gang members in the 9th grade class! This guy had a gold grill that could have paid for my car. The teacher and the other students obviously give him leeway or 'respect' because he scares the bejesus out of them. Then one time I went out to go to the restroom, the school police were escorting a boy out. He was well over 6' and was yelling at them for treating him like some kid when he's a "grown man." I was like...um...sweetie...no you aren't. Don't try to grow up so fast. I have to do 11 more hours there and I think I need to get a bulletproof vest.

"An exact duplicate, its core shaped most exquisitely like a nerve. It'll escape the usual detectors, even a fast scanning. But if you bite down hard on it, the cover crushes. Then, when you expel your breath sharply, you fill the air around you with a poison gas..."

Cool remoteness spread upward from Leto's jaw, across his cheeks. The shadowy, hall narrowed to a pinpoint with Yueh's purple lips centered in it.

"Remember the tooth!" Yueh hissed. "The tooth!"

From Dune by Frank Herbert


She had to call everybody she knew. After the tooth fairy left her money, she's trying to eat carrots and crunchy things so that more of them can fall out.