So I got my passport today!
Yippee and will wonders never cease~?~
And I am off to parts both known and unknown on Thursday. The folks arrive on Wednesday. I don't think they quite understand what they are in for...
BUT
My love and I are going on vacation.
v-a-c-a-t-i-o-n!
We plan to sit still as much as possible.
He is looking forward to the all inclusive alcoholic beverages and I am looking forward to the pillow and the lack of a toddler alarm clock.
mmmmmmmmmmmmmm.
vacation.
Monday, September 10, 2007
Friday, September 07, 2007
Passing on the Passport
This is the email I received from the passport office today! Please note the date I should expect my passport.
And then note the delivery option I chose.
What is the date today?
What reality is our government living in?
Now I understand their aversion to a timeline.
They clearly don't understand the concept.
We have finished processing your passport, and it has been mailed to you.
Your passport application locator number is (omitted from my security)
You paid for overnight delivery. This means you should receive your passport on or about 09/28/2007.
If you have any additional questions, you may contact the National Passport Information Center via e-mail at http://travel.state.gov/passport/about/npic/npic_896.html.
Please include the above locator number. It will enable them to update you on the status of your application. For more information about the National Passport Information Center, please visit us at http://travel.state.gov/passport/about/npic/npic_898.html.
And then note the delivery option I chose.
What is the date today?
What reality is our government living in?
Now I understand their aversion to a timeline.
They clearly don't understand the concept.
We have finished processing your passport, and it has been mailed to you.
Your passport application locator number is (omitted from my security)
You paid for overnight delivery. This means you should receive your passport on or about 09/28/2007.
If you have any additional questions, you may contact the National Passport Information Center via e-mail at http://travel.state.gov/passport/about/npic/npic_896.html.
Please include the above locator number. It will enable them to update you on the status of your application. For more information about the National Passport Information Center, please visit us at http://travel.state.gov/passport/about/npic/npic_898.html.
Morning Musings
This morning I was in that half sleep that comes after you push the snooze button "one last time".
I was thinking about death. Seems to be around me a lot lately. Not sure why.
So I was thinking about being buried in the earth and that to be buried in anything less than a full wooden box you have to be in Oregon, the only state that allows this. And how expensive would it be to fly my body to Oregon just to avoid the cost of a fancy wooden box. No really, how expensive? Now if I was already there, that would be a different matter.
And then I was thinking that what I would really like is a funeral pyre. Very majestic.
And then I was wondering about the smell involved. And I wondered if native americans found themselves strangely hungry after smelling their loved ones flesh roast.
And then I was a native american princess laying on a funeral pyre. (did I mention I was drowsing?) And as I lay there I looked over and saw a pig roasting and a feast being prepared. And I thought aha! So they cooked a pig at the same time and then had a big feast afterward. That TOTALLY makes sense.
And in my dream (are you following this?) I looked down on my body and thought. This is the way it should be. This is the right way to go.
And then they lit the flame. And I thought WOW. Impressive display.
And then I thought wait. This kind of tickles.
And then I thought. Wait. This kind of itches.
And then my body on the pyre opened her eyes. And I thought.
WAIT!
I'm not dead.
And in my mind I thought of that movie with Michele Pfeifer where her husband gives her that drug that makes it so she can't move.
And from my funeral pyre I turn my frantic eyes to my father. As he stands beside me mourning the passing of his lovely daughter (for this performance the role of my father will be played by some random native american man) and I beseech him to look up at me using only my eyes.
And for one awful moment it seems like he won't and then - He does!
He looks up and is startled by the fact that my eyes are open. And I think YES!
He sees me, he sees that I am still alive. I will be saved.
And he does see. And he steps toward me.
And
He
Smiles
And I realize that I will burn alive on this funeral pyre because my father killed me.
And then the alarm went off.
And Good morning to me.
I was thinking about death. Seems to be around me a lot lately. Not sure why.
So I was thinking about being buried in the earth and that to be buried in anything less than a full wooden box you have to be in Oregon, the only state that allows this. And how expensive would it be to fly my body to Oregon just to avoid the cost of a fancy wooden box. No really, how expensive? Now if I was already there, that would be a different matter.
And then I was thinking that what I would really like is a funeral pyre. Very majestic.
And then I was wondering about the smell involved. And I wondered if native americans found themselves strangely hungry after smelling their loved ones flesh roast.
And then I was a native american princess laying on a funeral pyre. (did I mention I was drowsing?) And as I lay there I looked over and saw a pig roasting and a feast being prepared. And I thought aha! So they cooked a pig at the same time and then had a big feast afterward. That TOTALLY makes sense.
And in my dream (are you following this?) I looked down on my body and thought. This is the way it should be. This is the right way to go.
And then they lit the flame. And I thought WOW. Impressive display.
And then I thought wait. This kind of tickles.
And then I thought. Wait. This kind of itches.
And then my body on the pyre opened her eyes. And I thought.
WAIT!
I'm not dead.
And in my mind I thought of that movie with Michele Pfeifer where her husband gives her that drug that makes it so she can't move.
And from my funeral pyre I turn my frantic eyes to my father. As he stands beside me mourning the passing of his lovely daughter (for this performance the role of my father will be played by some random native american man) and I beseech him to look up at me using only my eyes.
And for one awful moment it seems like he won't and then - He does!
He looks up and is startled by the fact that my eyes are open. And I think YES!
He sees me, he sees that I am still alive. I will be saved.
And he does see. And he steps toward me.
And
He
Smiles
And I realize that I will burn alive on this funeral pyre because my father killed me.
And then the alarm went off.
And Good morning to me.
Wednesday, September 05, 2007
Passport Passion
So I am not sure where this is going but I am feeling a little like all the little children that have in fact been left behind.
The government changed the rules.
You now have to have a valid US Passport to travel to Mexico, Canada and the Caribean. New rules. New day. New security.
BUT.
Much like everything else this administration has done - they didn't consider the consequences. Bush's administration seems to be incapable of forethought.
So summer comes along. THOUSANDS of people would like to travel and THOUSANDS of people apply for passports. No problem right?
They had to see this coming, after all it was THEIR IDEA. So they planned ahead. Temporary staff people were employed to meet the rising demand. Departmentswere streamlined, the process made more efficient. And the world travelers received their passports in a timely manner and went forth to the sunny beaches around the world.
RIGHT?
well. um. no.
NO extra staff. NO prepared passport department. NO planning for a program they knew was coming for more than a year.
NO F'ING WAY!
How is this ineptitude acceptable?
SO. I leave for Mexico next Thursday. I don't have a passport. I have a piece of paper that says I applied for an EXPEDITED (3 day turn around promised) passport over 3 weeks ago.
And apparently that will be enough.
How secure.
How very well thought out.
This administration seems very capable of taking a bad idea and making it even worse.
I will vent about this as I sit in the room of my resort with my included free alcoholic beverage of choice. I will also vent about it as I lay on the beach or maybe while I am frolicking with the dolphins.
That is of course unless I fall victim to hurricane J or K...not sure where we are in the alphabet at the moment.
Then I will sit at home. Pissed as all hell.
Just wait for that post.
Maybe you should prepare now.
The government changed the rules.
You now have to have a valid US Passport to travel to Mexico, Canada and the Caribean. New rules. New day. New security.
BUT.
Much like everything else this administration has done - they didn't consider the consequences. Bush's administration seems to be incapable of forethought.
So summer comes along. THOUSANDS of people would like to travel and THOUSANDS of people apply for passports. No problem right?
They had to see this coming, after all it was THEIR IDEA. So they planned ahead. Temporary staff people were employed to meet the rising demand. Departmentswere streamlined, the process made more efficient. And the world travelers received their passports in a timely manner and went forth to the sunny beaches around the world.
RIGHT?
well. um. no.
NO extra staff. NO prepared passport department. NO planning for a program they knew was coming for more than a year.
NO F'ING WAY!
How is this ineptitude acceptable?
SO. I leave for Mexico next Thursday. I don't have a passport. I have a piece of paper that says I applied for an EXPEDITED (3 day turn around promised) passport over 3 weeks ago.
And apparently that will be enough.
How secure.
How very well thought out.
This administration seems very capable of taking a bad idea and making it even worse.
I will vent about this as I sit in the room of my resort with my included free alcoholic beverage of choice. I will also vent about it as I lay on the beach or maybe while I am frolicking with the dolphins.
That is of course unless I fall victim to hurricane J or K...not sure where we are in the alphabet at the moment.
Then I will sit at home. Pissed as all hell.
Just wait for that post.
Maybe you should prepare now.
Tuesday, September 04, 2007
Bad Manners
My little girl picks her nose.
And eats it.
We have tried telling her that this is bad manners. We also told her it's gross.
It's not like she does it all the time but when she does - Ewwww.
She also sits on the couch and plays with her (ahem) privates.
We have told her that this is also bad manners.
During her bath the other day she told me that:
"penises go in bums".
I told her that is not usually true.
I then had to have a talk with my three year old about sex. Ya know, a little talk about inappropriate touching, basically letting her know that no one should be putting their penis (or anything else for that matter) any where near her bum.
Agh!
I want her to stay young forever. And by young I mean innocent. AND I want to prepare her for this crazy world that we live in without scaring her into hibernating in her room until she's 20 and a black belt.
And I want to be prepared for this world and not feel tempted to hibernate in my room.
And I hate that this is the world. Where little girls go missing and are found...not little girls anymore, if at all.
It makes me so sad that this is the possibility. That this is what I have to watch out for, prepare for. And that my "family friends" are the prime suspects.
My SIL was molested by the man who basically raised my FIL because his father was too much of an alcoholic to take on the task. My husband bears this man's middle name in honor of that relationship.
And then this honorable man, molested an eight year-old girl.
But this is not a post about the past. It is a post about the future.
I want to raise my child to be strong and fierce in her determination to protect herself and those she loves. I want her to be confident in her no's and in her strength or purpose.
I want her to have bad manners when she needs them.
And. I want her to stop picking her nose and eating it.
Oh if only that were my only concern.
And eats it.
We have tried telling her that this is bad manners. We also told her it's gross.
It's not like she does it all the time but when she does - Ewwww.
She also sits on the couch and plays with her (ahem) privates.
We have told her that this is also bad manners.
During her bath the other day she told me that:
"penises go in bums".
I told her that is not usually true.
I then had to have a talk with my three year old about sex. Ya know, a little talk about inappropriate touching, basically letting her know that no one should be putting their penis (or anything else for that matter) any where near her bum.
Agh!
I want her to stay young forever. And by young I mean innocent. AND I want to prepare her for this crazy world that we live in without scaring her into hibernating in her room until she's 20 and a black belt.
And I want to be prepared for this world and not feel tempted to hibernate in my room.
And I hate that this is the world. Where little girls go missing and are found...not little girls anymore, if at all.
It makes me so sad that this is the possibility. That this is what I have to watch out for, prepare for. And that my "family friends" are the prime suspects.
My SIL was molested by the man who basically raised my FIL because his father was too much of an alcoholic to take on the task. My husband bears this man's middle name in honor of that relationship.
And then this honorable man, molested an eight year-old girl.
But this is not a post about the past. It is a post about the future.
I want to raise my child to be strong and fierce in her determination to protect herself and those she loves. I want her to be confident in her no's and in her strength or purpose.
I want her to have bad manners when she needs them.
And. I want her to stop picking her nose and eating it.
Oh if only that were my only concern.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Talking to Goddie
My daughter has an imaginary friend. Well, two actually but for now we'll focus on Goddie (sounds like gawdy). She was just in the bathroom talking to Goddie.
She was telling he/she that he/she could go and stamp while she was in the potty.
"Go ahead" she yelled. As though Goddie were in the dining room with me.
It's odd really. I don't particularly care for her pretend friends. They are always telling her she can't do something or have something and they have on more than one occasion, contradicted me.
And Maya seems to listen to them.
I am not at all sure what to make of this. Tim thinks it's funny that she chose Goddie as a name.
We don't talk about God in our home. We don't pray. Jesus Christ is just a curse I feel okay saying in front of my 3 year old.
Yesterday when I was leaving daycare the new teacher told Maya to be a good girl.
"Go home, eat dinner, have a bath, and pray and go to bed."
I wasn't sure what upset me more, her conviction that we pray (because clearly everyone does) or the fact that she assumes that we give our children baths every night...
But Maya is sick. And when I called in to check on her, I got one of the daycare owners on the phone, by chance. And so I mentioned it. Assuring her that I was not at all angry, I just wanted her to mention it to the teacher so that I didn't have to worry about her talking about God and religion to my child.
And here's the thing.
I am not at all angry. I am sure that there will be many more instances when people assume things about me, my daughter, and my family (like the common mistake that we are all Italian). I just want to let my daughter make these choices by herself, when she is ready. I want her to go to temple with her jewish friends(one of my favorite religions by the way), and Christmas mass with her Catholic friends, or celebrate with her muslim friends (first she'll need to make some). I want her to explore and learn on her own.
I want her to realize that I am not making this decision for her. I want to guide her as little as I can while she is still so young that she takes everything I say as gospel (forgive the pun).
I don't want to say things like "well we don't believe in praying".
And I know that I am over analyzing this and that everyone, every person, finds their own path here, in their own way. And I know that I can have high hopes for my daughter and her quest for knowledge. And maybe it won't matter. And maybe she won't care.
Or maybe she'll learn what I did.
No matter what the religion, it is the people that matter. Whether you are a good christian, muslim, jew, or other, you must first be a good person.
That is what I want to raise.
(oh and I would like her to be happy, healthy, well adjusted and like me enough when she is out of the house to call at least once a week...)
She was telling he/she that he/she could go and stamp while she was in the potty.
"Go ahead" she yelled. As though Goddie were in the dining room with me.
It's odd really. I don't particularly care for her pretend friends. They are always telling her she can't do something or have something and they have on more than one occasion, contradicted me.
And Maya seems to listen to them.
I am not at all sure what to make of this. Tim thinks it's funny that she chose Goddie as a name.
We don't talk about God in our home. We don't pray. Jesus Christ is just a curse I feel okay saying in front of my 3 year old.
Yesterday when I was leaving daycare the new teacher told Maya to be a good girl.
"Go home, eat dinner, have a bath, and pray and go to bed."
I wasn't sure what upset me more, her conviction that we pray (because clearly everyone does) or the fact that she assumes that we give our children baths every night...
But Maya is sick. And when I called in to check on her, I got one of the daycare owners on the phone, by chance. And so I mentioned it. Assuring her that I was not at all angry, I just wanted her to mention it to the teacher so that I didn't have to worry about her talking about God and religion to my child.
And here's the thing.
I am not at all angry. I am sure that there will be many more instances when people assume things about me, my daughter, and my family (like the common mistake that we are all Italian). I just want to let my daughter make these choices by herself, when she is ready. I want her to go to temple with her jewish friends(one of my favorite religions by the way), and Christmas mass with her Catholic friends, or celebrate with her muslim friends (first she'll need to make some). I want her to explore and learn on her own.
I want her to realize that I am not making this decision for her. I want to guide her as little as I can while she is still so young that she takes everything I say as gospel (forgive the pun).
I don't want to say things like "well we don't believe in praying".
And I know that I am over analyzing this and that everyone, every person, finds their own path here, in their own way. And I know that I can have high hopes for my daughter and her quest for knowledge. And maybe it won't matter. And maybe she won't care.
Or maybe she'll learn what I did.
No matter what the religion, it is the people that matter. Whether you are a good christian, muslim, jew, or other, you must first be a good person.
That is what I want to raise.
(oh and I would like her to be happy, healthy, well adjusted and like me enough when she is out of the house to call at least once a week...)
Friday, August 17, 2007
To Do Lists
So I am proud to say that I have been ticking items off of my to-do list like a mad woman lately. And boy am I tired.
My tire that I have been putting off taking to the shop did indeed have a nail in it. Fixed. My duvet managed to make it off my bed and to the laundromat. It is now sweet smelling and clean. I sent off the massive amounts of paper I needed to compile to change my name on my passport in time for my trip to Mexico. What a Pain in the Ass (but I am SO sure it will be worth it)!
I am traveling a LOT. And not all for business so I am partially to blame for the state of my home and the fact that I have thrown out more of my CSA vegetables than I have eaten this year...
BUT
This week I chaperoned my first school event and got the pleasure of spending two hours in a movie theater with my daughter and her friends. I will chaperon again. I loved the extra time with her. And she was giddy that I was a part of her field trip.
We had an opportunity for some more mom and Maya time last night.
Let me first say that I love musicals. They are a part of my make up. My parents took me to see Annie when I was approx 7 and I have been hooked ever since. I love the fantasy and the production. I marvel at the lyrics, the costumes, the lights. I listen to the soundtracks and sing along when ever no one is listening, and sometimes when they are. So, one of my "first chance I get" things I wanted to do with my daughter (and really so that I will have someone to go with) was to take her to a musical.
So we went to a Summer Stage production of Seussical the Musical last night.
At first she was a little scared. She covered her ears and asked to sit on my lap. And I have to admit that there were A LOT of kids on that stage. It was a little intimidating. But she was clapping after every song and smiling along with the production as it moved on it's merry way. I am betting that she didn't understand most of what was going on but she seemed to be having fun.
Because I love musicals I want Maya to like them too. Not with any kind of desperation, but in a wouldn't it be nice kind of way. Or at least that's what I thought.
Until about 45 minutes into the play when she tugged on my sleeve, her eyes still fixed on the stage, and whispered:
"mommy can I do that when I get bigger?"
And I got teary.
Such a drama queen.
My tire that I have been putting off taking to the shop did indeed have a nail in it. Fixed. My duvet managed to make it off my bed and to the laundromat. It is now sweet smelling and clean. I sent off the massive amounts of paper I needed to compile to change my name on my passport in time for my trip to Mexico. What a Pain in the Ass (but I am SO sure it will be worth it)!
I am traveling a LOT. And not all for business so I am partially to blame for the state of my home and the fact that I have thrown out more of my CSA vegetables than I have eaten this year...
BUT
This week I chaperoned my first school event and got the pleasure of spending two hours in a movie theater with my daughter and her friends. I will chaperon again. I loved the extra time with her. And she was giddy that I was a part of her field trip.
We had an opportunity for some more mom and Maya time last night.
Let me first say that I love musicals. They are a part of my make up. My parents took me to see Annie when I was approx 7 and I have been hooked ever since. I love the fantasy and the production. I marvel at the lyrics, the costumes, the lights. I listen to the soundtracks and sing along when ever no one is listening, and sometimes when they are. So, one of my "first chance I get" things I wanted to do with my daughter (and really so that I will have someone to go with) was to take her to a musical.
So we went to a Summer Stage production of Seussical the Musical last night.
At first she was a little scared. She covered her ears and asked to sit on my lap. And I have to admit that there were A LOT of kids on that stage. It was a little intimidating. But she was clapping after every song and smiling along with the production as it moved on it's merry way. I am betting that she didn't understand most of what was going on but she seemed to be having fun.
Because I love musicals I want Maya to like them too. Not with any kind of desperation, but in a wouldn't it be nice kind of way. Or at least that's what I thought.
Until about 45 minutes into the play when she tugged on my sleeve, her eyes still fixed on the stage, and whispered:
"mommy can I do that when I get bigger?"
And I got teary.
Such a drama queen.
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