Steve said to write 5 things you don’t know about me.

1. I had a recurring dream when I was little that I was a smurf and Gargamel and his cat Azrael were chasing me. I had to hide in a log and I was afraid of starving to death if they didn’t leave. I always woke up before I died.

2. I blur my eyes when I see wallpaper because sometimes certain things on the wallpaper stand out if I do that. It looks 3D and I think that’s cool. If you find me staring at the wall in your house with my eyes slightly crossed, that’s what I’m doing.

3. I really like weird art. Abstract stuff. Sometimes I look at stuff and wonder if anyone else would think it’s art. The other day I was admiring the tangled cables and extension cords behind the TV. I thought it looked interesting. I think everything in nature is art – a pile of muddy rocks, a dead tree, fungus…

4. I think raking leaves is stupid. I like the leaves in the yard. Unless you are raking leaves into a pile for a kid to jump in, let them decorate your lawn in fall colors. If you think they will kill your grass, run over them with the lawn mower at the end of the season.

5. I’m not convinced that plants don’t have feelings. They might. I also believe that when they die on Earth they bloom again in heaven. Soooo, when I see a sick plant that I don’t think I can rehabilitate, I tend to want to put it out of its misery because I know it will be healthy again in a better place. I’m like Jamie Kevorkian for plants.

So there’s 5 things you now know and probably wish you didn’t. I encourage you to blog your 5 things. If you don’t have a blog, start one. That can be your New Years resolution. Or you can add them on the comment page. Or you can do nothing and just let everyone go on thinking you’re perfectly normal.

Been busy.

I apologize for slacking on the picture-taking over the holidays. I kept forgetting my camera and when I had it I kept forgetting to use it.


Pennsylvania came to Ohio, California came to Ohio, other parts of Ohio came to our part of Ohio. I've been playing with Evan and his new toys. Actually, I play with Evan's new toys; he prefers his old ones. Figures.


Kirk and I spent Friday in Cleveland.


We started at the Great Lakes Science Center and Omnimax Theater. We really wanted to go to the theater, but since we were there we checked out the Science Center too. I've been there before on a field trip. It's full of interactive displays involving heat, light, sound, static, water, wind, chemicals, magnets, all kinds of technology...it's neat and it's full of kids. Lots of 'em. Running. Everywhere. We were in there 10 minutes and Kirk said, "You expect me to touch this stuff after hundreds of kids put their dirty little hands all over it?" Ha. Yeah. Welcome to my world 5 days a week, Kirk.



The theater was really cool. It is a six-story high domed screen. The movie is all around you and you feel like you're moving. Awesome. We saw a film about ancient Greece. I loved it.



After the movie we went to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. We really enjoyed this too. There's so much to see and hear - stage outfits, lyrics scribbled in notebooks, artwork, instruments, vehicles, short films, photos, videos, and music music music everywhere. It was fun.



We went to dinner in the Flats at the Rockbottom Brewery. I know that sounds like a funny place to take an alcoholic, but they have iced tea and excellent food. Kirk ate some kind of raw fish with wasabi and ginger and soy and then another dish of chicken and mangoes and beans. I had some fancy pasta with capers, basil, tomatoes, spinach, kalmata olives and I don't remember what else.



We finished the day at the Cavs game. They won and we got to ride in an elevator with Ira Newble before the game. He's on the team but he doesn't play much this year (like, not at all). Regardless, we're still cool because we rode in an elevator with a Cavalier. Kirk said, "Good luck tonight" and Ira said, "Thanks, man." and Jamie just stood there starstruck with a silly grin on her face. Dork.



So it was a good day. I'm working on "5 things you don't know about me" like Steve did in his post. Maybe tomorrow I'll finish it.



Happy Birthday Dad (and LeBron and Tiger).

FYI

I got my teeth cleaned today. The hygienist, dentist, and girl at the desk are all nice. I don't really mind them scraping my teeth or using that spinning fluoride thing. I can deal with that spit sucker thing too. And I swish water around my mouth and spit it in that little itty bitty sink without getting it all over the floor. BUT I HATE the feel of rubber gloves in my mouth or touching my lips. I want to smack their hands away from my face when I feel those gloves touch me. I would rather them put their bare fingers in my mouth than feel those rubber gloves. I know that's not sanitary, but I hate hate hate rubber gloves in my mouth.

Merry Christmas!

I hope you spend the day surrounded by people you love.

I hope hear a bell ring, whether it indicates that you believe in Santa or that an angel gets his/her wings or both.

I hope someone buys you something that is too small, an obvious indication that they think you are thinner than you really are.

I hope you find peace and happiness today and everyday.

I totally stole this idea from one of Steve's friend's blogs.

I elfed my brother. Go see Joe the Elf.

Then elf yourself and email me the link so I can laugh at you too.

Such a busy week!

Thursday was our last day of school and it couldn't happen soon enough. I had to laugh when my rookie said at the end of the day Thursday "I thought today would be a fun easy day, but I have the biggest headache! Even the good kids are acting like animals." Yep.

I woke up early Friday morning because I had Christmas shopping to do. I'd rather play in traffic than go shopping. The thought of going to Belden Village made my stomach turn. Kirk had the day off too, so he offered to go with me. I intended on going myself so I could buy him a gift, but then decided to bring him with me and let him pick out his own present. He was really helpful. We finally finished all of our shopping this morning and I started wrapping this afternoon. We went to Christmas dinner with Bob, Jan, Liss, Steve, and Gram tonight at Benders. It was delicious. I think I could eat their peanut butter sundae for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Mmmmmmm.

Oh...I keep wanting to share this...Wednesday night I went to My Girlfriends Kitchen with three girls I work with. It's so cool! You can check out the website. We each made 6 meals to take home and freeze. They have 14 different meals to choose from and you go from station to station putting all of the ingredients together. It's like being one of those chefs on the Food Network who have everything cleaned, cut and sitting in front of them. All you have to do is measure and mix. Then someone else cleans up your messy bowls. Fabulous! I haven't tried any of the meals yet but they all looked good and two of the girls that were with me said they had some of it before and it was really good. Woohoo! I made 6 meals! I'm a chef! If anyone wants to go there, call me. I'd love to go back. The menu changes every month and you can change the recipe if you want (like you can leave out onions if you don't like them or add more garlic, etc.) They even give you little appetizers and drinks while you prepare your meals!

So today I went to a white elephant Christmas party. I guess I misunderstood what a white elephant gift is supposed to be. I thought it was supposed to be like a silly garage sale-type item such as an Elvis picture, rubber chicken, fruitcake, Village People CD, etc. I looked around my house and finally wrapped up a Hawaiian lei from our Jimmy Buffet days and a tiara that I wore ten years ago when I was the queen of diamonds for Halloween.

At the party I watched person after person open cute books and lovely Christmas trinkets. No giant clip-on earrings. No half-eaten box of chocolates. Someone did bring a partially burned Yankee candle but they still passed it around and oohed and ahhed at how good it smelled.

The party was very nice and the food was delicious (thanks, Julie). We got nice presents from our Sped leaders like a candle and a lottery ticket and nuts and candy. The white elephant gifts I received are a Christmas basket and Santa figurine. Some poor guy walked out with a plastic tiara and some silk flowers around his neck.

Sorry, dude. I'll do better next year.

I mailed my Christmas cards today. I didn't get to the post office before it closed, so I had to put them in the blue mailbox out front. One of my eccentricities involves blue mailboxes. I have this weird anxiety about letting the mail fall to the bottom because I know I can't get it back out once I let it go. I'll stand with my hand in the mailbox clutching the mail for several unnecessary moments. I'm always worried that I'll realize that I forgot to put a stamp on the envelope just as I'm letting go of the mail and then - crap, I'm screwed.

Kirk does a lot of housework and he does a great job cooking and cleaning. He does laundry, but doesn’t quite understand sorting. When I got dressed this morning, I noticed my orange sweatsuit had black fuzzies all over it, so I knew he washed it with dark colors. I was doing Christmas cards but stopped to help him fold clothes. He shrunk a sweater. In the next load I pulled out a pair of pink dress pants that used to be tan. When I’m mad, I give the silent treatment…

Kirk: I know you’re mad because you aren’t talking to me. I’m sorry I ruined your clothes.

Me (in a snappy, mean tone): I don’t understand why you put my nicest pair of dress pants in the same load as a red Waco Scaffolding tshirt.

Kirk: Sorry. And I thought your sweater was pajamas. That’s why I put it in the drier.

Me: Don’t wash my dress clothes. Set them aside and I’ll wash them.

Kirk: At least everything gets clean when I do laundry. That’s the most important thing,

Me: No! That’s not the most important thing! Clean clothes don’t do me any good if they are discolored or deformed.

Kirk: Oh, come on, you can wear 90% of the clothes I wash.

Me: That’s not a good percentage!

Kirk: It would be if I was a free-throw shooter. But, I guess, not if I was a heart surgeon. It’s all relative. From now on I’ll wash your school clothes in a separate load.

Me: You have to sort by color and how delicate they are, NOT by where I wear them. That’s what I’m trying to get you to understand! (Sigh) never mind.

Thursday we saw A Christmas Carol at the Canton Players Guild. We didn't take Jebby.

Friday night I was supposed to go over to a girlfriend's house but she got sick and had to cancel. We had tickets to a Cavs game and I had already given my ticket to one of Kirk's friends. Kirk got me a ticket at the last minute so I could go too. He knows what's good for him. The Cavs won, probably thanks to my presence.

I started my Christmas cards today then

watched Evan for a couple hours. He found some of his unwrapped Christmas presents in a bag. We opened them up so he could play with them. I'll wrap them this week and he can open them again on Christmas. He's only 1 year old. It's not like he'll know.

1. We went to dinner with some alcoholics then went to see one of our Tuesday night regulars give his lead. His wife is one of my Traveling Light friends. I enjoyed hearing his story of addiction and recovery. It’s always inspiring to hear a lead. Everyone’s story is unique in some way, but they all begin with the same it-was-fun-at-first-and-I-have-a-lot-great-drinking-stories, have the same middle including people-couldn’t-stand-me-because-I-was-a-drunken-selfish-outofcontrol-ass-who-secretly-hated-my-life-because-it-was-so-unmanageable, and conclude with something like by-the-grace-of-God-and-the-support-of-other-recovering-alcoholics-I-have-my-life-back-and-though-it-isn’t-always-easy-I-love-living-it miracle at the end. I know I have said all of that before. You’ll probably hear it again the next time I hear a lead. Guess you'll just have to deal with the repetition.

2. I had to tell Little B to stop singing “I’m a Barbie Girl” as he walked up the steps to my room. How does he even know that song?

3. The 8 animals I have to buy for are Diesel, Roscoe, Woody, Stirf, Mamacat, Felix, Tidbit, and Sid. Kirk buys for Mange, and, seriously, with the way he dotes on that cat it’s like every day is Christmas for Mange. She has a whole cupboard full of special food and treats that Kirk gives her when the other cats aren’t around. I needed something for number 8, so I cut Mange out. If I figure out what the bearded dragon wants for Christmas, I’ll add Spike to the list. I don’t see my reptilian nephew much anymore, so I don’t know what teenage dragons like these days. Are meal worms still cool?

4. Unfortunately, if you leave boxes of Christmas cards on the table they won’t address themselves. The cats won’t address them either.

1 – Santa seen driving a red F350 in downtown Cleveland
2 – games I’ve seen the Browns win at home this year
3 - detentions I have given this year
4 – weeks left of being 20something
5 - boxes of Christmas cards still sitting on the table
6 – Cavs games I’ve been to this year.
7 – chapters I’ve read in my Traveling Light book
8 – animals I’ll buy presents for this Christmas
9 – days of school left until Christmas break
10 - pillows on my couch
11 - movies I’ve seen in the last two months (Go see Casino Royale)
12 - people I still have to shop for

I’m not telling how many minutes I wasted numbering from 1-12 and thinking up something for each number.

Had a great time at the concert and got to eat at one of my favorite restaurants, Pickwick and Frolic.

Cavs game tonight. Look for us behind the scorer's table. If I'm picking my nose or doing something embarassing, call and tell me to stop.

We had another busy weekend.

Saturday my brother cut the tree down with the help of Kirk and the Kerby boys. I know Joe gave up a day of hunting, so I really appreciate that.

Saturday night we went to The Q to see Trans Siberian Orchestra. It was really really fun. It's a Christmas rock opera with lots of different performers, awesome pyrotechnics and lots of lights and lasers. They even made it snow inside the arena. I absolutely loved the show.

It's a good thing the show was worth all the crap that put me in a bad mood before we got there. We planned on eating at Tower City, the mall that is connected to the Q via underground walkway. We have done this before Cavs games many times. Saturday I forgot that TSO had a show at 3:00 and at 8:00. The 3:00 show was letting out when we got to the parking lot. It took us forever to find a parking space because we were competing with the 20,000 people leaving, the 20,000 people arriving for the next show, and the thousands of people Christmas shopping at the mall. We parked in the furthest possible spot from both the mall and The Q and had a pretty decent walk to get in. Since it was just after 6:00, all of those hungry people were competing for a table at the few restaurants located in the mall. There had to be at least a hundred people waiting outside of each restaurant, so we didn't even attempt to get a table. A crappy, overpriced chicken sandwich eaten while standing in the walkway at the Q would suffice.

I hate shopping. I hate malls. I hate crowds. I walked into the Q without any Christmas spirit whatsoever, but I left with plenty.

Second reason I owe my brother bigtime: he gave me his ticket to the Browns game today. It's always fun when they win. Winning also helps you forget that your toes are numb, your nose is running, your hat is making your head itchy, and how much of a chore it is to go to the bathroom dressed in several layers and a big heavy coat.

On the way home we went to the Blossom Festival of Lights with Bob and Jan. Lovely. More Christmas spirit.

We have a busy week too. Monday we are meeting Liss and company in Cleveland (that makes 3 trips to Cleveland in three days) to see My Morning Jacket at the House of Blues. Tuesday I have a nail appt and AA at our house. Wednesday it's back to Cleveland for the Cavs.

Not sure when I'll find time to teach, sleep, and breathe.

Stupid wind. >:(

Recent lowlights:

Cavs lost last night. I was at the game. I don't understand how this could have happened.

Last night was Drew Gooden bald head night. Everyone got a bald cap and a Drew headband. I put mine under my seat. I never left my seat during the game. When I went to leave, my bald cap was gone. Someone actually reached under my butt and stole my bald cap. And worse, it was a family with two young kids sitting behind me the whole time. Nice, huh?

Recent highlights:

Dad and Joe went to the game with us.

Evan pooped in the bathtub. Renee took a picture of it with her phone and sent it to me. I enjoyed it so much I had to share it with you.

Some kids were practicing for the Christmas program and we could hear them singing in my room. My students were working on an assignment and some were humming or singing quietly. As I got closer to Little B, I heard him quietly, cheerfully, innocently singing "please bring us some frigging pudding, please bring us some frigging pudding..."

Busy day.

We went to the doctor, the vet, the grocery store, the bank, the bakery, the flower shop, the cemetery, the pharmacy, and the pet store.

1. The sign outside the bakery says “Fruitcakes are here!” I don’t know why I find that so funny.

2. If I’m good in the grocery store (no whining about how long he spends looking at cheese) Kirk takes me to Starbucks when we leave.

3. Taking three cats to the vet at the same time for yearly shots is not worth the 8 dollars we save in the package deal.

4. We didn’t have school today because it’s the first day of gun season. I can’t imagine being in the woods with the little retarded gun-toting hillbillies I work with. Frightening.

Tuesday night we went to the Cavs game. They won, probably thanks to my cheering.

We had Wednesday off because our superintendent likes to cook on Wednesday (We still work 180 days, so it's made up somewhere). We cleaned most of the day. Kirk helped Gram get ready for dinner with his family Wednesday night. It was delicious.

Thursday I watched the parade all morning. I don't even really like watching the Macy's parade, but for some reason I feel like I have to. As if it isn't Thanksgiving unless I watch giant balloons float over the streets of New York. I made corn and green beans for dinner at Patty's. The food was delicious there too. My grandmas are great cooks.

Friday we put our Christmas decorations up. The house looks quite festive. The cats really like chewing on the lighted garland. If they keep it up, we may have fewer cats this Christmas. Friday night I babysat Evan while Joe and Renee went to their 10 year class reunion. Evan's pretty good at chasing cats. And climbing steps. And dunking random objects in the cats' water bowl. And hiding the remote. And pushing the button that makes the snowman sing and dance.

The weather was beautiful Saturday so we spent a lot of the day outside. I got a lot of chores done that usually get put off till spring. Then we decided to hang lights outside. If you want to test your marriage, you should hang Christmas lights together. At one point Kirk told me to hold the ladder, which was unsafely positioned on the side of the hill, while he climbed it. I started to hold it but soon realized that there was no way I was strong enough to hold the ladder and Kirk, so I got out of the way before he fell. I didn't see any sense in both of us getting hurt. Kirk didn't get hurt, but he wasn't very happy that I bailed on him.

My car got washed and polished thanks to Keith Kerby. It's very clean and smooth and sparkly.

Saturday night we went out to eat with Steve and Liss and Gram. We ate at Fedeli's. I had the boccatini with pesto, chicken, and wild mushrooms. It was delicious.

Today we went to the Browns game thanks to Bob and Jan. They are in Florida, so we got to sit in their club seats. Their seats are super nice and the club food is much better than the food on the other levels. Kirk had a turkey wrap and a fruit parfait and I had an Italian Panini - not your typical stadium fare. Unfortunately, Kirk was sick and we had to leave at half time. We didn't miss much since they got clobbered by Cincinnati.

Now I'm deciding what kind of cereal to make us for dinner. If Kirk wants soup I might have to break out the can opener and turn on the stove. Hopefully he'll go for some frosted mini wheats with a side of the banana bread he made yesterday.

I don't have anything to say about last Sunday's game other than I'm glad I didn't pay to sit in the rain to watch it.

I do have a kinda funny story about the Buckeyes game, though.

Last Friday we had a contest at school to see who could guess the score of the OSU/Michigan game. Every kid in the school filled out a paper with their guess. Little B didn't understand what he was supposed to do with it. I tried to explain. He wrote down "45" and turned it back in. I told him he needed two numbers, one for each team. He added "40." Monday he found out that he was the closest and won a big Hershey bar. He showed his Hershey bar to everyone. I tried again to explain to him why he won it, but he didn't really care why. When people asked him how he got the candy he told them it was because of something he did on Friday. Yeah, the kid with the lowest IQ in the school won a guessing game without any idea of what he was doing. Haha.

Big weekend! We went to Bowling Green last night for Steve's birthday dinner at Poco Piatti. Great food, great company.

I can't believe what a huge sports weekend this is. Paraphernalia everywhere.

Go Bucks!

Go Cavs!

Go Browns!

Buckeye Fans Only

I went to the Cavs game Wednesday night and they won by 13, of course. We had great seats. LeBron came over during warm-ups and thanked me for coming. There was fire and lights and cheering as the boys took the floor. The game was exciting and they made all of their free throws. They honored veterans before the game and at halftime. Mike Brown came over and asked me if I wanted to help coach, since I know who should be in the game and who should be sitting out. Kirk bought me a LeBron jersey. I wore the jersey all night even though it comes past my knees. I'm silly.

Green is real.
Red is my imagination.

This is what Steve looked like in his 20s. His wife is much younger. Obviously.

Happy 30th Steve!

Of course I have mixed feelings about my cat walking past my bed with a barely-living mouse hanging out of his mouth. Way to go Felix, now take that ^&*%#$@ thing outside.

Girl comes into my room first thing this morning and says in a loud, rude tone: You have to go get me a library book now cuz my mom said you have to.

After biting my tongue, I calmly reply: If you want my help, you'll have to treat me with the same respect I give you. I'm going to let you try that again. This time you should ASK me to help you, not TELL me what to do. And you will need to do it politely. Say please. Walk out the door, come back in and try again.

She comes back in with her head tilted, rolling her eyes, doing some sassy, slouched shoulder thing.

I look at her, tilt my head, roll my eyes, and slouch my shoulder.

She gets the hint and walks back out the door.

When she comes back in, her body language is appropriate: Please will you please help me please get a library book please?

With a smile: Absolutely.

Nikki, Tracey and I at Nikki's party at the Piazza's. Kirk said Nikki's family reminds him of our families - friendly, loud, fun, gracious hosts. :)

Molly, Amy, Deidre, and I had a lovely birthday lunch for Deidre at Olive Garden.
Lunch was actually three hours.
We had a lot of catching up to do.

11/1 Cavs win by 3, Jamie is not there
11/3 Cavs win by 7, Jamie is not there
11/4 Cavs lose by 4, Jamie is not there
11/7 Cavs lose by 9, Jamie is not there
11/9 Cavs win by 19, Jamie IS there


I can only draw one conclusion from these facts: They need me. I really have no choice but to quit my job and follow the Cavs around the country. I don't think the Cavs know how important it is that I be at all the games, so I'll need funding to cover airfare, hotels, tickets, and team paraphernalia until they realize what a crucial element my presence is. Then, of course, they'll pay my way. In the meantime I'm asking for donations, and I'll accept credit, debit, cash, check, and Paypal. If you send money, I promise to call, write, and send text messages from every city I go to. Thankssomuch.

This will be the Happy Birthday post for the week!

Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear Renee, Tracey, Deidre, Jess, and Nikki. Happy birthday to you!

I know! Let's all turn 30! You girls go first (except Renee who can wait till next year and Jess who beat us to 30 a couple years ago).

Happy birthday, girls. Have a fabulous day! Love ya!

The Tuesday boys came over tonight and two wives came too! We decided to start our own little group. I really enjoyed talking with them. I have the best family and friends anyone could ask for, but it's hard for people to understand what it is like to go through addiction and recovery with someone unless you have been there. These girls have been through the same hurt, healing, worries, celebrations, frustrations, etc. We decided to start a Tuesday night book study. While the boys are in one room talking about whatever it is that they talk about, we'll be in another room talking about our book and other important stuff like what kind of fancy coffee creamers we like. One girl suggested we start with Max Lucado's Traveling Light: Releasing the Burdens You Were Never Intended to Bear. I'm up for anything.

Kirk came home from work with this new addition to our living room. It's covered in orange and white lights and the arm pivots like he is throwing a pass. I'm a Brown's fan, but I don't want this dang thing in my living room! One of you will be getting it for Christmas. 

Go Cavs! The paper called LeBron and Larry "Batman and Robin." Larry has been awesome in the last two games. I hope he stays healthy this year. He tattooed two teardrops under his left eye in memory of his brother who died last season. I get that he misses his brother, but tattooing teardrops, or anything, on your face is crazy. I can't imagine looking in the mirror every morning and seeing two teardrops under my eye. If I absolutely HAD to get a tattoo on my face in memory of Mom I think I'd tattoo a butterfly on my nose. Looking silly would be much better than looking sad every day for the rest of my life. I couldn't find a picture of Larry's tattoo, but if I do I'll post it.

Go ahead, Aunt Jame. You have 1.3 seconds to take my picture before I run into the dining room, crawl under the table, take all of the figurines off the stand, knock over Dad's beer, climb up on the fireplace hearth, remove the lids from the crocks, push buttons on the remote, throw two toys, climb over Grandpa, and hide behind the recliner.

Go Cavs, baby.
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Yesterday afternoon our custodian caught a kid I don't even work with stealing candy from my desk. He was suspended. His mom made him donate his bucket of Halloween candy to my room. I think that's great.

That kid ratted on another kid who has been stealing candy from me. Kid#2 was supposed to apologize to me but all he said was "I don't know why I'm getting in so much trouble. I only stole candy twice." Both of his parents are in jail. He lives with his aunt. I'm pretty sure I won't be getting his bucket of Halloween candy.

Sigh. TGIF.

This guy gave out 5 pieces of candy to each of our 15 trick-or-treaters.
This trick-or-treater didn't get any candy. He would have if he wore a different hat and told me he was Amish.

This little monkey can have whatever he wants.

 

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! Did you know that the Stark County Humane Society does not allow people to adopt black cats from October 15th through Halloween? Don't worry, I wasn't looking to adopt another cat. I saw it on their TV commercial.

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Kirk's cousins, Kent and John, went white water rafting a couple weeks ago. This is a picture of them. I would LOVE to do this when it's warm out. Anybody?

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Happy Birthday Aunt Miki! Have fun in Jamaica!