Looking for a ride

Today it has rained all day and rained hard. I am waiting for the Noah and his boat to come by and pick us up.


Today was not a great day and the rain has made it just that much worse. We went to take Horse Girl her riding lessons this morning. We pulled into the barn parking lot and there was a firetruck and an ambulance. Turns out one of Horse Girl's instructors were hit/kicked/stepped on by one of the horses. We got there just as she was being put into the ambulance. She looked like she was ok, she was totally strapped down which looked worse then I bet it was, but when it comes to being hurt by a horse you can never be to careful. So positive thoughts for her if you will.

Horse Girl has fallen off a horse twice in the 4 years she has ridden. Which might sounds like a lot, but she hasn't been hurt, she knows how to fall plus one time her instructor caught her in midair so she never hit the ground. *knock on wood that she is never hurt* Horse Girl when she is a teenager wants the job that the instructor who was hurt has now, she would be good at it. Seeing the instructor all strapped down has made nervous about her having this job in the future. It is one of those things that I just have to let it go.

Also to make this day not so great is my father went up to see his mom. It is looking like she will die very soon. The doctors don't think she will wake up again. She is on a morphine drip right now. She has not had all her senses for sometime so it is a good thing that her life is coming to an end. She has lived longer then she would have wanted to live if she had had control of it. This is my grandmother who married Fly Guy and myself. When he and I were planning our wedding we didn't go to church and we wanted to get married in a historic Puritan meeting house so my grandmother did all the paperwork she needed to be able to perform the ceremony. So even though I have already mourned my grandmother, the person who married us....the person who sang Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer with History Girl, it sad to see her go even though I know the time for her to go has long past.

I see Noah and his ark pulling up right now. So better get going.

A Quick Post to forfill NaBloPoMo :-)

I should have something deeper to post today, but I just don't have it. Thursdays are always my sort of crazy days. Horse Girl has gymnastics until 6:45pm so I don't get home until late. Luckily Fly Guy got home and made dinner. It is always better when he makes dinner because he is a much better cook than I am. I need a recipe and he doesn't. I think I need a recipe because having spent a good amount of my time growing up playing with a chemistry set and then in a chem lab in high school and college, I get nervous deviating from a prescribed recipe. If you change stuff in a chemisty experament bad things can happen so I just can't do it. Which might be the reason I am more of a baker then a cook. Baking is all about the chemistry while cooking is an art form that I just don't get. Well, I should get my swimming stuff together for my morning swim and I promise something deeper for tomorrow. Maybe more stuff about Russia...I have been enjoying looking at my photos from my trip when I was 17...maybe cover a bit about Leningrad. I have some great photos of The Alexander Column and the story of the creation of that monument is amazing. ;-)

Soviet Print

I have been busy today so I just remembered I needed to make my post for today if I am going to do Nablopomo I need to post something quickly.

We have been working on remodeling the upstairs bathroom for awhile now. Doing it DIY always takes forever.

I finally bought some frames for some prints that I want to put up of course I can't find one of the prints, now that I found the frame.

This image is the other print I am putting up in the bathroom. It is a 1921 USSR propaganda poster that says:

"May 1st, In good health on the holiday of the workers in all countries" or something like that. This has been one of my favorite prints for a long time because it is a classic combination of the traditional Russian celebrations and the then modern Soviet belief system. It reminds me of how they say that Jesus Christ was really born in the Spring, but Christmas was moved to the Winter Solstice in order to either a) avoid persecution of early Christians or b) gain more followers. Here they are combining the traditional Russia Spring celebration with the modern Soviet workers' holiday, in order to gain acceptance in the same sort of way. So any how now it is hanging in my bathroom. :-)

What we are watching

Over Somewhere in The Suburbs she talks about her love of her DVR, she talks about the shows she is watching and she asks what other people are watching.

First of all I thought I should share that just over a year ago we bought an Apple TV. When we did that we got rid of cable TV. When then created an iTunes account for our TV and we put an allowance on that account that is equal to what we were spending on cable and then we use that money to buy the shows we want to watch off of iTunes. It has worked really well.

First of all no comercals at all. Second of all, it has taught both girls a bit about budgeting. Horse Girl when we had cable would watch whatever was on the Disney Channel at the time and not think much about it. Now that she knows that she is paying money for an episode she has stopped watching trashy TV like Hanna Montana or the Suite Life. She now spends her TV time watching Mythbusters and How It's Made. So to me those two things are the best reason for making that change.

What I am watching this year....well still watching Bones...I love that show and so does History Girl...we have enough of those episodes bought that we watch one episode a night with History Girl and we really enjoy it.

I am trying out watching Three Rivers I am not sold on it, but it is the best of the three new medical drama out there. So I will watch it for a bit and see where it takes me.

We are also liking The Big Bang Theory a lot. Now this is were getting shows from iTunes is a problem. They are two seasons behind on The Big Bang Theory, so we watched season one from iTunes when the girls' doctor recomended it to History Girl and we loved it so much I bought season two on DVD. Don't ask me what we are going to do once we are done with season two. Don't have a plan there yet. :-)

Also I am still watching Numb3rs. I love having a show about a math guy helping the FBI.

Ok hmm....well if you look closely at what I watch it is all about geeks and nerds....hmmm...I wonder if that means something. :-)

Oh wait I am also watching the last season of Monk. I am really hoping he finds out who killed his wife by the end of this season.

So that is about all I watch, if a friend says they likes a show I will watch a few. For example I have tried out Glee which is ok, just a little odd for my tastes, but it I am in the mood I will watch it. I also watch things that iTunes offers for free to get you hooked, they normally offer one episode a week of something for example they offered The Good Wife and Modern Family which I downloaded both, but have watched neither figuring I will have something to watch if I am bored and don't feel like spending the money on something new. Who knows I might get hooked on one and then I can download the episodes as needed.

Honest Scrap Award

Over at the Trees and Flowers and Birds! she tagged all the August Moms with the Honest Scrap Award a bit a go in hopes of that some of the Moms who let their blogs get dusty would dust them off and do something.

“When you get the Honest Scrap award, you are meant to grace your readers with 10 honest things about yourself, and then pass on the award to other blog friends who write honestly and truly about themselves and events in their life."

1. I am an introvert. I even need to be away from Fly Guy once and awhile or I feel overwhelmed. This might be why I like swimming so much because it is like a sensory deprivation chamber I am with my own thoughts and I like that.

2. I rather have loud music, then caffeine to wake me up. I can't stand the early morning swimmers who have coffee on their breath it just makes my stomach flip.

3. I have to really trust someone to be able to share an opinion with them. I rather let someone think I have no opinion than have an argument over points of view. Yes I am very much a wimp when it comes to that.

4. I view myself as a Mainer before I view myself as a US citizen.

5. I don't like my life that much right now. I want a real paying 9 to 5 type job, but I am still needed to help the girls with their learning differences. I have all the time in the world to have that sort of job not much time left to make sure the girls have learned what they need to know about themselves and their differences before they head out in to the world.

6. When I retire I want to either work as a Ferry Boat pilot at Walt Disney World or one of their VIP trip planning people.

7. I am scared that I am going to live a long time like all the women in my family and not have anyone to live it with. Fly Guy's family tend to die young and since I am antisocial and an introvert I have trouble making friends.

8. I have found a bar in Maine I like. I love the older gay men that hang out there. There is one table I really like to sit at when I eat there. It is in the corner so I can see everything that is going on. I really like to people watch, maybe because if I watch people enough I can figure out how to be social. ;-)

9. I really really do not understand British comedy I really just don't get it....I don't laugh, I just look at it really really puzzled.

10. With all the good and bad stuff in my life, I wouldn't change a bit of it.

When Love Doesn't Overcome All

When I was reading the aftermath of Vote No on One results in the Portland Press Herald I saw this photo taken by Gregory Rec, who takes wonderful photos for the Press Herald. I looked at this photo and it brought me to tears. Can you just imagine the whispers between this couple. The dreams that they had that aren't going to happen because Yes on One won. That people other then themselves have a say in their future. Can you imagine the disappointment and the heaviness in their hearts when it was announced that referendum one passed. It is just not fair.

History Girl whose two best friends are gay males, has decided that the next time this comes to a vote she will do all a teenager can do, because she doesn't think it is right that her best friends might not have a chance to marry when they are adults.

Horse Girl was worried this morning when she heard the outcome. She was worried about one of her classmate who has two moms, she was concerned that this outcome might mean that this classmate's moms couldn't live together and his family was going to be torn apart. We explained that isn't what is going to happen. Turns out when I talked to one of the moms today she said their youngest had the same worry.


There is a selfish reason I wanted No on One to pass, I rather Maine not be viewed as a backwards, backwoods, hick sort of state. I thought if No on One passed people would see the Maine I know and love. Well maybe next time, there will be a next and most likely sooner then later.

Tales of The Red Panda: The Crime Cabal

Awhile back I wrote about one of my favorite podcasts, The Red Panda Adventures by Decoder Ring Theatre. Gregg Taylor the writer and owner of The Red Panda came out with with a Red Panda book written in the tradition of the 1930's and 1940's pulp adventure magazines, titled Tales of The Red Panda: The Crime Cabal. I placed a pre-order for the book...well two copies of the book....sometime in August. It finally showed up last week. I read it in less then 24 hours....the only other time I have done that is with the Harry Potter books....with my learning differences reading takes a lot of effort and it tires me so it has to be a good book for me to read it that quickly and not notice getting tired from it.

The book covers the time between the first season and second season. It fills in some of the background that is hard to put in an audio show. It tells the story of how one of my favorite Agents of the Red Panda became an agent. Since it is written in a third person omniscient narrator style, we get a peek into the minds of the Red Panda and the Flying Squirrel, which was nice.

I can't write too much about the book, because all the people who placed a pre-order haven't gotten their books so I have to keep quiet about it. It was a book that was well worth the wait. Thank you Gregg for such a great treat and I hope there will be more to come.

Here is more info about "Tales of The Red Panda: The Crime Cabal."
Here is a link to Decoder Ring Theatre if you are going on a long car trip or something like that their podcasts are great to listen to then.

Facebook Meme

I stole this from Trees and flowers and birds!

Guidelines:
1. Put your iTunes or Windows Media Player on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your next answer.
3. You must write that song name down no matter how outrageous it sounds!
4. Tag friends who might enjoy doing the game as well as the person you got the note from.

IF SOMEONE SAYS, “IS THIS OKAY” YOU SAY?
“Alabama Song (Whiskey Bar)” by The Doors I have no idea what that would mean. :-)


WHAT WOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY?
“Sugar Magnolia” by Greateful Dead “She pays my ticket when I speed.” I could be like Sugar Magnolia, a good partner in a relationship paying speeding tickets, dancing a Cajan rhythm, and discovering the wonders of nature. I have no idea. :-)


WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL?
“Mack the Knife” by Ella Fitzgerald I know what that means....I like a person who can think on their feet and that really discribes Fly Guy. In this version Ella forgets the words to the song and like any good jazz singer she makes it up without losing a beat and that is why I love her as a singer. Fly Guy always is able to think on his feet in a way that I can and I admire him when it comes to that.

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE’S PURPOSE?
“Five Feet High and Rising” by Johnny Cash Life’s Purpose....well maybe get out of a tough spot and help other people out. I have no idea...I am reaching. :-)

WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?
“Sychronicity II” by The Police Well The Police have been my favorate band since about 1981 or 1982. But I do believe that there is a synchronicity and something just are ment to happen in they way the do. There is just a synchronicity in how and when events happen and you might now know why at the time but sooner or later it will all become clear and that it happened for a reason.

WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
“Space Oddity” by David Bowie I am not sure how I feel about that ...either they think I am odd or that I am a depressed astronaut. hmmm...not sure how to take that :-)


WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT OFTEN?
(“Darlin’) You Know I Love You” by Tina Turner I do think about Fly Guy often and he would be the only person in my life I would think about calling “Darlin’” and it is unlikely I would even call him that.


WHAT IS 2+2?
“Mama Kin” by Aerosmith If anyone has something to connect these please tell me.


WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND?
“The Figure 11” by The Mother Hips I have no idea with this one either.

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LOVE?
“Beer for My Horses” by Willie Nelson Fly Guy has a stong sence of right and wrong and he will fight to the end to get what is right. The people that stand by him and support him he treats well giving Wiskey to his men and beer to their horses...well figurtivly I think Horse Girl would be upset if he gave horses beer.



WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
“Green Suede Shoes” by Black 47 I have no idea what this has to do with my life story except it is fun to play very loud and dance around the kitchen to. :-) The song is more or less about a Hard Irish Rock band making it through the US. ...that is the watered down version. :-)


WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?
“Tempted” by Squeeze Hmmmm....I think I am going to just leave this one be.


WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LOVE?
“Come Together” by Peanut Butter Disco Hmmm...I will leave that one be also.



WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?
“Sad and Deep As You” by Traffic Not even close to the song we danced to at our wedding, but we did listen to a lot of Traffic and Blind Faith (the two bands share two musicians) when we first were dating. We requested that “Can’t Find My Way Home” by Blind Fairth be played at our wedding, but they wouldn’t do it during the dancing part only the eating.


WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
“If I Ever Leave this World Alive” by Flogging Molly Accually I have always figured this is a song that will be played at Fly Guys wake. A lot Irish beer and wiskey flowing and some hard Irish Music.


WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
“Living in The Past” by Jethro Tull Well this is just too good. Being a person who loves reading History books...so in a way my hobby is living in the past.


WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
“What A Wonderful World” by Joey Romone That my friends make my life a wonderful world, but in order to be my friend they have to be a little different so that is why it is Joey Romone rather then Louis Armstong. :-)


WHAT’S THE WORST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN?
“Empty Bed Blues” by Beasie Smith Well that says a lot....something happening to Fly Guy and him not being around is one of the worst thing that could happen, but I won’t say it is the worst thing that could happen because the worst thing is always something you didn’t think of.


HOW WILL YOU DIE?
“House Burning Down” by The Jimi Hendrix Experince The last two have been too freaky.


WHAT IS THE ONE THING YOU REGRET?
“The Big Race” by Mark Isham The fact I didn’t swim in enough big swim meets when I was growing up? Your guess is as good as mine.

WHAT MAKES YOU LAUGH?
“”Permanent Waves” by The Kinks Well the thought of my hair curly is a bit of a laugh plus the lyrics to many Kniks songs are so funny.

WHAT MAKES YOU CRY?
“Solsbury Hill” by Peter Gabriel Well I guess in a way it does I once had a good friend who loved Peter Gabriel, so all Peter Gabriel’s songs remind me of her and the thought of a friendship dieing is sad.

WILL YOU EVER GET MARRIED?
“I’d Wait a Million Years” by The Grass Roots If I wasn’t already married this would be the perfect answer.

WHAT SCARES YOU THE MOST?
“Hot Rich Girls Dropped in a Grange (Gwen Stefani vs Snoop Dogg vs ZZ Top) by Torero (This is a mashup that is when someone takes a bunch of songs and take them apart and put them together in a new way that is suprisingly good a lot of times.)

If I knew how Hot Rich Girls are being dropped in a Grange it would scare me.


DOES ANYONE LIKE YOU?
“Beach Party Vietnam” by The Dead Milkmen Hmm...that is interesting I have a whole beach party that likes me.

What's your word

Your Word is "Peace"

You see life as precious, and you wish everyone was safe, happy, and taken care of. Social justice, human rights, and peace for all nations are all important to you. While you can't stop war, you try to be as calm and compassionate as possible in your everyday life. You promote harmony and cooperation. You're always willing to meet someone a little more than halfway.

What's Your Word?

Excited

History Girl has wanted to switch from French Horn to precusion for awhile now and today she had her try out to see if she could make the switch. The band director couldn't believe how far History Girl came in 3 months. History Girl is much happier on the drums then she was on the French Horn she plays the drums for fun, she played the French Horn because she was one of the few who could do it. So because she finds it fun, we are going to continue private drum lessons as well as lessons at school. If I can get her in we will try to send her to band camp again, she is excited about that because precussion had a lot more fun in her eyes then the brass secsion did.

Oh a quick update on the Asperger's...the school has already called in a person they use to get a clearer diagnous. We haven't even had the meeting and they are right on top of it.

Have You Ever?

Have You Ever?

I stole this from Trees and flowers and birds!



1. Have you ever been on TV? Yes several times.

Once to talk about the pressure society puts on women to breastfeed. Since History Girl wasn’t able to breastfeed and even LLL members said there was a reason bottles were invented. Then Horse Girl breastfeed forever. I was viewed as a person who could see both sides.

Once about the importance of giving blood.

Once just before I did a polar bear dip on January 1st. They wanted to know what causes a seemingly normal person to jump in the ocean in the middle of a Maine Winter. The answer is it was there, it looked interesting and I am not one to back away from trying something just because it is odd.

2. Have you ever sung in public? Only when they made me in school.

3. Have you ever dyed your hair blond? A blond streak to make putting non-natural colors in my hair easier, but never 100% blond.

4. Have you ever eaten frogs’ legs? Nope never.

5. Have you ever received a present that you really hated? Yes. I had a friend who thought of herself as creative and she was in many different ways. She would make me gifts and well she was never able to made something in a style I liked. So every time she gave me a gift I was torn because I was pleased she cared about me enough to make me a gift, but it never seemed that she cared to make something I would like, just she was making that sort of thing at the time and she would just do one more and give it to me as a gift. After awhile the emotional struggle I had with every gift she made me just got so huge I hated all the gifts she made me. That might make me a bad person because I really disliked her handmade gifts....but anyone who knows me knows a pink batik of a cat framed in a acrylic box frame just isn’t me and she just didn’t care to get it.

6. Have you ever walked into a lamp post? No. Rode my bike in to a fence and flipped over the fence yes. :-)

7. Have you ever cooked a meal by yourself for more than 15 people? No, never by myself. Fly Guy is a much better cook then I am so I leave the big meals for him to do and I just help.

8. Have you ever fallen or stumbled in front of others? Does the day end in a y, if it does I most likely did it today.

9. Have you ever done volunteer work? Yes. Sexual Assault Response Services, Toy Fund, and in the girls school

Busy life

Well I have been busy. Too busy but it has been a good busy.

Horse Girl has really taken off with her reading. She is only a year behind right now. She is more advanced in math then we thought she surprised her teachers in being able to to do algebra. Her speech causes people to figure that she doesn't understand things. This test she took on the computer proved otherwise. So things have been good with her.

History Girl hit some speed bumps at the beginning of the school year and it caused us to really pin her down to get her work done and she now is doing a lot better. She got placed in Advanced Math this year and she has been holding her own which pleases me.

We had Thanksgiving yesterday and there were 13 people in our small house, but it was nice to be able to together. I have been working at a charitable toy fund again this year and it really makes me thankful that my family is doing as well as it is doing. Fly Guy had a couple deaths in him family this year, but even with that we are doing well....at least compared to many people in these crazy times. I am thankful for such a great husband, a loving, but crazy family and awesome friends especially the August Moms who listen to me and help me when needed.

For me the next 20+ days will be all out reading stories about how hard this year is for people finacally. It is hard reading it day after day 50 - 100 stories a day. If you want to check out this song by Johnny Cash. It is a song version of some of the stories I read every day. Hmmm....let's see a depressive personality, reading depressing stories during a season a lot of people fall into a deep depression....doesn't sound like a good combo. The fact I help get toys to well over 7000 kids every year is the only thing that keeps me going some days between October and December.

So I might not post again until the new year. Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Joyful Kwanzaa and Festive Yule and good whatever other holiday I am forgetting.

Omnivore’s Delight

I took this from Tales from the Testosterone Zone
I was worry about doing it because I admit I am fussy when it comes to food....in fact I am not really an omnivore....I eat fish and sometime poltry, but that is it when it comes to meat type things. I don't do coffee...tea is my thing....well really herbal tea...or the correct name tisane is my thing. I also rarely drink alchohol....I do drink mead, but that is about it. I am not as adventurous as a lot of people so I thought I would have a ton I wouldn't be willing to try.

The rules:

1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Optional extra: Post a comment here at www.verygoodtaste.co.uk linking to your results.

The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht - Had it many times when traveling in the USSR, won’t touch it in the US
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari - love it
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi - have trouble with indian food I puff up so will not do
15. Hot dog from a street cart - there used to be a great hot dog vender in Portland, served kosher hot dogs and he would blow a Shofar...I miss him
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes - very common up here in Maine blueberry wine and dandilion wine
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes - My parents grow them
22. Fresh wild berries - I live in Maine home of the wild blueberries and wild strawberries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper - maybe not a whole one but I would think about it
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava - Love it
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas - one of my favorte snacks
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl - Hello once again I point out I live in Maine you can’t swing a dead lobster without hitting some New England Clam Clowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi - see number 14
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat - see number 14
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more - Not like I haven’t had the chance Fly Guy has had plenty of good single malt whiskies floating around the house
46. Fugu - I would be tempted, but most likely my sane mind would kick in as with the Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel - eat it and realize I don’t like it and then I try it again and don’t like it...so I won’t eat it ever again because I keep trying it to make sure I still don’t like it
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut: don’t get the big hype about it
50. Sea urchin - Fly Guy tried it a couple time and just the smell and techture turned me off
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer - see #14
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal - gross
56. Spaetzle - I have never tried it, but will be trying it in November
57. Dirty gin martin
58. Beer above 8% ABV - another thing I had in the USSR, but don’t do in the US
59. Poutine - haven’t had it but would like to
60. Carob chips - People who don’t like carob, are normally who view it as a chocolate substitue, carob is something that needs to be it’s own thing and once you get to that point carob is good.
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads - someone needs to be threating to hurt a friend or family member before I am willing to eat
63. Kaolin - no idea what this is
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis - might try if I am touring Scotland after having a bottle of Whiskey
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini: Of course....it was the first thing I had when I was in the USSR they also had caviar served on boil egg halves which I didn’t like as much
73. Louche absinthe
74.Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill - might be in the same catigory as the Sweetbreads
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong - I don’t like it I think this is the one that smels like burning tires
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict- Not Eggs Benedict with ham, but with veggies and seafood :-9
83. Pocky - love Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse- never ever ever
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam never have had it and never will
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor - rather have my lobster striaght up
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

Ok I have voted....now leave me alone

Fly Guy and I are going on vacation the week of Election Day, for the cool honeymoon we never really had. (We went camping on our first honeymoon and it rained the whole time so we went home early. At least we know now that our rainy honeymoon wasn't a sign of a bad marriage to come.) So being good little American Citizens we got our absentee ballot and I have filled it in and it is already to go to the City Clerk's Office.....I might just drop it off rather then mail it in order to make sure it gets there safely. So any way...I have no voted. I don't care to hear any more political ads or anything like that. Just leave me alone.

Remembering

Today is a day of remembering. It is easier when the sky isn't the same as that bright blue sky that it was in 2001. I remember that it was History Girl's third day of Kindergarten. I remember dropping her off she loved going to school. I remember it recycling day so the bins were out front and I went out to get them after the truck came by picking up the recycling. Horse Girl who was 18 months old at the time had fallen asleep on the living room floor, so I log on the the computer and talk to a friend who at the time lived outside of NYC. She told me to turn on the TV. I am grateful that Horse Girl took a long nap that morning so I could follow the news. I started watching right after the first plane hit, and Horse Girl napped long enough that I got to see and hear about all the other planes. I remember the first tower collapsing and thinking about all the people still in the building...then thinking about how NYC skyline that I always knew has changed permanently....I didn't realize then how true that was. I remember wanting to go get History Girl from school, but didn't because that was irrational desire. I knew we were in Maine and more or less safe, so I left her in school....that was before I found out two of the terrorists stayed the night on the other side of town and they flew out of the airport that I use when fly in and out of Portland. I also remember how quiet the everything was. We live under a flight path to the Portland airport so I normally hear a plane or two every hour, but the next few days there was just disturbing quiet. I remember my father coming to visit the next couple evenings. Since he works at a newspaper those days were very stressful for him and he needed to relax.

This was the first 9-11 that I didn't have flashbacks of the events of that day. I think it is because school started early this year. For the past 7 years I have tied the start of school with the events of 9-11-2001. The year Horse Girl started Kindergarten was really bad because there was a lot of thing that were just like when History Girl started Kindergarten that brought back memories.

This evening I read "The Man Who Walked Between The Towers" to Horse Girl. I like the book because it is a nice tribute to the twin towers that is overwhelmingly sad. Horse Girl asked me why the towers weren't there any more and I told her and we talked for quite awhile. She really has an amazing amount of empathy for people and she really showed it when we talked.

Tales from the Testosterone Zone, asks "Where were you on September 11, 2001? How has it affected your life?" Well I answered where was I. How it has affected me....well I am not sure. It has affected how I view back to school. It has made air travel much more of a pain then it ever was before. It helped me discover how much I like train travel....so much more civilized. I used to watch the news, now I read about it because it is easier to walk away if it gets too overwhelming, though it is a lot harder to read the news for me because of my LDs, but it is just better for me now....so I feel like I am not as well informed about things as I once was, but now with RSS feeds I feel like that is changing quickly.

So that is my where and how.

Finally the cliff hanger is over

I have posted about the Red Panda before. The last episode on May 17, 2008, left a huge cliff hanger....well today was the first episode of the season. My whole family was up and listening to it by 8am. :-) I could said it was worth the wait. ;-) Just in case someone else cares here is the link to the episode and here is the link to Decoder Ring Theatre. Their shows are well worth it.

another quiz

I stole this quiz from Trees and Flowers and Birds...she got the same result....maybe that is why we get along so well. :-)

Your result for The Perception Personality Image Test...

NFPC - The Artist

Nature, Foreground, Big Picture, and Color

You perceive the world with particular attention to nature. You focus on what’s in front of you (the foreground) and how that fits into the larger picture. You are also particularly drawn towards the colors around you. Because of the value you place on nature, you tend to find comfort in more subdued settings and find energy in solitude. You like to deal directly with whatever comes your way without dealing with speculating possibilities or outcomes you can’t control. You are in tune with all that is around you and understand your life as part of a larger whole. You are a down-to-earth person who enjoys going with the flow.

What sort of Olympic sport are you?

All I want to say to this is "No duh!" I could tell them that. I was either triathlon or swimming. ;-) Love the extreme stuff...love pushing myself....so no duh!

You Are Triathlon

In one word, you are simply amazing. Super competent, super driven, and super skilled - you bring a lot to the table. You rise to any challenge, and you enjoy challenging yourself.

What Olympic Sport Are You?

History Girl

I need to post this about History Girl. This happened last week, but I have been too busy to post. This explains why she is called History Girl and not something else.

Well one day last week History Girl and her best friend were hanging out and asked if they could go wander around. I said yes as long as she took her cell phone. We live in Maine and non-custodial child abdution is unheard of so History Girl has a lot of freedom. It is the major reason we live in Maine rather then some other place. I get a call from History Girl at about 2:30pm saying that her friend's mom will drive her home at 4:30 or so. I asked her where she was. I hear in the background her friend trying to get her to lie. She tells me the truth that she was in Portland....less then 5 miles from our house. I tell her no problem I am glad she told me the truth, but I rather she had told me before she went across the bridge. Now...what do you think might cause two 12 year olds to walk that far. If you said shopping....you would be wrong. History Girl wanted to go to Victoria Mansion. It is a historical house in Downtown Portland.....Portland has a lot of historical houses, but Victoria Mansion stands apart in that it has all the original furniture also, so it is very much like stepping back in time. So any 12 year old who wanders off to go tour a historical house....deserves the name History Girl.

I has to be the pink hair

Well all my friends are reporting their scores and they are all low scores except for Somewhere in the Suburbs. I personally don't know many 1930s wives with a streak of hot pink hair and who go barefoot 95% of the time. I don't cook well and I am terrible with keeping up with the housework. It has to be because faithful and true to my husband and tries to learn about his work and help him when possible.

78 As a 1930s wife, I am Very Superior Take the test!