Doctor, Doctor

Great. I have strep throat. Good thing I finally went to the doctor's. FANtastic.

Wordless Wednesday 8 8 07

My favorite basket.

J.O.B.

Please excuse the random randomness of this post.



Millie is on week 10 of daycare. For 7 of those weeks, she has been sick. Two ear infections for her. Fevers of 104 and beyond. One ear infection lasting 6 weeks for my husband. One sore throat lasting 9 weeks for me. One stomach virus resulting in vomiting for her and the double whammy for me. However, she is FINALLY not crying for 8 of her 10 hours there. I hear she's actually smiling and playing and sharing food with her friends. It's a wondrous thing.


I have another interview on Friday for a professional position. It's in Rhode Island, where I got my undergraduate degree and have most of my preservation experience. I have a distinct feeling that they have someone in mind for the position already, but I feel like I have to apply. If I could write my own job description, it's pretty darned close to what I'd wish for. It's in a state I absolutely love, love, love. It's working with phenomenal people. It's a higher level position than I have ever held, but one I can do. Let's see if I can not blow this interview, too. I got a jacket for the interview at Kohl's for $13.50 marked down from $120.00!!!! SWEET!!!!! Too bad it's supposed to be in the 90s on Friday. In the city. Sweaty applicant, anyone?

Had a great day yesterday. I dropped off the husband at his parents' house to do some heavy lifting. Millie and I cruised to Mystic to meet my BFF (http://jessica213.blogspot.com/) and her unbelievably cool mother, who is like a second mom to me. I haven't seen them since November for a myriad of reasons, but I miss them like crazy every day. I have a ton of people who I regret my daughter not having daily exposure to, but they are two high on the list. They didn't get to see my little Animal in her natural habitat, and she was still under the weather and a bit mellow, but they both got a smile out of her. Animal actually SLEPT through lunch at a noisy restaurant while I got to eat. With both hands. And TALK like an adult. It was amazing. I got to be social. To be a friend. To be out among people. I splurged and bought a $13 shell cuff from a Tibetan jewelry shop and promptly felt horribly guilty. If I were closer, I'd bring it back. After lunch, Animal and I went back to my in-laws. She was a gem. Walked from her daddy to me, cruised like a speed demon around the furniture. Had her first steak while her mommy had a THREE pound lobster. Unreal. We miraculously hit no traffic or rain (unusual) on the way home. It was a late night on a work night (how old AM I?), but it was a strangely relaxing day. For once.

I should get to bed. It's late and I'm exhausted. Don't I end all my posts lately like that?

Wordless Wednesday 7 24 07

The butterfly flew away just after I took this picture. Curse my slow camera.

Down By the Sea

I am a total music whore. Junkie. Addict. I used to be up on new music. I am now old and busy, but I have my brothers to keep me current. However, my faithful music taste remains pretty mundane, I have to admit. One of my favorite movies is High Fidelity, and I, too, am obsessed with lists. Specifically, lists of music. As I sit listening to my iPod at work, gazing out upon the summer sun and missing being in the field, I think about my favorite summertime songs. I feel compelled to share. This is a short list, certainly not in order or exhaustive. Some of them are painfully obvious. Please add yours. My second obsession is grilling people on their own musical tastes.

1. Summertime by Janis Joplin. Man, what is better than hearing her gravelly, pained voice singing about coming alive? You can hear the humidity drip off her while she sings.

2. Under the Boardwalk by John Mellencamp (the live version)-First of all, I love anything live from John Mellencamp. I can smell the ocean and taffy. The back-up singers and harmonies are incredibly fun and it makes me want to go to the Jersey Shore. And that's quite a feat, let me just tell you.

3. America by Simon & Garfunkle (the Concert in Central Park version)-This might seem like a strange choice, but hear me out. When I was a kid, I used to go to Maine with my Nana and Pop for a few weeks in the summer. I literally lived for those three weeks all year long. I just about crawled out of my seat at the first sight of the ocean on the way there; I can tell you the exact moment you can get a glimpse of the sea on Route 1A. I cried most of the way home silently in the front seat every year. The summer the Concert album came out, I listened to the cassette on my walkman over and over and over again to the point of snapping the tape. If I close my eyes, I can feel the trailer we stayed in, hear the roar of the ocean I relished in while I was supposed to be sound asleep, smell the fragrance of my mom's parents. The song also tells the tale of travel, something everyone should do in the summertime.

4. Here Comes the Sun by The Beatles-Legend has it, George Harrison wrote this song while hanging out with Eric Clapton in his garden. Everyone should be required to listen to this song in early May or so, just as the weather is starting to turn and the summer is blossoming. It is a song of renewal and peace. It brings tears to my eyes. I listened to it the day my daughter came into this world. It will always be one of my favorites.

5. Tenth Avenue Freeze Out by Bruce Springsteen-I am an eastern Pennsylvania girl, from a town bordering Jersey. Springsteen is the only thing in the world that makes me want to be from the Garden State. Hearing this song confirms it. The heat, transistor radio blaring from the open window, being stifled. The song really isn't about summer per se, but it reminds me of being a kid in PA, sitting on the floor of my older brother's room, rifling through his record collection, being amazed with Springsteen, and this song standing out. It's also tremendous live. And I always equate live music with summertime.

I had ten songs jotted down, but the list is in the bedroom where my husband and daughter are currently sleeping. I am going to go join them. Maybe I'll bore you with the other five next time. Go listen to your favorite song and if you feel so inclined, let me know what sounds like summer to you.

Wordless Wednesday 7 18 07

Our first product from the back porch garden. So tasty. And so pretty.

Summertime

I apologize once again for the long hiatus. Millie has been sick for over two weeks, which transformed into an ear infection. I don't want to see a fever on my baby girl again for a long long time. She was absolutely pathetic and I felt absolutely useless. My poor little pumpkin. She's starting to feel better, thank God.

She came down with it right before we journeyed to Maryland for a family vacation we gave to my parents for Christmas. My poor husband did, too. We had one good day of vacation and then the two of them were miserable, but good sports. I sat up with her on the couch every night so she could breathe, thinking about family, summer, and how good my life is. More on that when I can form a more coherent thought. This is the clan.

Wordless Wednesday 7/12/2007

This just in. Newly released photos of Nick Nolte as a child. Apparently the mug shot below was not his first run-in with a bad hair day.