Bumper Sticker

I really like being at a red light behind a car that has tons of bumper stickers on it. It's free entertainment while you wait. Then as I drive off, I can't help but contemplate what phrase would best fit, not just my personal philosophy, but my philosophy as a driver. Well, readers, I have finally done it:

This too shall pass!
For the full effect, please imagine this on the back of a car that just passed you. Uh YES PLEASE!

Make no mistake...

Feminism is the belief that women have the same capacity as men. Equalism, then, should be the belief that all, non-challenged humans are born with an equal, natural capacity.

Either way you look at it, Paula Broadwell is badass!

See her on Jon Stewart!

Brain Power

This morning I drove all the way to the gym and realized I forgot my running shoes. My brain was still shut down from last night's sleep despite three cups of coffee and as I drove home I was on major auto-pilot. Not wanting to run this ship into the shoreline, I thought it best I just lay down for a moment. That was at 8am. At 9am I woke up to a quiet, empty house and a brain that was back to it's full capacity (that whopping 10% we stupid humans use). It felt amazing! We really underestimate our body's need for sleep (and quiet, empty houses) sometimes.

I'm taking a grammar class this semester because the thought of my comma-splicing-ass teaching freshman how to write should be a major concern to those paying for their education. We're not just learning the rules of grammar; we're learning easy and clear ways to teach them to our students. When I don't have a funny grammar mistake to use, I've decided to use song lyrics, like these:

We girls collect, like old friends, here to relive your darkest moments.  (Florence & The Machine)

I may be bad, but I'm perfectly good at it! (Rihanna)

Control your poison, babe. Roses have thorns, they say, and we're all getting hosed tonight. (Lady Gaga)

Run fast for you mother; run fast for your father; run for your children, for your sisters and brothers. Leave all your love and your longing behind; you can't carry it with you if you want to survive. (Florence & The Machine)

What's your favorite song lyric?

The Lost Tooth

I arrived early to pick up the kids from school yesterday and my son was the last one out. When he finally moped through the double doors his teacher asked him, "Did you find it?" He shook his head trudged over to me and offered me a toothless grin. He lost one of his two front teeth! And then he lost one of his two front teeth. Somewhere, in the plastic corner of a labeled baggy, a front tooth is wedged, cold, and alone. I vacillated between the generous and non-generous tooth-fairy in me. Do I sneak some money despite the absence of a tooth? What is the statute of limitations on time of payment after a tooth is lost, and found. I decided to wait. The tooth may show up at school or in the crevice of a backpack and if it doesn't, I'm sure the tooth-fairy will accept a note. She's very understanding, this tooth-fairy.

In other news:
Now hear this! My running spirit can not be broken! Oh, but the adversary forces will try. I have split my jogs between my gym and the campus gym since I am spending more time at school these days. I have a locker with shampoo, conditioner, body wash, and a towel ready for my use. On Monday, everything was spectacular. I ran, I showered, I dressed. Granted the treadmills are big and non-bouncy, so the run was a bit harder than usual. These treadmills are designed to simulate running on pavement which explains my fatigue yesterday. Today however, the first treadmill I started running on stopped working after five minutes; the speed buttons were being stubborn and refusing to change my pace. So, I moved over to the next treadmill and everything was fine. Then I got in the shower and again, after about three minutes, the water went completely cold. I was FREEZING! I actually turned off the water to apply conditioner and body wash with the intention of just turning it on to rinse quickly and then get out, but when I turned it back on, the warmth slowly returned and I was able to thaw out before wet-footing it back to my locker. WTF?!

The nice thing is that my runners-high has lasted all day and none of those tiny obstacles stood in my way.  Tomorrow, however, I may need a nap.

My Medieval iPod

Ok! So I've been on a religious kick lately. I'm sorry. I simply can't wait until the region I live in, earns another nickname apart from "The Bible Belt". That's all. I'll finish my Atheism flyers and stick them by the front door and then I'll be rid of my demon. For a while anyway...

I love the age of information. We're reading Chaucer in my Medieval Literature class and although it is possible to read the entire The Canterbury Tales in Middle English, it is extremely tedious. What did I do? Not only did I find a website made just for the reading of The Canterbury Tales but I also found about three decent Modern English books for my Kindle. And oh yes, my nipples are hard. So I bought the Kindle version of The Canterbury Tales translated by Joseph Glaser. Not having brought my Kindle with me to school today, however, I downloaded the version to my Kindle app for my iPod and on that, I was able to read along during class and not feel lost. It's the stuff wet dreams are made of! Don't be a hater.

Also I was able to google, "repetition of words in literature" because the professor had momentarily forgotten the term, "anaphora" and I looked really smart until he asked if I had remembered the term myself and I confessed that I had not. All was not lost however since he was impressed that I googled it on "that little thing," my iPod.

Who could have imagined that modern technology would make us closer to medieval literature? Chaucer probably didn't.

This is PROPAGANDA!

Little Man came home three days in a row with news about ignoring the kids in his class that were teasing him. Every time he tells me a story about walking away, or a triumph of inaction, I take one day off his grounding. Some may worry that I'm raising a little wimp and they may be right. My son has had a six pack of stomach muscles since he was 3. He's squirrelly and strong and I have no doubt that if things turned violent he could defend himself with precision. So, why not raise a peace-monger? Nobody ever felt good about themselves wishing for the demise of others. In fact, it is their own inadequacies that make them lash out at others. If you truly love yourself, you have no need to hurt someone near you. Apparently the nations in this world that develop weapon after weapon, never learned the valuable lessons of inaction in first grade and I'm sorry for them (and us). They should have had better parents.

***If you are Christian, you may not want to read this second half. It may unintentionally make you feel crucified***

Speaking of loving yourself, I think the same goes for religion. If you feel secure with your religion and it is giving you what you need, why do you feel the need to recruit? We received yet ANOTHER flyer to come join a prayer/church group. I think it dates back to the Crusades when religions had to recruit Crusad-ors to fight in the name of religion. And thank you Crusades for killing so many people in the name of God. That couldn't have been better planned... I wonder if they ever thought about how it must look to the children. I don't mind that those cute little teens are running around praying to god and such. It's good to have a hobby. What upsets me is the hypocrisy. We always hear about Christians being the crucified and yet, I can barely find a place in Kansas to meditate among my peers and I can only imagine the uproar that would commence if I passed out flyers about Atheism.  It has occurred to me however that I may be wrong. Maybe people are more open-minded than I give them credit for. The next time a Jehovah's Witness knocks on my door, perhaps I will have some literature of my own to hand out. After all, there are 1.1 billion atheists in the world!

***What is your favorite thing about being atheist (or agnostic)? Please share... I'm actually asking you to tell me about it! Don't be shy, it's okay, I'll make sure nobody burns a cross in your front yard. -Promise-***

In Good Hell

I had a burst of energy yesterday at the gym and pushed myself a little harder than usual. The effect was that I spent the majority of the day on an amazing high and then last night, I crashed HARD! I developed a nasty headache over the course of one hour. My headache got so bad that I couldn't even fall asleep and I realized that THAT is my own personal hell. Lucky for me, drug companies will surely go to hell too, so I will always have a plethora of prescriptions to choose from. I eventually figured out that reading calmed my headache and tired me just enough to let me drift carefully to sleep. Then this morning, I realized that going to bed early and getting a full night's sleep with some Tylenol PM was my own personal ... uh... good hell, since I don't get a choice apparently. Happy me! I was back on the treadmill this morning!

... but I didn't push myself today.

Don't be a Skony!

The good news is that I've lost ANOTHER 3 pounds. That makes 9 pounds in the last three weeks. The bad news is that I can feel myself beginning to expect this result every time I step on the scale. It's like getting three great pay checks in a row, you start feeling greedy. I thought "MAN, I want to drop that much EVERY WEEK!" but when I do the math, that just isn't reasonable. It would put me at 110 pounds by June and I haven't been 110 pounds since sixth grade. Possibly, I've developed worms but probably my body has finally formed adequate muscles and now I am burning more fat. It is only reasonable to expect another plateau in a month or so. Let me say that again. It is only reasonable to expect another plateau in a month or so. Another plateau is on its way. My weight will even out, possibly higher than I would like. I can not disappear into thin air, nor would I want to. I am not trying to be a skony (that's a skinny, phony) with out a personality, who puts too much emphasis on her weight or outward appearance. I will have muscles and be healthy and that means that I should look forward to my plateau as another stage in my quest for a more physically active lifestyle.

Does it sound like I'm trying to convince myself? I am. The skony in me wants to pull off a Gaga costume. DOWN GIRL! You're smarter than that! And if you're not, at least wait until June!

Kicking and Screaming!

When I asked my son, on the way home from school yesterday, why the principal had to talk to me about this behavior, he shut me down which didn't matter because I already had the story. Apparently, my sweet, little, model of good behavior was being teased on the playground, lost his temper, slapped a friend and called the whole lot of them "bitches". My first reaction was, Well, he took care of that, but unfortunately some talking would have to be done.

He was honest with me about slapping his friend and showed some remorse, but he adamantly refused the idea that he cussed. I was stuck in the middle, so, I took all my cues from the principal and teacher who seemed to be communicating more sympathy for his reaction than disdain. I told him, I can't imagine punishing him for something that he says he didn't do since he was being honest about everything else (the stories jived), but for losing his temper and slapping a friend, he could choose his punishment. He chose one month without video games which is pretty extreme considering I was also offering 20 sentences written on the subject of not slapping and cussing.

What caused a riff in the family was the fact that every time we questioned him about it, he shut down, became irritable and even got a little attitude. When his Daddy got home and tried to talk to him he stomped off to his room and climbed into his bed, scowling. It's one thing to lose your temper, react negatively or be part of a circumstance that gets you in trouble with teachers and principles, but having an attitude with those who are trying to understand the situation? That just bugs me.

Finally, I realized what was wrong. I went to the doorway of his room and spoke so that his father and his little sister could hear me. "Those kids were picking on you," I said, "They were being mean and hurting your feelings and acting in a way that friends should not act towards one another, yet you kept on playing with them. You chose to stay and play their game. Now, you have made a bad decision and gotten in trouble. But the three people in your life that love and honor you, are trying to understand what happened and show you support and you are turning away from THEM. THAT is what needs to change. When people treat you poorly, you should walk away from them. When they love you and show their love to you, you should open up to them and show them your face, not your back."

SOMEHOW world, that boy, at seven years old, with all the stubborn traits of my husband and myself combined, turned right around, climbed down from his bunk and came out to hug us. The rest of the night we infused dinner, playtime and good night wishes with advise on how to handle those nasty situations that we have ALL been in. And amazingly enough, he was listening! He's still grounded, of course, but hopefully after this month he will have some extra tools in his back pocket for dealing with playground cruelty. The most important thing is that we're a little closer to convincing him that we're in this together!

Note: Little Man also made the decision to write a note of apology to his friend at school and was very excited to deliver it the next day.

Before I got married I had six theories about bringing up children; now I have six children, and no theories.  ~John Wilmot


Making the decision to have a child is momentous.  It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.  ~Elizabeth Stone

a little herb

Today is my last free day. I start back to school for the spring semester tomorrow with a bang! as I sit through 3 hours and 35 minutes the first day. BOO!

It being my last day of freedom however, I have done some laundry, played Super Mario Brothers, painted and taken a nap. Oh yes. Happy me.

And the rest of this post is going to be me sharing with you something that I accomplished over the break. HERBS!

My mother-in-law got me an awesome windowsill herb garden set for Christmas. I was so excited I followed the directions to a tee! Anyway, this is my little photo documentation of the process.











This is what I needed to get started. The soil pellets and seed packets came with the planters.














It said to poor the water over the soil pellets and let them soak. hmmm.

Sure enough! Those things started to grow!

And they kept growing!!













Look at how big those suckers became!













Goo... it was like fiber mud.













Ins't that a cute little planter? There are seeds in it ready to be covered with the remaining dirt.













It says to wrap them in plastic until they germinate.








And, Viola! Herbs! The ones on the left didn't grow, but that's okay because I can choose what to put in there now. I believe I have basil and oregano, so maybe some peppermint, or rosemary would be happy on my windowsill. Thanks for the herb garden!


Happy Spring Semester World!

God Burps or Darwin Awards... You Pick

My kids aren't allowed to say "god" in school because it, apparently, offends Christians. This idea is foreign to me. God is the protagonist in their religion isn't it? They should be handing out stickers to anyone who can burp his name at the lunch table. How can anyone (especially a school aged child) do any real harm by taking a name in vain? I'm sure, at least, the Christian business owners could agree that no publicity is bad publicity. After all, a person would have to have heard the name, to use it at all. But, this deity's name isn't allowed in our little mid-western school. There is absolutely no reason for my husband and I to say it, save for some of those moments when we actually get a little quiet time for <uh-hum>, "prayer"(and I'm still unclear whether THAT use would be considered blasphemy - it is procreation, after all). But we allow our kids to say "God" as much as they want in the house. The unexpected outcome is that now, when they hear someone on Youtube exclaim, "Oh mah Gawd!" they think that person is cussing. "Ha ha, she's cussing" they laugh. I don't correct them anymore. I'm tired of defending wasteful prohibition. I named my dog after my favorite deity just so that I could yell his name from the back door everyday. It's as if Christianity is trying to win the next Darwin award. Bravo Christians, I have no need for your "god" but even I could not have been that cruel.

On Fiyah!

My kids were on fire tonight.

Looking out the car window at flurries blowing parallel to the ground, my daughter(5) says, "I bet that snow's saying 'Weeeeee!'" and my son(7) responds, "very likely."

Later in the evening as Daddy combs his own hair with daughter's doll's brush, she remains stone faced just before rolling her eyes and declaring, "That's not even appoepiate."

Happy Thursday!

Not Edited

January 11

Went to bed late again last night. This is going to start biting me in the asked. Hubby and I simply have too much fun. Last night we watched episodes of an old series and waited for the new operating system to load his iMac. Yesterday during the day I was preparing for another transcribing job when I decided to download Dragon Express voice-recognition software. However the only way to download the $50 luxury is to upgrade my operating system to the $30 latest and greatest technology from Apple. It turns out that once you've paid a whopping $30 you can sign onto the App Store (a fantastic invention in itself) on anyone else's Apple device and download it for them as well. So, I shared my app store with the hubby last night (and it wasn't the first time wink wink). Just for clarity, I love the new OS lion! There are some things that will take getting used to, but that is to be expected. Now, about the voice recognition software? I don't even know where to begin! I can do everything on it using a voice command! In fact, just to give you an idea, I spoke this entire blog. My hand will only touch the mouse (touchpad) to copy it into blogspot*. It really is amazing. Okay, I'm going to stop talking now. Remember gentlemen and ladies: share your App Store! And be happy.

Happy sharing world!


*Note: I added the red and the parenthesis because I didn't know how to do that with voice commands.

Crazy Hat Day Anyone?

It was probably not a good day to cut my own hair, but I did it anyway. I have a little nervous energy running through my body at the moment. Two weeks ago my husband was offered a salary at work. Of course we understand that going salary has many worth while benefits, including, I think, better health benefits but the amount they offered was $2,000 less (a year) than what he is already making. Now, if he stays hourly he receives the same raise that everyone receives every year. It's almost a dollar more an hour. BUT if he agrees to go salary, he takes a $2,000 cut. This means that getting the same raise every year that he usually gets, starting next year, it would take him two years to get back to what he is making right now. Nobody in their right mind would accept that offer. It was ridiculous. He turned it down.
Today, however, the Vice President of the company is driving three hours to visit this branch. It has been made clear that his first order of business is to talk to my husband. The words "persuasion" and "dangling carrot" were tossed around a lot last week. And I'm nervous. My husband gets along well with the Vicey and he doesn't mind talking to him at all, but how could we possibly know what he will say or how hairy this meeting will get. With so much up in the air right now, I should never have taken the clippers to the back of my head, but I did and I think I will be wearing a hat for the next week. Luckily my hair grows faster than, apparently, my husband's pay does.

Crazy hat day anyone?

What's Up?!

I, of course, write a lot about women's literature, women's liberation and equal rights. I'm also a member of some groups online that discuss the changing viewpoints and beliefs all over the world. Often while in a warm (not heated) discussion about independent women someone will inevitably voice their opinion that the title "Head of the Household" belongs to the man of the house and that women's place is just under them. I for the life of me have never understood this. Being underneath is so yesterday and let's face it, men get tired always having to brace themselves so they don't crush our poor helpless selves. Besides, every woman I know says they like it better on top. It's a pleasure in fact. And it is, in fact, all about control and we know this once we've been given the opportunity to exercise it. And why wouldn't it be? Everyone wants to control how deeply the other effects them. Still, of all the women I know who like it better on top, I've never met any man who would complain about being just underneath them. In fact, they admit to liking it too. So, come on ladies! It's time to roll over!

Take it like a man World!

Happy 70th Steven Hawking!!

Celebrating Steven Hawking"s 70th birthday with some quotes!


"People who boast about their IQ are losers."

"We are just an advanced breed of monkeys on a minor planet of a very average star. But we can understand the Universe. That makes us something very special."

"We are so insignificant that I can't believe the whole universe exists for our benefit. That would be like saying that you would disappear if I closed my eyes."

"I think computer viruses should count as life ... I think it says something about human nature that the only form of life we have created so far is purely destructive. We've created life in our own image."

So, yeah....

Apparently Thursdays and Fridays are horrible days for me to blog.

We finally got the playroom/bedroom thing straightened out with the kids. They really seem to like it.

I'm spending this morning doing laundry and trying to help my mom Skype. The laundry thing should end well....

My painting is coming along nicely. I can't wait to finish entire sections next! Like the huge umbrella! That is getting tackled after my shower! To see my progress, check out the photo page.

That's all I've got for now. I need to go help my son beat some levels on Super Mario Bro. 3. Watch out Bowser, here I come!!!

Journal Entry - Week 12 (cont.)

I am so sad to find out that "Backlash" is a societies reaction to feminism. I would venture to say that it is also women's reaction to feminism. As we, or a percentage of our counterparts get brain washed into believing that our place is in the home, our duty to our children, women all over the country argue against freedom without even realizing they do so. When I decided to go back to school I was told by women my same age that they didn't believe in "letting strangers raise [their] children." I can't even begin to explain how infuriating it was. Even the memory is making my hand shake as I write this. All I could ever respond is that I, myself, was in a daycare from the time I was one and never did I consider myself raised by anyone other than my mother, though it would have been nice if my father had decided to play a larger role in my life. How wonderful for my children to have TWO loving and doting parents that care enough to pay for a fantastic education.  I write two large because when you are a child I believe that the number 2 is the biggest, most important number there is. 2 mothers, 2 fathers, 2 grandparents, 2 guardians, 2 people to share the enormous burden that children naturally are. Anytime I express my independence in terms that have not been previously agreed upon by society, I experience backlash. My question is: When men express a need to be independent, work or further their education; do people lecture them on their parenting? I already know the answer to that question.

Most Awesomest Mom Ever!

My son said to me, as we got in the car for the grocery store, that he wanted to go back to shcool. So I took them to Burger King to play with some other kids for a while. It was the best idea I have had all break.
The kids are playing now. We are one of three families playing in the Playground area and no two of us are the same ethnicity. It's a beautiful thing. The woman in the corner across from me is nursing her infant and I applauded her, quietly, from my seat. The Father of the other children recently bounded in, caught one of his four daughter with his eyes and  bellowed "ten more minutes then we're rollin'!" She turned and matched his bravado to her sisters, "Ten minutes! Then we roll!" They've been running up and down with my two for at least ten minutes now. I'm glad they haven't left yet. They are all having so much fun together!
Soon enough I will tear them away to the boring isles of produce, dairy and dry goods. It's sure to be full of threats and whining and when we get home, we will all need naps. But, right now, in this last 5 minutes, I'm "the most awesomest mom ever" and the kids are sweaty and smiling.

Journal Entry - Week 12

Some really interesting concepts were shared at the end of last week that got me thinking. I have this idea that I need to work out in pencil to see if it would hold ink. The idea crossed my mind that Piercy(Marge Piercy in her novel A Woman on the Edge of Time) makes large references to power, production, gender, reproduction, etc. and I wonder if we are the "other" to Piercy's utopia.  - The other being the opposite - polarized - anti-thesis - In her utopia women no longer have sole power over reproduction. Any person may mother. Yet the society as a whole does not over produce, man or machine. Our current society, and especially the one lived in by Piercy at the time when she wrote this novel, battles it's women for rights over their bodies and their offspring while at the same time over-producing both humans and machines. It's as if men use their power to produce things to make up for being unable to bodily produce humans. It goes without saying for many sociologists that our rate of populating will slow as women become greater equals to men. In that way alone you can view over population as a trait specific to male dominant societies. But I am still curious as to whether capitalism has anything to do with male dominance. Is the instinct to step on heads and make money and be greedy something that women, in general, do not feel? Is it possible that men, being unable to birth humans feel a need to produce things for money, attain property, acquaire companies? Drive Hummers? Ugh! Is it the lack of this "killer instinct" that makes men seem "in touch with their feminine side?" But wouldn't it be those men, trying with all their might to reproduce, merge, acquire, hoard and compensate for a lack of ovaries, who are closer to trying to attain a female-like state?Trying desperately to produce something for the want of reproducing children? Wouldn't the property owners and millionaires be more in touch with their "feminine side" - the side that reproduces? Wouldn't the men who don't care about reproduction for reproduction sake be thought of as more comfortable being a man- in touch with their non-reproducing masculinity? I think so. I will never look at the world or men in quite the same way.

Happy New Year!

This year, I would like to write more, cuss less and control my temper better.

Oh god damn it! The fucking cinnamon rolls are burning!

Later.... #$^*(%$!!!