Monday, September 29, 2003
QUITCHOR JIBBER-JABBER, timmy tenor
i finally broke out my talking mr. t keychain today.
this kitty-in-the-closet is killing me. i feel so awful being out here in the living room when she's in the closet. i even feel better just being in the bedroom. at least that way she can feel that she's around other people, the way i felt comforted by the sounds of neighbors when i lived in the little studio in the 'hood. today, i put a sylvia mcnair cd (french art songs) on repeat, because she likes sylvia.
she's going back to the vet tomorrow. i just want to be sure that she's actually getting better. i'm hoping they'll say "oh hey the pinkeye is gone," because that would mean i can free her, because i can just put the antibiotic in her food. it's the eye stuff.
i know, i've said that before.
other than that, i pigged out after school
chocolate soy milk
chocolate ensure plus
apple and peanut butter
kudos bar and milk
and then i had a really good voice lesson.
okay i'm moving into the bedroom now so i can be near my lucy. good night.
Sunday, September 28, 2003
i am smitten
[with my kitten]
i'm the real thing
i'm not sure kitty is doing much better. i think her eyes are getting better, but i think she should be sounding less congested at this point. being a first time "parent," we're probably going to be a pain in the vet's bee-hind.
we're both really tired today. i was up late friday night (just because), and then couldn't sleep saturday morning. then this morning, at 6:10 am (my weekday wake up time), lucy figured out how to open the closet doors. i said "forget it. let her hide under the bed, i'm going back to sleep." but i couldn't really. her playing didn't help. pouncing on things, knocking over the soda can i left there last night...she was just generally acting the fool. so i gave up at about 8:30 and tried to feed her, but she knew better than to go into the closet. eventually i gave up and left the room so she could eat in peace--the last thing i need is for her to refuse her antibiotic-spiked science diet.
eventually, she wandered out of the bedroom, and we closed the door behind her. after chasing her behind the couch three times and the piano twice, and getting yelled at by sean, i got her in a corner in the kitchen. so in the now-reinforced closet she'll stay until...friday? hopefully by then we can stop with the eye ointment.
in other-pet news, i spoke to both bobo and salma today, and i think they were very happy to hear from me. i'm now counting down the days until i get to see them.
eighty-eight. sigh.
Saturday, September 27, 2003
my dear lucia
i'm lazy. this comes from a letter to k. it's what is on my mind today.
my poor kitty. she's really sick. we couldn't get her to take her medicine, and now she doesn't trust us at all. she has to take amoxicillin for a BAD upper respiratory thing (her lungs are even sounding bad, and her breathing is so loud because her nose is so stopped up), and eye ointment for conjunctivitis. she'll take her amoxicillin mixed up with wet food.
it's the eye stuff that's the problem. we spent two hours last night trying to catch her. we thought we were going to have to take her to the hospital. we can't mess around--the doctor said she's pretty bad. the doctor suggested we put her in a bathroom. it's too small, so we put her in the closet. we have no problem giving her her medicine there, and all her stuff fits.
the poor thing has to stay in there for a week, though! i feel so awful. she just sleeps and sleeps,
but the doctor said she doesn't have any business moving around a lot. my poor baby.
---
i just came out of the closet, after playing with lucy and hand-feeding her a few morsels of dry food. i don't think she felt safe being pet, so i just played with her. good girl. we are keeping a fan in front of the closet door. she stays in the corner pretty much, so we keep the door open while we're in there. it's warm, but i don't think too warm. i hope not. i hope she's drinking enough. i'm terrified that she isn't drinking enough.
okay i'm boring you non-animal-obsessed people. think baby when i say kitty and you'll have a little bit of an idea.
Thursday, September 25, 2003
the joys of "motherhood"
here's a good kitty story for you:
as you know, the litterbox (and, up until today, the food and water dish) is in our bedroom. as you may also know, cats should not be startled while on the pot, as they may become afraid of the litterbox, and decide to take they' bidness elsewhere. so last night, lucy went into the little kitty's room just as sean was sitting on the edge of the bed (just a couple feet from her). i told sean not to move a muscle until she came out, and we figured she was probably only doing number one, because he had already scooped poo out that day. it seemed like she was in there forever. well, not as long as sean spends in the little husband's room, but anyway...
suddenly she comes FLYING OUT of there, darting towards the bedroom door. at first we're about to laugh, but then i see--about two feet behind her--a significantly large piece o' kitten poo. i guess the poo hanging from her butt (by a hair? i don't know) is what spooked her.
i had to scoop it up, but sean took it out to the garbage can. i'm sort of afraid to do that, because one time i was taking out the garbage, and there were a bunch of those bugs with the butt pincers.
butt pincers frighten me.
Wednesday, September 24, 2003
wednesday afternoon
sometimes i remember i'm a middle school music teacher, and i have to laugh. i can't even believe it.
i hope that cricket is outside. it's times like this i'm glad there's a vicious predator living with us. you should see the way she stalks her prey (and by "prey," i mean the belt to my bathrobe).
i don't think i have any funny stories or interesting things to tell today. i'm pretty bored and pooped. i could go for a nap, or a return to june 25.
i can't think how a cricket would get in here. well, the windows are open.
Monday, September 22, 2003
i don't know what i'm going to post about today
even as i begin to type this post, i don't know what i'm typing about. about which i'm typing. will it be the new kitty? will it be about the very loud tootie that was tooted by a student today? will it be about how fat i feel and look after eating iieee ice cream (coconut ice cream with fudge and almonds)? or how about my voice lesson, which went surprisingly well considering i really overdid it during school today, and was having some fatigue? and how about those sixth graders, who are very bright and take the initiative, but just need to shut up sometimes? or the story of one of my best tenors who is quitting chorus to do some advanced science class, and when i told him i wouldn't sign the slip because i don't want him to quit and need to talk to his parents first, he spent the whole period pouting with me? or what if i decided to reiterate my love of this computer, but i feel oddly guilty about it--as if i am somehow betraying my other (4-year old) computer?
i don't know what i'm going to write about today. i guess i just can't think of anything. try back tomorrow. maybe i'll have something to say then. i'm sorry!
Sunday, September 21, 2003
who's furry and has a cute pink nose?
LUCY! lucy is our kitty cat. we adopted her from bide-a-wee yesterday. her name was precious, but...well, let's just say that we've seen both the lord of the rings and the silence of the lambs. 'nough said.
she is a year old, and she came in with kittens. she sort of freaked out about them...maybe because she was very young to be a mother, and they had to get another cat to nurse them. i think she's depressed and needs a lot of tlc. well, she's gonna get it.
we're keeping her in the bedroom for now. you're supposed to keep kitties in a closet or bathroom or tiny room because confined spaces are comforting. they get overwhelmed when put into a new, big space. but our closet gets really hot (and it would be hard to keep her from going into the crawl space, because the doors open easily), and our bathroom is literally too small. so she's in the bedroom. mostly under our bed. she comes out and explores when we're not there (or if my husband is in the bathroom so long that she forgets he's there). she was checking things out today, and sat herself right on top of a pile of comics on the back of our bed. we're just leaving her alone now. well, sometimes we'll raise up the bedskirt and talk to her, but that's about it. when she's ready, though, there's gonna be some major playing and ear scratchin' going on!
i think that's about it. oh, we also had "sick day" today. that's when we leave our pjs on, pull out the couchbed, and watch movies or bad tv. i actually did feel pretty nauseous overnight and this morning, but i think it's just the cruds. karolyn brought over some chocolate/coconut ice cream concoction, and i'm hoping i can stomach dairy products tonight, because it sounds DOPE.
ho! hollah!
Friday, September 19, 2003
we're gonna go up
and go down
get back up and
turn around
can you point your fingers and do the twist?
"can you point your fingers and do the twist," the wiggles
of course, my family DAD sings "can you pull my finger and do the fart."
some people. so immature.
excuse me. i'm sorry. oh god, sean, don't be so melodramatic. it does NOT smell like popcorn from hell. show some compassion--i'm constipated.
actually, i am. i am totally having to take citricel. ME, the pride of the bathrooms at renfrew. i never missed a poo while i was in there, but now i'm suffering. if you see any of the renfrew girls (especially the ones in our sorority...i-eta-pi), don't tell them. i'd be stripped of my title ('princess poo').
moving on...
oh! i wish i was moving!
moving on...
i actually had a decent rehearsal 9th period today. i am having this problem, totally needing a siesta at about 1:00 each day (7th and 8th grade chorus meets at 1:43). i somehow got over it. i was all dancing around and making up warm-ups with silly words about the weekend and the weather. the girls told me i sounded like a cheerleader. they're good kids. it's just so hard to find the line between understanding (treating them as human beings and getting to know what makes them tick and acting accordingly) and effectively teaching 70 kids in one class.
i think that having kids is a form of insanity. we saw this clip on the funny home video show. this woman was telling her two (4ish? 5ish?) sons that she was going to have a baby girl, and the one boy freaked out. he looked all grossed out, then he started crying and throwing a tantrum. my friend at work was saying he always has the closed captioning feature on on his tv, because you can't actually hear when the children are there. it just seems like parenthood is all about adjusting to an unending list of absurdities.
on the other hand, my husband and i have some pretty darn weird "rituals" that we do. there's a certain dance one of us does when complimented by the other. i frequently demand to be carried around, or just jump on his back for a piggy back ride. i bed to pop his pimples or tweeze an ingrown hair. i pout if he doesn't come talk to me while i'm in the shower. we talk in weird voices all the time. i sleep with at least one towel. the list goes on and on.
alright folks, i have "things" to do. like. um. well, whatever. what the heck are YOU doing online on a friday night? doesn't the support group for sock-stealers meet tonight?
Wednesday, September 17, 2003
i see a bad moon a-risin'
i see trouble on the way
"bad moon rising," ccr
unfortunately, not in the right spot to give me a hurricane day off friday! i know. what am i....seven? but i like days off "due to inclement weather." i guess there's still the hope of a power outage in my school only.
urrrrrrgh i have a horrible headache. i didn't sleep well last night, and do you know what? i think it was from the caffeine that was present in the chocolate ice cream i ate for dessert. i promised myself i'd get in bed bright and early and
(okay, so i also am selling you out to watch "paradise hotel"...but there are only three episodes left!!!
hopefully i'll be in better shape to post tomorrow. i will amuse you with the tale of my visit to the nutritionist. the $200-visit nutritionist who specializes in eating disorders but would definitely be accepted as a patient at renfrew because she couldn't possibly be more than 85% of her ideal body weight. and how about the part where she made me turn around when she weighed me, and i haven't seen my weight in two weeks, so i got her back by weighing myself in the nurses' office today during my lunch period?
oh, i see. you've already heard that one. dang! well, i'll tell you something interesting. i'll come up with something.
Monday, September 15, 2003
fruit salad
yummy yummy
fruit salad
yummy yummy
"fruit salad," the wiggles
one day, once i had made "iep" (and didn't have to go to the after-dinner support group), i was skipping down the hall singing that song. i skipped my way right past one of the groups going on in the lounge, and got a dirty look from a counselor. fortunately, i had a my "mr t keychain on me"
"don't gimme no back talk, suckah!"
okay, no, i didn't do that. but i did hide it under my back for one of the other groups: "shuddup, fool."
i haven't used it on my kids yet. but OH i will.
Sunday, September 14, 2003
if i threw my guitar
out the window, so far down
would i start to regret it
or would i smile and watch it slowly fall?
"guitar," cake
well, so far i'm definitely keeping the sabbath holy. i'm still in my pajamas. and i haven't done a darn thing. heck, i'm such a good christian, sometimes i "observe the sabbath" more than once a week. or all summer. go me.
yesterday we went to the mall and bought an ibook. awesome. it's being built, so we should get the various parts over the next two weeks. we got the high-end ibook, plus an external disc drive, printer, and this 3-year warranty thing. i got a discount because i'm a teacher, which is pretty phat. i can't wait to play with the airport thing. of course, we have a 25-foot phone cord, and we basically live in a 2-room apartment, so i don't know how necessary it is. sean and i are definitely going to be fighting over who gets to play with our toy.
apart from that, we pretty much have a moratorium on non-essential spending for a while. i really really wanted a new pair of black pants (on sale at old navy), but it's time to tighten our belts and learn the art of delayed gratification.
have you ever had stonyfield farms chocolate underground yogurt? they used to make caramel underground, too, but i can't seem to find it anywhere. best yogurt ever. it's so good. i like chocolate things that aren't messing around when it comes to the chocolate. for example, a milkshake made with vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup is NOT a chocolate milkshake! vanilla is not a flavorless flavor! when i ask for a chocolate milkshake, i'm going to beat you up unless you make it with chocolate ice cream!
but not on sunday. beating your bee-hind is considered work, even though it comes easily to me.
i don't have any amusing tales of flatulent adolescents today. check back tomorrow.
love
me
Friday, September 12, 2003
fergie is sad today
there will be no silly stories about 12 year olds farting, or boring stories about my household appliances today. i'm so sad. k's sweet golden retriever, hot dog, went to the happy hunting grounds last night. and i miss her. i knew she was sick, and i had actually planned on seeing if i could go visit her this weekend, but she didn't make it. she is a sweet girl. a big trundler of a puppy. when you came to the door she said "oh! please! fergie! love me! more attention! love hot dog!" and when you said "tell me a story, hot dog!" she'd go "rrrOar rO-ar" and it was very interesting and fun. and what a snuggler. so snuggly and kindly and sweet. and she has the gentlest eyes and kindest face you could ever hope for in a buddy. what a good girl. i bet she gets a special doggie bed. and i know she's returned to her healthy, youthful puppy state now (and is hanging out with her housemate misty), but i miss her. what a goo' girl! i love you hot dog!
Wednesday, September 10, 2003
cold busted!
so as you know, i came back to teaching a week late thanks to my insurance-covered "vacation" at renfrew. so i never got to go to all the beginning-of-the-year meetings, or meet people. not even our new superintendent and assistant superintendent. i figured i'd know them when they popped into my classes (and i've been praying that everyone would give me a couple of weeks to adjust).
i was chilling today in front of the office, on hall duty. i love hall duty. it's quiet, i can read or write, and kids come by and say hi on their way to the bathroom. i used to listen to my ipod during this duty...i'd just string it up through my sleeve and listen through one ear. today, i was feeling reckless, so i just openly listened to it. you can guess where this is going...
so these two dudes come in, and i didn't recognize them, and they're in suits, so i just kind of froze up. it was too late to hide the ipod. but then they asked me where to sign in, and i was like "oh, they must be some computer guys." and then they were talking to some other dude i don't know about how his year was going. well, crap. later on, i found out that they had been making the rounds. so poop. i mean, i was really friendly to them, but i was also listening to my ipod while on duty.
on the other hand, i AM a music teacher.
in other news, i just realized today that i have sixth graders that go "OOH! OOH! OOH!" and shake their raised hands furiously when i ask a question. can you beat this?
Tuesday, September 09, 2003
special delivery
so my husband failed to pack the cellphone and digital camera chargers THAT I PUT RIGHT ON TOP OF THE PILE OF HIS CLOTHES IN THE DRESSER, so he had to call the hotel and get them to mail them to us. we got them today, along with another delightful surprise. a box full of books by the big butthead himself, ted rall. yeah. why these got mailed to us, i don't know. of course, i wanted to burn them in effigy, but then again mister craphead would probably sue us. so we're tracking down the company they belong to, and we'll mail them back.
ted rall. how dare you show your butt-face at spx. i...i...i wear my "free dirty danny" pins at you. ptooey. take it.
whaddareyou gon' do? call my school and tell them i'm less of a music teacher because you annoy me? bite my bee-hind.
so there.
in other spx news, we had a pretty good time. it was weird being out in public (and, particularly, around boys), and i was definitely not looking as hard for trouble as i was at wizardworld, but it was nice. i met frank miller. i lost my nerve about telling him that i'm a dame, but i'm well on my way to becoming a broad. i ate gelato (there was a gelato place connected to the hotel! holy poo!).
oh, and we were eating lunch at this mediocre mediterranean place on saturday, and we were entertained by this crazy or drugged up guy. he was across the street, dancing around, and smiling at people. i wonder what his story was. i wish i could have some of what he takes. he looked so jolly. oh, and four pregnant women walked by during a 45-minute lunch.
what else. i completed my jeffrey brown collection, except for a clumsy t-shirt and "be a man" (which i plan to order). i talked to nice boys and girls.
did i tell you about the addiction that i acquired while at renfrew? yeah, i'm addicted to "easy" new york times crossword puzzles. sean brought up craig thompson to the room at 1:00 sunday morning, where they found me in my snoopy pajamas, contentedly working on a crossword. i'm thinking this is a good hobby. better than tv, at least. plus, i'm thinking it had something to do with the fact that i totally took my husband TO SCHOOL last night playing scrabble. ho!
hey, ted rall: you suck. do you know what i am feeling now? it is disgust.
Monday, September 08, 2003
comics groupie
i think it's safe to say i am now an alternative comics groupie. you'd think that topshelf's rejection of my offer to be a boothgirl at wizardworld would get me to take a step back and think about things, but i did just come out of what is basically a mental hospital. and the boys are so cute. i can't talk to them, but i sure can write them notes and throw them at them while they're selling their books.
i'll give the details about spx tomorrow, but for now i just have to reprint this little chestnut that i found nestled deep within jeffrey brown's...sketch book. i know how he feels. here it is:
I WILL OVERPOWER YOU (by jeffrey brown)
I WILL OVERPOWER YOU. YOU STAND LITTLE CHANCE. ALL YOU CAN KNOW NOW IS THAT ONCE WE STEP INTO THE OCTAGON MY ONLY THOUGHT IS OF DESTROYING YOU. YOU WILL BE LIKE A SCHOOLBUS FULL OF CHILDREN AND I WILL BE LIKE AN ANGRY, EVIL BUSDRIVER WHO IS DRIVING YOU INTO A LAKE WHERE YOU WILL DROWN AND ALL YOUR SCREAMS OF PROTEST WILL FIND YOU HELPLESS AGAINST MY AUTHORITY. FOR THAT IS THE AUTHORITY OF MY WILL IN THE OCTAGON. HOW MANY WAYS CAN I DESTROY YOU? IT WOULD TAKE DAYS FOR ME TO LIST THEM. I WILL CHOKE YOU UNTIL YOUR HEAD DROOPS IN UNCONSCIOUSNESS. I WILL BEND YOUR ARM IN HALF. I WILL BREAK YOUR LEG. I WILL POUND YOUR FACE INTO SUCH A BLOODY MESS THAT WHEN PEOPLE LATER TELL ME OF MY DESTROYING YOU THE WORD 'PULP' WILL BE FREQUENTLY USED. DO YOU REMEMBER THE VIDEO OF THE KITTIES STUCK IN THE DRAIN PIPE AND THE FIREMEN HAD TO COME AND CUT THEM OUT, BARELY SAVING THEM JUST IN TIME? WELL YOU ARE A KITTY BUT I AM NOT A FIREMAN. I AM A DRAINPIPE AND THERE ARE NO FIREMEN HERE. DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT IS THAT YOU ARE FEELING NOW? IT IS FEAR.
i couldn't have said it better myself.
Wednesday, September 03, 2003
the musical fruit
now that i am "iep" (which means i get to check myself off for eating all my food, rather than having a counselor pick up my plate and check in everything to make sure i'm not hiding a teaspoon of rice), i found a new way to make mealtime fun. instead of initialing after the 4/4 that means i'm a good little eater, i write something fun. if we have beans, for example, i'll write something like "gonna be a fun night! ho!." i'll go whole days, however, just writing comments about myself.
hot stuff
sexy mama
go sexy girl!
and things like that. good times. there's also a light that flashes on and on throughout meals. i decided that, when it goes off, the person who is speaking is lying. when it goes back on, everyone must say "amanda rules!." good times.
i can't wait to not have to come to the andorra public library to check e-mail. there's this clerk here who gives me crap every single time i come in here. what business is it of his that i've come in fives and asked for a visitors pass? why does he have to bust my chops about it? if he does it tomorrow--my last time here (i hope!)--i'm gonna tell him what he can do with his visitors' passes. ho!
